Accountability: Happiness Part 2

Hello!

I've been reading Happiness by Design: Finding Pleasure and Purpose in Everyday Life, by Paul Dolan.

This book was recommended to me by a coworker and has started some interesting questions for me, in essence; what is happiness? How can happiness be measured? How can I improve my own happiness over time?

Last time I had been reading the overall causes of happiness and the dichotomy between pleasure and purpose within happiness. The second section of the book concerns the process of cultivating happiness.

As established in the first section of the book, happiness is defined internally and can be seen as a choice.

There are no cookie cutter solutions to happiness, if there were, everyone would be constantly happy, however there are simple principles by which we can help to ensure we are generally happier.

To build happiness you must be active in your approach and to an extent methodical. Planning for happiness and cultivating a mix of pleasure and purpose is key. I have put too much on the purpose side of happiness so much so that it is no longer truly effective.

Essentially I need to relax.

Happiness is a state which needs to be planned and built. Similar to Nudge theory and Ricard's work on perception, happiness may be natural but it can be cultivated through positive environments.

Thanks for reading!
AT

Accountability: SPECIAL BONUS BOOK! Happiness: A Guide to Developing Life's Most Important Skill

Hello!

As we're focusing on happiness and looking at what can improve happiness in daily life I've added an extra book to this sprint.

Entitled 'Happiness: A Guide to Developing Life's Most Important Skill', I can safely say that this book is one of the best I've read in a long time. Recommended to me by a colleague at work, this book acts as a handbook to improve happiness whilst at the same time deconstructing the concept with exercises.

 

Ricard is a Buddhist monk with a critical but positive outlook on the world. Using data and philosophy Ricard takes the reader through a journey slowly deconstructing concepts and attempting to understand what makes them good or bad.

Ricard has a positive outlook on the human condition and illustrates each point with Buddhist teachings. The stories are engaging and thought provoking, and although some may seem unlikely when you think about the altruistic sacrifices made by some monks, the points come across very well.

Deconstructing Ricard's deconstruction it seems one of the core secrets to happiness is critical discourse analysis on the self. One of the meditation tasks is to imagine that your current stresses and troubles are like an ocean sweeping you away. To beat this feeling of submergence and defeat you lift yourself up and take yourself above the sea, into a plane, watching the mosaic of waves crash below you. Repositioning yourself and distancing yourself to the big picture allows you to think clearly.

Whilst this is not wholly ground breaking, Ricard's writing style is wholly engaging, keeping you positive and putting you in a positive mindset whilst deeply enchanted.

I opted for the audio book read by Humphry Bower. The narration is a suitable choice as it's calming, well spoken and carries a certain weight to it. I highly recommend both the book and the audio. In fairness, anything that mentions Hobbes' state of nature is a win in my estimation!

Cheers for reading!
The zen AT

Accountability: The Wild Diet

Hello!

This sprint I've been reading 'The Wild Diet' by the Fat Burning Man, Abel James. I've listened to James' podcast; Fat Burning Man Show on and off for the past year or so. James is an engaging host with a friendly presentational style so it makes it an easy listen.

Sometimes his guests have made questionable remarks and he hasn't challenged them on their points, something he addressed recently and said he would be more proactive with in the future. It was following the show he had some anti-vaxxers on I gave the show a little rest and wasn't sure if I was to return to it, however Abel himself seems to be an intelligent guy who doesn't say anything crazy so I thought giving his book a go would be a good thing.

It has been.

Abel is an engaging writer, writing in a charismatic and simple way. He writes as if he's speaking to you having a few beers at a bar and not preaching. So what is Abel's plan?

 

Abel follows the paleo approach but instead of being hardcore in its execution Abel allows for real life to happen and encourages us to make smart choices when cooking and eating.

In the screen grab above you can see the typical plate make up of Abel's plan. Half of it should be vegetable based, quarter protein with the rest made up from natural sugars, starches and fats. Abel's main gripe is processed and 'unnatural' foods.

Most diets fail because they don't take into account real life. Of course you'll lose weight if you do the Beyonce thing of only drinking lemon water with cayenne pepper, but what happens when your friends invite you out for food? You'll put it all back on and then more. Abel's approach is much more simple.

