Wyatt

Online dating is almost purely based on attractiveness, no fault of the girls because they have almost nothing else to base you on. I used to have average pictures on my profile and was super frustrated with my results. But then I had some fantastic pictures taken of me with a professional camera while adventuring in Europe. When I used those, I had lots of beautiful girls write me back, sometimes giving me their number without asking for it or straight up asking me out on a date! Get some great pictures of you being fun and adventurous! Well-thought lines and funny banter helps, but it won't do shit if you don't look like one of the hottest guys she matches with.

Study and think a lot about epistemology. How do I know what I think I know? How do I know what's true? How could I become truly knowledgeable on this topic?

Come up with a game plan/strategy, do it to the best of your ability, take time to evaluate your successes and failures, create a new and better strategy.

Listening to the wisdom of others through podcasts and books doesn't directly impact your development. The way these people became 'experts' in their field, and why you're hearing them in the first place, is because they sacrificed so much of time, energy, and life to becoming experienced in that domain. It's great to expand your base of knowledge in multiple domains, but it's just a part of personal development that doesn't require hours daily. If you have the feeling you're taking in too much theory and not enough practice, try practicing the things you want to get good at (or have a career in). If you do it enough, hopefully one day we'll hear you on a podcast talking about your expertise And I wouldn't necessarily recommend contemplating while walking. High-quality contemplation requires calmness and intense focus, which is difficult to maintain while walking. For me, imagining future scenarios I'll be in and creating a plan of action for them, as well as calling and speaking with friends or family, usually feel like really productive things to do while walking!

I'm in the midst of contemplating and observing emotions this month, especially anger, anxiety, and calmness. I realize that emotions' purpose, often, is to protect one's attachment to one's expectations. While perceiving a threat that negatively impacts expectations to an attachment, anger can arise. When imagining the future, if the imagined scenario doesn't match or exceed one's expectations, anxiety can arise. Can you help me understand: how do calmness and peace relate to attachment and expectations of life? Must we completely eradicate all expectations and our attachments to outcomes to truly be at peace? Or does lowering expectations to be 'realistic' with less attachment seem more healthy?

At 17:45, Sadhguru makes the claim "If you want to be a complete human being, it's important that you are equally proportionate in masculine and feminine qualities." This sentence is flawed in so many ways. Who's to say what's really masculine or feminine? Are these character traits, or perspectives, or actions, or what? Why would the world be better if EVERYONE had the same levels of feminine and masculine? Doesn't reality take all types, and we need to live out our own nature, whether that be deemed masculine or feminine? Maybe I'm wrong. What do you guys think?

@Consept good point, that might be what he's saying. I just think that masculine and feminine is a somewhat arbitrary and non-descript way of classifying people. Would be interesting to hear what traits he ascribes to each @Carl-Richard I guess it depends what you mean by feminine, but I don't care if other people see me as girly lol

https://nutritionfacts.org/ Check out this site. It's the holy grail on plant-based nutrition. He has a lot of videos on protein

I think it's interesting that these guys so are certain that there's a real external reality outside of our personal perceptions

What's the difference between someone who's open-minded and someone who's gullible?

@Elton Who cares what some arbitrary test says abut your strengths? That test doesn't;t encapsulate your desires, interests, passions, skills and abilities, or much else really. Don't base your life and your sense of self around that bullshit

For those that have become enlightened or reached stage Turquoise, I'm wondering what your relationship is to pain. By pain, I mean physical and emotional pain/discomfort. Do you have a new appreciation for pain? Do you crave comfort and hedonistic pleasure less often? Do you have a new appreciation for purposeful pain (working hard, working out, putting yourself through challenges) than you used to? If you broke your leg, are you able to divert your mind and not feel the pain? Do pain and suffering not exist at all? I think this would be a huge motivation for going into spiritual work if this relationship changes with enlightenment!

If you're looking to live on small farms for free, look into WWOOF. If you work on their small farm and help them grow plants and animals, they'll give you free food and housing. Usually, there will be other farmers who live at these farms who are from all over the world. These are usually incredible places to learn about agriculture and other cultures. I lived in Australia on WWOOF farms for 2 months a few years ago and it was incredible, would highly recommend. This gap year sounds incredible! It sounds like you've done a LOT of thinking about this. I wouldn't be too concerned with planning every detail of your trip and year, but definitely make time for exploration. At the age of 18, it sounds like you're asking a lot of the right questions about your vision for the future and your path, as well as if college is the correct decision. Once you have a vision for your future that is inspiring and motivating, ask yourself: what can I do that is going to be the greatest challenge to reach my vision quickly? Maybe this trip will help you answer that.

