The first step

First step

Ok, so I am taking the plunge – and here is my first blog post in English. It is a deeply important personal choice for me – and in a way my response to what is happening in my home country. While living in Moscow, London or Boston, I used to think that my countrymen’s problems are what gave me energy and drive. I used to dream of bringing the best of the world to the people and organisations of Russia; I fantasized about helping to build a world-class tech company, or bringing progressive policies to the government, or inspiring people through a social movement – all in Russia.

Events in the last couple of years made me doubt. The protests, which were a sign that there are hundreds of thousands of likeminded people, willing to risk for a bigger goal, petered out. The state is getting ever more oppressive and backward, the elites are ever more hypocritical and corrupt, and people are ever more brainwashed and intolerant. Last week’s aggression in Crimea, and especially the overwhelming support of it in society is a sign of the times. The future is bleak, and with the current regime any bringing progressive thinking is an uphill battle.

And this is my response. I am starting this blog in English. I will care about problems I come across. I will try to bring the best of the world to the world. I will fantasize about helping to build a world-class tech company, or bringing progressive policies to governments, or inspiring people through a social movement wherever there is a need and an opportunity (which is pretty much everywhere).

I still think that the majority of my readers will be Russian – and thankfully all my closest friends back home and people who matter most me can also follow me in English.  

So what I will blog about? Mostly about positive psychology, social psychology and behavioural economics, which lately became a huge personal interest. I will reflect on what I read, learnt and experienced – from how to make yourself meditate every day (and why it is a great thing) to how can governments change policies to make people healthier. Details will become clearer as we go.

I will also aspire to offer something very practical and actionable every post. For today it is an advice to enrol to a course “Beginner’s guide to irrational behaviour” by one of the brightest stars in the field, Dan Arielly. Just to give you an idea how cool his research is: he measured effect of emotions on judgement by asking student same questions in a normal state, and when they are highly sexually aroused. You can sign up for a 6 weeks course for free on Coursera.  https://www.coursera.org/course/behavioralecon

A journey of thousand miles starts with a single step. For the journey!

Cheers

Kirill