Jordan Max Cooperman

Improve Yourself by Tracking Your Behavior

Insight • 2 Nov 2020 • 5 min read

Like the old adage about seeing the forest for the trees, it is sometimes difficult to see our own behavior within a broader context. You can look in the mirror, but how do you know if you've gained weight? A snapshot is not enough, you must step back and see a thing in context to understand it.

Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Mandela

Book Review • 12 Oct 2020 • 2 min read

This was a joy to read—a truly breathtaking tale of the journey from apartheid to democracy in South Africa. Apartheid means "apartness" in Afrikaans, a word that speak for itself in illustrating decades long institutionalized racism by the Dutch colonial government in South

Remember Things with Personal Knowledge Bases and Notion

Organization • 25 May 2020 • 6 min read

A knowledge base (KB) is a database of knowledge. It is a place to aggregate knowledge about a specific topic. They are commonly used in professional contexts, often for both internal and external facing FAQs. In that context, they're obviously very helpful. They make

Attachment to Ends and Means

Insight • 13 Apr 2020 • 3 min read

Our lives are full of many stories. Each story has a beginning and an end, but it's rarely clear when a story will end. The time in between can be stressful as we wait for closure. Maybe you have an exam approaching, you're writing

Two Sides of the Simulation Hypothesis

Philosophy • 6 Apr 2020 • 6 min read

After popularization of the simulation hypothesis by popular figures like Elon Musk and Neil deGrasse Tyson, it's no longer possible to ignore it. I decided to dig in in order to form an objective opinion. Is it simply a thought experiment, or something to

The Kybalion by Three Initiates

Book Review • 16 Mar 2020 • 5 min read

If you've been looking for that occult text that feels like a long form version of a Doctor Bronner's soap bottle, then you've come to the right place. I mean that in the best possible sense, but this book is not your everyday read.

Pride and Lying

9 Mar 2020 • 4 min read

Sitting with my therapist and reflecting on the past 6 months, I came upon the realization that I'm just a regular guy. It might sound like a common realization, but to me it was anything but, and my therapist rightly observed this to be

A Discourse on the Method by René Descartes

Book Review • 24 Feb 2020 • 5 min read

Who is this book for?As philosophy goes, this book is remarkably approachable. It is a wonderful guide for anyone interested in making consistent and well-founded choices based on a personal methodology. Descartes intends this book for the lay audience like me with the

The Epicurean Garden

19 Feb 2020 • 3 min read

I think back to my time in art school as one of my happiest, and I often think about why that is. The time was 2008. The early iPhone was on the scene. Barack Obama had just been elected president, and the financial crash

How to Do Nothing by Jenny Odell

Book Review • 17 Feb 2020 • 3 min read

Jenny Odell is an artist and writer in Oakland California. Her book seems to be riding the wave of anti self improvement sentiment through the public consciousness. I heard about it in several places: from friends, at dinner parties, and online. Odell explains early

The Seven Storey Mountain by Thomas Merton

Book Review • 12 Feb 2020 • 4 min read

This is the story of a man's conversion to Catholicism that spans about 30 years. Set in the aftermath of World War I, it is rich with both historical and religious references. But religious affiliation is by no means a requirement for reading. The

Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport

Book Review • 10 Feb 2020 • 2 min read

“Philip Morris just wanted your lungs, the App Store wants your soul.” ~ Bill Maher I think that quote pretty well summarizes the content of this book. If, like me, you find yourself desperately checking your phone for new garbage in all unstructured time, this

We Are Our History

Insight • 5 Feb 2020 • 1 min read

I have a habit of narrating my own story as though it is me. It's a story that only I know, I am the only one who has heard all of it. I can narrate this story because I have some concept of what

Compartmentalizing

Insight • 3 Feb 2020 • 1 min read

I've been told by some that I compartmentalize information. To me, it seems only natural that we should organize our thoughts—But each of our schemas is different. It's a marvel that we're able to communicate at all. Each of us with an endlessly

Courage & Negative Reinforcement with Dogs

Psychology • 27 Jan 2020 • 2 min read

When you train a dog, there are two ways you can go: positive and negative reinforcement. This applies equally to humans, but it's easier to understand in our canine friends. Negative reinforcement removes negative stimuli when your dog does what you want. An example

Question your Thinking, Change the World by Byron Katie

Book Review • 12 Oct 2019 • 7 min read

I heard about Byron Katie’s “The Work” from the Tim Ferris podcast episode with Tristan Harris. The conversation on that episode is a bit vague in describing her process, so I wanted to give it a shot on my own. Get it on

China Second Impressions

21 Aug 2016 • 3 min read

I’ve been in China for 3 weeks now and I’m settling in. I thought I would share some interesting stories. Communicating is still slow going, but I’m able to talk minimally with strangers, waiters, taxi drivers etc. which opens up options

China First Impressions

7 Aug 2016 • 2 min read

Finally made it to China! After over a year of studying Chinese and planning in New York, it’s rewarding to finally be here. I’m studying in a 10 million person city you’ve probably never heard of called Shijiazhuang. There are no

The Story of a Children's Story

12 Jun 2016 • 2 min read

Back in 2013, a friend sent me a letter. It was something very simple and kind, and enclosed a hand drawn picture of a cactus, which is my favorite plant (and which I framed). I wanted to reciprocate, so I started to write. What

Meural Production

5 Jun 2016 • 2 min read

I had the pleasure this past week of working on Meural’s production line. To me, the experience falls into the category of something that everybody should have to do once in their lives, akin to working at a restaurant or doing other types

When the Team Wins, You Win

30 May 2016 • 1 min read

Disagreements are important. They prove that people have conviction and care about decision that are made. When decisions are made taking multiple points of view into account, they are generally better decisions - think of a company’s executive team or the President’s

Vulnerability

15 May 2016 • 2 min read

I’ve always been interested in being more myself, I think that’s something that most people would say. But it’s hard, there are things that I feel ashamed of, things that I’m not comfortable sharing, certain things that feel as though

On Stream Of Consciousness

12 Aug 2015 • 2 min read

Writing should come freely, but all too often we prematurely analyze our writing and allow editing to hamper the mind’s natural mechanism for quickly outputing loosly related ideas, one of our race’s greatest assets and the driving force behind creativity. When conversing,

Tagging My Photos

11 Aug 2015 • 1 min read

Mobile phones make it easy to take a lot of photos, and I do. I document art, objects, receipts, contracts, shipping summaries, product defects, items for sale and much more with my phone. Those photos automatically sync with the cloud, which makes it very

Plastic Poo

11 Apr 2015 • 1 min read

We buy plastic containers, bags, machinery, cables, coat hangers, furniture, bottles, and that list ends in places that we don’t see. After reading this post about the very giant amount of plastic in the ocean’s gyres, I became transfixed by it. A