Brian Klaas

It's also that when I realized the uncertainty and the lack of control that I have over my life, I have become more of an explorer, right? I've become more of an experimenter. I try things that I wouldn't try in the past. And as a result of that, I'm sort of attuned to the serendipity that happens when something unexpected comes into my life and the joy from it.

Of course, there's unexpected setbacks too, but I'm more able to roll with them because I don't have the sense that I have to have top-down optimized control all the time.

Of course, there's unexpected setbacks too, but I'm more able to roll with them because I don't have the sense that I have to have top-down optimized control all the time.

Of course, there's unexpected setbacks too, but I'm more able to roll with them because I don't have the sense that I have to have top-down optimized control all the time.

And I think about the times in my life where I was actually probably, you know, not saddest, but not exactly my happiest, is some of the time when I was on paper the most productive with inbox zero and I was checking off, you know, every checklist was ticked. And, you know, like it sucked the joy out of life. I was on top of my sort of to-do list, but I wasn't having a good time.

And I think about the times in my life where I was actually probably, you know, not saddest, but not exactly my happiest, is some of the time when I was on paper the most productive with inbox zero and I was checking off, you know, every checklist was ticked. And, you know, like it sucked the joy out of life. I was on top of my sort of to-do list, but I wasn't having a good time.

And I think about the times in my life where I was actually probably, you know, not saddest, but not exactly my happiest, is some of the time when I was on paper the most productive with inbox zero and I was checking off, you know, every checklist was ticked. And, you know, like it sucked the joy out of life. I was on top of my sort of to-do list, but I wasn't having a good time.

And so, you know, I think there's some of these lessons that I've incorporated where you just sort of have to think, you know, we're all in this ride that is extremely bizarre, contingent, swayed by randomness, swayed by luck, et cetera. And we're happy to be here. We're lucky to be here.

And so, you know, I think there's some of these lessons that I've incorporated where you just sort of have to think, you know, we're all in this ride that is extremely bizarre, contingent, swayed by randomness, swayed by luck, et cetera. And we're happy to be here. We're lucky to be here.

And so, you know, I think there's some of these lessons that I've incorporated where you just sort of have to think, you know, we're all in this ride that is extremely bizarre, contingent, swayed by randomness, swayed by luck, et cetera. And we're happy to be here. We're lucky to be here.

And that every moment that I have is influencing the future in some ripple effect that I don't know how it's going to play out. There's something so magical and awe-inspiring about that. that it has just utterly transformed how I think about my life. And it's made me a much happier person.

And that every moment that I have is influencing the future in some ripple effect that I don't know how it's going to play out. There's something so magical and awe-inspiring about that. that it has just utterly transformed how I think about my life. And it's made me a much happier person.

And that every moment that I have is influencing the future in some ripple effect that I don't know how it's going to play out. There's something so magical and awe-inspiring about that. that it has just utterly transformed how I think about my life. And it's made me a much happier person.

So what's interesting is that a lot of people, they first encounter my ideas or the ideas of chance and randomness, and they become nihilists, right? Nothing matters. And my argument is no, everything matters, even the tiniest stuff. And if you fixate on that idea, your life will always have meaning and always feel important. And I think that's one of the secrets to a happy life.

So what's interesting is that a lot of people, they first encounter my ideas or the ideas of chance and randomness, and they become nihilists, right? Nothing matters. And my argument is no, everything matters, even the tiniest stuff. And if you fixate on that idea, your life will always have meaning and always feel important. And I think that's one of the secrets to a happy life.

So what's interesting is that a lot of people, they first encounter my ideas or the ideas of chance and randomness, and they become nihilists, right? Nothing matters. And my argument is no, everything matters, even the tiniest stuff. And if you fixate on that idea, your life will always have meaning and always feel important. And I think that's one of the secrets to a happy life.

I think that there's a lot of the world that we try to explain with neat and tidy stories, right? And I'm a social scientist and social science is trying to sort of use trends and patterns and say where we're heading. And we always sort of, you know, I think we overly simplify the world to do that.

I think that there's a lot of the world that we try to explain with neat and tidy stories, right? And I'm a social scientist and social science is trying to sort of use trends and patterns and say where we're heading. And we always sort of, you know, I think we overly simplify the world to do that.

I think that there's a lot of the world that we try to explain with neat and tidy stories, right? And I'm a social scientist and social science is trying to sort of use trends and patterns and say where we're heading. And we always sort of, you know, I think we overly simplify the world to do that.

And sometimes when you're writing historical narratives, the same thing happens that, oh, of course, this was inevitable because the great trends of history brought us to this moment. Every time that I started to look more deeply into anything that happened, whether it was in history or a case that I was studying in my social science research, all of that sort of fell by the wayside.