{"id":37538,"date":"2017-01-31T12:00:54","date_gmt":"2017-01-31T20:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/?p=37538"},"modified":"2017-01-26T06:03:37","modified_gmt":"2017-01-26T14:03:37","slug":"29-life-lessons-ive-learned","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2017\/01\/31\/29-life-lessons-ive-learned\/","title":{"rendered":"29 Life Lessons I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve Learned"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Dalat,
Dalat, Vietnam 2016 \/ Photo by Cindy<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Dear friend,<\/p>\n

Today I turn 29 years old, and I wanted to use this opportunity to reflect about my life, and 29 lessons I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve learned along the way:<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

1. All people want to love, and be loved<\/h2>\n

No matter how wicked someone may seem; they were born as an infant to a loving mother. Each person has felt deep sorrow in their heart.<\/p>\n

I believe that all people want to love others, and be useful to others. Not only that, but they want to receive love in return.<\/p>\n

2. Life is a smartphone battery<\/h2>\n

Your time is the ultimate non-renewable resource. Each day you are dying, and getting closer to death. I see life as a smartphone battery \u00e2\u20ac\u201d you are born with 100% charge, and each day, you are losing charge. And in life, there is no charger.<\/p>\n

3. The more you give, the more you will receive<\/h2>\n

The more you help others, the more you will receive in return. This is the basis for the bond of humanity.<\/p>\n

If you want to be loved, start by loving others.<\/p>\n

If you want to earn more money, start by by adding more value to the lives of others.<\/p>\n

\n \u00e2\u20ac\u0153He who lives for himself is truly dead to others.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

4. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Happiness\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is achieved by avoiding \u00e2\u20ac\u0153unhappiness\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/h2>\n

Nobody knows what makes them happy; but almost everybody knows what makes them miserable.<\/p>\n

So the best way to (quickly) gain \u00e2\u20ac\u0153happiness\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is to simply avoid<\/em> what makes you miserable.<\/p>\n

5. Perfection is achieved through subtraction<\/h2>\n

Each day, seek to remove one thing from your life. Remove 1 distraction, 1 superfluous activity, 1 negative person, uninstall 1 app from your phone, and subtract 1 negative memory from your past.<\/p>\n

Seek emptiness; and you will become full of life.<\/p>\n

6. To focus, remove distractions<\/h2>\n

It is impossible to force yourself to focus. It is possible to remove distractions from your environment.<\/p>\n

Turn off your phone, disable the internet on your computer, or do as Ulysses did before he met the Sirens \u00e2\u20ac\u201d he filled his ears with beeswax and tied himself to the mast of his ship.<\/p>\n

7. My definition of success: doing what you love without being homeless<\/h2>\n

Success (to me) is doing what you love without being homeless. If you spend each hour of the day doing what you love (and can pay your rent), what else do you need in life?<\/p>\n

8. How to build good habits: do more of what you want to do, and do less of what you don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want to do<\/h2>\n

We are our habits. To build good habits in life, you need to want to change your own habits.<\/p>\n

If there is a certain behavior you like doing, do more of it. If there is something you don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t like about your character or behavior, seek to do less of it.<\/p>\n

Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t become discouraged. Even though you might fall off the horse, get back on again.<\/p>\n

9. Innovation is achieved through necessity<\/h2>\n

All great innovation comes from hunger, poverty, or necessity. The richer we are, the less innovative we are (we just buy away our problems).<\/p>\n

So if you want to learn how to innovate, see how you can put yourself in a difficult situation, with fewer resources, and less money and opportunities\u00e2\u20ac\u201d to truly innovate.<\/p>\n

10. Time either improves or extinguishes things<\/h2>\n

Things which have existed for a long time have probably existed for a long time for a good reason.<\/p>\n

But most things will be removed with time.<\/p>\n

Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t fall victim to fads. Stick with the classics, and follow the example of the ancients. Anything modern will almost certainly fade with time.<\/p>\n

11. The braver you are, the happier you are<\/h2>\n

To seek happiness, you need to be brave, take risks, and seek to live the life you want.<\/p>\n

If we are meek, shy, and cannot take risks \u00e2\u20ac\u201d we will never be happy.<\/p>\n

It is a battle to live a life true to yourself. So armor up, and seek to take more risks in life, and to be more brave.<\/p>\n

12. It is better to have a few very close friends, rather than to have many acquaintances<\/h2>\n

My opinion is that you cannot have more \u00e2\u20ac\u0153real friends\u00e2\u20ac\u009d than the fingers on your hands. It is better to have a few, very deep relationships, and to continue cultivating those relationships, rather than always trying to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153network\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and make new \u00e2\u20ac\u0153friends\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and acquaintances.<\/p>\n

13. The best color is no color<\/h2>\n

When in doubt about purchasing any product (where you have a choice of choosing a certain color); use black as a default.<\/p>\n

Black clothes, black shoes, black car, black camera, black devices. Fewer colors, fewer choices, and less stress.<\/p>\n

14. Own your own platform<\/h2>\n

Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be slave to the platform of others. Build your own platform, and own your own platform, to have freedom, and control in your life.<\/p>\n

15. Tomorrow is never<\/h2>\n

Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t procrastinate what is important to you. But intentionally procrastinate on what isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t important to you.<\/p>\n

