/SIG/ - Self Improvement General

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This definitely is not the right solution for everyone, but I finally let go of hope and chose to embrace suffering, and it's such a feeling of freedom that I never knew was possible.
False hope is such a shitty prison, because for some of us things won't get better, but we can find comfort in being uncomfortable.

The whole thing is hard to explain, but it's quite an epiphany for me.

You might be Buddhist. Buddhists realize that life IS suffering, like the OP pic says life is struggle, and that the beauty of life is being able to be happy despite your sufferings, thusly alleviating it, (at least by some modicum). I'd look into mindfulness meditation.

That's interesting, I'll definitely check it out.
Any particular books or videos or whatever you'd recommend ? Buddhism or meditation

I don't personally have very much source material to give you, maybe just alan watts lectures/talks on youtube (that's what I always listen to when I need to clear my mind) or the book "The Art of Communicating" by Thich Nhat Hanh (he's a pretty famous buddhist guy). Maybe if you end up being interested in the lore and mythology read the tibetan book of the dead or any of the scriptures. I've heard the book Siddartha (sp?) is good, I think it covers the Buddha's life, but I could be wrong.

Mostly Buddhism deals with asceticism, so living simply and humbly, and trying to relieve the suffering of other and yourself, while still accepting things for how they are.

Oh! As for meditation videos there are tons of guides online, differing methodologies and styles. Yoga can be meditation. Sitting in cross legged position with your hand in a mudra/hand position is another. Chanting or humming is another. Some say dancing can be meditation, known as movement meditation (you can definitely get into a trance with dancing). Some would even go as far as to say you can meditate doing anything, for any amount of time big or small, even just a moment, just by truly noticing the way the world is, trying to take it all in, their breath, the sounds the world is making, etc.

What's a good book to be more charming and engaging when talking to people? I'm not autistic but you can always improve.

Day 3 of NoFap. It's pretty easy so far but I haven't noticed any of the benefits that people talk about yet (mental clarity, calmness, etc.). Gonna keep at it for the rest of the month and see what happens.

Thank you very much!

My mind is always completely blank, Ive never seen an image in my mind or heard a voice.
Ive got horrible memory, im not creative at all, coordination is very hard for me and I cant express myself very well.
What can I do to fix my broken head and make some brain gains?

How to become more eloquent?

Read Julius Evola, The Doctrine of Awakening specifically, a lot of people will say it's a meme but he has a really good perspective on it as a westerner.

In speaking? Try reading aloud from a book every day. I did this for a long time in elementary school to fix a slight stutter I had. It improved my vocabulary as well.
Try to read something you have trouble understanding, don't feel ashamed to look up the definitions of words you don't know.

>How did you improve this week
Met with an ex for coffee and had no latent feelings for her. Finally over it, to the point where I can see her and it doesn't phase me.
>How will you improve
Looking to better things even more with my current prospective girlfriend. Have a nice dinner planned and I don't imagine it going poorly.
>Daily hobbies/activities
I've got a schedule down.
>5:30 wake up practice piano/violin (alternate days)
>6:00 lift weights
>7:00 run
>7:30 meditate
>8:00 School
>3:00 Finish as much work stuff as possible (freelance graphic design, not time consuming)
>5:00 Eat meal for the day
>7:00 Study
>9:00 Read
>10:00 Bed

Man you got it down. Good for you dude, that's a rigorous but productive schedule. What are you reading right now?

Not gonna lie, my dudes. Been a rough week.

Completely bombed my Math midterm last night. Like, "staring down the barrel of a zero" bombed it. The big pissoff is, it wasn't really the material from the course that I fucked up on. I made one small mistake involving differentiation and spent a third of my allotted time on the third goddamn question (out of 20).
Then today I found out the hard way that I completely forgot to hand in an assignment online about two weeks ago for another course.

Silver Lining starting to shine through, though:
• The prof accepted that two-week-late paper without docking marks for it
• Day 3 of No-Fap. Have tried it off-and-on a few times over the years. I suspect myself to be a sex addict to some degree, so I find it a good exercise in discipline. Fooled around with the fiancée a little this morning, after waking up from a very vivid wet dream, so that was cash.
• The course I shit the bed in isn't a requisite at this point in my degree; I was taking it ahead of other students in my year. So if I drop it now and try again in a later semester, I won't be set back much.

I'm surviving. Money's starting to get hella tight, but destitution is part-and-parcel of the University Experience™ ain't it?

You eat once a day?
Nevertheless great job, keep at it

you never put the sticky up ever

Write shit down.
Get a notebook, carry it with you everywhere, and start writing shit down as it comes to your head.

not him, but >what is IF

Are you some kind of ultrahightest Megachad or how come you already are pent up enough to have wet dreams after 3 days?

Dude I have no fucking clue. I'm not even fit at this point in my life (5'10", 200lb, ~22%bf). Maybe it's related to the fact that my sex life has gone down the shitter in the past couple years, when at the start of this relationship we were fucking multiple times a week.
I got used to that really quickly and hoped it would never end, and now here I am keeping a record of all the times I've had sex this year (I think I'm at 11 sessions since January 1st).

been meditating for three days now. I just ended my 4 day streak of no fap. Ive been doing small work outs for three or four days. I'm thinking about giving up already though. I dont know how to get rid of this mindset. I felt great until i busted my load to porn. Wtf was i thinking.

