Meditations by Eric Kim

cindy project - eric kim black and white photography hanoi - monochrome - ricoh gr ii - 28mm-0010628-3

cindy project - eric kim black and white photography hanoi - monochrome - ricoh gr ii - 28mm-0010628-3

Personal meditations, on my life philosophy.

This is a personal diary to myself. I hope you find a few ideas that can benefit you:

1. Reach for the best within yourself

Discover your inner-treasure; the best within you.

2. Be blood

Blood gives life; create value for society.

3. Don’t consult others before acting

4. Help others fulfill their potential

5. Avoid boredom in life

6. Give your abundance to others

7. Figure out why you exist

8. Never stop challenging yourself

Feel excitement in solving problems, the delight of taking up new challenges, and to test yourself further.

Keep growing your own abilities.

Increase your 1-rep max.

9. Help yourself before helping others

Provide your basic needs and help your family — then seek to help others.

10. Figure out your purpose in life

11. Joy is creation

‘Happiness’ not as a feeling — but the act of creating. To fully-express your own creative greatness.

Joy is the fuel that will continue you to be creative.

12. Never stop offering

Keep doing good deeds for others; creating empowering things for others, and empowering others.

13. Be a hero

Watch superhero films — do you see how the heroes act? Be a hero.

What does a hero do; and what does a hero not do?

A hero sacrifices himself for others; and has a sacred duty to humanity.

14. Enrich the lives of others

Help others live more fully

15. Reward people for merit

Give rewards for merit; not to just give kids trophies for the sake of their ‘ego.’

16. Be a person of action

Speak less; act more.

17. Avoid animal-like pleasures

Pleasure is just a feeling of endorphins and dopamine hitting my brain. What is the difference between a wolf howling at the moon, and me enjoying looking at an expensive car?

What is the difference between my sexual pleasures, and the sexual pleasures of any other animal?

No matter how much delicious food I eat; it will all exit my body the same way.

Why does it matter that my food is super-exotic? I eat to life; I don’t live to eat.

18. Have a few quality products

Have a few quality products in my life. Not the most expensive; and not to hoard stuff.

To be satisfied with basic outfit — black is the best color.

To not skimp on tools for creation. No guilt for spending a lot of money on a laptop, or any other creative tool.

To use the tools I prefer, and are actually the most useful — not because prestige, or what others say.

To see the intrinsic quality in something; to disregard brand-names. To better yet— strip away brand names (or cover them with black tape). Not to be a brand-slave.

Also to make my own stuff. My own camera strap, my own camera bag, backpack, products, etc.

19. Don’t be so humble

Don’t brag or show off; but to know my own inner-greatness, and magnanimity.

20. Ignore others

To care about my loved ones; but to ignore almost everybody else.

21. Infinite

To know I am infinite. The only thing holding me back is my own drive, hustle, and imagination.

22. Only do what gives me joy

To enjoy the thrill and joy of creative creation; everyday.

To never do anything for fame or money; or superficial stuff— that doesn’t bring me joy.

23. Become myself

Create meaning to my name. To become me; not to inherit me.

To create myself, to design myself, to become the person I envision myself wanting to be.

24. Avoid boredom

Avoid boredom like a child.

25. Be selfish for the greater good

Be selfish about my creative time and attention — in order to help the greater good of humanity.

26. Produce more than I consume

Less swallowing, more consuming.

27. Never compare myself with anybody else

Just ‘do me’ — to do my work to the best of my ability; to never compare myself with anyone else. To ignore numbers and social media.

28. Build my own platform

Not to invest too much into other platforms like Instagram, Facebook, etc. To know that I own my own platform (blog) — which is the best investment. To disregard social media following numbers, and to follow my own gut, and self-assessment of my own progress in life.

29. Assume I can do anything

I am never too old or inexperienced to do anything. I can do anything I put my mind to; as long as I want to do it.

Impossible is nothing.

30. Do it; or don’t do it

Don’t discipline myself to do anything. Either do it, or not.

31. Try it out

Not sure whether it will work or not?

Let’s find out.

Or

Let’s make it

Or

I can do it.

Have pride and belief in myself.

32. Never enter contests

Why put my own self-esteem at the hands of others? Be like Spartans— never play any games where there are clear winners and losers. Real life has no winners or losers.

Avoid sports.

33. Increase the inheritance I’ve been given

Follow the parable of Jesus; increase the inheritance which has been given to me.

34. Do great things

Do cool shit; great things, to help humanity.

35. Don’t look down; fly like an eagle

If I’m an eagle, soaring on the wings of inspiration — don’t look down. Keep soaring higher and higher; until my wings burn from getting too close to the sun.

