Personal Research

Category: phenomenology

  • The PIG

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    No temptation can ever be measured by the value of its object. — Sidonie Colette The Problem of Immediate Gratification (the PIG) is our name for the principle that immediate payoffs are far more influential than delayed payoffs—even if the latter is much larger (e.g., choosing $1 now over $10 tomorrow). The other side of…

  • The Soul Is More Than the Sum of Its Parts

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    You are not the passenger. You are the ride. At some point in the evolution of biological creatures, conscious awareness emerged. Abstract processing, which opens the door to self-consciousness, comes with opportunities as well as dangers: The opportunity: The higher mental faculties that come with consciousness—including imagination and abstract reasoning— give you the power to…

  • Ancient Wisdom

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      Nothing to Excess Know Thyself Certainty Brings Ruin Three recommendations were carved above the entrance to the Temple of Apollo at Delphi: Nothing to Excess Excessive appetites [addictive disorders] and excessive emotional reactions [relationship problems and neurotic disorders] are traps that have become part of your psyche as you developed through your lifespan. (To…

  • Irreversible Change

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    We don’t receive wisdom; we must discover it for ourselves after a journey that no one can take for us, nor spare us — Marcel Proust Even though they know better, otherwise competent individuals repeatedly and apparently intentionally, cause themselves and their loved ones unnecessary suffering. Look back at your own history. Do you see…

  • An Invitation

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    . . . to choose the path of greatest advantage rather than yield in the direction of least resistance – George Bernard Shaw Addictions [excessive appetites] and relationship problems that result from excessive emotional reactivity are traps for the soul. Look back on your own history to see if there are recurring patterns of acting…

  • Studying Your Experience

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    Who looks outside, dreams Who looks inside, awakens — Carl Jung As remarkable and complex a structure as a neuron is, it does not possess consciousness. Consciousness requires a complex nervous system comprised of many neurons and sense organs. The nervous system you were born with is among the most complex structures in the universe,…

  • Ruminative Self Focus

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    The secret to being miserable is to have the leisure to bother about whether you are happy or not.  —  George Bernard Shaw We are all self-focused. Thoughts related to the self —  how I feel, why I feel that way, what other people think of me — are compelling. When this tendency is combined with the recursive…

  • The Irreversible Change

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    We don’t receive wisdom; we must discover it for ourselves after a journey that no one can take for us, nor spare us — Marcel Proust Mental Disorders diminish the quality of a human life. Some — such as Bipolar Disorder — have a biological etiology, and are appropriately treated with medication. However, when the problem is…

  • Perseverance and Self-Efficacy

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    If one remained as careful at the end as at the beginning there would be no failure  —  Lao Tsu In contrast to ordinary language in which a word may mean different things in different contexts or to different people, technical terms have a single definition so there is less chance for miscommunication. Self-Efficacy refers…