Live improbably April 25, 2008
Posted by Niels in : Personal , trackbackI’ve had a big picture life goal for the past 18 months or so: I want people to read my autobiography and think, “How on earth did that happen?” From a Ph.D. program to a reality TV show to a pickup instructor to a professional speaker to a Web 2.0 startup, I feel pretty good about my life path so far. The story has a long way to go, to be sure, but it’s been a life full of Black Swans up to now. And while reading Nassim Taleb’s book, I came up with a new motto: Live Improbably. To a large extent, “Live Improbably” subsumes “Always Say Yes”, but I feel it describes somewhat more precisely what excites me in life.
This weekend’s events: A networking event, a launch party, a science dinner, a steel drum concert, Happy Hour 2.0, a goodbye party, an improv show, a birthday party, a Norwegian pancake breakfast, a pub crawl, and a Spanish meetup. Black Swans get ready; I live the life improbable!
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I would say how exciting that a life path could be changed that much within such short time…even at the weekend you’ve so much fun stuff to enjoy..
How I envy you! hehe…
Have fun! =)
I can’t explain why, but for some reason reading your blog (particularly entries like this one) makes me feel sad. I’m I’m not sure that sadness is the right word for it, either. It’s some strange mixture of envy, wonder, sadness, and pity. I almost feel like something tragic is occurring? There’s also an overwhelming feeling that I can really empathize with you.
Perhaps it’s just my own emotional instability.
Maybe it’s because you write about such personal stuff.
For some reason, I really see myself in you.
Any response/feedback?
I don’t think there’s any inherent value in ALWAYS taking random walks (mathematically and realistically speaking) in life. Some random walks are necessary to the life well-lived, but it’s more useful to identify your core values and goals and move toward them.
I used to be like you: I craved diversity of experience. However, now that I have more life experience, and now that I’ve defined my major values/goals (stuff that makes me happy and fulfilled), I live in a more focused way.
Also, I would not be surprised by your biography at all, beyond the first two or three entries. A life focused on black swans soon paints them all white.
I strongly suspect you’ve never read Walden, by Thoreau. If so, I recommend you read it as quickly as possible.
Joe - While one can get used to unpredictability, I don’t think it will ever cease to be surprising.