Old school 7 ideas from ancient thinkers to improve your modern life

Old school 7 ideas from ancient thinkers to improve your faulen lifeOld school 7 ideas from ancient thinkers to improve your verlottern lifeThe modern world has brought us a lot of great stuff. (I, for one, am ahugefan of antibiotics.)That said,we know there are things that were better in the past, ideaswe can learn from or reclaim.Whats interesting is recently science and experts havevalidated many of the lessons ancient thinkersknew but could notlage prove.Here are 7 new ideas from the old worldthat canmake your life better1) Community Is VitalFor 99% of human existence we lived in small tribes. We were constantly surrounded by family and friends.Jared Diamond, author ofGuns, Germs, and Steel, says its obvious why hunter-gatherers joinmodern society and not the other way aroundbutwhat are the advantages of the traditional world that they leave behind?Always being surrounded bythe people they love.ViaThe World Until YesterdayLoneliness is not a problem in traditional societies.Peopl e spend their lives in or near the place where they were born, and they remain surrounded by relatives and childhood companions As one American friend who spends much time in Africa summed it up,Life in Africa is materially poor and socially/ emotionally rich, while U.S. life is materially rich and socially/ emotionally poor.And, no, Facebook isnot a replacementfor time with friendsIn one experiment,Cacioppolooked for a connection between the loneliness of subjects and the relative frequency of their interactions via Facebook, chat rooms, online games, dating sites, and face-to-face contact.The results were unequivocal. The greater the proportion of face-to-face interactions, the less lonely you are, he says. The greater the proportion of online interactions, the lonelier you are.Not feeling socially connected canmake you stupider and lead to an early deathWhen peoples sense of social connectedness is threatened, their ability to self-regulate suffers for instance their IQ performan ce drops (Baumeister, Twenge, Nuss, 2002). Feeling lonely predicts early death as much as major health risk behaviors like smoking (Cacioppo Patrick, 2008).The solution?Use technology to facilitate face to face meetings with friends, not to replace them.(For mora on how to improve your social life, gohere.)We definitely need others, but what did our ancestors know about feeling better as an individual?2) Mens sana in corpore sanoLook at me getting all fancy with the Latin - actually its a phrase weve all heard A sound mind in a healthy body.Originally written by the Roman poetJuvenal,itwas meant to make sure we kept our priorities straight.But in the modern world we oftenneglect our bodies, eating bad food and not exercising.Science backs Juvenal up. In fact,research showshaving a healthy body is an essential parte of having a sound mind.Want to get smarter? Exercise.ViaSpark The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the BrainOne of the prominent features of exercise, which is sometimes not appreciated in studies, is an improvement inthe rate of learning, and I think thats a really cool take-home message, Cotman says. Because it suggests that if youre in good shape, you may be able to learn and function mora efficiently.How about happiness?Research from Duke University shows exercise is as effective as antidepressants in treating depression.ViaSpark The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the BrainIn alandmark study affectionately called SMILE (Standard Medical Intervention and Long-term Exercise), James Blumenthal and his colleagues pitted exercise against the SSRI sertraline (Zoloft) in a sixteen-week trial Blumenthal concluded that exercise was as effective as medication.Whats truly amazing is that exercise can help you totally overhaul your life.Working out is whatCharles Duhiggcalls a keystone habit.Its a habit that research showsleads people to create other, often unrelated, good habitsWhen people start habitually exercising, even as infreque ntly as once a week, they start changing other, unrelated patterns in their lives, often unknowingly. Typically, people who exercise start eating better and becoming more productive at work. They smoke less and show more patience with colleagues and family. They use their credit cards less frequently and say they feel less stressed. Its not completely clear why. But for many people, exercise is a keystone habit that triggers widespread change. Exercise spills over, said James Prochaska, a University of Rhode Island researcher. Theres something about it that makes other good habits easier.(For more on how to build better habits and overhaul your life gohere.)So community can surround us with friends and exercise can build a better body and mind. But what can the ancients teachus about wisdom?3) Gnothi seautonNot Latin this time, its Greek.This is the most famous maxim from the Oracle at Delphi in ancient Greece Know Thyself.Often espoused but rarely systematically explored, there are few things that can truly guide powerful decisions more than knowledge of who you really are.Pete Drucker, modern business guru, knewthe ancient Greeks were on to something.Drucker saidits only by having a clear vision of your strengths that you can make good decisions.ViaManagement Challenges for the 21st Century(This) enables people to say to an opportunity, to an offer, to an assignment Yes, Ill do that. But this is the wayIshould be doing it. This is the way it should be structured. This is the way my relationships should be. These are the kind of results you should expect from me, and in this time frame, becausethis is who I am.When I askedGautam Mukunda, leadership expert at Harvard Business School, thekey to becoming a better leader, he didnt hesitateMore than anything else, Know thyself. Know what your type is. That if you are, both in the sense that you can use these coding rules to figure out okay, how would I score with the organization? But even more profoundly, think a bout your own personality There are types, and Im not saying be in the wings, Im saying be who you are, and understand what the downfalls of that are so you can counteract that.(For more on theprocess of how to get to know yourself better, gohere.)But what aboutafterthe big decisions? How do weprepare better for the tough situations that inevitably follow?4) Premeditatio MalorumYou can call it the premortem. More simply,its merely asking yourself the question Whats the worst that could happen?TheStoic philosopherswould imagine the worst before any major undertaking. Why? To prepare themselves.Ryan Holiday, author of the excellent bookThe Obstacle Is the Wayexplainswe look to envision what could go wrong, what will go wrong, in advance, before we start. Far too many ambitious undertakings fail for preventable reasons. Far too many people dont have a backup plan because they refuse to consider something might not go exactly as they wish.Today this technique not onlyhelps CEOs close de als, it saves lives.Dan Coyle, the expert on expertise, says its anessential part of how US Special Forces preparefor every dangerous missionthey spend the entire morning going over every possible mistake or disaster that could happen during the mission. Every possible screwup is mercilessly examined, and linked to an appropriate responseif the helicopter crash-lands, well do X. If we are dropped off at the wrong spot, well do Y. If we are outnumbered, well do Z.