"The fact that humans have unquenchable thirst and insatiable appetites is not new wisdom."

"But in the Swedish idea of lagom (lah-gomm), it has been given fresh life."

"Lagom translates as “just the right amount.” It means knowing when enough is enough, and trying to find balance and moderation rather than constantly grasping for more."

"Lagom is that feeling of contentment we all get when we have all that we need to make us comfortable."

"There are two separate strands to lagom. The first is a kind of social awareness that recognizes that what we do affects other people."

"The second strand, however, is a mental shift that finds contentment in satisfaction."

"Lagom is knowing that enjoying the now of what you have does not mean you need to add more of it."

"Lagom is to be well-rounded and to take pleasure in that."

"But the profoundest element of lagom is simply to rest and relax when a thing feels good. Simple pleasures do not mean simple humans."

"What people mean is, “I’ve prioritized other things in my day.” And that’s fine. We each have our own personal values, concerns, and preferences."

"The fact is that we all have the same number of hours in the day, and it’s up to us to decide how we spend them. Some people will most certainly have more “free hours” than others, but for most of us, we have at least a few hours to spend as we want."

"And according to “the 5-hour rule,” how we choose to spend those hours might mean the difference between success and mediocrity."

"For more than half of the population, those hours are wasted away on non-work-related phone worship. But these are not the people who will become the entrepreneurs, innovators, and success stories of tomorrow."

"Over the last few decades, a cottage industry has sprung up that examines and dissects the habits and values of “self-made” millionaires."

"One of the key findings that comes up again and again is known as the “5-hour rule.”"

"In short, this is the rule where we spend one hour a day learning, reflecting, and thinking. We do this five times a week (which makes up the “5-hour” rule)."

"Today, Elon Musk, Oprah Winfrey, and Bill Gates all employ some version of the 5-hour rule."

"Learn…however you can."

"Today, podcasts, audiobooks, and spoken radio are all great ways to spend your hour."

"Experiment. Bettering yourself does not always mean cramming your head with facts."

"The most successful people in life were not those who stumbled on some magic treasure in the woods, but who tried and failed, tried, and failed again."

"Tim Harford says success means we “first, seek out new ideas and try new things"

"second, when trying something new, do it on a scale where failure is survivable"

"third, seek out feedback and learn from your mistakes as you go along.”"

"Reflect. Failure is only valuable insofar as it improves the future."

"In the words of Samuel Beckett, “Try again. Fail again. Fail better.”"

"King Solomon is synonymous with wisdom and great advice. But in his personal affairs, he was incredibly shortsighted. His story has given rise to the concept of Solomon's paradox."

"Studies have proven that we are much better at giving rational and useful advice to other people rather than ourselves — we're much more expert when we're distanced from a situation."

"The fact is that we’re experts when it comes to giving advice to other people. Most of us, on some level, know what’s good for people. We know what a good life should look like."

"We tell friends to do things we never do ourselves."

"Since no ancient king holds court without a weapon, Solomon drew out his sword and said, “I shall cut this child in two, so you both shall have your fair share.”"

"Aghast, the true mother fell to her knees, begging the child to be spared and given to the other, imposter woman. Solomon could see who the true mother was and he gave her the infant."

"His poor parenting gave rise to one of the cruelest tyrants in the Bible, his son, Rehoboam, who turned Judah into a pit of abomination and sin."

"He was profligate and extravagant, and gave little thought to the temperate, sensible life."

"In 2014, a paper from psychologists Igor Grossman and Ethan Kross introduced the idea of Solomon’s paradox. Their research revealed two things."

"One was that people “display wiser reasoning… about another person’s problems compared with their own.”"

"Second, Grossman and Kross noted that when we try to eliminate self-immersion — in other words, when we try to distance ourselves from our own problems — we somehow are much better at making sensible decisions."

"On the other hand, we have personal wisdom, which is intrapersonal — between yourself and your own affairs."

"On the one hand, we have general wisdom, which is said to be interpersonal — between yourself and someone external to you."

"We also know of people who are smart and sensible but awful at giving advice. But what factors connect the two?"

"The distinction between general and person wisdom ought to serve as a useful reminder against ad hominem attacks (where we criticize someone’s character rather than their ideas)."

"Talk to yourself"

"Ask two questions, to start: “Why are you doing that?” and “What can you do to help?”"

"Journaling"

"Ask someone who knows you well — a close relative or a best friend — who they think you’re most like."

"Then try to learn as much as you can about that person and see what advice you’d give them."

"Obviously, no two people are entirely alike, but this kind of third-person identification is often a useful distancing technique."