No matter how good I am, to keep see how far I can rise. To give it everything that I got— to keep getting better, stronger, smarter.

To never stop soaring.

36. Work, work, work, work, work

When in doubt, keep up ‘honorable industry’ – or honorable hustle.

Not to work for work’s sake. But to work to do meaningful, purposeful work, which will benefit humanity.

37. Disregard people who don’t like me

I cannot please everyone. Don’t feel upset when others don’t like me. Have love for everybody — even my haters. Because they are truly sad children, deep inside. With unfulfilled dreams.

38. Don’t care to be popular

Popularity isn’t a sign of success. Only sign of success:

How do I feel about my own progress?

39. Don’t criticize Picasso

Would you stand over Picasso’s shoulder, and criticize his brush strokes? – Dr. Dre

Never criticize the art of another artist. To just focus on my own art.

40. Strip down to the essentials

Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. – Leonardo da Vinci

Strip my life down to pure, unadorned, simplicity. To have the essentials, not as a way of punishing myself— but to make myself lighter, stronger, and more focused.

To avoid any superfluous movement or activity, which prevents me from doing my life’s task.

41. Hustle; no hand-outs

There are no hand-outs in life, remember how hard you hustled as a kid.

Note to self: don’t spoil your future children. Let them hustle to get what they want.

42. All killer, no filler

Less is more.

43. Buy books, not gear

Education is always the best investment.

44. Just shoot it.

My entire photography philosophy. Nike should sponsor me.

45. Memento mori

Remember, one day you will die. And remember; it is your duty to die. So no thoughts on living forever. At best you will live to be 120. At worst, maybe you will lose your mind at 55. Or, you might die tomorrow. Or you might die from getting in a car accident, or choking to death after an allergic reaction.

46. Never stop hustling

Rich as fuck, but, guess what I’m back to work. Dr. Dre

Even when I’m rich; keep hustling, not to stuff my pockets, but to do more honorable hustle for the greater good.

47. No speed limit

My life as a German Autobahn freeway— no speed limits.

Also like a skyscraper; no limits.

I cannot think of limits in my life. I must go beyond them. Be infinite like the universe; keep growing.

48. Follow my gut; not my guilt

Disregard what others try to guilt me into doing or not doing; follow my own gut and intuition.

49. Seek inner-perfection

Try to achieve the stoic ideal for myself; and for others.

To never blame anybody else for anything. Even when it was ‘their fault.’

50. Make my first like my last; and my last like my first

To make art, blog posts, books, videos, photos — like it were my last.

But to make all my art like I was a kid again, or a hungry intern again.

51. Be more useful

To be more wealthy; be more useful to society, to a greater number of people, in a more useful way.

52. Help others find their meaning and purpose in life

My purpose; help others find their purpose.

53. Disregard opinions of others

Everyone can have their own opinion; I have the power to ignore them.

54. Don’t work for gratitude

Don’t work for the applause of others; but for the sake of helping others. To not get discouraged when I don’t get praise or appreciation.

Does the sun need appreciation for rising everyday; without getting weary?

55. I am selfish

Yes, I am evil, selfish, conceited, heartless, cruel, and self-centered.

But for the greater good.

How else can I help others, but to focus on my own work?

56. Admit it

If people criticize me, best response:

“You are right.”

How else will they attack me?

57. Avoid parasites

Remember your dad being a parasite to your mom and the entire family.

Never become a parasite. Or let my kids become parasites.

58. Heaven on earth

Heaven isn’t a place where I go after I die. Heaven is being alive on earth, to love, be loved, and to do my life’s purpose and task.

Hell isn’t a place after I die— hell is living with unfulfilled desires, and having the wrong goals in life. Avoid hell on earth.

No hell after I die; but my spirit and soul will be eternal.

I already live on heaven on earth; appreciate being alive! Never to waste a moment of my life.

59. Give fewer fucks

I used to give a fuck; now I give a fuck less. – Jay-Z

Give fewer fucks about what others think of me; give more fucks that I think of me.

60. Ignore

Learn to ignore the superfluous in life.

61. I don’t own anything

Everything is on loan. My life. Give it back willing fully before I die, and thank God for the precious gift of life. To not waste my life, and to increase profits for God and humanity.

62. 100% dependent on myself

Don’t need to be dependent on others to do creative work.

63. Never weary

Sleep enough, but drink lots of coffee during the day, and don’t eat breakfast or lunch to be more productive. But to enjoy a nice leisurely dinner with your loved ones and Cindy.

