Alex Dobrenko

Whether or not you have worked out your own understanding of free will, just thinking about your potential lack of agency can be an exercise in mindfulness. By observing the thoughts that run amuck your mind, and contemplating the subconscious factors that govern your waking consciousness, you allow awareness to take the wheel — rather than... See more

3. Start or end every day with writing about your life. There’s always something buried underneath the to do list in your head, something you didn’t realise you felt, that when written down, will make everything clearer.

In June 1983, Alexander Grothendieck sits down to write the preface to a mathematical manuscript called Pursuing Stacks . He is concerned by what he sees as a tacit disdain for the more “feminine side” of mathematics (which is related to what I’m calling the solitary creative state) in favor of the “hammer and chisel” of the finished theorem. By... See more

THIS TOO SHALL PASS . This adage of Persian origin is a salve to parents everywhere. “Don’t worry,” it whispers seductively in your ear, “it won’t be like this forever.” And no lies were told. Once you begin to worship at the altar of “This too shall pass” your parenting struggles become something to be endured temporarily, rather than a Sisyphean... See more