In our last +1, we talked about my chigger-triggers (hah and yeehah! 🤠) and how to alchemize lifeās inevitable āinconveniencesā into Pearl Bites.
Right after finishing that one I thought about Kelly McGonigalās wisdom on climbing Everest and the inevitable cold, crazy nights an explorer encounters when going for that summit.
Then I wondered if weād already done a +1 on that before so I searched our little database here at Optimize HQ and, lo and behold, we DID feature her wisdom already.
It was in a +1 appropriately called Unicorns and Where to Find Them. (ā Hah. I must say thatās a pretty good one. 🤓)
As it turns out, RIGHT BEFORE that +1, we also riffed on Joseph Campbellās parallel wisdom on pain and bliss.
Those were +1s #528 and #529. This is +1 #1,218.
Soā¦
Iām going to take the liberty of dusting off those wisdom-gems and serving them up again.
First, Joseph Campbell.
He tells us: āIf your bliss is just fun and excitement, then you are on the wrong path. Sometimes pain is bliss.ā
Noted.
Now, Kelly McGonigal.
She tells us: āEveryone has an Everest. Whether itās a climb you choose, or a circumstance you find yourself in, youāre in the middle of an important journey. Can you imagine a climber scaling the wall of ice at Everestās Lhotse Face and saying, āThis is such a hassleā? Or spending the first night in the mountainās ādeath zoneā and thinking, āI donāt need this stressā? The climber knows the context of his stress. It has personal meaning to him; he has chosen it. You are most liable to feel like a victim of the stress in your life when you forget the context the stress is unfolding in. āJust another cold, dark night on the side of Everestā is a way to remember the paradox of stress. The most meaningful challenges in your life will come with a few dark nights.ā
She continues: āThe biggest problem with trying to avoid stress is how it changes the way we view our lives, and ourselves. Anything in life that causes stress starts to look like a problem. If you experience stress at work, you think thereās something wrong with your job. If you experience stress in your marriage, you think thereās something wrong with your relationship. If you experience stress as a parent, you think thereās something wrong with your parenting (or your kids). If trying to make a change is stressful, you think thereās something wrong with your goal.ā
Thatās Todayās +1.
Remember your Everest. And, remember that sometimes pain is bliss.
And those inevitable bug bites? Letās turn them into Pearls.
TODAY.
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