Matt Hogan's Blog

Who I Would Take Martial Arts Classes From… And Who I Wouldn’t

Published on October 6, 2025

After spending a weekend with martial arts school owners from all across the United States… so that we could talk about how we might improve our schools as a collective… without actually training martial arts with the vast majority of them… I can tell you whose school I would attend and whose school I wouldn’t.

…Just from brief and basic interactions I had with them.

Because when it comes to investing in my educational future, I’m investing in the teacher as much—if not more—than the actual content of the classes. In fact, throughout my entire educational carrer, my favorite subjects weren’t always the same… they tended to be the ones that had my favorite teachers teaching them.

It’s a powerful reminder that my school’s success is directly tied to my personal success. The more I invest in myself, the more I invest in my school. Many people think working in the business is how you improve the business… and that might be true… but only ever to a certain extent. Working on yourself and improving the overall quality of what you can bring to the table… will always extend that “extent” out further and further.

Take The When Comparisons Out Of The Picture

Published on October 3, 2025

What’s the difference between a workout done at 6am and the same workout done at 10pm?

…Besides the time? …Nothing.

Don’t let the 6am club-ers, early-bird-gets-the-worm-ers, finish-before-the-sun-comes-up-ers make you think otherwise.

What matters isn’t what time… what matters is that (you get it in).

And if 10pm aligns better with your lifestyle, then get it in at 10pm without even an ounce of hesitation or shame.

But on the same note, what’s the difference between a workout done at 6am and a workout skipped at 10pm?

…Everything.

The point is to do things at the time that’s most aligned for you… so that you get the most (important) things done.

Take the when comparisons out of the picture.

Little Swaps For The Win

Published on October 2, 2025

Little swaps that have made a huge long-term impact in my life (in no particular order):

Swapped video games with building a website.
Swapped pops/juices for flavored seltzer water.
Swapped dairy milk with almond/coconut/flax milk.
Swapped running around the block for playing basketball.
Swapped double cream, double sugar coffee for black coffee.
Swapped regular peanut butter for no sugar added peanut butter.
Swapped buying coffee to-go with brewing coffee at home and work.
Swapped news consumption with asking Claude carefully crafted questions about whatever I’m curious about.
Swapped heavily processed, high-sugar protein drinks/bars for real ingredient, no sugar added protein drinks/bars.
Swapped eating my dinner calories at night to eating them during my breakfast and lunch times (to intermittently fast).

…Not all at once, of course, but slowly and over the course of years. Once one is automatic, I try to add/adjust something else. Most recently, I’ve swapped Nutella/jelly for chocolate date spread. It’s much healthier and still has a pretty fantastic taste. Multiply these benefits over the course of years, decades, and even a lifetime and you can see the exponential power of this concept.

This is the way.

…A whole lot done over the course of a week? …Is next to nothing compared to the span of a lifetime. Even a month is a hardly noticeable speck.

The real change happens when things are done for years.

…And the best way to commit to something for that amount of time… is to make a change that’s small… aligned… yet mighty.

Turning Good States Into Good Karma

Published on October 2, 2025

When you’re feeling strong, remember what it was like to feel weak. For using your strength to help the weak is one of the best uses of strength.

When you’re feeling calm, remember what it was like to feel anxious. For using your calm to help the anxious is one of the best uses of calm.

When you’re feeling joyous, remember what it was like to feel upset. For using your joy to help the upset is one of the best uses of joy.

When you’re feeling outgoing, remember what it was like to feel lonely. For using initiative to help the lonely is one of the best uses of outgoing.

When you’re feeling fulfilled, remember what it was like to feel empty. For using fulfillment to pour into the empty is one of the best uses of fullness.

What I want you to read in the above statements is that we have all experienced all of the above. Not in permanent ways, but in fleeting ways. And so it will continue.

The best thing we can do within the fleeting moments of our days is (1) do things that have the best chance of resulting in the more desired states, (2) be mindful enough to recognize these states when they arrive, (3) be more deliberate in how we pay these desired states forward.

…Because it won’t be long until you find yourself in one of the lesser desired states once again. And intentionally circulating good karma is an excellent strategy for helping not only others… but your future self, too.

Half-Hearted Mixed With Resentment

Published on September 30, 2025

One of my martial arts instructors asked me what my thoughts were on another instructor’s decreased presence because of an increased presence elsewhere and outside of the academy.

…He was concerned this instructor may choose to walk a different career path and very much wanted him to choose martial arts as his career path.

My response was simple… “Let him.”

I’ve worked with high performers my whole professional life and I know that high performers within the academy are most likely high performers elsewhere as well—and this is a beautiful thing.

The mentality should never be to stop them from exploring other areas of interest or guilt them into making martial arts the exclusive focus in their life.

The mentality should be to make our art and career so appealing and exciting that they choose us over the alternatives willingly and full-heartedly.

Because if they don’t choose us willingly, then they’re going to build up resentment. And half-hearted mixed with resentment is a bad formula for any kind of a long term partnership.

…And I’m not just talking about jobs.

Take Control Of The Message

Published on September 29, 2025

A few days ago I wrote about Meditating On Death.

Here’s a response I got from a reader, “This is interesting because it reminds me of this audiobook I was listening to a while ago, A Guide to the Good Life where it talks about Negative Visualization… picturing what’s the worse that can happen. I was chuckling because I realized I do this a lot to myself but always assumed I was just making myself feel anxiety or worry because that’s what was familiar/comfortable, but understood the value of it after listening to that chapter, so I began doing so with more intention, like you talk about. I guess I’ll add my own death to my list of things to visualize [lol].”

And this insight is crucial to understand.

Because when it comes to visualization, the intuitive understanding is that we should fill our minds with best possible outcomes, life-expanding goals being realized, our potential being unleashed in full, and so on. To do negative visualization sounds so counterintuitive and like it’d have precisely that effect on our life. But, the key here is, “…with more intention” as the reader states above.

See instead of letting negative visualizations lead to anxiety and worry and lesser desired emotional states... we take control of the message and intend for it to result in gratitude and appreciation and an urgency to do great things while we still have the chance.

It’s within our power to do this.

And what an incredibly impressive power this is!

…Anxiety traded for gratitude?! Worry traded for appreciation?! Lesser desired emotional states for higher ones and an urgency to live fully?!

I hope you’ll try this today.

Spending Days On Nothing But A “Gist”

Published on September 29, 2025

Being spontaneous can be quite stressful on people.

Generally speaking, people like to know where they’re going, how they’re getting there, what to expect, how to prepare, what they’ll need, and who they might run into or see.

…But knowing all of that defeats the point of spontaneity.

Spontaneity is about trusting yourself and your intuition, your experience, and your capabilities… and leaning into the day with only a whiff of a direction or a gist of a goal.

And today, not only was I able to flex that spontaneity muscle, but I was able to do it with someone who was equally trusting.

He had complete faith in the process, carried zero worries with him throughout the day, and simply focused on contributing fully to the moments we found ourselves in.

Whether you’re being the spontaneous one or find yourself in the accompanying role… learning to trust yourself and how to contribute more fully to the overall process can lead to significantly more enjoyable days.

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