Why I’m writing this post
Before we get to the juicy stuff let me start with a short intro to why I accepted to guest writing this. During one of Johannes and I’s typical WhatsApp convos he asked me whether I wanted to write a post… Being one who doesn’t post much anywhere, I left the message unanswered for a few hours hoping the next conversation topic would buzz in and save me from saying no. But… it didn’t. I went to my computer and as I do a little too often I opened my laptop and scrolled through Netflix. I clicked on a movie by Jonah Hill “Stutz” which was written in an eye-catching font and what followed led me to accept Johannes’ offer to write this post.
During Jonah Hill’s interview with his psychotherapist Phill Stutz they discuss and go through the mental tools Phill Stutz uses to help Hollywood’s biggest stars cope with fame, and success but still not feeling fulfilled. Without getting into the specifics of every single one (I will leave that part up to you if you choose to watch the movie) one specific model caught my attention and directly influenced me to write down my thoughts in this single moment while I type away at my computer.
The mental model – Life Forces
The model introduced during the interview was called the Pyramid of Life Forces. It consists of three layers with the base of the pyramid being the relationship to one’s own physical body, next one’s relationship to other people, and at the top of the pyramid one’s relationship to self.
Body (level one) is mostly (85%) related to diet, fitness, and sleep. Having recently picked up working out again I was really surprised as to how much it affected my mental well-being and it was funny to see this aspect presented in a mental model in this movie.
Level two, people, states that when people get depressed it's like a ship going away but relationships are like handholds that let you get pulled back into life. YOU have to take initiative (doesn’t matter who) to reach out and engage with others. Personally, this is something I have always enjoyed doing, and perhaps helped me understand my reasoning for enjoying it so much. It helps ground me in daily life.
Lastly in level three, yourself, you get a relationship to what is in your subconscious. No one knows what is in their self-consciousness unless they activate it. You might ask yourself how to activate it and the answer is by writing. Writing works like a mirror to what is going on in your mind. I personally never write unless it’s for a school assignment or work so I thought would give it a shot in this blog.
I could go on discussing this model and coming up with stories for each layer but I will leave it with this final remark from the movie:
“If you feel lost don’t try to figure it out. Let it go and work on your life forces first. Increase your life force to find out what you are passionate about BUT Step 1 is getting really passionate about connecting to your life force.”
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