Eric-Jorgenson The-Almanack-of-Naval-Ravikant indd

CONTRARIAN
S
OPTIMISTS

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B U I L D I N G J U D G M E N T · 101
SHED YOUR IDENTITY TO SEE REALITY
Our egos are constructed in our formative years—our first 
two decades. They get constructed by our environment, our 
parents, society. Then, we spend the rest of our life trying to 
make our ego happy. We interpret anything new through our 
ego: “How do I change the external world to make it more how 
I would like it to be?” [8]
“Tension is who you think you should be. 
Relaxation is who you are.”
—Buddhist saying
You absolutely need habits to function. You cannot solve every 
problem in life as if it is the first time it’s thrown at you. We 
accumulate all these habits. We put them in the bundle of 
identity, ego, ourselves, and then we get attached to them. “I’m 
Naval. This is the way I am.”
It’s really important to be able to uncondition yourself, to be 
able to take your habits apart and say, “Okay, this is a habit I 
probably picked up when I was a toddler trying to get my par-
ent’s attention. Now I’ve reinforced it and reinforced it, and 
I call it a part of my identity. Does it still serve me? Does it 
make me happier? Does it make me healthier? Does it make 
me accomplish whatever I set out to accomplish?”
I’m less habitual than most people. I don’t like to structure 
my day. To the extent I have habits, I try to make them more 
deliberate rather than accidents of history. [4]

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102 · T H E A L M A N A C K O F N A V A L R A V I K A N T
Any belief you took in a package (ex. Democrat, Catholic, 
American) is suspect and should be re-evaluated from base 
principles.
I try not to have too much I’ve pre-decided. I think creating 
identities and labels locks you in and keeps you from seeing 
the truth.
To be honest, speak without identity.
I used to identify as libertarian, but then I would find myself 
defending positions I hadn’t really thought through because 
they’re a part of the libertarian canon. If all your beliefs line 
up into neat little bundles, you should be highly suspicious.
I don’t like to self-identify on almost any level anymore, which 
keeps me from having too many of these so-called stable 
beliefs. [4]
We each have a contrarian belief society rejects. But the 
more our own identity and local tribe reject it, the more real 
it likely is.
There are two attractive lessons about suffering in the long 
term. It can make you accept the world the way it is. The other 
lesson is it can make your ego change in an extremely hard way.
Maybe you’re a competitive athlete, and you get injured badly, 

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B U I L D I N G J U D G M E N T · 103
like Bruce Lee. You have to accept being an athlete is not your 
entire identity, and maybe you can forge a new identity as a 
philosopher. [8]
Facebook redesigns. Twitter redesigns. Personalities, careers, 
and teams also need redesigns. There are no permanent 
solutions in a dynamic system.