Lesson #1: You don’t have time, you make it.

Lesson #2: Judging too quickly and not giving people the benefit of the doubt will make you look like a dick in 99% of situations.

Lesson #3: Unless someone is hurt or dying, there’s no rush. Slow down your pace of life.

Lesson #4: Insert humour into each day at any chance you get. Laughing makes everybody’s day better.

Lesson #5: To turn a bad day around, stop thinking/complaining, put on your shorts and start doing push-ups or go for a run. Then stand in a cold shower. Eat some almonds. Cram a few fist fulls of spinach into your mouth. OK. Now carry on with your day.

Lesson #6: It’s okay to break social norms as long as you’re not rude about it. Life is too short to let customs dictate how your time is spent. Wearing uncouth outfits in public and the Irish Exit are my favourite — the latter works great for big parties.

Lesson #7: The most important thing is always the people (in both your personal and professional life). Your happiest and most joyous times, fondest memories, and biggest successes will be the result of time spent with or invested in other people. Always prioritize the people.

Lesson #8: There is a reality where everyone you know and love is dead and you are left alone. Remember that next time your ego sets you off because of a silly argument or minor inconvenience. 

Lesson #9: Never end an interaction with someone you love negatively. Apologize if you need to (even when it’s not your fault) and tell them you love them. If you’re not convinced, be selfish and do it anyway — it feels good to be the bigger person.

Lesson #10: Stop drinking immediately after your 4-year university vacation ends. It will not help you become the person you aspire to be or build the lifestyle you desire to live.

Lesson #11: Inspiration and motivation are great in the moment, but won’t get you very far. Dedication, discipline, and grit are much more important. They enable the execution of difficult actions when you’re cold, tired, and unmotivated, and would rather crawl into your warm bed. Those traits are muscles. You strengthen them each time you engage in a difficult action.

Lesson #12: Just start. All of your mental suffering (the little voice in your head that goes back and forth debating with itself, tries to avoid, and is always looking for a way out) lives outside of action itself. Once you’ve begun (started the warm-up, under the cold shower, two minutes into the demanding task at work, etc.) the suffering ceases to exist.

Lesson #13: Get really good at saying no to peer pressure. It helps to become the person that people don’t dare to pressure. In my experience, having a reputation for being disciplined with yourself does the trick.

Lesson #14: Don’t paint yourself into a box. You can be anyone you want to be at any moment. Don’t feel like you need to act a certain way around certain people. Change, iterate, grow, and show it. If someone doesn’t accept and encourage it, smile, shake hands, and gracefully cut ties.

Lesson #15: Turn goals into actions and put those actions into systems. With established systems, you can just boot up each morning and follow the operating protocol.

Lesson #16: Nothing benefits from your stress. Take action, make a plan, or stop worrying about it.

Lesson #17: Never learn something without immediately applying it or making a plan to apply it in the immediate future. Knowledge without action is worthless.

Lesson #18: You will only feel uncomfortable in social interactions when you stray from being yourself. Don’t try to be someone you’re not, regardless of the situation. Funny enough, people like you most when you’re being your true self.

Lesson #19: If you have them, consult your parents on every major decision you make. Make the final call for yourself, but evaluate their advice. They almost always offer extremely valuable insights that helps you see things in a new light.

Lesson #20: There is no final destination in life. There is no clear path at the end of the roadblocks and obstacles. Life is a journey, forever filled with challenges. So, don’t seek an outcome. Instead, choose the journey that looks like the most fun and fill life with problems you enjoy solving.

Lesson #21: You cannot delegate your health, fitness, and wellness to any doctor or medical professional. You are 100% responsible and accountable. Be proactive and preventative in your health via exercise, nutrition, and sleep. Do your own research and always seek second, third, and fourth opinions.

Lesson #22: Keep a journal each day. Write what’s on your mind, things you’re grateful for, or create a practice that makes sense to you. It’s cool to flip back to a random day and see what you were thinking or what you were up to at that stage of your life.

Lesson #23: Have weekly phone calls or get-togethers with your closest friend. They will be the person who is there for you in both tragedy and triumph (just as you will be for them). You may not feel like it on those busy weeks, but you will always leave smiling and happy that you made time for them.

Lesson #24: Savour more moments. Especially the small ones. Commit them to memory. They will be with you throughout your entire life, in good and bad. They will be playing in your mind when it’s your time to pass on.

Lessons From My Readers

I asked my readers to chip in their life lessons and here’s what they sent in…

Lesson #25: The importance of doing things alone — you can't let others prevent you from experiencing things.

Lesson #26: Just throw your hip over the bed as soon as the alarm goes off. Plan your work and work your plan. Every day. No matter what. Doing what you love. Keep at it. Grind. Commit. Be passionate. Keep your promises. Stay sharp. Stay fit. Give more than you take. Breathe.

Lesson #27: Find a way, whatever it takes, to be comfortable in your OWN skin (emotionally and physically)... and be honest with yourself and others about it! 

Lesson #28: Invest and focus on healthy and positive relationships only and be honest with other individuals as to why you are moving on. 

Lesson #29: Communicate clearly and consistently what you WANT AND NEED to those whom you love or those who are important to you. 

Lesson #30: Try to ALWAYS avoid regrets, even if it means tough decisions and/or choosing the more uncertain or difficult options. 

Lesson #31: Talk with your feet! In other words, save the lip service and take action! 

Below are 10 excerpts from Musashi by Eiji Yoshikawa that give me goosebumps (the bolded and italicized sentences are of my own doing).

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Spoiler Alert: If you plan to read the novel in full, don’t read these quotes!

Excerpt #1

"Are you ready?" Musashi's question was calm but trenchant, falling like so much ice water on his opponent's feverish excitement.

Excerpt #2

What was it that had enabled Musashi to defeat Kojirō? Skill? The help of the gods? While knowing it was neither of these, Musashi was never able to express a reason in words. Certainly it was something more important than either strength or godly providence. Kojirō had put his confidence in the sword of strength and skill. Musashi trusted in the sword of the spirit. That was the only difference between them.

Excerpt #3

Musashi smiled ironically and turned back toward the ceramics shop. For some time before the domestic battle erupted, he had been standing just outside it, watching the potters with childlike fascination. The two men inside were unaware of his presence. Eyes riveted on their work, they seemed to have entered into the clay, become a part of it. Their concentration was complete.

Excerpt #4

He stopped along the way to look at several well-known temples, and at each of them he bowed and said two prayers. One was: "Please protect my sister from harm." The other was: "Please test the lowly Musashi with hardship. Let him become the greatest swordsman in the land, or let him die."

Excerpt #5

"If you can bear up under hardship, you can experience a pleasure greater than the pain," Musashi said solemnly. "Day and night, hour by hour, people are buffeted by waves of pain and pleasure, one after the other. If they try to experience only pleasure, they cease to be truly alive. Then the pleasure evaporates." "I'm beginning to understand." "Think of a simple yawn. The yawn of a person who's been working hard is different from the yawn of a lazy man. Lots of people die without knowing the pleasure yawning can bring."

Excerpt #6

Following the style of the last entry, he wrote down the required information, omitting the name of his teacher. The priest, of course, was especially interested in that. Musashi's answer was essentially the one he'd given at the Yoshioka School. He had practiced the use of the truncheon under his father, "without working very hard at it." Since making up his mind to study in earnest, he had taken as his teacher everything in the universe, as well as the examples set by his predecessors throughout the country. He ended up by saying, "I'm still in the process of learning."

Excerpt #7

"Under whom did you study the martial arts?" "I've had no teacher in the ordinary sense. My father taught me how to use the truncheon when I was young. Since then, I've picked up a number of points from older samurai in various provinces. I've also spent some time traveling about the countryside, learning from the mountains and the rivers. I regard them, too, as teachers." "You seem to have the right attitude. But you're so strong! Much too strong!" Believing he was being praised, Musashi blushed and said, "Oh, no! I'm still immature. I'm always making blunders." "That's not what I mean. Your strength is your problem. You must learn to control it, become weaker."

Excerpt #8

When finally he leaped onto a boulder, it was with the lightness of a small bird. While he was drying himself and putting on his clothes, the strands of hair along his forehead stiffened into slivers of ice. To Musashi, the icy plunge into the sacred stream was necessary. If his body could not withstand the cold, how could it survive in the face of life's more threatening obstacles?

Excerpt #9

I do not wish to change my plans at this time, but since I regret as much as you do that I was unable to meet you during my previous visit to your school, I should like to inform you that I shall certainly be back in the capital by the first or the second month of next year. Between now and then, I expect to improve my technique considerably. I trust that you yourself will not neglect your practice. It would be a great shame if Yoshioka Kempō's flourishing school were to suffer a second defeat like the one it sustained the last time I was there. In closing, I send my respectful wishes for your continued good health.

Excerpt #10

Musashi wrote: "I will have no regrets about anything." While he often wrote down resolutions, he found that merely writing them did little good. He had to repeat them to himself every morning and every evening, as one would sacred scripture. Consequently, he always tried to choose words that were easy to remember and recite, like poems. He looked for a time at what he had written, then changed it to read: "I will have no regrets about my actions." He mumbled the words to himself but still found them unsatisfactory. He changed them again: "I will do nothing that I will regret." Satisfied with this third effort, he put his brush down. Although the three sentences had been written with the same intent, the first two could conceivably mean he would have no regrets whether he acted rightly or wrongly, whereas the third emphasized his determination to act in such a way as to make self-reproach unnecessary. Musashi repeated the resolution to himself, realizing it was an ideal he could not achieve unless he disciplined his heart and his mind to the utmost of his ability. Nevertheless, to strive for a state in which nothing he did would cause regrets was the path he must pursue. "Someday I will reach that state!" he vowed, driving the oath like a stake deep into his own heart.

I cannot recommend reading this book highly enough. There were so many more quotes I could have included here but I hope you enjoyed these ten.

