This is supposed to serve as a master doc for self development
Mainly inspired by 80,000 hours post and Cal Newport’s idea of a core document.
The number one priority should be getting the basics right, sleep, exercise, eating well. This is the ground level for just being consistently effective.
Areas of Life
Work
Know that I’m spending the majority of my time on progressing
- My knowledge of a particular (area/skills)[Skills].
- Something that is of service to society that I believe in.
Writing blog posts and reading should be considered Personal Interests. For no specific gain except to clarify my thinking for its own sake. When this does not feel like the case try to slot it into the above.
Health (physical/mental)
I neglect this area as I deem it less important.
Social connection.
Personal Interests
Jiu Jitsu
Main goal: purple belt.
Values
I can categorise a lot of what I do into the bucket
- Family. Being a better son, brother. At the end of it all, there are a few people who would truly care if I disappear.
- Being of service to society/contributing to the world positively while I’m here.
- Training to body and mind. Trying to be the best physical/mental version of myself.
- Space
Focused work is good work
I think I’m happiest or feel the most settled when I’m paying attention to a task.
Action (being a dwarf)
from Cryptonomicon, that the people who do the real work are wholed away somewhere actually doing it. Getting good at a craft.
Seeing through the Maya.
I’d like to deepening my understanding of the world. To be in pursuit of the real 1
Also, The Limits of our personal experience and the value of statistics. Humans are unreliable observers.
Technological change is inevitable its what we do with.
I believe most social problems (or those not worth fighting over ) in the world can be solved by more material wealth. For instance, if we could create clean cheap renewable energy, we can enable developing countries to leapfrog development stages. In our current reality, we’re asking some of these countries to climb the ladder of economic development with their hands behind their backs. From my viewpoint, innovating on clean cost affordable energy enables us to provide them with an escalator.
Try to engage with the shear reality of the world daily (absurdity or beauty).
Cope
- Make your world small.
- What you’re doing is the most important thing right now (Marcus).
- Meaning is derived from
withinsome expression of your values.
Habits
- read an hour a day.
- write something every day.
- Anki every day.
- Condense ideas into posts to compartmentalise them.
- take time each week to evaluate each set of goals in life areas above.
Traits to develop
Playful curiosity (Angela Collier).
Skills
- Extremely competent in applied mathematics to clarify thinking.
What does my ideal me look like?
- Extremely competent in applied mathematics to clarify thinking.
- Has self compassion with himself and makes efforts to give as much as he’s able in all his relationships.
- Lives according to his values. With no exceptions.
- Cherishes each day having some intimate experience with the world each day.
- A firm understanding on what drives him values and influences.
- Strives to know more about things he has opinions on. Aware of his assumptions.
- Being the best version of himself physically, based on his goals and mentally, based on his values.
Goals
Once a goal is defined with a rational path to get there, it doesn’t make sense to keep pondering choices. The agreed upon time should be given to see the outcomes.
Energy Hieroglyph
Learning Calculus (Developing applied mathematics ability)
Longer Term
- Complete 18.02 final exam and all problem sets.
- Complete 18.03 final exam and all problem sets.
May 24
- Complete 18.01 final exam and all problem sets.
Learning Statistics
May 24
- 20 hrs a month.
- One project started (write about/code).
- Read one relevant book.
Purple Belt
May 24
Re-evaluate goals or areas of game I’m working on each week.
- 12-14 sessions.
Footnotes
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This ranges from Socrates’ pursuit of wisdom to Zelezny seeing through the Maya. ↩