Why Ignorance Is Not Bliss

Muse Monday 2/27/2023

Hello, and welcome to my weekly newsletter! I'm thrilled you were able to be there. Every day I keep my Zap Pad with me and jot down everything I learned this week or thought was interesting. On Mondays, I review my top 5–10 entries and write about them in order to share what I learned. It's what I refer to as "Muse Monday."

Beyond the Box

Growing up, I always felt like an outsider. I was constantly ridiculed and bullied for being unique, which was difficult to handle. For a long time, I tried my best to fit in with the crowd, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't shake off the feeling of being different. As I got older, I realized that being different is not a bad thing. In fact, it's just that society puts so much pressure on people to conform to certain standards. It's not that people want to be like everyone else; they're often bullied into it. Society tries to force everyone to fit into a box, but that's not how life works. We're all unique individuals that should be celebrated. We need to challenge the idea that everyone should be the same and celebrate the diversity that makes us all unique. By doing so, we can create a more compassionate and accepting world for everyone.

We're talking about ourselves

When we give advice to others, we are often speaking from our own unique perspective, even if we don't realize it. This is because our experiences and worldview are shaped by our own unique circumstances and life experiences. However, it's important to remember that even though we may experience things differently, we all share similar feelings and emotions.

When offering advice to someone, it's worth taking a moment to consider where our own advice is coming from.

Why Ignorance Is not Bliss

Enlightened individuals often talk about what they know, while curious people talk about what they don't know. The more I learn, the more I realize how important it is to ask questions. I often have conversations with people who are not interested in learning about or discussing the other side of the conversation—the things they don't agree with. Unfortunately, it's all too common for people to oppress others simply because their beliefs differ from ours. We become so focused on trying to make our own beliefs known that we fail to consider the viewpoints of others. It's essential to remember that a mind not open to new ideas is an ignorant one.

The Ultimate Life Skill

If you think about it, life is just one big problem, and the quality of our lives depends on how we solve those problems, so would it not make sense to get really good at solving problems instead of worrying about things you can't control?

Thriving in the Midst of Stress

Lately, I've been experiencing a lot of stress due to a new puppy that loves to wake me up just 15 minutes before my alarm goes off. It may appear to be a minor issue, but for some reason, it is worse than in the middle of the night, and it causes me to feel tired and irritable throughout the day. However, I've come to realize that stress is a part of life and there will always be things that can cause us to feel overwhelmed. Literally, if you're looking, you can find stress anywhere. Instead of letting stress control us, we can learn to manage it in healthy ways. One way to accomplish this is to concentrate on what we can control rather than on what we cannot. For example, I can't control when my puppy wakes up, but I can adjust my sleep schedule or try to tire her out before bedtime to minimize the disruption.

Finding Purpose in the Present

I am about to turn 20, and for some reason, I feel like I have never been where I want to be. I tried asking how to stop this feeling, but it hasn't worked. The other day, a colleague from work somehow found out how I was feeling, and he felt the need to give me some advice. He told me that the feeling of being behind in life truly never goes away and that there won't be a day when you wake up and feel like you've caught up. But focusing on the things you love doing and being thankful for them is what gets you through it. He made me realize that I was asking the wrong questions. Instead of asking what I can do to stop feeling behind, I should be asking why I want to be ahead in the first place. It took me a while to think about it, but if I'm completely honest with myself, I don't think I'll ever be satisfied with where I am because I always feel like I can't be happy until I achieve success. Maybe it's not about figuring everything out. Instead, it's about focusing on what you have figured out. We should focus on the things that make us feel fulfilled and keep doing them. As long as you do that, what else could you want?

Question of the week: Do you feel behind in life? How do you cope?

Leave a comment and let me know your answer, or just let me know what you thought of this week's Muse Monday. I'm Ace; I hope I have served you well, and thanks for reading.