{"id":99231,"date":"2018-06-27T01:16:38","date_gmt":"2018-06-27T08:16:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2018\/06\/27\/hope-is-dope-how-to-stay-optimistic-life-stoicism\/"},"modified":"2018-06-27T01:20:19","modified_gmt":"2018-06-27T08:20:19","slug":"hope-is-dope-how-to-stay-optimistic-life-stoicism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2018\/06\/27\/hope-is-dope-how-to-stay-optimistic-life-stoicism\/","title":{"rendered":"Hope is Dope: How To Stay Optimistic in Life #stoicism"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hope is dope, when shit gets tough and your back is on the ropes. How do you stay optimistic and rope a dope, Jack Dempsey?<\/a><\/p>\n

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Some ideas:<\/p>\n

First of all, realize that there’s always the sun shining, regardless if there’s clouds. I got this epiphany when I was flying from (cold and cloudy) Europe back to the states in the winter time. Above<\/em> the clouds the sun was still shining! And the sun is always there, giving us energy, life, and power! It’s only obscured sometimes by clouds, weather, or because of the rotation of the Earth.<\/p>\n

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But just be patient: the earth is always revolving. Sooner or later, it will rotate, and be in the face of the sun again! When it’s winter, spring is just around the corner!<\/p>\n

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Second, be grateful for the pain and suffering in life we have survived. What does this mean? It means that painful shit that happens in our life are positive stressor that make us stronger!<\/p>\n

For example, if you want to grow your muscles you must stress your muscles! You need heavy weights, gravity, or tension, to fight against you. This gives your body an opportunity to actually test its strength. And the micro tearing which happens through weight lifting is what actually allows your muscles to rebuild and grow!<\/p>\n

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So in a sense, I’m grateful for all my scars<\/a> in life. It’s difficulty, pain, and hard times which have helped me become stronger. Like Nietzche said, “What doesn’t kill me only makes me stronger!”<\/p>\n

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Third, realize you’re not gonna die. I think we still get stress and anxiety because we are afraid of starving to health, going homeless, or losing social prestige or power. But the good thing, you’re not gonna starve, die of thirst, or die of the cold!<\/p>\n

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Worst case scenario: you can always move to Saigon and live super well for only $500 USD a month (I actually prefer living in Saigon over NYC, LA, London, San Francisco, Paris, Tokyo, etc).<\/p>\n

So recognize the biggest fear we really have is social stigma. But if everyone hates you, or dislikes you; is that okay to you?<\/p>\n

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Fourth, realize that your life is more interesting and epic when it’s hard! Nobody will watch an action or epic film with no drama or difficulty in the heroes. Just watch any Marvel or superhero movie: imagine yourself as a superhero fighting the enemy in life! It’s the difficulty which makes you epic.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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5. HOPE IS DOPE.<\/h2>\n

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Let me end this with a little poem for you:<\/p>\n

Hope is dope<\/h3>\n