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Then, I sit on the couch, cozy with a blanket on my lap and a coffee in my hand, and read my book. I could do this for hours. But some forty-five minutes later, I reluctantly throw off my blanket, put on my beaten-up shorts, and slowly warm into my kettlebell routine or head out the door into the crisp morning air for a run.

I face the same resistance every morning.

The comfortable couch and warm blanket, a gripping book that doesn’t want to be put down, and a French Press begging to be refilled. There is rarely a morning when I am excited to spring into action.

It hasn’t gotten any easier.

But I’ve gotten harder. I don’t pontificate on what I feel like doing and when weakness seeps in and starts to brainstorm reasons why I can’t work out today, I shut it down instantly. I know what needs to be done, and, by placing one foot in front of the other, I do it.

After 10 years of overcoming this resistance just about every single morning (I’ve failed a handful of times), a few lessons have emerged that I find useful to recall when resistance is at its strongest.

The hardest part is always starting. It gets easier with every step you take. But you need to start. One step at a time. Put your shorts on, roll out the yoga mat, take out the weights, lace up your shoes. Start to move your body by doing what feels good. Get some blood flowing. If you can take these simple steps, you will find yourself thirty minutes later in the middle of a great workout wondering why you didn’t want to start in the first place.

You will never regret it. There is no better way to start your day than a bout of exercise. Your mind and body will thank you for it, and in return, gift you with physical energy and mental sharpness to carry you throughout the day. Your baseline mood will get a bump and you will have something to feel proud of the rest of the day.

You will build character, tenacity, and grit. By exercising every morning, you will join an elite group of people who spit in the face of discomfort and opt to do what is good for them, not what is easy. Humans have become creatures of comfort, sometimes to a pathetic degree. If you so choose, you never have to experience challenge or discomfort again. You can remain horizontally on the sofa, as you order any food or consumer good imaginable from your smartphone. But there is no faster way to a shameful, lethargic, and regretful life. You don’t have to start running triathlons, but you owe it to yourself to do something good for your body every day, no matter how small.

Seeking temporary discomfort through exercise is a form of rebellion. It’s an act that connects your spirit with your ancestors who carried your genes for thousands of years by running away from lions, shivering through winter, and hunting down buffalo. It’s a commitment that will benefit your physical, cognitive, and emotional health both today and for the rest of your life. Not only will your state of health—in every sense of the word—drastically improve, but you will redefine how you see yourself and inspire others to follow your lead.

Daily exercise is, hands down, the most powerful and transformative habit you can engage in.

You just have to start.

“What gets measured gets managed.” – Peter Drucker

I’m a big fan of tracking.

I journal every day, keep travel logs on the road, religiously jot down weight, sets, and reps during my workouts, and meticulously ink my distance and average pace after a run. I use a paper habit tracker to manage key daily behaviours I’m focused on starting or stopping, the Todoist app to track daily tasks, and Google Calendar to monitor how I spend my time.

You get the point. I track. A lot. And it’s served me well in many areas of my life.

But like all things, tracking, while great in moderation, takes on characteristics of its opposite in excess. There is an evil side to tracking, one I’m intricately familiar with.

January 2021 marked my first month of serious running.

I had only picked up the habit two weeks earlier, having been influenced at Christmas by my brother and sister who are both avid runners. Like any good runner, the first thing I did was download a tracking app to measure my distance, time, and pace.

I became hooked.

Not on running per se, but rather on the numbers I produced when I ran. Every kilometer, the app would spit out my pace, distance, and total duration. If my next kilometer was slower than my last, I kicked myself to pick up the pace. Each run had to be better than yesterday’s. Faster, longer, harder.

In my first month as a runner, I notched 145km or about 5km per day—not bad for an amateur.

But it wasn’t because I loved to run. In fact, the more fixated I became on the numbers the more I hated it. Running became about the metrics on my phone, not the act of running itself. As the months went on, I kept running but my total distance dropped.

By April I was running nearly half of what I had done in January. Running was no longer fresh air, a mental reset, and an enjoyable way to exercise. It was an arduous chore where I had to prove myself by running faster and harder than I did the day before.

At that point, I knew something had to change.

I knew that the only way to make running a sustainable part of my life was to enjoy it. I needed to run for the joy of running, not for some external metric. The app had to go. Slowly, I taught myself to run at my own speed, to not care about my pace or distance, and, most importantly, to make it feel good so I was excited to come back the next day.

The lesson I took from my running conundrum was this:

Tracking can be a fantastic method of driving results, improving performance, and adhering to desired behaviours. But you cannot track everything and you should not track some things.

Know thyself. Identify where tracking is helping and where it might be hurting.

After learning how to love running despite external metrics, I’m back to tracking my runs but with a much healthier and more constructive approach. I use it as a tool to measure my progress and identify what causes certain runs to feel great and others to feel sluggish.

If you face the same tracking struggles that I did or you want to start tracking while maintaining a healthy relationship with it, here are five guidelines to make tracking an effective tool, not a negative emotion.

Tracking Guideline #1: Mainline intrinsic motivation.

Before you start tracking a habit, solidify it as a consistent part of your life by finding and maintaining your intrinsic motivation to do it.

You could set up the best tracking system in the world to ensure I take every action required to become a professional ballerina. But considering I have no interest in learning ballet, there is no chance in hell I’m going to follow it.

Define your deeper “why” so that what you’re doing doesn’t become about hitting a number.

With purpose or meaning behind your actions, like living a longer life, feeling happier or healthier on a daily basis, or setting yourself up for future success, habit tracking will be an effective tool, not a heavy burden.

Tracking Guideline #2: It’s okay to “screw up” or regress.

Just be consistent every day.

That doesn’t mean going harder, faster, and heavier than the day before. It just means showing up, sticking to your plan, and doing something, no matter how small, to get a little better every single day.

Don’t become so obsessed with numbers on an app or words in a journal that you would rather completely skip a workout (or choose not to engage in your target habit) than just do the scaled-down, “two-minute” version of it.

Tracking Guideline #3: Set a realistic schedule and know when enough is enough.

Don’t start at your end goal.

If you want to exercise for 60 minutes every day or meditate for 10 minutes five times per week, don’t make that your starting point. Start small, be consistent, and then scale up over time.

It’s also important to know when enough is enough.

At large, our society is all about getting more. We are taught to approach the things in our life as if there is never enough. More money. Bigger houses. Faster cars. Nicer things. You should never stop accumulating!

This mentality is flawed.

In fitness, just as in wealth and material possessions, there is a point of enough. What that point is, only you can decide. But once you hit it, don’t ceaselessly strive for more. It’s important to strike a balance between setting new goals and finding exciting ways to improve without feeling like you aren’t enough or that you must do and be more.

Striving for more should be an added bonus, not a necessary evil to stay at baseline contentedness.

Tracking Guideline #4: We live in the real world, don’t lean too heavily into the digital one.

Tracking should enable improvements, not cloud over your real-life experiences.

Do the things you do for the sake of doing them or for the outcomes they drive, not so you can tick a box or get a digital high five. The behaviours and habits you engage in on a daily basis should, for the most part, enrich and improve your life.

Don’t forget why you started in the first place.

Tracking Guideline #5: Lean into support.

There's more than one way to skin a cat.

You can track individually in a journal or with an app, or you can have an accountability partner with similar goals that you perform your target habit or regularly meet with.

Keep the end goal in mind and be open to how you get there. Setting and achieving goals with others is often far more fulfilling than doing it on your own.

Adopting this simple mentality will accomplish far more than any specific diet or exercise routine or wellness trend.

Success in nearly every domain of life, certainly in health, wellness, and fitness, boils down to consistency. If you can take enough small but effective actions every day, you will achieve your goal—whatever it may be.

That something may be different day-to-day.

On days when you’re full of energy and have enough time, it might be a 45-minute run and yoga or a 60-minute weight training session. On other days it might be a walk at lunch or banging out 100 push-ups upon waking. Or, if you’re really crunched, maybe it means doing 30 jumping jacks, 20 air squats, and 10 push-ups. Perhaps even less.

What you actually do isn’t all that important.

What matters is that you become the type of person who doesn’t miss a single day without doing something good—no matter how small—for your body.

Once you are that person, you will want to do more. You will crave it. Naturally, you will want to learn about different methods of exercise and various ways of eating that make you feel better and how to improve your sleep so you have more energy each day.

Ingraining the habit of consistency in your days will not only benefit your health, but it will improve every aspect of your life. You will see yourself with fresh eyes as someone who set goals and executes on them, as an action-taker, a doer, and a maker.

Consistency is the most powerful and effective personality trait there is.

Give it a shot, and see how you feel after a week of being consistent.

Tayrona lies where the foothills of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountain range meet the Caribbean Sea and, despite being only 150 square kilometers, is rich in biodiversity with habitats ranging from rainforest to coastal lagoons to palm-shaded coves where turquoise water laps onto white sandy beaches.

But I wasn’t headed to Tayrona.

Slickly geared in a black wetsuit, I was sitting in the back of a diving boat pitted North into the pitch-black Caribbean Sea as I watched the small fishing village of Taganga, Colombia fade away into the night sky.

Although I had spent the last two days diving in these waters, it felt utterly different at night. The black water merged with an equally dark sky creates a much less welcoming atmosphere than the turquoise water and baby blue sky I had experienced the days before.

Not only am I out of my element as a land animal in water, but now I’m among the nocturnal creatures of the sea—a mere diurnal ape with no business being submerged under twenty meters of stark black water.

Our boat roars to an abrupt stop as the Captain announces that we have arrived at the dive spot (or so I assume… my Spanish is far from fluent). The boat breaks into an anxiously excited and chaotic gearing-up. Like poorly trained Navy SEALS preparing to infiltrate enemy waters.

