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Mind & Meaning
The psychology of ambition, isolation, and meaning under extremes — and what frontier life teaches us about being human.
Carl Jung observed that the things we cannot stand in other people — the small irritations that seem disproportionate, the people we find ourselves unable to forgive — are almost always reflections of the parts of ourselves we have not yet acknowledged, in a quiet psychological pattern he called the shadow, and the surprise is that doing the work of meeting it tends to soften nearly every difficult relationship a person carries
Researchers tracked 122 people for three months and found that on days they visited more varied places, they tended to report feeling a little more positive
Athletes who go plant-based consistently report the same first change before any strength gain — they can train hard again the next day, and the next, and the cumulative effect over months is enormous
Venus Williams was diagnosed with Sjögren's syndrome, an autoimmune disease so exhausting she could barely get out of bed — then her sister suggested the dietary change that kept her on tour a decade longer
Rolex is owned by no billionaire or family — a single Geneva charitable foundation has held it since founder Hans Wilsdorf died childless in 1960, making the company effectively impossible to buy
Until 1905, wristwatches were considered women's jewelry — a gentleman who wore a timepiece on his wrist was a punchline, a prejudice one orphaned watch clerk decided to bet against
Thought of the day from Stoic philosopher Epictetus: "Men are disturbed, not by things, but by the principles and notions which they form concerning things."
Many people assume the path to happiness is to want it and aim for it, but some research suggests the opposite can be the case — people who prized happiness most, or were nudged to, often felt less of it, especially when things were going well
Older adults who took a weekly fifteen-minute walk for eight weeks felt measurably better, but the difference came down to one instruction: those told to seek out small moments of awe reported more gratitude and compassion and less daily distress
Many tend to assume the mind dims as the years pass, but when researchers tested how people reasoned through conflict, adults aged 60 to 90 reasoned more wisely than the young
