Once my mentor said to me, even the dumbest person as per you has something to offer, you haven't reached there or you didn't tried to explore them, everyone has wisdom to offer that comes from experience and practice.
I feel as if the over-intellectualisation of seemingly simple advice can be used as a way to mask one's lack of ability to act in accordance with such simple advice. Simple advice isn't always simple to make happen, and over-intellectualising the situation can make things seem more complicated and challenging, a great way to pretend things are worse than they really are to hide one's lack of abilities. Which is why this "well, actually..." is often associated with people who spend too much time behind their computer. They're undoubtably smart, but maybe also compensating for their lack of practical skills but intellectually inflating things. "If smart me can't do it then it must be pretty complicated!"
I really appreciate your honest and personal reflection on the advice. I totally agree: simple ones often turn out to be really helpful. And, on that note, one thing I've often found helpful is: "if you can't explain it easily, it means the concept is not clear." Of course, it doesn't apply in every case, but I think it's often a good way to relate to ideas, because it forces you to get to the heart of the matter. Thanks for sharing, I'll keep the examples you gave in mind for the new year!
Wow... I mean I am happy that you're able to take your work to your own space and I really admire it, but you find the Substack layouts ugly? That's so odd I seem to love Substack primarily for its aesthetic. Anyway, all the best for your website!
As regards to the topic, my only suggestion would be that it would be interesting if you try to cover actual philosophical/literary more often, at least as equally often as your posts pertaining to reading habits and other life advice. That has always been your most interesting content.
Ah damn, I adore your page on substack, but hey, I’m definitely still going to be reading moi. Funnily enough, sometimes I find myself being the “well actually” guy, this piece has made me realise that the perspective I look from may be a little tainted with pessimism but also jealousy, I’m going to try stop that.
The only problem with your own platform is we don't get the attention of the audience like something like Substack or Beehiv has. In order to gain the audience you need to master twitter X and LinkedIn. I've gotten most subscribers from X. Follow Dan Koe and Justin Welsh for learning more about one person business advice using the Newsletter. Keep going. I'm on your list.
Thanks Martin for the tips! I think especially as of late, I’m getting a bit tired of Substack measuring readers in terms of “followers”, resulting in a huge list but very little engagement. Also I’m lucky enough to have built a very supportive and loyal fan base from YouTube and my mailing list here so switching to my own platform would enable me to offer more value. Thanks for reading and I look forward to showing you what the new edition of this newsletter will offer. :)
I learned this the hard way. I "over-intellectualize" things, if that's even a word. I made up hidden barriers for myself simply because, as my past self would usually say, "it can't be as simple as people claim it to be, right?" I would reason that there should be some sort of preparation before the actual thing. I never got to do what I wanted for a while. It's led to a whole lot of inaction and bitterness. Part of it was perfectionism, another part of it was immense self-doubt and anxiety.
Thank you for this wonderful post. It reminded me of the things I'm thankful for this year.
what a coincidence! i just got pissed off because of this cringey thing, but I still didn't know why I was upset with those people. Now I get it! It wasn't because they were too theoretical or 'practical,' nor was it due to my lack of knowledge. It was because I chose to listen to them before truly listening to myself first (even though that's never easy) or taking action.
Once my mentor said to me, even the dumbest person as per you has something to offer, you haven't reached there or you didn't tried to explore them, everyone has wisdom to offer that comes from experience and practice.
The new site is already looking shmick, excited for the full launch!
Thanks Caitlin!
I feel as if the over-intellectualisation of seemingly simple advice can be used as a way to mask one's lack of ability to act in accordance with such simple advice. Simple advice isn't always simple to make happen, and over-intellectualising the situation can make things seem more complicated and challenging, a great way to pretend things are worse than they really are to hide one's lack of abilities. Which is why this "well, actually..." is often associated with people who spend too much time behind their computer. They're undoubtably smart, but maybe also compensating for their lack of practical skills but intellectually inflating things. "If smart me can't do it then it must be pretty complicated!"
Haha, I literally just become a paying member. oops@
I really appreciate your honest and personal reflection on the advice. I totally agree: simple ones often turn out to be really helpful. And, on that note, one thing I've often found helpful is: "if you can't explain it easily, it means the concept is not clear." Of course, it doesn't apply in every case, but I think it's often a good way to relate to ideas, because it forces you to get to the heart of the matter. Thanks for sharing, I'll keep the examples you gave in mind for the new year!
Wow... I mean I am happy that you're able to take your work to your own space and I really admire it, but you find the Substack layouts ugly? That's so odd I seem to love Substack primarily for its aesthetic. Anyway, all the best for your website!
As regards to the topic, my only suggestion would be that it would be interesting if you try to cover actual philosophical/literary more often, at least as equally often as your posts pertaining to reading habits and other life advice. That has always been your most interesting content.
Ah damn, I adore your page on substack, but hey, I’m definitely still going to be reading moi. Funnily enough, sometimes I find myself being the “well actually” guy, this piece has made me realise that the perspective I look from may be a little tainted with pessimism but also jealousy, I’m going to try stop that.
As always, great post Robin, thanks.
The only problem with your own platform is we don't get the attention of the audience like something like Substack or Beehiv has. In order to gain the audience you need to master twitter X and LinkedIn. I've gotten most subscribers from X. Follow Dan Koe and Justin Welsh for learning more about one person business advice using the Newsletter. Keep going. I'm on your list.
Thanks Martin for the tips! I think especially as of late, I’m getting a bit tired of Substack measuring readers in terms of “followers”, resulting in a huge list but very little engagement. Also I’m lucky enough to have built a very supportive and loyal fan base from YouTube and my mailing list here so switching to my own platform would enable me to offer more value. Thanks for reading and I look forward to showing you what the new edition of this newsletter will offer. :)
I learned this the hard way. I "over-intellectualize" things, if that's even a word. I made up hidden barriers for myself simply because, as my past self would usually say, "it can't be as simple as people claim it to be, right?" I would reason that there should be some sort of preparation before the actual thing. I never got to do what I wanted for a while. It's led to a whole lot of inaction and bitterness. Part of it was perfectionism, another part of it was immense self-doubt and anxiety.
Thank you for this wonderful post. It reminded me of the things I'm thankful for this year.
I think this is less about positivity vs. negativity/cynicism than how we view counter viewpoints.
For example, what if person A said, "exercising regularly is bad." And person B said, "well, actually..."?
Then B is the positive one.
Is B cynical for offering a counter argument? Maybe. Only B knows for sure.
But if we just wave off a counter point, assuming the person's just cynical, then we're also limiting our own point of view.
Why not consider all perspectives, then assess them all collectively rather than pre-judging people's intentions and ideas as positive/negative?
what a coincidence! i just got pissed off because of this cringey thing, but I still didn't know why I was upset with those people. Now I get it! It wasn't because they were too theoretical or 'practical,' nor was it due to my lack of knowledge. It was because I chose to listen to them before truly listening to myself first (even though that's never easy) or taking action.
Thank you, Robin, as always.