I hop up and sit on the edge of the boat with my feet on the bench. Fins on. Mask on. Flashlight in hand. El Capitan impatiently holds up my tank to prevent it from prematurely tipping me backward into the water as I fasten and inflate my BCD and pop my regulator into my mouth.

Ready to go, I hold my mask and regulator in place as I roll back into the ominous pitch-black sea. Once the rest of the crew hits the water, our Dive Master gives the signal to descend.

I release air from my buoyancy vest and, as I become fully submerged, tighten my grip on my flashlight. Without that guiding light, I wouldn’t be able to see my hand in front of my face and could become completely disoriented with no sense of up or down—not an ideal situation with only 60 minutes of air in my tank.

The challenge of night diving, as a relatively inexperienced diver, is finding a balance between not losing the rest of the group—a surprisingly easy feat with only three meters of visibility—while still curiously exploring the other-worldly environment you’re miraculously floating through.

To lose the group is to be stranded in a vast sea, wishing upon a murderous lightning bolt to be found and returned to safety while only focusing on staying with the group is to miss out on an incredible adventure and, potentially, a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

My body’s not particularly helpful response to this unfamiliar situation was to produce overwhelming anxiety. Although it may have reduced the pleasurability of the experience, it indeed kept me alive and safe while my forebrain fired on all cylinders to overcome enough of the anxiety so that I could still take pleasure in my surroundings. The colourful fish darting around for a late-night snack, a baby octopus hanging out on the sea floor, and bioluminescent algae that only makes itself visible at night.

It was an experience that I will certainly never forget, not just for the memory of a deep, dark, and mysterious ocean world so unknown to us land-dwellers but for the lesson that it cemented in my psyche which has continued to positively shape my life:

There is so much to gain in both life experiences and character development from purposefully creating new and uncertain and uncomfortable moments in our lives.

In my life, I have often confused moments of fear with weakness.

When I felt afraid, I thought it meant I was weak or inadequate or a coward. But I was wrong. Experiencing fear does not make you a coward. It makes you a bold spirit that has opted to seek discomfort in a world optimized to maximize ease and pleasure.

Choosing not to confront your fears is weakness. Failing to act out of fear is inadequate. Sitting on the sideline as your fear prances through your head is cowardice.

Acting despite fear is courageous.

A life without fear is one of avoidance and complacency while a life guided by what scares you, to a reasonable extent, is a path of growth, exploration, and fulfillment. In this way, ensuring you experience a healthy dose of fear on a regular basis is a useful metric by which to guide and measure your life.

Take my mom, for example.

At the age of 59, she’s running her first half marathon this year. It will be the first and only race she has ever run. She isn’t a lifelong runner. If anything, her battle with knee pain that started in her twenties gives her the perfect excuse not to run. She was nervous and scared to start the 16-week training program and has butterflies when thoughts of race day creep into her head.

But despite her fear, she forged ahead.

She started the training program and completed every single training run to a tee regardless of the weather or how busy her schedule was. She has already blown past her previous personal bests and longest distances. And this Saturday she will courageously toe the starting line and run every single kilometer, no matter how good or bad she feels on that particular day.

She isn’t a coward for experiencing fear. She is strong because she acted in spite of it.

We all have our own battles. Do not judge yourself by what strikes fear or hesitation in you—everyone is unique in that matter. But do not let that fear prevent you from taking action.

Fear has something to teach all of us.

But to overcome the initial hurdle, to put ourselves in a position where we are not turning away from our fears but instead leaning into them, we must unparalyze ourselves by reframing the situation.

Reframing Fear

The Hunter: Is that fear I hear in your voice, Jack?

Jack Reacher: I’m gonna break your arms. I’m gonna break your legs. I’m gonna break your neck. What you hear is excitement.

— Jack Reacher: Never Go Back

Fear, just like stress, when experienced for short periods of time is a good thing.

It prepares your mind and body for what’s about to come next.

Yet our relationship with fear is often one of avoidance or shutting out. We don’t want to feel it, so we ignore it. But that only makes the fear grow stronger and become ever more elusive.

Instead, we must lean into fear.

Listen to it speak and let it guide you, then stop thinking about it and go take action. Fear in its initial stages generates the necessary motivation and excitement to conquer its source.

But as fear grows stale it festers and sprouts hesitation.

The moment you feel even the slightest twinge of hesitation, you must take action, or the longer you wait, the stronger the fear becomes. If fear is winning the battle, try to reframe your relationship with it.

Use fear to your advantage.

Thank it for preparing your mind, body, and spirit for the challenge at hand. Allow it to seep into every corner of your being and relax you with the understanding that it has prepared you to welcome uncomfortable circumstances and uncertain outcomes. Instead of allowing unchecked fear to generate resistance, reframe it as a source of energy and power.

By developing a new relationship with fear, it will no longer restrict your options and dictate your choices, but instead, guide you to uncover the things that make you feel most alive.

The people I respect all share the greatest fear:

The thought of waking up one day after a life lived on autopilot, wondering where the time went, with little time left to make up for what they lost.

— Dan Koe

Go now. Walk with courage towards your fear.

Fear Setting: A Practice To Identify and Overcome Your Fears

“If you are depressed you are living in the past.

If you are anxious you are living in the future.

If you are at peace you are living in the present.”

― Lao Tzu

Forward planning is, generally speaking, a good thing.

But it’s possible to have too much of a good thing. Things in excess often become their opposite and spending too much of your day with your head buried in the future is a problem.

Before explaining why it’s a problem, one I battle with on a near-daily basis (especially in times of uncertainty), it’s important to distinguish between two types of forward planning:

• Deliberate and logical planning: This is the good kind of forward planning. It happens when you carve out a chunk of time to achieve a specific goal such as getting your finances in order or planning a trip for next summer. Without a healthy dose of this type of planning, your life would be one big spontaneous mess.

• Untamed daydreaming and anxiety-filled “planning”: This is the not-so-good kind of forward planning. We don’t carve out time for it. Rather, it carves time out of us. It sneaks up behind you, taps you on the shoulder, and then smacks you in the face. It sucks air from your lungs and gives you shortness of breath. Sometimes it’s pleasant and optimistic but far more often it induces anxiety, stress, and worry. If there’s something in your life that doesn’t sit right, that you want to change but aren’t sure how, this type of “planning” is all too familiar.

Clearly, a reasonable amount of the first type of planning is essential to a responsible, intact, and well-lived life. The second kind, not so much.

“Track what makes you feel good and bring more of it into your life. Notice what makes you feel lousy and do less of it.”

― Boyd Varty, The Lion Tracker's Guide To Life

Spending too much time daydreaming, anxious, or full of worry not only sabotages the present moment experience of life but also clouds your ability to listen to your body. In turn, after making enough mind-driven decisions without consulting your body, it might feel like something is missing from your life.

Let me explain.

“I don’t know where I’m going but I know exactly how to get there.”

― Boyd Varty, The Lion Tracker's Guide To Life

In the modern world, we have become out of touch with our bodies. We hit autopilot and follow the standard life path of school → job → marriage → kids → retire → die. As a society, we aren’t overly concerned with how you, the individual, feel about your day-to-day life.

In fact, I wager that most people are miserable 10 hours per day 5 days per week. Care to disagree? Sit on a rush hour bus or train and report back the collective energy of its commuters.

When we have a problem, we use our brains to logic our way through it which, by the way, is a great strategy for many of life’s problems. But it’s not the only strategy. Some problems aren’t rational so trying to use your brain to logic your way through them is the equivalent of hammering a screw. Good luck.

“Don’t try to be someone, rather find the thing that is so engaging that it makes you forget yourself.”

― Boyd Varty, The Lion Tracker's Guide To Life

Some problems, like choosing who to spend your life with, finding your true purpose or calling, deciding whether or not to have kids, and picking the right people to build friendships with, must be assessed through feeling and action, not just thinking and logic.

Life is full of information. Signals and cues screaming, waiting to be seen and heard. But our brain, hammering away at a screw, can’t detect, or rather, chooses to ignore, them. Conditioned by society to stick to the script and follow the path most treaded, our brain is quick to shut out the feelings, sensations, and instincts that arise in our bodies telling us when to change course, when to walk into the unknown and uncertain.

“People are not looking for the meaning of life, they are looking for the experience of being alive.” ― Joseph Campbell

This isn’t a call to throw logic to the wind in vain pursuit of feelings or instincts. Just as our brain’s logic can lead us awry, so can our body’s natural instinct. But it is a reminder that to create a life filled with joy and meaning and to die free of regret, we must unlatch from the bandwagon of modern life, attune ourselves to our bodies, and carefully listen for what calls us. For the work and experiences and activities and people that make us feel alive.

“You have a first track. If you go and get some of what you need, you might get a second first track. In life, we don’t get trails fully laid out. We get tremendous unknowns and, if we are lucky, first tracks. Then next first tracks.”

― Boyd Varty, The Lion Tracker's Guide To Life

Then, one day, one step, and one moment at a time, we can pursue them. Only then can the untamed anxiety and worry be caged and locked away. Not because we have it all figured out, but because we are finally listening to what feels good and doing more of it, and exposing what feels lousy and eliminating it.

If there’s anything I remember from my early childhood, it’s my parents bestowing these two bits of advice, the latter in the form of a question:

• Be a leader, not a follower.

• What did you learn today?

Every day on the car ride home from school or around the dinner table for the first 13 years of my life, I heard these two nuggets of wisdom. Without knowing, they became ingrained in my psyche. Looking back at the trajectory of my life, it’s clear that the beliefs and habits these two bits of advice instilled in me set the foundation for the person I am today.

Be a leader, not a follower.

“Because someone else…” did not fly in my house.

Before I could even finish the poor excuse explaining my poor behaviour for something I did that day, my Dad would cut me off, often by citing the annoying but true “If someone else jumped off a bridge, would you follow them?” adage.

And, as much as I hated it, I knew he was right.

