WEEKLY: Seeking Inner Order Through Reading, Reflection, and Creation

The past week unfolded amid regular diet and exercise and intensive academic pressure. In the gaps of these daily routines, reading, reflection, and creative projects became pathways to seeking inner order and balance.

Health: The Foundation of the Body

Continuous attention to health is reflected in daily records of diet and exercise, as well as observing their direct impact on mental state.

• Diet and Awareness: Through practice, I noticed that high-carb, high-sugar breakfasts (like brown sugar buns, eight-treasure porridge) and lunches (like sweet and sour pork) bring brief satisfaction but often lead to poor spirits in the afternoon. In contrast, balanced combinations—like poached fish, steamed eggs, greens, and whole grains—keep both body and energy in a more comfortable state.

• Regular Exercise: Half an hour of morning running, Tai Chi, and martial arts training (Baduanjin, Yi Jin Jing) have become habits. These exercises are not just physical training but a kind of “settling,” letting one feel the vitality of life through movement.

• The Importance of Sleep: A deep realization is that 7 hours versus 8-9 hours of sleep makes a world of difference for the next day’s mental activity and athletic ability. Ensuring adequate and regular sleep is crucial for maintaining peak performance.

The World in Books and the Self

Reading was an important source of energy this week, with several books bringing new perspectives and deep resonance.

• “Becoming a Mother” and Empathy: This book brought unprecedented understanding of the role of mother. The postpartum psychological ups and downs, the exhaustion of nighttime feeding, and the loss of personal space described in the book finally helped me understand that behind the complaints was a “very, very painful” experience.

• “Blink” and Intuition: This book explores humanity’s subconscious ability to make complex judgments within two seconds. This made me realize that whether picking a good book or making decisions amid complex information, trusting and using intuition is a powerful tool. It also brought reflection: those subconscious biases need to be corrected by changing deep beliefs, not just surface awareness.

• “Influence” and Psychological Insight: Examples in the book about “click, whirr” conditioned responses and the psychological bias that “expensive = good” reveal many subtle psychological principles. This is a wake-up call—these mental shortcuts can help us but can also be exploited by others.

• Other Reading Insights: Discussing “The Wealth Ladder” in a book club sparked thoughts about the relationship between wealth levels and consumption; the novel “A Kind of Love” depicted a cold world, provoking deep thought. The refreshing feeling of knowledge filling the brain from reading is incomparable to any fragmented entertainment.

Dialogue with the Self: Stress, Focus, and Growth

Between academics, personal projects, and interpersonal relationships, I often feel various tugging forces and pressure, which prompts inward observation and learning how to manage mindset.

• Identifying Sources of Stress: Listening to Naval’s podcast brought an insight: what we call stress often stems from the tug-of-war between different desires within. For example, wanting to focus on reading while unable to stop caring about how someone replies to messages. Identifying this contradiction is the first step to making clear choices.

• Fighting Distraction, Returning to Focus: When studying or working, I sometimes unconsciously get drawn to social media or other entertainment. What needs to be learned is recognizing when this “distraction” happens, then gently but firmly pulling attention back, or choosing active rest rather than draining energy in inefficient switching.

• Leaving “Gaps” in Life: One realization is that life can’t be packed full. Learning to sing “Seemingly the Same Person,” walking, or just spacing out—these seemingly “useless” blanks are actually medicine for regulating body and mind, recovering vitality. If the whole day is spent immersed in mathematical methods, there’s a feeling of “nausea”—reminding that balance is crucial.

Defining Myself Through Creation

Besides academics, various creative projects are also pathways to explore and define the self.

• Polishing Personal Work: Spending time perfecting my personal blog website, when this work based on self-identity definition is seen and liked by others, brings tremendous satisfaction.

• Exploring AI Tools: When studying courses like Theoretical Mechanics, actively using AI tools for assisted learning and interaction, and happily sharing these tools with friends. This isn’t just learning but an interesting exploration.

• Organizing Activities: Planning book club activity flows, preparing materials, coordinating offline arrangements—this “Admin” work, though tedious, organizing something from scratch still brings a huge sense of accomplishment.