November 16th, 2019
3 min read
In 1974 Richard Feynman gave the commencement address to the graduating class at Cal Tech. He said to them “The first principle is that you must not fool yourself, and you are the easiest person to fool. So you have to be very careful about that. “ His message was about having scientific integrity, but I think his message can help inform our daily lives.
“Each man and woman is a good education to himself”
I read a variation of this quote in a biography by Sarah Bakewell on the life of Montaigne. But the second part of this quote is one of my favorite points, it reads “provided he has the captivity to spy on himself from close up.”
We have two proposition: we can learn a lot by spying on ourselves and we must not fool ourselves knowing that we are easy to fool. Let’s look at a case study on procrastination, but this train of thought can be used in other areas that are important to you.
Case study on procrastination:
Part 1: Spying on yourself up close
You’ve decided to stop procrastinating and aspirate to become more diligent in your school work or professional career. However, you’re unsure why you procrastinate in the first place? Instead of going down an existential hole, let’s find the answer in a pragmatic way by invoking your inner James Bond and begin spying on yourself.
Take notes of when you want to procrastinate. Your education on this will probably happen while you are procrastinating -touché.
Does it happen in the morning, afternoon or evening?
Do I procrastinate after high stimulating activities that its hard to be patient and sit down, relax and do work? Do I procrastinate after going on my phone in the morning or after checking a specific app or website?
Does it happen when I don’t get a good night’s sleep or after hanging out with friends late night?
Does it happen after I hang out with family and their problems weigh on me?
Does it happen when my list of projects get so long that they stifle me? Maybe going to your favorite coffee shop distracts you from being introspective in what really matter in life.
It’s important that you take notes on the actions and mood that lead you to procrastinate. Literal notes too, this way after a few weeks you will have a clear and documented experience.
Part 2: Do not fool yourself
Here are some not so obvious ways that we fool ourselves
Going to the gym for too long in order to feel healthy but then being too tired to get work done
Focusing too much on planning and not executing
Prioritizing helping family and friends over ourselves – not setting boundaries
Believing that our “future selves” will figure it out – task postponement and wishful thinking
Not trusting that we are ready for the challenge – you will never feel ready
We all fool ourselves in different ways. For example, here is one way we can fool ourselves from accomplishing our goals that blew my mind when I first learned about it: talking and sharing our goals with others makes us less likely to do them. Why? Because we get a premature sense of completeness and this makes you less likely to do the damn thing! (crazy right?). See here for more info.
Implementing change
The next steps are not so simple and will require you to elevate your integrity. This takes time. Follow the 80-20 rule or Pareto principle, which states that 20% input creates 80% results. Identify your 20%. Be aware that the mind influences the body, but this is a bi-lateral effect, the body can influence the mind too. In other words, just get going and watch your minds perspective change and always remember – you must not fool yourself.
Darwin Carbajal 