Nothing can be said or done that gives you a permission slip to blindly follow. You must ask questions. You must think for yourself and decide. Followers can still be leaders if they follow with awareness, independent thought, and the courage to change course when necessary.

Beyond not blindly following, I was conditioned to actively lead.

To step up to the plate when no one else will. To take charge. To volunteer to go first. To take on the biggest workload in the group. To coordinate and organize. To make sure everyone’s voice is heard. To take responsibility not just for your work, but to ensure the group’s objective is met in a timely manner and to a standard of excellence. To speak up when something isn’t right or when someone is wronged. To lead by example.

Ultimately, to be a leader is to accept complete and total responsibility and accountability for everything in your life. Everything.

In school, at work, and in sports I led. Whether formally appointed or informally influencing, I defined myself by being a leader. And it’s paid off in my personal and professional lives.

Yet besides the brave few who seek leadership, there are so many sheep.

Scared to be seen or heard at the risk of being unliked. Those who have allowed themselves to be over-conditioned by society allow their thoughts and actions to be dictated by their approximation of how it will impact their position in the social hierarchy. But as soon as someone else steps up and leads, accepting the risk of being the first, the sheep eagerly follow.

Not everyone is wired with the leadership genes of Tom Brady or LeBron James. That’s okay. Being a leader doesn’t require a boisterous voice or a daunting physical presence.

To me, being a leader means thinking for yourself, accepting absolute responsibility and accountability over your life, and having the courage to walk the untreaded path despite what others think or say or do.

You always have a choice. Choose to be a leader, not a follower. 

What did you learn today?

After picking us up from school the second question out of my Mum’s mouth after the customary “How was your day?” were “What did you learn today?”

And you better have a good answer because if your response was “nothing,” the next question was “Then, what the hell did you do all day?”

Around the dinner table, my Dad repeated the same routine.

It didn’t take long for my brother and I to make sure we learned something good, maybe even enough to impress our parents, every single day at school. Although we started paying more attention in class to have a good answer for our parents, a natural curiosity and passion for learning became deeply entrenched in both of us.

Today, we devour books and courses like a starved lion on fresh meat. We journal and think and write. We share ideas, philosophies, and strategies. We tackle problems in our life through methodical learning and practical application. We both graduated from one of Canada’s top business schools, have worked in a diverse set of challenging and competitive jobs, and each write a weekly newsletter (his on practical life philosophy, mine on longevity).

A learning mindset is one of the biggest assets you can have since if you can learn, you can adapt, grow, and evolve. And thanks to how our parents raised the three of us (my sister is a physicist and has a Ph.D. in electrical engineering), we have been gifted with the belief that learning is critically important and the habit of continuous and never-ending improvement.

So, I challenge you to end your day with the simple question:

What did you learn today?

Here they are.

Why I Write Online

Aug. 13, 2022

I recently signed up for Dickie Bush & Nicolas Cole's cohort-based writing course, Ship 30 for 30.

Here are a few reasons why:

1. To reach more people with my ideas. I've spent thousands of hours over the last 10+ years applying the strategies I research and write about. I've experienced the profound benefits of designing a lifestyle around longevity and want to help others achieve success in these areas of their lives too.

2. To sharpen my writing skills. By publishing every day for the next 30 days, I will improve the flow of my writing, package ideas more clearly and concisely, and provide more value to my readers.

3. To define my niche and create my own category. Hitting publish each day with an ear to the ground for feedback will allow me to better understand what resonates with readers and carve a path forward in how to select topics and deliver content in the most valuable manner possible.

Over the next 30 days, I plan on writing about living longer, feeling healthier, and cultivating purpose.

Join me on this adventure—and let me know if you have any questions along the way!

I'm excited to improve at sharing what I know online.

3 Topics I Am Exploring In My Life Right Now

Aug. 14, 2022

There are 3 topics I'm actively thinking about a lot these days:

Topic #1: Krav Maga

I started taking Krav Maga classes in July because I want the confidence that I can protect myself and the ones I love in dangerous situations.

My hope is that over the next 5 years, as I continue to train and expose myself to different martial arts, I'll master effective self-defense tactics while transforming my mind and body in the process.

Topic #2: Life Planning and Lifestyle Design

It's been nearly 1 year since I graduated from university. Uncertain how I want the next 60 to 80 years to pan out, life planning and lifestyle design have been on my mind.

I don't have the answers I'm seeking yet—but I've learned the importance of intentionally deciding your priorities and then planning your days and ruthlessly blocking out time for critical actions.

Topic #3: Submerging Yourself In Discomfort

After reading The Comfort Crisis by Michael Easter I've become more interested in intentionally designing uncomfortable experiences that push you to your mental and physical limits.

Reaching what you thought was your limit and realizing that you're capable of pushing beyond builds resilience and redefines your self-perception.

It would be great to connect with other people who are interested in these topics—so if any of the above resonates, feel free to reach out!

The Best Way To Get Started Learning About Embracing Discomfort As A "Type A" So That You Never Quit When It Matters

Aug. 15, 2022

To build resilience, I find my limits and then push beyond what I thought I was capable of.

I found that my success is determined by having the right mental self-talk to carry myself through moments of immense discomfort.

So, if you want to develop self-talk that allows you to embrace discomfort, here's the best way to get started:

• Read This Book: The Comfort Crisis: Embrace Discomfort to Reclaim Your Wild, Happy, Healthy Self by Michael Easter spotlights all of the ways modern comforts harm us and the benefits that come from intentionally exposing ourselves to discomfort.

• Watch This YouTube Video: Navy SEAL Explains How to Build Mental Toughness by David Goggins is a short video with a simple message: To grow you must suffer. Greatness is on the other side of working hard at the things you hate to do.

• Listen To This Podcast: Tim Kennedy's interview on The Tim Ferriss Show. Kennedy was a Green Beret and professional mixed martial artist. His tough-as-nails mentality drove his success in training and combat.

These 3 resources will instill in you the mental self-talk required to embrace discomfort and press on despite your suffering.

How I Got Interested In Lifestyle Design By Tracking Your Life

Aug. 16, 2022

I wouldn't call myself an expert in lifestyle design.

However, I have spent hundreds, if not thousands, of hours, reading and learning about how to craft my dream life. And I have spent the last 5+ years applying the principles and strategies I've learned in my own life.

Here's how I first got interested in lifestyle design:

The summer before going into my first year of university I spent a day shadowing a prominent businessman who was a friend of my stepdad's. This was my first encounter with someone who truly envisioned and designed their life how they wanted it.

The small window I had into his life broke my previously held beliefs of what my life would look like after I graduated.

After going home that day, I started reading and learning about how to build the life I want. Certain aspects of my life aren't where I want them to be yet, but I think I've learned part of the recipe for a great life.

So, my goal over the next 2 years is to live by these principles:

• Focus on what’s in front of you, design great days to create a great life, and try not to make the same mistake twice.

• Don’t try to be someone, rather find the thing that's so engaging that it makes you forget yourself.

• Apply Deathbed Decision Making to major life decisions: When I’m 99 years old resting on my deathbed, what decision will I have wish that I made?

This Is The Best Book I’ve Ever Read On Cultivating A Purposeful Life

Aug. 17, 2022

There's no shortage of self-help books promising to help you find your path in life.

And I've read a decent chunk of them.

But the best book on cultivating purpose and creating a fulfilling life I've found is The Lion Tracker's Guide to Life by Boyd Varty.

For a few reasons:

• Reason #1: It doesn't peddle one solution fits all advice as many books in this category do. Instead, it gives you the tools you need to seek your own true calling in life.

• Reason #2: The analogy of navigating your life by tracking is practical and effective for building an outer life that is resemblant to your inner values.

• Reason #3: It's about more than just cultivating purpose. You will bring a deeper awareness back to your mind and body and reconnect with nature and the environment around you.

• Reason #4: It strikes a primal chord deep within that is certain to resonate. Since the dawn of our existence, humans have been tracking. Boyd helps us pick up the trail where our ancestors left off.

• Reason #5: It's the most engaging book I've ever read. The book unfolds a real-life story of lion tracking in the African bushveld―its timeless lessons are seamlessly weaved in.

If you are at all interested in learning how to create a purposeful and fulfilling life, I can't recommend this book enough.

(If you've read it, do you agree? What other book would you recommend in this category?)

The Moment I Thought I Was Dying

Aug. 18, 2022

Coming to terms with my first encounter with anxiety and carving a path forward.

It was a cold snowy day in December 2018 when I sent a startling text to a close friend, “Hey, are you free? I need a drive to the ER.” 

He responded promptly that he was on the way.

I had been studying for exams when I suddenly experienced issues breathing and tightness in my chest. 

I thought I was having a heart attack.

With apparent concern on the nurse’s face, I was quickly admitted to the hospital. Following various standard tests, an ECG, X-rays, and hours of waiting the doctor’s diagnosis was conclusive… 

Nothing was wrong with me.

I left the hospital that night concerned for my physical health and without answers.

Over time, I began drawing connections between when I felt those symptoms and what was happening in my life at the time.

A theme started to become apparent.

I was experiencing physical afflictions of anxiety during stressful or uncertain periods of my life.

The paradox is that I’ve never seen myself as a worrier. 

I’m a go-getter. The guy who pushes himself and gets stuff done properly. The person who needs to be strong to support others, regardless of how I feel. The one who’s calm and responsive under pressure, not anxious.

I don’t think I would have realized that I struggle with anxiety if it wasn’t for the physical manifestation of its symptoms.

I’ve spent many thousands of hours working to improve my physical and mental state. Although I’ll never cease striving to progress further, I feel proud of how much I’ve improved in my physical fitness and headspace.

However, my ability to deal with anxiety is not on that list of accomplishments.

