Category: Living Well

Ah, The Dream Of Opening A Coffee Shop…

Published on April 5, 2025

I went through a phase when I was seriously considering opening a coffee shop with my sister.

The only problem was… I didn’t have any real time to commit to being there. And opening a business that I couldn’t commit to felt foolish.

So we put it on the back burner.

Today, I was chatting on the phone with a few friends and we got to talking about retirement.

We all agreed that none of us wanted to do nothing… and in fact, we were all leaning more towards working for as long as we possibly could over retiring as soon as we possibly could…

And it brought back up this idea of the coffee shop.

I mentioned this idea of having a hybrid coffee shop/book shop, that had a quaint feel and community connection emphasis, that hosted readings, author talks, book clubs, open mics, art shows, and general IRL gatherings… as a way to spend the retirement days…

And it planted a seed that I think a lot of us are thinking about…

The takeaway for me is not to try and force something into existence until it’s in alignment with your lifestyle and time. And not only that… but bringing things into existence that you want to actually spend a chunk of your lifestyle and time engaging and participating in.

The thing is… the world doesn’t need another coffee shop.

But, it could definitely use more authentic, real, brick-and-mortar, connection places that serve great coffee, fresh ideas, and interesting conversation starters that attracts like-minded, curious, and maybe lonely or introverted people who have a hard time finding places to connect.

…There’s always room for more of what’s real.

Drip, Drip

Published on April 3, 2025

Point a power hose at a rock and probably the most that’ll happen is the rock will get wet—maybe even move if the rock is small enough.

Leave that same rock under a dripping waterfall however… and after a few years, erosion will wear away at its seemingly impenetrable surface. Leave it there long enough and you might even see it drip its way all the way through the rock to the other side.

This is a strategy that works.

Sure, there’s a time and a place to blast at a seemingly impenetrable challenge with full force… but, more often than not—full force blasts fatigue and burn out before any noticeable change ever takes effect.

Drip, drip, drip, however? …With unrelenting consistency and over a long enough period of time? And no rock stands a chance.

P.s. If you appreciate these daily drips in the form of 1-minute emails, you can support my future work by buying me a coffee here. Thanks :)

Nothing But Enjoy

Published on March 30, 2025

I had about one hour of usable time for this post today… and I spent all of it karaoke-ing and dancing in my house, by myself.

It started with car karaoke with a friend, put me onto an old, FIRE playlist that I haven’t listened to in a while, and ended with the above decision vs killing the vibe and staring at a blank screen until words happened.

Here’s the thing that inner work has taught me: if you find yourself in an ideal, ecstatic, overflowing state… then no further work is needed. What more could possibly be done?

…You’ve arrived. You’re living the byproduct of the work. The only thing to do from there is nothing but enjoy.

…Don’t miss the forest for the trees.

The Mind vs The Heart on Doing Hard Things

Published on March 28, 2025

I was speaking to a friend today about doing hard things.

And he was reflecting on a time he did a 4x4x48: 4 miles every 4 hours for 48 hours (which totals up to 48 miles).

He was talking about the self-deflating inner dialogue that happened throughout (“This is so stupid…” “You can’t do this…” “Why’d you let those guys talk you into this…” etc); he mentioned the moments of sheer frustration and agony… to the point of hallucinating images of and having conversations with The Banana Splits; he recalled how he got sick immediately after and how it took him three months to fully recover…

And yet…

…In the same breath, he curiously pondered the idea of doing it again.

The paradox of our reality as humans is that our mind is constantly trying to box us into the most comfortable, predictable, easy, secure, luxurious space possible. Our hearts, however… yearn to stretch. They seek adventure… depth… challenge… wonder… meaning…

And something magical happens when we accomplish an incredible physical feat like a 4x4x48… when our heart is beating faster and harder than our mind can think new thoughts…

…We’re reminded of this.

We’re reminded of the power of following our heart and quieting our mind. Either by increasing the volume of our heart or by decreasing the volume of our mind. And once we taste that: the feeling of adventure lived… depth explored… challenge completed… wonder revealed… meaning felt…

The volume of our heart never returns to it’s prior level. It remains a little louder than it was before. And even when the mental chatter gets turned up… the whispers of our heart more regularly break through.

5 Things I Noticed In Myself And Changed For A Better Day

Published on March 27, 2025

I noticed I was holding a thought for this blog… and that I was forcing myself to stick to a routine rather than simply aligning with this rare moment of inspiration from my muse and writing it out. Once I noticed it, I chose alignment instead.

I noticed I was making myself feel guilty for having a slow morning. I slept in, allowed myself extra time to watch videos as I woke up, took a longer than usual shower… and then realized, this is something I’ve earned. Slow mornings are one of life’s real luxuries and is something I should embrace and align with when possible—not make myself feel guilty about.

While I was writing the above bullet point, I noticed I wrote, “Woke up late” where I now have, “Slept in.” I didn’t wake up late… I intentionally decided to sleep in. Woke up late sounds like I made a mistake… like I missed my alarm… like I had something to feel guilty about… but I didn’t. It was intentional and rewriting it allowed me to own that.

I noticed an urge to rush to “catch up” after I finally started my morning tasks. I wanted to get my workout done so I could finish my quote curating and daily writing so I could get my car cleaned so I could go food shopping so I could finish my taxes… and then I realized, rushing is how time is wasted. And today, I decided I didn’t want to waste any of it.

And finally, I noticed that noticing is a lot easier when you’re not rushing. And noticing is step one towards essentially all inner work growth.

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.

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 :)