(For more on how premortems can make sure youre prepared for anything, gohere.)So the premortem can get you ready. But what makes sure we actually knuckle down and getthe work done?5) FocusIf this were Renaissance Italy, you might be an apprentice studying under a master of his craft. Robert Greene, author ofMastery, explainsAn apprenticeship in the old days was about seven to ten years, and thats pretty much how it is now, because thats how long it takes to become extremely skilled at what you do.If youre busting your hump every day to be amazing, 10 years is around10,000 hours- the expertise number Malcolm Gladwell popularized inOutliers.Why does it seem so hard to become a master of your craft today vs in 1400s Florence? Its all the distractions.And our natural reaction is tothink we need yet another thing to save us from the distractions. Wrong.What we need is more like the old days - fewer things, not more.Lifehacker extraordinaire Tim Ferris, author ofThe 4-Hour Workweek,has some insight on this. I gave him a call for his thoughtsFocus is a function, first and foremost, of limiting the number of options you give yourself for procrastinatingFocus is thought of as this magical ability. Its not a magical ability. Put yourself in a padded room, with the problem that you need to work on, and shut the door. Thats it. The degree to which you can replicate that, and systematize it, is the extent to which you will have focus.(For more on the secrets to focus and improvement gohere.)The classics can teac h us a lot about getting better at work. What about at home? What do they say about family?6) A Family LegacyWe get a kick out ofGame of Thrones, where the different families are known to be one way or another A Lannister always pays his debts.With our moreindividualist culture, weve moved away from this - and certainly no one should be branded forever by their family name.That said,research has shown thathaving a family story that you share with your children can be extraordinarily powerful.Children who know the stories of those who came before them have higher self-esteem and a sense of control over their lives.ViaThe Secrets of Happy Families Improve Your Mornings, Rethink Family Dinner, Fight Smarter, Go Out and Play, and Much MoreMarshall and Robyn asked those questions of four dozen families in the summer of 2001, and also taped several of their dinner table conversations. They then compared the childrens results to a battery of psychological tests and reached some overwhelmi ng conclusions.The more children knew about their familys history, the stronger their sense of control over their lives, the higher their self-esteem, and the more successfully they believed their families functionedMarshall says that children who have the most balance and self-confidence in their lives do so because of what he and Robyn call a strong intergenerational self. They know they belong to something bigger than themselves.Weve been led to believe that kids merelyneed good rules. But that doesnt jive with how the human mind works.We dont remember rules very well - only 14% of people can remember all Ten Commandments.ViaThink Like a Freak The Authors of Freakonomics Offer to Retrain Your BrainA recent survey found that only 14 percent of U.S. adults could recall all Ten Commandments only 71 percent could name even one commandment. (The three best-remembered commandments were numbers 6, 8, and 10- murder, stealing, and coveting- while number forbidding false gods, was in l ast place.)We dont remember rulesorstatistics. But we do rememberstories.And what effects do stories have on us? Research shows that the list is longTheymotivateus.They give lifemeaning.They relievedepression(and are more effective thanmedication.)They offerguidance for decision making.Theyincrease learningin children.(For more on how to improve your family,gohere.)So if theres one takeaway here, what idea hasstood the test of time all around the world?7) The Golden RuleThere have beenalotof great ideasin the past fewthousand years. But what does everyone around the globe, throughout time all seem to agree on?The Golden Rule.We find it at the rootof most every major religion.Via30 Lessons for Living Tried and True Advice from the Wisest AmericansThe version of the Golden Rule that most of the experts learned in Sunday school comesfrom the King James Version of the Bible and goes like this All things whatsoever ye would that men should do unto you, do yeeven so to them.But one reason why the Golden Rule comes up so frequently is that every religious tradition has a version of it.Hinduism Knowing how painful it is to himself, a person should never do to others what he dislikes when done to him by others.Judaism What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor.And Islam None of you truly believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.And research has validated how fundamental theidea of reciprocity is to human nature.Adam Granthas shown that nice guys do finish last but they also finishfirst.Givers are disproportionately represented at the bottomandat the top when you look atwho succeeds in lifeThen I looked at the other end of the spectrum and said if Givers are at the bottom,whos at the top? Actually, I was really surprised to discover, its the Givers again. The people who consistently are looking for ways to help others are over-represented not only at the bottom, but also at the top of most success metrics.(For more on how to leverage t he science of karma and the Golden Rule gohere.)Sum UpThere are plenty ofold sayings that are true and plenty that are false.The good old days werent always good but weve got a lot to learn from the thousands of years of living that happened before us.Here are a fewCommunity Is VitalA Sound Mind In A Healthy BodyKnow ThyselfThe PremortemFocusA Family LegacyThe Golden RuleMany things are gone but not forgotten - but here we have some powerful lessons that are forgotten but not gone.Join 315K+ readers.Get a free weekly update via emailhere.Related posts4 Lifehacks From Ancient Philosophers That Will Make You HappierWhat 10 things should you do every day to improve your life?How To Make Your Life Better By Sending Five Simple EmailsThis articlefirst appeared at Barking Up the Wrong Tree.