Matt Hogan's Blog

Is It Possible To Experience An Extraordinary Moment That Isn’t Self-Created?

Published on February 1, 2026

In other words, can we experience something extraordinary without any active involvement or effort on our end?

I’m not sure we can.

In fact, when I list some of the most extraordinary moments I’ve experienced in my life, they’re all moments I was very much involved with facilitating. Things like:

Skydiving (researched, booked, paid for, attended, trained, got on the plane, stepped out, etc.)
Travel/Cultural Experiences (researched, booked, paid for, packed for, traveled to, noticed, absorbed, etc.)
Milestone Moments (graduations, big purchases, martial arts ranks obtained, etc.—all worked incredibly hard for)
Deep Connection Moments (heart-to-heart conversations, intimate energy exchanges, the depth that comes from sharing the same long-term path, etc.)
Flow State Moments (when immersed in an aligned game/activity, when dancing/celebrating without self-consciousness, when training/being challenged appropriately, etc).
Indomitable Spirit Moments (when being pushed to my limits physically, mentally, or emotionally).

I’m not sure we can just passively sit around, wait, and get hit by an extraordinary life moment that’ll make it onto our life’s highlight reel.

Sure there’s luck, serendipity, and happenstance. But not without our active involvement in some way, shape, or form. In fact, my experience has been that the more I do of the latter, the more I tend to get of the former.

Which is worth reflecting on… does this ring true for you? What are some of your life’s most extraordinary moments? What moments are you actively building to be soon experienced in the next week? Month? Year? Decade? What extraordinary life moments are on your bucket list that you can start actively building for today?

How Often Do You Upgrade Your Thoughts?

Published on February 1, 2026

One of the best things I ever did for my career? Daily writing.
One of the best things I ever did for my relationships? Daily writing.
One of the best things I ever did for my mental health? Daily writing.

Here’s why: writing is thinking upgraded.

We download the raw content of our mind in our initial drafts…

Each edit not only improves our piece, but updates the original thought process.

And so if we ever download that content again… it’ll be the updated, upgraded version.

…And the more we repeat the process the more upgraded our thinking becomes.

So when I’m asked to give a presentation at work, my most recently upgraded thoughts get pulled… when I’m asked a question by a family member, friend, lover, etc., my answer is a reflection of what my most recently upgraded thoughts are… when I’m alone and thinking existentially or self-critically, the thoughts I pull are the most upgraded ones.

And if you haven’t written or done any inner work in 10 years… your most recently upgraded thoughts are going to be from 10 years ago. The same is true for a year ago, a month ago, a week ago, or a day ago.

…And not only that, but think about the frequency, too. One upgrade per year? Per month? Per week? Daily?

A bug fix is a bug fix is a bug fix—they all matter. Big upgrades and small ones.

But maybe think about how you might increase the frequency of them in your life.

I promise you it’ll be worth it.

Recognizing Moments Of Reward As They’re Happening

Published on January 30, 2026

Every afternoon, between 2-3pm, I:

Put on noise-cancelling headphones
Sit quietly into my posture-correcting chair
Sip on a scorching cup of black coffee
Read, re-read, think, re-think, stare at blank pages…
And write

And it’s one of my favorite hours of my day.

Not because of what gets done… but because of how much reward comes from the moments themselves within the hour.

I feel this way about my time spent teaching, practicing martial arts, playing basketball, dancing at music shows, conversing with my favorite people…

These are the things we should be packing our days with—the things we don’t want to end.

I dread the day when I won’t be able to do even one of the above mentioned activities… because this is how I’m most enjoying spending my life’s time.

And today’s reminder is simple: don’t get so caught up in trying to finish, trying to be done, in being “productive”, in being “efficient”, or in getting to whatever is next that you forget to enjoy the reward that comes from doing your favorite things right here in the now.

Reading With A Brilliant Little History Professor At Your Bedside

Published on January 29, 2026

History was a subject I struggled with in school.

Dates, names, countries… I had such a hard time remembering specifics.

A curiosity has come alive, however, as of late while reading historical fiction that’s changing this internal narrative.

It started with a fascination of Miyamoto Musashi and the historical context that surrounded him during feudal Japan.

And has grown considerably within the past few weeks as I began to read All The Light We Cannot See after having recently finished The Book Thief.

