The 7 things I learnt from Brainpickings and Maria Popova
I have been on many blogs, read many posts on self-development, wisdom and culture in the past few years. Most have left me feeling a bit underwhelmed, always trying to sell me one thing or another. And a lot of the information is often superficial, and very repetitive. It’s like you when you read one, and then you have read them all.
However, a few weeks ago, I came across a blog that is fresh, unique and one that had the depth of information and wisdom I have been yearning for BrainPickings.org
Maria Popova is the creator-in-chief and in her blog, she writes about Philosophy,Science, writers and poets,culture, books, and other eclectic subjects. She focuses on old ideas and philosophies that have stood the test of time. Anne-Marie Slaughter describes Popova’s blog as “like walking into the Museum of Modern Art and having somebody give you a customised, guided tour.”
She delivers three articles a day (yes, a day) on her blog attracting almost 7 million visitors a month. She reads almost 15 books a week and has been featured regularly on The Atlantic, Wired UK, GOOD Magazine, The Huffington Post, and the Nieman Journalism Lab.
The way she creates her articles is unique, in that she quotes the owners of wisdom, goes on to explain her viewpoint and then links other similar thinkers and writers to that viewpoint, so you get a complete picture.
She always has one reader in mind when she writes and that’s herself. Brain Pickings is simply a record of her own curiosity, and of her personal journey into what matters in the world and why
She recently celebrated seven years of her website with an Article titled 7 Things I Learned in 7 Years of Reading, Writing, and Living. This was also celebrated by The Atlantic on Video.
I have done my own brain picking on those 7 lessons:
Allow yourself the uncomfortable luxury of changing your mind.
We rush to form an opinion, afraid to say “I don’t know” and often take on superficial or borrowed opinions so that we satisfy our fear of not missing out.We then find ourselves clinging to these made up opinions and lose sight that they are not our reality.It’s okay to take our time and understand an idea for ourselves, without being pressured to follow the herd. It’s okay to change our mind and be receptive to keeping an open mind.
Do nothing for prestige or status or money or approval alone.
Prestige is like a powerful magnet that warps even your beliefs about what you enjoy. It causes you to work not on what you like, but what you’d like to like.”- Paul Graham
Our motivation should always be intrinsic, as we soon get bored, tired or start to live a completely wrong life when we make extrinsic factors like money,fame, prestige the source of our drive.These often lead us to the wrong path of who we truly must be.
Be generous.
We need to freely give our time,our resources, sharing ourselves with humanity. Our words matter and their effect are devastating when hurtful and amazingly uplifting when positive. And most of all we need to be generous with our complimentary words as it’s often easier to criticise then to celebrate the people around us.
Build pockets of stillness into your life.
We need to allow ourselves lots of time during our day where we stop thinking and become aware that our thoughts are not really who we truly are and that they often don’t serve us.We need to get ourselves into the present,as that is where the real magic resides-And it’s in unconscious processing that creativity is borne.
Whether you meditate, take a long walk, or just sit in nature is not important but being alone and creating these mindful moments in your life will change you forever. Also we often underestimate the amount of sleep we need and it’s been proven that we need 7-8 hours of sleep a day so that we are in an optimum condition and well-being.
When people try to tell you who you are, don’t believe them.
“When people tell you who they are, Maya Angelou famously advised, believe them. Just as importantly, however, when people try to tell you who you are, don’t believe them. People are so good in judging others, mainly to deflect analysing and judging themselves. We have a duty to know ourselves and to love ourselves enough to be able to withstand the constant judgements of those around us.
Presence is far more intricate and rewarding an art than productivity.
“How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.”-Annie Dillard
We need to let go of our attachment to results and the pressure we often put on ourselves to perform and compete.We are constantly measuring and judging ourselves on how productive we are,that we often miss the whole joy and wonder that comes when we are present in what we are doing.
Expect anything worthwhile to take a long time.
We live in a world where we seek instant gratification and where results is everything.However, life is more like a marathon as opposed to a short sprint. Great things take time to flower, so we need to invest in being great in ten years, rather than to be good now.It’s in the process of learning, growing and becoming that we truly become alive to the full richness of life.