One of my Secrets of Adulthood (cribbed from Niels Bohr) is “The opposite of a great truth is also true.” As I’ve worked on my happiness project, I’ve recognized many paradoxes .
In Marc Lesser’s book Less: Accomplishing More by Doing Less , I read a fascinating list of such paradoxes by Chade-Meng Tan, a Google engineer whose title is “Jolly Good Fellow.”
I was quite struck by his list – and also by the number of times that my resolutions and paradoxes overlapped with his.
His list, with my comments:
I strive hard to be lazy.
I resolve to
Force myself to wander
.
I’m selfishly compassionate.
This reminds me of the
Second Splendid Truth
!
I desire to not want.
Oh, I recognize that one.
Sometimes, I’m not myself.
Often, I’m not here, where I am.
I have a big problem with this one, mindfulness.
I actively engage in nonactivity.
I resolve to
Schedule time to play
.
I feel spiritual about my earthly desires.
I loooove this one.
I sometimes fail at failing.
I have to remind myself to
Enjoy the fun of failure
.
I make careless mistakes carefully.
Sometimes, my mind is full of nothing.
My own arrogance humbles me.
I’ve become a famous unknown.
I sometimes pity the more fortunate.
Have you found any paradoxes in your happiness project?
* I get a big kick out of the Art of Manliness blog, especially because I don’t actually worry about my manliness. (When I read a site like the hilarious How Not to Act Old , I end up thinking about my wardrobe, my slang, my music, etc.)
* Seems like I had something I wanted to mention…hmmm, what was it? Oh, right, MY BOOK IS COMING OUT IN A WEEK! Yipes. As a thank-you, if you
pre-order
, I’ll send you a pack of bonus materials – just email me at
gretchenrubin1[at]gmail.com
, and I’ll send it to you. More info
here
.