His recipes all sound great and you can see why they would be healthy, because they're made from REAL food!

I'll likely refer back to this book in future posts, but so far I can endorse it and look forward to trying some of the recipes!

Thanks for reading!

AT

Atlas Shrugged: Part 4 - Cultural Impact

Hello!

To hopefully conclude my posts on 'Atlas Shrugged' I thought I would look at the cultural influence Rand's text and ideology has had on the world and the pop culture emerging after.

There are two novels that can change a bookish fourteen-year old’s life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal with the real world. The other, of course, involves orcs.
http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/23/im-ellsworth-toohey/?_r=0 

Rand's work has been seen as a calling card for a generation of libertarians, unfortunately with many taking them literally. The call of 'Who is John Galt?' a key calling in the book has been adopted by many in the Tea party as a call to bigger industry and small/non-existant government.

Cultural behemoth 'The Simpsons' has had numerous references to Rand and 'Atlas Shrugged' in numerous ways;

'“Conservatives only get more conservative because each year they get a little further through Atlas Shrugged.”

The importance of Rand's influence can't be denied, if you agree with her work it's enlightening and a penny-drop moment. If you don't agree with it, it's infuriating and a terrifying moment where you believe others will believe this. To me, one the of the greatest deconstructions of the text is the 2007 game 'Bioshock'.

BioShock, a critically acclaimed 2007 video game, is widely considered to be a deconstruction of Atlas Shrugged. The story depicts a collapsed Objectivist society, with the player learning of how it fell apart after the fact. Significant characters in the game, such as Atlas and Andrew Ryan (a play on the name Ayn Rand), owe their naming to Rand's work. When asked about the influences for BioShock, the creator of the game, Ken Levine, replied, "I have my useless liberal arts degree, so I've read stuff from Ayn Rand and George Orwell, and all the sort of utopian and dystopian writings of the 20th century, which I've found really fascinating."

https://en.wikipedia.org/?title=Atlas_Shrugged#cite_note-75

Whilst not only being an incredibly immersive and entertaining game, it's a very clever and critical story, heavily engaging players in topics beyond simple gun-play. The beauty and grandeur of an actual Altantis city beneath the seas, and the hell for the people inside. Rapture, the game's location is a perfect mix of the critique, beauty and chaos an objectivist society could create.

What do I think of 'Atlas Shrugged'? It's interesting, whilst not the most engaging story, it does have passionate ideas and interesting approaches to the potential of the individual and their agency. However, I can't read it wholly without critiquing it heavily on its problems, including the lack of any empathy, compassion and human rights.

Thanks for reading!

AT

Atlas Shrugged: Part Three - Dystopian Problems

Hello!

For the positive message that 'Atlas Shrugged' may have for the individual it is wrapped in an incredibly grim and nasty package. There are horrible issues involving those who do not have the opportunity to produce and Rand seems completely mesmerised with the idea of the middle class and its agency.

What of the weak or the infirm? Are they supposed to rely on the often unforthcoming charity of the rich producers? The tyranny of the market is something that we are all too aware of post-2008 and you need to wonder what would happen if Rand's supporters were in charge of the recovery of the market.

Rand's text also confuses the nature of man, you are seen as either a producer or a looter, with no middle ground. In Rand's text you are saint or sinner, wholly depending on your ability to produce. When those who produce, and produce better than all others believe that they feel cheated, they withhold their labour until they feel appreciated.

Of course we can't talk about 'Atlas Shrugged' without the thorny issue of consent in the book. Sex is seen as the one thing distant from labour and dissolved as pure passion, so far so good, but then it gets a bit darker. Whilst rape isn't promoted, the consent of women isn't necessarily sought. This leaves a sour taste in the mouth and out of all the things you can discuss around 'Atlas Shrugged', the issue of sex and power is one of the most dated and grim things.

Thanks for reading!

AT

Atlas Shrugged: Part Two

Hello!

As we continue with our deconstruction of 'Atlas Shrugged' I think it may be best to see what people enjoy and support about the journey of Dagny.

