3-2-1: Fans vs critics, the curse of jealousy, and the secret to living a full life

Happy 3-2-1 Thursday!

Here are 3 ideas, 2 quotes, and 1 question to consider this week...

I.

"It's more fun to be a fan than a critic. I'm not looking to spend my life tearing things down, when it can be so satisfying to build things up."

(Share this on Twitter)

​II.

"Measure your success against others and you'll be unhappy when they win—and less likely to receive help from them due to your jealousy.

Measure your success against yourself and you can be happy when others win—and more likely to receive help from them thanks to your support."

III.

"The way to live a full life is to act quickly.

Particularly as you grow older, it's alarmingly easy to let a year or two (or five) slip by without doing the big things you always felt like doing. You get into a rhythm—not necessarily one you love, but one you become comfortable repeating—and the grooves of your daily routine become deeper and more established.

Speed is perpetually undervalued. That doesn't mean you should feel frantic or rushed. In fact, it's likely you should eliminate some of the things that make you feel so busy to make space for things you always wanted to do. But it definitely means you should stop letting the days drift by waiting for the moment to be right.

Stop acting like there is infinite time. This—the way you are living right now—is your one life."

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I.

Business executive Jay Ferro reveals a truth about work:

"The three stages of career development are:

1. I want to be in the meeting

2. I want to run the meeting

3. I want to avoid meetings."

Source: Twitter (edited based on this later version)

​II.

Mathematician and computer scientist Seymour Papert on how our beliefs shape our actions and why we must try to learn new things:

"An unknown but certainly significant proportion of the population has almost completely given up on learning. These people seldom, if ever engage in deliberate learning and see themselves as neither competent at it nor likely to enjoy it. The social and personal cost is enormous.

Although negative self-images can be overcome, in the life of an individual they are extremely robust and powerfully self-reinforcing. Deficiency becomes identity: "I can't learn French, I don't have an ear for languages;" "I could never be a businessman, I don't have a head for figures;"...

If people believe firmly enough that they cannot do math, they will usually succeed in preventing themselves from doing whatever they recognize as math. The consequences of such self-sabotage is personal failure, and each failure reinforces the original belief. And such beliefs may be most insidious when held not only by individuals, but by our entire culture."

Source: Mindstorms (lightly edited for clarity)

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This question comes from a reader named Mac, who shared this story with me:

"My dad and I love basketball. We used to play hoops in the front yard almost every day when I was growing up. He was also my coach for many years.

One thing that always stuck with me was him saying "shoot to make it." I think there's a lot of moments in basketball and in life where we are just "throwing a shot up" and hoping it goes in.

How I interpreted his mantra was to have intention. If you are going to take a shot, take a good one and take it to make it. I always come back to what he said when I'm evaluating decisions I'm making and actions I take.

Am I shooting to make it?"

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https://jamesclear.com/3-2-1/december-7-2023

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Until next week,

James Clear
​Author of Atomic Habits and keynote speaker​​

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p.s. It's grink season.