#95 - Experiences vs Things: What Brings Scott Value?

Our sometimes curmudgeonly but always thoughtful co-host Scott Hambrick shares today some of the things that bring value to his life, and some of things that rob his life of value. And, well, as it turns out it's not things at all which bring him value, but rather people and experiences.

As he says, he tends to view himself as a project. People have the unique capacity for introspection, development, and change. As Socrates famously says "the unexamined life is not worth living." Scott derives value from the activities and experiences which allow him to examine his life, gain deeper understanding of the human experience, and refine his values and personal code of ethics. Strength training fits into this idea well. In addition to being a lifter, Scott is also a voracious reader, regularly tackling challenging literature. This practice has refined his core values, as well as his ability to think critically about problems. He also values the time spent with his family highly -- even citing his family as the primary motivator for what he does. As Scott says, the best and worst things you'll ever do... you'll do with your wife. His marriage sums up the breadth of his human experience.

Scott has rarely regretted the money he's spent on experts, whether it's for coaching, music lessons, or counseling. While things tend to fade - either literally as they break or wear out, or figuratively as your tastes change throughout your life - experiences and skills can last you throughout your life.

The notebooks Scott mentions he uses for note taking are Moleskin Cahier notebooks. They are compact yet big enough to take notes on long books, like Homer's Iliad. They also have stitched pages so they can hold up to the abuse of frequent note-taking. And they're cheap!

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