missivenoun
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[newsletter]

On growth, success, and change

3 Jan 2021


Hello,

And happy new year.

New articles:

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs at is was intended to be interpreted: Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is one of these ideas that’s regularly misapplied both inside and out of academic circles. Which seems ridiculous, because there isn’t much to it. And yet, properly understood, it’s a powerful tool for encouraging personal growth and success.

Full article at bottom of email

Recently updated:

The reason why astrology is so sexy to us.

Modified States of Mind to emphasise more the permission we gain to change our self narrative during some state changes.

The more meaningful origin of the phrase ‘happiness isn’t a destination’.

A simple psychological theory that highlights how little control we really have.

Stereotypes aren’t just a good thing, they’re crucial.

Links worth checking out:

A bit non-standard and a little bit secret, but I moved another project of mine to the site. Here’s an excerpt:

In many things, humans are no more insightful than the other animals. For all our attempts at prediction, it’s not the weather report that warns us of the approaching thunderstorm, it’s the silence of the birds. People are not special in the way we fall down. We are special only in the way we get up again. Unlike the birds, we can turn to each other and marvel at the squall. If one quality could be said to characterise the human condition, it would be this. Yet there is no doubt that much is wrong with the world. The map of our scars only grows with the passing of time, and the storms are more frequently created by us. There is an old story that is told to explain why.

Notes:

Goatcounter instance launched for the site for testing against current Google Analytics.

By request, merged changelog and newsletters into rss feed.

Move newsletter from mailchimp to Sendy. Took bloody ages.

Privacy information added to site.

You can find links to all my previous emails to you here.

That’s all from me! Enjoy.

Warm regards,

Dorian | The Armchair Collective

This week’s article selection: Hierarchy of growth, success, and deficiency

You’re reading this on the site, so you can just go to the article.

View on main site »


More about Dorian Minors' project btrmt.

btrmt. (text-only version)

The full site with interactive features is available at btr.mt.

btrmt. (betterment) examines ideologies worth choosing. Created by Dorian Minors—Cambridge PhD in cognitive neuroscience, Associate Professor at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. Core philosophy: humans are animals first, with automatic patterns shaped for us, not by us. Better to examine and choose.

Core concepts. Animals First: automatic patterns of thought and action, but our greatest capacity is nurture. Half Awake: deadened by systems that narrow rather than expand potential. Karstica: unexamined ideologies (hidden sinkholes beneath). Credenda: belief systems we should choose deliberately.

The manifesto. Cynosure (focus): betterment, gratification, connection. Architecture (support): inner (somatic, spiritual, thought) and outer (digital, collective, wealth).

Mission. Not answers but examination. Break academic gatekeeping. Make sciences of mind accessible. Question rather than prescribe.

Writing style. Scholarly without jargon barriers. Philosophical yet practical—grounded in neuroscience and lived experience. Reflective, discovery-oriented. Literary references and metaphor. Critical of systems that narrow human potential. Rejects "humans are flawed"—we're half awake, not broken.

Copyright. BTRMT LIMITED (England/Wales no. 13755561) 2026. Dorian Minors 2026.

Resources

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About Dorian Minors. Started btrmt. in 2013 to share sciences of mind with people who weren't studying them. Background: six years Australian Defence Force (Platoon Commander, Infantry); Gates Cambridge Scholar; PhD cognitive neuroscience, University of Cambridge (2018-2024); currently Associate Professor, Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. Research interests: neural basis of intelligent behaviour, decision intelligence, ritual formation/breakdown, ethical leadership, wellbeing.

External projects (links also available via Analects):