Just Needed Another War, eh? 🪖

May 20, 2025

Hey there,

It's been, what, 2-3 newsletter issues so far where I haven't referenced Peaky Blinders, right? Welp, I wish there weren't so many good quotes from it that I keep going back to. 😆

The quote I have in mind, the one in the headline:

"Just needed another war, eh?"

By itself, it means almost nothing — so here's some context.

In the show, in Season 5, the main character, Tommy Shelby, is planning an assassination. And since it's a prominent political figure we're talking about, he needs a sniper he can trust — so he goes to Barney, a friend of his, a WWI veteran from the trenches, who was put in a mental institution with PTSD post-war. After getting him out of the asylum, they test out his aim to see if he's still fit for the job, and he scores a perfect bullseye. The scene itself is short but striking — you can watch it on YouTube here.

It's then that Tommy goes on to say, "You didn't need all those meds. Just needed another war, eh?". In even simpler terms, Barney was at his peak during WWI, when he was given a purpose, even if this purpose was destructive and ended up worsening his life overall. And now that Tommy gave him a purpose again, he was happy at last, useful, and motivated to act.

You'd probably wonder what this has to do with anything, and especially with the Life Engineering newsletter. After all, for most people, war is not a routine, and we are very disconnected from this world of violence and pressure depicted in the show. But speaking about the general energy in the scene itself, I feel like it's actually a deeper message that most of us can relate to — the feeling of being given a purpose, something to make use of your abilities/knowledge, which becomes deeply fulfilling.

I can think of multiple instances where I felt that way, when I felt "properly utilised":

1. When I was preparing for the big exams at the end of high school, the grades of which determined whether I'd get into university or not — it gave me some real sense of urgency and a good reason to study things that were otherwise relatively low-priority.
2. When my family needs me — most times it's a simple request like driving someone somewhere or switching the SOURCE of the TV so it works again, but sometimes it's a more complex ask, and then I can really feel myself getting into an engineering/problem-solving mode.
3. Most recently, in my new job at the startup. Before, when I worked in the corporate world, it felt like most of my tasks were extremely trivial, my opinion didn't make a difference, and any decision-making took days for us to go through all levels of management. However, now at the startup, I feel like a properly utilised weapon — I have some expertise/knowledge, which is valued, but even on tasks that I feel uncertain about, the guys still trust me to experiment and get to results fast. Since speed and quantity are key, even if I mess up something, it doesn't matter as much, as long as I keep finding ways to make it work with the next iterations. It actually feels like I keep being given "battles" to handle, and it's what keeps me honed and sharp. ⚔️

So maybe the takeaway is this — we don't all need another "war". But we do need something worth fighting for. And when we find it, we become sharper, clearer, more alive. That's the energy I'm trying to chase lately. I've come to realise that feeling "burnt out" and feeling "underused" can look weirdly similar.

But the cure isn't always simple rest — sometimes it's just being given a proper battle to fight in. 🪖

Weekly Insights

• The last few days went by more chaotically than usual — protests for higher wages paralysed Sofia's public transportation system. While that didn't affect my own commute, it meant that most people around me had issues.
• This also meant that I had to drive more than usual around the city, to help my mother and sister get to work and uni.
• It's something that once again resonates with the "Just needed another war, eh?" vibe of this issue — it felt good to be able to help, and it gave my days a bit more focus, since I knew I was needed in specific places at specific times. 🚗

Movie Highlight: Green Book

Recently on TikTok (yeah, sadly I do spend a few hours weekly on this app, too), I got reminded of a great movie I watched a few years ago — one of those movies that never seemed to be in the mainstream (despite actually winning an Oscar in 2019), but the people who watched it, enjoyed it immensely. I'm talking about Green Book (2018).

The premise is simple — Dr Shirley is an Afro-American pianist on a tour in the USA in the 60s, when people of different races were still obligated to follow different local laws and restrictions — especially in the deep South. He hires Tony "Lip" — an Italian-American — as his driver/bodyguard, mainly as a safeguard against possible "issues" on said tour. The two men have a great on-screen dynamic, and they get into plenty of situations where Shirley's good manners and Tony's simple ways of fixing issues through mild violence and threats clash.

Ultimately, despite the many comedic gold bits in the movie, it's a story about identity, especially the racial/ethnical identity. The two characters bond not because they're of the same race, but because they build a friendship through facing struggles and acknowledging each other's quirks and feats. It's a very human story, and it's one of those films I think everybody should watch, even if the messages seem obvious on paper. A rare 9/10 of a movie 🏆 (and some fun trivia — there's a Bulgarian actor in one of the main supporting roles!).

Worth Watching This Week

You Already Have Your Answers. Here's How. by Captain Sinbad — a sharp reminder that the answers we keep searching for outside are usually the ones we're avoiding inside.

The 80-Hour Myth (Why Hard Work Is Ruining Your Life) by Dan Koe — a calm dismantling of the hustle script in favour of work that actually compounds.

Closing Thoughts

Till next week, stay safe, stay curious, and keep kicking. ✌️