Just taking the highlights from: 7 Strange Questions That Help You Find Your Life Purpose by Mark Manson. And having a good crack at answering the questions.
Questions
Q1. What’s Your Favorite Flavor of Shit Sandwich and Does It Come With an Olive?
What shit sandwich do you want to eat? Because eventually, we all get served one.
Everything sucks, some of the time.
- What struggles you are willing to tolerate to get what you want
- What you will likely be better than other people at
Q2. What’s True About You Today That Would Make Your 8-Year-Old Self Cry?
Something about the social pressures of adolescence and professional pressures of young adulthood squeezes the passion out of us. We’re taught that the only reason to do something is if we’re somehow rewarded for it. And the transactional nature of the world inevitably stifles us and makes us feel lost or stuck.
- What childhood passion you lost to adulthood
- What activity you should revisit, just for the fun of it
Q3. What Makes You Forget to Eat and Poop?
Look at the activities that keep you up all night, but look at the cognitive principles behind those activities that enthrall you. Because they can easily be applied elsewhere.
- What you truly enjoy doing
- What other activities to check out that you might also enjoy
Q4. How Can You Better Embarrass Yourself?
Embrace embarrassment. Feeling foolish is part of the path to achieving something important, something meaningful. The more a major life decision scares you, chances are the more you need to be doing it.
- What scares the shit out of you… for good reason
- That you should stop making lousy excuses and start doing something
Q5. How Are You Going to Save the World?
You’re not going to fix the world’s problems by yourself. But you can contribute and make a difference. And that feeling of making a difference is ultimately what’s most important for your own happiness and fulfillment.
- What problem you care about that’s larger than you
- How you can make a difference
Q6. Gun to Your Head, If You Had to Leave the House All Day, Every Day, Where Would You Go and What Would You Do?
Discovering what you’re passionate about in life and what matters to you is a full-contact sport, a trial-by-fire process. None of us know exactly how we feel about an activity until we actually do the activity.
- What you were passionate about all along
- How you should spend your time
Q7. If You Knew You Were Going to Die One Year From Today, What Would You Do and How Would You Want to Be Remembered?
Ultimately, death is the only thing that gives us perspective on the value of our lives. Because it’s only by imagining your non-existence that you can get a sense of what is most important about your existence.
- What is most important to you
- What values should guide your actions
Answers
A1) Not sure how to answer this.
I have good attention to detail. And I like detail. My advantage might be just that.
A2) Maybe that I'm not creating stuff. I used to love building things with Lego. Made paper cars simulating the car show (they all looked like Lotus Espirits). Electric RC cars. Even created some RPG computer games with graphics.
I need to revisit building and creating stuff. Maybe this was what made my blogs successful in the early days, this building of something. What can I build!?
A3) Computer games. Also exciting thoughts (like I'm thinking of something great to write, thinking of an exciting way to make money, or thinking about a new car even). With the Computer games, the progression is addictive, perhaps more so than the fantasy.
Should I return to computer games/programming (programming projects), even if very basic!? See what I can come up with.
A4) Well, I hate embarrassing myself. Definitely anything social scares the shit out of me. Or going new places. Running club!? Walking club!? Church/social club!?
A5) Make it a cleaner, tidier and happier place. Or education - what could I do!?
A6) I would go walking and/or running (curiously I don't say driving ... drive to somewhere for a walk ...). Read a book when need a break from the walking. Eat good food.
A7) If I was to die one year from today, I would sell everything I have, perhaps convert it to gold. Then I would distribute that wealth to people I care about/like (not many people to be honest ... Ooh and her daughters ... fellow doll lovers.) And kill myself before my year is up (because I know my end is coming ... why waste resources maintaining a flame that's nearly burnt up.)
I did think about blowing my money on myself, but why!? I'd be terminal. Might as well distribute my wealth to people who still have life, and who it may benefit.
Bonus
Some comments from YouTube video: Life Lessons I Wish I Knew Earlier – Here's What Matters
- "Many people forget that life is a journey to be experienced, not a problem to be solved." - Cunduno
- "Funny how we're taught to chase success, but no one teaches us how to just be happy." - NevilleGoddardFiles
- "We have two lives, and the second beings when we realize we only have one." - flovv4580
- "I ... have found my peace walking in nature." - shaunus123
- "When you don't need anything, you have everything." - cevasco5
- "So many men waste their lives. Procrastination and fear of looking silly causes them to waste their prime years. Trust your gut. You know what you are to do. Don't care what others may think. Do your thing. You only get one run at this." - ShaneHynesIRL
