There is a lot of reason why many people feel sad, empty and not interested in anything.

However most people are not depressed but stuck in survival mode.

The survival mode is having no options and always having to choose between what's available and what's not.

• Jobs

• Responsibilities

• Conformists mindset

Well what can you do?

If you don't have a job —you and your family will starve.

If you don't follow the rules you'll end up being fired or demoted.

The Traditional Path

When you follow a path you don't want to follow—you become inauthentic—no you become a robot.

You will mindlessly follow and work until you no longer can.

You might be fine working a job you hate for 10 years—but when you hit your 40's or 50's you'll hate every single minute of it.

Imagine this:

Jake loves to draw. It's always been his passion to make art and paint when he was young.

He was inspired by Bob Ross.

He saw how simple strokes of brushes and using simple techniques could give form and movement in a still paper.

One day his Father asks him—what do you want to do when you grow up son?

Jake says "I want to be an artist!" everyone nod's and agrees. Some even clapped their hands.

Is there anything wrong?

Nope—not yet.

But what happens if he grows up?

Now that he's 19. The hottest job in the market right now is IT. He has to make a choice to either pursue art or learn to be a specialist.

Most artists are starving. Most cannot even do commissions. What does he do?

He doubts.

He ruminates "what if I don't make it?", "what if it fails?"

Then—the thoughts of other people starts to live in his mind rent free. "You should be an engineer" or "Being an artist is risky, be a lawyer instead".

His parents agrees with other people's opinions. They persuade him non-stop.

Feeling stuck and no choice—he follows what his parents told him. He thinks maybe one day he'll become an artist if he saves up money and pursue his passion.

He finds the love of his life. He gets married. 10 years later he has 2 boys and 1 girl.

He makes an excuse "when I retire I'll be an artist"

When he retires—he says "when my kids grow up I'll be an artist".

Then—one day he dies. His dream never came true.

But when he was alive he was always angry and felt worthless. He was always reminded by this voice inside him that wanted to do something else. He wasn't interested in science or computer.

He practiced art from time to time but because he had a job, mouths to feed, he couldn't pursue and dedicate all of his time to doing art.

His childlike spirit and energy vanished. He wanted to do more art but he didn't. He wanted to go to art college but his parents rejected his idea thinking—it's better for him to have a safer and stable future instead of wasting time in something that's not guaranteed.

If you feel the same about Jake and stuck about life you can consult to me 1:1 here.

Now here's a question:

• What went wrong?

• How is this related to depression?

You have 10 seconds.

1・・2・・3・・4・・5・・6・・7・・8・・9・・10・・

Ok times up!

4 answers:

• He gave up "not that he couldn't but didn't".

• Followed everyone's wants for him but he himself didn't.

• When a person give ups—they become hopeless. Like automatons—wakeup, get ready to work, go to work, go home after work., waste time, sleep to go to work tomorrow, repeat.

• Didn't follow his interest (his calling.)

It's a standard story that reflects how people live in the modern world—but you'll be surprised how much this happens time and time again.

Especially if you're Asian. You have little power to what your parents wants you to pursue unless they allow you or they think you won't make it anyway—so they don't bother.

Bystander Conditioning.

I know this letter was kind of sad and apathetic —however the goal here is to be aware. If you never know about this how will you know?

So keep reading.

The survival mode is a perception that you must follow what everyone else is doing so you can survive.

No one wants to stand out in a crowd. Even if someone is dying and no one is helping—that person who needs help will end up dying.

It's called the bystander effect. And why is this related?

Most of us are conditioned to be bystanders. We aren't taught how to stand out and let our own excellent and unique traits shine.

Those who shine are shunned. They are hated by the masses because it breaks the balance.

That's why people who shine the most—have the most haters.

They want to get rid of that light out of ego. So when the light gets taken care of—they can happily make excuses to stay stuck and be average.

Ever wonder why movies and drama are so popular? Because it appeals to people's fantasies.

Yes that's also a problem. Instead of confronting what's real and hard. Most people would rather lie and follow what the trend is.

