Four cycles of your life
Living is a pain. You eventually pass away. Therefore, I concluded that action occurs in four cycles while looking at my navel the other day.
Four key phases exist in a person’s life, from birth to death. We all continue to evolve, grow, and mature as life progresses. Others find themselves trapped in a cycle for decades, while for some moving from one cycle to another feels like a natural process. Sadly, some people could even skip a cycle without understanding the essential values that come with it.
Cycle One: Mimicry
We are helpless at birth. We cannot feed ourselves, walk, talk, or even file our damned taxes.
We learn best by imitating others while we are young since that is how we are wired to learn. The first things we learn are how to walk and communicate. Then, by observing and imitating our peers, we gain social skills. Finally, in late childhood, we begin to learn how to fit into our culture by paying attention to the rules and customs around us and attempting to act in a manner that is generally accepted by society.
Cycle One is to develop our social skills to become independent, self-sufficient adults. The concept is that by encouraging our abilities to make judgments and take action on our own, the adults in the community help us get to this point.
But there are some bad adults and neighbors here.
They punish us for being free. They disagree with our choices. Therefore, we don’t grow into independent beings. We become locked in cycle One, always following those around us and attempting to please everyone to avoid being judged.
Cycle One will continue in a “typical” healthy person through late adolescence or early adulthood. Some people may experience it well into adulthood. A few people reach the age of 45 and discover they have never truly lived for themselves. They then wonder where the years went.
We need to be conscious of the standards and expectations of others around us. However, we must also develop the fortitude to act against these norms and expectations when we believe it is important.
Cycle Two: Self-Discovery
In cycle one, we develop our ability to blend in with the area’s culture and people. Learning our differences from the people and cultures around us is the focus of cycle two. In cycle Two, we must start making our judgments, putting them to the test, and learning more about who we are and what makes us special.
The second cycle involves a lot of experimenting and trial and error. We experiment by moving to new homes, hanging out with new friends, consuming novel substances, and poking fun at strangers’ orifices.
Self-discovery occurs in cycle Two. We experiment. It works for some of them. Some don’t, however. Stick with the successful ones for a time before moving on.
No matter how hard you try, you’re still going to be terrible at some things. And you must be aware of them. It was important to understand it as well. We must all discover our weaknesses. And the sooner we discover it in life, the better.
We lack skill in some areas. Then other things work well for a while but start to lose their effectiveness after a while. One instance is going places in the globe. Having several sex experiences with Another. They are many. Believe me.
Your limitations are necessary because you must finally understand that you have a certain amount of time in this world and that you should utilize it to focus on the things that matter. That means realizing that just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should do it. That means realizing that just because you like certain people doesn’t mean you should be with them. That means realizing that there are opportunity costs to everything and that you can’t have it all.
Cycle Three: Commitment
You are left with what is both a) important to you and b) what you’re not horrible at after pushing yourself to the maximum and learning your limits or the diminishing returns of some activities (such as partying, playing video games, or masturbating). The moment has come to start making changes to the planet.
The most complete integration of one’s life occurs during the third cycle. You must cut contact with friends who drain you and hold you back. Get rid of the time-wasting hobbies and pursuits. It is necessary to give up old dreams that will not come true any time soon.
Then you focus more on what you do best and what is most beneficial for you. You put more effort into your most valuable relationships.
Cycle Three focuses on realizing your own potential in this life. Building your legacy is the key. When you depart, what will you leave behind? What will people recall about you? Cycle Three is about leaving the world a little bit different from how you found it, whether through a game-changing study, an incredible new product, or an adoring family.
Cycle Four: Legacy
People enter cycle Four, having invested roughly fifty years of their lives in what they thought to be significant and meaningful. They accomplished big things, put in a lot of effort, earned whatever they possessed, and are now finished. They may have created a family, a charity, or perhaps one or more political or cultural revolutions. They have reached an age where their resources and environment make it impossible for them to continue working toward their goals.
Therefore, the objective of cycle Four shifts from leaving a legacy to ensuring that it endures after one’s passing.
The change from cycle Three to cycle Four is difficult for many people. The years ahead feel empty now that they have left behind decades-long careers that gave their lives meaning.
Cycle Four is important psychologically since it relieves the burden of facing one’s own mortality. Humans have a strong need to believe that their existence is meaningful. Our sole psychological defense against the incomprehensibility of this life and the certainty of our own death is the meaning we are continuously seeking. Losing that significance or watching it disappear is the same as willfully staring oblivion in the face.
