Alex Hickman

About Me

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It feels pretty indulgent to write about myself. I generally write for the reader or to clarify my thoughts. I’m not sure how helpful an ‘about me’ page is, but I’ll share one page here without the care for usefulness.

 

About MeAlex Hickman

Above all, my life is about understanding, arriving and embodying Truth. 

I’d consider my life contemplative whilst maintaining that western entrepreneurial spirit. You can see what I’m currently doing on my ‘now’ page.

 

I’m Focussed On Learning And Creating

At some point, I figured it was about what I give to life rather than what I can take from it. 

I love learning, which is ironic. At best, I’m someone with a secondary school education, no college or university degree. I did relatively well at school but discovered that school rewarded repetition and remembrance rather than intelligence. Now I can choose what I learn and do in life, and my energy levels feel limitless in this respect.

In my day-to-day life, I like to make articles and podcasts and have conversations with people who see the world differently. I like investing, exploring entrepreneurial ventures and doing deals (I love putting deals together, it satisfies my instincts).

I say no to almost everything so that I can focus on creating things. My life is continually being optimised to live according to these values.

 

 

My Life Philosophy

My position is unknown. I know I do not know, or at the very least, I cannot trust what I know.

I’m radically open-minded because of the annihilation of previous belief systems. New information almost always changes how I see the world, even in the subtle nuances. 

As I’ve stated before, I’m a guy with average academic credentials. I’d therefore be an idiot to suggest that what I ‘know’ must be true. There are far more intelligent people than me who are wrong daily.

I’m naturally sceptical and do not trust what I consume or tell myself.

Egoically (and for efficiency), I align closely with the Randian line of thought.

What I consider closer to ‘Truth’ however is non-duality (no-self) / Zen / Tao / Vedanta. There is a resonance in what is being communicated with these traditions beyond language.

It’s an interesting and often conflicting way to function with two such opposing philosophical outlooks. I often trip myself up when I write too, as my mind’s nature creates many paradoxes (hence my podcast name).

 

I’m English And Also A World Citizen

I’m English.

I’m also a citizen of Earth and aim to get multiple residencies and/or citizenships across different continents. I’m a big one for optionality, and this provides the ultimate location independence.

I love different cultures around the world and like to be a flaneur. I’m not the ‘tourist type’ and prefer to indulge in local ways of life. The more I have an innate bias against a location, the more I like the idea of visiting the place.

My spiritual home is England, along with spending a lot of time in Turkey. I will expand my horizons over extended periods in other regions.

 

 

Football

I mean real football. I mean what the Americans call ‘soccer’.

The game holds a place in my heart as an ex-professional football player.

I watch football deeply, more of a philosophical frame than a sporting one. The complexities of the sport fascinate me more than any other, particularly the defensive aspects. Inevitably, when I talk to people about football, their eyes glaze over!

Football runs through my blood as a big part of my life in my earlier years. I was very good at it, and it’s given me the fundamentals to be relatively decent at most other sports I put my hand to.

Right now, I’m into squash – love it.

 

Plant Medicine

Plant medicine changed the course of my life.

I did Ayahuasca for the first time in 2014, and to say that my perception of reality changed would be an understatement. Since then, I’ve worked with other plant medicines, including Rapè, Psilocybin and Changa, along with other synthetic psychedelics.

I work with these substances for self-exploration, not for recreation. It’s good to see science and the psychological fields beginning to study these medicines.

I certainly don’t recommend them to anyone.

 

 

I’m Not A Techy

The more technology I rely on, the more frustrated I get.

I’m from a working-class family/area. I had average schooling and went straight into sports for a career, so coding and all that clever, techy stuff has never been my bag.

Today’s technology has been picked up on the entrepreneurial and ‘productivity’ path. I get comically frustrated if the tech I try to use isn’t user-friendly within the first 10 minutes of use and usually gets thrown away.

The back office of this website is about as tech savvy as I’ve been.

 

 

I Care Deeply For Very Few Things

There are a couple of people I deeply care about. I cannot think of anything other than these people I care about to a level worth noting.

This may sound quite harsh, but I can say that in my life, it’s liberating. There are no ties and bounds to which one feels obligated, which leaves the mental space for learning and creating.

Some have suggested this aligns with Buddhist lineages, but this has been the case since I’ve been young. It isn’t a ‘philosophy’ I’ve picked up and attempted to embody.

It’s also been suggested that I come across quite cold in this respect. If so, then I guess ‘cold’ is what it is.

 

 

Other Things About Me

  • I need silence. I find myself leaving loud areas unconsciously. I also prefer communicating with people one-to-one rather than in group settings.
  • I’m naturally introverted. I prefer to be alone rather than with people for excessive periods.
  • I reject the notion of democracy. I simply don’t think it works. I don’t have any solution either.
  • I consider nature as a reflection of God. I turn to her as my primary source of wisdom.
  • I’m a man’s man. Most of my friends are men, and I communicate far more effortlessly than with women. On contemplation, I think it’s my direct nature.
  • I think long-term about everything. This is often to the dismay of others who expect results yesterday.
  • ‘New Age’ stuff repulses me. Suppose it involves crystals and astrology and all of that type of stuff. In that case, there is a natural repulsion for some reason. I’m not saying it’s ‘wrong’ or even inaccurate, just that there is misalignment here.
  • I see the world as a comedy sketch. Take a look for yourself with no attachments and no judgement.