Mindful Matter
Between the waves and the sun.
"It is in our nature to explore, to reach out into the unknown. The only true failure would be not to explore at all." — Ernest Shackleton In a story from Greek mythology, master craftsman Daedalus and his son, Icarus, are being held captive on the island of Crete. To escape, Daedalus makes them both a set of wings made of feathers and wax. Before taking off, Daedalus warns Icarus to avoid flying too low, so that the seawater doesn't ruin his wings, and avoid flying too high, so the sun's heat doesn’t melt the wax. Icarus famously ignores Daedalus’s instructions and flies so high that the wax in his wings begins to melt, causing him to fall into the sea and drown. This is the source of the idiom “Don't fly too close to the sun.” Seth Godin, author of the The Icarus Deception makes a strong case for how Daedalus’s instructions to avoid flying too close to the sun (hubris) is the lesson from the myth that has been popularized over the ages and that this happened at the expense of the companion advice of not flying too low (complacency). In today’s terms we might call this idea of flying too low “staying in our comfort zone” —a desire to avoid danger and feel safe. In reality, there is also a layer nestled perfectly between our comfort and danger zones: the growth zone. The Comfort Zone is stress-free and comes with a relatively low risk-to-reward ratio. While you may not be challenged or grow in this zone, it offers you space to feel grounded and make sense of things. The Growth Zone is just outside your comfort zone. It brings some challenges and stress. These require heightened attention, but they are nothing your best self can’t handle. The Danger Zone is beyond your growth zone. Here learning is minimal because the gap between your ability and the challenge is just too wide. At best, this zone is discouraging. At worst, it’s a true threat to your safety Each new experience in the growth zone makes your comfort zone a little bit bigger. According to Godin, many of us have “built our comfort zone around being obedient and invisible, and as a result, we’re far too close to the waves.” In your life right now, what would it look like to step into growth? (Journal your response in Reflection.app → ) Mike Radparvar Co-Founder, Holstee & Reflection.app P.S. Dive deeper into this concept, along with many other approaches to the theme of Adventure in this month’s Digital Adventure Guide PDF for Members!
Learn more
Adventure = Curiosity + Bravery
“Be brave, be curious, be determined, overcome the odds. It can be done.” - Stephen Hawking In this month’s Digital Adventure Guide and in our Online Member Gathering, we discussed the equation of Adventure: Adventure = Curiosity + Bravery Curiosity: “I seek out situations where I gain new experiences without getting in my own or other people’s way.” Bravery: "I act on my convictions, and I face threats, challenges, difficulties, and pains, despite my doubts and fears." (Definitions from the VIA Institute on Character) It might seem that adventure has been put on hold lately. But when we look at an adventure as a time when we “seek out new situations and experiences” and “face challenges despite our doubts and fears”, it becomes clear that these last few months have indeed been adventurous — for many of us, in completely new and different ways. Sometimes we get to choose the adventure, and sometimes the adventure chooses us. How are you experiencing adventure and employing curiosity or bravery this month? Mike RadparvarCo-Founder, Holstee
Learn more
A wonder-full life.
