January 31st, 2024

Let me share with you some secrets, my friend—lessons that may guide you in your journey toward understanding.

Learning and the Mind
Firstly, learning itself is not hard. What makes it difficult is finding the connection between what you already know, what you wish to know, and the new knowledge you must acquire. The real challenge lies in your attachments. If you approach learning with the humility of knowing nothing—if you can empty your mind—new ideas will form themselves naturally.

You do not fail to learn because you are unintelligent. Often, you fail because you are too attached to certain ideas. As Carl Jung observed, you may even be possessed by those ideas, instinctively gravitating toward people and paths that reinforce your beliefs while resenting those that challenge them. This instinctive justification of what you already know can be a barrier to true learning, my friend.

The Trap of Knowledge
Secondly, it is common for those who recognize past mistakes to believe they are exempt from repeating them. This is the ultimate mistake. It is easy to know what to do after many failed attempts, after observing errors committed by others or by oneself. However, the danger lies in assuming that this new knowledge makes you infallible.

The greatest folly is to think that what you know now is final, that you are beyond error. Remember, those who made mistakes in the past also believed their knowledge to be complete. To think of yourself as unfalsifiable is to invite disaster. Stay humble, my friend, for the belief in your invulnerability is the surest path to failure.

On Success and Failure
Finally, there is a tendency in those born under favorable circumstances—or in those who succeed easily—to believe themselves special. Such people often look down on others who struggle, wondering why they cannot achieve the same results. But if you stood on the other side of the river, you might curse fate or attribute your failures to external forces.

Man creates explanations for his successes and failures, often in ways that protect his ego. Especially for his failures. Rarely does a person have the clarity—or the courage—to see their own mistakes. And you, my dear friend, are no exception.

Takeaway
I want you to be formless, like water. Be open-minded, for this is what attracts true knowledge. Always keep in mind that the man of the future will one day discover a new technology and wonder how the man of today failed to see something so simple.

We laugh at the mistakes of those who came before us, pointing fingers at their folly, yet we fail to examine our own actions with the same scrutiny. When people in the past made mistakes, they thought they were doing the right thing. Whatever you do, my friend, give room for the possibility that you may be wrong.

With this mindset, you will not only learn but grow. And in your growth, you may avoid the arrogance that blinds so many.

With regard,
Your best friend—and worst enemy.