The Book Basement Bulletin #15
The book of success, the sitcom revolution and thoughts to ponder about - In this week's edition
Opening Thoughts
Hello! I hope you’re having a lovely day. This week I finished reading The Almanack of Naval Ravinkant by Eric Jorgenson and I started reading Meditations by Marcus Aurelius!
Three Things I Wanted to Share
Naval Ravinkat is the ultimate role model. He’s cracked the code to business, wealth success, and happiness. Before reading this book I had heard some podcast episodes with Naval, and he seemed like an incredibly interesting individual. This book reflected that. My only criticism is that at times the book contradicts itself, leaving the reader a bit confused. Other than that, it has everything within its 200 pages. If you’re yet to journey into the world of nonfiction, then this is your portal.
Did you know that a TV show started an international revolution? No? Well, then you’ll be shocked as you listen to the Revisionist History episode on When Will Meets Grace. It’s an incredibly fascinating story of how a gay character managed to be a protagonist of a sitcom making him not only the first to do so but also triggering a giant domino effect bigger than the showrunners could’ve ever imagined.
Want to learn more about abstract concepts? This week I tuned in to an episode of Philosophize This on the concept of meaning according to Nietzsche. I’ve heard bits of the work of Nietzsche peppered throughout books I’ve read, but I never really looked into his core philosophy, but I’m glad I did! By listening to this episode you’ll learn about Amor Fati, an incredible idea we should all familiarize ourselves with.
Quote of the Week
The simple and honest process of letting people know that discomfort is normal, it’s going to happen, and why it’s important, reduces anxiety, fear and shame.
Brene Brown, Daring Greatly
A while ago I was listening to a podcast episode where this big-time multi-millionaire type personality was being asked how he deals with discomfort; those situations where you can’t help but feel a little off, nervous or worried. He stated that he had no fancy trick—he only told himself that this is how it’s supposed to feel—that discomfort is one of the key indicators that you’re on the right track (this isn’t without exception of course). When experiencing certain emotions or situations that evoke discomfort, it’s easy to tell ourselves that we’re being irrational. How dare we be scared of presenting the group project in front of the class, or telling ourselves the same about confronting someone, doing something new, or just really being nervous about anything? Discomfort is normal, it’s what you should be feeling sometimes. Really hold on to that idea. It’s not irrational, nor are you any derogatory adjectives because you’re experiencing it. Discomfort is good, it’s normal, it’s healthy, let that be known always.
Podcast Highlight
Closing Thoughts
I truly wish you found something of value in this edition of the tbb bulletin. If you did, share it with someone who would also derive value from it. Have an amazing rest of your week.