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Matt Hogan's Blog Posts

Who Do You Most Want/Need To Hear From Right Now?

Published on December 18, 2025

If you’re anything like me, you get more incoming emails than you can typically process day-to-day. And while I’ve actively unsubscribed from much of the fluff and pushy marketing stuff, there’s still a ton of great stuff I receive that I don’t want to unsubscribe from or delete.

As I mentioned a weekish ago, when it comes time for me to open my inbox, rather than read a hodgepodge of different authors who use different tones and speak from various backgrounds and life experiences—and try to context switch email to email… I’ve been bulk reading one email author at a time.

And lately, what I’ve been asking myself when I open my inbox is, “Who do I most want/need to hear from right now?” And after a minute or two of closed eye inward reflection… I usually know who that person is. And let me tell you, it makes reading emails SO much more effective (as far as comprehension) and enjoyable (as far as it being about what you want/need vs getting your inbox number down to a certain count).

Who do YOU most want/need to hear from right now?

Is your inbox filled with voices that serve you or annoy you? Maybe see if some of your favorite people to hear from have an email/newsletter they send out regularly that you can subscribe to? Maybe try unsubscribing from people you no longer want to hear from…

…Maybe try it when opening your inbox today?

Very Busy

Published on December 17, 2025

One of my martial arts students apologized to me the other day because she had a schedule change and wasn’t going to be able to make it to every available adult class anymore.

…And instead of training five times per week, she would only be able to train four times.

Two times per week is a complete and healthy training schedule—for those who don’t know. And so, of course, I told her not to apologize and that it was totally and completely okay.

A few minutes after the interaction, I happened to have a flashback moment to the time when I was originally pitching the program to her (after she had signed up her son) and remembered her saying that she was very busy and unsure about whether she’d be able to fit training into her schedule.

And I smiled and felt good about the idea that martial arts became a priority that transcended the excuse of busy.

Because it’s never that we’re too busy… is it?

…It’s that we have other things we’d rather be doing or are—consciously or unconsciously—prioritizing. For better or for worse.

Your Dream Opportunity Presents Itself… Are You Ready (Now)?

Published on December 16, 2025

This Thursday, there’s an opportunity for my martial arts students to perform at a local school in front of an auditorium of kids.

Thinking about who I want to have perform, I’ve been reflecting on: (1) Who has recently performed… (2) Who has a history of performing… and (3) Who has been noticeably practicing to perform…

In other words… an opportunity came knocking and the people I want to open the door to are the ones who have already been preparing for it…

Luck happens in life, as Seneca famously outlined, when preparation meets opportunity.

The problem for many of us in life, though, is that we’re too busy waiting to get picked by some great opportunity before we start preparing… when the ones who get picked are usually the ones who do the preparing way before the opportunity is even conceived.

Would You Choose To Fast Forward Through This?

Published on December 15, 2025

It oftentimes seems like many of us would.

In fact, when I look around, it seems like everybody is living in fast forward all of the time.

And for what?

To arrive where, exactly?

Back in bed? To doom scroll? For passive entertainment?

…Death?

Once the time passes, we don’t get it back.

Maybe we should try to live in “Play” or “Slow Motion” whenever possible so we don’t arrive at the end of our “Fast Forward” wishing we could press “Rewind.”

Legacy > Drama

Published on December 12, 2025

One of my instructors was telling me how drama was ruining some of her recent tournament experiences.

And after listening to all that was going on, what I told her was simple: don’t let something small like drama ruin something so great like legacy performances.

She’s in her national martial arts tournament era—and the experiences she’s having competing at that level are undoubtedly becoming memories that she’ll cherish forever.

…The last thing you want to do is let something petty, juvenile, or ridiculous steer you from that incredible path.

Five years from now, you won’t remember the drama in the least.

But five years from now you’ll definitely be proud of all that you pushed yourself to accomplish… And watching the videos of you putting your entire life force into a single performance is what legacy is built on.

Steer clear of the drama. Don’t let drama steer you.

“What’s New?”

Published on December 11, 2025

“…Same old.”

It’s a question and response I hear at least once a day.

And today while at the doctor’s office to get bloodwork done, I heard somebody say, “Same old…” at least seven times in a row.

…It was as if he was trying to think of something not same old to say, but kept coming up short.

In a weekly meeting with one of my associates, we usually have a similar exchange—and I’m usually the one that says “Same old.” He always gives me a pretty thorough life update when I give him the knee jerk, “…You?”

It’s something I’ve been thinking about lately.

…What do I want to add to my days that’ll give it that remarkable spark?

What do I want to plan into next week? Next month? Next year? …That’ll give my tomorrow self that noteworthy change from the daily norm?

…And not because there’s anything wrong with “same old”—if you love your “same old,” then no harm, no foul.

But because without the question… without the reflection and experimentation… without the inner work prompt… we might never lean outside of our comfort zone enough to uncover or realize something new that’s absolutely worth remarking about.

Learning Journals

Published on December 10, 2025

“At his house, George [Raveling] has these big red binders filled with notes. He calls them his ‘learning journals.’ They’re his version of a commonplace book—a collection of ideas, quotes, observations, and information gathered over time. The purpose is to record and organize these gems for later use in your life and work. It’s a habit he’s kept since 1972. To this day, he told me, ‘I go back and just read through them. I’ll just get one of the binders and I’ll sit down at the kitchen table and start reading through it. Sometimes I come across stuff that is more applicable today than it was when I wrote it in there.’”

Ryan Holiday

Known as the “Godfather” in college basketball, George Raveling became the first African American basketball coach in what’s now the Pac-12, had a Hall of Fame career, and played an instrumental role in bringing Michael Jordan over to Nike—who he coached in the ’84 Olympics and knew well for decades.

…And what I love about the above quote is that it’s a breadcrumb.

Successful people might claim to have “blueprints” that’ll lead you to a duplicatable success, but what I’ve found is that it’s less about perfect schematics and more about clues.

…And it’s up to us to solve the mystery in the way that’s specifically aligned with our background, circumstances, talents, aptitudes, and aspirations.

Going back and reading through collections of insightful ideas, quotes, observations, etc… is an excellent breadcrumb to consider. One that countless successful people have left behind. One that guides me every day—just instead of being in red binders, it’s all published online for all to see.