completed september 16, 2017
https://selfauthoring.com/
Your Virtues (from big 5 personality traits)
1. Extraversion/Introversion
Can be the life of the party
Don’t mind being the center of attention
skilled in handling social situations
Can listen well
Do not dominate conversations
rarely or never too loud
Do not party or socialize excessively
Do not always talk about myself
comfortable alone
Enjoy time in natural surroundings
2. Openness/Traditionalism
full of ideas
Carry the conversation to a higher level
Have a rich vocabulary
philosophically inclined
a creative person
Have excellent ideas
always learning new things
entrepeneurial
Have a lot of insight into myself and others
stable in my moral beliefs
3. Conscientiousness/Carelessness
Strive for efficiency and economy
Love order and regularity
Pay attention to details
Have a relaxed, laid-back attitude
Can easily be spontaneous and enjoy the moment
Do not feel that I always have to be in control
Live in the moment
Never do more work than is necessary
not too uptight
Know how to go with the flow
4. Emotional Stability/Low Stress Tolerance
content with my physical appearance, despite its flaws
difficult to offend
not afraid of new people or social situations
relaxed most of the time
Make safety a top priority
Watch what I eat carefully
protective and careful with little children
My higher levels of anxiety have kept me safer than somepeople I know
Stay out of places that might have dangerous people in them
Stick to what I know and am comfortable with
5. Agreeable/Assertive
interested in people
Feel others’ emotions
not easily swayed by emotions that might be manipulative
good at seeing beneath the surface of false good intentions
sceptical
Can see when people are playing games
aware that malevolence exists in the world
Do not always believe what people promise
Do not trust people too easily
Can be demanding when the circumstances warrant
Virtues Analyses
(choose 6)
I. A Creative Person
Experience Due to the Positive Trait:
• I quit my job working in a record shop in the summer of 2006 and moved to England to pursue my music career. I didn’t have much experience performing so it was something I was eager to get into more and more. I was 23 at the time but had been writing songs since I was 15. But I had mostly played in bands and wasn’t really sure whether to be a solo artist or band leader. So I bought a simple 8 track recording machine and wrote a lot of songs at this time. I brought all my guitars over from Finland and also bought a new digital piano with some synth sounds. I would write lyrics and then find melodies and chords on guitar/piano. I would record them and add synths and background vocals. I put my work online to myspace which was the popular site at the time. I gathered some good feedback and built a little following. I met some interesting people such as June who would become the muse of my life. I inspired her to pursue her modelling career in the big city after she heard my song “Standing Still Might Kill You Inside”. It was an exciting time. I would take the train to some cities where I performed and met new people that way. I was still struggling with my emotions and drinking but I channeled it all into my songs. I watched a lot of movies and read books, magazines and listened to a lot of music. I was hungry to just immerse myself with inspiration. I practised my singing and instrument skills so I could play my songs. This time period really launched my life as a travelling singer/songwriter and enabled me to meet a lot of people and get into situations I would’ve never otherwise experienced had I never left to pursue my dream.
A Possible Alternative Outcome:
• I regret that I had no real understanding of business and how art is always about business as much as it is about the creative aspects. I also relied too much on social media and if I had built my own platform from the beginning, I would have kept all the followers (myspace just disintegrated). I also didn’t appreciate how important it was to connect with people and get them to support your art. This is all part of the creative process because it’s all about the energies that are coming in and going out. I didn’t know it mattered so I always deleted my stuff online and even myspace soon fell apart when Facebook came to town. I also wish I would’ve just moved to London right away but I think I was scared. I could’ve surrounded myself with more creative people instead of hiding away in smaller places. This would’ve pushed my to an even higher level and perhaps even find some bigger success which could’ve enabled me to live a more creative lifestyle currently and do what I do best. I saved most of my journals from the time but some of the stuff on myspace is permanently gone (blogs, comments, photos, messages, etc). All that could be used now to build a good electronic presskit and show the evolution. Oh well.
Guidelines for General Improvement:
• I need to get more disciplined with my lifestyle so that I am developing but also building a business around what I do. I have learned a lot about life and business and music and people so that I can now do what needs to be done. I will hire the right people to do things I don’t want to do. This doesn’t mean just some friends but people who know what they are doing! Pros. Slowly I am building myself and my life to the point where all that has happened before can be taken advantage of and made part of my story. I am very optimistic and excited that this was all worth it and all my failures were a way to teach me some tough lessons but also to push me forward and to even greater heights as a musician, writer and human being! It’s also important to have fun and enjoy the people I meet and appreciate them for how special and precious they are to me. I need to build a loyal following and connect with my people to really take things to the next level. This inspires me greatly and I will travel the world and connect as many people I can through my music, during my lifetime.
