Month: March 2025

How To Revitalize Appreciation / Gratitude

Published on March 24, 2025

One of my all star employees is getting back surgery this coming Monday.

He’s scheduled to be out for 3 months minimum.

Then, he needs to get both hips replaced.

…Scheduling him out for another 6 months after that.

It’s one of those bitter sweet moments where we’re sad he’s going to be out for so long because of how much of a light and anchor he is—but we’re also so glad he’s getting the work done he needs to get out of the chronic pain he has been in.

It’s one of those reminders to truly appreciate what you have before it’s gone.

…And it’s a reminder I’d like to pass off to you to reflect on today.

Who is the “light” of your day? What would life be like if they were gone?

Who is an “anchor”—a source of stability and consistency—in your life? How would your day feel without that anchor there?

What items, systems, modern inventions do you rely on heavily that make your days better/easier/more enjoyable? Imagine what your life would be like without them.

We visualize life without these people and things, not to be morbid or to make us sad, but so that we can revitalize the appreciation we have for them while they’re still here… So that we can more truly express these feelings towards them and fully enjoy all that they do for us without taking it/them for granted.

P.s. ICYMI you can read the best of what I posted to MoveMe Quotes last week, here.

What Is Your Biggest Accomplishment?

Published on March 24, 2025

One of my associates asked me over dinner the other night, “What is your biggest accomplishment?”

To which I replied, “…In my whole life?!”

To which he said, “Yes” and a long, carefully reflective pause… I answered, “Two things…”

Number one, I answered, was getting to run the martial arts school I got my white belt in. It has been the privilege and pleasure of my life so far to do something I love doing so much day in and day out and I can’t imagine my life or doing work without it. My life has been so deeply enriched by the community, challenge, and creative outlet provided by that school and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Number two was the two websites I’ve created and built: MoveMe Quotes and this blog. MoveMe Quotes has reached millions of people online—and I’ve uploaded upwards of 13,300+ quotes and resources, by hand, that people can access for free. And this blog you’re reading now has a few hundred daily readers who are impacted by the words I take careful time to arrange and email each day.

My greatest accomplishment(s) in life weren’t the college degree, or the six foot martial arts trophies, or long distance runs that I completed…

My greatest accomplishment(s) in life were the things I helped build that helped build myself and others. For if it wasn’t for the school I run… or the websites that completely reshaped my mental landscape… none of those other things would’ve happened. And if my top accomplishment(s) only served me… they’d be pretty shallow accomplishments, indeed.

Inner Work Prompt: How about you? What is your life’s biggest accomplishment?

On Going To People’s Birthday Parties

Published on March 23, 2025

One of my martial arts students decided to have his birthday party at the school I teach at.

The week leading up to his party, my team discovered he had only one person RSVP.

So they quickly went to work and called his family to let them know, put together a list of other students who might enjoy coming, got the family’s permission to invite them, and took the initiative to do exactly that—successfully having six kids show up to his party.

Can you imagine how that child might’ve felt if the one person to RSVP got sick that day or got too busy to go?

I often write about being the one to take initiatives to connect people… to set up meetings… to plan gatherings that allow for IRL FaceTime… to do the inner work that gives you the confidence to be the first to say hi, start a genuine conversation, and ask the person out… etc.

…But today, I was reminded of how important it is to be the one to do the showing up when invited… to take the initiative to confirm an RSVP… to share your excitement about being a part of their gathering and finding ways you can add even more excitement to the already made plans… and so on.

Showing up might not feel like that big of a deal to you… but to others? To the ones who did the inviting? Who are doing the hosting?

…Trust me when I say very little could be bigger.

Inner Work Prompt: Who has been inviting you to connect that you haven’t been able to RSVP with? Could you confirm that today?

3 Ways To Help You Get More Creative / Inner Work Done

Published on March 21, 2025

1. A little bit daily. I don’t think many of us have a lot of time daily to do creative/inner work. And that’s okay. Deliberately carving out a little bit of time every day can have an “a lot of time” effect. Plus, the consistency and ritual of doing the same thing every day can make it easier and easier to actually do the thing the longer you do it—and your mind will start to anticipate your sessions and get into productive work states quicker and quicker. Aligning this with your morning or evening ritual can be an excellent place to start.

