A man of mediocrity

I never wanted to be a man of mediocrity: the kind who lives on a couch, consuming a diet of streaming services, social media, or online gambling.

His world is small, his interests confined to work, money, base humor, and getting drunk on the weekend. He masks a lack of depth with cynicism and gossip, mistaking his limited view for a clear-eyed one.

I’ve met my share of these people, and I feel no superiority. Only a firm conviction that this is not who I want to be.

What I have always loved is finding depth in my pursuits and in my connections. I find it in reading, writing, drawing, photography, and music, and in conversations with curious minds.

Yet, I feel our society has less and less room for such meaningful pursuits. Online and off, you garner more attention for a career milestone on LinkedIn than for a piece on the beauty of Impressionism.

We are flattening into a culture of emotionless rationality, one that prizes performance above all else.

This worldview is driven by competition, polarization, and a relentless push for efficiency: an ethos evident in our obsession with AI and our celebration of figures like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos as ultimate role models.

I believe we must move in the opposite direction.

Our world would be profoundly better if more people looked inward instead of outward. Real beauty emerges from soul-searching, from discovering what you, from your own creative core, can offer the world.

This is how societies truly grow: through the dedicated efforts of individuals creating and sharing value.

These creations are the antithesis of the mental junk food that clogs our feeds and that cynical resignation of your colleague at work that life is merely something to be endured.

To create something of authentic value and share it is to actively build a better society.

My mission is simple: to practice and share meaningful pursuits like drawing, painting, and writing. Follow me and join me on my journey to become a better Renaissance man and help make the world a little bit better, one creation at a time.