II. Entrepeneurial
Experience Due to the Positive Trait:
• On July 17th this year I decided to invest all my money into bitcoin and other crypto currencies. I saw a great opportunity and had been hesitating to start for a few months but finally went all in! I had owned some bitcoin previously but had sold it which was a mistake. I had also been reading and studying entrepreneurship and wealth for the past year because I realised that I was always broke and wanted to understand why. After trying out various paths of entrepreneurship, I decided that this is the one that holds the most potential. It is a growing technology and not only did I want to profit from it, I wanted to invest in it to show my support. It was something I knew very little about so I began reading about the subject, learned how to exchange my euros for cryptos and also how to trade on the various platforms that exist. I took some course online to get the basics and then just started following what’s going ever since. I’m really glad I got into it now because I really think this is the future of economics and the way money is exchanged.
A Possible Alternative Outcome:
• I wish I would’ve been a little more patient early on! And I also wish that I had started 2-3 months earlier because that’s when it was really exploding. So I missed the mark a little bit but not too bad. Better late than never. In the beginning I bought bitcoin but got a little excited about putting my money into some alternative crypto currencies and so I traded all my bitcoins for Ripple. This was not such a bad move but for some reason I didn’t expect that these trades might not produce profit right away. Ripple began to lose value and I was getting impatient and worried that I will lose all my money. So then I put all my money from Ripple into Bitcoin Cash because it was increasing at the time. That as also a bad move! By this point I had lost half of my initial bitcoin so finally decided to go with Monero which turned out to be an okay move. It was a good way to learn how to trade and I even began clawing back some of my initial investment in bitcoin (although in dollars my net worth had doubled even amongst my losses). I also wish I had perhaps stuck with some of the skills I was learning earlier this year like freelance writing. I could’ve made it work had I stuck to it. I would’ve had more capital to put into cryptos. But I kept on getting impatient with everything I dabbled in because the results and rewards were too slow.
Guidelines for General Improvement:
• Patience! And be more focused in what you decide to do. It’s okay to try new things but as you learn to understand your strengths, focus on them. Become so good they can’t ignore you. Develop your skills even further. Gather knowledge about the areas that can help you most. And don’t always be so “me” focused. See a bigger picture emerge. Connect with others. Help them! Empower them. Build a community of likeminded people. Go out into the world and find them. Otherwise nobody will know who you are. Leverage your skills. Sell them. Create products. Serve others with your art and expertise in different areas. Teach them the skills and information you have acquired and integrated. Be consistent with your efforts. Keep growing your capital and invest into crypto currencies which will fund your future lifestyle. Learn from everything you have done so far. Go with the flow and elevate others every time you can. Don’t get too crazy about the smaller details, just keep on pushing forward. Stop being so obsessed with things that don’t matter in the long run. Mistakes and failures are inevitable. They are part of the self-correcting process and the way of the artist/investor. Keep going. Keep doing what you are doing.
III. Know How To Go With The Flow
Experience Due to the Positive Trait:
• In 2007 I was travelling around the USA for 3 months. I didn’t have a plan, I just wanted to see where my adventures took me. I also didn’t use any maps or phones during the whole trip. I was 24 and really excited to just travel and be free. Meet people. Sell my new album which I had just recorded. I had no expectations except that I wanted to find amazing musicians and maybe even stay there permanently if I did find them. That didn’t happen but I did have a lot of great experiences and lots of fun. I stayed in hostels, rode trains and greyhounds, drank a lot and ate burgers and played my guitar and sang my songs wherever I went. I think I visited about 15 states and 17 cities. I wrote some good songs during that trip and just about made it back in one piece. I also went to meet the girl I met through myspace June and was really hoping to meet her somewhere but for one reason or another that did not happen. The whole trip feels like another life. I definitely want to do it again at some point. In fact, it’s just over 10 years to the day when I was there (i went there on sept 11 and now its September 14th). Wow, can’t believe it’s so long ago! So much has happened since. What if I were to do the exact same route? That sure would be interesting. Or maybe it would be better to go with the flow again.
A Possible Alternative Outcome:
• I was quite moody back then and didn’t really know how to take care of myself as much as I do now. I spent ridiculous amounts of money buying dumb shit that i just had to carry around like cds and books and shoes and clothes. I was really materialistic back then. Nowadays i would just travel light, manage my finances better, eat healthier and do fitness wherever i went. Of course it’s still important to have some fun now and then and get a little wild but I think i would even do that better. Appreciate it more. Really honor the people i meet and make sure to stay in touch and build proper relationships and friendships. And as good as it is to go with the flow, it’s still good to follow some kind of plan. And since I’m serious about my music career, it’s important to always gather names and contact info for mailing lists and stuff. Especially all the people that buy my album. I would also go out of my way more to immerse myself into the music scenes everywhere instead of just going with the flow in hostels where people are more interested in other stuff (although they do love music). Overall, I think i would go with the flow more this time and not get caught in my dark moods which sometimes can overwhelm me when I am not going with the flow. The going with the flow thing can also get out of control when you let it go too far. Sometimes it’s important to control things a little.