So how do you avoid being depressed?

There's no short answer.

But if I can give you advice—this is it.

1) Keep Your Talents Hidden

Hide your light to the haters and show it to only you can trust.

Too many talented people have been destroyed by one discriminating comments out of envy and jealousy.

Hide your talents. Your wit, your strengths and capability. Don't let anyone know how good or better you are.

Avoid the craving of wanting to show off. You'll invite envy.

Because most depression starts from the social. Like isolation and being lonely. There's also the intellectual way but that's for another letter.

We are not meant to stay alone for long periods of time. And solitude and loneliness are not the same.

There are people who can live without needing anyone not because they're lonely but because they cannot understand people.

There are also people who live alone and feel incredibly lonely all the time. They suffer not because they want it but because they have no choice.

What happens next?

When you've been isolated for a long time—say you live alone and have no one to talk. You become nihilistic and borderline delusional.

There's a reason why isolation is still being used as a punishment today.

Being social will help you avoid depression too. Not always but it helps mitigate the problem especially if you've got true friends you consider your brother or sister.

2) Delete Bad Habits.

When you're mental help is messed up, the things you also do are messed up.

Your habits and actions get worse over time. Fueled by negative a negative self loop that keeps you stuck.

Like when you say "I'll get this thing done by 4am" your mind will say "Don't bother, it won't make a change anyway".

If you don't believe this—a simple google search about how depressed people think will give you a reality check.

Also do not convince yourself you are depressed—it makes things worse.

So how does eliminating bad habits help you avoid depression?

3 things

A) Gets rid of chronic Stress Response

When you are stressed—you are more likely to binge eat and binge watch Netflix movies that makes you more guilty in the long run.

I have personally experienced when life is stressful—I tend to escape by scrolling. I'm glad I improved my mental health and got rid of my bad habits.

If not I would still be the same loser I was once was.

B) Energy Depletion & Fatigue

Wonder why you're always feeling tired even though you slept early and got up on time?

It's because bad habits like to steal away your energy. Every time you indulge in gratification activities like eating lots of cakes or sugary food—it feels good in the moment—but after an hour you'll feel very sluggish and tired.

Your mind will also be foggy. Making you unable to think properly.

C) Social Withdrawal & Loss of Accountability

Remember what I talked above? Well let met remind you how important friend and socializing in life are.

It is true you can live without friends or anyone—however it is also true that you will become depressed.

The silly moments you make with your friends keeps you humane and normal.

The subtle irritation you feel from things you dislike happening or behaviors from other people keeps you from going crazy.

When left unchecked—the human mind goes crazy. To make sure it doesn't happen—it needs to see how other people act and think.

So thus the importance of socializing.

If you're serious about getting rid of your bad habits get the Live Intentionally: 90 Day Self-Improvement Program here. It's the only product I recommend because of how good it is. Over 12K+ sold.

So what are the benefits of getting rid of bad habits?

3 Things:

• Your self-image goes through the roof. The first time I ever made significant progress in life was when I stopped binge eating sweets and stopped being addicted to video games. I lost 20kg in the last 2 years. My screen time is only 2-3 hours a day for business only. I never see my self as a loser again. I always look in the mirror with pride and confidence.

• People start to tell. The energy you carry around with you changes. Suddenly you don't overthink too much—you don't let negative thoughts take over. There's also this warmth of comfort you give to others due to how happy you are internally about your progress

• Your brain shifts. You stop seeing the world as black and white. You start to see patterns and recognize why things happen this way. Your energy levels also goes high—helping you become more disciplined. Because more energy means more willpower.

This is all from experience. I can about this for about another 500 words but let's cut it short here.

—

That's all for today.

Thanks for reading.

-Noat

PS: If you found this letter helpful, feel free to share it to some of your friends.

P.PS: Btw most of you seem confused about what I said about the new category I'll add. If you reply to the email I sent to you asking about advice and question you will get a reply from me back. See the one above. Only 1 person per week.