Keepmovingforward

This. Man I needed this. Thanks @Michael569

You could find a way of using the languages to create a living in a way that affords you the essentials and the time (key word here!) to purue the study of and playing of Chess. And at 22 - it’s important to “Follow your bliss” as Joseph Campbell says and see where it takes you. Pick a path and start walking down it. Your interest in Chess will expand into other areas, you will meet people with similar interests and these interactions will lead to opportunities you can’t even imagine/know that you actually want right now! But you have to pick a path, and if that path for you right now has Chess as its main focal point, go with it. The twenties are a question mark decade - explore, experiment, reflect as you go along. Even if you’re still unsure whether you’re doing the right thing, you’ll have a wealth of experiences you wouldn’t trade for the world all because you followed your interest.

Thanks for all of your responses. @ElisabethI guess my question should really be - do you guys have any tips or methods for connecting the dots, for creating new links in thinking? @BjarkeT thanks for recommending Cal Newport, I’m checking his stuff out now and enjoying what I’ve found. And @Amadeusz think you’ve hit the nail on the head. Cheers

Probably why I struggled with some of the later chapters @aurum haha! WIll check out your recommendations. Which of those would you recommend reading first?

Hey Frank B, Might seem boring, but reading some books on money management can help. 10/15 minutes a day of immersion can get you on the right track of thinking. I can recommend Money Master the Game by Tony Robbins - some of the later chapters are very confusing but he outlines the dangers of overspending, living paycheck to paycheck as well as some clear strategies to having not to (finding fulfilling ways of spending less than you earn, the idea of a financial security bucket) Taking charge of your money definitely helps you take charge of the rest of your life! Keep at it. Daily struggle for me too.

Balance is the key word I think. Video games as part of a balanced lifestyle, I can’t see a problem. Are your finances in order, your relationships, your physical and mental health? Everything has the potential to become a dangerous vice - its the intention and attention we bring to these things. For example - drinking a glass of wine - a well selected, flavoursome addition to a lovingly created meal? Or the first step into dulling the senses, getting drunk and achieving a low consciousness state? Video games - a way of exploring the marvels of modern technology and artistry, to have fun and connect with people? Or a way to again, numb the senses, to vent frustration, to distract yourself from real life problems? Only you can decide. But I feel if you make health your number one priority, everything else will naturally fall into place, including your vocation and hobbies in a healthy and holistic way

I agree with YaNanNallari. I remember listening to an Alan Watts talk where he describes bringing a playful attitude to the work you do - he uses an example of a bus driver who turns the act of driving his bus into a game (safely of course!); how can he navigate the roads most effectively, how can he keep cool under pressure etc. And then your work becomes a vehicle to awakening, as Ram Dass would say. And I suppose as you progress on your spiritual practise, there’s a stripping away of the inessential, and the different components of your life come under an order of sorts - you learn to live off less so less time is spent working, and you create more space to do more deliberate spiritual practises as you mentioned in your post and who knows, maybe you’ll receive a monetary or material reward for them, maybe not. But again, to quote Alan Watts “Find what you love and forget about the money” View money as the means to buy you time and space, nothing more.

Hey there, First post here, thanks for any time and insights you can provide, I really appreciate it. I enjoy Leo’s videos and have yet to take the course (mainly due to having not long purchased Tony Robbin’s Ultimate Edge programme which I highly recommend) The reason I’ve joined the forums is following this TED talk by Steve Johnson - he describes how the community fostered in the first cafes of Britain helped the development and creation of major and innovative ideas - I’m hoping these forums can do a similar thing for myself, and hopefully I can help others too. So I’m 29. 30 later this year. For better or worse I decided to use my twenties as a question mark decade, following the advice of (then not under fire for sexual harassment claims) Dustin Hoffman. And creatively there were some incredible highs and lows. I’ve actually managed to work pretty consistently as an actor - in theatre, theatre in education, corporate role play, community theatre, children’s theatre, short films, commercials. The highs felt amazing, the lows not so much (doing work purely to pay the bills, which often was creatively unfulfilling, and often times embarrassing due to poor nature of scripts, circumstances etc). Along the way I put off the lifelong fear of giving music a shot and learnt guitar and taught myself to sing, both of which give me a lot of pleasure too. I developed a passion for writing (songwriting, journaling), self development, cooking, fitness. My work has allowed me to travel all over Europe, open myself up to lots of incredible experiences (including life altering experiments with psychedelics) and develop and grow in ways I never could have imagined. I’m happily married, and my wife and I love each other deeply. And yet - the question mark at the end of this decade!... I want to connect all the dots of these experiences into finding my life purpose. I love acting when everything is working but often it isn’t - its a lifestyle which doesn’t exactly grant someone with a lot of autonomy. You are very often asked to give your personal power away, and often for causes you don’t believe in. And a lot of the work I’ve done is rooted in the past - I love Shakespeare, and live performance, whether that’s theatre, or playing music, but I’m also on the lookout to innovate, to move towards a new frontier, engage with the fascinating technologies and new mediums that Shakespeare, or Bob Dylan, or many of my other creative heroes didn’t have access to (the internet, virtual reality, video games), to engage with new philosophical horizons (eg the singularity) I wish to empower myself so I may empower others too. To enjoy life completely, and to live in balance and harmony - to create, not consume, to give, not take. I’m super grateful for the experiences I’ve been able to have - I’ve worked hard for many of them, and made some tough sacrifices, and there’s been a lot of grace and good fortune at work too. But, I feel like I’m on the cusp of a breakthrough, a way of amalgamating my experiences and lessons thus far to create something new, and to live a life with purpose, meaning, and vitality...But just need some help figuring out what that could be. Thank you guys, I really appreciate any response. Apologies for the meandering yet hopefully, relatively clear first post, Keepmovingforward