Poisonous People: Psychopathy, Narcissism, Manipulation, and Sadism — How to Resist Them and Improve Your Life
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I think this goes into the history of psychology; for example, 100 years ago, we couldn't even measure what an emotion is. It's something in your head and in your brain, and we were always used to measuring behaviour, not people's psychological experiences. So just from that alone, it became less important because it wasn't observable behaviour, as if what people are thinking and feeling doesn't matter—which is obviously crazy; it does matter.
Mental wellness is an unwavering commitment to reality, regardless of the cost. Trauma, in this light, can be a powerful teacher, offering a stark glimpse of reality, a contrast to the daily bombardment of trivial concerns.
I think that inequality within societies and between regions has become a key cause for conflict, exacerbated by rapid information dissemination, as people are now more aware of inequalities.
What feels similar is the pursuit — by artists and entrepreneurs — of the actualization of an idea borne in their minds; and then pursuing bringing this vision to reality. Especially at the beginning, it takes just the right amount of delusion to dedicate yourself to something ambitious. The reality is you're more likely to fail than succeed and so you need strong belief to commit your heart and soul to an idea; as well as a bit of over-optimism (delusion) to make the sacrifices they are often called for to bring anything to life.
There's a very strong relationship between depravation and drug use in many western cultures. It's not the sole reason- you do get the rich and mega-privileged using drugs... You can't go shouting from the rooftops that it's all about depravation... a lot of it is... but there are other social factors, personal factors, genetic factors and economic factors – all mixed into the pot.
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Ten in-depth articles distilling insights from over 550 interviews with the world's leading thinkers, creators, and changemakers.