💎 Friday Gems #25 (Your Future Self, Understanding Bias, Hikaru Dorodango)
Gems of insights to help you thrive in life, not just survive.
Hallo Low Fidelity readers!
This week, each day after work I have been enjoying watching the Women’s FIFA 2023 World Cup which is taking place in Australia and New Zealand. I am amazed at the amazing soccer talent around the world. The unbelievable and mind-boggling goals and the precise placement of the kicks have been utterly delightful.
What draws me to sports is not the thrill of victory or the agony of defeat, but it’s an activity where we can develop our mindset and resilience while challenging ourselves to reach our full potential.
On to this week’s gems!
💎 How to connect with your future self
“If we think about our future selves as if they are other people, then it makes sense why we sometimes treat them so poorly,”
- Hal Hershfield, Author of Your Future Self: How to Make Tomorrow Better Today
How do you think about your future self?
Is your future self far away, a stranger or do you feel connected and close to your future self?
The decisions we make now in the present depend on how we think about our future selves.
If we think of our future selves as some distant person who is significantly different from who we are today, we are likely to make decisions with our short-term desires in mind.
If we think of our future selves as closer, and similar, and feel more connected to who we are today, this could help us make better and more forward-thinking choices in the present.
Refelection Prompt
Here is an exercise you can do right now to connect with your future self. Think about who you will be 20 years from now, and write about the person you are now, which topics are important and dear to you, and how you see your life.Source: Psyche
💎 Understanding Bias
If you are human, you are biased.
- Howard J. Ross
All humans are biased.
Bias is our mind’s natural tendency to quickly make sense of the world. From early prehistory, we have evolved to perform quick judgments which have helped keep us safe from threats in the natural world but over time we have kept this way of processing information to now, forming opinions of other people and groups.
Our minds make quick judgments of good, bad, or indifferent while minimizing the complex nature and the humanity of others.
Once we know and accept we have bias, we can begin to recognize our own patterns of thinking. With awareness and a conscious effort, we have the power to change how we think and to challenge the negative or harmful biases within ourselves.
Reflection Prompt
Spend some time reflecting on your own journey, and the role bias plays in your life. What are some of your own biases - positive or negative - that you are aware of?Source: National Museum of African American History & Culture
💎 The Mindful Art of Hikaru Dorodango
When I think about perfecting a craft in the pursuit of excellence I immediately think of Japanese master artisans, also called Takumi. You can find knifemakers to sushi masters who have been honing their craft for more than 25 years.
But where does this mindset begin? How is it developed?
It all may start with Japanese schoolchildren playing with mud and taking part in a meditative activity called Hikaru Dorodango, where mud is polished and crafted into a perfect sphere.
The art of dorodango requires making a perfect sphere out of only earth, water, and air. By carefully rolling mud in your hands and patiently patting it down while building up the perfect sphere. Then polishing and smoothing them to make them shiny. Texture can also be added to give the spheres a unique look.
I know I’m itching to get my hands on some good mud so I can create my own dorodango and experience this meditative art.
Find the instructions to create your own dorodango here: https://mazdastories.com/en_us/inspire/the-mindful-art-of-hikaru-dorodangoSource: Mazda
💎 Substack Gems Roundup
Substack is all about bringing new voices to learn from. In this section, I share gems from writers on Substack to can help us make the shift to better mindsets and guide us toward our true selves.
by
As a person with anxiety and OCD, I thought that worry would always be a part of my story. I was wrong about that. And while I still have moments of intense anxiety, I do not allow it to take over my life anymore. Life continues to show me that nothing meant for me has ever missed me.
- Alex Elle
Alex’s words resonated with me because I also used to think that being stuck in life with my anxieties and worries was my reality. Being stuck in a bad job, playing small at work and life, and the inner turmoil was just how life was.
I was wrong!
Once I turned the lens within me and learned that the negative thoughts and the obstacles in my way don’t define who I am and that life is full of abundance and opportunities for me, I became free to harness life’s infinite possibilities.
Thanks for the inspiration, Alex!
by
The courage it takes to leave behind what’s not for you anymore is the same courage that will help you find your way to what is.
This is a big realization I had in my own transformation.
Instead of feeling stuck in a behavior that we know isn’t good for us and feeling helpless, we can decide to stop hurting ourselves.
The strength and resolve it takes to stop a negative behavior is the same strength and resolve it takes to choose a behavior that will improve your life.
You have what it takes to change for the better.
As always I’m here for you if you need someone to talk to. Reach out and let’s chat.
Do you have a favorite Substack you like to read? Share it in the comments. I would love to include it in the next Friday Gems issue.
💎 Gem of a Quote
How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.
― Annie Dillard
Let me know in the comments if any of the gems resonate with you. I always love hearing from you. :)
Thanks for reading, and have a fantastic weekend!
Rizwan