I came to this work the long way round. One question led to another — and eventually to here

I had a career in software — founded a startup, took it to the US, sold it to a public company. Lived in Boulder, Colorado for seventeen years. Made money, lost money. Retired, unretired.

Along the way I had my share of what life tends to deliver — gains and losses, things that worked and things that didn't.

And through all of it, I kept running into the same wall. I'd know what I should do. I'd understand the situation. And then I'd do something else entirely. Or I'd react in ways that didn't make sense. Or I'd find myself back in the same mess I thought I'd figured out.

Along the way I found myself reading Buddhist thought, the Stoics, contemplative traditions of various kinds. They each pointed at something similar.

Back in Australia I went back to school. Studied psychology and addictive behaviours. What I kept finding was the same point, from every angle: you can't out-think yourself.