My current response to anxiety varies from mental self-talk that roughly translates to “suck it up buttercup” to productive actions like exercise, walks, breathing practices, meditation, or working through the matter that’s making me anxious, and sometimes destructive behaviours such as replacing worry with scrolling YouTube while ignoring the anxiety’s source and physical symptoms. 

I might never be able to completely extinguish anxiety from my life, but I’m on a mission to effectively handle anxious episodes and I’m committed to being more consistent in proactively handling them when they do arise.

The Best Piece Of Advice I Was Given About Time Management For A Regret-Free Life

Aug. 19, 2022

When I was 11, my Dad gave me an unforgettable piece of advice.

I was just a kid transitioning into a phase where I was paying more attention to the adults around me and thinking about what it was like to grow up.

Like all kids, I was blind to the realities of life and in the early beginnings of building effective mental models to navigate the world around me.

One night, my Dad said something to me that built the foundation of who I am today:

"You Don't Have Time For The Things That Matter, You Make It"

That day, my whole life changed.

Since I heard those words, I've been applying them to my own life and preaching them to others making paltry excuses.

If something is important to me, I do it. There is no "I wish I did" or "I didn't have time for"―these are not part of my vocabulary. Instead, I ruthlessly decide my priorities and label the things I choose not to do as unimportant.

If it's important to me, I make time for it. Simple as that.

The People Who Have Influenced Me In Healthy Longevity So That I Live Longer And Feel Healthier

Aug. 20, 2022

I have been interested in healthy longevity for a while now.

But I owe a lot of the progress I've made to these people:

Dr. Peter Attia

Dr. Peter Attia is the Yoda of longevity―wise, trusted, and the most knowledgeable in his field.

His teachings, and lessons learned from those he's introduced me to, have influenced a countless number of my daily protocols spanning sleep, nutrition, exercise, headspace, and supplementation.

But what sets Peter apart from the rest isn’t his long list of accreditations. It’s his commitment to excellence and the standard of integrity he holds himself to.

Peter lives in a relentless pursuit to help his patients and followers discover strategies and tools to live longer, be healthier, and optimize performance.

Pavel Tsatsouline

Pavel's teachings have built the foundation of my exercise routine for the last 2 years.

His no-nonsense approach to building functional strength and flexibility has made me stronger, more resilient, and more adaptable to my environment.

Tim Ferriss

The work of Tim Ferriss has been monumental in my life. Without him, I wouldn't know Peter or Pavel nor the hundreds more he introduced me to that have profoundly molded the person I am today.

These people have taught me so much—and, just like they did with me, I hope to pass along my own learnings to the next person.

1 Habit Of Resilient People That Overcome Failure―And Unlock Unlimited Opportunities

Aug. 21, 2022

Most resilient people who repeatedly overcome failure share the same handful of things in common:

• They challenge their body and mind every day.

• They wake up and go to sleep early.

• They seek new activities that make them uncomfortable.

• They have a strong community around them in which they reciprocate.

But most importantly, I have noticed that the most resilient people have this 1 habit in common:

They frame suffering as growth and failure as opportunity.

And here's why:

Everything desirable in life is on the far side of hard work.

The path of "success"―whatever that means for you―is riddled with struggle, challenge, tribulation, and failure. Those that emerge triumphant have conditioned themselves to view every challenge as an opportunity to improve and every failure as an indication of the best next step to take.

This headspace is developed as a byproduct of intentionally submerging themselves in uncomfortable situations where they have an opportunity to iteratively fail or succeed each moment.

Activities like intense exercise, sparring, and learning a language force you to make thousands of micro decisions every second. Will you press on despite struggle and "win" the present moment? Or give up and fail?

By conditioning their mind for resilience through daily challenging activities, they build the tools required to walk the path of success and defeat the demons of failure.

1 Tip I Would Give A Driven Person Who Doesn't Yet Know What Their Purpose Is―And How To Create Great Days Despite Uncertainty

Aug. 22, 2022

As a Type A personality, living with uncertainty can be challenging.

“[Most] people will choose unhappiness over uncertainty.” ― Tim Ferriss

I have been struggling with finding my purpose since I graduated from university 1 year ago. The uncertainty of how my life will turn out and the impending feeling of a lack of direction can make it difficult to live in the present.

This often leads to scattered focus, doom spirals, anxiety, and lines of philosophical questioning―not a fun headspace to live in. Time starts to feel like it's slipping away and you still don't have the answers.

And what I can tell you from my experience trying to carve a path of excitement, learning, and fulfillment while living with uncertainty, is that in order to thrive you need to focus on what's in front of you and create great days.

So, here's the 1 tip I would give you to create great days if you're unsure what your purpose is and struggling with uncertainty:

Learn to be in the process of transformation, not trying to be transformed.

You can't skip past creating to the creation.

Trust that doing enough of what needs to be done today will, with time and hard work, render a path and an outcome that could be great.

Creating great days at the micro level will, by definition, stack on top of each other to create great weeks, months, and years. A great day to me involves exercise, learning, fulfilling work, and connecting deeply with at least one person.

So, what does a great day look like to you?

1 Big Mistake I Made When I First Started Focusing On Self-Development

Aug. 23, 2022

Like most young people trying to learn and grow, I made a lot of mistakes when I first started reading self-development books and taking courses.

But this was the biggest one, by far:

I spent more time learning than I did taking action.

Here's what happened:

I would read a book or work through a course and vigorously take in-depth notes. Once the book or course was done, I deceptively felt as though I accomplished something important and thoughtlessly moved on to the next book.

I was missing the most important ingredient of all: ACTION.

Without action, ideas are worthless.

“Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear and the negative elements in your life, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.” ― Dale Carnegie

But, it's also worth acknowledging that making this mistake taught me a ton.

Now, I spend more time acting on what I learn than I do learning it.

Taking action isn't only beneficial because it has the potential to produce real results but it's also the most essential ingredient of the learning process.

This is why I encourage everyone reading a self-development book or taking a course to take at least one action based on what they just learned before moving on to the next chapter.

There is always a lesson to be learned. But more importantly, there is always an action to be taken.

So, if you want to improve at something get out there and start taking action.

The Single Most Important Lesson I’ve Learned While Developing New Skills

Aug. 24, 2022

Since I was a child, I've spent a lot of time in classes, camps, and courses.

Through these experiences, I have learned a great deal about how I operate. I still have much to learn, but this one mistake I repeatedly made (and still make at times) turned into a lesson that has helped me profoundly.

It has fundamentally changed my learning process.

Over the course of my life spent learning and growing, this is the single most important lesson I've learned about maintaining an effective mindset for developing new skills:

You don't need to impress anyone.

And here's why:

When beginning something new, you're going to misstep, slip up, and ultimately experience one micro-failure after another.

That's okay.

If you feel like you need to impress the teacher, other students, your partner, or your friends you are impeding your ability to learn by adding unnecessary pressure. Because guess what? No one cares.

There's no timeline for when you need to achieve a certain level of proficiency. As long as you're improving slightly with each iteration and pressing on despite setbacks, you are succeeding.

Maintain a beginner's mind. Focus on improving one area at a time. Enjoy the process, don't fixate on the destination. And most importantly, don't worry about what anyone else thinks.

Something Weird Most People Don’t Know About The Role Of Muscle In Longevity

Aug. 25, 2022

There are a lot of benefits to building muscle beyond aesthetics that most people don't know about.

For example, did you know...

• Muscle acts as a metabolic sink―it helps dispose of glucose, improves insulin sensitivity, and reduces your likelihood of developing diabetes.

• Building muscle mass now will help you fend off sarcopenia (involuntary loss of muscle) in old age―this is critical to both lifespan and quality of life.

• Above-average quad and grip strength have been shown to measurably increase lifespan due to the role they play in the prevention of falls―a major cause of death in elderly populations.

For anyone who is a longevity enthusiast, this stuff probably isn't new.

However, to those who haven't dug into the hidden benefits of different forms of exercise, some of these might come as a shock.

But here's the weirdest thing most people don't know about building muscle:

Putting on muscle is hard work, but maintaining it is easy.

The golden rule for muscle growth is 10-25 sets per muscle group per week. Each set should consist of 8-30 reps―vary it up as you like.

Pretty big range in sets, right?

Depending on your training status, new to experienced, you will need between 10-25 sets per muscle group per week to GROW. The longer you've been training, the more sets you will need to continue growing.

But once you've built adequate muscle mass, you only 10-15 sets per muscle group per week to MAINTAIN.

Crazy, right?

5 Ingredients For Entering A Flow State―And How To Make “Work” Feel Like Play

Aug. 26, 2022

Flow is a feeling worth designing your entire life around.

A Flow State is a feeling that emerges when you become fully immersed in whatever you’re doing. It arises when 5 essential characteristics combine and leaves you in a state of ecstasy and with an extreme sense of clarity. Your sense of time becomes distorted and you know exactly what you want to do from one moment to the next. 

Now, let's dive in.

#1: The activity must strike a balance between challenge and skills.

The activity should not be too easy or too difficult.

Ideally, the difficulty of the task should be slightly above your skill level in order to fully engage you and require you to perform at the height of your ability. This challenge will require a level of focus that causes the mind’s usual chatter to fade away, distractions to disappear, and a clear focus on your craft to emerge.

#2: You must have complete concentration and engagement on the task.

You must be singularly focused on the task to reach the deep level of engagement and concentration required to enter a Flow State.

It’s important to care about the task at hand and create or find an environment that allows you to solely focus on the activity. This may be a class, a spare room in your house, the gym, or whatever environment best suits your activity and allows for complete, uninterrupted focus.

#3: There should be clear goals and immediate feedback. 

Your objective should be clear and the activity should have innate immediate feedback.

For example, exercise, sparring, building something with your hands, gardening, puzzling, scuba diving, painting, writing, pottering, making music, and other activities that have a defined set of parameters, a clear outcome, and rapid feedback loops are ideal for entering a Flow State. 

#4: The experience must be intrinsically rewarding for you.

