Tag: Buddha

While luck rules all endeavors, I believe we can tip the odds in our favor.  Audacity is required to make the attempt, persistence to weather the storm, brutal honesty to refine the approach—cutting away what doesn’t work and giving new methods a chance to prove themselves—and finally, love of the activity to stay steady through…

If I demonstrate character and perspective, it’s possible to turn a good degree of suffering into a brutal, black-humored game—one I can glean valuable information from. Without character and perspective, suffering becomes a nonsensical hell.

Perhaps some of you are like me, and harbor a vicious spark of anger deep within your soul.  Rather than let it consume me from the inside out, I’ve decided to channel it; I’ve decided to wage war on the shortcomings that hold me back from accomplishing my goals.  If rush hour eats into writing…

Nothing I do may be enough.  That’s why it takes courage to try, discipline to KEEP trying, and the best critical thinking I can possibly muster, so I can sharpen my strategy as best as I can.   If I can do all of that, I find I sleep soundly at night, knowing I’ve given…

I used to think it was all about willpower, but when I focused purely on that, I’d burn myself out.  Now I think it’s a simple decision:  based on the available information, am I willing to do what it takes to execute my strategy?  If I am, then I get to work.  If not, then…

Regarding my personal beliefs, I leave the door open for magic and miracles, but I think it’s foolish to rely on them.  In the past, I’ve dazzled/baffled “magic-minded” folks with results borne of strategic thought and consistent discipline.  So in the grand sense, I’d argue that discipline and strategy are just as impressive as nebulous…

I’ve found that when I act solely in line with my comforts and fears, I usually get led into a spiral of anxiety and misery.  But when I act in line with my convictions, I sleep well, and experience a harmony which makes the temporary setbacks well worth it.

I’ve known people who are largely ruled by pursuit of comfort or immediate gratification.  They seem to lead a piecemeal life; I’ve seen them jump from pleasure to pleasure, comfort to comfort—all of them transient—as entropy rises with inexorable certainty, trapping them on a sinking piece of compromise and misery.   Personally, I’d rather seek fulfillment. …

Truth is a sword that cuts both ways, because even while it can slice through deception and ineffective thinking, the ensuing revelations often imply that I must take action. Thus far, however, I’ve found that those sharp, stinging reprimands are far more pleasant than the slow, cramped death that arises from the alternative.