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You must think of mitakpa three times each day. Once in the morning, once in the afternoon, and once in the evening. You must be curious about your death. You must understand that you don’t know how you will die or where you will die. Just that you will die. And that death can come at any time,” he said. “The ancient monks would remind themselves of this every time they left their meditation cave. I, too, remind myself of this every time I walk out my front door.”
So weird- even though that was the most physically and mentally demanding week I’ve had since retiring, it was for sure the best.
It’s true that hard work, facing challenges, ‘suffering”, and pushing your own limits yields tremendous benefits in mental health, physical health, self esteem, and…..wouldn’t ya know it?…Happiness. Reply Or species was used to fighting for their food, seeking shelter, and facing many obstacles on the way. Our ancestors were always on the go and had little access to comfort. And yet, they might have been happier than us. They were living in the present and appreciated the smallest things. Now, we face performance anxiety, burnout, and serious mental and emotional issues. In a series of recent interviews, Ukrainian people living in the war zones of their occupied country were asked “is it safe to live where you live?” and a strangely high percentage still said “Yes” – not all that different from the responses of US residents when asked the same question about their own cities. Misogi -- it means "cold water". Bathing in cold water is a Shinto prayer ritual. You've adopted a Japanese word you don't understand and are using it in place of fine English phrases like "baptism", "harrowing", or "boss battle". Needing to artificially create challenges for ourselves is necessary, but also a privilege. We all need to be grateful for this privilege and remember it when we are in the dumps over our first-world problems. Reply
If you're the kind of person who does Crossfit, shaves your head (if you're a guy), is into hunting and Navy SEALS workout regimens, then this is kind of preaching-to-the-choir for you. I kind of wanted preaching-to-the-choir...I had an assumption that discomfort is good for us and wanted to read something that proves it...but I'm not into those things. So I didn't really identify with these parts of the book. So cool that you just posted this as I had a similar experience last week. Thanks in large part to your blog, I retired over a year ago, and stuff has been pretty chill. But I’ve been struggling with finding a new purpose and fulfillment since leaving my crazy job. Tried the full time stay at home dad thing, and that was definitely not me. Michael– want to feel uncomfortable for once in your life? Go outside wearing a dress or live as a homeless individual for more than 24 hours. There was so many times I was convinced this was satire... does he truly not understand the irony in what he is preaching?I would be curious to understand how looking for any little problem compares to wanting to improve the world. My problem with “don’t complain, life is good” is that it often comes from privileged white conservative boomers who use it against working more for women’s or lgbtq rights. I wonder what percentage do what I do, which is to always walk up the escalator if possible. I can’t stand (no pun intended) to just stand there on an escalator, but I also am bothered by the inefficiency of walking up stationary stairs next to a moving escalator. Reply the Yale Cancer Center, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Massachusetts General Hospital supports this notion. It found that dying patients who had open conversations about their death experienced a better quality of life in the weeks and months leading to their passing, as judged by their family members and nurse practitioners.” I do go through a lot of super detailed blood tests and other different kinds of scans and screenings (one reason I love my direct primary care membership! https://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2020/11/09/direct-primary-care/) and so far everything looks really good to me. The 25-year-old person who’s passionate about investing and wants to learn about the lives of successful people in the field, the 30-year-old who loves biographies and real-life inspirational stories of top performers, or the 35-year-old who feels lost in their career and wants to get motivated.
By doing so, one will discover new emotions and build strength from the core. Studies suggest that going through such experiences can enhance health as well. The key is to find a balance between comfort and challenging situations. If you leave your shelter, you’ll find that life isn’t always pink. You will also learn to appreciate everything you have. Lesson 2: Being by yourself in nature can help you connect with yourself and feel less lonely. Great reminder that we should all welcome the rain from time to time. BTW, I just completed Attia’s Outlive, found it to be a very motivational read. Like your post, he encourages us to make our bodies work. Exercise defeats atrophy, and our bodies work SO much better when we challenge them with routine exercise and keep them fueled with the appropriate inputs. Love the pollen pic, btw. Looks like my cabin in Georgia when the pines explode their pollen every Spring. ReplyWow, this guy Michael Easter is right on! I agree that in our Western society a lot of us are spoiled and look for trivial things to complain about, and populists take advantage of it. Remember the movie Ferris Bueller’s Day Off? One line I remember in the movie is he said that life goes by fast, and if you don’t stop and look around you might miss it. I’m 62 years old now and find rather than complain about what you don’t have, make the most of what you do have. Also, get your ass out and do things. My age hasn’t stopped me from getting out biking a lot, about 1160 Km this year to date. Neither has it stopped me from trying out fun things like kayaking, flyboarding, wakeboarding, stand up paddleboarding, skiing, and other fun things. https://www.wsj.com/articles/lazy-girl-jobs-wont-make-gen-z-less-anxious-stress-business-adulthood-trade-offs-13d6b5bd?st=5y6gu6doqlw9rfj&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink Reply
The second great change in human fitness began around 1850. It marked the start of the Industrial Revolution, and today just 13.7 percent of jobs require the same heavy work as our past days of farming.” Yikes Aaron, I like the spirit but that sounds like a pretty fuel-intensive way to get in a few flights of stairs! Those thousands of years of struggle imbued us with evolutionary traits that helped us to survive then—but, as Easter argues, make us ill-suited for the world of comfort that’s come to be over the past 100 years. Easter calls this trip, where he goes as far from civilization as you can get in North America, a Misogi. Taken from Japanese mythology, a Misogi is a purification ritual that is meant to be an epic challenge, one where there is a substantial risk of failure that somehow stretches humans past boundaries they didn't know they had. By embracing comfort, so many of us have lost sight of our potential, and this intense ritual is a way of breaking past the barriers that make us cozy and contented. Kay, your comment reminded me of one of my favorite people on the internet, Katy Bowman. She’s a biomechanist and her message is that we need more movement, not just “exercise”. Her home is similarly furniture-free. If you haven’t already, I highly recommend looking her up. I’m guessing you’d love her work. ReplyIt’s great to spend money on adventures and improving yourself, being generous to others, and making the world a better place. Interesting conversation. One thing I didn’t see anyone mention is the fact that humans, like virtually all other mammals, are hard-wired to do as little as possible outside of the necessities (finding food, shelter, fornicating, fighting enemies) because energy expended on activities not related to those necessary for survival may just cost one their survival, at least in the “old days” of the jungle. The same evolutionary factors that make our bodies not want to shed fat or what to eat (sweet, not bitter) are in play when deciding whether to take the stairs or the escalator. It’s highly likely that without the default of lazy that most of what makes up civilization wouldn’t exist, since virtually everything we’ve ever invented beyond ensuring basic survival has been to reduce energy expenditure. Why walk when you can drive? Why forage when you can farm? ETC. I read The Comfort Crisis in three straight sittings and was so motivated and inspired that I immediately made changes to my daily routines. Two months later, I’ve never been fitter, more self-confident, or happier. If you’ve been looking for something different to level up your health, fitness, and personal growth, THIS IS IT.” —Melissa Urban, Whole30 CEO and six-time New York Times bestselling author We cruised over to the shore to explore a particularly scenic meadow, coated with the softest green mossy grass and exuberantly colored wildflowers, and set at an impossibly steep angle. And damn I wished that I could have taken pictures, but in a strange way this forced me to burn that spot more thoroughly into my memories using my own senses instead.
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