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This is timely. My wife called me out for being a bit snappy this morning. She was right, I held my hands up and apologised. We then had a conversation about

This is timely. My wife called me out for being a bit snappy this morning. She was right, I held my hands up and apologised. We then had a conversation about how I'm hardwired from my childhood to look for danger. This is one of the primary "skills" that has led me to run a successful business for most of my life. The reason being that by being able to see around corners, I'm very good at not making a mistake that kills the business. Unfortunately like all strengths, this strength brings a set of weaknesses. The weakness it brings for me is an obsession on the things that could go wrong, what has gone wrong, how to do better, how to be better and so on. Aka negativity. I wouldn't be where I am without this blessing and its associated curses but I do sometimes wish I could just go with the flow some more. To that end, I work out, I spend less time in front of a computer than ever before, I practice stoicism, I have wider hobbies...but still, it's an ongoing thing to manage. I guess this is no different to people with athletic abilities who have tortured their bodies for years and now get sore knees/hips etc from time to time.

noahjk 2y ago
I’ve just started reading the Introduction to Internal Family Systems and your comment resonates. Here’s a short overview of what it is, from the IFS Institute website: > IFS is a transformative tool that conceives of every human being as a system of protective and wounded inner parts led by a core Self. We believe the mind is naturally multiple and that is a good thing. Just like members of a family, inner parts are forced from their valuable states into extreme roles within us. Self is in everyone. It can’t be damaged. It knows how to heal.
ramoz 2y ago
Similar, but life hit me fairly hard in my early thirties. Things can and will go wrong for all of us. Being in a pit of actual negativity is an interesting place to be. Which led me to mindfulness practice and understanding what "the flow" is. Maybe something to consider along with whatever stoicism practice entails.

noahjk 2y ago

I’ve just started reading the Introduction to Internal Family Systems and your comment resonates. Here’s a short overview of what it is, from the IFS Institute website: > IFS is a transformative tool that conceives of every human being as a system of protective and wounded inner parts led by a core Self. We believe the mind is naturally multiple and that is a good thing. Just like members of a family, inner parts are forced from their valuable states into extreme roles within us. Self is in everyone. It can’t be damaged. It knows how to heal.

ramoz 2y ago

Similar, but life hit me fairly hard in my early thirties. Things can and will go wrong for all of us. Being in a pit of actual negativity is an interesting place to be. Which led me to mindfulness practice and understanding what "the flow" is. Maybe something to consider along with whatever stoicism practice entails.