Not Just One Kind

Too often, however, we take for granted the opportunity that our health gives us to live a life that’s true to us.

To accomplish the things we dream about, we are required to be makers, explorers, and creators. We are required to move and become active participants in life. 

Human beings are the most social creatures on planet earth. So, you're not really living a healthy life if it doesn't involve others.

The people you connect with will have a huge influence on you: Those who have already walked through the fire can help you do the same. And those who haven’t will make it seem impossible for you to do so.

Make a conscious effort to bring out the best in someone else through your communication.

This makes communicating less "me-centric," which is talking to hear yourself talk, or talking "at" someone rather than "with" them, or being more interested in wanting to "capture" their attention for some kind of pay off. 

• From the 11th century until the end of the 17th century, the definition of art was anything that was done with expertise, with the result of knowledge and practice.
• The Romantic period of the 18th century, beauty became the main criteria for defining good art. Nature, spirituality and free expression were sought after and well received.
• The 19th Century started the Avant-garde art movement, with art becoming real, modern, futuristic and surreal. Whatever the definitions, the originality of art stands out as a time-tested measure, with new genres and manifestations like performance art, digital art, and electronic art.

• Art as Representation or Mimesis. Representation of art as an imitation or copying became the mainstream meaning of art in Greece. Plato first developed the idea of art as “mimesis,” which, in Greek, means copying or imitation. How immaculately it replicated the original subject became the measure of its value.
• Art as Expression of Emotional content. Dramatic, sublime and heartfelt art becomes a way to express oneself during the Romantic movement , with audience response becoming key to the valuation of the content. The emotions that were felt when the art was witnessed became its barometer for success.
• Art as Form. Formal qualities of art became influential in the 18th century, with the principles of art and design, like balance, rhythm, harmony and unity became as important as the content of the work of art.

“There is no secret to balance. You just have to feel the waves.”

It is important to understand that balance is relative: the focus of balance is always going to be different from person to person. There is no one size fits all.

For example, what a balanced diet means for one person may be entirely different for another. Both diets may be healthy, but it is the context that makes it so.

Outliers are extreme examples of people who are on the outer edge of success or have a radically different life, glorified by the media.

Following Outliers leads normal people to make decisions based on false hope and highly unlikely possibilities.

We need safe, nurturing environments to be our best, to blossom into what we truly are destined for, no matter how big or small, in our unique way.

We are provided with unnecessary pain and suffering by the constant comparison with people who are born radically different from us and are having different circumstances. 

What minimizing your life will bring you:

• More Efficiency: You finally have enough time to do what’s truly important.
• More Time: Owning and doing things carry high costs. Doing less frees up your time to focus on the essential few.
• Less Stress: No more overloaded schedules, running from one place to the next, always rushing.
• Better Health: having and doing less calms your mind and brings clarity.
• Freedom: things don’t own you anymore, you only own things you love. 

Dr. Seuss discovered while writing his book "Green Eggs and Ham" the power of setting constraints.

Setting limits for yourself (time, money, words, etc.) often leads to better results than if you keep your options open.

1. Limitations inspire you to find creative solutions. If you have a one-year-old child that requires all your time, you have to find creative ways to get some exercise.
2. Constraints force you to get something done. Without constraints, we would postpone our tasks, sometimes indefinitely.

That is why professionals set a schedule for their production while amateurs wait for the perfect moment.

• Contemporary graffiti dates back to 1967, arising from the Black and Latino communities in New York City, with the aerosol spray paint acting as a catalyst.
• The artists, known as taggers, used to ‘tag’ or paint in as many locations as possible, with the intention to ‘get up’, having maximum people see the art.
• Subway cars and trains became the next big thing to ‘tag’ with graffiti, as their mobile nature ensured that more people would see it. The giant artwork had a unique energy and aura while it moved, creating an effect that is not possible on a static wall.

In about a decade, the ‘vandalism’ of infrastructure and public property became a big problem in NYC, as it had a negative psychological effect on every citizen. The authorities put in measures to make it harder for the writers to hit their targets, but it just made the game more challenging and interesting for the artists.

Extreme steps were taken in 1984 to clear NYC of Subway car/train graffiti, and commuters had to face hardships, but the practice of street graffiti flourished in the coming decades.

It means producing something novel or original, evaluating, solving problems, whether on paper, on stage, in a laboratory or even in the shower.

Geniuses know “how” to think, instead of “what” to think.

People who are more creative can simultaneously engage brain networks that don’t typically work together.