16. More is less<\/h2>\n

Less is more; more is less.<\/p>\n

More stuff, more headaches, more problems, more maintenance, and complications.<\/p>\n

17. To be creative, approach everything as a beginner<\/h2>\n

We have pure creativity when we are children; unsoiled by the opinions of adults. We are truly creative when we are beginners, starting off; unsoiled by the opinion of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153experts.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

To always be creative, always try to be a beginner.<\/p>\n

18. Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t ask others for their opinions; observe their actions<\/h2>\n

Listen to what people do more than what they say.<\/p>\n

Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t ask people what to invest in\u00e2\u20ac\u201d ask them what is in their portfolio. Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t ask the waiter what to eat a restaurant, ask what they prefer eating at the restaurant. Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t ask for parenting advice\u00e2\u20ac\u201d observe how they treat their children.<\/p>\n

And never trust the business advice of anyone who hasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t actually run or built a successful business.<\/p>\n

Similarly, don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t trust the opinion of any artists, photographers, or critics whose art you don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t personally like.<\/p>\n

19. You are the most important (and the most difficult) person to impress<\/h2>\n

\n \u00e2\u20ac\u0153To depend on the nod of another is a sad livelihood.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d – Publilius Syrus\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

If you need the approval of others to feel happy or successful, you will always be a slave.<\/p>\n

Only seek to impress yourself, then the others will come.<\/p>\n

20. Be like bamboo; flexible, yet strong<\/h2>\n

Have a plan, but be flexible and open to changing your plans.<\/p>\n

Have ethics and morals, but know when to change them according to the situation.<\/p>\n

Have a life philosophy, but don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be unwilling to change them if you find out that you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re wrong.<\/p>\n

21. Treat others like they are going to die tomorrow<\/h2>\n

It isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t enough to live each day as if it were your last. Also treat others like tomorrow is going to be their last day.<\/p>\n

This way you will never regret anything negative you say to others. And you will have the opportunity to share with others how you really feel \u00e2\u20ac\u201d and what you really want to say to them. To share words of encouragement, of love, and of appreciation.<\/p>\n

22. To be a human is to be useful to others<\/h2>\n

We were born for others. The more we help others, the happier we are.<\/p>\n

No person would want to live if there weren\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t any other humans on earth.<\/p>\n

The more we seek to be helpful and useful to others, we will always have a reason to wake up each morning.<\/p>\n

23. All of life is comparison<\/h2>\n

Nothing is \u00e2\u20ac\u0153small\u00e2\u20ac\u009d or \u00e2\u20ac\u0153great\u00e2\u20ac\u009d except by comparison.<\/p>\n

Wealth is all comparative. We are \u00e2\u20ac\u0153rich\u00e2\u20ac\u009d or \u00e2\u20ac\u0153poor\u00e2\u20ac\u009d based on who we compare our wealth to.<\/p>\n

Our opinion of our \u00e2\u20ac\u0153success\u00e2\u20ac\u009d in life is according to those who we compare ourselves to.<\/p>\n

If you stop comparing yourself to others, you will live a truly tranquil life.<\/p>\n

24. Wisdom is following your own advice<\/h2>\n

I have a hard time following my own advice. So each day, I try to stick to my own advice, and to follow my own advice. To me this is true wisdom.<\/p>\n

25. The three best things to optimize for: weight, size, and flexibility<\/h2>\n

When it comes to traveling, living, or creating\u00e2\u20ac\u201d the lighter, the smaller, and the more flexible \u00e2\u20ac\u201d the better.<\/p>\n

26. Follow nature<\/h2>\n

Mother nature knows best. Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t trust the artificial and the man-made.<\/p>\n

For any beauty when it comes to aesthetics or art, observe nature. Observe trees, rivers, and animals.<\/p>\n

What is enough for nature is never enough for man.<\/p>\n

Seek to find abundance through nature, and our needs will be easily met.<\/p>\n

27. The point of philosophy is learning who you are<\/h2>\n

\n \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Know thyself\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Nobody (myself included) knows who they are. The point of philosophy (the love of wisdom) is to discover who you are. To discover your preferences, and what works for you<\/em>.<\/p>\n

No self-help book is written by you. So seek to write your own book, full of remedies that will help you<\/em> find more peace, tranquility, and happiness in life.<\/p>\n

28. Never stop learning<\/h2>\n

As long as we are ignorant, we should keep on learning. Even Socrates said he was wise because he \u00e2\u20ac\u0153knew nothing.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

As long as we keep learning, we will never tire of life. If we keep learning, our minds will never grow stale.<\/p>\n

Let us endeavor to keep learning until we die.<\/p>\n

29. The purpose of life is to empower others<\/h2>\n

To me, the purpose of my life is to empower others. To empower others through information, advice, photography, guidance, and counsel.<\/p>\n

The more I empower others, the happier I am. The more purposeful my life feels.<\/p>\n

I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not perfect, and I never will be. But the more I study, the more I empower myself. And the only reason I study for myself, is in order to help share this information with others.<\/p>\n

Conclusion<\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"eric
Garden Grove, 2016 #cindyproject<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I have no idea what the future has in store for me.<\/p>\n

The biggest highlight of 2016 (being 28 years old) was marrying the love of my life \u00e2\u20ac\u201d Cindy. She is my muse, my guide, and my best friend.<\/p>\n

\"eric<\/p>\n

Thank you Cindy for helping me make it this far. I love you now, always, and forever.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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