Reddit mentions of Meditations

Meditations - Marcus Aurelius

I also want to talk about your definition of "made it in life." To me, that sounds like you probably mean "rich and/or famous", which I don't think is a sound yardstick by which to measure yourself. I'm pretty successful by the traditional yardstick - I've got a good job and a good house. But I don't really care about that stuff, it just enables me to do what I want to do - to be successful at what I care about. Which is my relationship, my dog (3 months old, woo! A dream 8 years in the making), and woodworking.

You're invested in Psychology, which is an amazing field with so many interesting twists and turns! I've loved books like 'Thinking: Fast and Slow', and it seems like a fantastic field! But you're probably not going into Psychology with an aim to make money - you're probably doing it because it interests you, and you love the idea of being a Psychologist. That's your success measure, not anything extrinsic.

On that note - before I went to University I wanted nothing more than a Ph.D in Physics, and to become an academic. For me, that didn't work out - I started again after finishing my second year in Physics, and started again in Computer Science. I then went on to start a career as a Software Engineer type person. At the time, I thought myself a massive failure for not managing to achieve my dream - but I'm happy now, and I've got no regrets. It didn't take long to get that way either. Remember your yardstick can change, as long as it stays yours.


I'd thoroughly recommend reading "The Subtle Art of Not Giving A Fuck"
It taught me how to care passionately about specific things, and see those goals as successes. And to tune out the rest of it.

I also absolutely loved "Meditations" by Marcus Aurelious which talks about our place in the world, and our duty to it.