How to train your ego — It’s not easy to become yourself. You must daily battle your fears and others’ expectations. Sometimes, the fight gets exhausting, and you might be tempted to bury yourself. Of course, on the opposite side, you have to guard against an ego with a strong desire for attention. Some people advocate…

What You Don’t Create, You Will Destroy — I’m turning 29 this week, and the hardest lesson I’ve learned in my third decade is that no amount of consumption will ever help me discover myself. A few years ago, my generation rallied behind a radical new cry against materialism: “Buy experiences, not things.” The result? A shift from…

Success? More like suck-cess — On December 17, 2018, I was a 24-year-old supply chain analyst for 150+ stores in two countries, and I submitted my resignation with a ten-day notice via an email that went out to every executive in my company. I had no plan. However, I realized that I’d rather die poor…

How I found freedom in practical philosophy — I’m Chris Fritz, and I’m a recovering narcissist. In 2019, shortly before turning 25, I hit my all-time low. I was an alcoholic, I hated everyone, and I wanted to die. Philosophy taught me how to stop being a jerk so could finally live a life of freedom and joy. …

How to figure out your “Niche of One” — Perhaps the hardest part of becoming a successful creator is deciding what the f~ck you want to become successful for. If you don’t figure that out first, you can get stuck running a successful business that you hate, which is arguably worse than having a regular job. However, if you…

Don’t be consumed by your shadow — People are weird, and, unfortunately, most should not be trusted. The problem is not that a large number of people are bad, but that it is difficult to see what a person is like until you know them for a good while. How people react to stress, to frustration, and…

The difference might save your life — The High Price Of Misplaced Trust There’s nothing deadlier in life than a false friend. History has shown the price of misplaced trust many times: Thomas Cromwell once assisted in the marriage of Anne Boleyn to Henry VIII only to end up orchestrating her execution when the king grew tired of her. Leon Trotsky was an…

Creation demands destruction — Kill The Novice There is a certain violence inherent to creativity: to become who you want to be, you have to destroy who you currently are. …

Reconcile with your darkness to become yourself — Life is challenging, even in the best of times. The thing is, much of the challenge is self-inflicted. We avoid setting boundaries because we fear conflict. We struggle to do what we know is good for us (and to stop doing what’s bad for us) because we love what hurts…