@TheSomeBody There are only a few options as to why you are not doing well on the exams, and you have to be honest with yourself if you're going to fix your problem and improve: 1. You really don't know the information as well as you think. You studied and memorized the phrases, but you haven't learned it in a way that it's functional and you can use it in an exam 2. You really do know the information, but the questions that they ask you in the exam are complicated and confusing, and you haven't prepared for these unique questions 3. You don't feel 100% at your best during the exam and that affects your cognitive abilities and performance There are lots of ways to study smarter and better. A book I read that helped me a lot with studying was A Mind for Numbers. It says that it will help you with Math and Science, but most of the information is applicable to any subject: https://www.amazon.com/Mind-Numbers-Science-Flunked-Algebra-ebook/dp/B00G3L19ZU Also, the type of learning you're doing is probably low quality. Most people spend their time listening to lectures, reading, and trying to repeat the information in their head with brute force. The best way to learn is through hand-on experiences and by teaching the inforamtion to others. I included a graph for reference. Hope this helps

@Javfly33 Sounds like you're having a major breakthrough in your perspective! Your English isn't perfect, so forgive me if I miss part of your point. There's a big difference between "stage" and "state." If you take psychedelics and have a huge breakthrough in understanding yourself, you might consider this life-transforming. "I'm never going to live like I used to! My whole life is gonna be different from here on out!" If you aren't able to fully integrate the insights from the trip (which most people are not able to do), we would call this a higher state. Once your level of personal and spiritual development has changed permanently or for a long period of time, we would call this a change in your stage. So, if you want to make sure this enlightenment isn't just a 'state' and you're able to change your 'stage,' you need to start thinking about how you can align your work, friends, family, living situation, books and content you consume, and lifestyle with this awakening. It's hard to tell exactly when enlightenment will happen. It's like trying to get hit by lightning: you don't know if it will happen or not, but if you stand on the top of a tree and hold a big metal rod, it's more likely to happen. Doing meditation, yoga, eating healthfully, contemplation, self-inquiry, and other things are the equivalent to holding a metal rod. So continue doing the difficult work and it may happen faster than you think. There are also many different levels and degrees to awakening. There's a book called "1000: The Levels of Consciousness and a Map of the Stages of Awakening for Spiritual Seekers and Teachers" by Ramaji. It will better help you understand where you're at and where you may be going. https://www.amazon.com/1000-Consciousness-Awakening-Spiritual-Teachers-ebook/dp/B00JK2Y7HG Hope this helps

@Abhishaik Sounds awesome!! It seems like your true passion is in the message and stories, and not in the animation. If you create incredible scripts and storyboards with robust character development, along with ideas of what you want to see visually, animators that read it could be inclined to join in the project and help you create your vision. Otherwise, expect years of training and practice in visual arts to become your own animator.

@Espaim If you want a new and better life, you're going to have to give up the old one. When snakes shed their skin, it can be really painful, and it leaves them vulnerable to be eaten by predators. Changing your path mid-way to pursue a higher goal is scary and risky. But sticking with a career you don't align with can be even scarier. I would make the change, understand the potential dangers and worst-case scenarios (like not passing the entrance exam or having to go to school longer or not having much money), and make a plan so that they don't happen. Hope this helps!

@DivineSoda Man, I totally get where you're coming from. I think our stories are pretty similar: I was in the same place about 3 years ago, nothing that I was doing really felt meaningful and a lot of my time and energy was spent lamenting and hating myself for not getting up and doing something. I was afraid of moving forward, because what if I fail? What if I don't make any money and end up on the street? What if I lost all my confidence because I know I didn't succeed? I was chronically tired, and my life felt like it was falling apart. One day, my friend came over and asked me, "If you were to take a job that would help you grow and develop and improve the most, what would it be?" I hadn't thought about it that way. That night I spent hours coming up with about 30 options as to exactly what that would be. What if I decided to pursue this, how would it be different than right now? I would have to understand the potential risks that come with it, make a plan for avoiding them, and live my life fearlessly. If the worst-case scenario happens, I'll be able to deal with it. I ended up starting my own in-home personal training and nutrition coaching business. It was more time and creative effort and planning than I could have imagined, but it's been amazing. My fatigue went away, other parts of my life have been improving (my relationships, learning more through reading, picking up new hobbies, being interested in things again), and I've felt more fulfilled. I won't stick with this forever, but it has helped me have a purpose and passion, and I have had more growth in the past few years than I have had in my whole life. Tbh I don't really enjoy talking about myself, so I'll stop! Here's my major advice: Spend a considerable amount of time coming up with options. The more high-quality options, the better. Come up with the pros and cons for each, and start to envision what your life might look like if you decided to go with each. Really take the time to consider how this career could help you personally, help your family, help your friends and loved ones, and help your community. The more win-win-win situations your career offers, the more fulfilling it will feel. Create a vision that is uplifting and inspiring. If your vision is clear and powerful, it will effortlessly lead you to action. Once you have narrowed it down to the final 1-3 options, create a pre-mortem for each. Address all of your fears, and come up with answers and solutions for them: https://riskology.co/pre-mortem-technique/ Pick the option that inspires you the most and run with it. This process is messy and complicated. Forgive yourself for not always having the answer or not always having tons of motivation. Hope this helps!

