Megalithic Mind

What should have been obvious took me over 20 years to figure out.

Growing up I was captivated by the concept of a “Renaissance Man”. I’d always felt that I was interested in too many things and would eventually have to choose to leave some behind, to be overgrown and reclaimed by nature. When I first learned of this extraordinary group of people my worldview was changed.

It was proof that a person could pursue various interests and become great at each. I was drawn to the notion that it was possible to excel in the arts, sports, academics, and philosophy. I no longer had to be one thing. I could explore and master each in time.

Unfortunately, that’s not quite how it works.

As liberating as this notion was, there is a detrimental aspect as well. When you focus on everything, you specialize in nothing.

This ultimately results in having enough knowledge and skill to get by. Possibly enough to compete with others. But not enough to be undeniably great. Mastery eludes those who swim in the shallow end.

Over the past few years, I’ve come to realize that excelling in any given field or activity requires a particular focus on two pathways and how deliberate we are with each. One path inward and the other outward.

Converging the two pathways is key to mastering and developing a Megalithic Mind. Going inward, to discover what’s hidden beneath the surface. And venturing outward to retrieve and return with new megalithic blocks that will build upon the foundation we’ve excavated.

EXCAVATE

Starting from scratch is unnecessary. There is much to be discovered beneath the surface layer of our mental soil. Seeking out the internal catalysts for our default emotions and thought patterns can lead us to unearth the ancient structures we’ve constructed blindly in response to our environments and experiences.

Self-observation is difficult yet powerful all at once. When we view our thoughts and emotional reactions as automatic, we rob ourselves of the ability to control them.

Imagine you’re mind as a busy bustling street. You’re standing on the street corner watching hundreds of people speed around you in all different directions. You then realize each person flowing past you…..is you. Hundreds of identical copies of you. Some content, some upset, some smiling, some distraught etc etc.

As you watch them go by, you realize you have the power to stop them. Not only that, but you can speak to them. You can ask why they are angry, depressed, content, smiling, and so on.

By stopping them and asking WHY, you’ve now altered the direction they were headed in. This is exactly how we identify, correct, and control our thought patterns and emotional reactions. It’s a choice.

Understanding that we can control the traffic flow in our minds is half the battle. The other half is putting that control into consistent practice.

Once we’ve concluded that we decide how we feel and react to external inputs, we no longer place blame on the external world. Have you ever noticed yourself blaming “THEY” for everything?

• “THEY made me mad because X”
• “THEY did Y and it made me sad”
• “If THEY wouldn’t have done Z, I wouldn’t have reacted that way”

When you find yourself allowing “THEY” to control your inner world, it’s time to grab the shovel and start digging.

Blame is a breadcrumb. Follow the trail to the source and you will find a decision you have control over at the root.

When we start to blame external factors for the way we feel, react, or think, it’s a great indicator that we’re close to unearthing something about ourselves. It’s a sign to dig a little deeper. Removing the sand layer by layer begins by asking ourselves questions. And more importantly, answering them truthfully. For example, when we feel angry we should ask “Why?”.

• Why am I angry right now?
• Why do I always get angry in this type of situation?

This exercise, when practiced broadly across all emotions, will enable us to better understand ourselves.

However, there is one rule to implement. That rule is… when we answer the question “Why?”, we cannot point to anything external. The answer we arrive at must be something we can be accountable for and take action on. Period.

To descend to the next layer we must hold ourselves accountable and take responsibility for what we can control. Our thoughts, emotions, and reactions.

The Stoics taught that our initial emotions are involuntary and neither good nor bad, but neutral. However, the process that follows an initial emotion is one we can master. It’s dependent on how we decide to feel and react to any given situation.

“It’s not things that upset us, but our judgments about things.” — Epictetus

At the end of the day, it boils down to our internal and external habits. When we excavate, we’re seeking to uncover our mental habits that are on autopilot.

If we create a habit of searching for opportunities to understand why we feel and react in certain ways, we will start to prop up mental megalithic blocks that will restructure the framework of our minds. Building structures that will stand the test of time.

By improving emotional regulation and adjusting our mental habits to hold ourselves responsible for the things we can control, we will begin to uncover the strong foundation within.

As we work to excavate internally and expose blank space on the stone walls of our megalithic minds, we can begin to chisel into the surface and decorate our minds with knowledge from the outside world.

CEREBRAL HIEROGLYPHS

External influences cannot control our inner world, but they can help guide us in the right direction. So long as we are mindful of what we allow to enter the gates.

Pretend your mind is a megalithic edifice. The inner stones are engraved with everything you consume from the external world. Every book, conversation, reality show, podcast, TikTok, YouTube, etc. It’s all there being etched into the stone in real-time.

Each moment you are determining what’s being carved into your brain. The inputs we allow entrance to our minds will determine the outputs we habitually create.

The attention we assign to what we consume mentally the majority of the time is critical.

When aiming to build a megalithic mind, we must inscribe our inner walls with useful knowledge. To propel us forward, better ourselves, and influence higher quality outputs which will lead to a more positive mental and intentional reality.

As the saying goes… garbage in, garbage out.

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” — Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy

If you were to take a step back and read through the hieroglyphs you’ve carved into your mind over the past week, what might they say? What percentage would be useful knowledge that you could leverage to inch closer to the things you want to accomplish in your life? And how much would be dopamine-stained uselessness?

Imagine that for every productive action you take, you set a new stone in place making your mind more strong and resilient. This will look different for each individual but some examples could be: finding time to read, going to the gym, taking time to study a subject you’re interested in pursuing, practicing an instrument, learning something completely new, and so on… forever. The idea is to never stop learning. Don’t allow yourself to become a drone day in and day out.

Our aggregated actions are the evidence of our true identity. Think about what habits you could change or implement today to start dragging stones from the quarry and begin building a megalithic mind.

Does this mean every single minute needs to be productive?

No. Leave time for bullshit. Schedule it if you have to. Not every moment needs to be knowledge-focused and based on productivity. Just the majority of them.

Be sure to give your brain a rest and enjoy time to be truly careless. You’ll return to your productive time more refreshed and focused for it.

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