2. A respectable chunk weekly. If your daily grind is too crazy, (a) try to change that, but (b) until you can… reserving an hour or two within a week can be an excellent alternative. For example, maybe on Sunday you have a slow morning followed by a deliberate weekly reflection. The distinct benefit with this medium-length time is that you don’t have to spend extra time getting focused—whereas within the “little bit daily” sessions, some time will undoubtedly be spent getting into the right headspace.

3. A whole itinerary monthly or quarterly. This could be good for the person who rarely can find time for themself. Look at the month or quarter ahead and find the one or two days when you have the least going on. Block that whole time and create a creative/inner-work/self-care itinerary. Take this seriously and don’t waste it on social media timelines. Do not disturb mode; blank canvas; boredom; deep thinking; careful creation.

You’re not too busy to get creative/inner work done. You’re just not taking it seriously enough.

Two Formulas To Help With Spring Cleaning

Published on March 21, 2025

The snow is melting. Birds are chirping. The buds on trees are showing. People are coming out of hibernation. Our seasonal energy boost is returning and with it, our desire to freshen up and bring back to life our living environments is reawakening as well.

As you look around at the clutter, the extraneous purchase items, the piles of things created during the hibernation months… you might feel resistance and attachment.

Resistance because of how much… resistance because of where to start… resistance because of not knowing what to do with it all…

Attachment because of money spent… attachment because of time/energy/and effort invested… attachment because of not knowing when you might need/use it again…

To which I offer two simple formulas for you to consider that might help: (1) Trust behavior > Emotion and (2) Use + Emotion to combat – Emotion.

In regards to the first: Trust behavior over emotion… if a clothing item is at the bottom of your pile or in the back of your closet and you haven’t worn it in MONTHS… then trust that behavior more than any feelings you might have of it being “your favorite” or “still cute” etc. If you haven’t missed it in months… you probably won’t miss it.

In regards to the second: Use “positive” emotions to combat “negative” emotions… if you’re being held up by an irrational attachment to an item and you don’t want to just throw it away… try donating it to a homeless shelter or gifting it to a friend… the positive emotion of giving it to someone who could really use and benefit from it is like water to the fire of our attachment.

Happy spring cleaning :)

Smile, Nod, Say “Thank You,” and Ignore

Published on March 20, 2025

A friend of mine was telling me how fruits and vegetables blended into a smoothie and then consumed is not the same as eating them raw… and how you don’t absorb as many of the vitamins, minerals, and nutrients.

This made me not want to consume my fruits and vegetables in a smoothie anymore.

However, I quickly remembered: I’m not going to eat my fruits and vegetables raw as consistently as I’m going to drink them blended into a smoothie. It just doesn’t align with my current lifestyle and I know it’s not something I can make happen with my current kitchen discipline (or lack thereof).

…And not getting any fruits and vegetables is far worse than getting them in a blended form.

This is the mistake too many people make.

They have something good going… compare it to something they could be doing better… get discouraged with what they’re doing… stop… and fall back to something far worse.

Like… if I’m not consuming them in a blended form, and I default back to getting processed, packaged, or fast food instead… how does the above insight help?

…It doesn’t at all.

Even though it was intended to be helpful.

And this is where self-awareness comes into play. Sometimes, you have to smile, nod, say “thank you” for the insight, and keep doing what’s working for you.

If This Isn’t Magic… I Don’t Know What Is.

Published on March 18, 2025

A few months ago, I had the privilege of seeing David Blaine live.

To my surprise, about 90% of what he did during his magic show, I had seen him do online.

To his credit, I’m a bit of fanboy and have done deep dives into his content so it wasn’t like he was being lazy with his show or promotion. He’s a hulluva performer and will blow your mind any and every time you see him perform—regardless of whether it’s live or online.

What I found this to be a good reminder of, though, is the power of the internet.

The answer(s) you’re looking for in your life… are out there. Readily available. Just waiting to be uncovered with the right search, frame of mind, and dose of action. All free.

Some people neatly collect the answers and package them behind a price tag. But generally speaking, the majority of people who produce content are extremely generous and share what they learn and know for free.

What’s stopping most of us isn’t access to the answers…

What’s stopping most of us is distraction—we set out to follow one curiosity and get sucked down a rabbit hole digression. Or, said differently, boredom aversion. It’s only after we’ve sat with the problem(s) long enough, without distraction, that we’re able to bring clarity to our path forward, to clearly illustrate our circumstances, and to formulate action plans.

But, because most of us are so bored averse… we allow ourselves to get sucked down rabbit holes instead. And the magic problem solving power of the internet gets lost just as fast as a card from David Blaine’s hands.