If you’ve working in a logic based career, you’ve worked hard and became a master at learning things where the end benefit is clear. No matter how hard or complex, for you it’s just a matter of time. But you’re missing out on an entire other half of the world, with skills and knowledge. The dark side of knowledge. The mystery box.
There are powerful things out there that you simply can’t see the end benefit before starting down the road to learn. You have to follow your emotions, trust your gut, and persist a long time in the dark before you see the light at the end of the tunnel. I’m going to tell you what this dark knowledge can do for you, and how to learn it.
(THE LIGHT PATH) You’re probably already very familiar with how to learn things through logic. This is how we’re taught from elementary school to university, and we keep learning this way our whole lives. Very likely your career has you learning this way right now. It’s the way that can be taught from one person to another, even in big groups, so this makes sense.
This logical learning is great for building banks and bridges. And it’s really good at making you money to pay rent, and have a comfortable life. Physically.
It doesn’t do too much for your relationships, finding meaning in life, and simply enjoying being you.
The Dark Path
The dark knowledge that only you can teach to yourself, is the expert at giving you those types of comfort.
For most of my life I’ve worked in science and technology. After decades of logic work ranging from nuclear engineering to artificial intelligence, once I finally took the leap on a feeling I’ve always had but never could explain why I should act on it.
I’d been feeling I should do something with my voice. What an odd feeling to have right? I teamed up with a friend and started a podcast. From there I rapidly started encountering new things I was drawn to stronger and stronger. Things I never expected I’d be interested in. I got into videography, and then writing. It felt strange not being able to explain why I was doing this, what I was going to get out of it, but I kept going anyway, just trusting it would make sense someday.
Eventually I started noticing the listening skills I was building were making my relationships with other people better. Hanging out with the same friends was even more fun and meaningful than before. Studying camera angles for videography transferred over into being able to notice more beauty in the world and made every second of my life more enjoyable and happy. And it all got me started on a new path I’d never imagined: making videos like this for people, which fills me with a lot of meaning.
I stumbled on this by accident, and to a certain extend you will have to as well, but I can give you some tips to get you through this faster, and most importantly, get you started today, instead of decades later in life.
1 - Listen To Yourself
The first step that will start everything in motion is listen to your emotions. Really hear them. This itself is a huge lesson, with calming your mind and developing your connection to your body and emotions. We’ll get into that another day, but for now just take some quiet time, un-rushed, and try to listen.
The word emotion comes from the word motion. Motion takes time. Give yourself 2-3 minutes just sitting comfortably, looking out a window and think about what you care about. You’ll start noticing a lot more thoughts and feelings than when rushing constantly from one things to the next. Whenever you think of something new that feels curious, exciting or you’re just drawn to it, write it down. Some of these things you’ll see their end benefit, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Those are your familiar logic skills. You’re already a natural at learning those.
But some things, you won’t be able to see an end benefit to pursuing. You won’t be able to explain why you’re drawn to it. Congrats, you’ve found it, that’s your entrance to the mysterious path of dark knowledge.
2 - Brave First Step Into The Dark
The next step is the most important, because it’s the step most people never do: be brave, take a leap of faith and start taking action on that feeling. This could be starting art lessons, like I studied videography. Or it could be visiting a place you want to go, but can’t say what you’d do once you got there. Or reconnecting with an old friend. This will be very different and unique to you. It’s getting obvious why this can’t be taught in an classroom isn’t it?
At first this will feel very uncomfortable. For me it felt foolish and embarrassing. It could even feel scary. That feeling is the wall that the people who enjoy all the benefits of dark knowledge have learned to overcome. Don’t worry if you can’t explain it to others, or make it sound good. The path to dark knowledge has to be walked alone for a while, so it’s hard to share this part with others, and that’s fine. This is actually a sign you’re doing the right thing. Keep going.
3 - Follow The Trail
As you keep going, keep checking in with your emotions from time to time. As you get closer to your destination you’ll feel a stronger pull to the exact direction you need to go. This means your direction will change. These changes will also look embarrassing to your logic only friends. To them it will look like you’re aimless, starting and giving up on things, making mistakes. Don’t worry about that, it’s another sign you’re on the right track. Keep it up.
4 - Notice When You Arrive
The destination in your search for dark knowledge will be fuzzier than logic knowledge. It won’t smack you in the face, but you’ll start noticing you’ve started gaining benefits. You might find more joy in your life, or be meeting people you connect with better, or simply be more effective at your day job. You have to stop and pay attention to see that it’s happened. For example, if you developed your speaking skills, you will have a lot of improvement in your career and your personal life, but it’d be easy to miss what caused those improvements unless you’re paying attention. For me it was noticing that my friends started telling me deeper more meaningful things about themselves, and our conversations had become massively more interesting.
5 - Repeat For Life
From this new place you’re at, you’ll be able to feel a more precise pull to where you want to be, and pulled towards some new things as well. Just like in University, the things you just learned have unlocked your ability to learn some new things. You’ve successfully stepped foot into the shadowy 2nd world of knowledge. Repeat the process and keep learning more things that you could have easily gone through life missing.
Together, combining all the knowledge you can now learn from both the logic path and the dark path, you’ll become a formidable person. You’ll outcompete your peers, and most importantly, live a happier and more complete life.
This is a little abstract. The purpose of this
blog &
newsletter is to break down the specific examples of lessons, making them actionable in your life.
