Agency
Everything in our world is there because someone decided it needed to exist. We all have things we know need to exist. What stops us from making them exist?
Agency
Refusing to choose is a choice.
Excerpt: “The upsetting implication, and why I sometimes avoid recognizing my own agency, is that if I have a choice, then what I’m doing is actually what I chose to be doing. This can be kind of upsetting for one’s self-image.”
Perfect is the enemy of done
Inaction is the enemy of action
Inaction in search of perfection is the enemy of action
"I could have done it, but I didn't try."
Of all the stories people tell themselves, this is the most harmful.
The truth is: If you didn't do it, and you haven't done it, then you can't do it (yet).
Until you face this harsh reality, you won't make the necessary changes. Show more
The opposite to reflexive agency is prompted agency - agency which only becomes available given some prompt to action. “That does seem like a problem. Have you tried solving it?” is my only-half-joking prompt I use with people: It’s something that highlights the failure of agency, in a way that makes people aware that action is an option available
... See moreDavid R. MacIver • Learning to exercise agency
"I was waiting for something extraordinary to happen, but as the years wasted on, nothing ever did unless I caused it.”
—Charles Bukowski
Do It Scared
I believe many young people struggle with the insecurity of being intelligent. They often feel the need to prove their intelligence by overthinking, excessively planning, and acquiring knowledge before taking action. However, this approach is a waste of time. The more you research, the more you realize how little you actually know. In... See more
My most profound moment in college was when a professor mentioned that we were in school not to learn concepts, but to learn how to think critically. It was a major unblocker for me.
Prior to that moment, I'd been prioritizing getting good grades in my classes. It was the most important thing at the time. The clearest object I had in front of me.
Now
Discipline is fighting yourself.
Wasted energy. Wasted creativity.
Put that instead into figuring out what you actually most want.
Solve problems in doing what you want with reason, not force.
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