Skip to content

Matt Hogan's Blog Posts

The Path To Easier

Published on September 9, 2021

Things usually get harder before they get easier.

If things aren’t going as easily as you’d like, maybe it’s because you’re avoiding what’s hard.

  • Relationship issues? Usually stem from an avoidance of hard conversations.
  • Career issues? Usually result from not doing enough of what’s hard, first.
  • Joy issues? Usually turn up when harder to handle emotions aren’t properly dealt with.

The solution, of course, is to stop avoiding what’s hard and confront it head on.

Only then will the path finally become easier.

Arriving Isn’t Living

Published on September 8, 2021

How you get through the process is more important than how quickly you get through the process.

Most people default to thinking about the speed at which they can go from where they are, to where they want to be.

And the process quickly becomes irrelevant. All that matters is getting to “Point B.”

So they take short-cuts, Google “hacks,” subscribe to schemes—all so that they can arrive.

But, what quickly becomes evident is that arriving isn’t living. Arriving is ending.

It’s journeying that produces all of the reward. It’s the adventuring that counts.

It’s taking the scenic route, reading thick books, subscribing to long-term thinking ideas that reprioritizes the process as the main priority.

Because it is. Or, at least it should be.

For the “hows” of your process are what ultimately become the story of your life—not your arrivals.

Stop Waiting

Published on September 7, 2021

Stop waiting for someone else to raise the bar.

And raise it yourself.

Stop waiting for someone else to figure it out.

And figure it out yourself.

Stop waiting for someone else to come and save you.

And save yourself.

When you stop waiting for things outside of your control to take control, you can finally take control of what’s within your control and grasp, once again, the steering wheel of your life.

Because one thing is for sure, as well intentioned as others may be, they can never steer you precisely to where you were meant to be. Only you—with your unique mental map, intuition, and unbiased desires—can get yourself there.

Expecting someone else to do that is not only impractical, but futile.

Stop waiting.

Fresh Eyes

Published on September 6, 2021

One of my neighbors rents their house on AirBnB.

I saw the renters taking pictures of the rental, playing as a family in the backyard, and walking the neighborhood with intrigue.

It reminded me to look around with fresh eyes.

That the life we’ve become used to, someone else only dreams to have.

The Foundation Of All That Is Good

Published on September 5, 2021

Love is the foundation of all that is good.

  • Relationships? Obviously. So long as love is continuously renewed, the relationship will remain strong. Any actions sourced from hate will crack the foundation laid from love.
  • Work projects? Absolutely. Anything created without love or with a lack of love quickly becomes apparent. The best works produced are labors of love—not of hate.
  • Society? For sure. Hate from leaders begets hate from followers. Love from leaders begets love from followers. A society run by hate will be hate-filled and chaotic. A society run by love will be love-filled and peaceful.

Regardless of whatever it is you’re trying to improve, always revert back to love.

When your foundation is set solid with actions of love, like an engineer, the sky is your limit and you’ll have nothing but time to enjoy the fruits of your labor.

But, when your foundation is seething with cracks of hate, what you decide to build will only be in vain. For collapse won’t be a matter of if, but of when. And collapse it will, affecting not just you, but everyone else involved in the surrounding process as well.

If what you’re building isn’t set with a foundation of love, maybe it’s time to stop building and start repairing.

Or, maybe even start fresh with a new foundation altogether. It could very well be the move you need to make in order to move forward into new heights in your life.

Facilitating The Successful And The Fools

Published on September 5, 2021

Let’s not forget: fools can say and do things that provide value—and highly successful people can say and do things that are dumb .

Don’t let your overall perception of a person define how you think about everything they ever say and do.

Accept and challenge each statement and action in its own right—free of your predispositions and past judgements.

Be the person who can admit when they are acting out of character—both in good ways and in bad.

It’s incredibly easy to do the opposite. But, being the person who can admit when a person is acting out of character, may very well be the facilitation they need.

What Causes Your Effects?

Published on September 3, 2021

You cannot have an effect without a cause.

Your actions are an effect.

If you don’t like your actions: look closer at what’s causing them.

The real cause(s) might not be as obvious as you initially think.

You might be short towards a coffee shop employee because you didn’t get a good night sleep.

Or you might be short towards a coffee shop employee because of a grudge you’ve been building towards a loved one—which inadvertently has been causing you to lose sleep and your temper.

Being proactive in understanding your causes is the secret to having more clearly understood effects.