Copy
IMPLICATE ORDER
Sprezzatura
-hard made easy

The kook that I am

My precious

What are you optimizing for? Unless you know what you want, what you enjoy, what's not just inertia and societal pressure, you risk running straight into a wall.

James Clear ("Atomic Habits") frequently asks himself if his habits, his custom made inertia, are taking him to his desired future. It's an excellent routine, but shouldn't be taken to its extreme either. I don't think anybody should heed promises to one's younger self too much, or fight too much to bequeath a fortune to one's older self. However, I do agree that you should look up from your daily activities every now and then to at least check that there isn't any immediate danger ahead.

One way to stick to good habits is my precious "One" process, i.e., to always imagine doing just one of a good thing, exactly such things that all but effortlessly for the present you will make your older self be quite thankful for the un-effort. The elves have found a new way to say Wu Wei!

 

Just One

Doing Just One means you're always just this one from finishing, from getting to quit and rest. It's a nice feeling. It takes the f-ing out of effort. James Clear has a similar approach. He calls it "just showing up; (always) sticking to the schedule but reducing the scope". Taken to the extreme, a plan of 300 push-ups can be reduced to "Just One" while still actually still sticking to the schedule.
 

Less than zero

I meditate every day, usually in the morning. What it really means is I simply stay in bed just breathing for a few minutes every morning. I have other meditation practices as well, such as petting trees, but the morning meditation is the easiest to perform. One way to do it is to put on your absolute favorite piece of music and just breathe for 4 minutes. With your favorite music it will feel like less than nothing. You will feel the opposite of restless; you will not want it to stop.

This morning, e.g., I put on my new headphones that I keep on my nightstand, and spent exactly 3m30s breathing in and out through my nose while listening to Joep Beving's "Saturday Morning", before going to the outdoor gym for my usual morning routine.

Another trick James Clear often recommends is asking whether an activity drains energy or charges you. "Bad" things, like partying or eating junk food, typically drains energy, while going for a run works as a re-charge.

 

Finally,

I recently was a guest on the Canadian podcast "Kook Jester Show". In a little less than an hour we talked about how to build good habits, how to get to and get out of "Whore Village" and what Swedish music I would recommend.

I was asked what I think a 'kook' is. You can hear my kooky answers here. It's a nice conversation with different questions than I usually get.

This winter I also talked on Curious Worldview. It's a longer format show, so you'd better have a long, slow Sunday walk planned. We covered everything, from psychedelics to shorting stocks. I personally think the second half of the show was slightly more interesting than the first half, but it's really a matter of taste. Check it out here if you're curious.

Are you a kook? Are you curious? Are you asking the right questions?

What votes are you casting everyday for who you are, or like to be?

Does the time you typically spend on frequent activities reflect their actual importance to you?


Kind regards,

/Sprezza

 
KARL-MIKAEL SYDING
Hedge Fund Manager
https://antiloophedge.com/
-----------
former Mg Dir, Senior partner and PM at Futuris (Brummer)
The HFR European Hedge Fund Of The Decade (2000-2009) 
____________________________________________________
Host of the "Antiloop", "Future Skills", "25 minuter" and "Outsiders" podcasts
Video interview, July 2020
____________________________________________________
www.mikaelsyding.com
https://mailchi.mp/mikaelsyding/investeringsprinciper
sprezzaturian@mikaelsyding.com
_______________________________________________________

The fund Futuris received numerous awards, including several HFR Best Directional hedge fund over ten years, and not least European Long Short Equity HF of the year 2008 and HFR's award to The European Hedge Fund Of The Decade 2000-2009 (all categories)
Copyright © 2023 Sprezzaturian, All rights reserved.


Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list

Email Marketing Powered by Mailchimp