November 27, 2020 by Brian Weiner No CommentsChanging The World One Thought At A Time.

The struggle itself towards the heights is enough to fill a man’s heart. One must imagine Sisyphus happy.

In Greek mythology Sisyphus was the king of Ephyra. He was punished for his self-aggrandizing craftiness and deceitfulness by being forced to roll an immense boulder up a hill only for it to roll down every time it neared the top, repeating this action for eternity.

This myth has been the basis and metaphor for working hard. I have often felt as if my life has been spent pushing this proverbial boulder up a mountain. I wait continuously for the moment for that last flying sidekick that catapults the boulder down the other side.

That said, Camus postulates that the greater glory is in the opportunity to be pushing the boulder in the first place. Is this actually true?

As I have sat with this quandary, I would say that it is both true and false simultaneously. It is true that it is glorious to even have the opportunity to be in the position to push the boulder, to have the health and the mental acuity to push the boulder, and the will, the desire and the fortitude to know that you have what it takes to push that boulder up to the top of the mountain.

But it is false that these variables in and of themselves are wholly fulfilling because on some level it is critical to see the boulder summit the mountain and to watch it start flying down the other side, strictly based upon its own momentum.

The struggle unquestionably fills a person’s heart with joy, especially on struggles that are self-initiated and whose potential outcome will deliver life-changing results. But I disagree with Camus that the joy-filled heart of someone on that quest is sufficient all by itself. I think it is critical for anyone on a quest of this magnitude to have the satisfaction of clearing the peak of the mountain and garnering the rewards of the labor.

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and that this holiday weekend finds you in a joyous circumstance!😊

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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!