Stay hungry. Stay foolish.

For the past several months, my motto has been the quote made popular by Steve Jobs, “Stay hungry. Stay foolish.” The first time I read this quote it resonated with me, and I knew that it fit me well. Recently, I shared it with a friend who told me that they didn't know what it meant. That got me thinking about it. I knew that it spoke to me, but why?

Stay hungry.

It has been my observation that many people, if not most, get to the point in their life where they “grow up” and realize that the responsibilities of adulthood require that they become “practical” and “realistic” about life. They subsequently pack their dreams in a proverbial shoebox and hide them away while they get busy being an adult. Meanwhile, their dreams die from want of attention; the only thing left of them are fond memories coupled with a twinge of disappointment.

In the book Education through Recreation by Lawrence Pearsall Jacks, there is a passage that reads, “A master in the art of living draws no sharp distinction between his work and his play, his labor and his leisure, his mind and his body, his education and his recreation. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence through whatever he is doing and leaves others to determine whether he is working or playing. To himself he always seems to be doing both.”

At some point I the past year, I came across some advice that hit me so hard that it stuck with me in a powerful way. Sit down with someone and talk about the things that you enjoy doing in life; when you get to the thing that makes you cry, that's what you should be doing. Are you so passionate about what you do that it invokes such an intense emotional reaction in you?

What if you have a job with great pay, great benefits, and great stability, but it saps your creative energy and leaves you with a sense of meaninglessness? The “adult” thing to do seems to be to suck it up, be grateful for the job, and be responsible; after all, nobody like their job anyway. Quit whining. Work is the result of Adam's curse in the garden. We all till the ground of our lives and work by the sweat of our brow – that's what makes it a curse. I adamantly disagree with this thinking! If one wishes to bring up Scripture, Ecclesiastes 5:18 says, "Here is what I have seen: It is good and fitting for one to eat and drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labor in which he toils under the sun all the days of his life which God gives him; for it is his heritage." This leads me to believe that God cares deeply about the level of satisfaction in my life.

No matter how “secure” a job seems, security in any kind of job is an illusion. I cannot allow myself to trade my dreams for an illusion of security. I cannot surrender my passions for money. Maybe you're not doing what you're passionate about now, but don't give up on it! This sums up the meaning of “stay hungry”. Keep the fire in your spirit raging. Don't surrender your dreams in the name of being an adult. Stay hungry – for life, for happiness, for your dreams.

Stay foolish.

As far as I'm concerned, staying foolish doesn't mean acting without wisdom and prudence; it means being foolish enough to believe that your dreams are obtainable. It means doing the thing you would do if you knew that you couldn't fail. It means being ready and willing to act, regardless of fear. Step into the unknown – like what many would consider foolish. Don't be afraid of marching to the beat of a different drummer. Don't be afraid to leave the comfort and security of an illusion in order to realize your dreams. Be foolish enough to believe that you can make it happen; and then make it happen.

Stay hungry. Stay foolish.

Q16: Do you have a love of mathematics?

As an engineer, I’ve taken an ample amount of college-level mathematics. However, my appreciation of mathematics extends much more to the beauty and art in math, rather than the utilitarian application. For example, to find the volume of a sphere, it’s more about the journey than the result. I much more enjoy the beauty and elegance of a triple-integral derivation as opposed to a simple, more direct algebraic approach. I appreciate the beauty in math! There's something awesome about an elegantly written mathematical expression!

It’s very enjoyable for me to read books on math and its development. I own books on the history of the number zero, the history of pi, the biographies of great mathematicians, and other books exploring the beauty inside the world of math. In addition, I do occasionally dust off my old math textbooks and read select sections and/or work through some example problems … you know, just for fun and to stay sharp.

Q15: Are you a keen observer?

It is always startling to first see something that’s been around me for an extended period of time and I’ve never noticed it. I feel like somewhat of a failure if I neglect to notice things. I’m the kind of guy that will notice the color of your socks, cobwebs in the corner of your room, water spots on your glassware, and paint marks on your ceiling (inside joke).

Observing human behavior has always been somewhat of an offshoot of my curious nature. I watch people, from the way they walk and talk, to the way they make decisions and the results of those decisions. As I psychoanalyze everyone, I also try to observe my own bias involved in interpreting what I see. When I wish to express and idea or feeling, there’s the idea I wish to express, the way in which I express it, and the way it is received. All three of these are different and the meaning is modified by each person’s own bias and way of interpretation.  

Q14: Do you have an excellent sense of humor?

People tell me that I have a great sense of humor. My humor is often dry and can sometimes be borderline inappropriate. I enjoy being the guy who says what everyone else is thinking but is too polite to say. For me, making someone laugh provides me with the greatest sense of satisfaction. Laughter does good like a medicine. Does that make me a doctor – in a way, yes!

