I met a guy named Ryan at ‘Backyard Brew‘ in Palo Alto, and was super inspired by him — he taught me this concept of the ‘straight line’: directly do what you want to do, without getting distracted by money or other kinks in the link.
Direct line to happiness
For example, let us use the analogy of happiness.
Many of us trade our time, life, and human metabolism for money. Then we use that money to ‘buy’ our happiness.
But a more effective ‘straight line’ philosophy is:
Know what makes you happy, and go directly to it.
For example, let us say that you’re happiest when making photos. It doesn’t make sense for you to put in extra hours at work, to earn more money, to buy new camera gear, to buy new cameras. Your line is very long, like:
[A]—————————->[B]
More effective is to just use the camera you already own, and take photos with it, even though the image quality may not be great:
[A]—–>[B]
What do you really want to do with your life (not money-related)
So this is an interesting philosophy in life, because most of us never reflect and ask ourselves:
What do I really desire to achieve, create, or do in life?
We get suckered and distracted to thinking that the point of life is to accrue money, and THEN use that money to somehow empower us to be happy and do what we want to do.
Create your happiness today
The simple solution:
Identify what makes you happy, and do that directly– today.
For example, creating stuff is what makes me happiest. Thus, instead of me trying to earn more money to find more peace/zen/comfort in order to create, I just use my day (today) to create something. I often make excuses that I don’t have good enough technology, tools, or devices. But in reality, it is best to use your “shitty” devices/tools/cameras to create stuff, than to try to accrue money to buy better cameras/devices/tools to make stuff.
So friend, what makes you happy? Don’t add any kinks to your direct link to happiness; create your own happiness now; today!
BE BRAZEN,
ERIC
Philosophy
Dictate your meaning and purpose in your life with ZEN OF ERIC:
Philosophy Essays
- Desire Both Pain and Pleasure in Life
- Try the Impossible
- SELF-RESPECT
- Anti-Social Extrovert
- Never Blame Anybody But Yourself
- Human Flourishing
- Simpler, Not Better.
- How to be Free
- Embrace the Extremes
- Cultivate Your Own Culture
- COURAGE.
- Thrivival
- Inner Power
- How to Live a Purposeful Life
- My Definition of Happiness
- Why Change is Good
- Why Work?
- How to Live the Happiest Possible Life
- The Two-Pronged Approach to Maximize Joy in Your Life
- You Always Have Another Option!
- INFINITISM
- Never Stop!
- What is Your Self-Directed Purpose in Life?
- Live Today Like it Were Your Last
- Do You Photograph to Live, or Live to Photograph?
- ARTIST-PHILOSOPHER
- Live Life to the Fullest!
- In Praise of Selfishness
- Why You Must Be a YAY-SAYER to Succeed in Entrepreneurship and Life
- Why I Love Walking
- Live Life Like a Video Game!
- Simple Luxuries in Life
- Treat Your Life Like a Fun Experiment!
- Only Prove it to Yourself
- You Don’t Always Need to Feel Joyful to Live a Fulfilling and Meaningful Life
- Life is Too Short to Be Bored!
- Money Cannot Destroy Boredom
- How to Find Inspiration in Life
- Why You Must Ignore Haters to Succeed and Win in Life
- An Active Life is a Happy Life
- My Simple Joys in Life
- Never Stop Striving
- How to Motivate Yourself in Life
- How to Be Optimistic in Life
- How to Dictate Your Purpose in Life
- In Praise of a Dynamic Life
- PURPOSE.
- How to Enjoy Life
- Photography Therapy
- How to Conquer Regret
- Take Your Play Very Seriously.
- How to Prosper
- Memento Vivere
- Destroy in Order to CREATE
- Trust Your Body More Than Your Mind
- Make Photos to Make Meaning in Your Life
- Seek Knowledge, Not Information
- The Purpose of Human Life
- How to Overcome Impedence
- Why I Love Death
- How to Be Centered in the Eternal Now
- How to Be Happy
- Why Do You Care What Others Think of You?
- Why I’m Happy
- Why?
- Why I’m So Prolific
- How to Reduce LAG in Life
Masters of Philosophy »
Personal Philosophy »
Stoicism »
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- How to Use Photography as Self-Therapy
- How to Free Your Soul From Disturbance
Zen Philosophy »
- How to Be a Zen Street Photographer
- Zen in the Art of Street Photography
- How to Find Tranquility in Your Photography
Life Lessons »
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