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Category: Archives

The full collection of explorations.

Pressing Firmly Into The Earth

Published on August 23, 2023

We find our way forward by moving forward—not by standing still.

It’s tempting to want to chart out the entire journey before beginning—to minimize the surprises and unknowns. And to a certain extent, thorough planning can be quite helpful. But, at the other end of the spectrum, too much can be a handicap.

The reality we must accept with moving into the unknown (the future), is that there are going to be unknowns—things you couldn’t possibly have planned for by staring at the drawing board. And so we plan and prepare for a “good enough” amount of time—no more—and then we venture forth.

I aim to spend 30-60 minutes thinking carefully each day about my path and my trajectory (this blog). And the rest of the time, I try and spend walking, playing, teaching, training, trying, failing, doing, creating, interacting, producing, shipping, reading, experimenting, etc—pressing my boots firmly into the erasing nature of the earth.

Because it’s much easier to figure out which way to go when you can look back at where you’ve come from—and can utilize all of the info that accompanies that history. Moving forward from a singular point—with no past trajectory—makes forward exponentially harder to figure out.

My questions for you are: How much time to you spend thinking vs acting? Do you like this ratio? What might your ideal ratio be and what adjustments can you make to get there?

Three Birthday Lessons

Published on August 22, 2023

Today is my birthday.

And as I reflect on this last year, there are a few lessons that stand out as highlight themes:

  • Slow down. Faster isn’t better. In almost every case, with everyday living as the subject, slower is better. Because slower calms our body, which calms our mind, which calms our spirit. And a calm spirit is a more present spirit. And if we’re not present for life, then what the hell is the point?
  • No hesitation. Whenever I find myself on the fence about a thing I know I should do and the thing my ego wants me to do (e.g. household chores vs create AI art), I speak “No hesitation” into my mind as a mantra and react appropriately asap. If there’s one thing I’ve learned from building habits, it’s that the larger the gap is between fence-thought and response, the less likely I am to do it.
  • Take more shots. This past year I created my first ever digital product (something that imposter syndrome stopped me from doing for over a decade prior); I’ve joined a handful of new classes / activities so as to meet new people and reengage in activities as a beginner (e.g. basketball, modern arnis, yoga, meditation, dance, etc); and have taken more initiative in family and friend efforts (e.g. getting a run buddy, attending every wedding/ graduation/ reunion/ birthday party/ funeral I could, and said “yes” to more invites, etc).

In summary, I’d say this past year has been about living with more courage (more shots), control (no hesitation), and presence (slowing down). Three words I’ll be carrying close with me as the adventure continues into year 34. Cheers :)

Just Because

Published on August 21, 2023

Yesterday, a friend of mine got a friend of theirs a custom t-shirt featuring a blown up image of their friend’s childhood dream car drawn by their friend’s very own childhood hand that was joking shared via text but brilliantly airdropped, screen printed, and airbrushed onto a plain white t-shirt—complete with nickname AND racing stripes… just because.

…These are the kinds of friends you want to keep close by in life.

And this is the type of friend more of us should aim to be.

P.s. The dream car was a red Lamborghini. And what the drawn image looked like to an actual Lamborghini is about what Josh Allen’s Buffalo Bills logo looked like to the actual logo. Priceless.

Detaching From Productivity

Published on August 21, 2023

There should be at least one day in your week where you’re able to purely go with the flow.

No obligations; no mandatory tasks; no appointments—just time to do whatever your soul desires.

Sunday is that day for me.

I chronically have a ton of stuff on my to-do list and could easily work from sun up to sun down trying to get it all done every day of the week if I wanted to. But, on Sundays, I practice detaching from my productivity focused mind and practice opening myself up to opportunities for flow that present themselves.

Because while checking a handful of items off my to-do list will undoubtedly feel good, honoring the pull of my soul will ultimately feel better. Which isn’t to say to-do lists should always be ignored. It’s simply to say—that’s what the other six (or whatever ratio works for you) days are for.

P.s. In case you missed it, you can read the best of what I posted to MoveMe Quotes last week, here.

Really Notice

Published on August 20, 2023

The other night I asked my adult martial arts class, “Who feels like they’re at 100%?”

“…As in no aches, no pains, no tweaks, no bodily issues, no lagging exhaustion?”

And to my surprise, maybe 7 out of 35 raised their hand—one of whom was one of the oldest students in class.

It seems increasingly rare to me to speak with somebody who doesn’t have some type of ache, pain, tweak, bodily issue, or lagging exhaustion.

In fact, it often feels like it acts as the center of our attention and resultantly, becomes the center of our conversations, too.

Imagine, however, if we were able to notice—really notice—the miracle that is the days when we feel like we’re at 100%. It isn’t often, I’d say, but it isn’t never, either (hopefully).

Furthermore, what if we were able to notice—really notice—the miracle that is everything going right… all of the parts of ourselves that don’t ache, hurt, annoy, tire, and frustrate us.

My guess is that we often take both for granted and allow distractions to do what they do so well. But, I’m also going to guess that the more we’re able to do the really noticing, the closer to 100% we’ll get—even without any physical changes.

An Unintentional Legacy

Published on August 18, 2023

What does what you’ve posted publicly online say about you?

Imagine for a second that all of your social media posts and comments from all of your accounts, all of your websites, all of your blogs, etc… were neatly laid out in front of me in a multi-tabbed browser. No time for curating either—everything that’s public right now is what would be opened for me to review.

Does the thought of that make you feel proud or cringe? Do you think it would be a fairly accurate representation of you or not so much? Do you think this profiling would match what I would say about you if we spent a few hours in conversation in person together?

Here’s the thing…

A big part of your legacy will be what’s left publicly online. It’s where so many of us spent so much of our time. It’s where so many of your loved ones keep in touch with you and your life’s story.

…And it’s where so many of us will go to remember you.

If you’re not careful, you might end up leaving behind an unintentional legacy. One that makes you cringe or feel superficial or one that just plain misrepresents the “real” you. And not because what you shared didn’t authentically come from you, but because it was shared unintentionally with other people in mind—and became tainted.

This is your reminder to be mindful with how you use your public tools.

Everything you do contributes to the overall picture that ultimately becomes your life’s legacy. To think otherwise might lead to patches in your picture that feel out of place and that you ultimately regret.

Updating How You Act

Published on August 17, 2023

The way we act is a byproduct of a lifetime of trial, “error,” and adjustment.

I put error in quotations because it’s subjective. It depends on what we define as “error” based on environmental responses—particularly in how people treat us.

We act a certain way, get feedback from our environment, and either reinforce or adjust. The goal, of course, being to move in the direction of safe, seen, and heard.

If we grow up in an unsafe environment, we may be forced to take safety into our own hands and practice fighting, toughening up, and preparing for unexpected violence.

If we grow up in an ignored / overlooked / misunderstood environment, we may attempt to feel seen and heard in alternative ways. Like acting out, dressing flamboyantly, or engaging in risky behavior.

Individual cases, of course, can be far more nuanced than this.

But, if we don’t take some time to stop and look inward, we might not realize we’re acting a certain way based on expired environmental circumstances—and we can update how we act to our updated environments.

Or, better yet, we can update how we act towards an ideal regardless of our current environments and practice self-growth that’s independent of outside influence.

The realization is this: the only thing stopping you from acting more fun, loving, calm, cool, confident, joyful, compassionate, etc.—is your current beliefs about how you “should” or “have to” act based on past experiences.

…And all you have to do is change your mind.