21 Lessons for the 21st Century

Perhaps in the future we could pop a pill and achieve instant focus.

The brain is a material network of neurons, synapses and biochemicals. The mind is a flow of subjective experiences, such as pain, pleasure, anger and love.

Science finds it hard to decipher the mysteries of the mind largely because we lack efficient tools. Many people, including many scientists, tend to confuse the mind with the brain, but they are really very different things.

it is easier to act and cooperate effectively when you understand the human mind, understand your own mind, and understand how to deal with your inner fears, biases and complexes.

To change the world, you need to act, and even more importantly, you need to organise. Fifty members cooperating in an organisation can accomplish far more than 500 individuals each working in isolation.

For years I lived under the impression that I was the master of my life, and the CEO of my own personal brand. But a few hours of meditation were enough to show me that I hardly had any control of myself. I was not the CEO – I was barely the gatekeeper.

the real enigma of life is not what happens after you die, but what happens before you die. If you want to understand death, you need to understand life.

Whenever politicians start talking in mystical terms, beware. They might be trying to disguise and excuse real suffering by wrapping it up in big incomprehensible words. Be particularly careful about the following four words: sacrifice, eternity, purity, redemption. If you hear any of these, sound the alarm.

Observing the truth about yourself is just so difficult! Even if you somehow manage to get most humans to try it, many of us will quickly distort the truth we encounter into some story with heroes, villains and enemies, and find really good excuses to go to war.

People ask ‘Who am I?’ and expect to be told a story. The first thing you need to know about yourself is that you are not a story.