I have some exciting news to share. In a few short weeks, I will be embarking on a very new type of Adventure as I become a father for the first time. My wife Jess and I are expecting a baby boy in early July and I am feeling all the feels — joy, nervousness, gratitude, excitement, curiosity, and so much more. Fortunately, as it has been for most of my life, my older brother Mike and sister Ramesh are a couple steps ahead of me so I have been able to learn from them both. Mike’s daughter Mala is now two years old. On a recent video call, they were outside doing one of Mala’s favorite activities — watering the plants. It’s incredible how much joy Mala experiences going from one plant to the next and carefully adding water to each one. She has turned this seemingly simple, even mundane activity into a beautiful ritual. Watching Mala reminded me of something I read in William Martin’s book, The Parent's Tao Te Ching: Ancient Advice for Modern Parents: “Do not ask your childrento strive for extraordinary lives.Such striving may seem admirable,but it is the way of foolishness.Help them instead to find the wonderand the marvel of an ordinary life.Show them the joy of tastingtomatoes, apples and pears.Show them how to crywhen pets and people die.Show them the infinite pleasurein the touch of a hand.And make the ordinary come alive for them.The extraordinary will take care of itself.” In my day-to-day, I usually view watering the plants as a chore, something to quickly check off my list so I can return to “more important” things. Mala’s love of watering plants is a welcome reminder to find wonder, beauty, and joy in life’s everyday, ordinary activities — knowing that “the extraordinary will take care of itself”. To building a wonder-full life, Dave RadparvarCo-Founder, Holstee P.S. Here is a photo of Mala doing what she love's most:
Learn more
Q&A with Daniel Neuman
This month’s art is by Nebraskan designer, Daniel Neuman. Daniel has a passion for creating hand lettering and illustration that tells a story. His inspiration behind this piece was "to create a scene inside a polaroid picture. Technology today is amazing and we have the ability to capture everything we do in unique ways. Nothing compares to the human experience though. Adventure is meant to be lived in the moment.” For a little more about Daniel, here's a short Q&A! Where is home for you? Physically home for me is in Lincoln, Nebraska. I feel the most at home though when I am traveling and exploring somewhere completely new. What is your definition of a successful life? Success for me is loving others. It’s the moments in life that can’t be bought with any amount of money. It’s living life to the fullest no matter what the circumstances are. Describe your perfect day. A perfect day for me would simply be adventuring somewhere new without any plans or obligations. Getting lost in the moment without being distracted by technology or the daily stresses of life. How did you get into design? I started drawing trees when I was about 5 years old and won an award for one I drew when I was 8. I have always loved drawing trees and outdoor scenes since I was a kid. When I got into high school I started to create posters and merch designs for a band I was in as well as other local bands. This sparked an interest in pursuing design as a career. Digital art class was offered during my senior year in high school and I stuck with design ever since. I went to college for graphic design and slowly started picking up freelance jobs here and there. My first job out of college was working as a designer at a screen printing shop. Currently, I work full time as the art director at a design agency called 877. I freelance on the side which has turned into another full-time job as well. I’ve been blessed to work with clients from all over the world and can’t wait to see where this career takes me. Where do you find inspiration? Inspiration is everywhere if you just open your eyes. I’ve been trying to be intentional about slowing down to recognize the inspiration I have in front of me every day. It could be a sign I see on a building or the colors on a tree. There are opportunities in every minute of the day if you allow yourself to see them. What's your dream design project? I’d love to design a mural for Patagonia or an outdoor/adventure brand like that. Which designers or thinkers influence/inspire you? I love being inspired by the designers and photographers I follow on Instagram. A few that come to mind are Noel Shiveley, Taylor Penton, David Rollyn Powell, Christian Watson, Abe Kislevitz, Kyle Fredrickson, Stefan Kunz, Dan Lee, Matt Carlson, Eric Nyffeler, Nick Frederickson, Eva Winters, Joshua Minnich, Michael Moodie, Maggie Ward, Andrew Lennon, Josefine Svärd. I could honestly go on and on, I love all of these designers and photographers so much! What was the inspiration behind this design? Adventure is about exploring something new from a different perspective. The idea was to create a scene inside a polaroid picture. I wanted the design to break the frame in a way that made it feel as if the moment was coming to life. So often now we don’t live in the moment and soak up the experiences we are in. We are too busy snapping photos and adding Instagram filters that we forget to be present where we are. You can’t go to a single national park without seeing hundreds of people with cameras taking pictures around every corner. Technology today is amazing and we have the ability to capture everything we do in unique ways. Nothing compares to the human experience though. Adventure is meant to be lived in the moment. At the moment, what is your favorite… Color: Brick Red Food: Indian Song: “I Don’t Wanna Go” by Chris Renzema Quote: “Good design is obvious, great design is invisible.” -Joe Sparano (one of my favorite teachers in college)
Learn more
Structured flexibility.
