Tracy Goss says in her book, The Last Word on Power, that we are meaning-making machines. We ascribe meaning to everything, and it is all driven by our past experiences. What has happened in the past helps us interpret the present and try to predict the future. The problem is that most of the meaning we ascribe to things isn’t real or accurate. As Larry Mills says, “Most of what we think just isn’t so.”
I have been going through a process of letting go of the meaning that I have ascribed to things in my life. Some of that meaning has shown up as judgment, “I would never want to do that.” But most of it is just incorrect stories that have shaped my thinking and actions. Many of these stories I let die years ago, but there are still others that I have been discovering recently. I am calling these stories we tell ourselves Egoic Narratives because they are stories that we believe because they help us define our sense of self.
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What is Notes on Wisdom W/John Walt?
Welcome to Notes on Wisdom with John Walt...
I am a husband, father, strategist and adventurer. 17 years ago, I began a search for wisdom that led me to spend thousands of hours with mentors and read 100+ books a year. This journey has transformed how I think and live. Each week I share one of my favorite notes at JohnWalt.com and you can find the audio version here.