64. Unlimited ambition

I’m infinite. To never stop being hungry; to remember my hunger as a child, as a high schooler, and college student.

I used to be ambitious; that is why Cindy was attracted to me. Re-spark that ambition; to be ambitious for helping the greater good.

65. Don’t wait

If important, do it now. Tomorrow is never.

66. Legacy

What will I be remembered for after I die? Maybe open source. Hopefully the idea of generosity, and love for everybody. Of equality, access, and empowerment.

Don’t matter if I have a billion dollars; I can’t take that shit with me when I die. But hopefully the pattern of my life, my actions, will help inspire, motivate, and uplift future generations of humanity.

67. Be fearless

Don’t be afraid to share the truth; or what I believe in.

68. Sacrifice myself for the greater good

Follow in the footsteps of Jesus, Seneca, Socrates, Martin Luther King Jr., Gandhi, other Martyrs.

Crucify myself for the truth; and for humanity. To have soul in the game.

69. Don’t live at half my level

I am living at half my level; what if I unlocked my fullest potential, and went further than that?

70. Nothing is impossible

Feel as if this were a world where nothing was impossible.

With all the technology, internet, and my ingenuity — I can do anything.

I have unlimited choices, resources, and power to do anything!

Action cures all fear.

71. Never betray my soul

Never betray my soul, my gut, my beliefs — even for a billion dollars?

Why do I need a billion dollars anyways? I can feed myself on eggs, pork jowl, coffee is cheap, all I need is laptop and wifi.

72. Small is better

For almost everything in life; smaller is better.

Small studio apartment: easier to clean, easier to get from kitchen to dining table, from shower to bed.

Small camera: less weight, less stress, more walking, more creativity, more photos.

Small car: easier to park, less time filling up gas, less money, less stress of it getting beaten up.

73. Don’t own

Renting is better. Renting apartment; I can screw up the sink, the furniture, and I don’t care, or not stressed out.

Uber everywhere, no need to stress about parking. Better than self-driving car. I can take a nap in an Uber.

74. No limit on output

Never let anybody tell me I’m creating or outputting too much. I’m unlimited stream; like a river, or torrent of water. Or beam of light; or photons — always shining straight, at light speed.

Ultralight beam.

75. Money is food

To work is to earn enough to feed myself, and not die.

One meal a day is enough.

76. Enlightenment: Knowing what your purpose in life is

Having a reason to wake up in the morning; to serve the greater good.

77. What do I spend my time on?

I am what I spend my time on.

More time producing; less consuming.

78. Make a profit

My profits will help others profit.

79. What I need

  • Peace
  • Concentration
  • Not to get distracted

80. Never forget: it is fucking amazing to be alive

Never take life for granted. I will regret it, when I’m 90, on my death bed.

81. I have all the means of production

Buying a new camera; tool, gadget, won’t make me a better artist. No excuses.

82. My priorities

  1. Family
  2. Work
  3. My physical health, fitness, mind.

83. Run the map

I don’t rap; I run the map – Jay-Z

Don’t pigeon-hole myself. Extend my map, territories. Not just photographer, not just blogger, not just street photographer, not just artist, philosopher, teacher, whatever.

No definition.

Tap into my unlimited source of creativity — and unlock a second renaissance for myself.

84. Meditations

All my words are personal meditations; which I hope can help others.

85. Play in your sandbox; playground.

Refuse to play by the rules of others. Make my own rules.

86. Static -\> Kinetic energy

Take static, untapped potential — put it into motion, and make it kinetic!

87. Enjoy my wealth

Enjoy wealth; for coffee, good food, travel, helping family, convenience, etc. No guilt.

88. Fuck amusement and luxury

Don’t become a degenerate to the senses.

Go out and create meaning in my life.

89. Life is motion

Nothing can be created without motion.

Life is motion; life is hustling.

My life is purposeful motion; purposeful hustling.

90. Create more

Create more things; realize more of my static potential into kinetic energy. Study more physics?

91. Practice what I preach

Follow what I write about.

92. Put my money where my mouth is

Don’t do anything that doesn’t cost me money. Put my skin in the game.

Don’t use anything I wouldn’t use my own money on.

93. Show my top speed

Not slowing down; no limits on the bat mobile.

Put the pedal to the floor.

94. Why do I care to be noticed?

To be noticed or seen; like random eyes staring at me. Why do I care if a bunch of dogs stare at me?

Don’t crowd-source my self-esteem, to random eyeballs, and electrical signals in the minds of others.

What if a bunch of dogs were looking at me in admiration; would I care?

95. Detachment

Detach myself from what I cannot change; or what I don’t care about.

