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Matt Hogan's Blog Posts

You Don’t “Run Out” Of Ideas

Published on November 9, 2021

Generating ideas is not like emptying a reservoir.

You don’t tap into your idea source and then drain ideas until they’re all gone.

It works more like, well, a generator.

It requires mechanical energy in, but as a result, you get electrical energy out.

You expend energy getting into the right state, meeting up with the right people, organizing the tasks of your day, staring at enough blank screens, cataloguing through the other ideas of the world until—it happens.

Your mechanical energy is converted.

And you are no longer draining a reservoir, but rather are generating a type of electrical output that lights up your mind and charges your whole body.

The reality is, if you feel like you’re “out of ideas,” it isn’t because you’ve emptied what you had—what’s really happened is your generator needs to be looked at and fixed.

This might involve a change in how you optimize your state, changing who you spend your time with, organizing your tasks in more inspiring ways, being more patient with your process, forcing yourself to get more bored, or spending more time cataloguing other idea sources.

And if your generator isn’t broken, then, you simply need to put more mechanical energy in.

Nothing Should Come Before This

Published on November 8, 2021

Your first priority each day should be doing that which improves your state.

Because the byproduct of an improved state is more of the same. It overflows from your being. It starts a positive upward spiraling loop. Your happiness increases their happiness, which increases yours even further, which increases theirs further and so on.

Influencing others becomes a joy, they find joy in influencing you, and it’s hardly a task.

If you start from a place of lack, discontent, and busyness—then, that too, will attract more of the same. It overflows from your being. It starts a negative downward spiraling loop. Your discontent increases their discontent, which increases yours further, which increases theirs further and so on.

Influencing others positively will become a chore because it will be in direct contradiction to your own state—and it’ll hardly be a joy for anyone involved.

Start each day with a conscious series of efforts designed to improve your state. Whether that’s exercise, meditation, reading, writing, walking—it doesn’t matter. What matters is that you identify what works for you and you prioritize it each morning in a non-negotiable way.

Before It’s Taken

Published on November 7, 2021

My dog plays with her toys until she gets bored.

And then she could care less about them.

It’s only when I take one of them away that she suddenly cares again.

And cares a whole lot.

We are so much the same.

We don’t really care about what we have until it’s gone.

If only we could enjoy what we have like it was already taken, maybe we wouldn’t have to get things taken before we could truly enjoy.

Guest Appearance On ‘From The King’s Pen’

Published on November 6, 2021

I had the privilege of being interviewed by Arthur Dias on his YouTube Show: From The King’s Pen.

In it, Arthur navigates the conversation around my journey as a martial artist and how I went from apprentice to master, takes a closer look at how I dealt with challenges and built discipline along the way, and how my battles with impostor syndrome shaped me into who I am.

It’s a 55 minute conversation and you can listen on YouTube or by playing below. Enjoy!

No Care.

Published on November 5, 2021 
We were born needing care
and we'll die needing care.

But, let's not forget
that what happens in between
shouldn't be no care.

For not needing care
doesn't mean care
is not needed.

When more people who care show up
living feels infinitely less unfair.

Go Already.

Published on November 4, 2021

Starting a stopped body is hard.

Keeping a body in motion is easier.

Even if that motion is heading in the wrong direction.

Redirecting is easier than starting.

Which is why you should start even without knowing which direction is the perfect direction to head. You can always turn the steering wheel as you go. It’s really no big deal.

Just do what’s hard, start your damn engine, and get going already.

Planning “Nothing” Into Your Days

Published on November 3, 2021

When you stop the intake of information you give your mind the space it needs to process the information it has already taken in.

Never stopping the influx of information is like continuing to open new tabs on new tabs on new tabs in your browser.

Soon, the clutter overwhelms the machine and everything gets throttled. And, resultantly, you get frustrated, angry, and/or upset.

Rather than getting emotional at your computer—try closing yourself off to all inputs.

Stop opening new tabs. Stop watching videos. Stop having conversations. Stop reading books and articles. Stop listening to podcasts. Just, stop it all.

At least for a period of time. And at least once a day.

Just, let it all—settle.

In more cases than not, what your mind needs isn’t more information; what it needs is more space to process the excessive information it has already consumed.

In short, what you need is to plan more nothing into your days.