I’ve been thinking about minimal and maximal thinking, and I observe this in myself and others. I’ll try to explain the concept and apply it to work and to prayer.

We all employ both minimum thinking and maximum thinking. The difference between the two is this: minimum thinking is to put in as little effort, time, money, or resources as possible to get the needed outcome.

For example, if I don’t enjoy cooking and I’m in a hurry, I use minimalistic thinking to figure out what’s the quickest way I can cook my breakfast. Or I just pour some cereal into a bowl to get some breakfast into my face so I can move on with my day.

Maximalist thinking is how you create as much value as possible. So, for example, when I was in my early twenties and had just graduated college, I had my degree and a grunt job that was paying my bills – or a little bit less than paying my bills. It was something I wasn’t passionate about. So my mindset was to work as little as possible to get enough money to pay my bills.

At that time, I was involved in community theater and in art, and there, I was employing maximalist thinking. I was trying to figure out how much time I could spend memorizing lines, how much time I could spend practicing my acting and facial expressions and vocal techniques. How much time I could spend writing my own plays and screenplays at the time.

So, whatever you’re focused on, whatever your passion project is at that time, becomes your maximal mindset. Everything else then becomes a minimal mindset to sort of make room for that.

Applying Minimum and Maximum Thinking to Work and Wealth

This concept of minimum versus maximum thinking is incredibly powerful when we apply it to how we approach our work, whether as an employee or an entrepreneur.

Another successful flip! thanks to the team Mark Collinsworth (Bluegrass Service) and Ciara Hagedorn (ReMax)

This was a fun one.

The owner needed to get out quick – so the buy price was good. But it didn’t need much work! Just some paint and a HVAC upgrade.

Then it was back on the market within 42 days.

It became an affordable townhome for the perfect first-time homebuyer: a single gal, first generation American, and professional working in Lexington.

I love this process of snagging projects that a first time homebuyer couldn’t pull off by herself – and delivering to her a home. On to the next one!

PS if you want to invest capital or learn how to flip, contact me.

YOU NEED QUESTIONS ON THE REPUBLIC?

What, you are teaching the Republic and have great questions for Books I-IV but don’t have good questions after that? Both reading comprehension and discussion questions, as well as essay prompts? I got you!

