Category: Archives

The full collection of explorations.

Being A “Hotel Princess” vs Being A “Tent Bum”

Published on June 30, 2026

Sometimes it’s good to be a “hotel princess”—as one of my friends put it—and sometimes it’s good to be a “tent bum.”

Being a “hotel princess” is about choosing a situation where zero choices will need to be made about how your basic living needs are going to be met. It’s about choosing running water, air conditioned rooms, Wi-Fi access, room service, and soft beds. It’s about choosing comfort. And there is certainly a time and a place for this.

Being a “tent bum” is about choosing a situation where all choices will need to be made about how your basic living needs are going to be met. It’s about flexing your survival skill muscles and challenging yourself to figure out how you’re going to stay hydrated/clean, warm/cool, connected if/when needed, functional/fed, and where/how you’re going to set up a shelter for rest/recovery. It’s about intentionally choosing discomfort. Something many people in the modern world don’t make a time or space for in the least.

Even camping in the modern age looks less and less like the latter and is looking more and more like the former—there’s RVs, remote AirBnBs, and glamping setups galore.

And I get it—travel can be stressful enough. Especially travel to remote parts of the world where there are so many unknowns as is.

…But if you want an inner work challenge? An opportunity to see—and possibly grow—what you’re made of?

Try being a “tent bum” for a few days in the woods.

It’ll most likely elicit more inward reflection and growth than being a “hotel princess” ever would.

The Character Revealing Mix Of Camping and Live Music

Published on June 30, 2026

I spent this past weekend camping in the forest and listening to live music.

Which is an interesting mix.

The music unites and shines a light on everybody’s best—most joyful, relaxed, playful—side.

And the camping challenges and brings out a side of people that’s usually hidden—the cranky, stressed, irritable—side.

…Generally speaking, of course,

And I point this out because both are important. Not only to seek out when building relationships with others, but to reflect on as you build up the relationship you have with yourself.

Being “joyful, relaxed, and playful” when you’re well rested, around incredible energy, and hearing music that vibes with your soul—is easy. Again, generally speaking.

Being “joyful, relaxed, and playful” when you’re sore from walking/dancing, around irritable energy, and hearing comments and sounds that mess with your vibe? …Not so easy.

…But incredibly impressive and reflective of a person who has done their inner work.

Which isn’t to say you should never be cranky, stressed, or irritable. Those emotions are certainly signals that are most likely signaling things about your environment you should take note of and/or change.

…But it could just as likely be signaling things about yourself that you should take note of and/or change, too.

In What Expressive Medium Do You Find Yourself Lost?

Published on June 28, 2026

Find the medium where you feel you can best express yourself and lean in.

Maybe it’s music. Maybe it’s art. Maybe it’s sport.

Maybe it’s dancing. Maybe it’s painting. Maybe it’s basketball.

Maybe it’s line dancing. Maybe it’s ballet. Maybe it’s ecstatic dancing.

Maybe it’s watercolor. Maybe it’s oil painting. Maybe it’s spray painting.

Maybe it’s casual pick-up basketball. Maybe it’s in an amateur league. Maybe it’s in a professional league.

The thing is, where you find yourself lost in an expressive medium… that’s where you’ll find your most authentic self.

…Not when you’re in a business meeting, or on a first date, or making a video for a social media audience. In each of those examples, there’s a self-consciousness. A focus on what the other person thinks and a desire to give your best impression. And so you put on the best fitting personality mask that you think will elicit the best response.

When you’re lost in an expressive medium, however? And time flies by? And there’s no self-consciousness?

That’s where the real you shows his/her face.

That’s where the source of some of your most potent life energy will be.

And that… is where your best life and favorite people will be.

Where The Magic Happens (At Work)

Published on June 23, 2026

I’m pretty busy at work these days.

I could pull an 80-hour work week and still have plenty left to do—all things I’m trying to cram into my 40-hour work week as best I can.

…Maybe you can relate.

