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Sloww Sunday Newsletter 117 (Sep 18, 2022) — Giving Away Wealth, Meaning of Death, Plato’s Cave, & More
Happy Sunday!
Here’s the latest from Sloww along with the most interesting things I discovered last week. Here’s the latest from Sloww along with the most interesting things I discovered last week. If you enjoy this issue, please forward the email version it to some friends and family. 🙏
🌎 Lighter Living
Giving Away Your Wealth
The world needs more examples of people who were born or became wealthy but did not follow the normal path of excessive consumption—or did and course-corrected after learning the hard way that it doesn’t lead to happiness, meaning, and fulfillment.
You may have seen in the news this week that Patagonia founder and billionaire Yvon Chouinard (along with his wife and two kids) irrevocably transferred Patagonia company ownership to a trust and nonprofit that will support climate change.
“Hopefully this will influence a new form of capitalism … We’re going to give away the maximum amount of money to people who are actively working on saving this planet.” — Yvon Chouinard
Another example I featured in 🔒Sloww Sunday #72 was John Robbins who walked away from his family’s billion-dollar ice cream business, Baskin-Robbins. Once he realized the health implications of ice cream consumption, he realized he didn’t want to be the heir to the business or access to the fortune (and he never took any money). Instead, he dedicated his life to helping people live healthier lives.
“I went from being the heir to a colossal fortune to living very simply … I felt more emotionally secure and spiritually secure when I did because now I was living a more authentic life. I wanted to contribute with my energy and my gifts and my service.” — John Robbins
In 🔒Sloww Sunday #67, I featured Chuck Feeney, the “James Bond of Philanthropy,” who pioneered the idea of Giving While Living. Over the last 40 years, he has donated more than $8 billion to charities, universities, and foundations worldwide. He estimates that he’s only kept about $2 million for him and his wife. In other words, he’s given away 375,000% more money than his current net worth!
“It’s a lot more fun to give while you live than give while you’re dead.” — Chuck Feeney
On the flip side, this week I also revisited a bunch of intentional living websites I first discovered 7 years ago. It was strange to see that most of them haven’t evolved at all. It was even stranger to see that a bunch of them now run banner ads on their sites! Don’t you love reading a blog post about how to buy less while simultaneously being sold more?😂 As a public commitment: You will never ever see banner ads on Sloww.
Pair with:
- Money Mind Manifesto: Master Your Mind from the Mental Disease of More Money
- 18 Wealth Lessons from “The Psychology of Money” by Morgan Housel (Book Summary)
- 9 Money Rules for Living before Dying: “Die With Zero” by Bill Perkins (Book Summary)
🧭 Higher Purpose
The Meaning of Life (& Death)
There’s no perfect time to think about death. So, how about now?
- 15 Deep Insights about Death to Understand the Meaning of Life & Live Fully Alive
- 🔒 Stream of Consciousness: Is Death the Best Invention of Life?
🧠 Mental Wealth
Getting started with Mental Models
15 mins | Sloww
What are mental models? This post defines “mental model” and gives you a list of the top examples for better thinking curated from all the major mental model books.
For a full list of 90+ mental models (across core thinking, science, physics, chemistry, biology, math, probability/statistics, engineering, and economics) check out Mini Mind: 365 daily emails of bite-size brain food.
☯️ Timeless Wisdom
New Anthony de Mello Community
This was a fun surprise I stumbled across this week. The De Mello Spirituality Center launched a new online community (free to join):
“The Anthony De Mello Community is a place where we can come to help one another remember and enliven the very essence of what we are, going beyond the false ideas society stamped into us about who we should be, what we should want, and how the world should be. This platform extends opportunities to strengthen in one another a powerful vision for life, one that is clear, unclouded by fear and free of attachments and addictions. The platform facilitates a ceaseless awareness of all the good that is in us and surrounds us, together with a growing understanding of what blocks the experience of it.”
🤯 Mind Expanding
Inspiration to explore Plato’s Cave
Here’s a Twitter thread I published with 15+ quotes about Plato’s cave.
“Those who are able to see beyond the shadows and lies of their culture will never be understood, let alone believed, by the masses.” — Attributed to Plato (most likely paraphrased)
🆕 OK, one final post on free will. I didn’t realize this post was necessary until I recently had several conversations with people who aren’t on board with the lottery of birth or lack of free will realizations—much less how to live with them once you are on board. This new Premium post sheds some light on how I personally think about and live with these realizations:
🔒 Behind the Scenes: How I Live with the Lottery of Birth & Lack of Free Will
Sharing: If you enjoyed this issue, please help grow Sloww by forwarding the email version of this issue to some friends and family. It’s free for them to subscribe here.
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Feedback: Have something you want to say, or just want to say hi? It’s always greatly appreciated. Just send me an email or reach out socially.
Have an alive week!
Kyle Kowalski
Founder, Sloww
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