Stop Giving Weak Compliments, Do This Instead - Charisma on Command

Three Levels of Compliments for Better Connection

Most people rely on basic compliments, but there are actually three distinct levels of compliments that can significantly deepen connections.

Level 1: Social Flow Compliments

These are simple ways to bring a friendly and positive vibe to an interaction, but they can be improved by adding three specific elements.

• Be Specific: Instead of general praise, compliment something specific to make the interaction more engaging.
• Focus on Effort: Highlight something the person has put significant effort into, rather than traits that come naturally to them.
• Maintain Eye Contact: Delivering a compliment with eye contact makes it meaningful, whereas a lack of eye contact can make it feel like a basic social nicety.
• Avoid Pressure: Do not use eye contact to insist the other person receives the compliment in a particular way, as this can make the interaction uncomfortable.

Level 2: MC Compliments

50 Questions to Connect More Deeply with Your Partner - Chris Williamson

What feelings are hard for you to communicate? How can I make it easier?

What is a compromise you've had to make since meeting me?

What was the most recent experience that made you feel closer to me?

What makes you feel most loved in our relationship?

If I disappeared tomorrow, what would you regret not telling me?

How do you think we can best resolve conflicts when they arise?

Are there past experiences that still affect how you view our relationship now?

What are you looking forward to most in our future together?

How can I listen and understand you better without becoming defensive?

Is there something about me that you hope I can change or improve for our relationship’s sake?

How to Future-Proof Your Brain from Dementia - Tim Ferris with Dr Tommy Wood

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Dementia Preventability and Lifestyle Factors

A significant proportion of dementia cases, estimated between 45% and 72%, may be preventable through lifestyle modifications and environmental management. The Lancet Commission attributes 45% of dementia risk to modifiable factors such as hypertension, hearing loss, obesity, physical inactivity, smoking, alcohol consumption, and low levels of early education. Other studies suggest the preventable percentage could be as high as 72% when accounting for additional factors like sleep loss and late-life physical activity. While these statistics represent population-level probabilities rather than individual guarantees, they indicate that individuals can significantly improve their odds of maintaining cognitive health by addressing these variables.

Nutritional Foundations for Brain Health

Proper brain function relies on specific nutrients that support structure and energy metabolism. Omega-3 fatty acids, particularly DHA, are critical for synaptic function and mitochondrial energy production. However, studies indicate that Omega-3 supplementation may only be effective when B-vitamin status (specifically folate, B12, and B6) is adequate, as methylation is required to incorporate DHA into cell membranes.

Criticisms that hurt - Chis Williamson

It’s common wisdom to say “the only criticisms that hurt are the ones that are true.”

I don’t think that’s right.

The criticisms that hurt most are the ones that you know aren’t true, but that other people might believe.

The only thing worse than having your reputation damaged for something shameful you did is having it damaged for something shameful you didn’t do.

That’s wrongful conviction.

You have to carry the weight of the accusation alongside the indignation of being innocent. You’re not just hurt. You’re trapped.

The Disease of More: Why You Feel Unhappy, Lost, Addicted & Stressed - Dr Rangan Chatterjee with Joshua Fields Milburn

The Disease of More and Consumerism

• Consumerism is the ideology that acquiring more material goods will lead to happiness, a belief that falsely suggests joy is embedded in external objects rather than pre-existing within us.
• Society suffers from a disease of more, where the constant desire for better jobs, cars, and promotions drives individuals to overwork, leading to stress and physical illness.
• Many people attempt to fill an internal void with relationships, substances, or material possessions, but this consumption fails to satisfy the emptiness and often results in significant debt.
• Modern culture obsessively tracks countables such as square footage, bank balances, and social media followers, often ignoring the unmeasurables like joy, contentment, and grief that truly shape a meaningful life.
• The concept of the 'pursuit of happiness' can be problematic, as it frames happiness as a distant endpoint to be chased rather than a state of being.

Identity Clutter and Social Signalling

Discipline, motivation and obsession - Chis Williamson

Discipline, motivation and obsession are three words that get thrown around a lot.

I think most people misunderstand all three, and because of that they miss some very big lessons about how life actually works.

Here’s the simplest way to separate them:

Discipline is “I will make myself do the thing.”

Motivation is “I want to do the thing.”

Obsession is “I can’t not do the thing.”

All three produce the same outcome - the thing gets done.

But the internal cost could not be more different, and the difference is friction.

Discipline is friction accepted.