Add on top of that the fact that oftentimes as I’m working, I’ll get interrupted.

I’ll have kids peek-a-boo into my office, parents stop in to ask questions, instructors ask for advice or guidance, staff share daily happenings, students want to talk or chat the chat with me… and so on…

And it makes getting all of the busy done, as efficiently as I’d like to, challenging.

…But you know what?

The inefficiencies are where the magic happens, isn’t it?

It’s those moments spent peek-a-booing with kids… chatting with parents about life… giving instructors guidance… interacting with my staff whom I’m so proud to have on my team… and chatting the pointless chat with students… that make all of the damn work I’m trying to efficiently get done—worth it.

Without them, I’d be clacking away at a keyboard… for what? For whom?

…Maybe you can relate?

Which “Candidate” Are You?

Published on June 22, 2026

Black Belt Candidate #1:
– Showed up early to every practice, pre-test, and test
– Trained, rehearsed, and started drilling curriculum requirements early
– Got his/her curriculum approved to the highest standard
– Wrote an earnest black belt essay that reflected careful, deep thought
– Completed a service project that made a lasting and meaningful impact on both them and others
– Received a glowing letter of recommendation from an individual who could attest to character demonstrated over the course of years
– Courageously shaved their head/participated in a physical demonstration of humility
– Fasted before their test for the challenge and ritualistic cleanse of the body
– Gave their 100% best effort at each step of the testing process

Black Belt Candidate #2:
– Showed up late to every practice, pre-test, and test
– Waited until the last minute to train, rehearse, and start drilling curriculum requirements
– Got his/her curriculum approved according to the bare minimum standard
– Used AI to write their essay and added minimal thought and/or editing
– Did a last minute service project that they made sound better than it was
– Received a short, generic letter of recommendation
– Decided against participating in a physical demonstration of humility because of fear
– Didn’t want to feel hungry so didn’t fast for their test
– Did just enough to get by at each step of the testing process

…You may not be a martial artist. Heck, you might never even step into a martial arts school. But the contrast in decisions outlined above and what results apply universally. Candidate #1 and candidate #2 are going to feel completely different about their belt, the testing process, and themself… my question for you is: which candidate are you in your domain of life?

Meaningless Easy

Published on June 21, 2026

In all my years running black belt and higher degree test, I’ve never had anybody say to me they regret participating in a really hard test.

Heck, candidates are much quicker to complain about a test being easy than they ever are to complain about a test being hard.

In fact, hard tests usually lead to bragging more than any kind of complaint.

And I think this illustrates something about all of us. That surface level, sure, we want to follow the path of least resistance. And do what’s easy. And complain about all that’s hard with our life.

…But that we also crave meaning.

And that deep down we know that nothing worthwhile comes easily. And so when we sign up for something that’s supposed to be hard, if we don’t get it, we complain because what we were after wasn’t “easy”—what we were after was meaning.

And by not giving us hard, it isn’t that you gifted us easy… it’s that you took away meaning.

…And that’s much harder to deal with than a meaningless easy.

Acts Of Humility

Published on June 20, 2026

Some of our martial arts students will shave their heads before big black belt or higher degree tests as a demonstration of their humility—to demonstrate that they are more than their hair. And that it isn’t the hair that makes the person, it’s the character that does.

And some of the students will really struggle with this… they’ll worry about what other people might say to them about it and/or that they’ll get made fun of or ostracized in some way.

…But I tell you what, the students who do go through with it? The ones who choose to sacrifice beauty for a chance to build character? The ones who decide to trust in their self-opinion more than in the opinion of others? The ones who choose the difficult route over the comfort zone option?

These are the students who get the most from their black belt and higher degree tests. These are the students who leave the test, not just with a different colored belt or added bar, but with a different colored character and an example that raises the bar.

…Because these are the students—not just of the martial arts who are in it for belts and titles—but of life who are in it for self-awareness and experiential knowledge.