Something to Keep
“Be willing to fail or succeed on who you really are. Don’t ever try to be anything else.”
Glenn Beck
A Second Look
I’ve always been interested in the topic of authenticity. The idea of being yourself is cliché, probably because it’s true. It’s not just that you should be yourself, but also that you should live according to your values, which, of course, is extremely important. It’s also that you should be yourself because pretending to be anyone else is exhausting.
Being authentic (which means aligning your outer behavior to your inner values) reduces stress and attracts genuine relationships. This is how you find purpose, build respect, and create a life that’s your own. So much of self-development often tells you to do grand gestures, but authenticity is something as simple as telling that joke, even if most people around you don’t laugh. The inner voice might tell you that the answer is to please others, but this is one of those rare moments where you should please yourself.
I wrote thousands of words about authenticity in this essay, so I won’t repeat myself. If anything, the quote above is just a reminder of what’s important.
Something I Liked
I recently read The Oral History of Guitar Hero on Vice, an amazing article on how the Guitar Hero franchise changed the gaming landscape and influenced culture. I’m not into games as much as I used to when I was younger, but whenever I come across an oral history article, I have to read it. Other than that article from Vice, I also highly recommend the website Design Room, run by former Polygon writer Matt Leone. His recently-launched site revolves around video game oral histories as well, which he publishes relatively often. His latest piece is about a first-person running game called Mirror’s Edge.