I am not in a great place right now in terms of productivity and flourishing in my personal and professional life, and every time I waste a day, every time I do something that I enjoy at the moment but which is not productive, I feel ashamed.

I live in a country, where students sometimes end their own lives for not being able to get into their dream college or for not passing the exam that would have allowed them a job in the government bureaucracy, I have always thought that they were not ending their lives because they didn’t pass the exams, but they are ending it because they have indulged in activities which are not conducive to their goal of passing the exam so many times that they have given up on themselves and every time they spend a lot of time doing stuff which they might like to do in the moment but would regret right after they do it, their respect for self decreases a little more and when they get the sad news that could not progress towards their goals, they have not only failed as an aspirant for an exam, they have also failed as a person (for now at least)

i.e., As Dostoevsky states in C&P, “Your worst sin is that you’ve destroyed and betrayed yourself for nothing”, even though I might indulge in activities that are pleasurable for me now, they add up to nothing and if I do this enough times, I will just give up and sometimes some people will give up on all not just their goals because they hate themselves so much!

I don’t want to end up like them (even though I feel pity for them, too bad there isn’t an afterlife for them where they can be happy) , so I thought I would whip myself into a frenzy by reading a complication of suicide notes, this is for me an interesting task, but it also serves a purpose of warning me into things that I should not do! And to be completely honest, if I can derive some utility/meaning out of suicide notes, I mean the exact things that advertise the meaninglessness and the ugly side of life, that’s pretty inspirational to me, I mean, it’s like a metaphor for life, trying to life despite all the ugly stuff. So, to come back to the question,

Has there ever been a compilation of suicide notes, if so, where can one get it? And is it a good idea to get it?

PS: Sorry if this comes out the wrong way, if you haven’t noticed, I am not that articulate. Also, I am alright right now, I am good, but I don’t want to end up in a real bad situation, so I am looking for what I should I avoid.

edit 2: I like this community, but I don’t have enough time to respond to everyone, but know that I am grateful and know that I have heard you! :)

  • Seraph
    11•4 months ago

    Hey there, subject aside, I think you need to review what you truly think is important in your life. Based on this post you seem to feel a lot of pressure to succeed, but what success really means is up to you, not anyone else. I found the book “Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck” to be helpful on this subject; as for the title it’s not about not giving a fuck but choosing carefully what to give a fuck about. There’s some interesting stories on this exact subject in there, e.g. did you know that Dave Mustaine largely considers his majorly successful music career a failure because he was kicked out of a band before starting Megadeth? The band he was kicked out of was Metallica, so he compares himself to them and robs himself of any joy.

    There also is more than one path to a goal. Even when you feel like you’ve “failed” it just means you have to find another way.

    Personally, I’d find a compilation of such notes a bit morbid and quite sad. So much wasted potential because people felt that they couldn’t change, and we can all change if we want to. But it’s a genuinely interesting concept. Maybe others find them motivational the way you do!