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I find it very curious that the phrase "None of this matters!" can be simultaneously depressing and liberating, depending on who is reading. Understanding can'

I find it very curious that the phrase "None of this matters!" can be simultaneously depressing and liberating, depending on who is reading. Understanding can't just be transmitted through words, and requires introspection. Congratulations on your epiphany! I optimize life for happiness. I try shape my life to enjoy the process like you said: good work-life balance, doing something that challenges me just enough on average, that I enjoy, with people I enjoy. I try to bring that to my teammates and actively contribute to a culture of zest for our profession at my job. Why? You're happier when surrounded by happy people. If you're surrounded by people doing the same, it's less likely for culture to change in a negative way. I mentor teammates and grad students. Helping others grow makes me happy, and especially during the pandemic it's been a good way to stay connected to others. There will always be rough moments, but there's no happiness without pain. It requires constant maintenance: keep yourself healthy, your mind stimulated, your body exercised, your social skills challenged. Make time to also stop and enjoy doing nothing.

JKCalhoun 5y ago
> "None of this matters!" Getting into genealogy has made me realize what a small blip I am in the long stream of human endurance on this planet (and what is that compared to the age of the universe, of course?). Being nothing has given me some comfort from the fears of death/oblivion.
- loa_in_ 5y ago
  On the other hand you're one of the first living in the information age, when entities truly bigger than people actually exist
ehnto 5y ago
I once told my brother, who was suffering from anxiety, that "No one cares about you when you're out in public". I meant it in the liberating way I had come to know it, which is that no one is paying you the negative attention you think they are, because we're all pretty similar so we all blend in with the crowds. But my parents saw it as an insult. Different perspectives I suppose.
- QuercusMax 5y ago
  Your parents may have interpreted the words "cares about you" to mean "has fond feelings and wants you to succeed" rather than "is interested in whatever you happen to be doing, in the busybody sense". So not so much a difference of perspective, but of vocabulary.
jmrm 5y ago
> Make time to also stop and enjoy doing nothing. I never thought about this until some years ago, after I burnt out overworking. I think this should be more a more known fact.

JKCalhoun 5y ago

> "None of this matters!" Getting into genealogy has made me realize what a small blip I am in the long stream of human endurance on this planet (and what is that compared to the age of the universe, of course?). Being nothing has given me some comfort from the fears of death/oblivion.

loa_in_ 5y ago
On the other hand you're one of the first living in the information age, when entities truly bigger than people actually exist

ehnto 5y ago

I once told my brother, who was suffering from anxiety, that "No one cares about you when you're out in public". I meant it in the liberating way I had come to know it, which is that no one is paying you the negative attention you think they are, because we're all pretty similar so we all blend in with the crowds. But my parents saw it as an insult. Different perspectives I suppose.

QuercusMax 5y ago
Your parents may have interpreted the words "cares about you" to mean "has fond feelings and wants you to succeed" rather than "is interested in whatever you happen to be doing, in the busybody sense". So not so much a difference of perspective, but of vocabulary.

jmrm 5y ago

> Make time to also stop and enjoy doing nothing. I never thought about this until some years ago, after I burnt out overworking. I think this should be more a more known fact.