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Tuesday, May 01, 2018

The Subtle Art Of Seeing That Mark Manson Is A Wuss

Mark Manson is an author. He writes important books like The Subtle Art Of Not Giving A (Hoot). The blurb for the book starts like this.
In this generation-defining self-help guide, a superstar blogger cuts through the (rubbish) to show us how to stop trying to be positive all the time so that we can truly become better, happier people.

For decades we've been told that positive thinking is the key to a happy, rich life. "(Forget) positivity," Mark Manson says. "Let's be honest, (things are messed up), and we have to live with it."
I'm not planning on reading it, but there you have it. And he's a superstar blogger, too! Golly!

I recently re-read a book from a less important person, someone who wasn't a superstar blogger. His name was Viktor Frankl. His book was Man's Search For Meaning. Viktor didn't live in 2018 where (things) are (messed up). He lived in the 1940s in various Nazi concentration camps where life was easy and your worries trivial.

Whereas the sagacious Mark Manson tells Millennials that they need to ditch the positivity, the naive and gullible Viktor Frankl tells us quite the opposite, that no matter your circumstances, you can control your thoughts and can choose to be kind and loving. Ha! That Viktor! What did he know? Did he ever have to deal with a cracked iPhone screen and people driving slowly on the freeway? never!

I'd like to see Viktor have to deal with the DMV! That would have changed his tune.

1 comment:

  1. There is a major appeal to "thinks are horrible, terrible and no good" type stuff.

    Desperate times, desperate measures. It's a built-in defense.

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