Many people face fear-based emotions and act as if they have an obligation to heed their warnings. For instance, when trying to write your first book, an onslaught of sleepiness may prompt you to put it away. Or a combination of anxiety and distrust might cause you to change the subject instead of telling a new friend an intimate detail about yourself.

In circumstances like these, people act as if their thoughts and dispositions are windows into unshakable truths. In actuality, their perspectives are just manifestations of paradigms.

Your paradigm determines who you understand yourself to be and how you…

Don’t let coffee, nootropics, or brain-boosting foods replace more gratifying alternatives.

If you struggle to focus, you might brew some coffee, blame whatever you just ate, or take a brain health supplement. Some of these interventions may be more helpful than others. Nevertheless, you can pursue all kinds of lengths to change your physiology and still fail to concentrate, stay motivated, or follow through on your plans.

Sure. Some of what you consume is bound to derail your focus. For example, a bagel is going to rapidly spike your blood sugar then cause a crash. Still, it’s clear that motivation…

“A great many years ago I purchased a fine dictionary. The first thing I did was turn to the word “impossible,” and neatly clip it out of the book. That would not be an unwise thing for you to do.”

Napoleon Hill’s classic Think and Grow Rich distills his learnings after interviewing over 500 millionaires. His intent was to create a success formula utilizable by anyone.

Hill suggests that “thoughts are things.” When they’re mixed with purpose, persistence, and most importantly, a burning desire, they’re translated into their material equivalent.

The book is more than a manual for getting rich…

Awaken the parts of you that lie dormant

The ancient Greek philosopher Socrates said that all learning was a form of remembering. The immortal soul knew everything, he thought, only to forget it at the moment of birth. Life experiences, Socrates said, were a matter of remembering rather than discovering.

Within this paradigm is an opportunity for a fresh perspective on the challenges and excitements life presents.

Taking seriously Socrates’ idea will enable you to remain persistent without friction. It can also help you navigate feelings of alienation from the past or uncertainty about the future. …

With creative production, you’ve got roughly two paths to choose from: you can be perfect or prolific. Perfectionism is appealing and safe. Being precious about what you release into the world saves you from cringing two weeks from now as you read an article filled with half-formed conclusions.

When you fear that you’ll put too much time and effort into something and get no results from it, being prolific can feel instinctively wrong.

But what’s truly better? Having a large body of imperfect work, or one or two really great essays? The former is better. …

Your thoughts and feelings are damp clay. They are the raw material for your future circumstances.

Journaling lets you shape subconscious impressions prior to their materialization into future events. Reflecting on your interpretations allows you to intervene before the clay dries, or before your assumptions harden into circumstance.

When you consciously transmute emotions, assumptions and stories into frameworks that evoke positive emotion, you embark on an upward spiral. Positive feedback loops love you. You gain more authorship over your life direction.

In other words, journaling enables you to become the alchemist, rather than the recipient, of your subjective experience. And…

And cultivate a deeper sense of personal freedom

“Half the time you think you’re thinking you’re actually listening.” -Terence McKenna

If you want to learn about the link between your inner life and human nature, begin journaling. This practice makes clear that self-reflection involves learning about what’s “out there” as much as what’s programmed into you.

When you grapple with your own baggage, you also understand the baggage of those who’ve directly or indirectly influenced you. You develop new relationships, not only with people, but with historical events, eras of human history, and the mistakes made by your grandparents.

Writing…

Most people spend their lives out of alignment with their subconscious, creating a constant, low-grade sense of confusion. For example, have you ever had a nightmare after what seemed like an essentially decent day? Have you caught yourself, mid-sentence, using an intonation that felt much more antagonistic than you intended? Remained in a job or relationship in spite of the many signs that the arrangement just wasn’t right?

All of these instances are examples of dissonance between the subconscious and conscious mind. I’d argue that this absence of rapport is at the root of all our problems.

Fortunately, bringing the…