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- La Dolce Vita - Reflecting on my Weekend in Italy 🇮🇹
Hey guys! 👋 I hope you've had an incredible week. Recently, I embarked on a short weekend trip to Italy, where I had the privilege of staying with a local family. The experience was eye-opening, challenging my perception of what constitutes a "normal life." In this week's issue, I want to share my reflections on what I observed during my time there. Please bear with the matter-of-fact style of writing as I aim to be concise and to the point.
One of the first things that struck me was the low cost of happiness in Italy. A typical day spent at the beach, complete with food and drinks, amounted to less than 15 euros. Enjoyment doesn't necessarily have to come with a hefty price tag and happiness need not be expensive.
Family is held in high regard and is a regular priority for Italians. Living within walking distance of each other, families maintain close-knit connections. The elderly often reside with their families, receiving care and support from their loved ones, supplemented by in-home caregivers when necessary. It became evident that care homes are not the norm in Italian society.
A simple Mediterranean diet is prevalent, consisting of olive oil, fresh fruits, vegetables, and pasta, with meat consumed sparingly, usually once a day at most. Although it seemed that going to the gym was less common, it appeared unnecessary as most individuals easily surpassed 20,000 steps per day or spent their weekends swimming at the beach during the summer.
Italy also seemed to embrace a healthy work-life balance. It's well-known that workers take a "riposo," a two-hour break during the day to engage in household tasks and rest. Weekends are cherished as a time for enjoyment and are seen as an end to itself, rather than merely a means to and an end to prepare for the upcoming workweek. Living and fulfillment are experienced throughout the week, with mid-week dinners with friends being a common occurrence. Childhood friends often live nearby, in the same town where they were born, making these weekly gatherings easier to arrange.
The sense of community was palpable, with local football flags adorning the streets and remnants of concerts displayed proudly. Cultural activities brought people together and gave them a strong sense of purpose, and religious affiliations were still prevalent among the majority.
Hospitality was a way of life in Italy. Family and friends would drop by unannounced rather by appointment, emphasizing the importance of spontaneous connections. Neighbours knew each other, stopping for a chat when they crossed paths. It was common knowledge who the local neighbourhood plumber, doctor or mechanic was, and people were always willing to lend a helping hand without charge.
It struck me that Italians had the time and mental capacity to engage in regular hobbies purely for its own sake of enjoyment. Painting, reading, gardening—these activities were embraced as sources of personal fulfillment.
Perhaps most significantly, Italians had defined their own versions of a "good enough" life, job and material possessions. They had shifted their focus from relentless pursuit of more to finding contentment with what they had.
During my conversations with the people I met, I asked them if they considered their lives to be happy and fulfilling. The unanimous response was a resounding "yes." It comes as no surprise that certain regions in Italy, like Sardinia, boast some of the highest life expectancies globally, with many residents living well past the age of 100.
Now, I'm not suggesting that we all pack our bags and move to Italy immediately. Of course, there are downsides to living there as well. However, I encourage each of you to take a moment and reflect on your own lives. Challenge your beliefs and preconceived notions about how you choose to live. Are there elements from the Italian way of life that could enhance your own well-being and satisfaction? Sometimes, a fresh perspective can lead to remarkable transformations.
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👍🏾 Things I’ve enjoyed this week
Mo Gowdat interview on The Diary of a CEO (podcast) - I love this podcast, and I particularly loved this episode with Mo. Mo is an ex-Google engineer. They talk about the future of AI, its benefits, challenges and also risks. There’s been a lot in the media about the risks of AI, and I find this topic fascinating. If you like this episode, I’d also recommend checking out Mo’ book on happiness and AI.
WeCrashed (series) - I recently discovered this and binged the whole series. It’s basically a drama about the founding of WeWork, a co-working space that you may have seen in most major cities. It’s about the struggles and downfall that the founder went through. Funny and also somewhat inspiring.
The Good Enough Job (book) - this is easily my favourite book that I’ve read all year and came at a perfect time. The author takes you through a few stories and interviews about people in different careers and the various challenges that they each uniquely faced with the question of finding a work-life balance, and a job that brings them meaning. It challenged my view of my relationship with work, how I see my own current job as a doctor and whether or not it matches my intrinsic values. Seeing as everyone will have some form of paid work at some point in their lives, it’s an absolute must-read in my opinion.
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📚 Highlight of the week
The Good Enough Job by Simone Stolzoff
Our society treats those who haven’t found a calling—who don’t love what they get paid to do—as if they’ve committed some kind of moral failure. “The only way to do great work is to love what you do,” Jobs proselytized at Stanford. “Life is too short not to follow your passion,” read proverbs on Instagram and LinkedIn. However, the notion that we should always love our job creates outsized expectations for what a job can deliver. It ignores the tedium that exists in every line of work, blinds us to the flaws a dream job may have, and creates conditions in which workers are willing to accept less than they deserve.
“It’s generally better to over-communicate. If you wait to reply because you don’t have an answer yet (or because you don’t want to share bad news), the other party often ends up making assumptions about what the delayed reply might mean. Silence frustrates and confuses people. Better to communicate early and often.”
A Simpler Life by The School of Life
Our preoccupation with money feels highly respectable, but its true cause is poignant and unexpected: we keep wanting more money because we haven’t yet identified a passion that matters enough to us that it replaces money-making in our minds. Most of us haven’t found what farming was to Cincinnatus or painting was to Martin; we haven’t yet discovered the real reasons why we are alive.
Resurfaced to me by Readwise
📚 Listen to any of these book suggestions free on Audible
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Want to learn more from me? Check these out👇
🩺 (Free) How to Get into Medical School - From Application to Doctor: https://skl.sh/2TwpH0N
👨🏼💻 An Essay Writing Masterclass - The Best Essay Writing Technique: https://courses.kenjitomita.co.uk
🏥 My Online Medicine Interview Course: https://courses.kenjitomita.co.uk
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🛠 My favourite tools 🔨
📚 Listen to my favourite book of all time (or any other) free on Audible
🎒 My everyday and travel bag from Menos (use KENJI10 for 10% off)
📝 My favourite iPad screen protector: Paperlike