The Good Life Starts in the Mind
Like many others in this project, Greg attributed the Good Life to starting in the mind. According to him, the Good Life begins with our mental efforts to enjoy what we have and our efforts to appreciate life in new ways.
Greg admitted that he did not like the phrase “life-long learning” because he feels it is too commonly used. However, he noted that keeping his mind active and experiencing new things has attributed to his success in his career and his overall satisfaction with life. Greg feels that many others in our society miss out on the Good Life because they get their degree or find a steady job, and they cease to have the motivation to keep learning. Greg implied that the Good Life is more readily found by constantly using our minds to discover new ways in which we can experience things such as beauty and truth.
A Dream Home
Despite how great his current life is, Greg admitted that his picture of the Good Life is not solely tied to living an exciting and balanced life in San Francisco. He admitted that his dream for the future is to build a home at Sea Ranch, a seaside community in Northern California known for its interesting architecture. Greg envisions learning more about architecture so he can help in the creation of a “writer’s cabin” where he can have a peaceful sanctuary to pursue his passion of learning new things and finding ways to change the world.
The Proper Perspective
I was intrigued by Greg’s mention of wanting to build a small cabin. My father too had a dream of building a log cabin on a small piece of land that our family owned in the Appalachian Mountains. Even though my dad had the money and could have retired at any point to pursue this dream, he never did. He allowed the pressures of his business and confusion in his personal life to cause him to commit suicide and never pursue something that was a part of his Good Life.
After having noteworthy positions with some of the world’s top corporations, Greg knows how it easy it is for one’s work to dominate his or her life. In the competitive business world, he has seen many get caught in the mentality that one must work harder and go to any length to ensure business success. However, Greg has learned that those who are living the Good Life are those who know how to put life in proper perspective.
One way Greg maintains a proper perspective in life is by taking the time to walk as much as he can in San Francisco. For his meetings and appointments, Greg tries to walk to them in order to be open to experience the vibrant activities of the city. On the night when I was speaking to him, he already walked ten miles that day. He showed me various pictures from his phone that he took from earlier, several of which were the security measures that assembled throughout the city for a fundraising speech delivered by the President.
In general, Greg implied that we should never get too wrapped up in our chores or daily routine that we forget to slow down to enjoy the beauty of life.
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