You should enjoy the activity simply for the sake of engaging in it.

Your mindset should be focused on the journey, the act of engaging in the task, not the destination. Find experiences that you would engage in just for the sake of the experience itself, with no expectation of any future benefit. It helps to have high curiosity and persistence, no ego, and a high willingness to perform the activity.  

#5: There should be a sense of effortlessness and ease. 

A key characteristic of Flow is effortless attention. 

Think about a golfer stepping up to the ball, LeBron James driving the net, or Michael Phelps mid-butterfly. There is a sense of effortlessness and ease in their movements. This doesn’t mean they aren’t moving quickly or intensely, but they are completely relaxed and utterly focused. To achieve this, find an activity that you are already good at or are new to but learning with a deep sense of focus and a feeling of ease.

I hope you find ways to spend more time in a Flow State.

Spending more of your time in a Flow State will improve the quality and enjoyability of your life.

Flow will help you discover a deeper sense of concentration and clarity than ever before and cultivate a chatter-free mind in which stress, worry, and self-doubt melt away. It will eliminate superficiality and generate positive emotion deep within, resulting in a lasting state of joy and fulfillment beyond happiness.

Now, go forth and find your Flow.

An Easy Framework Anyone Can Use To Boost Your Pull-up Game―Whether You Can Do 0 Or 20

Aug. 27, 2022

I have been doing pull-ups for over 9 years.

But when I got started, I couldn't pull myself up by even one inch. Now, I can do over 10 dead-hang pull-ups (as a 200-lb man) and I'm still upping my numbers.

Whether you're where I was 9 years ago or a pull-up pro, this framework will help you do your first pull-up or tack on a few more to your current max.

This is the simple framework I used to learn and boost my pull-up game:

Step 1: Start with the isometric.

During isometric contractions, the length of the muscle doesn’t change. For pull-ups, hold your chin over the bar in a static hold.

• Beginner: Stand on a chair to get yourself in a position where you can hold yourself with your chin above the bar. Repeat these holds a few times per week in sets of 3-4 until you feel strong enough for Step 2.

• Pro: After pulling yourself up to the bar from a hanging position, hold yourself―chin above the bar―for a few seconds before letting yourself back down.

Step 2: Emphasize the eccentric.

During eccentric contractions, the muscle lengthens. For pull-ups, this occurs when you lower yourself down from the bar.

• Beginner: Just as you did in Step 1, stand on a chair and hold with your chin above the bar. Then, as slowly as you can, lower yourself down until your arms are fully extended. Use the chair to return to the starting position and repeat.

• Pro: The only thing that changes from Step 1 is the speed at which you let yourself down. Aim for as slowly and smoothly as possible

Step 3: Build the concentric.

During concentric contractions, the muscle is shortened. For pull-ups, this occurs when you pull your chin up and over the bar.

• Beginner: After building up in Steps 1 and 2, the next step is to pull yourself up from a hanging position. If you're not there yet, keep working on the first two steps. You can also fasten a resistance band to the bar and loop your feet through the bottom to assist as you pull yourself up.

• Pro: String it all together. Play with tempo, speed, and contraction on the concentric (up), isometric (hold), and eccentric (down) to burst through pull-up plateaus.

Whether you're starting out or trying to move to the next level, these steps will take you to the next level.

The Simplest Way To Overcome Change And Uncertainty―And How To Bullet Proof Your Days As A "Type A"

Aug. 28, 2022

I've never met a Type A personality that doesn't struggle with change and uncertainty that is outside of their control.

Personally, I have for years.

Most recently, I have been battling uncertainty about what form I want my career path to take. My inherent reaction to this uncertainty is impatient outcome-seeking and all-around stress and anxiety.

Embracing discovery and learning to be in the process of transformation are qualities I'm trying to develop.

But what changed for me was the realization that I can use a simple recipe to create great days and knock my mindset into a more positive and productive place despite external uncertainties and challenges.

And as soon as that clicked, I started to understand that overcoming uncertainty and change wasn't that hard—by trying to exert control over an uncontrollable situation, I was just approaching it the wrong way.

Here's what I should have done instead:

Develop 3 grounding practices and perform them daily.

What 3 things can you do every day, regardless of where you are or what happens around you, that will shift your mindset to be more positive and productive?

In other words, what 3 things can you do to make every day great?

For me, those three things are exercise, writing or journalling, and meditation or breathing practice.

So, what are your three?

Anyone Interested In Dying Without Regret Should Read This Blog Post

Aug. 29, 2022

If you are interested in living a full life free of major regret, then you need to clear your calendar and read:

The Tail End by Tim Urban.

And here's why:

• Relationships matter―and chances are you're nearing the end of your time with some of the most important people in your life.

• Priorities matter―how many more times you experience something or see someone is dependent on your ability to effectively set and execute your list of life priorities.

• Quality time matters―it's important to cherish and fully embrace time spent with those you love.

• Location matters―where you live will dictate how much time you spend with the people you love.

• Conscientiousness matters―without a conscious and aware mind, you won't be able to implement any of these ideas in your own life.

Honestly, this blog post revolutionized my life—and completely changed how I prioritize my time and manage major life decisions.

And I believe it will for you too.

New To Exercise For Longevity? Listen To This Podcast Episode

Aug. 30, 2022

There are a lot of podcasts on the subject of exercise and healthy living.

And honestly, I've listened to a lot of them.

But the one I keep coming back to, over and over again, is #206 – Exercising for longevity: strength, stability, zone 2, zone 5, and more by Dr. Peter Attia.

If you want to learn how to design an exercise routine geared towards longevity, here's why I would recommend blocking 1 hour to listen to this one episode:

Reason #1: It outlines a comprehensive training program for the “Centenarian Olympics.”

This podcast details a weekly exercise routine for those with the goal of reaching and kicking ass at age 100.

Exercise is the most powerful drug on the planet. No pill will derive the lifespan and quality of life benefits that exercise can. This routine is intense and can be modified to meet your needs, but make sure you're covering all 4 types of exercise each week.

Reason #2: Peter is the leader in his field and he preaches what he practices.

There is no shortage of scam artists in the health and fitness industry.

Peter is not one of them. Despite Peter's long list of accreditations and comprehensive experience, what sets him apart is his commitment to excellence and the standard of integrity he holds himself to.

Reason #3: It serves as the perfect launchpad into Peter's content.

Starting a new podcast can be intimidating.

There are hundreds of episodes and no path forward outlining where you should start or what you should listen to next. This episode pulls information from other podcasts Peter has done which will help you identify what you should listen to next if you want a deeper dive on certain topics.

Whether you're a beginner or advanced and looking for inspiration to redesign your routine, I promise—this is one of the most helpful resources you can sink your teeth into to learn how to design a longevity-focused exercise routine.

The 1 App I Can’t Live Without For Exploring Off The Beaten Path Hikes

Aug. 31, 2022

Today, there is an app, website, or software platform for just about anything (including finding someone to walk your dog).

But when it comes to hiking, there is one app I can't live without:

AllTrails

And here's why:

• Safety. We've all heard horror stories of someone leaving for a hike, getting lost in the woods, and never returning―no one wants to go out like that. Offline maps with AllTrails Pro give me the navigation confidence I need to traverse just about any trail.

• Trail Discovery. The AllTrails Explore feature helps me find hikes close to me and quickly understand if it's what I'm looking for.

• Trail Details. Each hike includes a description, length, elevation, notable features, reviews, and a comment section. Comments are especially helpful for seeing what others are saying about the hike and getting updates on recent trail conditions.

• New Features. AllTrails is constantly innovating and releasing new trails, features, and updates to make its service the best in the world. From a new Community feature being rolled out to customized map creation, AllTrails is in a class of its own.

• AllTrails Gives Back. A portion of every Pro membership goes towards protecting the wild places we cherish. Plus they have planted over 10,000 trees and counting.

If you're an avid hiker looking to discover and explore top-tier trails that suit your needs and want the confidence that you won't get lost in the forest, I can't recommend using this app enough.

If You’re Interested In Learning How To Overcome Fear, Take These 3 Actions Right Now

Sept. 1, 2022

Overcoming fear is a learned skill.

Luckily, you can get started right now and move one step closer to immense personal growth and the life you envision for yourself.

Just take these three actions right now:

Fear Setting: A Writing Reflection Practice

Fear Setting was created by Tim Ferriss to force the necessary but often uncomfortable actions required to live the life we desire.

I distilled this writing practice into 6 simple writing reflection prompts:

1. What are you putting off out of fear?

2. Define your nightmare.

3. What steps could you take to repair the damage, even if temporarily?

4. What are the outcomes or benefits, temporary and permanent, of more probable scenarios?

5. What is it costing you—financially, emotionally, and physically—to postpone action?

6. Why are you waiting?

Apply Fear Setting: One Action For The Next 3 Days

Time to start building momentum.

Based on the outputs of your Fear Setting practice, pick the single most impactful thing you are excited to change. Then, write down 3 actions. One you can take right now, one tomorrow, and one the day after.

Sign Up For Something With A Death Waiver

I recently instated a new rule:

I must sign up for at least 1 activity every 6 months which makes me sign a death waiver. If I fail, it is a sign that I'm not challenging myself enough.

It doesn't have to be complex (martial arts, scuba diving, zip lining, rock climbing...) but it should make you feel some level of discomfort. Ultimately, following your fears and plowing right through them will result in personal growth and internal peace.

I end with a quote:

"Most people lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them." ― Henry David Thoreau

Don't let yourself be one of them.

3 Simple (But Effective) Pieces Of Advice I’d Give Anyone To Build Momentum For Successfully Developing New Habits

Sept. 2, 2022

I have been successfully developing difficult-to-adopt habits for 10 years.

These are the 3 simple (but effective) pieces of advice I'd give anyone who wants to form a new habit:

Advice #1: The 2-Minute Action

Scale down the habit you’re trying to build to something that takes 2 minutes or less to complete.