Guidelines for General Improvement:
• I think one of the most important things in life is to go with the flow. But it’s also important to know what kind of environment and people you want to surround yourself with considering your goals in life. If you want to fly like an eagle, stop hanging out with turkeys! At the same time it can be just as powerful to identify and go to environments where your “flow” is in high demand but where you will not necessarily be surrounded by so many like-minded people. But your flow will elevate others and inspire them. Big picture wise, being in the flow is about mindfulness. Do what you do with full attention no matter what it is, whether it’s practising music or vacuuming the house. All boredom or anxiety is just thoughts in your mind that are constantly wanting more or less and never really being here and now. Go with the flow and be in the flow is a method of relaxation and happiness. Just take a breath or two. Smile. Be grateful for everything. Let the scene soak in. No matter how bad or good it gets. You are alive. You are winning.
IV. Feel Others’ Emotions
An Experience Due to the Positive Trait:
• Ever since I was a young boy, I’ve been very sensitive to other people’s emotions. I’ve always loved animals especially dogs. It took me 25 years to understand that what we do matters and has consequences. That’s when I met Sinead in Ireland, who was a vegan. She lent me a book on the Okinawans and why they live so long and are so healthy, even at old age. This really opened my eyes to the world of health and nutrition. I also got into spirituality and practises like yoga and meditation. I have experimented with my diet ever since. Although in the beginning my concern was mostly myself, I learned about how our food choices affect the animals that share this planet with us and also the environment. I felt bad for eating all these animal products so I became a vegan. I wanted to end all animal suffering. But it was a lot of trial/error. I’m still trying to figure it out. Those old addictions keep on taking control. Bad habits die hard. I have been medicating myself with food for a long time. Junk food mostly. I am stubborn and learn slowly. Vegan is still the ideal.
A Possible Alternative Outcome:
• I would’ve surrounded myself more with other vegans. And other people like me who are sensitive and empathetic. I would’ve mastered my emotions and got my mental issues sorted much sooner. I underestimated the power of all these addictions I am battling. And my old ways always pulled me back in. I haven’t really managed to permanently leave the nest. I always come back here. They are not bad people, just stuck in their old ways. Nobody wants to question anything. Just factory workers. Simple life. Drink. Make money. Eat animals. Complain about the weather and politics. Watch the game and root for your country. Birthdays, christmas, promotions, marriage, kids, cars, houses, etc. All that bullshit. Why am I still here?? Fear. I never conquered my fears and my old identities and counter productive behaviours and habits were still running the show. All the positive change was just an experiment. I was never committed enough to true change. I did it all for myself and soon forgot about the others’ emotions that got me into it in the first place. Both are important. Health. Ethics. Environment. Me. You. Them. This. We are all part of the ecology. I am still struggling with this immensely. It’s almost easier to just not change. Or at least be a little more gradual and careful in how I go about the transformation process. Change is inevitable, whether i like it or not.
Guidelines for General Improvement:
• Find a balance regarding the old me and the ideal me. Don’t just change everything at once. That doesn’t work for me. I get excited for a few days after my bad habits have pummeled me down but then the void hits and when everything is all new, there is nothing to hold on to. Make small changes that lead you towards your goals. And it’s important to actively practise compassion and empathy. Really feel the pain of the world. And the joy. Feel the beauty. See it everywhere. Look into the eyes of people and animals. Touch the earth and the trees and smell the flowers. Become aware that it is all part of the great ocean. Stop making dumb choices from lower consciousness filters. Rise up. Make a plan. Know where you are, where you come from and where you want to get to. Who you want to be. Be that person and start living that person. Slowly and surely. Sow the seeds. Cultivate the garden. Nourish it. It will begin to grow and you will see it’s magnificence unfold. Perform small acts of kindness wherever you go. Doesn’t matter if it’s selfish or not. Just serve others. Help them. Online. Offline. Friends. Strangers. Don’t worry about money or acknowledgement, that will come when you serve the earth and everyone who lives here.
