Some things are in our control and others not. Things in our control are opinion, pursuit, desire, aversion, and, in a word, whatever are our own actions. Things not in our control are body, property, reputation, command, and, in one word, whatever are not our own actions.
The things in our control are by nature free, unrestrained, unhindered; but those not in our control are weak, slavish, restrained, belonging to others. Remember, then, that if you suppose that things which are slavish by nature are also free, and that what belongs to others is your own, then you will be hindered. You will lament, you will be disturbed, and you will find fault both with gods and men. But if you suppose that only to be your own which is your own, and what belongs to others such as it really is, then no one will ever compel you or restrain you. Further, you will find fault with no one or accuse no one. You will do nothing against your will. No one will hurt you, you will have no enemies, and you not be harmed.
— Epictetus “Enchiridion”
I am human.
I am flawed.
I am not all knowing.
I am not all seeing.
I do not know all perspectives.
I can grow, but I can never complete.
There will always be more to learn.
Some of what I know is likely wrong.
A lot I take as truth is merely opinion.
The path to experience is work.
I become what I do repeatedly.
Emotional and intellectual growth compound.
Diversity of personal experience is good.
Exposure to a diversity of experiences is better.
A diversity of experiences requires outside influence.
I cannot grow if I believe I’ve arrived.
My goal is to learn.
My goal is to grow.
My goal is to figure out what I can do.
I need a diversity of experiences.
They are human.
They are flawed.
They are not all knowing.
They are not all seeing.
They do not know all perspectives.
They can grow, but they can never complete.
There will always be more to learn.
Some of what they know is likely wrong.
A lot they take as truth is merely opinion.
They cannot grow if they believe they’ve arrived
I cannot make someone want to grow.
I can show them my path, if they’d like.
The internet exposes me to a diversity of experience.
I have access to more knowledge than any individual before before the 1990s.
I won’t know what to learn before I start.
The journey will expose the topics.
The journey will expose the sources.
Leverage the algorithms.
Look for wisdom, but don’t forget all the sources are people.
They were human.
They were flawed.
They were not all knowing.
They were not all seeing.
They did not know all perspectives.
They could grow, but they can never complete.
There was always more they could have learned.
Some of what they knew was likely wrong.
A lot they took as truth was merely opinion.
They did not grow if they believed they had arrived.
I find meaning in what I learn.
I share what I find relevant.
I can help others learn.
I won’t be trusted until I demonstrate value.
Demonstrating value requires work.
I must learn how to become someone worth learning from.
Changing the world is changing minds.
Changing the world requires work.
Changing the world requires wisdom.
Recognizing wisdom requires experience.
You can’t have experience before you start.
