Where is Genius and My Shoulder
your Saturday roundup
Professionally, I focus on creating social benefit startups. In my Saturday morning emails I share what I’m learning and thinking. Topics range from better living and parenting to business and philosophy.
Ignored Genius. The story of Ramanujan is both inspiring and heartbreaking. Growing up in poverty and away from the center of mathematics or power, Ramanujan was eventually recognized as one of the greatest mathematicians of all time. He was ignored by multiple professors until Hardy recognized his abilities and supported his entrance into higher education. “Hardy was asked what his greatest contribution to mathematics was, Hardy unhesitatingly replied that it was the discovery of Ramanujan.” What if poor sanitation hadn’t killed Ramanujan at 32? What if Hardy hadn’t supported his work? What if Ramanujan had died earlier from childhood diseases like many of his literal and metaphorical siblings? I want to know how we can identify and support the great minds of the next generation. And most importantly: what are you doing to recognize and support the overlooked geniuses in your field?
Eliminating Cervical Cancer. While 350,000 women per year die globally from cervical cancer, progress towards eliminating cervical cancer looks real. The combination of HPV vaccination and regular screening is working. And a friend’s technology company may make screening more accessible, too. Encourage parents to get their children vaccinated. Current rates in the US look too low to me. And it makes me wonder: what other cancer vaccines can we develop?
Where is My Shoulder? These days I don’t have a formal meditation practice. Instead, I seek to incorporate meditation into everyday life. In this vein, two habits I’ve cultivated are:
To check what my toes are doing. I find that if my toes are relaxed and spread evenly, it impacts the rest of my body. Plus, even if I am holding tension in my toes when I check, the fact of checking helps bring me into the present moment.
To check my left shoulder. I hold my shoulder lower when I believe I have enough time. When I start to believe I dont’ have enough time, my shoulder starts to creep up towards my ear. Consciously lowering my shoulder seems to bring a moment of peace. Have you noticed anything like this with your own body?
My current challenge? Resisting multi-tasking when talking to someone.
Until next time,
Miles
P.S. At Purpose Built we recently published a blog post titled: Skip Co-Founder Dating and Build Traction Instead.