A Letter from Laura

It has forever been part of my culture, as a Persian Kurd, to believe that hard work and persistence lead to success. Included in that was the assumption that I have complete
control of all aspects of my life.

I pursued emergency medicine because I loved the challenge, the energy, and the opportunity to help people when they needed it most. I then obtained a master’s degree in scientific research because I believed in asking questions, finding answers, and understanding the world through evidence. I was proud of the life I had built.

Then, in 2013, everything changed.

My health began to deteriorate. Years of doctors, treatments, unanswered questions, and misdiagnoses eventually forced me to step away from medicine—the career I had dedicated my life to.

For someone who had always valued control and independence, it was devastating.

My illness made me curious about people who seemed to have a deeper approach to life. The people who see beyond their circumstances and view life through a wider lens: the wise.

As a researcher, I wanted to understand what they knew.

That curiosity led me to create the Wisdom Research Project,(opens in new tab) where I discovered the eight elements of wisdom. Those findings became the foundation for Common(opens in new tab) Wisdom: 8 Scientific Elements of a Meaningful Life.

What I didn't realize when I began the research was how profoundly it would change my life.

I started breaking down the eight elements, and it made me rethink what I valued, what I could control, and what I wanted my life to be about. My priorities shifted. My perspective changed. And, ultimately, so did my goals.

I began to understand that wisdom wasn't simply something I had discovered through research. It was something I could practice, something that was changing the way I lived.

Today, I use a wheelchair. I struggle to speak clearly. I depend on others for things I once did without thinking. And yet, I am also more grateful, compassionate, and spiritual than I have ever been.

The truth is, the awards, success, or feeling in control didn’t make me happy. How I feel about myself, the relationships I nurture, the perspective I choose, and how I navigate adversity is what is lighting my path today.

This has been the greatest gift, in the hardest chapter of my life.

I hope Common Wisdom gives you what it gave me. Not a promise that life will be easy, but a roadmap for navigating whatever comes next with greater meaning, perspective,
and hope.

With Gratitude,