Book V What are the “four forms of badness”? Why is Glaucon interested in them? Is it wise to study badness? 449c Polemarchus and Adeimantus think Socrates is “robbing” them out of “a whole section of the argument…” namely, that “women and children” will “be in common. Socrates says, “How much discussion you’ve set in motion…” Why does Socrates skip it? Why do they want him to go through it? 451c-453c Are men and women different in nature? 453d In the swimming in the pool or sea image, what is the “swimming” Socrates is talking about? What is the ocean? What might the dolphin be? 454a What is the difference between eristic and dialectic? 459e What is the benefit of arranging marriages? What is the benefit of freely chosen marriages? What is the cost of each? 462b What does Socrates mean that “the [greatest] evil for a city … splits it and makes it many instead of one…”? How does the argument propose to absolve factions? (See also 465c and 473b) 464c Is private ownership of land, children, houses, etc. and an evil for the city? Is it good? Is it neutral? What is the benefit of communal ownership, according to Socrates? 466d The life of women and children in common has been explained. Is it possible? (See also 471c) 473c What are the three waves? Why is the third the “biggest”? 474a Who are “the many” men who will attack Socrates “if he doesn’t defend himself with speech and get away”? Why are they so mad? 475b Socrates and Glaucon assert, “that the philosopher is a desirer of wisdom, not of one part and not another, but of all of it.” Is this true? In other words, if you don’t like any kind of wisdom (botanical, astronomical, theological, physical, psychological) does that mean you are not a desirer of wisdom? 477a What is opinion? What knowledge? What is the object of each? Book VI 484a Socrates mentions the “sharp-sighted guardian.” What does it mean to be sharp-sighted? Who is sharp-sighted in this text? 484d Glaucon says, “By Zeus”… What do these swearing moments point to? 485b What makes a “philosophic nature”, according to their argument? Do you agree? 487a What does being “a good rememberer” have to do with the philosophic nature? 487b What is wrong with those whom Adeimantus criticizes in this section, the “inexperienced at questioning and answering”? 487e Adeimantus says Socrates is “Unaccustomed to speaking through images”. Why is this so? 489a-b What is the meaning of Socrates’ shipowner image? How does it “resemble the cities in their disposition toward the true philosopher.”? 490e What’s the difference between being “useless” and being “viscous”? 491-492 Is the “course of learning” set down for the philosopher realistic? Does it matter or not? 496b What does it mean to “keep company with philosophy in a way that’s worthy”? 497 What is so “eager and reckless” about Socrates proposal for educating youth? 498b Were Socrates and Thrasymachus enemies before? Why does Socrates say they weren’t, and that they have become friends? 500 Socrates defends “the many” from their hatred of philosophers by saying that they actually hate the “outsiders.” Was Socrates hated in this way by the many? Could he “make the city happy”? (500e) 502d Socrates says it wasn’t “very wise of me to have left aside” the digression about women, children, and rulers. Why did he change his mind? Which is right? 503b “Philosophers must be the most precise guardians.” Write a one page (or more) description of Socrates’ guardian philosopher. Describe his youth, his education, his military career, and the way he rules the city. 504e What is “the finest” study? What is “that for the sake of which it does everything”? 505b What is better, Pleasure, Prudence, or the something else? 507b Follow Socrates’ comments carefully–how does the idea of the good itself come into the conversation? 507 What is the point of the image about light, the sun, and the eye? How does that connect to the good? 508 How is the study of the idea of the good the crown of the education of the guardian/philosopher? 509a Socrates sys “the good isn’t being but is still beyond being, exceeding it in dignity and power”. What does that mean? 509d Relate the intelligible class with the visible–what ratio is between them? What are the four types of thinking that correspond to the four objects of thought? 511a How are “hypothesis” “the beginning of arts” 511d How does Glaucon understand and agree with Socrates? What’s going on inside his soul at that moment? Book VII 514b Draw an image of the prison, a “cave-like” dwelling. Include as many details as possible, as if you had to build a set for a movie. 515c Socrates says, “Take a man who is release and suddenly compelled to stand up.” Who released him? 517 How does the two causes of blindness relate to the argument? 520 Why do philosophers have to rule? Is that unjust, as Glaucon suspects? 523d How do the sight of bigness and littleness awaken the intellect? 524 He says it is “necessary… that… the soul be at a loss” – how does being at a loss awaken the intellect? 526 How does geometry assist the pursuit of knowledge/wisdom? 529 How does astronomy assist the pursuit of knowledge/wisdom? 531 Socrates standard is that “men [be] able to give an account and receive one” in order to “know anything of what we say they must know…”? Does anyone meet this standard? 532 What is the journey he calls dialectic? Relate the journey both within the image, and without. 534a How do you separate out the idea of the good? Can you do it? Book VIII Now that the digression is over, and “women must be in common, children and their entire education must be in common, and similarly the practices in war and peace must be in common, and their kings must be those among them who have proved best in philosophy and with respect to war,” both Socrates and Glaucon agree. They are going to return to the “four forms” of regime, and the four forms of men associated with them. What are the four forms? Whence do they arise? 546 Is Socrates classist? What makes someone a part of some class of soul? 550 What are the characteristics of each soul that form that regime? How do these relate with Montesquieu’s division? 559 What is the oligarchic man’s orientation towards pleasure? 559d How do the democratic men come from oligarchic ones? 564a How does tyranny come out of democracy? 571a Who is the tyrannical man? What is he like? 571a Is anyone in the dialogue a tyrannical man? 571b & 580d What are the forms of desires? 574b Again, Zeus– twice. Why are they swearing thus? 578b Why doesn’t the tyrannical man prefer the public life to the private life? 580d What is the threefold division of pleasures? How do these point to parts of the soul? 588 Is wax more moldable than words, or vice versa? Why? 595a Which kinds of poetry are excluded from the just city? Why shouldn’t imitative poetry be admitted? 597a What is the point of the “couch” analogy? There are three couches–how does this advance the argument? 599 Compare 599 with Ion… Is Socrates implying the same thesis as the one Ion agrees to, or something different? 600 Why finish the dialogue–about justice, the good city, the philosopher-king, the tyrannical soul–with a conversation about imitation? 605b Is the “deliberation” spoken about here non-emotional? Is it Christian? 605d What is the danger with personal sorrow, according to the argument? How does it fit into the good life? Is it OK to watch sad TV shows and movies? 607b Socrates describes an “old quarrel between philosophy and poetry”… What compromise does he offer in 607c? 621a Why does the same man who prohibits imitative poetry end his conversation with a myth? 609b Can the soul be destroyed? Can it be harmed? Is justice more beneficial than injustice? 614 Does Er make a good decision?

