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THE PAGE

By Jim Byrne, Doctor of Counselling, Hebden Bridge, HX& 8HJ, UK

Commenced on 24th December 2023

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Managing information overload and finding “true north” in a sandstorm of trivia

There are billions of web pages on the Internet. Most of them add nothing to the improvement of the human condition.

We do not need endless mounds of verbiage. We need clear guidance for the plotting of the happiest, healthiest and most peaceful and constructive journey through our brief lives. THE PAGE asserts (arrorgantly) that it will whittle those billions of web pages down to ONE! (Watch me go! Watch me try!)

We need to know how to filter the information overload, using a tested system of values:

The purpose of this page is to raise awareness, and to promote reflective thinking about the highest values of human life.

Psychology – Philosophy – Wisdom – Reflective listening – Dedication to reality – Guide to the Good Life – Human potential

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Opening statement – Saturday 24^th December 2023. 15.42 GMT

Different types of lives…

So here I am, in my mid-seventies. And, while many, many people are “down the pub”, or “flopping in a bar or café”, drinking booze, or getting stoned, or eating sugary foods for a quick carb high, I find myself sitting here contemplating this question:

Q1: What is the most important, or primary, principle of The Good Life?

What is the most important principle – or personal rule or guideline – for every child to learn, and every adult to use as their guiding light in their journey through this difficult life?

Of course, I am not deluded enough to think that many people will ever consider such a question to be worth their time and energy to consider.

The nature of human beings

After all, humans in general are largely non-conscious creatures of habit. They do not “think”. They have thoughts, like crows flying in and out of an open barn.  But they do not actively think.

Probably less than one percent of one percent of the world’s population ever stop to ask themselves: “Who am I? Where am I going? And is this the right direction for me to go?”

So why do I bother to type this page, with a few of my remaining minutes on this bizarre planet?

And, even worse, why do I propose to spend 30 minutes of my precious life, every day for the foreseeable future, adding to this page?

My ambition – my desire

Because I would like to think, to believe, that human beings are capable of evolving beyond our “naked ape” status; and to develop an interest in optimizing our human potential, as more conscious – (though we will never be anything like wholly conscious!) – thinking-feeling-acting beings, with the capacity to change course in life if we find our life is not working for us.

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So, there you are. That, above, is the opening statement – with questions – in this proposed page of reflective thinking.

Tomorrow, I will try to take the first step in answering the question:

Q1: What is the most important, or primary, principle of The Good Life?

What is the most important principle – or personal rule or guideline – for every child to learn, and every adult to use as their guiding light in their journey through this difficult life?

And I will do that by beginning to look at the philosophies of Confucius and Lao Tzu.

Best wishes for some thoughtful reflections by you.

Jim

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Page 2 of THE PAGE… Regarding Confucius and Lao Tzu…

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