Reflections on Turning 31

1. Those things that you value for the sake that they are seen by other are not true values


2. When in doubt, do what is brave over what is safe

3. Take time in getting to know people, but do not waste time in knowing people who you do not enjoy spending time with

4. The skill of recognizing when people believe what they say, and when they are saying what they wish to believe, it is to know the difference between lies and truth.

To perceive this is to understand human nature, and the nature of any individual.

5. You’re the sum of whatever the fuck you want to be the sum of. Pithy quotes are the biggest scam in the accumulation of Wisdom 


6. The biggest egos are found in those that believe that they do not have one

7. The great questions of life are not problems that must be formulaically solved, but realties to experience. 

You will have your answers through living. 


8. The only authentic answers you will ever find are the ones in yourself, not in asking others

9. Human experience & perception is a quantum drop in an ocean compared to everything that exists. Think about this before you laugh at the idea that there are powers in existence beyond yourself. Ignorance is matched only by arrogance that mankind has figured things out

10. No shit you do you need discipline and good habits to get things done. Like fucking really


11. A soft environment can never breed hard men. Only weak ones that will feign the
toughness of prior men that came before them

12. Some people are born lazy, will live lazy, and will die lazy. Don’t waste time in trying to change them 


13. Honesty in ones living requires a commitment that scares most pope away from it. For those that embrace, you learn a freedom that can never be taken from you

14. Until you travel away from your place of upbringing, you won’t know what your values really care. Its until you are taken out of your native environment that you can accurately asses yourself

15. Incline bench press and dips will build an upper body of power. Do them consistently and experience the gains


16. The easiest way to control a Man is through his vices. 


17. You can never reasonably train your back too much

18. A key difference between exceptional people who are action driven, versus average people. The exceptional think in possibilities, and then do what is necessary. The average think in likelihoods, and love to talk and think about what COULD happen

19. Luck is absolutely real, and it is a modern myth that it is only the product of hard work. People believe this because it means they can work for it. In reality there are people every day who are undeservingly lucky, and every day people that cannot catch a break

20. Generally speaking, anyone under the age of 25 is more or less an imbecile. Even more so if he has money and he believes it makes him important 


21. The root of a Man’s ability is his strength. You can develop the body, you can develop the mind

22. Always appreciate the favors of fortune. And be prepared for when they are not so favorable. No one is immune to either


23. Anyone that lies to their self will lie to others. Self-deception is the root of dishonesty

24. The majority of what people think about the opposite sex are false rationalizations that suit their fantasies, insecurities, and blind spots

25. Contrary to popular refrain, some rare individuals DO “have things figured out”. When you understand human nature and conquered yourself, you are unlimited in what you are capable of accomplishing.

26. The beginning of anything new is a balance between being bold & being careful. You want the first step to be the correct one…But you also don't want to hesitate into inaction. What you learn later on is its easier to pivot once your are in motion than it is to start moving

27. A Man does not obtain confidence, power, and respect by instinct alone . A man that proceeds through life mindlessly, with no reflection or forethought, he is not much more than a trained animal

You’ll never fulfill your potential by accident

Only by intention

28. Pain filters weakness from strength, and what is left over is what is most real. If there is nothing left, the person has been either exposed, or destroyed.

29. There is no virtue between friends so great nor so rare as loyalty.

30. You will never be too generous for a freeloader, too convincing for a fool, or too kind to a manipulator. Don’t allow yourself to be used and abused by aberrant personalities.

31. Greatness is a transitory experience. It is never consistent. It depends in part upon the myth-making imagination of humankind. The person who experiences greatness must have a feeling for the myth he is in. He must reflect what is projected upon him...

He must have a strong sense of the sardonic. This is what uncouples him from belief in his own pretensions. The sardonic is all that permits him to move within himself. Without this quality, even occasional greatness will destroy a Man



~Muad’Dib~
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