Very nice article: https://paulkingsnorth.substack.com/p/california-son…

On the patron saint of lost western people… Seraphim Rose definitely helped to save my faith 15 years ago!

Two poems I wrote for the kids, commissioned by the kids. I asked them for a prompt. Josiah naturally asked for Hamsters. Evelyn for fairies in the forest.

Hamster poem (Josiah, age 12)

In a pile of blankets, you glance And see a flash of motion. You must be quick for a chance Of gathering a notion Of the hamster dance. They run and jump and hide in tunnels, Tucked and folded for fun! They’ll hide before anyone’ll Can guess their hamster names! Chirping, squeak! Josiah comes! Everyone play dumb or sleep! Master never, ever plumbs Our depths, how deep we creep! We squall, and roll, and feed our face On every seed and crumb That even though we walk with grace We seem so simple and dumb He’ll never guess our games!

Fairies in forest (Evelyn, age 10)

Hyacinth of purple and pink adorn The path, dappled each side with green and grey, But roses white appear as gold each morn When Master Sun rises to shine his rays. At night, starlight alone adorns her head, (Unless light of Moon softly paints the lass,) A pillow of darling daisies ‘neath her bed And winds whispering through the downy grass. Moss, tangled roots, brown leaves festoon The meadow wherein she sleeps with the blessed; Brightly lit fairies dance and sing a tune With words that when she wakes she cannot guess. She rests in joy — her golden hair her down — A dozen lily fairies are her crown.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2025/01/04/the-young-men-leaving-traditional-churches-for-orthodox/?fbclid=IwY2xjawLGiHNleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETEyZVhkZkIzdnJNODY1QjBaAR77jWqg5xEl9MqGfKHmBCHTADlZcHwXp_yW_yZtL8WYeF1Os2r8_kQdLlSEdA_aem_orwBp839d116OqX7Bbv1Ag

Second similar article.

It’s not the masculinity, silly: it’s the truth and healing and connection with Almighty.

Good marriage counseling should make each party feel that the counselor is taking the other spouse’s side.

To men: only focus on being a better husband (with good boundaries and clear communication, of course… but not your main focus).

To wives: only focus on being a better wife (with good boundaries and clear communication, of course… but not your main focus).

The counselor, pastor, or friend should not tolerate litanies of what the other spouse does wrong or the other spouse’s character defects…. Which will make the litigant feel that he or she is not understood. So be it.

You’re right. But so is she. So what? You’re both right. What are you going to do about it? Not change the other person – that’s for sure. Instead, invest 100% of your energy in changing yourself.

Don’t worry so much about the other person’s performance. In fact, suppose she are being just as patient with you as you have to be of her (and vice versa), show some gratitude for that patience.