We have a strong female protagonist, who takes on the male dominated world. The book argues for the strength of the individual and the positives of work and labour. You can pull much from the book and view the power of an individual or small group taking down a huge system.

If not taken literally the themes of 'Atlas Shrugged' can be viewed positively, as long as you retain some kind of humanistic interpretation behind it. Of course taken literally, the socially responsible liberal may balk at the messages but the themes can be reduced on a personal level. Just do it.

Just do it, and do it for yourself. You are the one in control of your own destiny and with that you can do anything you can imagine.

Imagination can be our only limits and to achieve the impossible we must only take our first few steps.

 

The power of the individual is incredible and as such can change the world, one should not rely on the kindness of others and instead use their own labour to shape their destiny.

Now, not everyone may agree with those positives from 'Atlas Shrugged' and I can assure you I don't agree with everything in that book, and rightly it has been critiqued. Which we will get to next time.

Thanks for reading,

Who is AT?

Atlas Shrugged: Part One

Hello!

I've been reading 'Atlas Shrugged', which is a beast of a text and viewed as the core text of the political theory of Objectivism. As the book is a gargantuan rambling beast I've divided this into multiple posts. First, what is 'Atlas Shrugged'?

 

Rand called it a romantic mystery, but really she outlines what she believes should be the core constructs of society, basing good (capitalism) versus evil (those who do not produce). It seems very black and white for Rand with no in between.

To Wikipedia!




The book depicts a dystopian United States, wherein many of society's most prominent and successful industrialists abandon their fortunes and the nation itself, in response to aggressive new regulations, whereupon most vital industries collapse. 
https://en.wikipedia.org/?title=Atlas_Shrugged

Why 'Atlas Shrugged'?


The title is a reference to Atlas, a Titan described in the novel as "the giant who holds the world on his shoulders". The significance of this reference appears in a conversation between the characters Francisco d'Anconia and Hank Rearden, in which d'Anconia asks Rearden what advice he would give Atlas upon seeing that "the greater [the titan's] effort, the heavier the world bore down on his shoulders". With Rearden unable to answer, d'Anconia gives his own response: "To shrug".

 But why is this part of the backlog?

'Atlas Shrugged' is one of the most recommended fiction books from Entrepreneur on Fire. From reading it, it is clear why. The book talks about the power of the individual in business and the impact they can have in the world. The power of the individual against the world and what impact it can create, and Rand's world is incompetent, angry, boorish and cheap, draining the life from everyone who dares to dream.

The book has had a recurring influence on culture and within politics, with deconstructions and references throughout. What did I make of it? Find out soon!

Thanks for reading!
AT

Accountability: Happiness, Part One

Hello!

I've been reading Happiness by Design: Finding Pleasure and Purpose in Everyday Life, by Paul Dolan.

This book was recommended to me by a coworker and has started some interesting questions for me, in essence; what is happiness? How can happiness be measured? How can I improve my own happiness over time?

Dolan's definition of happiness is that of 'experiences of pleasure and purpose over time.' This sets up an interesting proposition, if happiness can be measured in two simple ways, how can I improve my happiness in both quantitative and qualitative ways?

Reviewing the potential pleasure and purpose happiness dichotomy I have realised that recently I have focussed primarily on purpose as opposed to pleasure and this has in effect had a potentially negative impact on me.

 

I constantly strive to do all I can and be as productive as possible, getting all work done that I can, prioritising my minutes based on what I value as productive/purposeful as opposed to what is pleasurable. I need to take more time to look at pleasure more, to take the time to just relax and take pleasure from life as opposed to trying to find purpose in everything, justifying my actions.

 As I continue to read this book I hope to develop a framework for happiness and how I can improve my general wellbeing. 'But AT,' you cry, 'in the paragraph above, you tell yourself to not be a paranoid overly obsessive idiot and to take time enjoying yourself with mindless fun'. And to that I say, 'Yeah, but this isn't going to happen overnight'.