96. Money not evil

Money as a tool for exchange.

97. Think more

The more I think, produce, the more wealth I will have and create.

An honest man: don’t consume more than I produce. Produce more than I consume.

More productive I am; more rewards I’ll get.

98. No atlas complex

Don’t feel an ‘atlas complex’ — of trying to bear the weight of the whole world on my shoulders.

99. Self-made man

Be self-made man. Hustle for everything I create, desire, and want to achieve.

100. Create evergreen things

Create things which are evergreen— which are as relevant 10, 100, 1,000 years from now — as it is today. Avoid gear reviews, or anything fleeting.

101. Help others fulfill their personal maximum

See the best in others; spark the potential in others.

102. Create abundance for others

The more abundance I create; the more wealthy I will be.

103. Follow my own moral virtues

Follow what feels right to me; disregard shame, pity, or guilt.

104. Don’t be slaves of others

Don’t be slave to opinions of others. Don’t let anybody prevent me from doing what I want to do.

“Who ‘gonna stop me now?” – Jay Z

105. Onto the next one

I’m onto the next one — like Jay-Z. Keep moving forward; forward progress.

106. Only I can judge me

No need to defend myself; when nobody can judge me, not in my court.

107. Time above all

Time above money, prestige, networking, business, etc. Hold every hour in my grasp.

108. Thrive in life

Don’t just survive; thrive. Thrive in life; fly on the wings of inspiration to the heavens.

109. The end goal

The end goal: to have the freedom to pursue my passion. That is the ultimate wealth.

There is no limit to what is possible in life.

110. Reduce obligations

Not to gain money; but to reduce obligations, and work, stress, anxiety, bothersome things, etc.

111. How can your money value me?

What do I need more money for?

I already got coffee, apartment, camera, laptop — no need for anything else? Just more opportunity to do more creating.

112. Expand my life

The purpose of wealth: the means of expanding my life.

How to expand my life— to do more creative, purposeful work, to uplift my soul and spirit?

To be more wealthy:
1. Produce more
2. Produce it faster
3. MANUFACTURE TIME

An hour saved is an hour added to my life. Be self-sufficient. Reduce unnecessary labor.

Hoard the saving account of time.

113. Give more life

Keep producing, adding more life, to the lives of others.

How to add value; purpose; life to others — with my products, blogs, ideas?

114. We want freedom

Freedom is the greatest human good. People think they want money; but they think of money as a tool to have freedom. Freedom of time, mind, and to do what you want to do (and don’t do what you don’t want to do).

Wealth — what greater wealth is there than to own yourself and spend on myself to keep growing?

115. Keep growing

Every living thing must grow; it can’t stand still — it must grow or perish.

Think of trees; they keep growing gradually, over eons.

Grow or perish. never stand still.

116. Magnum opus

Make each work a magnum opus— a great work.

117. Man is a social being

All the work I do to have a social purpose; to help humanity.

118. Be a builder

Keep building stuff; producing stuff.

119. A man is a doer

120. How to shape reality?

How to turn data into physical atoms in the real world?

121. Never compromise

Avoid the middle

Middle-point between food and poison is still poison. That is death.

Never a half-rational person; never a half-coward.

122. Produce ideas

Ideas are the most valuable; that stick in the minds, hearts, and souls of others. Ideas to benefit humanity?

The value of an idea can be shared with millions, billions of people!

Ideas are the ultimate scaleable commodity!

Be an Idea-producer. And then share the ideas.

123. No fear

Fear has stunted your soul!

Don’t let fear prevent me from growing.

124. Respect for all

Respect all of humankind.

125. Total dedication

To win; have total dedication.

Yours is the battle for any achievement; any value, any grandeur, any goodness, and joy that has ever existed on earth.

126. Unlimited audacity

Be a man of unlimited audacity.

To take bold risks.

127. What is money?

Money is just a scrap of paper. No inherent value; humans add value to money. A dollar bill is not equivalent to a pound of bacon.

128. Direct action

Disregard principles; only direct action can work.

129. Live by my own philosophy

But at the same time; be flexible for change.

130. My philosophy

I believe that all human beings are heroic beings; with unlimited potential. We just need to tap into that hidden-potential. To re-spark that childhood sense of curiosity.

To seek true, real, productive, useful achievement in life. To not have fear. To hustle; hard. To have no excuses. To just do it. To do noble work, for the greater good. To follow and cultivate reason, and to disregard what others think.

To follow your own heart; be true to yourself, be grateful for life, and to make love your mission statement.

Always,
Eric

Inspired by Marcus Aurelius and his mediations to himself.

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