[Serious Question] What is something that you think everyone should know

Wear a rubber...

 

90% of people spend 90% of their lives under the control of various determinisms - cultural, biological, ideological, social, and linguistic. Biology tends to operate in the sneakiest manner. It fools you into thinking that the part of your brain you identify with - your "I" - makes your decisions. "I" makes very few decisions, and often simply witnesses the decision occurring (from some other motive force that, most likely, you are almost completely unaware of) and then, through the illusion of having a self, posits itself as the decider.

You owe it to yourself (who you have not yet truly become) to set up a watcher in your brain, to really evaluate what happens in there, and to give up the illusion that "I" has the control. By doing so, you can make a real self, and maybe even reclaim some sort of control over those internalized dialogues (that were invented by someone else), those impulses and drives (that have evolved to be silent and powerful over tens of thousands of years), and those desires to meld with the herd (and their constant search for signs of your "rank").

Reading will help you with this (you're letting someone else think with your brain - it allows you to experience things, situations, feelings that, otherwise, you'd never experience). And, possibly most important, you must remain curious and attentive. If you spend most of your days just going through the motions, settling into routines, and allowing yourself to be pushed, prodded, and cajoled by the words and drives and ideologies that have been imposed on you ... then you have to ask "Is there really a me here?"

If you start doing this, you'll find that you understand other people to a much greater degree, and that will help you to become more human.

But none of this is easy. You came pre-programmed to do certain things at certain times, and this programming doesn't give a **** how you feel about the program. Additionally, you have been shaped by the cultural/social/linguistic programs that have been imposed on you by more powerful forces than yourself. You have been required to desire particular symbols/messages, to judge things according to standards that you neither consented to nor created, to communicate and behave in particular fashions in particular contexts. You have been co-opted by so many things that you can no longer really claim to own yourself.

To become fully human, you must do your best to find your way past those things.

“The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself.” – Friedrich Nietzsche

 

What Hitler felt deeply to be true to himself were his insecurities and inadequacies which he masked with hatred... Hitler wouldn't even comprehend the depth of that advice...

 

Talk about an often dangerously misinterpreted man.....

 

The far left lane is for PASSING ONLY!!! YAAARGH!!!!

 

This.

 

Off the top of my head....

• If you haven't raised children, that's okay... but you should realize that you don't know s*** about parenting and should STFU.
  
  
• It is EXTREMELY important to maintain good physical condition (and, no, I'm not a health nut).
  
  
• Think of your early 20's as a small window in your life when you can choose to live anywhere you want. Try living in different places in the country/world and find a place you like. Later in life it will be MUCH more difficult to move around.
  
  
• Overall, college is a terrible scam... but you have much better odds of establishing a high-paying career if you finish college at a young age (especially if you get a masters degree).
  
  
• Knowledge is not power. Knowledge is potential.
  Application of knowledge is power.
  Knowledge without application is useless.
  Application without knowledge is fruitless.

 

This speech is tailored to your nice advice.

http://theamericanscholar.org/solitude-and-leadership/

I want to consider myself a leader though. For the longest time I didn't, but now I feel like I can make an impact mentoring people below me, so I want to stretch myself and do my best.

 

religion offers a very narrow worldview - youre better off without it. do your homework before you give your time or money to a religious organization.

 

When someone asks you if you're a god, you say YES.

 

Everyone you have or ever will meet will leave you. Appreciate the time they are there, remember them fondly but don't struggle to hold them against their will.

Time seems to pass faster the older you get use this to your advantage by involving yourself in the two areas where this time helps you education and investments.

The concept of compound interest.

You don't choose your family so don't feel obligated to bail them out.

 

I sometimes pass on the right. Is this frowned upon? Or illegal? I don't know much about rules driving in the USA.