Being content is synonymous with getting content. In other words, my happiness is relatively linked to the amount I learn in a day (as well as living the love of my family). At the very least, I seek meaning and meaningful conversation. A couple of days ago, over lunch with a bright, entrepreneurial Icelander, Johann, I was filled with enjoyment as we pushed and prodded, anticipated and surprised one another in a very full conversation. Certain encounters have that spark. And, to the extent you can extend that level of intensity and reality among the people you meet, you becomes your circle of friends. You become defined by the people surrounding you.
Not very innovative as far as thoughts go, but defining as far as my life goes.Just as on line it is about the content and the Conversation, one’s relationships off line are also about the same search.
The quest, or perhaps the question, is how to optimize each day and reduce the clutter. Sometimes I get confused or frustrated by the innumerable hours spent in irrelevant moments & conversations. What is the appropriate objective for each day? Of course, the valhalla becomes linked with the quality (and not the quantity) of “content” that fills each conversation and each day. And, in my eyes, content absolutely can include laughter and frivolity–that said, I will typically privilege original humour and frivolity. As long as the content is meaningful…
It all points to a wonderful dictum: be open to learning, be a student of life. As Robin Sharma said in a wonderful podcast, be the Renaissance Man (or Woman). Look to learn. Learn about anything and everything. Seek content, but know that contributing content is the best way to getting access to content.
A little collection of blogs & reading about Renaissance Men/Women:
- Libertarian Lifter
- Van der Galien Gazette – Schwarzenegger as Renaissance Man
- JWGDesign Blog – Could have been the Renaissance Man…
- Check out the book by Margaret Lobenstine: The Renaissance Soul
- To read up on the original RM: Niccolo Machiavelli – Leonardo the First Renaissance Man
- Open Head Space – Nostalgia
Personnellement j’ai beaucoup apprécié ces quelques échanges avec toi à ce sujet.
Par ailleurs, attention à la fin de ton billet il y a le disclamer email.
Oops, I just made a totally frivolous comment on your rugby post…
But seriously… I agree with you about the search for contentment and content. I find super contentment in the writing of my book (along the lines of Csikszentmihaly’s creative flow absorption), and none in the content of my job which is crappy old paper-pushing. On the other hand, my work pals are marvellous, so while there’s no content, I’m content to be there working around them.
There are bound to be hours and hours filled with tedium and boredom every day. That’s life. The important thing is not to miss the good moments or let them pass you by because you’re succumbing to the tedium, in your rut.
Greetings Minter, I wasn’t certain about the origin of your comment on my blog. I went back and reread the post I made. Then I came around to your blog to have a look around. I was surprised and flattered to find a link to my post in question here. For that, I thank you. I also agree with what you have written to a degree. We are defined by the the people around us to some extent. We are also defined by our actions and our endeavours. Striving to learn daily is a noble endeavour that certainly helps to define you. Finally, I enjoyed looking at your writings. Your life and your occupation are extremely fascinating to me, as a fellow francophile and hockey lover; though, and you might not enjoy this, my team has long been the dreaded, or dreadful, leafs.
I once owned a Leaf hockey puck (scooped out of the air in a match against Philly at the Air Canada arena). I gave it to a great Leafs fan last year. P.S. Philly had good company down in the doldrums last season.
Dear Minter:
Thank you for linking to my article about Leonardo da Vinci in the Niccolo Machiavelli blog.
All the best,
Steve