To illustrate the satisfaction I find through humor, I’ll share a story of a funeral. I handle grief in an awkward way. It is hard for me to know what to say when someone suffers a loss. As a result, I either don’t say anything, or make jokes in an attempt to lighten their mood. A dear friend of mine had lost an uncle that she was close to and was taking it pretty hard. At the viewing, I noticed that the mortician had done an atrocious job of applying makeup to the deceased. After making fun of the way he looked and cracking jokes about the context of the situation, my friend was rolling with laughter. She thanked me later for making her laugh. This is one event where I found humor to be highly gratifying.

Why did the little boy drop his ice cream cone? Because he got hit by a bus. Welcome to the anti-joke. A joke that takes an unexpected, usually twisted turn. I love them.

I love to make others laugh!

Q13: Do you have persistent curiosity?

If curiosity killed the cat, it’s death by a thousand curious cuts for me. I have an insatiable appetite to understand things. If I hear a word that I like, but don’t understand the definition or proper usage, I Google it. As an example, when I wrote the first sentence above, I wondered if there was a medical term for “death by a thousand cuts” and so I searched the internet for it. There is not. The act of searching did in fact lead me to read about some other topics related only by keywords.

This curiosity drives me to read, to be observant, and to experience things. I want to know about everything. I want to understand the world, people, and myself. I want to know how things work on a macroscopic and microscopic level. I want to ride a camel through the Sahara desert, drink vodka (which I hate) in Russia, and dance Tango in Argentina. Before I do, I want to understand the history, climate, and biology of the desert. I want to understand the history of Vodka in Russia, how it’s made, and the local customs. I want to be an expert Tango dancer and understand the origins of the dance and the Argentine culture.

When first hearing that perhaps I was gifted, I spent hours on the internet and at the bookstore trying to read anything I could get my hands on about it. I want to understand it. I’m very curious about people. I want to understand their thinking, their personality, and what makes them who they are. It is enjoyable to watch people and observe how they behave. I have a very strong interest in psychology and psychoanalysis. I want to know …

Q12: Are you deeply compassionate?

As a child, I remember reading a comic book illustrating the true story of Smokey the Bear. The same Smokey who would become the iconic forest fire prevention mascot. Reading the story of how a this bear cub was rescued and his burnt paws bandaged moved me in a deep way.

Webster’s Dictionary defines compassion as “Deep awareness of the suffering of another coupled with the wish to relieve it.” This is an accurate descriptor of my personality. I believe that I’ve always had an ability to “feel” the pain and misfortune of others – friend or stranger. If I observe a way to relieve the discomfort of another person, I can usually inconvenience myself to a great degree to help them. Passing homeless people on the street, my imagination generally places me in their shoes. I imagine the experiences that have brought me to this point, the hopelessness I feel, and the attitude toward life that I would have.

As a human being prone to failure without even trying to fail, I’m deeply troubled when I think of situations in which I lacked compassion toward others. I want to make the lives of the people around me more fulfilling and more meaningful – I must show greater compassion to both the stranger and my friend.

Q11: Do you have a good long-term memory?

My ability to remember events and details long-term is most readily apparent in the areas of the logical and the sensual. If something is intuitive and I can see how it fits into the big picture, I can easily remember it. If an event makes an impact on me in any way, I can remember sensual things, e.g. what I see, hear, feel, or even smell. I believe my memory to be average when it pertains to things that I feel are unimportant or uninspiring.

When I find myself in a meaningful moment, I automatically take in my total environment. I remember small details of where I am, the setting, smells, impressions, feelings, and even to some extent what people are wearing. It’s almost as if I take a mental snapshot of the moment for posterity. I especially remember words spoken. I recently reestablished contact with some childhood friends. It shocked me to hear that they didn’t remember ever having met me, although I remembered specific events where we spent time together.

From childhood to college, I never saw the importance in keeping a day planner. I’ve unsuccessfully tried on multiple occasions to organize my time by writing tasks, dates, and times down. This has always seemed like a waste of time for me because I never refer to it, because for the most part, I remember important information.

Q10: Do you set high standards for yourself?

I am my own worst critic and I tend to be very hard on myself. I’m absolutely terrified of being mediocre in any aspect of my life. In fact, I've prayed a very sincere prayer before that if I’m stuck on a path that will lead me to a mediocre existence, God please be merciful and let me die – I can’t accept being mediocre. I’m very fervent in my desire to positively impact the lives of those around me. It is important that I leave the people around me enriched, happier, and better than they were before they knew me. I feel an intense desire to add value to their lives and to leave my fingerprints on their hearts and minds. A short discussion of my personal high standards for relationships, career, and general knowledge “knowing” is to follow.

