Sharing what I have learned from what I have read: A blog by Joe Abittan
There are two traits of humans which were great for ensuring our survival as a species tens of thousands of years ago that combine today in ways that don't always have good consequences for our lives. The first is that we are highly adaptable. We can adjust our lives and our focus to survive in … Continue reading A Craving for More
We like to show off. We like to have nice things to impress other people, and we like when people notice our things, compliment us on our fancy stuff, and respect us because of the wealth that we have. It is an instinct that likely evolved as humans lived in small tribes. If you had … Continue reading Puzzling Over Wealth
"Rivalry results in strife," writes Seneca in Letters From a Stoic. A quick Google search of strife gives us the definition: angry or bitter disagreement over fundamental issues; conflict. Rivalry heightens our disagreements, it clouds our judgments, and creates enemies who will oppose us. When we give in to rivalrous forms of thinking, we compare … Continue reading Rivalry Results in Strife
"For our powers can never inspire in us implicit faith in ourselves except when many difficulties have confronted us on this side and on that, and have occasionally even come to close quarters with us," writes Seneca in Letters from a Stoic. In the quote above, Seneca writes that we can never develop a … Continue reading The Value of Difficulties
In Letters From a Stoic, Seneca quotes Epicurus in writing, “It is wrong to live under constraint; but no man is constrained to live under constraint.” Quite frankly, Seneca and Epicurus are wrong. The stoic thinkers make two arguments in the short quote, and both fail to live up to the reality of humankind's … Continue reading Living Under Constraints
A funny thing happened with people's thoughts about the economy following the 2016 presidential election in the United States. Supporters of Hillary Clinton prior to the election had strong feelings about the economy, while Republican supporters of Donald Trump thought the economy was terrible. In the days and weeks following the election, perceptions of the … Continue reading Our Opinion Shapes Our Experience
A challenge in our world today is to be content without the need for too many things. We are constantly bombarded with advertisements about things we could buy and about how happy we would be if we had more stuff. We attach material possessions to lifestyles and people, and in some ways we look toward … Continue reading What We Need For Happiness
Friendships for children always seem so easy, but as we get older, friendships seem to grow more and more difficult. One reason for why it may be so difficult to keep friends as adults is that we are just so busy and have to manage all our resources. We have to keep track of our … Continue reading Friendships
Recently, Tyler Cowen released a podcast interview he did with Annie Duke, someone I remember from the days when my brother watched tournaments for the World Series of Poker. A line from the interview really stood out to me and is something I think about in my life all the time, but haven't stated as eloquently … Continue reading Focus on Process
When writing about being in crowds, Seneca states, "I never bring back home the same character that I took abroad with me." He is writing about the ways that crowds change us. They change our behavior, they can stir-up emotions we work to keep at bay, and they can drive us to think in new … Continue reading Crowds Change Who We Are