About
"To Be and What To Be" is the brainchild of Jeremy Goldin and Nayana Wagle.About the Website
About the Name
The name of this website is a play on Shakespeare’s famous line “to be or not to be”. Hamlet contemplates whether death, specifically suicide, is a worthy alternative to living. Because life is painful and unfair.
The authors of this website are firmly in the “to be” camp. No matter how painful or unfair life can sometimes be, they think it is too valuable to let it go. But wanting to be does not tell us anything about what that entails. And therein lies the rub. Because as we stumble around in ignorance trying to be, we miss out on a lot of wonder of being.
The authors have been on a journey of trying to figure out the answers and the methods for living a happy and fulfilling life for the better part of twenty years. They have realized that wisdom can be found almost everywhere. Unfortunately, it is also accompanied by lack of clarity. That gives rise to confusions or seeming contradictions. And it robs us of the ability to apply that wisdom even when it is staring us in the face.
The articles on this website include the authors’ integrations across this widespread wisdom. The articles serve guides to a fulfilling regular life.
About the Logo
Shakespeare’s Hamlet holds a skull in his hand during the gravedigger scene. Because his alternative to being is death. Our alternative is to live with happiness, understanding, and clarity. Who better to embody our heroic pursuit than Michelangelo’s David?
About the Authors
About Jeremy
Like many children, I wanted to know why things are as they are and what exactly those things are. I never felt I got satisfactory answers growing up. I felt confused, lost, and unsure.
You might think I went on to pursue a scientific career to understand those things. Or that I went on to have a PhD in Philosophy. I didn’t because my questions were broader than any one scientific field. And I believed that philosophy was an ivory tower specialty with no real answers; only jargon and more questions.
Hence, I went into a nice solid career field of electrical engineering, including a Master’s in robotics. But it became apparent that I knew more and more about a specialty that told me less and less about anything else. I wanted to know how to live a full human existence. Instead I was becoming a sophisticated robot myself. Along this road, I realized that my questions were not new and arguments for their answers existed within the field of philosophy. Yet the wisdom for how to work through those arguments and how to actually live those answers was sorely lacking.
My articles focus on my own answers and my journey to stand on the shoulders of these giants and to make use of their ideas in my daily activities. In my articles, I deal with abstract ideas and the principles they entail. I cut through the details to get to their heart, until the ideas are clear enough to be applied to myself and others. You will likely find a difference in style between my articles and those of Nayana. While I focus on ideas, she tends to clarify the application part of these ideas to life.
I am married to Nayana Wagle, my co-author on this website, and we have two sweet young children. All three are a great inspiration to me as we celebrate the wonders of life, as well as hit the many bumps and find out how to smooth those out together.
You can reach me at jeremy@tobeandwhattobe.com
About Nayana
Ever since I was a child, I have been interested in existential, moral, and philosophical questions about living. Why do we live? How do we live well? What is right? Why?
You might think that I went on to have a PhD in Philosophy. I didn’t because how weird would it be to have degree that read Doctor of Philosophy in Philosophy? I hold a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering and a Master’s degree in Business Administration. People often tell me that it sounds strange till I explain that my educational history is really the educational history of humanity.
- First, humanity must pursue development of tools. Engineering and technology make survival easier.
- Second, humanity must pursue trade. Business accelerates progress.
- Only when the first two are in place can humanity pursue the higher questions and reach self-actualization.
My articles focus on integration between ideas and their application to life. I frequently draw upon art, books, and movies to make my point. But the articles are not meant to be reviews of the art. I only analyze art to understand an idea and rarely analyze the whole body of work involved. I find great joy in discovering wisdom in unlikely places and you will likely hear it in my tone in the articles. A fair warning, I occasionally also write in a flippant tone.
I am married to Jeremy Goldin, and we have two lovely kids together. (Yes, I know he already told you.) We met on eHarmony in 2009 and married after 2 years of long-distance relationship. (There’s something he didn’t tell you.)
You can reach me at nayana@tobeandwhattobe.com