Commonplace Books

Source: http://thoughtcatalog.com/2013/how-and-why-to-keep-a-commonplace-book/

What is a Commonplace book?

A commonplace book is a central resource or depository for ideas, quotes, anecdotes, observations and information you come across during your life and didactic pursuits. The purpose of the book is to record and organize these gems for later use in your life, in your business, in your writing, speaking or whatever it is that you do.

 

Some of the greatest men and women in history have kept these books. Marcus Aurelius kept one–which more or less became the Meditations. Petrarch kept one. Montaigne, who invented the essay, kept a handwritten compilation of sayings, maxims and quotations from literature and history that he felt were important. His earliest essays were little more than compilations of these thoughts. Thomas Jefferson kept one. Napoleon kept one. HL Mencken, who did so much for the English language, as his biographer put it, “methodically filled notebooks with incidents, recording straps of dialog and slang” and favorite bits from newspaper columns he liked. Bill Gates keeps one.

 

Not only did all these famous and great individuals do it. But so have common people throughout history. Our true understanding of the Civil War, for example, is a result of the spread of cheap diaries and notebooks that soldiers could record their thoughts in. Art of Manliness recently did an amazing post about the history of pocket notebooks. Some people have gone as far as to claim that Pinterest is a modern iteration of the commonplace book.

 

And if you still need a why–I’ll let this quote from Seneca answer it (which I got from my own reading and notes):

 

“We should hunt out the helpful pieces of teaching and the spirited and noble-minded sayings which are capable of immediate practical application–not far far-fetched or archaic expressions or extravagant metaphors and figures of speech–and learn them so well that words become works.”

Donnie Darko Website

Recently I stumbled across a website for the movie Donnie Darko. When I first saw the he movie it made a big impact with me, it was amazing and bizarre and thought provoking. The website is much the same, although in different ways. Here it is... Donnie Darko website

Personality Types

For some reason I've always found the concept of "Personality Types" very interesting.

Of course like most people I grew up with the concept of Introvert and Extrovert as a way of explaining peoples preference towards social interaction.

In High School I came across The Color Code by Dr. Taylor Hartman. The Color Code divides personalities into four "colors"

• Red (motivated by power)
• Blue (motivated by intimacy)
• White (motivated by peace)
• Yellow (motivated by fun)

I'm a natural White but through experience have some shadings of Blue and even a little Red and Yellow depending on the situation I'm imagining myself in when I take the test (such as being out with friends).

You can learn more about the Color Code and to test to find your color type go to http://www.colorcode.com/

Care and feeding of your standard Introvert

  

Definition of introverts
via Wikipedia:

 

Introverts are people whose energy tends to expand through reflection and dwindle during interaction. They often take pleasure in solitary activities such as reading, writing, music, drawing, tinkering, playing video games, watching movies and plays, and using computers.  The archetypal artist, writer, sculptor, engineer, composer, and inventor are all highly introverted. An introvert is likely to enjoy time spent alone and find less reward in time spent with large groups of people. They prefer to concentrate on a single activity at a time and like to observe situations before they participate. Introverts are easily overwhelmed by too much stimulation from social gatherings and engagement. They are more analytical before speaking.
Introversion is not the same as being shy or being a social outcast. Introverts prefer solitary activities over social ones, whereas shy people (who may be extraverts at heart) avoid social encounters out of fear, and the social outcast has little choice in the matter of his or her solitude.

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Great list of myths about introverts 
via Carl King Creative:
 

Myth #1 – Introverts don’t like to talk.