Dolan argues that we are guided by the conscious and the unconscious, with many actions planned by the unconscious mind, essentially you're on a conditioned autopilot. So many things in life we do become second nature to us, that the the individual consciousness no longer pays attention. Think about when you move something in your house, say you decide instead of just leaving your keys on the table next to the door, you decide to store them in a cupboard for safety, how many times do you imagine you'll check the table for your keys before heading out? 

Behaviours becomes automatic and must be changed through processes. With this in mind I am planning to actively take a greater effort in structuring my happiness.

Details to come soon!

 

Thanks for reading!
AT 

Accountability: Ready Player One

Hello!

You join me in my first accountability session in my second sprint. In this sprint I decided that I would read 'Ready Player One' by Ernest Cline. Although the book was only published in 2011 it has had a large impact on geek and nerd culture at large.

Set in a dystopian future not too far from our own, the world faces a terrible energy, food and population crisis with much of the world plugged into the virtual reality simulation game called 'the Oasis'. In this game players plug into virtual reality through a headset and haptic gloves and can interact with other players as well as non-playable characters.

When one of the creators of the Oasis dies a chase begins to find the secret to his will likely his fortune within the Oasis. This leads to a competition in the vein of 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' crossed with 'The Hunger Games' drenched in a glut of 1980s nostalgia.

Having listened to the book across a couple of days I really enjoyed it however I do feel that it has an awkward target to hit, the book is aimed at the young adult market however some of the references linked to the 1980s may not strike a chord with the intended audience, but Cline describes everything with vigour and enthusiasm without having to labour it. The references come thick and fast some more heavy handed than others, I particularly enjoyed a couple of very apt 'Brazil' references, however not all of them have the same impact.

Would have I enjoyed it more if it focussed more on the 1990s games I grew up with? Most likely, I would've punched the air in joy if there were Jazz Jackrabbit and Sonic the Hedgehog references, but then again this is a book which sets itself firmly in a dystopian time, harkening back to a very specific period; the 1980s.

I enjoyed the book, the narrative I found familiar, but is that such a bad thing? I felt this was aiming to be a postmodern dystopian nightmare in places, which it was, however the postmodern flavour was less Coupland eccentricity of accepting the modern bleakness and more George Lucas, holding out for a hero that can still save the world.

I think the story does work, it paints gaming in a realistic light showing why people feel compelled to plug themselves in to another life, there are some stereotypes, but is that a bad thing? Whilst the story heavily references the 1980s and pop culture touchstones, the text and story itself is highly reminiscent of classic young adult films from 'The Goonies' to the John Hughes catalogue.

Can it teach me anything about agile? Maybe, the gamification of the quest sets the book nicely into sections, it also shows how an impossible goal can be completed in small chunks, similar to agile.

I'll be really intrigued to see the movie adaptation and if they can evoke the same feeling, Spielberg is currently signed to direct; and it makes sense as he's likely the only person in Hollywood who has enough good will to get the license to Star Wars, Back to the Future, Blade Runner and the Atari back catalogue.

'Ready Player One'? Done.

+1000xp

Level up!

AT

SPIKE! Too many books!

Hello!

With the planning future sprints ongoing I need to define what resources I require. Research in agile are often referred to as 'spikes'.

A story or task aimed at answering a question or gathering information, rather than at producing shippable product. Sometimes a user story is generated that cannot be estimated until the development team does some actual work to resolve a technical question or a design problem. The solution is to create a “spike,” which is a story whose purpose is to provide the answer or solution. Like any other story or task, the spike is then given an estimate and included in the sprint backlog.

http://agiledictionary.com/209/spike/ 

My user stories detail that I want to read a selection of fiction and non-fiction books. I want the books to help me develop in business and culturally broaden my horizons. To help me curate my reading list I will rely on resources I trust.

In each Entrepreneur on Fire podcast the host John Lee Dumas asks his guests to suggest a book for other entrepreneurs to read, something which had inspired them on their journey. The EOFire team have recently updated their list of recommendations of the top 15 books, I will use this chart as the basis of my business non-fiction list.

As a result I have bought Rework, The 4 Hour Workweek and Think and Grow Rich to go alongside How to Win Friends and Influence People which I read in the past sprint. Adding these titles to my reading list will give me a firm foundation to start my business reading.

