#770 Between deep work and a good life

“Ric Furrer is a master craftsman whose work requires him to spend most of his day in a state of depth — even a small slip in concentration can ruin dozens of hours of effort. He’s also who clearly finds great meaning in his profession. This connection between deep work and a good life is familiar and widely accepted when considering the world of craftsmen.”

• via "On Craft and the Human Condition"
by Cal Newport

 

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123/365 Top-down attention

The best response, he concluded, is to pay active top-down attention to the present moment and to positive thoughts and feelings, such as kindness and compassion.
From "Rapt: Attention and the Focused Life", by Winifred Gallagher

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125/365 Willpower keeps us focused

In the mind’s arena, willpower (a facet of “ego”) represents a wrestling match between top and bottom systems. Willpower keeps us focused on our goals despite the tug of our impulses, passions, habits, and cravings. This cognitive control represents a “cool” mental system that makes an effort to pursue our goals in the face of our “hot” emotional reactions—quick, impulsive, and automatic.

From "Focus: The Hidden Driver of Excellence", by Daniel Goleman

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127/365 "Anyone can become angry - that is easy"

Anyone can become angry - that is easy. But to be angry with the right person, to the right degree, at the right time, for the right purpose, and in the right way —this is not easy.

Aristotle, The Nicomachean Ethics

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