Non-practice

I liked this blog post on How to Become Rich with No Talent – Rich Life Habits:

1. Being on Time
2. Work Ethic
3. Effort
4. Energy
…

(the list continues)

This is how I get ideas for blog posts – I write them down.

When I try to post a joke on 9Gag, I don’t have any good ideas.

But I wrote down a lot of ideas, and, out of them, I posted a few jokes on 9Gag. I kept doing so. I’m still learning, though, I’m not up in the clouds with my success on this.

Why? I tend to insist on solving issues, both for myself and for others.

Also, I used to have difficulties being funny. I read a lot of jokes, I watched comedies, and my sense of humor improved.

More than this, I had difficulties communicating. I did theatrical plays, went to conferences, challenged myself to speak, and most of the issues were solved by themselves.

My belief is that you can have success without an initial talent, but with a lot of work.

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When a spammer telemarketer calls me, I have two scenarios:

• I abruptly get to the point and tell that person I’m not interested.
• I let them speak while doing something else, to waste their time.

You can really learn a lot while listening carefully to a seller’s speech. The attitude, the way they frame their speech (“What do you choose, A, B, or C?” – although I didn’t want any of these; “Give me the name of 10 friends interested in this. You have to give me at least 5 names”)

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“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” ― Albert Einstein

I like this quote so much.

I don’t know if everything in life is a miracle, but I sure hope so.

Life is extraordinary. The wonder of the Internet, the way you encounter people, starting a project, starting something new.

Life is a wonder.

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I see two ways of looking at love, concomitantly:

• The Internet (via social media, but not only) is to blame for corrupting the most vulnerable.
• Nature is great, look at the sky, see the beautiful mountains.

Yet, while I do admire nature, I favor the Internet.

And I don’t think I’m alone in this:

• What if the internet stopped working for a day? – BBC Future.
• In the Middle of COVID-19: Can We All Agree Now That Internet Access is a Necessity? – Center for Democracy and Technology.

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I consider debating is a specific activity for humankind.

When you enter a room, you start debating. Rarely do you avoid conflict 100%.

On another hand, you see a conflict, you tend to avoid it. You go into a room with 150 bad boys (Carlsberg stunts with bikers in cinema – YouTube), you want to avoid the situation.

Generally, though, people tend to go into a fight. You enter the room, you say hello, you say something else, and if you’re completely silent, you feel pressure.

Some animals would prefer avoiding the situation altogether.

What makes us humans, as a conclusion? The decision not to run, to debate, to go into conflict, to expose yourself.

It’s a lot of courage and a feeling of vulnerability.

A Ship in Harbor Is Safe, But that Is Not What Ships Are Built For – Quote Investigator

People have the courage to go out of the harbor.

And if it’s a storm, sometimes to go right through it.

Coming back to debating – it’s both a humility (“I’ll listen to you, I’ll treasure your arguments, I’ll enjoy allowing you to express yourself”), and a power (“I’ll confront you, I’ll stand my ground, I’ll say what I have to say”).

This makes us humans!

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Whenever I make a decision – “Would this job be a good fit for me?” -, I consider this: “Growth opportunities in a job”.

For example, a job where you meet and have connections with a lot of people, and get deep connections with them, could do fine. This doesn’t imply, to me, calling a lot of people, or selling stuff, but things like account management, working for companies or individuals, organizing events.

Another option – learning curve (and, of course, the utility of things being learned). So, if I were to learn to program, I can apply the principles in a lot of places. Law system? Yes, I can apply it, but mostly in Romania, and in certain jobs only. A system like “Prima Casa”/”First Home”, now obsolete – now there’s no future in that.

Finally, the place of the job. If you can do it online, you have a lot of opportunities. If you need to go to work, in person, a famous city looks like a better place to learn things.

So, how do I look at a job as a clerk in City Hall for a small community? It’s certainly not bad, and the skills you learn could be useful, but I think there are better opportunities than that. It’s a safe bet, but perhaps the prize is not that high.

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“Mi casa es su casa“?

I lived in various places.

What’s my home?

I’m not so sure.

I guess my home is where I feel good and can have a good conversation with friends. Mostly face-to-face, but online could also do fine.

I know a lot of people in Bucharest, some in London/Năvodari, a few in other places.

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“I’ve lived through some terrible things in my life, some of which actually happened.” ― Mark Twain

And a clip related to this ».

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Just as it is almost proverbial that, if you want any business done for you, you should ask a busy man to do it, and not a man of leisure, so it is the laborious scholar, who is working hard at languages, who picks up, nay, actually reads and studies more of other subjects than the rest of his fellows at school or college.

Reverend W. J. Kennedy, who was the Inspector of Schools for Lancashire and the Isle of Man in Britain, 1856

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