Before a habit can be improved, optimized, or scaled up it must be developed. The more convenient and simple a habit is, the more likely the behaviour will be performed.

Want to read 20 books per year? Start with one page right now. Want to exercise every day at 4 PM? Slip into your athletic clothes at 3:55 PM.

Advice #2: Inform Your Self-Identity

Your self-identity can be used as a source of unlimited power to align reality with how you view yourself.

Want to lose weight? You aren't the overweight person, you're the fit person. And what do fit people do? They prioritize sleep, exercise, and a healthy diet.

Adopt the identity of the person you aim to become. Your new identity will inform your habits which will allow you to achieve your desired outcome naturally.

Advice #3: Split Your Day Into Quarters

Slipping up once isn't an excuse to throw the day away and "start again tomorrow."

To contain mistakes and eliminate the spiral effect, split your day into quarters (morning, afternoon, dinner, and night). If you veer off course simply get back on track next quarter.

I wish someone had told me these 3 things earlier on in my life.

But I'm glad I can pass them along to you.

4 Takeaways From "The Comfort Crisis" I Think Everyone Should Understand―Even If You Never Read The Book

Sept. 3, 2022

The Comfort Crisis: Embrace Discomfort to Reclaim Your Wild, Happy, Healthy Self by Michael Easter is the best book ever written on character development.

Books are a big time commitment, so you will probably never read it.

But if you want to build a peaceful, successful, and happy life, you should understand these 4 takeaways:

Takeaway #1: Life is tough. Your success and happiness are dependent on you being tougher.

No one cares about how you feel.

You have to be your own source of internal fire, resilience, and strength. Become a boulder for yourself and those you love. Toughness is built by submerging yourself in discomfort.

Takeaway #2: Think about your death 3x daily.

The Bhutanese think of mitakpa (impermanence) three times per day (morning, afternoon, and evening).

You don't know when or how you will die―just that you will. Remembering your own impermanence is a useful decision-making heuristic and will help you notice your own greed, anger, and ignorance.

Takeaway #3: The answer is almost always to eliminate and simplify.

To solve whatever problem you are facing, the answer probably lies in elimination, reduction, or simplification.

Shiny new things are almost never the answer. Learning how to overcome limiters to progress, negative habits, and behaviours are.

As Bruce Lee famously said:

"One does not accumulate but eliminate. It is not daily increase but daily decrease. The height of cultivation always runs to simplicity."

Takeaway #4: Facing discomfort and prevailing on the other side generates internal confidence and peace.

The internal confidence you build after relentlessly bathing in discomfort is profound.

This confidence generates a deep sense of internal peace that cannot be found in a sedentary life. Don't believe me? Go to an intense exercise or sparring class that pushed you to your mental limits and notice how you feel after.

I can't recommend this book enough.

5 Small (But Easily Fixable) Mistakes Most People Make When Designing A Lifestyle Geared For Longevity

Sept. 4, 2022

A lifestyle geared toward longevity shouldn't be complicated—in fact, the simpler the better.

The key is creating a few essential habits and being relentlessly consistent in executing them—and the tremendous immediate and long-term benefits of a longevity-minded lifestyle will follow.

For anyone committed to living longer and feeling healthier, these are the 5 small (but easily fixable) mistakes most people make—and why, if you can avoid them, your health will accelerate exponentially:

Mistake #1: Failing to prioritize exercise above everything.

Until you are consistently executing a well-rounded exercise routine, nothing else matters.

Don't focus on the nuances of one diet versus another or even think about supplementation until your exercise is nailed down. The lifespan and quality of life benefits of exercise are insurmountable in comparison to these finer points.

Mistake #2: Discounting the value of sleep.

Sleep is probably THE most important factor in our health.

Insufficient sleep, defined as less than 7 hours per night on a consistent basis, can lead to a bounty of diseases ranging from dementia to heart disease.

Mistake #3: Overlooking the silent killer―stress.

The detriments of stress are profound. Luckily, effective strategies for managing it are freely available.

Half of the battle is ensuring your exercise, sleep, and diet are in check. Then you can turn to additional strategies such as meditation, breathing practices (box breathing, the physiological sigh, the Wim Hof method...), engaging in hobbies, and spending quality time with family and friends.

Mistake #4: Deprioritizing relationships and quality time.

As a Western society, our individualistic values triumph over a focus on community.

But the best moments of our lives will come from experiences shared with others. Slow down, carve out quality time for close friends and family, live in the moment, and cherish the memories you make.

Mistake #5: Failing to carve out time for hobbies.

Many hobbies engage our minds, challenge our bodies, and envelop us in a community of like-minded people.

On top of the inherent joy we experience from doing the things we love, these three benefits will contribute to a longer, healthier, and more purposeful life.

6 Simple Quotes That Will Always Remind You To Take The Important Actions In Life―Despite Doubt And Fear

Sept. 5, 2022

It's not easy making tough decisions or facing deep-rooted fears.

Especially in the face of uncertainty.

But anytime you feel like giving up or need direction, just turn back to these 6 simple quotes (to remind you why you're doing what you're doing):

"Fear is a mindset held prior to experience." ― unknown

Fear stops where action begins. The grips of fear only have power if you allow it to deceive you out of action.

"Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage." ― Anais Nin

Unwavering courage opens a new world of opportunity and possibility.

"Inaction breeds fear and doubt. Action breeds confidence and courage." ― Dale Carnegie

When in doubt, take radical action. The appropriate course of action for some problems is to think less and act more.

"Invest in a discovery rather than an outcome." ― Boyd Varty

Focus on things within your circle of control. Investing in the discovery and process will be more enjoyable and fruitful than trying to force an outcome.

"Most people will choose unhappiness over uncertainty." ― Tim Ferriss

This is the sad truth behind the lives of many. I'm battling this paradigm right now as I forge through uncertainty to seek long-term happiness.

"Most men live lives of quiet desperation." ― Henry David Thoreau

Confident action despite fear and learning to live with uncertainty are prerequisites to creating an exciting life aligned with your values.

7 Things I Wish I Knew 5 Years Ago About Lifestyle Design In Adulthood―And Optimizing For Purpose While Eliminating Regret

Sept. 6, 2022

If I could go back in time, these are the 7 things I wish I knew about lifestyle design in adulthood.

(It would have saved me a lot of time and effort.)

1. Nothing changes unless you make it.

There is no such thing as perfect timing.

Your life will be the exact same in 6 months unless you take decisive action and change it. If you want to do something just do it and correct course along the way.

2. If you don't consciously set your priorities and ruthlessly execute them other people will for you.

Achieving or becoming anything will require defining your life roles, the desired outcomes for each, and crafting a plan to execute.

Without a game plan and the assertive ability to say "No" others will set your priorities for you.

3. Decision-making is a learned skill.

People with miserable lives end up there because they failed to master decision-making.

There are good and bad decisions. Building the life you desire is the result of critically examining pivotal points and taking bold actions that move the dial.

4. You are the only person to blame.

Don't play the victim.

You are responsible for where you are in life and where you go next. Take extreme ownership of every single aspect of your life.

5. Apply internal metrics, block external influences.

Consciously set the criteria by which you will measure the quality of your life.

Do not let how you feel about your life be influenced by those around you or social media.

6. Learn to live with uncertainty.

The inability to bear uncertainty will force you to make choices that result in unhappiness.

7. Adults are just babies that got older.

As a kid, it seems like some magical transformation occurs when you enter adulthood.

But it doesn't. Adults are stumbling through life, some with more direction and sense and others with less, like everyone else.

The 2 Most Difficult Choices I (Repeatedly) Make In Life―And How They Are Essential To My Success

Sept. 7, 2022

When I was 22, I decided to complete my first 72-hour fast.

Of course, whenever we set goals in life, life tests us. And I was no exception.

These are the 2 most difficult choices I repeatedly make in life—and how both directly impacted my ability to complete a 72-hour fast.

Hard Choice #1: Pushing on despite suffering.

I quickly learned my ability to succeed is predicated on my ability to push through suffering while maintaining a positive outlook.

Whether it was sculpting a 6-pack, pulling off a 95% average to break into my preferred university, or completing a 72-hour fast this character trait was, and continues to be, essential to my success.

Hard Choice #2: Uncovering learning opportunities through failure.

By failing under challenging circumstances in the past I built an artillery of weapons that allow me to succeed in the future.

The ability to meet with failure and treat it as a learning opportunity is unanimously shared among those who achieve what they set out to. Framing failure as an opportunity to improve your approach or shift your mindset is critical to future success.

But here's the thing:

Being forced to make these choices ultimately got me to where I am today—which is confidence in my ability to achieve any goal despite challenges and setbacks.

A Lesson My Parents Taught Me That I’ll Never Forget

Sept. 8, 2022

While I was growing up my parents asked me one question every day after school that I'll never forget:

What did you learn today?

They didn't want a laundry list.

They were looking for one lesson I learned at school that day and why it was important or how I could apply it to my life.

I began to seek lessons at school so I had something to tell my parents that evening instead of reactively scrambling to think of something. But over time I started to develop the mindset of a lifelong learner.

I was no longer seeking knowledge so that I could tell my parents what I learned―I was now intrinsically motivated to learn, grow, and improve.

This fundamentally impacted the person I am today where the vast majority of my days are spent either learning or executing tasks with the knowledge I have accumulated over the years.

At the time, learning this lesson was hard—of course.

But in hindsight, my parents gave me the greatest gift of all: the mindset of a lifelong learner.

I attribute a lot of who I am today to that one question.

3 Mistakes I Made When I First Started To Exercise—And What I Would Have Done Differently To 10x My Results

Sept. 9, 2022

Exercise has been a top priority in my life for over 10 years.

And in that time, I've experienced a lot of cool things:

• Bench pressing 300 lbs.