V. Always Learning New Things
An Experience Due to the Positive Trait:
• When I started playing guitar at age 11, I got obsessed with rock music. I read all the magazines and books of my heroes. I watched them on tv in interviews and music videos and documentaries. This was my world. I practised my instruments. Got guitar books. From the library, from the shop. Had some teachers. I started writing my own songs. It was a neverending process. Endless fun. I still love music and although there have been some periods in the last 10 years where other pursuits have led me astray for awhile, I always come back to music. It is my lifeblood. And I still love my heroes, the same ones from when I was a kid. This hunger and drive I have inside is unlike anything I’ve ever seen in anyone I’ve ever come across. It carried me through some hard times. And gave me the strength and will to learn and master this craft of mine. It’s taken me to many places and brought me to many people. The learning continues to this day and will never stop until the day I die. As far as I’m concerned, I’m just getting warmed up.
A Possible Alternative Outcome:
• Like with anything, I wish would’ve appreciated it more. I wish would’ve been more strategic and focused in the way I pursued music. But I didn’t know how. Nobody taught me that. I just assumed that if I do it, I’ll also become famous. But it didn’t quite happen that way. I underestimated how much work it requires beyond talent to really succeed. Perhaps I would’ve found the right people early on who can help manage things so I am developing, the business is growing and everything is moving forwards. Not just random, whatever happens, go with the flow. That’s good too but it has to be combined with strategy and management. I also wish I would’ve never sold any of the stuff I had. I had such a great collection of books and boxsets and posters and shirts and collectibles. It would be cool to have all that stuff somewhere. The only things I’ve saved was my own journals and songs. I figured everything else is just a distraction. I also would’ve focused more on music and not be distracted by so many other things like alcohol, drugs, girls, sex, dating, education, travel, etc. In some ways I don’t regret anything but if I had to do it again I might be a little more focused and strategic. Then again, I have some pretty great songs that would’ve never been written otherwise. Honestly I love where I am right now and probably wouldn’t change a thing even if I could.
Guidelines for General Improvement:
• Growth mindset. This is very important, especially if one wants to be an artists or innovator or entrepreneur of any kind. In other worse, be a free human! No boss. Don’t get too trapped in your own concepts and paradigms. Think beyond all that. At least make sure your concepts are serving you and serving the greatness within you and within everyone. Keep on reading. Absorbing. Books. Movies. Shows. People. Events. Concerts. Methods. Systems. Travel. Live in different places with different people. Teach others what you know and learn from those who are more advanced than you. There is always both! And share ideas with your equals (peers). Appreciate what you do have already, no matter what or how little/much that is. Every day is an experience. Sometimes it’s good to take some time off and just let things sink in. Learn to not learn and even unlearn when things are not going the way you want. Life is the ultimate teacher. Get better but more depth also. It’s okay to dream big and want things and desires and all that. But as you move forwards and progress, always come from a place of power in the moment. Everything else is just a bonus. To be shared with those who have the least. Empower others to reach their potential.
VI. Love Order and Regularity
An Experience Due to the Positive Trait:
• I am a very disciplined person when I have solitude and space to pursue my skills and desires. I remember when I was writing and then recording my second album “Nobody Land”. I still have no idea how i came up with some of those songs on that album. But I had to get my mind and body in order. I had to practise and follow a routine. Eating healthy. Working out. This enabled my mind to open further and for more elaborate ideas to emerge. I don’t always follow my routines and regimens but just having some kind of framework keeps me in check so it’s not all chaos. I have always believed in love and that there is some kind of higher/invisible force that is underlying everything. I don’t really know exactly what it is. But there is a higher order to all of this. There is a regularity there. It’s in our bodies also. And our living spaces. Our conversations. And in my case, my songs and the process required to bring them to life. It is the deepest kind of work. Something greater than me is driving this. Love.
A Possible Alternative Outcome:
• I would’ve built a team around me so I can do what I do best and be at my best. That means practising and not worrying about disturbing anyone. It means having the kind of musicians who can help perform some stuff that I cannot. And perhaps managers and coaches to help me develop a routine and keep me on track. Sometimes it helps to have someone on the outside who is reminding you why you are doing all this. So far it’s been mostly just me. And it’s not necessarily the most reliable option to depend on ourselves too much. The mind can be fickle.
Guidelines for General Improvement:
• There is nothing greater in this world than love. We are all apart of each other and apart of everything. That means we are everything. We are alone. All one. I believe that there is great order and regularity at work in the universe and in our minds and bodies. When we become aware of that, something happens to our lives and ourselves. We are in harmony with the process of life and love and god. When we go against it, we feel shitty and depressed and low in energy. Trust the power of love. It will save you. Love is the god of jesus and buddha and love is the god of gods. Let it write these words. Let love think your thoughts. Let love bleed from your ass and shoot from your dick. Let love kill us all with joy and beauty.
