Notes

According to Machiavelli, humans are pretending to be civilized, moral, and good. But at the heart of every human soul is a beast, an animal that only wants what it wants.

We act like we care about right and wrong. We follow rules, show kindness, practice virtue. But that’s just a thin shell - underneath, we’re animals focused on getting our desires met. The morality we display is often just performance.

Machiavelli says: drop the act, except when the act serves you. If being gentle gets you ahead, be gentle. If seeming trustworthy opens doors, seem trustworthy. But never actually become these things. The point isn’t to be good, it’s to be effective - to use whatever face works in whatever situation.

Now, you don’t have to live this way. Most people would call this a cold, empty way to exist. But understanding it matters, because whether you accept it or not, some people are playing this exact game - and they’re playing it on you.

Is it really a risk, if what you’re risking is a life you never wanted anyway? We treat change like it’s dangerous, like staying still is the safe option. But staying in a life that’s slowly killing you isn’t safe. It’s just familiar.

Kierkegaard said it best. Marry, and you will regret it. Don’t marry, and you will also regret it. Marry or don’t marry, you will regret it either way. That’s the truth no one wants to admit: there is no choice that comes without regret. Every path costs you something.

So if regret is guaranteed either way, why are you choosing the version that keeps you small? Take the risk - not because it’s safe, but because the alternative is regretting a life you never even tried to live.

At least regret the things you did, not the things you were too scared to.

I came across this on TikTok. I couldn’t track down who said it first, so I can’t give them the credit they’re owed - but it stuck with me enough to write it down.

In order to succeed in life, you must become someone who finishes things. Because the world is drowning in starters. Everyone has the idea. Everyone has the plan. Everyone has the vision board. Starting is free. It’s fun. It gives you the dopamine of feeling like you’re becoming someone without the cost of actually having to. But finishing the job is the tax. And the bill always comes due.

Success isn’t built on talent. It’s built on the boring, unsexy, unglamorous act of taking something all the way to the end. Even when the excitement is gone, even when the novelty has worn off, even when the only thing keeping you in the chair is the quiet, private promise you made to finish what you started. It is built on completion.

Most people will abandon the plan right before the finish line and call it “not the right fit.” But it was never about the fit or the passion or the timing. It was about the tolerance for what finishing actually costs. It’s not just a skill, it’s an identity. Proof that your vision is not just entertainment for your own imagination.

So if you want to succeed, stop being impressed by your ability to start. Start measuring yourself by your willingness to finish.