3 Year Anniversary of the Weekly Wisdom Newsletter!

It’s the 3-year anniversary of the Weekly Wisdom Newsletter!

To celebrate this occasion, I’ve compiled a list of the top wisdoms from you, the readers! A big thank you to the people who shared your top wisdoms, as well as all the readers for supporting the newsletter. It’s been my honor to seek out and share wisdom with you these past years!

Without further ado, here are the top wisdoms from readers:

1. Seneca on ambition: “It is inevitable that life will be not just very short but very miserable for those who acquire by great toil what they must keep by greater toil.” (Newsletter #4)

2. Toothbrushing tip: After brushing your teeth, don't rinse rigorously with water. Instead, rinse with mouthwash or a little bit of water to retain more of the helpful fluoride on the teeth. (Newsletter #21)

3. The Four Tendencies: I wrote a summary of this personality framework here. Lots of people have told me this framework has been very useful for them. [Newsletter #27]

4. Peter Crone on freedom: In the subconscious mind, most people have feelings of being not wanted or not enough or not loved, which can result in energy-draining behavioral adaptations like being a perfectionist or a people-pleaser, which then creates a lot of stress and anxiety. Once we are aware of these unhelpful subconscious programming, their effect on us fades away, and in their absence, you feel a sense of peace. [Newsletter #66]

5. Esther Perel on relationship expectations: In the past, most of our needs were met by a small village composed of our family, extended communities, and religious institutions. In modern society, we ask one person to meet ALL our needs (e.g., belonging, support, security, finances, community, intimacy, being valued, being loved). That's a tall order! [Newsletter #91]

6. Rangan Chaterjee on social media detox: "I learned that shutting yourself off from the noise of the world can be wonderful...I learned how much extra time there is in the day when I don't mindlessly click on the apps...I will be more mindful of how much time I spend on social each day. I will go through the list of people I follow and make sure they are people who have values consistent with my own. I like following people with views that are different to mine but I don't follow people whose posts are full of hate and anger. If I don't protect my own digital world, no one else will do it for me." [Newsletter #98]

7. The 85% Rule: If you tell top athletes to run at their 85% capacity rather than 100%, they will run faster because performance requires a degree of relaxation and form. This rule can apply for mental performance too. [Newsletter #105]

8. Confucius on relationships: "The Way of Confucius is but Devotion and Consideration." In other words, be strict with yourself and lenient towards others. [Newsletter #150]

9. Shang-Chi’s lesson on relationships: People need cheerleaders not critics. If you want people to change, use positive encouragement rather than criticism. [Newsletter #151]

10. Seneca on desire and frugality: "No person has the power to have everything they want, but it is in their power not to want what they don’t have, and to cheerfully put to good use what they do have." [Newsletter #152]

Random Details

While we’re at it, I might as well share some interesting things that have happened to the newsletter over the past few years.

1: In Newsletter #27, I wrote, “To understand your personality better, you take can a free test here.” A friend replied me with this picture:

Take can 😉

2: I have never missed a week. But there was one week where I accidentally scheduled two wisdoms to be sent on the same day.😅

3: When I started the Weekly Wisdom Blog last year in honour of the 2-year anniversary, I originally wanted to put all the past newsletters on there. That never ended up happening because of time requirements. But for the past couple of months, I’ve been uploading new newsletters onto the blog. Better late than never!

4: After I made an unsubscribe link, I got an email saying someone wanted to unsubscribe. When I checked, this person wasn’t even on my mailing list. I then emailed the person and asked how she unsubscribed if she’s not on my mailing list. I never got a reply. 😳

5: A stranger in Vietnam joined my mailing list. I later met this person in a zoom workshop that I hosted! 😆

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That's all for this week's newsletter. Thanks again for your continued support! If you think someone else would find this newsletter useful, please encourage them to sign up here. Have a wise week ahead! 😄