So I just spent the last 10 minutes or so thinking
of every single tv show that I could remember that I have finished fully,
like seen every single episode of these tv shows,
and here's my giant list of everything that I've seen.
And I added up all the hours that I spent watching these TV shows and it's nearly 3,000 hours,
which actually adds up to about 370 full eight-hour working days, which is
like a year and five months of a full-time job that I spent watching TV shows.
And, I mean, this is over a span of many years, but that's not even
including all of the YouTube videos and the actual movies that I've watched also.
Now I'm not at all bashing watching television shows - for a while,
quite obviously they were my preferred form of comfort.
I'd escaped my daily grind through some kind of dramatic or action-packed TV show,
and it would help me to decompress, but as of late last year, I've become less
and less interested in consuming other people's content and more interested in creating my own.
And the idea occurred to me that maybe perhaps
I could cull my consumption time down to zero and replace it with creation time.
The idea did scare me at first, because like I said, I was using this as a form of comfort - a
way to escape - but doesn't getting into a flow state also provide an escape?
It was just a question. That's it.
And that's kind of the habit that changed my life.
Not changing my night routine to creating instead of consumption, but asking the question.
Asking questions might be scary, to open up the possibility for change.
It might be scary to admit that you don't know something or that you've never seen
this thing done before, but if you're not willing to buck the norm and
keep an open mind, then I'd say you're not willing to grow.
Because when you ask the question, when you volunteer your ignorance,
when you admit that you don't know something, all of the results are going to be good.
One of two good things will happen: either you will learn where you are wrong and then
have a choice opened up for you to change that idea or habit - and dare I say to IMPROVE it -
or your belief is going to be solidified and made stronger, because now it's properly vetted and
justifiable through the experience that you've gained rather than just mere subjective opinion.
Honestly, I feel like most of my greatest learning experiences have come
from questioning my deepest rooted beliefs.
If you think something is a wall and you punch it, you might hurt your hand,
but also you might change your world entirely when you realize that it in fact was not a wall.
Sure, you may initially look like a fool,
but isn't it more foolish to pretend like you know something that you don't?
Or to pretend like you have experience in the matter that's being discussed
rather than to ask the person who's had that experience about it?
If you're not willing to open your mind and try - really truly try - to
understand the opposition of your opinions, then are you even confident in your convictions?
Hot take! Wooo!
Hot take!
But really! Come on.
It goes both ways. Both - both ways.
And of course, if you are really truly uncomfortable with asking a
question in the moment, or you feel unsafe doing so,
you can also just develop a habit of writing down your questions and then coming back to
them later - either to look them up on Google or ask someone that you trust.
Now, this could apply to changing one's lifestyle, but it also could apply to just
asking general questions when you're trying to learn something,
because when anyone begins anything new, they're going to look dumb.
But if you're willing to ask the question, then your knowledge is going to grow,
and then you can ask a question at the "Level 2," and your knowledge will grow,
and you'll be at "Level 3" now, and if you keep doing that and doing that,
eventually you're gonna be the one that people come to with their questions.
If you keep up this practice and turn it into a habit, you'll find that when
you're not afraid to ask questions, other people can start to feel empowered too,
and then everybody's admitting what they don't know, and then
the whole lot of you can level up accordingly.
Essentially, it all comes down to this:
would you rather look stupid temporarily or be stupid exponentially?
And really, anyone that makes you feel stupid for asking a question is not worth your time.
You shouldn't care about what they think, because you're gonna leave them in the dust anyways.
All that matters is your own understanding and your own growth,
and you gotta keep an open mind, because you might not get the answer that you wanted to get.
You might also not get the right answer off the bat and have to search through
and take your time with it, so it does require some courage and some patience,
but if you never ask, it's a hundred percent guaranteed that you'll never know.
If you don't question things, even the most mundane normal things like
watching TV at the end of the day, then there's a possibility that you might be
missing out on an opportunity to form your own life based on what YOU value.
If you saw my last video, you know that I'm interested in learning more about finances and
entrepreneurship in general, small businesses, and I've also been spending a lot of time
on making digital art and trying to get used to that rather than having pencil and paper.
And right now, I am a little bit scared of all of these things.
Every time I sit down to learn something about them, I feel stupid,
but I know that it's just because I'm unfamiliar with them currently.
And I know from past experience that no matter how dumb they all make me feel initially,
as long as I keep following my curiosities - asking questions
and seeking out answers - my knowledge and understanding will grow over time.
And eventually, I'll be an expert.
So stay curious.
Don't be afraid to look like a fool, cause we all do.
And just ask the question.
'til next time!
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