Category: Living Well

IRL World

Published on August 28, 2026

When I was a kid, I used to play football in the street, basketball in driveways, and wrestle—WWE style—on front lawns. And knew it was time to go home when the streetlights came on.

Nobody had a cell phone. Nobody had a tablet. And we were too busy IRL to really care about video games.

Fences, stairs, and stoops were our playgrounds. Gravity, concrete, and cooperation were our teachers. And it was the whole neighborhood who raised us.

I wouldn’t trade this upbringing for anything. But know that times have changed. With screens galore and billions being poured into keeping us glued to them… there has never been a bigger need for initiatives that lead us into the IRL.

…And somebody needs to lead.

My plea with today’s post is simple: what’s something you can start that’s off screen? Who can you involve that would love to help? How can we give this new generation a taste of what it’s like to really live in this IRL world?

Knee Gratitude

Published on August 24, 2026

Yesterday, one of the guys I play basketball with saw a lane, attacked it and drove towards the basket with big physicality, took a lot of contact while going for a layup, must’ve lost himself in the air, and came crashing down on his confused and discombobulated leg with the full force of his weight…

A few thuds, screeches, and blood-curdling screams later… he was laid out on the floor, in fetal position, holding onto his knee like keeping his leg attached depended on it…

We called 911. Got him as comfortable as we could. And let the professionals do what they were trained to do from there.

It wasn’t long after that I found myself sitting on the gym bench… sweat dripping from my forehead… staring at my knees.

“Man, I don’t express this enough to y’all, but thank you. Thank you for an up-until-this-point lifetime of use, abuse, and challenge with no major injury. The games I’ve played, the movements I’ve thrown, the sights I’ve seen, the independence I’ve been shown… is largely because of y’all. And I promise to keep doing my best to take care.”

Did my knees hear me?

…Obviously not.

But I heard me.

And that’s the point of gratitude.

Birthday Bingo

Published on August 22, 2026

A mom of one of my martial arts students told me the other day that she was going to miss her son’s martial arts tournament for the first time since they started years ago.

When I asked her why, she told me the most incredible answer.

…Her longtime friend invited her and four others to fly to Seattle, Washington, USA for a birthday party that she was throwing—for herself. And check out the festivities lineup:

Bingo—because it’s her favorite.
A potato bar—which included a survey sent ahead of time of which custom topics each attendee wanted.
Rotating massages—by a masseuse who would give 15-minute sessions.
A Frownie Buffett—which are facial patches that prevent wrinkles
And a day floating down the local river—in floaties, while having drinks and casual conversation.

All created and put together by the birthday girl herself.

And I absolutely love this energy. Especially as I reflect on this past year and celebrate my own birthday (which is today…!)

What a joy it is to create joy in your life.

…And what a drag it can be to wait for others to create joy for you.

Some of my absolute favorite memories from this last year have been from experiences I took the initiative to create for myself.

And as I step into 37, this is the kind of energy I want to keep leading my life forward with.

An uncompromising, unapologetic, unwavering drive to live my life as fully as I’m able—without waiting for someone else to invite me or tell me how to do it for me.

Nobody Kills Your Dreams On Purpose

Published on August 4, 2026

“Nobody kills your dreams on purpose. You just stop feeding them. And eventually they stop bothering you.”
Unknown

Of course we want our dreams to come to life.

We fantasize of the day when we officially close on our dream home, or visit our dream bucket list destination, or become an author of the book we’ve always wanted to write.

…None of us kill our dreams on purpose.

But sometimes, we let the talking get in the way of the feeding.

We talk to friends and family about our dreams, we talk to our diaries about our dreams, we talk to social media and teachers and strangers about our dreams…

And we continue to talk and talk and talk to the same circles of people while the dream itself starves from inaction.

You can only talk about wanting something for so long, while simultaneously taking zero action towards obtaining it, and staying precisely as far away from realizing it as you ever have… before you simply stop believing in your ability to close that gap.

