#92 Time traveling via journal
Could this be the reason why journaling is so popular these days?
Hey,
I want to talk about a couple of things — my nostalgic nature and attachment to the past. Morgan Housel once mentioned in his podcast that the golden era or the good ol’ days can only be lived in the past. I know grammatically, the sentence doesn’t make sense, but I think what Housel is saying about the notion of “good ol’ days” is our hindsight in action. We don’t know if we’re living in the golden era currently, but in the future, if things get bleak, then the 2020s will look like a golden era despite the pandemic that the world went through. The power of AIs and the surge in asset prices could also be a precursor to an even better future ahead.
Long story short, regardless of the time or period we’re in, it is the golden era when we make the best out of it. Perhaps the eastern Buddhists have gotten it right — be present and you shall attain enlightenment.
I’ve had this journal for almost two years now, it was given by my coach when I signed up for her course. I’m still putting entries in this journal because I haven’t been keeping up with this habit. I’m halfway through the journal now. I think it’s a good investment. There is a huge difference between typing on a keyboard or phone versus penning your thoughts down. You can check them out here.
Anyway, I was going flipping through the pages and saw some old entries — a couple of things remain the same:
My job still sucks even after one year. It doesn’t really suck that bad.
I’m still stuck here even though my job sucks. I’m willing to put up with the ugly parts of the job because there are no perfect jobs.
While the nature of the entries is similar (how I am not a fan of what I currently do), the problems are different. And the problems of the past are so insignificant when you look back. I recall an entry where I was contemplating if I should head down to Malacca to meet Adele. The joke’s on me, I guess.
Some problems may seem huge at the onset, but they slowly become insignificant as time passes. On the contrary, some problems may seem small at the beginning but blow up as time passes. Most problems are of the former and what we should really solve for is the latter. The tough part is identifying the difference between the two.
Have a good week ahead. Take care, speak soon.