How Brushing Your Teeth Can Make Your Day
Enjoying the Ordinary Moments
I looked off the stage and saw hundreds of people all facing me. I was the only one moving. I was walking across the stage to get my college diploma. I’d watched videos of this moment and seen it happen on TV dozens of times. I was ready to feel a big rush of energy! Ready for an unforgettable moment.
Today, I look back on my time in university and graduation never crosses my mind. I think of tying my shoes at club basketball practice. I think of when my roommate and I would eat in this one specific part of the cafeteria every day. I think of walking through the park and getting the path blocked by so many geese that I was late for my class. Pretty ordinary moments.
“Tiny delights over big bright lights”
- Shane Parrish
The Power of Ordinary Moments
Big moments are overrated and ordinary moments are underrated. This builds on a Stoic concept we learned about in Meditations by Marcus Aurelius.
The same way nothing can make us angry, nothing can make us happy. Only our judgements about a thing can make us angry or happy. And we can control our judgement of everything. How does that connect to ordinary moments?
By that logic, there is no difference between a big moment and an ordinary moment. Both moments are happening to us. We get to decide if they are big or small.
Think back to my story earlier, the big moment of graduation was awesome but it wasn’t deeply meaningful to me. To some friends graduating at the same time, it was deeply meaningful. Same experience. Different judgement.
Appreciating Ordinary Moments
I can’t think of a skill that guarantees happiness better than this - finding meaning in ordinary moments. If you can appreciate the ordinary moments that happen every day, how could you be unhappy.
When I first read Naval Ravikant, he spoke about enjoying the feeling of the toothbrush against your gums. I thought he was crazy. I tried it. It’s amazing. Taking two minutes to brush your teeth and think of just the pleasant sensation of the brush on your gums is so calming.
Look for meaning in the ordinary moments. Life is good. There’s so much to be grateful for when your eyes are open.
To take this a step further, Shane writes a lot about the power of ordinary moments in reaching your goals. Not only are small moments important for life satisfaction, but also for achieving the big moments… which, yes, is a bit paradoxical (why use small moments to make big moments if big moments don’t matter) and that’s a topic for another day.
Brains Gains
What does the toothbrush feel like against your gums? How do the bottoms of your feet feel as you hold up the weight of your body?
Look for the small moments today. Find pleasure in them. Be grateful for them.
Your Friend,
Noah “BigNerd” Sochaczevski
PS. Can’t wait to get started with Clear Thinking tomorrow. Also, here’s a reminder that we have our first live meeting on Sunday, December 3rd at 1pm. See you there!
PPS. A fun little video by Farnam Street Ordinary Moments 30sec Animated Video