And you stop being bothered by the dream because its energy continues to dwindle while you invest precious time, energy, and resources into other life tasks. Many times into things you would happily sell back on your deathbed like TV, video games, social media, work you hate, and people you don’t like…

What’s your dream?

What was your dream?

Have you let it starve?

And can you reclaim some of the nourishment of your life and feed it back into that dream?

…Or are you really okay with it starving and withering away?

In The Direction Of Aliveness

Published on August 3, 2026

A thought to update your internal compass:

“People say that what we’re all seeking is a meaning for life. I don’t think that’s what we’re really seeking. I think that what we’re seeking is an experience of being alive, so that our life experiences on the purely physical plane will have resonances with our own innermost being and reality, so that we actually feel the rapture of being alive.”
Joseph Campbell

You know what moments give me the most meaning?

…The moments when I feel most alive.

And I’m not even talking about moments when I feel intense joy as rapture might suggest above.

I’m talking about moments when feel the most. In any direction. In the direction of joy, sure. But also in the direction of sad and surprised and fearful and bad.

Even just looking at the past few months of my life. Which moments did I feel the most?

…I felt pretty scared dropping 420 feet straight to the ground on a roller coaster.

…I felt pretty devastated hearing that my friend lost her battle to cancer.

…I felt pretty ecstatic dancing uncaringly at several music shows with friends.

…I felt pretty awful seeing my screen time rise and self-discipline falter.

And coincidentally, these would also be the moments I would reference when thinking about what gave me the most meaning.

So rather than seeking meaning in life…

…Maybe try recalibrating your internal compass to move in the direction of aliveness. To move towards potent feelings; not away from. To seek opportunities to feel more fully; not avoid via distraction, suppression, and vegetation. To actively feel; not passively wait.

Writing Is The Source Of All Change

Published on August 1, 2026

Isn’t it incredible to think that there’s a certain combination of words I could say… right now… that could completely alter the direction (and ultimately the destination) of your life?

Because the right combination of words would inspire a change in actions…

And a change in actions would result in a change in feeling…

And a change in feeling would result in a reinforced and repeated action—that would ultimately become a habit.

And a change in habit done long enough would become a change in identity.

…And a change in identity would become a change in destiny—and of course, destination.

This is where my motivation to write comes from.

Writing takes me back to the source of all change. Pure, unfiltered, self-realized content. Not others-realized content that’s tik-tok-ified and spoon fed into a mushy, dwindling attention span. But rather little nuggets of wisdom unearthed with pick, shovel, grit, will, and a few clacks of my damn keyboard.

All to lay out a unique combination of direction-altering words.

Not just for me.

And not just for you.

But for us.

So that we all might have a more fulfilling and favorable destination in life.

Literally Everything I Do Is Wrong

Published on July 30, 2026

…And it’s because nothing I do is ever perfect and so could be argued that it was wrong in some way.

Literally nothing.

My morning routine? Anybody could find a way I could do it better.

My exercise regiment? Would probably be laughed at by some of the gym bros.

My eating habits? I’m not microwaving nearly as much as I used to… so that’s a victory I guess.

And then there’s how I do things professionally…

Teaching martial arts? Sheesh. Always so much to remember and consider. The depth of information is oceanic and I feel like all I’m ever able to convey is a few drops at a time.

Teaching character development? Oh lord. Such a complex and ever-changing landscape. Not sure if there’s anything I’ve ever said that couldn’t be criticized in some way, shape, or form. What works for some absolutely doesn’t for others. And even just practicing what I/we preach is a monumental task in and of itself. So many things I say and do could be said and done better.

Training staff? Their mistakes always feel like my mistakes and it’s in both of our natures to make lots of them. Oh how challenging being in this position is.

…And yet.

…And yet.

I keep showing up every day.

I keep my mindset focused on tweaking and course correcting.

I try not to let the unrealistic expectation of perfect stop me from taking any action at all.

Because while nothing I ever do is perfect…

…Something in that direction is always lightyears ahead of nothing done at all.