Then work harder on your responsibilities and forget the other person’s score card: for men focus on loving her, kindness, cherishing her, providing her safety (financial, emotional, and physical safety), and getting to know her; for women, loving him, respecting him, trusting him, and intimacy (physical, emotional, intellectual) with him.

Miracles happen when we pray, endure, and stick to our duty.

All virtues stem from a few basic virtues: justice, love, wisdom, humility, and so on.

What might the modern ‘virtue’ or quasi-virtue of decisiveness refer to?

Decisiveness refers to taking action, right away, when it is time to act. This most closely corresponds to the classical virtue of **zeal,** opposite the deadly vice of **sloth.** Sloth is a torpid resistance to doing good — while zeal is an energetic **leap** in the direction of the good.

When it comes to avoiding stress, and being happy in our day to day lives, decisiveness looks like setting a time and a place for everything and sticking to it with discipline.

I call this ‘time budgeting’ because it is similar to a money budget.

When it’s time to check email, for example, check email! But when it’s not time, don’t dip your toe in the email (for example, glancing at a mobile app) where doing so could cause stress because you aren’t able to answer the email right then.

Even better: when it’s the time or place you have to develop the discipline to not even think about that topic or activity. For example, if you are not going to sit down and pay bills, don’t even think about bills — our thoughts cause us stress. The thought “I have bills to pay” may negatively affect your mood, especially if you can’t do anything about it right then.

For all the recurring activities and responsibilities we must tackle, find a time and place for them. If you can’t (you’re ‘overbudget’ on activities) then cut back on commitments. If you set aside a time and place, but find yourself distracted or not completing things on time, increase the time budget or increase your personal discipline. Use checklists to keep track of each step in a larger project and get to it.

By setting a time and place and being decisive (zealous!), it is possible to be both highly productive and also relaxed and stress free.

An olympic runner doesn’t run all the time. There may be times that they look from the outside quite calm, or even lazy. It’s not time to run!

Here’s a really important question: What’s the potential downside? What’s the worst case scenario? What bad thing could happen if I act?

Here’s an even more important question: What’s the potential upside? What’s the best case scenario? What bad thing could happen if I don’t act?

Look for the good (“be the bee”), see the good, emphasize the good, notice what’s noble, think on what is beautiful.

And, as a corollary, look for the best case scenario, the highest potential upside, and let that factor into your risk analysis. If the good is great enough, it’s worth a great risk.

Dreas Sanchez Story

I met Andre at a Christian Philosophy conference. He was 5’8’’, muscular, tattooed, and stoic. Almost everyone else ‘looked’ like a philosopher. This guy looked like a cholo. He walked into the 9am session on Divine Omnipresence with his red hat backwards.

The presenter, Dr. Arcadi looked like me: white, skinny, sporting a tie and a coat. Andre looked like a gangster going back to college. Despite appearances, he proved intelligent. During the Q&A, Andre’s questions were articulate and informed. He asked Dr. Arcadi about the creation by the Logos, the divine presence within the cosmos. He asked if Logos theology is just panentheism.. Dr. Arcadi responded calmly but with some strained magnanimity. Andre’s follow up question suggested that holiness was like the “vibrations” of the voice of the original utterance of the Logos. Dr. Arcadi’s patience wore thin.

Andre spoke like a rapper and moved like a rapper. He flowed, bobbed, and virtually danced as he talked. His accent pegged him as from New Mexico. His voice and manner were from the street, but his words were that of a seminarian… or a mystic.

After the talk I walked with Andre in the hallway, and we discussed Eastern Orthodoxy. I told him, “I was feeling your question.” He asked me my story.

“I grew up in a charismatic church, so I wanted vitality; I went to a great college, so I wanted intellectual depth and fidelity to Christian history; I was meditating daily, so I wanted spiritual depth. The Orthodox had all that.”

He told me, ‘Bro, I got chills.’ He spoke with earnestness and sincerity, like a child.