@TheSomeBody When it comes to scientific research in general, it all comes down to one major factor: who is going to fund this study/research? Who typically funds scientific research on psychedelics? What type of professionals do they give their money to? What types of studies do they fund? Why? The title that you have as a clinical psychologist vs cognitive specialist vs neurologist vs whatever is less important than the fact that you have Dr. before your name, and your study is beautifully constructed and clear as to exactly what you're testing. I would say, get your degree and doctorate in whatever fields of psychology interest you the most, and while you're getting your degree AND after you graduate, continue educating yourself in other fields and disciplines that expand your understanding of psychedelics and the brain. Psychedelic research is very new and not well understood, so not many people will be able to give you a clear-cut answer as to what exactly to study. What we need is brilliant people from all scientific (and some non-scientific) disciplines to be looking into this

@AlphaAbundance If you don't give a shit about life purpose or having meaning in your life, once you have the money, it's going to feel shallow. Here are some quick ways to get wealthy: Create a pyramid scheme style company that sells a product that people really want. Get people on board who are INCREDIBLE sales people. Market the shit out of it. Have people sell to people to sell to people to sell your products. Create a product or service that is so revolutionary and forward-thinking that it's CLEARLY the best option in its field, potentially creating its own unique field of business/products (Virtual reality, cryogenics, cloning, terraforming machine, etc.). You need to become a futurist if you walk this path Become extremely charismatic and make a very well-thought plan to become friends with millionaires and billionaires, until they trust you and ask you to come on board with them and become one of the big honchos at the company. Create or join a mob/maffia. Scare and threaten people out of their money. Create a unique way of scamming children, horny men, old people and/or ignorant people online. This could be over Facebook, Instagram, Tinder, Snapchat, Tik Tok, wherever. Find something that you love doing that could be traded for money and start a business with it. Train other people how to do it the way you do it. Expand and make it huge. I personally don't feel morally right about most of these choices, but these are options for getting rich

@PenguinPablo I've faced bouts of social anxiety throughout my life, and I can see how it can turn into a vicious cycle. Being in front of people can be uncomfortable, so I tried to avoid it, which made me less socially capable, which made being in front of people even more awkward, making me not want to do it more, etc. Because you said you're on winter break, I'm assuming you're still young and in school, so this is the PERFECT time to gain some social confidence! I have 2 main pieces of advice: First, what are your overarching goals for your life? To have a strong purpose or passion? To become financially successful in your field? To have strong connections and relationships with others? To learn more about life? Once you become clear and specific on these, ask yourself: If I was comfortable talking with and asking questions to anyone and everyone, how would this help me achieve my goals? This will give you multiple stronger reasons and motivation to go out and do the difficult task of facing your fear of strangers. Second, I would record your interactions with a camera and audio. I know this seems weird, but professional fighters do this for their craft all the time. They will film their workout and sparring sessions, and after training, they'll watch and rewatch hours of their training footage with their coach, pause it at certain moments, think of what they could have done differently, practice those things, and overall progress their training. You could potentially do this with your social interactions, and maybe watch them together with your new counselor. It's also a way to track your progress! Hope this helps

Looking to see whether I’m the only one experiencing this, and how to deal with it: I’m 22 years old and have gone on lots of dates throughout my life. But it wasn’t until college that I started to see just how FLAKY young girls are. It’s very common, happening almost 40% of the time, that I’ll be texting and communicating with a girl, she’ll be interested in going on a date, we’ll pick a specific date and time to meet at a restaurant or bar or wherever, we’ll confirm that we’ll be meeting eachother. I’ll go, but she won’t show up. They often Will ghost me completely after i start texting “where are you?” Or “are you on your way?” Let alone give me an explanation as to why they missed the date or didn’t show. I try to be a person of my word, and I have the expectation that if someone says they’ll do something then they’ll follow through with it. Is there something wrong with me? Something in my way of planning? Or could it be that so many of these girls are too immature to realize that they were never really planning on showing up and/or too weak to really tell me that? Would be good to know, I’m getting somewhat frustrated and pessimistic about dating in general Thanks for your thoughts!

Would you rather make lots of money while hating your life and living for the weekend, or do something you love and enjoy your life but make less money? My advice is to make a list of ALL your options. Pick the one(s) that seem the best and go with it. Your path will become more clear as you walk it. And don't be afraid to "waste" your time trying things out to find your real passion!

Come up with a list of ALL of your options you or others have come up with. Pick the one(s) that seem the best and go with it. Your path will become more clear as you walk it. Don't be afraid to "waste" your time finding your calling!

At 17 it's awesome that you're questioning your life and its direction, but nobody in this thread will have the perfect answer for you. Confusion and curiosity of the unknown is a powerful force, and you'll be dealing with it your whole life, so start working with it! Your path will become more clear as you walk it.