From 7cef74ed8db2b0b6b799b3b0e3a9211e521bd7bd4313e8b9f7b7fcf7ed4cb997 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Nicholas Johnson Date: Wed, 5 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Subject: Replace instances of 'there is' with 'there are' 'there are' is the correct form for plurals. This also replaces instances of 'here is'. --- content/entry/the-narrative-self.md | 4 ++-- 1 file changed, 2 insertions(+), 2 deletions(-) (limited to 'content/entry/the-narrative-self.md') diff --git a/content/entry/the-narrative-self.md b/content/entry/the-narrative-self.md index b71811d..9fb388c 100644 --- a/content/entry/the-narrative-self.md +++ b/content/entry/the-narrative-self.md @@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ For most of us, our inner monologue is characterized by problem after problem af Even if you're an extremely lucky person, your inner monologue is bound to be self-referential, boringly repetitive, negative, and problem-focused much of the time. Being identified with this monologue, this story, is a primary source of human suffering. And to be clear, in this context, by suffering, I mean something akin to continuous dissatisfaction, not the "I broke my arm and now I'm in pain!" suffering. # Strategies For Dealing With the Narrative Self -There's 2 broad strategies you can employ to deal with this neurotic, problem-seeking voice inside your head. By the way, these strategies are generalized tools against suffering. They're not limited to the narrative self. They can also be used for dealing with physical pain, for instance. +There are 2 broad strategies you can employ to deal with this neurotic, problem-seeking voice inside your head. By the way, these strategies are generalized tools against suffering. They're not limited to the narrative self. They can also be used for dealing with physical pain, for instance. ## Stoicism The first strategy is changing the narrative. You can recondition yourself to "think positive" by telling yourself a better story. 21st century Stoics such as William B. Irvine employ a number of mental exercises to put life in perspective and reduce suffering. I won't get into Stoicism here as there are many different exercises, but you can see [William's website](https://www.williambirvine.com/) for more information. @@ -63,7 +63,7 @@ There's mass overconsumption. There's a [cult of productivity](/2021/05/21/the-c # Summary So why am I writing about this? I'm writing this as a response to the widespread confusion about the causes of happiness. If everyone already understood that achieving the next goal, acquiring more goods and social status doesn't bring lasting peace, I wouldn't be writing this. I'm not here to spoon-feed you the traditional lies about what makes people happy. I'm here to debunk them and promote Stoicism and Zen, highly practical and broadly applicable philosophies for life. -I've already explained the mechanisms by which both reduce suffering in terms of the narrative self. You can reason through it on your own. You don't have to blindly accept what I'm saying. There's plenty of studies out there showing that practices like mindfulness (Zen) and reframing thoughts (Stoicism) drastically improve people's lives. +I've already explained the mechanisms by which both reduce suffering in terms of the narrative self. You can reason through it on your own. You don't have to blindly accept what I'm saying. There are plenty of studies out there showing that practices like mindfulness (Zen) and reframing thoughts (Stoicism) drastically improve people's lives. # One Final Observation As a final observation, I've come across people who think they can't be more content before something good happens. They think the only thing they can do to affect their mind is achieve momentary happiness by reaching their next goal. -- cgit v1.2.3