Project Areté

[Alymdrictels]

I know what you're thinking - not another project thread?

Well, I've had the intention of doing something similar to Project Ubermensch/Demigod since last year, but I never really followed through. The lack of action, of course, is an emerging pattern.


Hi, my name's Filip and I've been stuck in an academic and personal rut for as long as I can remember (I'm 24).

The lack of any early discipline and/or structured activity, compounded by excessive video game consumption has taken a toll on later activities in life.

The motivation to do something genuinely useful only lasts as long as I derive pleasure from the fruit of my labor. This means that tasks which require a large build-up towards pleasurable use (practically every useful skill ever) frustrate me quickly to the point of quitting.
Naturally, playing video games excessively aggravates this problem, considering their simple pleasure-gaining process. The feedback loop I've acquired through years of video game abuse is similar to that of any drug addict etc.

I've added the details on my wordpress blog (same as this username), but I basically follow an amalgam of the Ubermensch formats. The Demigod variant is a tad too ambitious for my tastes (and I've had vacations to which I brought 8 books, only to actually read two). Slow and steady seems to be the way to go - gradual, snowballing improvement. I'm sorry if it seems like blatant copying to the authors of the aforementioned blogs (it's not).


The format is as follows: BODY, MIND, WORK, PLANS, THOUGHTS.

Most of the info from BODY is derived from 4chan's /fit/ness forum and bodybuilding.com. My goals are, in descending priority: size>aesthetics>flexibility>strength

Most of MIND is derived from stevepavlina.com, photoreading forums (although I don't really trust photoreading itself). The speed-reading part is basically a result of being shamed by a girl who could read laps around me when we had to share a book (with the occasional "are you done NOW?" and exasperated gasps) even though I thought I was a fast reader (600 wpm). I estimated her at 1700wpm.

Am I overdoing something? Could I do more, given that I have completely free days 5/7 a week (made my own lecture schedule)? Too ambitious? Not ambitious enough?

I'm kicking this baby off in 12/9/2011 and I'm looking forward to your replies!

[Verlan]

First of all, hello Filip/Alymdrictels and welcome to the forums :)

I think your project sounds awesome - best of luck to you!

Originally Posted by Alymdrictels

The motivation to do something genuinely useful only lasts as long as I derive pleasure from the fruit of my labor. This means that tasks which require a large build-up towards pleasurable use (practically every useful skill ever) frustrate me quickly to the point of quitting.

That's a fairly common problem, and I think you find you're not alone in this.
What I find helps for continuous motivation is to every day write down what I achieved and how my life has changed in positive ways since yesterday.
I also draw pictures of what I achieved (one page/day), which works even better for me, because images are better at conveying positive emotions than words (for me, anyway).

Originally Posted by Alymdrictels

Am I overdoing something? Could I do more, given that I have completely free days 5/7 a week (made my own lecture schedule)? Too ambitious? Not ambitious enough?

No idea. What do YOU think? :)

[abcbac]

Go for it!!! Stay motivated!

[Alymdrictels]

Originally Posted by Verlan

That's a fairly common problem, and I think you find you're not alone in this.
What I find helps for continuous motivation is to every day write down what I achieved and how my life has changed in positive ways since yesterday.
I also draw pictures of what I achieved (one page/day), which works even better for me, because images are better at conveying positive emotions than words (for me, anyway).


No idea. What do YOU think?

Thanks!

A huge source of gratification is the prevention of the usual "naked in front of a large audience" nightmare which occurs regularly in high-workload courses for which I hadn't prepared. Such as Ancient Greek. I would sit there, in silence, petrified, while the rest of the class would read and translate as if it's no big deal. And it isn't, if you put the work into it.

I can make simple sentences in the lingua franca of the classical world - that's pretty gratifying too, actually.

tl;dr I'm not focused towards positive motivation, but the prevention of negative experiences and anxiety. Is this a bad thing long-term?

Originally Posted by abcbac

Go for it!!! Stay motivated!

Oh, I will. Living life the old way is the complete ruin of human dignity and spirit. I might as well kill myself should I revert to the usual procrastinative gaming-in-underpants-whilst-one-likes-me crap.

Anyway, blog updated.

[Alymdrictels]

Updated my journal. (whoever gets the reference should also get a life)


There's not that much to be said, really. I'll update regularly but will sporadically bump the thread, if only to affirm belonging to the living.


See you guys in a week/month, I guess!