You don’t want to do the thing, but you do it anyway. You lean on effort, willpower, routines, environment design, past patterns and habits to drag yourself over the line.

It’s mostly under your control, which is why it’s so reliable. If you are willing to pay the price, discipline will always show up.

The problem is that the price is high.

Discipline is expensive. It burns energy. It creates resistance. It feels heavy. It works, but it’s a grind.

Optimizing Workspace for Productivity, Focus & Creativity - Dr Andrew Huberman

Optimizing Light for Neurochemical States

To maximize focus and productivity, one should tailor lighting to the brain's changing neurochemical states throughout the day.

• Phase 1 (0 to 8–9 hours after waking): Flood the workspace with bright light, including overhead and desk lights, to stimulate alertness through dopamine and epinephrine release.
• During this early phase, facing a window or using bright LED pads helps wake up the brain's alertness systems.
• Phase 2 (9 to 16 hours after waking): Dim the environment and switch to warmer yellow or red hues to support serotonin production, which favours creative and abstract thinking.
• Eliminating overhead lighting in the afternoon helps transition the brain from analytic focus to a more relaxed, creative state.
• Phase 3 (17 to 24 hours after waking): Keep lighting very dim to preserve melatonin levels and circadian rhythm, unless one deliberately intends to stay awake for a deadline.

Leveraging Visual Mechanics for Alertness

Why do women get PMS? - Chris Williamson

Evolutionary biologist Michael Gillings offers a provocative suggestion: The condition nudged ancestral women to ditch infertile partners.

For most of our evolutionary history, women were pregnant or breastfeeding most of the time, and thus regular menstrual cycles were rare… except among women paired with men who couldn’t get them pregnant.

If premenstrual irritability increased the chances of such pairings dissolving, women could move on to more fertile partners, boosting their odds of passing on their genes.

Supporting evidence for the theory includes the fact that anger during PMS is often directed at one’s partner.

If Gillings is right, then PMS isn’t a biological accident but an evolved mechanism now mismatched with the modern world - a world in which even fertile couples often choose to postpone having children or forgo it altogether. — Steve Stewart-Williams

https://chriswillx.com/blog/

The issue with calling masculinity "toxic" - Big Think with Richard Reeves

The Problem with Defining Masculinity as "Non-Toxic"

• Low Aspirational Standards: Framing masculinity merely as "non-toxic" is problematic because it sets a very low bar for behaviour; telling boys to simply "not be poisonous" fails to offer a genuinely inspiring vision for their future.
• Overlap with Femininity: When people attempt to define "non-toxic" masculinity by citing traits such as vulnerability, caring, and nurturing, they are often describing positive femininity rather than something distinctly masculine.
• The False Choice: Because "non-toxic" definitions often mirror feminine traits, boys and young men feel trapped in a dilemma where they must choose between being "toxic" or effectively being "female".

Risk-Taking as a Distinct Masculine Trait

• Higher Risk Appetite: One specific way to articulate positive masculinity is to look at risk; on average, men demonstrate a higher willingness to take risks compared to women.
• A Double-Edged Sword: This high risk appetite is neither inherently good nor bad; it is beneficial when it drives men to save lives or innovate in business, but detrimental when it leads to reckless behaviour like gambling or substance abuse.
• The Necessity of Balance: Society should not view the male approach to risk as superior or inferior to the female approach; rather, we need both the masculine drive for risk and the feminine tendency toward caution to function effectively.

20 Sentences to Stop Overthinking by Nir Eyal - Chris Williamson

1. I don't need certainty to act.
2. If it's reversible, I decide fast.
3. I choose one next step, not ten.
4. I don't solve feelings; I surf them.
5. My thoughts are not instructions.
6. Action creates clarity, not thought.
7. I write it down so my brain can rest.
8. I'm allowed to move with partial info.
9. I give myself a deadline, then choose.
10. I ask, "What's the next visible action?"
11. I schedule thinking so that I don't spiral.
12. I trade rumination for one small experiment.
13. I let future-me correct, not present-me freeze.
14. I'm aiming for progress, not the perfect plan.
15. I ask, "What would this look like if it were easy?"
16. I accept that some questions stay open while I move.
17. I notice loops and ask, Is this helping or just hindering?"
18. I'm the kind of person who stops rehearsing and starts doing.
19. If it won't matter in 5 years, it doesn't get this much brainspace.
20. I'd rather be roughly right in motion than stuck "perfecting" ideas.

https://chriswillx.com/blog/