I'm reading The Black Notebooks by Heidegger right now (inb4 pretentious) they're a lot more simply written than his other works and weren't discovered until 2011. I would recommend anyone interested in any sort of philosophy pick it up, only cost me about $20.
Yeah IF because it's convenient, I eat about 3200 calories in a 2 hour span, it's certainly not for everyone.

This is good advice for everyone. Buy a cheap notepad at least and jot down the things that come to mind.

I've heard it is. I tried to follow it myself, but I carry so much shit in my pockets already on the day-to-day that my notebook started to fall apart without anything in it.

Keep at it and force yourself to record something. Even if it's something little. A bird you saw that day, a passing car. Just write it down, it's very fulfilling when you get into it.

Seeing as I'm the dude behind and I might try that.
I could use some sense of fulfillment in my life.

Very mixed
I’ve been studying for finals with better focus and concentration than I’ve ever had before. Haven’t fapped in a while, just sex. Been going to the gym and usually eating well. Organised a study exchange to Canada(I’m Australian)
But I’ve also been drinking every night and doing a fair few drugs

I think you have the potential to make something of yourself.
Either reach for it or flounder, it really doesn't matter to me at the end of the day.
Make up for your past failures or crash and burn, that's not to put pressure on you, (although it surely will), just do what you intended to do when you enrolled in Uni, get a degree. Work hard and do what it takes.

You might have aphantasia

I'm trying, man. And your honest indifference is somehow encouraging, so thank you.

As indifferent as I am it brings me some happiness to see other anons succeed.
Push for it, if you don't I'll find you and punish your boipucci.

How to win friends and influence people - Dale Carnegie

Finally started working towards my NASM cert, worked out an agreement to lease my plane, and started doing kettlebell work for cardio.

oh.

Is this the U of A location?

Good you're doing NoFap
Sounds like a real problem for you
Probably this would make things better in your realationship, too
Speak with her about the things bothering you and if she loves you she'll help you and motivate you

Better get liftan, I've got a big dong.

I honestly don't no. Pulled the image from a motivation thread here on Veeky Forums

If you're asking about UofA though, I gotta ask; you a fellow 'Bertan?

How do I stop cheating myself and giving up?

Hire me to follow you around and punch your lights out when you do wrong. Either that or develop some discipline.

Well, I was NoFap-ing, and then sex started to decline, and then I couldn't hold out anymore.

A lot of it stems from us both falling out of shape after high school (we weigh roughly the same these days, but we're also really close in height), and then on her end she's also got some manner of anxiety disorder. A big motivation for me to get Veeky Forums is to inspire her to do the same tbqh

O H .

I have already read that book, any others?

Don't challenge me user, I'll take the dongpics ban to prove a point again.

>again
(((OH.)))

Why are you trying to sound intelligent to a bunch of virgins on Veeky Forums?

I wonder if desperate Norway guy an heroed?

Maybe it really is like that because you fell out of shape
Testosterone getting down and one can get very lazy und passive without sport
Once went through a phase like that
Don't worry user ... you're gonna make it too

Do you have any other images like this one? I kinda like the theme.

...

who else finds this "self-improvement" to be cringy as fuck?

Other than your post I don't see anything cringy. This is not the best SIG, but they all can't be.
You niggerfaggot.

fuck off

Been clean of porn for almost three weeks now and I've been reading Notes From Underground. Got rid of bread and alcohol, haven't had a single drop of beer in over a month.

>Peterson
>centrist
Isn't he a classical libertarian?

Christians are too,at least they were supposed to be.That's what "Bear your cross"means.The cross was at that time a simbol of suffering.

I doubt it, he talks a lot about the center and how that's in his opinion the best place to be.

>parents immigrate to America
>can't manage school and work
>can't let them down for their sacrifice
>fighting constant urge to suicide by punishing myself with working out

Stick to it. I'm on my third day as well. Hate the idea of being desensitized around a lady. Am starting to be more productive.

You have to create something to replace the reward system. This is an important thing to know. If you've been doing it since your teen years, it's probably habitually wired in your brain, like a drug. If you don't mind it, you're just reupping your burnt out dopamine which might make you want to fap. Go face your reflection, tell yourself why you're doing it, and maybe run some cold water on yourself to chill. You may also experience what some call a "flatline," where your libido dies down while it readjusts. You might be a bit sad/tired/irritable during this frame of time, but it'll reset and you'll start to get horny again. Don't fall for that either, after those few weeks it'll be easier to break the habit. That's why it helps to have a hobby to go to, and commit to it. And after every accomplishment, take time to bask in it, and congratulate yourself verbally, or reward yourself with something minor. Even something like "do 1 dish now so my reward is a clean dish I can use" is an abstract concept to many. Most people were never taught to do this.

I'd tell you to print this, or apply the lesson to some object you can go to when you feel the urge. Something concrete will help enforce the promise you're making yourself.

Peart, G. The Conversation Code: How to Upgrade Your Social Skills and Your Life

how do i make discipline in myself,i've never studied in my entire life and alway getting C or B for my marks

PLEASE HELP