“Five Bullet Friday” is a weekly series of what I’m enjoying or pondering inspired by Tim Ferriss. I skipped the past few weeks, but I will try to stay more consistent.
What I am watching
The Mahabharata is a major epic of ancient India. It is the longest epic poem ever and is 10 times as long as the Iliad and Odyssey combine. I'm using this as a fun way to learn about ancient philosophy.
What I am reading
Gorilla Mindset by Mike Cernovich. This is a book that offers simple actionable advice to take control of your own life and enjoy living life on your own terms. Nothing fancy or new here, but it's condensed and very practical. It's not a book you just read once and forget about it. It's a book of simple principle and practical actions that you should internalize and integrate with your everyday life. For example, every time I walk, I now practice mindfulness to pay attention to exactly how my feet and legs feel and how the surroundings look, sound, and smell.
Podcast I am listening to
Shep Gordon's interview on The Tim Ferriss Show. Shep is the Supermensch. He has been the manager of many celebrities and has a ton of interesting stories about how he engineered fame. He has an intuitive sense of how to promote the essence of great artists and creative promotion strategies. His goal is to make the artist into someone who can be recognized by only their first name, for example, Jimi (Hendrix).
Another podcast I am listening to
Ram Dass Here and Now episode 98: Spiritual Practices. I have listened to this one for maybe 5 times in the past 5 weeks. The title may sound a bit woo woo, but actually the advice is very practical. It's funny and touches on many of the same concepts as Gorilla Mindset. How do you reach a mindset where you can live happily and purposefully on your own terms?
Concept I'm pondering
We view ourselves as basically good. When we make mistakes, we know that they don't really reflect our true selves. Yet when others do something we don't like, we say "Ah Ha! You've been putting on a veneer of being nice all along! Your true nature is one of an asshole!" This concept can be extrapolated to cultures and political movements as well. This is why we have such animosity between people who vote for different political candidates. This is always why we have wars between countries. Then these conflicts eventually devolved into cycles of revenge until strong leadership or institutions can negotiate a truce between the two sides. So to deal with such large scale problems, we must put ourselves in other people's shoes. Not just think about what you would do theoretically in a self righteous way to make yourself feel good, but to actually acknowledge what you would actually do. This is a main theme of The MartyrMade Podcast by my friend Darryl Cooper.
Thanks for reading! Have a wonderful weekend,