Early Writings of Evan Bailyn

The Problem With Having Too Many Responsibilities

Posted by on Thursday, January 24th, 2013 with 0 Comments

Adults’ lives seem to go by very quickly because of all the chores that distract them from their inner life. Adults pay taxes, apply for mortgages, climb corporate ladders, and attend superficial social functions. Their lives are structured, so much so that even their vacations follow a schedule. And yet, even though taking on responsibilities appears undesirable, adults become dependent on them. How many working mothers, for instance, embody the cliché of the harried modern parent, ...

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Living Life Consciously

Posted by on Thursday, January 24th, 2013 with 0 Comments

Forty years from now, you will nostalgize about today. You will think back to the present moment, recalling how youth was full of choices and hopefulness. You will marvel at how blissfully uninformed you were about what the future held in store for you. The life you live right now will be a distant, golden memory. Knowing how much you will value these days when you are older, how can you allow yourself to hurry through life? ...

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Narcissism And Peter Pan Syndrome

Posted by on Wednesday, January 23rd, 2013 with 0 Comments

A classic characteristic of Peter Pan Syndrome is narcissism. The truth about Peter Pans is that they are self-absorbed, but not in the negative, uncaring way that narcissism connotes. They simply feel a dreamy, imaginative comfort inside of their own minds – an attraction to introspection that is positive and well-meaning. Everyone has some level of self-involvement. After all, life is constantly impacting us and is impossible to ignore. We experience emotions, sensations, desires, and the ...

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Blocking Out The World

Posted by on Thursday, January 19th, 2012 with 0 Comments

The world is filled with things we cannot control.  We put ourselves out there, aware of the risk that bad things might happen, just to give ourselves the opportunity for good things to happen. We hope for the best and try to avoid the undesirable vagaries of nature.  But when we depend on people, careers, or events in our lives, we are opening ourselves to possibilities we cannot foresee. Although it is necessary to confront the randomness of the outside world ...

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Connecting With Your Fantasy World

Posted by on Thursday, January 19th, 2012 with 0 Comments

In a society where the vast majority of people act adultlike, it helps to have a fantasy world - a place that nobody can ever see or influence no matter what is happening in your physical environment.  Keeping such a place inside you, hidden away from everything else, can greatly counterbalance all the external events that are out of your control. However, even those who regularly use their imaginations to escape often do so in a passive way, minimizing the ...

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Does Fate Exist?

Posted by on Thursday, January 19th, 2012 with 0 Comments

Fate is a concept we all formed a definite opinion on at a young age.  Nowadays, we rarely give its existence real consideration, instead using it as a quick explanation for situations we can’t understand, stating “That’s the way it was meant to be.”  But is fate real? Is it immutable that I should be sitting here right now, typing on this computer, with this bottle of water placed exactly as it is on this table in front of me?  I ...

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What Is The Meaning Of Life?

Posted by on Thursday, January 19th, 2012 with 0 Comments

I’ve pondered the grandest of all philosophical questions - the meaning of life - since at least my early teenage years.  I’ve also asked a lot of people their opinion on the subject.  The most common answers I get are: - to accumulate as much happiness or pleasure as possible; - to serve God (or follow God’s plan) - to prepare for an afterlife - to attain a high level of spirituality or knowledge - to make a positive difference in the world - there is ...

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The Paradox Of Writing

Posted by on Thursday, January 19th, 2012 with 0 Comments

I write for you.  With every sentence I type, I pass my words through a filter of how I think you’ll react.  If your opinion didn’t matter, I wouldn’t be distributing my writing; I would keep to journals, in which I could scribble and dabble and review every few years to see how my identity had evolved.  Or, I wouldn’t write at all.  Yet there is an excitement which I believe all writers feel in the prospect of creating something ...

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The Ability To Concentrate

Posted by on Thursday, January 19th, 2012 with 0 Comments

Expressing oneself intelligently requires the synergy of many forces. One must harness one’s mental energy into an idea; compare and combine that idea with other available ideas; translate the results into an intelligible form of communication; and express that communication. Most people are able to do all these steps fairly well individually. The problem is holding each step together in one’s mind long enough to use it in the next step and come to a coherent end-product. In other words, ...

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Peter Pan Syndromers As Overachievers

Posted by on Thursday, January 19th, 2012 with 0 Comments

Peter Pan Syndromers are usually painted as grown-ups who cling to their childhood due to a fear of adult responsibility. But emotionally stunted underachievers make up only a small percentage of the Peter Pan population. Dan Kiley, author of the Peter Pan Syndrome concept, never accounted for Peter Pan overachievers: eternal children whose competitive instincts compel them to achieve high standing in the very society that they secretly shun. These people learn how to game the adult world by conforming ...

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