Typically, reading was something I did to understand overarching story lines, general plot, and to absorb key insights. Dates, names, countries… I mostly just skimmed and paid little attention to.

Now I find myself curiously doing deep dives into dates and what was happening in countries at that time and what it might mean for the character context.

And let me tell you… this is an excellent use of AI.

I use Claude and it’s like having a brilliant little history professor at my bedside ready to answer my ignorance with crucial digestible context.

Some questions I’ve recently asked: “What was happening in the world, specifically around France, around August 1944…” and “Can you give me an overview of d-day?” and “What does congenital cataracts… bilateral… mean?” and “The story went back in time. Can you tell me what was happening in Germany in 1936 roughly?” and “What was so humiliating for Germany at the end of ww1?”

I share this for two reasons: (1) “I’m not good at history” is a made up story—one that can be rewritten at any time; (2) Using AI as a comprehension companion is a highly underrated life hack.

Take More Side Quests

Published on January 28, 2026

Yes, you’re on a mission. Yes, you have an itinerary. Yes, you’re on a timeline.

But… why be so rigid?

A side quest implies a following of curiosity… a swapping of itinerary for serendipity… an exchange of hitting future benchmarks for surrendering to what’s immediately present.

Urges to side quest nudge at you all of the time. But most likely, you’re too busy trying to be productive…. Or too distracted with external stimuli… or too brainwashed into following an exact path perfectly… that you miss them… or dismiss them… or even knowingly kiss them goodbye.

But what’s so important to remember is that side questing is an urge that’s usually sent directly from the soul.

It’s hard to explain but feeling called to start a little side-hustle or go chat to that other group of people or detour down a different life path… is a feeling worth honoring… and at the very least… contemplating.

Because just like it’s true that our gut usually tells us something is wrong before our brain knows why… so, too, will our gut tell us that there’s something right about a decision before our brain knows why.

You just have to learn to listen and muster up some courage to say yes.

After all, why be in such a hurry to finish your life mission in the first place?

Something To Remember While Building An Audience

Published on January 27, 2026

Yes… it’s for them. But more importantly, it’s for you.

If you sacrifice your art, ideas, direction, excitement, curiosity, and truth… because you think it needs to look, feel, act, behave, present to an audience in a certain way… then you’ve lost.

Period. Point blank.

And you’ll soon feel lost. And as a result you’ll eventually lose them anyway.

The thing about audiences is that they should evolve with you.

As you continue to share new ideas, pivot directions, change excitements, explore fresh curiosities, and discuss alternate truths… some people will leave. But more importantly, new people will arrive.

…Just as past versions of you will be shed as new skins/identities will grow.

This is a natural part of the self-evolution process. And it should be embraced equally as a part of the audience-evolution process.

This is how you win.

Because every day is aligned and becoming more and more aligned both within and without.

And after a decade of this? How could you not win?

P.s. Struggling with creativity? Try getting more bored.

A Helpful Exercise To Do Before Public Speaking

Published on January 26, 2026

What question(s) are you trying to answer? Write your answer(s) as completely as you can. Try to incorporate stories whenever possible.
Wait at least 8 hours and answer again, but don’t read what you wrote the first time.
Repeat one more time.
Read back through everything you wrote and extract the key answers, insights, and stories. Edit to its most concise form.
Highlight the key trigger words that remind you of the complete ideas.
The first time you do Step 5, you’re most likely going to highlight more words than you need to. Repeat Step 5, but find ways to consolidate more ideas into fewer trigger words.
Practice presenting by only checking your notes for those trigger word(s)—share ideas in your own words in real time… don’t try regurgitating pre-memorized paragraphs.
Repeat Step 7 until you’re feeling about 75% ready to perform in public, then, go do it.

…Remember: you’ll never feel 100% ready. And you’ll never feel like you nailed it 100%.

…And guess what? That’s not what it’s about. It’s about getting out there and doing it, and doing it imperfectly, and learning from it, and growing from it.

…Not what you might’ve been conditioned to believe since you were a nose-picking, booger-flinging, direction-following toddler—that everything is graded and 100% is the only acceptable grade.

Unlearn this belief.

It’s not realistic. It’s not healthy. It’s not human.

In fact, if anything… it’s holding you back. It’s keeping you hiding in fear that you might get graded less than 100%. When the only thing that’s 100%… is that you’ll end up regretting not doing things like shine a light on your ideas, your uniqueness, your life.

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