Relationships:

One of the most important character traits to me is loyalty. I constantly seek to demonstrate loyalty in my relationships. Sometimes I fail, at least by my own tough standards, but I wish to be known and remembered as “fiercely loyal”. At the time of this writing, I’m reading a wonderful book by Erich Fromm called “The Art of Loving”. This book discusses the basic need for completeness in humanity and the turmoil found in our default state of separateness. The book discusses the fact that love is a decision and something that requires hard work and dedication. To quote, “Giving is more joyous than receiving, not because it’s a deprivation, but because in the act of giving lies the expression of my aliveness.” “The essence of love is to ‘labor’ for something and to ‘make something grow’. True love requires care, responsibility, and knowledge.” Care means to be concerned about the welfare of the loved one. Responsibility does not take the modern definition of “duty”, but rather a “responsiveness” to the person’s needs. This type of responsibility can be overwhelming or dominant if it weren’t for respect. This respect accepts the person as they are and not as I would like them to be. It sees the beauty in things the way they are and demonstrates patience. Without respect, it is impossible to adequately glean knowledge. This [knowledge] is the continuing unfolding of the person that helps you to understand them and appreciate them. Without these things; care, responsibility, respect, and knowledge, true love cannot blossom. This sums up the high standard that I hold myself to and epitomizes my relationships with those I care about.

Also related to my propensity to set high standards for myself in regards to relationships is in social media. For some reason, people seem to engage regularly with me using social media platforms. I assume that it’s because I always try to post content that is funny, educational, or interesting in some manner. I feel a very strong sense of responsibility to reciprocate that interaction. If it’s by responding to a comment or exchanging “Likes”, I feel that this drives further engagement by creating a comfortable environment in which to interact.

Career:

Sometimes, if I get bored with the repetition and drudgery of my job, I find myself turning in sloppy work. Most of the time, the work is adequate to get the job completed with no problems, but this is a constant struggle with me. It is very unfulfilling to do sloppy work, even if no one else notices it – I do. I’m always looking for new challenges in my career, and something new to learn that enhances knowledge of my art.

General Knowledge:

If someone asks me a question about a general subject, it is important to me to at least be able to conduct an intelligent conversation on the topic. If I’m unable to follow or contribute to the discussion, at my earliest convenience, I nearly always do extensive research to inform myself. This drive helps force me to try to know a little bit about everything. While I’m certainly not a “know-it-all”, I at least like to be able to think about it and to offer an informed opinion.

Q9: Do you enjoy paradoxes?

I've always been intrigued by the apparent paradox of the dual nature of light. Behaving as both a particle and a wave, the behavior of light is a very interesting phenomenon. I remember first reading about Einstein and his Theory of Relativity as a young boy and being fascinated by it. Although I didn't completely understand it (as if I do now), there was still something about it that was completely mesmerizing.

Another example of a paradox that has made an impression on me pertains to the fifth dimension. The essence of the fifth dimension is that it smaller than an atom, yet all of the universe fits inside of it.

A paradox that exists as a play on words, or contains faulty logic, is annoying and a waste of energy for me. There are too many beautiful paradoxes to spark our imaginations and open unexplored worlds to our minds.

Q8: Do you often connect seemingly unrelated ideas?

No specific examples come to mind, but this sounds like something that describes me – it just feels right. I thought that if I just began to write about it, perhaps it would come through in this writing. Maybe this gift is something that comes through natural discourse and can’t be forced. Nothing yet … maybe I need to think about it.

I’ve lost interest. It does describe me. Moving on now … I leave you with a poem I found.

I’ve begun my voyage in a paper boat without a bottom;

I will fly to the moon in it.

I have been folded along a crease in time,

a weakness in the sheet of life.

Now, you’ve settled on the opposite side of the paper to me;

I can see your traces in the ink that soaks through the fibre,

the pulped vegetation.

When we become waterlogged, and the cage disintegrates,

we will intermingle.

When this paper aeroplane leaves the cliff edge,

and carves parallel vapour trails in the dark,

we will come together.

I am the aerial.

In my passing,

I will send news to each and every star.

Q7: Do you enjoy doing jigsaw puzzles?

This question was answered by me with a “yes”, but it’s much worse than that. I enjoy 3-D jigsaw puzzles. My interest in architecture and building construction has been the gateway for me to amass an extensive collection of famous landmark skyscrapers, bridges, and other notable structures. When I first open the box, I separate the pieces by similarity, creating somewhat of a construction stockyard/staging area. I’ve found that these puzzles can receive intense concentration, as I can work on them until my eyes are almost literally unable to stay open and the pieces all begin to look the same.