Valuable Wisdom Found in a Doctor's Paper...
Doing boring and repetitive tasks over and over again can be mind-numbing no matter who you are.
The solution to this is to become more like a machine when dealing with tedious tasks.
The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche discusses this in his book Twilight of the Idols published in 1889. In the book he shares an extract from a doctor’s examination paper that says:
“What is the task of all higher schooling?” - To make man into a machine. "What are the means employed?” - He must learn how to be bored. “How is this achieved?” - By means of the concept of duty.”
I think it’s valuable to do a deeper dive into this quote.
WHAT IS THE TASK OF ALL HIGHER SCHOOLING?
I would think that higher schooling would entail college. So why is it important for college to make man into a machine? This would make sense if man would have to be like a machine in order to perform his profession well. Nietzsche also stated something similar to this in his book “Will to Power.” He said that all jobs have a boring aspect about them, and that as a philosopher he even got bored by tediously thinking about the world. The solution to this is to be like a machine. Make sure that you don’t focus too much on a repetitive task and simply plow along like a machine.
WHAT ARE THE MEANS EMPLOYED?
If a person is not bored while completing a task, they would have no reason being like a machine. The boredom in a task provokes being machine-like.
HOW IS THIS ACHIEVED?
By having a strong sense of duty, you would ensure that your tasks at hand are completed. Having a duty means that you have an obligation and responsibility. When a person has a sense of duty, they now have a mission in life. Having a mission in life can increase your motivation in life.
Muti-millionaire real estate developer and investor Grant Cardone has a famous quote:
“Success is your duty, obligation, and responsibility.”
Summary:
I think the main idea of Nietzsche’s quote is that tasks in life can be boring and seem pointless. Yet, you can get through the boredom and find motivation by doing these three things:
Accept the boredom.
Act like a machine.
Find a sense of duty.