Hello, I'm Jian Yang.
I write about investing, software, books, cooking, and other things that interest me.
This site serves as a public journal to document ideas and capture insights. By putting them into writing, I hope to further develop these concepts and look back to see how my understanding changes over time.
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Comparison is the thief of joy, yet it is woven into the very fabric of society. Think of rankings at work, in sports, and in advertisements, where we are constantly reminded of what we lack and taught what we should want. It is time we realize that what is valuable to others may not be the same for us. Our unique lived experiences shape our mindsets and determine what holds value. Joy, sorrow, and success are deeply personal and build upon one another. Every one of our actions today can be explained by a causal link to a past memory that has shifted our way of thinking.
The next time social media, our friends, or even our loved ones compare us with others, we ought to take a step back and introspect. We must remind ourselves that they are evaluating us through their own lenses and experiences, not ours. Stop living your life based on what someone else has determined to be a life well-spent. That’s their business, and that’s how they should live their lives if they choose to. We ought to be indifferent. Every decision has a value and a trade-off as we define it.
It’s important that we determine today what is of value to us; knowing our destination will help us make sense of the journey.
This quote beautifully put into words what I had in mind for a while:
“Most people do not think. They repeat. They adopt the opinions of those around them, wear them like borrowed clothes, and call it a worldview. And when you dare to think for yourself, really think, they will not admire you for it. They will resent you. Because your refusal to conform is a mirror they did not ask to look into. The unexamined man does not hate you because you are wrong. He hates you because somewhere beneath the noise, he suspects you might be right.” - Anonymous
P.S. Someone attributed this to Nietzsche, but I can’t seem to find evidence backing it, so I’ll keep it as anonymous.
Life is what happens in the in-between. We have convinced ourselves to live for big moments such as graduations, promotions, and travel, but what we end up feeling most nostalgic about are the little moments that seem insignificant in the present but make up a large part of the story looking back. Do not neglect what you have in the present by constantly occupying your mind with thoughts of the future.