• Competing in Spartan Race obstacle course races.

• Maintaining a 6-pack year-round for the last 8 years.

• Running up (and down) mountains in Western Canada with friends.

There isn't much I would change about my journey.

But if I could go back, here are a few of the mistakes I made early on—and what I would have done differently:

1. Prioritize form over everything.

When I started weightlifting, I was doing it for my ego.

I was focused on lifting heavy weights and increasing them every session rather than nailing down my form (the correct movement pattern).

If I could start again, I would lift excessively light weights until my form was perfect. Only then would I start to increase weight.

2. Work on flexibility and mobility from the start.

Growing up, I could barely touch my knees without wincing.

That's how inflexible I was. It wasn't until the initial lockdowns of COVID that urged to start a daily yoga practice.

Now, I can place my palms on the floor with straight legs. But I wish I started earlier.

3. Do not sacrifice one type of training for another.

Everyone has a comfort zone.

Mine was weightlifting and I prioritized it over cardio (and flexibility and mobility for that matter). Big mistake. A well-rounded exercise routine is crucial to sustainable longevity and high-quality life.

A Question I’ve Been Asking Myself Lately (And Why You Should Be Asking It Too)

Sept. 10, 2022

I have spent a lot of my time over the last few months thinking about how my future will unfold.

The one question that has been on replay in my mind is this:

When I'm 99 years old resting on my deathbed, what decision will I have wished that I made?

For a few reasons:

• Reason #1: It is useful in analyzing major decisions in the 3 areas that determine the quality of our lives―1) Job and Activities, 2) Life partner, Family, and Friends, and 3) Location.

• Reason #2: Even when not making decisions, it helps me remember what is important in life and stops me from getting wrapped up in the trivial.

• Reason #3: It helps me guard my time by giving me the assertive ability to say "No"―a critical skill to develop for intentional lifestyle design.

This question isn't meant to have a definitive answer, but it serves as a guide to nudge you closer to the person you want to become and the life you want to live.

I think I'll be on my deathbed and still asking myself this question, seeking the best version of myself.

(And if this question is helpful to you, I'd love to hear from you.)

My 3 Favorite Newsletters For Learning How To Create A Longevity Minded Lifestyle

Sept. 11, 2022

I love reading newsletters.

But I am extremely selective.

(A lot are a waste of time, unfortunately.)

If you are at all interested in designing a lifestyle geared towards longevity, which I define as living longer, feeling healthier, and cultivating purpose, here are the 3 most worth your time:

1. Peter Attia MD

Dr. Peter Attia is bar none the best resource for all topics related to living longer, being healthier, and optimizing your performance.

His newsletter covers topics from disease prevention to exercise and everything in between, sourcing information from other world-class doctors, scientists, and researchers in their respective fields.

2. 3-2-1 Thursday by James Clear

In this weekly newsletter, James shares 3 short ideas, 2 quotes, and 1 question for you to ponder.

This newsletter never fails to leave me with a pertinent thought or course of action that I can take to improve how I analyze my surroundings, make decisions, and ultimately navigate our world.

3. Longevity Minded

Okay... this one might be a little biased.

I write a weekly newsletter with the goal of helping you enhance your exercise, nutrition, sleep, and headspace to achieve 3 key outcomes: Live Longer. Feel Healthier. Cultivate Purpose.

It’s simple, practical, actionable, and hits your inbox every Thursday morning. You can sign up at www.longevityminded.com/newsletter.

1 Bad Dietary Habit I Used To Have—And How I Broke It (My Food Mentality Will Never Be The Same)

Sept. 12, 2022

I used to associate eating unhealthy foods with guilt and shame.

I had been doing this for years.

Rock bottom for me was on "cheat days" when I would overindulge beyond any sensible limit. I was overfull, ashamed, and waiting for the start of a new day so I could hit refresh.

It was terrible.

How did I break this bad habit?

By adopting the persona of a French café-goer.

Everything changed as soon as I shifted my mentality.

And honestly, I saw immediate results.

• I became selective, only eating foods I truly and deeply enjoy.

• I learned to stop once I started. One pain au chocolat with my coffee didn't need to turn into a full day of overindulgence.

• I savored small portion sizes rather than inhaling large quantities (turns out it's actually more enjoyable to eat treats in smaller portions).

• I found real pleasure in food. It wasn't in fast food or packaged junk―but in a nicely cooked fillet paired with a side, a slow glass of wine and good conversation with friends, and a hand-made dessert.

So, if you associate guilt and shame with unhealthy foods, I encourage you to learn from my mistakes.

And adopt the persona of a French café-goer.

3 Things I Learned Writing Online Every Day For 30 Days In A Row

Sept. 13, 2022

30 days ago, I signed up for Dickie Bush and Nicolas Cole's cohort-based writing course, Ship 30 for 30.

During that time, I wrote and published 30 Atomic Essays, learned the fundamentals of Digital Writing, made friends, and started gaining clarity over what my niche might be. It has been a very rewarding (and challenging) journey, and I am more excited than ever to keep writing online.

Here are the 3 biggest things writing and publishing consistently every day for 30 days taught me:

1. There is great strength in community.

Much of my growth (and enjoyment) came from interacting with others.

I met hundreds of other smart, driven, and like-minded people. One of the greatest benefits of writing and publishing online is the people you meet and the opportunities you open for yourself.

2. Intentionality is fundamental to improvement.

Guessing what will work each time you write and publish is a recipe for failure.

Instead, analyze data points (topic, audience, "hook", format, and credibility), form hypotheses around which of these aspects is driving the success (or failure) of each essay, and isolate those variables for A/B testing in future pieces. Once you figure out what works, double down.

3. Growth = Learning + Immediate Action

Knowledge without action is useless.

As soon as I learned something I applied it to my writing. As with any form of learning in life, action is critical to the development of skill.

If you have been thinking about getting started writing online too, let me know. I'm happy to share more about the experience and what I learned.

In January 2022, I sat down with a legal-sized sheet of paper, positioned it in a horizontal landscape, and started to map out my year.

In one-to-three-month blocks, I decided what I wanted each period of my life to look like. Some months were filled with work, learning, and courses, and others with travel, adventure, and play.

I didn’t have a plan for the logistics—turning my lofty plans turn to reality—but I was determined to make it happen.

Looking back at 2022 during my annual year in review, I couldn’t help but smile. My roadmap turned into reality and it was a hell of a year.

I explored Provence and Riviera in Southern France with my Dad and partied in Prague with buddies. I hiked to mountain peaks in British Columbia with my best friend and his girlfriend. I enjoyed cottage weekends at the lake in my native land of Ontario. I scuba dived in Colombia and swam under waterfalls and hot springs in Costa Rica. I took my Mom and Stepdad on a trip of a lifetime, snorkeling with sea turtles and sharks in the chilly volcanic waters of the Galápagos and hiking to Machu Picchu.

I continued growing my newsletter, became a better writer, and even landed a side gig as a Freelance Writer. If you told my parents back in my high school days that I would get paid to write at age 23, they would have laughed you out the door!

I kept fit, improved my endurance, trained Krav Maga for 3 months, and even got a little bit stronger and more flexible.

Despite its fair share of road bumps, stress, and anxiety, I can’t complain. As my Dad would say, I planned the work and worked the plan. I had a vision for a period of my life and willed it into reality.

Happy with how 2022 went, I set out with the same practice for 2023.

Pen in hand one crisp January evening, I split my year into chunks, finding space for all of the things that are important to me.

Inspired by Bill Perkins’ conversation with Peter Attia, I initiated a trip to Egypt with my Dad with the goal of creating an experience we would never forget. I will smile and laugh with joy at memories from that trip until my final day. And our bond will be forever strengthened as we recall stories and crack jokes from those three weeks together.

Goal achieved.

I explored the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, cruised down the Bosphorus, and bathed in the beauty of the Blue Mosque.

I traveled through Italy with my girlfriend, trying just about every pizza, pasta, pastry, and gelato you can dream up, hiking through the picturesque Cinque Terre, studying ancient Roman architecture, admiring Michelangelo’s David and Sistine Chapel, and getting lost in the canals of Venice.

My Longevity Minded newsletter hit 500+ subscribers, I feel great about my fitness, and I have some exciting plans with friends and family on the horizon.

So far, so good.

Now the year is just about halfway up and I find myself needing to revisit my roadmap to replan the last 6 months of 2023.

But the future feels uncertain and I’m not sure where to go next.

Maybe I need to allow myself to engage in a process of discovery, one step at a time.

To walk a path of unknowns that has equal chance of ending in triumph or disaster.

To listen to the wild part of myself that knows, deep down, what I need and how to get it.

To seek discomfort and uncertainty rather than complacently accepting stability and unhappiness.

To trust that doing enough of what needs to be done today can, with time, create an outcome that could be great.

The quality of your questions is said to determine the quality of your results.

And although I don’t know where I’m headed, based on how the last 18 months turned out, I’m pretty sure I’m asking the right questions:

What experiences must I have in the 24th [insert age] year of my life, or risk never having at all?

Can I live without experiencing/doing X? Or will I regret it on my deathbed?

And there is no secret recipe to becoming confident.

It’s actually quite simple.

Find something that interests or scares or excites you. Something that makes you feel alive.

Then go do it. And keep doing it. Again and again and again.

With enough time you will become supremely confident in your ability to do that thing. But it runs deeper. You haven’t just become good, and thus confident, at doing that thing. You have proven to yourself that you are a person who is capable of walking into the unknown and emerging sometime later as competent.

You have proven yourself to… yourself. And that gives you confidence.

Now you can move on to the next unknown. The next thing that strikes fear into your heart, makes your stomach churn with nerves, or awakens a fire deep within your soul.

And you will be nervous and scared and hesitant. You will feel resistance.

But you will walk forward with confidence anyway. Because you have proven to yourself that you can.

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