mental - Fluid Fountain

February 20, 2024 / 1 Comment

Is Stoicism still useful today?

With the many different paradigms of human life, the struggle to define a good life has forever been debated. What really is a good life? For all we know of poverty, deprivation and destruction, the qualities of individual peace and harmony are far more than material – our psyches, physical well-being, social belongingness, friends, and family. The list goes on to prove the core pillar lies spiritual. Our current times remind us more than ever that no number of indulgences in food and entertainment, nor developments in Artificial intelligence and technology, can silence worry and sadness. In the real world, of prevailing good and evil, the answer is not utopian happiness but a much bigger mix of individual fulfilment. The ancient Stoics realised this millenniums ago and it is through their philosophical discussions and debates we arrive at the same position, wanting the good life. Stoicism today, however, goes overlooked as being impractical and sterile from the present-day luxuries and social divisions. This article seeks to explain Stoicism, and its core tenets and argue it remains a strong force against today’s overwhelming consumer and information age. As a mental framework for daily living, it offers inspiration to remain principled, yet pragmatic in life’s precarious journey. To uphold essential virtues of good character and conduct through an ever-changing world.

February 25, 2023 / 0 Comments

Why you must fail to succeed – failure as a step to success

There is no succeeding without failing. You probably have heard it countless times from cliché quotes and inspiring speeches about the need to get up and keep going. This general lesson of perseverance, however, comes mostly with images and stories and rarely an explanation as to why stumbling in life is okay. There persists for many an overwhelming fear and shame around failing, only made worse by the glam and hustle culture promoted online. The concern about failure reaches such levels even the currently successful confess to being afraid of pushing further in life because of the potential risks and shame from family and friends in tasting their first defeat. Today many people suffer from this symptom of portentous failure. Whether you are yet to fail or already have, the fear of succeeding has become symptomatic in the social media age. We see the dream lives of celebrities and YouTubers, extraordinary never-seen-before projects, and unimaginable wealth. It is easy to get lost amongst the grand ideals and images of success. We must all get comfortable with failing if we want to pursue lasting success throughout life. This article seeks to remind others that failure is a necessary stage to success in many parts of our lives- by failing we can learn, discover, appreciate and push.

June 5, 2022 / 0 Comments

Being introverted should not mean loneliness

Being introverted is not the same as being lonely. Despite living most of my adult life alone, withdrawn from all social settings, I now realise this is not healthy. The digital age has been a gift to introverts like me. There are more ways than ever to tune out from the world and enjoy our presence. Yet by relying on more escapes, does disconnecting from people go further than just being introverted? Introverts may already be overlooking their loneliness. The condition reaches points deeper than mere social isolation- disconnection from people and reality. This article hopes to open the discussion about loneliness and make serial introverts question if a solitary life is really what they want. I do not mean to toxify the desire for alone time but to remind everyone about the need for human love and companionship in a fast-moving world. Loneliness is a deep issue, transcending personality types. The duty falls on us to help each other discover meaning through friends, family, neighbours, colleagues, social groups and more.

September 27, 2021 / 1 Comment

Anxiety and Uncertainty

Anxiety wrote this article. The culmination of stress, worry and doubt has always been difficult to encapsulate and express. The feeling is often too melancholy. I refuse to give in and remember writing remains the strongest outlet for the feelings and thoughts buried inside me. Today’s movement for mental health encourages me to share my experience. Anxiety is a normal response; humans naturally feel worried and doubt when faced with uncertainty. The modern age, however, brings new pressures, an overabundance of expectations, interactions and information that are all too difficult to restrain. I describe my experience, conversing through the first anxious responses to the deeper-seated anxiety found in social interactions. I then explore some means to managing anxiety. A paradoxical truth remains, more exposure to uncomfortable situations forms the primary means to overcoming fears and doubts. One may still desire an immediate prognosis which Action Commitment Learning offers through brief practical steps. The battle with anxiety may not be about eliminating such feelings entirely but managing how it affects us.

June 18, 2021 / 0 Comments

Winning The Writing Battle- Writing Down The Bones

Writing has always been a struggle for me. Not the physical part of getting my hand moving across the page but the mental barrier dragging me back to my slumber. Ideas, images and tones bring torture when the struggle to package it all together seem overwhelming. Every writing journey gets caught staring into perfection. The first draft means cutting through the dense jungle, not knowing where and how worthy the mammoth prize awaits you. In the darkest times, many writers roaming the writing landscape will feel lonely and worthless. During my leap into writing, my immense mental battles showed me writing can be a love-hate relationship. However, one year ago a special book helped me to find a greater love for writing and the unpredictable journey. Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg is a unique self-help book for all writers. She offers valuable spiritual and mental lessons, holistic ways to overcome tormenting mental demons and find confidence in writing. Too quickly do we forget writing is an art form that takes many different shapes and sizes. Writing demands patience, planning and practice. Whatever the writing task, we all writers would appreciate a push to believe in our writing and stop overthinking things. Here are some of my key takeaways from Writing Down the Bones to keep you believing and writing.

April 18, 2021 / 3 Comments

How ‘Positive Thinking’ Causes Destruction

Happy: Why More or Less Everything is Absolutely Fine by Derren Brown throws the towel on today’s age of positive thinking. Like with his enigmatic charisma, he guides readers on a different path to ‘happiness’. One that halts the pelting, positive treadmill and focuses on finding acceptance in the reality of disappointment and joy. His graceful writing stretches 446 pages and makes clear readers do not need yet another ‘quick rich scheme’ or a book jammed with positive quotes. After finding myself binging on plentiful ‘inspiring’ messages, I appreciate his view that positivity guides have paradoxically caused discontent in needing continued positivity. Brown introduces Stoicism as the old age thinking to rediscover an approach to finding resilience, acceptance, and happiness in precarious human life. He carves open the stoic perspective by taking the reader through a phenomenal breadth of knowledge, history, philosophy, and psychology. The book offers lots to contemplate, from angles of life to acceptance of death. Ultimately, this book provides a framework to discover and take greater happiness from ordinary life. This article will not be a book review and instead focus on Brown’s interesting contempt of today’s ‘positive thinking’ mantra. Why has the positive thinking movement become such a toxic barrier to happiness? How can positive thinking become suddenly negative and destructive?