Personal Me

A excerpt from my blog:  "Should you exercise some responsibility?"

"The unchallenged opinion is not worth pursuing".

So, responsibility is the privilege of a so-called free world and thus you must exercise your responsibility to examine all opinions you have been asked to believe and decide for yourself if they are worthy. Because this simple action creates a better opinion and by extension a better outcome and by further extension a better world. So, embrace your responsibility, be an active part of the future, and not a passive passenger who says, "I was not involved in the decision and therefore not responsible". 

The challenge is, can we create an environment where this can be done? I believe we can and I am working on this idea, I call it the "Opinion Project". If interested make contact.

Some years ago, a close friend asked if I was up for a 600km bike ride from Kalgoorlie to Perth. At the time I did not even own a bike! The mountain bike course follows WA’s iconic Golden Pipeline from Kalgoorlie to Perth which to this day continues to provide Kalgoorlie’s water supply. The course follows the pipeline along gravel tracks and passes through towns that I had grown up in and later discovered I had keenly felt a desire to reconnect with. And, as it turns out, not only was my enthusiastically affirmative ‘yes’ not only one of my better decisions at the time, the decision to a accept the challenge, lead to many other well-reflected-on decisions made during that first ride. 

I love that riding requires my mind, body, and bike to act together as one. Sometimes it takes a whole day of riding before your mind is clear and your thinking feels straight, and sometimes it can happen in just 10 minutes. My reason for riding is not to beat anyone, or to teach anyone, I ride for both the mental and physical challenge that solo riding give you, even in a group can provide.

One of my challenge is to learn how to ocean kayak safely,  so that I can paddle for hours with nothing but the water, my thoughts, and physical exertion.  In many ways, you might say ocean kayaking is the upper body equivalent of cycling.

It is another challenge for my mind as I learn this new skill - the ability to  coordinate and master mind, body, and kayak acting together, and just like in cycling, it is a great way to reset the mind.

For now I am content with just trying to stay in the kayak and paddling with confidence and maybe in the near future I can master the ability to catch a fish and paddle at the same time all the while singing as loud as I like with no one to hear! I always sing in tune, when on my own, don't you?

I am an avid and eager reader, and a self-described critical thinker. Some of the readings that have had a big influence on me are:

Ayn Rand - Objectivism is a philosophical system developed by her. She first expressed Objectivism in her fiction, most notably The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged, and later in non-fiction essays and books.

Dr.  Yuval Noah Harari - The book Sapien, compels us to look ahead, because over the last few decades humans have begun to bend laws of natural selection that have governed life for the past four billion years. We are acquiring the ability to design not only the world around us, but also ourselves. Where is this leading us, and what do we want to become?  

Dr. Jordan Peterson - has influenced the modern understanding of personality, and now he has become one of the world's most popular public thinkers. In his book 12 Rules for Life - An Antidote to Chaos,  he provides 12 profound and practical principles for how to live a meaningful life, from setting your house in order before criticising others to comparing yourself to who you were yesterday, not someone else today.