A once-influential group of Christians called Calvinists convinced many that it was predestined where you’d spend your Afterlife. Heaven or hell, your fate was already determined. Nothing you could do. So naturally, they set out to figure out who the elect were. And according to a then-accepted piece of reasoning, if one managed to accumulate tons of […]
Categorie: Culture
Stop Finding Your Passion
Most people have it backwards. They think that passion precedes effort. That caring about a project comes before pouring your heart and soul into it. They’re only willing to commit if there was a prior discovery about how much they like this thing. “Offer me something I’m passionate about and I’ll show up with all of my energy, effort […]
You Are Not A Product
When some teacher, a long time ago, during an undergrad seminar in goal setting, let me in on the secret that I had a “personal brand”, I was sold. Spending my time building, crafting, improving my self in a goal-directed project-like way was something I’d never considered before. Referring to self-presentation as “branding” is apt. It underlies what the Millennial […]
The Uncomfortable Distinction That Is Destroying My Generation
“It’s not that I’m lazy. It’s that I just don’t care.” — PeterGibbons, Office Space If you live in the West, you’ve probably had to listen to a lot of people tell you how busy they are. It’s become the default response when you ask anyone how they’re doing. One utters “I’m fine” in a neutral tone, then slightly raises one’s chin, puts forward […]
So You Think Capitalism Is Evil
Everywhere I go, I’m within earshot of someone ranting about capitalism. How it’s to blame for all the issues in the world — and in the angry person’s life. Inevitably, others will join in and before I realize it I’m in the middle of a Capitalism-Fucked-The-World-Up support group. If you give the same reason for every issue — global […]
Why Is There A Taboo On Chasing Your Dreams?
I can’t stop thinking about this Tweet. It says: I want to go far in life. So that kids with autism have me as an example of what their future could be like instead of Rainman or Sheldon. (Though I love Sheldon) Zjos is 22, has autism and suffers from depression. Just like her brother, who killed […]
Christmas Essay: Why Objectivity Is Still A Thing
‘Maarten, what do you want to do for Christmas?’, I asked myself a while ago. My answer: I would like to try write an essay about something that has been bothering me for a long time now. (Yeah, I know I’m weird.) I promise it will change the way you look at our society. It […]
The Most Important Skill You Forgot
Today, everywhere we turn, someone is trying to steal our attention. We are bombarded non-stop with attention stealing cannonballs aimed at our heads shouting “Hey look over here — you should really think about joining us!” Buy this! Vote that! Don’t vote that! Do something about this! Facebook sucks! Get active for my good cause! Jeans are so out of fashion! […]
How (Not) To Be An Atheist
It took Friedrich Nietzsche almost 40 years to lose his faith in God. In 1844, he was born into a long line of Lutheran clergymen on both sides of his family. His father was a local pastor known for his religious strictness. He hardly sold any books and lived in poverty. His brilliance was recognizedposthumously and he […]
As A Millennial, You Should Be Optimistic About The Future
A Huffington Post article titled ‘Millennials Are Screwed’ and written by a millennial opens with a telling reflection: “Like everyone in my generation, I am finding it increasingly difficult not to be scared about the future and angry about the past.” This baffles me. Personally, as a matter of pre-reflective temperament, I’ve always been excitedabout the future […]
