Key to Life?

Spending less time on Twitter / social media recently and it feels nice.

Last year I was chronically online (my wannabe influencer fad), then I logged off. There’s this funny thing - when you scroll 24/7 logging off feels like you’re missing out on everything.

But when you only go on once or twice a week, each time you’re back it feels like you haven’t missed that much. Kind of a counterintuitive perceptive thing in that way.

Anyways, when I do log back on these days I still come across a few gems. This is one of my recent favorites from @climate_ben, I’ve been thinking about it all week:

I love everything about it. My interpretation:

1) there are two modes in life: consumption and creation

2) For each, you can choose to either do them alone or with others.

3) This makes for 4 quadrants: consuming alone (bad), consume with friends (fun), creating alone (good), creating with friends (meaning)

I agree with this pretty deeply.

It’s a thought that’s floated around in my head before, just never quite materialized in such an elegant format like Ben’s.

Looking back on my life thus far - the moments I find to be the most deeply meaningful are things in quadrant 4.

Playing in a punk band, making beats in my college dorm room with friends, starting a club in college, launching a business, hosting pickleball events and linkedin lives, drawing pictures and making collages with my wife

The moments that I’ve felt the most lethargic / gross / worthless are the ones evenings spent scrolling Instagram or watching YouTube /Netflix etc. for hours, shopping, etc.

The ones in the middle are fine.

Memories are a huge part of creation mode. You don’t consume memories you create them. Memories are their best when you share them with others.

I think that’s what makes creating with others so special, the memories, the artifacts, the shared stories.

I’m glad to have come across this idea, I hope it sticks with me as a little reminder to do more of quadrant 4.

i hope maybe it does the same for you too :-)

Peace,
Ramsey