Clay

#WritingOutput/Newsletter

Random Walk Newsletter, Issue 34#

Hello everyone, it's been almost two months since the last update. From one email per week to once a month, it's really difficult to consistently do something, especially at a high frequency. I hope I don't keep increasing the time between updates.

Observations & Insights#

Dealing with Emotional Issues

I'm not sure if I've shared this before, but last month I encountered some problems with my investments and lost some money. It affected my sleep and overall mood for a few days, making me easily irritated and frustrated.

Later on, I started to make adjustments. I realized that no matter what, I shouldn't let money control my emotions. Then I came across a method for regulating emotions, which listed several ways. I'll share the one I found most useful, which is "doing something."

By immersing yourself in activities, negative emotions naturally fade away. Most of the time, we tend to overthink when we're idle. If we have something to do, our minds won't have the space to dwell on unnecessary thoughts.

I once watched an interview with Da Zhang Wei, where he said his current problem is not knowing how to make himself happy. He read many books and found only one method that worked, which is "pretending to smile." Just maintain a smile for 30 seconds, and you will genuinely start to feel happy.

Here's another article that can sometimes provide healing in those small moments: http://wufazhuce.com/question/3761

Inspiring Quotes

1. To become wealthy, you need to seek risks. To stay wealthy, you need to avoid risks. In the workplace, hard skills get you in the door, but soft skills help you go further.
2. "You are the average of the 5 habits you repeat most."
3. Forgetting is wiser than remembering. You can use methods to remember, but it's not as easy to forget.
4. The easiest way to gain traffic is to provoke your anger, and the easiest way to sell courses is to trigger your anxiety.
5. Everything in the world is just a play, and people in this world shouldn't take things too seriously.

Audiobooks & Books#

The Optimal Solution for Life

This book discusses how to maximize happiness and minimize waste throughout one's life. It summarizes it into two principles: focusing on "experiential investments," which corresponds to "maximizing happiness," and pursuing "zero at the end," which corresponds to "minimizing waste."

Focusing on "experiential investments" is simple: find things that make you happy and spend money to experience them. The author mentioned a quote: "Life is a process of collecting memories, and in the end, only memories will accompany us."

Your life is the sum of your experiences. Often, people only focus on the financial returns, neglecting the value of experiences.

The author provides examples of how experiences add value: when we invest time or money to gain experiences, we not only enjoy the moment but also receive continuous dividends. For example, on an ordinary day, you suddenly hear a song you loved years ago from a speaker on the street. Or you eat a dish in an inconspicuous restaurant that tastes like a childhood memory. Or you find an old videotape or a photo in a corner of your home. Or your phone's photo album reminds you of what happened on this day three years ago. At these moments, those past experiences come rushing back, making you feel nostalgic, blush, joyful, or even shed tears. So, each experience brings not only temporary feelings but also additional experiences when you revisit them or discuss them with others. This is the value-added effect of experiences.

The author believes that the returns from these investments are more precious than financial returns. Money is renewable, possessions are replaceable, but the feelings and experiences that experiences bring are often unique.

The World 5000 Days Later

This is a book by Kevin Kelly. According to him, it took about 5000 days for the internet to appear and become widespread, marking the first revolution of the information society. Social media took about 5000 days to appear and become widespread, marking the second revolution of the information society. Kevin Kelly predicts that in the next 5000 days, new technologies will emerge and become widespread, once again changing various aspects of the world, including our way of life. This will be the third revolution of the information society.

One can measure whether a technology can trigger the next information revolution. What are the criteria? Remember these two keywords: "massive" and "real-time." Each information technology revolution gives humans a new ability on a massive and real-time scale.

The book also makes some predictions about the future:

1. Popularization of intelligent technology: Kelly believes that in the future, intelligent technology will become widespread and ubiquitous. He predicts that smart devices will become smaller, more user-friendly, and interact with humans in a more natural way.
2. Development of virtual reality: Kelly predicts that virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies will have great potential for development and will be widely used in education, entertainment, tourism, and other fields.
3. Extensive application of 3D printing: Kelly believes that 3D printing technology will become a universally adopted production method, changing traditional manufacturing models. People will be able to create the items they want at home or in the workplace using 3D printing technology.
4. Popularization of autonomous vehicles: Kelly predicts that autonomous vehicles will gradually become popular and replace traditional human-driven vehicles. This will change transportation methods, urban planning, and personal travel habits.
5. Development of human augmentation and gene editing: Kelly believes that the development of biotechnology will bring about changes and enhancements to the human body. For example, gene editing technology may be used to treat genetic diseases and also to alter human physical characteristics or abilities.
6. Popularization of artificial intelligence: Kelly predicts that artificial intelligence (AI) will be widely used in various fields, including healthcare, education, finance, etc. AI will become a partner to humans, helping them improve work efficiency and creativity.

That's all for this issue of the Newsletter. If you have any questions, feel free to email me. Thank you for reading.