Some time after the rainforest adventure I shared a few emails back, my wife Setareh and I went to Amsterdam for our honeymoon. Before we left, I wanted to do my research, look up reviews, and make an itinerary so we could structure our limited time and not miss any of the gems hidden in plain sight.Setareh, on the other hand, felt that a trip like this was a rare moment for us to just let loose, be flexible, and explore this new beautiful city with open eyes. She preferred a more spontaneous approach that wouldn’t tie us to any kind of schedule.After some lively debate, we ultimately found ourselves agreeing to an approach we called structured flexibility. The concept is right in the name: have a general itinerary in mind, but be open to detours and random happenings that can’t be planned.In our case, it meant taking the time to research the neighborhoods we wanted to bike to and even some solid restaurants to have in our back pocket for when we got hungry — but it also meant letting go of the feeling that we had to do any of those things. For example, one day we were on our way to a museum when we spotted an epic outdoor farmer’s market. We decided to let go of our afternoon plans and walk the 5+ blocks of the market — and while we were exploring, I recognized Casey Neistat, an American filmmaker who came on my radar via his amazing video about biking the streets of New York City. We introduced ourselves and had a nice conversation about our respective travels through Amsterdam. Having a clear direction to the day got us going, but it was being open and having an adventurers’ mindset that made it particularly memorable.I don’t think this is revolutionary — but since it saved our honeymoon, I thought it was worth sharing with you.Till soon, Mike RadparvarCo-Founder, Holstee P.S. This is our last week exploring Adventure. Next week’s Holstee Membership dives into one of our favorite themes, Creativity!
Learn more
Chew on this.
"In Pala," she explained, "we don't say grace before meals. We say it with meals. Or rather we don't say grace; we chew it." ― Aldous Huxley, Island A couple years ago, when reading Island by Aldous Huxley, I was transported on a literary adventure to the utopian island of Pala. The book begins when an English journalist, Will Farnaby, is shipwrecked on a Pacific island with a unique set of spiritual, yet pragmatic, traditions. Take their example of saying grace, a Pala tradition that Will learns about from Shanta, a young child at the dinner table: "Grace is the first mouthful of each course — chewed and chewed until there's nothing left of it,” Shanta tells him. “And all the time you're chewing you pay attention to the flavor of the food, to its consistency and temperature, to the pressures on your teeth and the feel of the muscles in your jaw." This tradition reminded me of one of my favorite lines from the Holstee Manifesto: “When you eat, appreciate every last bite.” It’s a beautiful practice of slowing us down so we can fully experience and appreciate what we are eating. Whenever I can remember, I try to practice this tradition from Pala with my own twist. During the first bite of my meal, I chew slowly and intentionally. I try to recognize and taste each ingredient, thinking about how far that ingredient has traveled and the amount of effort and resources required for it to grow. I also add an element of gratitude, thanking each living being that made the bite possible. One of the best things about adventures — even the mini-ones we take by reading a good book or immersing ourselves in a great film — is the way they can bring deeper meaning to our everyday lives. What’s the last great book you read? What souvenir did you take away from it? (Journal your response in Reflection.app →) Dave RadparvarCo-Founder, Holstee & Reflection.app P.S. Thanks to Jonny and the wonderful Curious Humans newsletter for introducing me to this book a few years back!
Learn more
Just a hike in the rainforest, what could go wrong?
When I received this month’s Adventure Art by Matilda van der Walt, it immediately triggered a memory from a few years go. My (now) wife, Setareh, and I were on our first trip together in the Puerto Rican rainforest. On our way back from a beautiful hike, the skies suddenly opened up and down came the rain. The drops were so large, we could feel each one hitting our arms, shoulders and heads. The first minute or two was refreshing and fun. But soon, our clothes and bags were soaked and the cold started to hit us. We huddled together and tried to take shelter under some large leaves. Eventually the rain started to let up, so we decided to make a break for it in case it started up again. Halfway back, we noticed that the ankle-deep brook we had crossed while entering the rainforest was now a rapidly moving river. We would need to ford the river, Oregon Trail style. In the moment, getting caught in the rain and needing to swim across a rapid river felt really unlucky. But if you were to ask either of us now, we wouldn’t change anything about that day. It’s become the part of the trip we remember and laugh about the most. Though we rarely wish for unexpected setbacks, they do have a special way of spicing up an adventure. Because if everything goes smoothly, it’s not really an adventure, right? Mike RadparvarCo-Founder, Holstee
Learn more