Tiny Experiments: How to Live Freely in a Goal-Obsessed World

French philosopher René Girard called this phenomenon mimetic desire: we desire something because we see others desiring it. In other words, our goals mimic the goals of others.

Escaping the Tyranny of Purpose

Ultimately, choose your pact based on your curiosity. Remember to let go of previous choices, societal expectations, and top-down assumptions. What excites you? What do you want to learn?

We were all born with this sense of adventure. It’s in children’s nature to experiment and explore the unknown.

mindset.

If you are hesitating between two versions of a pact, think tiny: What’s the smallest version of this experiment that you can run?

three profound shifts in how you navigate the world: From Response 1 to Response 2. Response 1 is automatic and rooted in the anxiety of uncertainty. Response 2 is autonomous and based on a strong sense of agency. We all oscillate between the two responses, but the more we flex our curiosity muscles, the more uncertainty transforms from something t

Uncertainty has so much to teach us. We experience it not just in big life transitions, but in lesser moments of ambiguity, such as the “messy middle” of a project, when we’d like to throw in the towel. When we find ourselves in these precarious moments, our automatic response is too often fear or anxiety. And so we rush toward a defined outcome to

days. Shorter time frames are often more effective. For something completely new that you have never tried before, a ten-day pact is a good starting point.