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"We humans are in a similar state today where we want world-wide rights but we don’t want world-wide responsibilities. This is one sign of a planetary tragedy of the commons."
How philosophy can solve your midlife crisis
"True, most of us will never become movie stars or famous athletes or try all the careers we once found intriguing. We will never visit all the places we want to see or befriend everyone we wanted to know better. However, Setiya suggests, this is just “a recognition of the richness of valuable things in the world.” Feeling regret in this sense is better than feeling nothing."
"If you're dissatisfied with this timeline, it's up to you to create a timeline you like better."
"Many people — obsessed with their status, career, or where their kids go to school — have internalized this idea and literally view their life not as something to enjoy, but as a competition to be won."
"If you view life as a competition, you naturally prioritize those things that can be measured, those things that can be competed for. This means that you focus on objective — but ultimately petty — concerns. The competition subordinates what is meaningful in life to trivial prizes that can be competed over."
"The good life is about trying to live according to your values and make the trade-offs that maximize your happiness. This simply isn’t possible when you abide by what the game values: money, consumption, academic prestige, youth athletic excellence."
"Games are fun and competition is fulfilling — provided they involve trivial things. By all means, go all out to win when you golf, run a 5k, or play fantasy football. But when those things are over, look around at your family, friends, career, and value system and realize that those things are way, way too important to be trivialized by turning them into a game."
"Just accepting that everyone wants easy and comforting answers in a complex and painful world is a rare skill."
"People don’t like leaving opportunities on the table, and it’s counterintuitive to realize that you’ll likely end up with more than those whose appetite for more is insatiable."
"Perhaps the most critical communication skill. Be brief. Use as few words as possible to say what you need, and everyone will appreciate it."
“I Wish I’d Made That Change Later” - said no one
"once you start thinking about making a big change, it’s either the right time or it’s overdue."
How to Build a Home that Lasts a Thousand Years
"So let me nail this to my mast before continuing with the details: If you want something to last a thousand years it has to be beautiful."
"If the essence or the very form a building survives to this day, it is likely that anything built in its manner will still be around a thousand years from now."
"And on average commodities fell in “time price” by 83%, meaning that the typical worker could double their consumption of commodities every 22 years. World population has grown from 3 billion to almost 8 billion since 1960, yet resources became massively cheaper."
A Lesson In Karma Yoga From Xfinity
"I’ve found this practice and mindset shift makes life more fun. Every situation can serve you, if you chose to see it this way. It doesn’t mean that you don’t go through stuff, but everything is recontextualized as an opportunity for growth. And growth is fun."
"The fact is, everyone wants to win. To succeed. To have things work out just as we had hoped. Yet, one of life’s greatest paradoxes is that the greatest victories rarely come from success alone. Instead, they come from the moments when you are challenged, get knocked down, and bounce back up."
Incentives: The Most Powerful Force In The World
"Incentives are the most powerful force in the world and can get people to justify or defend almost anything."
"Which of my current views would change if my incentives were different?"
The Better Good Life: An Essay on Personal Sustainability
"The entire lifecycle of the cherry tree is rewarding, and the only “waste” involved is an abundant sort of nutrient cycling that only leads to more good things."
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