Quote · Modern Wisdom
The Hidden Art Of Reinventing Yourself - Matthew McConaughey - #863
Where this was said
The Importance of Humour
At 25:35 · chapter starts 24:10
McConaughey and director Richard Linklater developed the idea that humor should be the default emotional response when you don't know how to react — coined in a conversation about 12 years before the recording.
McConaughey and Richard Linklater coined the idea 12 years ago: when you don't know how to react, your default emotion should be humor. Not because you're dismissing the crisis, but because laughing keeps your eyes open and your options visible when logic and effort aren't the way out.
Everyone reflexively dissects what went wrong. Almost nobody studies what went right. McConaughey found that going back through his journals during happy periods revealed repeatable patterns — who he was with, how he was sleeping, whether he was going to church, whether he was grateful. There's a science to satisfaction if you bother to look for it.
