What’s your approach to life?

Post Reply New Topic

Do you have any philosophical approaches to life you’ve learned through trial and error or do you just wing it and hope that everything somehow works out?

I feel like I've experienced a little bit of both.

I have a generalized view of life which affects what I do----but it's not "set in stone."

That question reminds me of great song that I listened to many, many years ago. The name of the song is called "I Am a Rock" by Simon & Garfunkel. So my philosophy is that I am an island floating in a vast ocean. The lyrics of the song begin with:

A winter's day
In a deep and dark
December
I am alone
Gazing from my window to the streets below
On a freshly fallen silent shroud of snow
I am a rock
I am an island

I've built walls
A fortress deep and mighty
That none may penetrate
I have no need of friendship, friendship causes pain
It's laughter and it's loving I disdain
I am a rock
I am an island

Don't talk of love
But I've heard the words before
It's sleeping in my memory
I won't disturb the slumber of feelings that have died
If I never loved I never would have cried
I am a rock
I am…

Here's a few common-sense "Nevers" from my collection of Codgerisms...

• Never approach a bull from the front, a horse from the rear, or a fool from any direction.

• Never argue with idiots, as most folks won't be able to tell the difference.

• Never ask a barber if he thinks you need a haircut.

• Never challenge something bigger than you.

• Never corner something meaner than you.

• Never do business with anyone who has no permanent address.

• Never get too good at something you don't ever want to do.

• Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.

• Never let the truth get in the way of a good story.

• Never let your feet run faster than your shoes.

• Never let your yearnings get ahead of your earnings.

• Never name a pig you plan to eat.

• Never pass on an opportunity to eat, sleep, reload, or use the toilet.

• Never skinny-dip with snapping turtles.

• Never stop the plow horse to chase a field mouse.

• Never take a fence down until you know why it was put up.

• Never tell people much, and tell most people nothing at all.

• Never wear a birthday suit to a trouser fight.

• Never worry about the mules, just load the wagon.

• Never wrestle a pig; you'll both get dirty, and the pig will like it.

Never suffer fools gladly
In fact, never suffer fools at all

Just smile and nod

Always take the option that involves less energy... automatic doors... escalators... etc...

The rest is just winging it

I'm wary of life.

If I have or had any, then I kept 'forgetting' it, picking something new up, only to turn meaningless and drop it again, and find another.

All I have is memories of should's and would's, shouldn'ts and wouldn'ts. Nothing 'deeper' than that because I can't seem to hold onto it.

I tried, really, to stick to one. So unlike before when I had any rules that has all the certainty that I will or shall follow. Yet this isn't happening anymore. Something is really wrong with me.
-- Wait, there IS one that always sticks and remain consistent; it's to 'wait patiently' for this lifespan to 'end' and do 'whatever' while at it. Yep, something is definitely wrong.

Gained Number Post Count (1).
Lose Time (n).

Lose more time here - Updates at least once a week.

One of the programs that I like to watch on TV is called NCIS. One of the main characters is Leroy Jethro Gibbs. He is the lead on a small investigation team. He follows a set of unwritten rules in investigating crimes. They are Gibbs' Rules.

A few decades ago, the illogic of this world was almost driving me insane. I began having severe headaches. But then I realized something that took all that away. You might even refer to this as "Jimmy's Rule #1:"

Rule #1 is the 40% rule which roughly stated is around 40% of what you read is outright false or a misleading narrative.

In our world, newspapers are in the business of selling papers. This mission can sometimes be at odds with telling the truth. The truth is many times distorted. Many normal people are being led around like sheep to the slaughter.

Most normal people have learned herd instinct. They travel with the herd. If their teachers teach them something they accept it without question. If a politician says, “the debate is over” or “there is a consensus”, they accept this as true in blind faith. They do this for convenience. But this normal approach also has a severe weakness.

Around 40% of what you read is outright false or a misleading narrative.

On one day, the New York Times might publish an article titled Latest research indicates coffee is bad for you and drinking it will cause you to die prematurely.

The very next day another newspaper publishes an article titled Coffee is beneficial and scientist have proven that drinking it will extend your life.

So which headline is true and which is false?

The correct answer is probably both headlines are somewhat true. However, as first stated by Paracelsus, the #1 principle in toxicology is, “The dose makes the poison.” This means that below a certain dose (probably about 4 cups a day) coffee is beneficial to drink and above that threshold it can be destructive. In general, if you drink a few cups of coffee a day or not, it doesn’t really matter in extending or curtailing your life expectancy.

Consider even drinking too much water will kill you. Severe cases of hyponatremia (drinking too much water at once) can lead to water intoxication, an illness whose symptoms include headache, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, frequent urination and mental disorientation; and this condition can prove fatal. So do you really need to put a warning label on water! Or as in California, a Los Angeles Superior Court Judge just ruled that coffee must carry a warning label! Goodbye Starbucks!

I do my best to develop my strongest talents, but I only spend significant resources on them if another person finds a project worth joining.
I look for the significant facts in the news - I read about Peak Oil in '57 when it was first predicted, and planned my life around it. If others had, we would not be in a climate crisis now.
From age 2 to 37, I thought that the Golden Rule was about all I needed, but then it became obvious that some people didn't want what I wanted for myself, and significant numbers ignored the Rule.

Know yourself and define your needs, goals, limitations, and strengths. Know your environment and deconstruct it rationally. Be effective based upon this knowledge. Never stop being curious and always question your cognitive biases.