May 18, 2022 by Brian Weiner No CommentsChanging The World One Thought At A Time., Lessons From The Mountain

Life is so ironic. It takes sadness to know what happiness is, noise to appreciate silence and absence to value presence.

Life is so ironic. It takes sadness to know what happiness is, noise to appreciate silence and absence to value presence.

We live in a continuum of opposites. Each side of every spectrum defines the opposite. As we approach either end of the continuum, we discover more and more about the opposite side.

The journey through life inevitably takes all of us to each of the respective sides of the continuum, whether we seek them or not. In our discovery process, we are afforded the opportunity to grow. In some cases, that growth overtakes us in ever increasing ways, regardless of our desire to learn.

When we are on the positive side of one of the continuum, we are reveling in that experience and seldom focused on the opposite end of the continuum. Whereas when we are on the negative side of a continuum, we are continuously thinking about the opposite side and wanting and hoping to be there.

These feelings of lacking are the rocket fuel that propel our internal momentum which catalyze our efforts to get over to the opposite side of the spectrum. Perhaps it is because of our exposure to the negative side of the continuum that we are able to find the resources within to galvanize our effort and behavior in order that we might experience what we are most lacking in that moment.

I find it interesting that sometimes silence is deafening. Sometimes the lack of stimulation can be overwhelmingly lonely and disconcerting, yet after being in a space that is overwhelmed with cacophony, our need for that silence could not be any more pronounced.

Spending too much time with even the best of people can breed its own degree of irritation and frustration, yet remove them from our presence and within a reasonable period of time, we will discover how much we really miss them being around.

We find a silver lining on a cloud because it represents the beginning of the transformation from one side of the spectrum to the other. Yet, without that cloud, sometimes the sunlight is so overpowering and hot as to make us wish for any shelter from the sun.

In recognizing the continuum of opposites and understanding our values placed on either side of that continuum, we are more capable of discovering our own internal harmony from which we may become centered and focused.

Happy Wednesday!

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Written by Brian Weiner

When I was 5 years old, I discovered that the lemon tree in the backyard + dixie cups + water and sugar and I was in business. I have been hooked on that ever since. In 1979, I borrowed $14,000 to create a brand new product... photographic greeting cards with no text on the inside, called Paradise Photography. That was the start of The Illusion Factory. Since then, The Illusion Factory has been entrusted by all of the major studios and broadcasters with the advertising and marketing of over $7 billion in filmed, live, broadcast, gaming, AR, VR and regulated gaming forms of entertainment, generating more than $100 Billion in revenue and 265 awards for creativity and technology for our clients. When I took a break from film school at UCLA to move to Hawaii, my mother did not lecture me. Instead, she took 150 of her favorite aphorisms and in her beautiful calligraphy, wrote them artistically throughout a blank journal. That is the origin of the Lessons from the Mountain series. Since then, on my journeys to the top of a mountain to watch the sunrise, I have spent countless hours contemplating words of wisdom from the sages of all races, genders and political persuasions, constantly accumulating the thoughts to guide me on my life path. I hope you enjoy my books. Please let me know your thoughts, as I highly value your feedback!