Strands of Genius: Rhythm, Ritual and Boundaries, Nihilism, The Rise of the Anti-Anxiety Instagram Cartoon

Guest Curated by Rob Estreitinho

May 28, 2020

:: A BIT MORE ABOUT GUEST CURATOR, ROB ESTREITINHO::

LOCATION: London, UK
PLACE OF EMPLOYMENT: VCCP

Hi! I'm Rob, a human venn diagram of strategy, philosophy and internet stuff. I've spent 10+ years hanging out at marketing and advertising agencies, last 2 of which at an integrated London shop called VCCP. On the side, I'm a Partner at Group Think, a global community for strategists, and write a philosophy newsletter called Salmon Theory. I first met Rosie and Faris when I moved to London, and ever since try to meet them whenever they're in town to exchange 'field notes' and generally geek out about the world. You know when they say "find your people"? Whenever I spend time speaking to them, I feel like I have. Lots of love from the island. x

Editor’s Note (Rosie & Faris): We met Rob because he came to many/most/all? of our London meet ups. He’s enthusiastic, obviously, and thoughtful and open and kind. He turned us on to One Punch Man and his Salmon Theory has gotten better and better over time. Philosophy geeks unite! For sure, but when you have multiple overlapping geekdoms, well, you never run out of things to talk about. Rock ON Rob. Thanks for being here!

GENIUS STEALS PRESENTS THE SCHOOL OF STOLEN GENIUS

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:: THE LINKS ::

RHYTHM, RITUAL AND BOUNDARIES

I loved this article, because it came at a time when I was trying to work out how to best organise myself around lockdown. I thrive on routines, but more recently I've learned they come with a risk of putting you on an unhelpful auto-pilot mode. So while I love routine, I am also trying to add variants within said routine, to keep things fresh. Plus, it includes some beautiful articulations of contradictory feelings that I think you might relate to, as I did. (Medium)

IF YOU BELIEVE IN NIHILISM, DO YOU BELIEVE IN ANYTHING?

I often say philosophy is a tool for pessimists. And it most certainly is a tool for over-thinkers. I consider myself a bit of both, which is why this article was so illuminating. It showed me how a concept that we often see as 'negative' (nihilism poses that life is fundamentally meaningless) has more nuance to it. It talks about how we can be active or passive nihilists, based on our relationship with pursuing knowledge, asking hard questions and living with constant doubt about... well, everything (which I still believe is a good thing). (Aeon)

THE RISE OF THE ANTI-ANXIETY INSTAGRAM CARTOON

I have a love/hate phased relationship with Instagram; right now, I'm in the love phase. And seeing this gave me a bunch of new accounts to follow, as they bring together two things I feel close to: cartoons, and mental health. What I love about this is that it shows you can have a creative pursuit without needing a fancy setup to do it. In fact, I'd argue the fancy setup can sometimes feel like a barrier, because it puts us in a mindset to try and be perfect, instead of just trying to be frequent. Perfection is a false friend who's a bit of a d*ck. (We Present)

Read more from Rob Estreitinho, including thoughts on learning by doing, thinking with your hands, how strategy and philosophy are similar, learning as a group, getting the roots of problems, and why you shouldn't associate your sofa with work

Access all our expert interviews for The School of Stolen Genius here.

:: AND NOW… SOME FAST FAVORITES ::

:: Game :: Right now, Limbo. (I take forever to start/finish games.)

:: City :: Reykjavík

:: Book :: Recently, "Wilful Blindness" by Margaret Heffernan

:: Podcast :: No Such Thing As A Fish, by the QI Elves

:: Album :: The Wall, by Pink Floyd

:: GIF ART ::

I have no idea if gif art is a thing. But after seeing that article about Instagram cartoons, I started toying around with Instagram's editing tools. The result probably makes no sense, but I have fun doing it every now and then.

Stay safe – and sane. Hope to see you either at a Group Think event or in your inbox.

Rob Estreitinho
email: roberto.estreitinho@gmail.com
Group Think | Salmon Theory | GifArt

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Strands of Genius