1) Thinking about myself as having an identical twin except she’s really productive and my master. The imaginary twin sees me watching True Blood and goes, “What are you doing? This is why you’re inferior to me and I’m in charge of you. Go finish your work! Maybe afterwards you can watch 30 Rock for 30 minutes. I’ve been doing air squats and kettle bell swings while you’ve been sitting there.”
2) Thinking about the person I want to be and working towards becoming more like that person. For example, I’d like being wise to be part of my identity. But I do stupid things all the time. Quandary! Can I read books or talk to smarter people to try to close the gap between my goal identity and my actual identity? How do I figure out a plan that makes me more like the wise person I want to be?
3) Thinking about myself as one instance out of many (potentially infinite) instances of me existing in parallel universes and wanting to compete with the other Nancy’s, in particular wanting to outperform Superposition Nancy. How embarrassing would it be to meet these other Nancy’s one day in a Jet Li-type “The One” situation and be way weaker and thus immediately annihilated?
4) Thinking about how glad I am not to have been born in the 9th century or in Sudan, or even 50 years ago. It’s a miracle I exist at all since my Chinese parents never touched (ever). Basically despite being born to a poor graduate student and a teacher, I feel born into privilege: everything my ancestors did for millennia led to… creating me! I’m basically the result of centuries of breeding. “With great power comes great responsibility,” etc.
Reading back over what I just wrote, I’ve never heard anyone else talk about thinking in this way, so maybe I’m crazy. Whatever, this all reminds me of the guy in Fight Club, except we appear to have (hopefully) skipped the psychotic break, etc.
you’re going to need more martial arts if you don’t want to be destroyed by ‘the one’ nancy
I know! I’m trying to work on it…
Interesting ! I do almost similar stuff to motivate myself, almost abusing myself off from stuff I dont want to be doing (non productive activities).
It always works wonders !
Haha, I do 2,3, and 4 :). I'm going to steal #1.
I have a 5th to contribute back: I picture my whole existence and the universe's whole existence at once as if the 4th dimension was spacial (like Tralfamadorians in Slaughterhouse Five) and that makes it seem absurd to waste what absolutely-minute time we have on trivial things.
You do these things too? Wow! Who else does it? Does Vicky Carlsson?
I like your universe-existence one. Do you think some people look at the universe and take the opposite conclusion, that they are insignificant, therefore do nothing?
Does having siblings up the pressure to make a name for yourself or remove it because odds are they'll do something cool? For me, being the only child makes me feel like everything depends on me or the effort of all my ancestors was totally wasted. I guess I have a lot of cousins but come on they're in China, what are they going to do.
Aside: did you ever read that "denial of death" stuff?
I guess I use a little of 2 and 4, but I'm not so strict. Additionally I sometimes use: imagine you would have to live your life all over again, identical in every aspect to the life you're living now. Is this how you would want to spend your time?
I do think about 1,2,4.. and time and death (ugh morbid!) i'm not afraid of death but I want to die at the appropriate time. I don't necessarily have to leave a legacy like children or anything, I just want to have every second well thought/spent. I have recurring nightmares of rushing and missing a flight or train, which I think represents my fear of not having enough time.
Haha, I do 2,3, and 4 :). I'm going to steal #1.
I have a 5th to contribute back: I picture my whole existence and the universe's whole existence at once as if the 4th dimension was spacial (like Tralfamadorians in Slaughterhouse Five) and that makes it seem absurd to waste what absolutely-minute time we have on trivial things.
You do these things too? Wow! Who else does it? Does Vicky Carlsson?
I like your universe-existence one. Do you think some people look at the universe and take the opposite conclusion, that they are insignificant, therefore do nothing?
Does having siblings up the pressure to make a name for yourself or remove it because odds are they'll do something cool? For me, being the only child makes me feel like everything depends on me or the effort of all my ancestors was totally wasted. I guess I have a lot of cousins but come on they're in China, what are they going to do.
Aside: did you ever read that "denial of death" stuff?
I guess I use a little of 2 and 4, but I'm not so strict. Additionally I sometimes use: imagine you would have to live your life all over again, identical in every aspect to the life you're living now. Is this how you would want to spend your time?
I do think about 1,2,4.. and time and death (ugh morbid!) i'm not afraid of death but I want to die at the appropriate time. I don't necessarily have to leave a legacy like children or anything, I just want to have every second well thought/spent. I have recurring nightmares of rushing and missing a flight or train, which I think represents my fear of not having enough time.
Haha, I do 2,3, and 4 :). I’m going to steal #1.
I have a 5th to contribute back: I picture my whole existence and the universe’s whole existence at once as if the 4th dimension was spacial (like Tralfamadorians in Slaughterhouse Five) and that makes it seem absurd to waste what absolutely-minute time we have on trivial things.
Definitely one of the wisest woman I've known, judging from your posts