For the fictional books reading list I have decided to mix classics with books I feel will challenge me as well as entertain. Being a nerdy guy with a dark sense of humour and a post-modern outlook it may come as no surprise that I'm a massive Douglas Coupland fan. However I don't feel I've read enough Coupland, so I will be adding his books to my reading list alongside others.

Generation X, Shampoo Planet, Generation A and Miss Wyoming all take precedent in books I wish to read as part of my sprint.

Alongside Coupland I want to add in some classics and influential texts which is why I decided to begin with The Handmaid's Tale. With this in mind I want to add in Nineteen Eighty-Four, Atlas Shrugged, Infinite Jest, Don DeLillo and Brave New World. This gives me a fiction foundation to go with my non-fiction list.

Thanks for reading,

The soon to be better read and slightly spiky Agile Timelord

Accountability: The Handmaid's Tale

Hello!

The sprint is in full flow and as a result of this I have listened to 'The Handmaid's Tale' by Margaret Atwood in full. I've marked the task as 'Done' on my board! Look! It's green!



To give an update on my burndown board and stories/tasks for the sprint, yellow on the board indicates a story, blue represents in progress and the green is done.

So, what to do now that I've completed something within the sprint? Well, I thought a way I could demonstrate this would be to write my thoughts and ideas on 'Handmaid's Tale'. I realise that this is not going to be for everyone however I feel as this blog acts as a way I can relate my progress to you I think it's justified. To everyone only interested in agile and scrum check out tomorrow's update, and if you get the opportunity be sure to pick up 'The Handmaid's Tale' if you haven't read it. For those interested,  spoiler-laden impressions follow.

In,
3,
2,
1,

Man, that's a messed up and terrifying book.

Ok, so for a brief overview of 'The Handmaid's Tale' we find ourselves in a militant dictatorship located in North America following the fall of the United States government after the death of the President and Congress. This in itself would lead to interesting questions regarding power trying to fill a vacuum, however the narration of Offred lends a personal voice to the people and gives insight into the republic which emerges from the ashes of the USA.

Offred is a captivating character and I was truly engaged with her story throughout, in a way I felt like her story was being narrated in an almost Tim Burton aesthetic. By that I mean that everything seems similar but at the same time the humdrum and perceived normality of the day to day life in the Gilead Republic is where the terror truly lies.

The way that the Japanese tourists view the Handmaid's in the same way tourists view outdoor museum attractions shows that the world rolls along outside Gilead. This scene was worrisome and crushing for Offred with the contrast between the perceived relaxed women of other cultures and the ultra conservative restrictions placed on the Handmaids.

The gender politics in the book are striking and still to be addressed in modern society. The way the community slowly saps away the rights of women following the fall of the government for the perceived common good to the ultimate fate of the handmaids and (un)women in the system is terrifying, not only in the actual actions, but the mundane way it happens and becomes accepted so quickly.

Atwood couldn't have known how striking it would be 30 years after it had been written, but the perception of the right wing Christian extremists killing an entire government in a staged terrorist attack to blame Muslims is so very relevant today. The book has much to tell us about gender politics and reproductive rights today, suggesting that some people are only allowed to have children based on their role in society alongside judging the value of a working or middle class woman on her ability to produce or rear children. Atwood wants to change the view of gender interplay, by objectifying women directly to their biological base and chauvinistic fantasies, reducing women to sex objects to titillate (men) or mothers to raise new children, she shows what could happen if feminism does not adapt and counter threats forcefully and with passion.

The final chapter that breaks down the Gilead Republic is an interesting retrospective that contrasts the horror of the regime against 'modern' perceptions. The juxtaposition truly shows what an archaic nightmare the Gilead regime was. 

Was it a delight to read? God no. Challenging as hell, uncomfortable to read and at times just plain creepy. However it was important that I did read it and I'm truly glad I did. I'm also anticipating a new film version in the next 5 years, I imagine Charlize Theron as Serena Joy, Ellen Page as Moira and as for Offred, lets say Amy Adams.

The next post is unlikely to be a book review, but will update how I've worked to burndown through my stories,

Thanks for reading,
AT