You don’t have bad knees. — “Ah, it’s ok. You go ahead, I’ll catch up.” This was me, for the majority of my life. Chronic knee pain stopped me from enjoying many fun aspects of life. Hiking, team sports, and as I got older, even stairs would spark a symphony of cracks and pops. Luckily, this…

There are lots of smart people. There are not a lot of people who can do this smart thing. The poet John Keats called it “negative capability” — the mental fortitude to be able to entertain multiple contradictory ideas in your head at the same time. Or as F. Scott…

What do you make every year? What kinds of raises have you gotten over the last few years? How are you valuing cash vs. equity? How much did you negotiate your last offer? What is a Big Tech promotion worth? …

A thought experiment — This is an excerpt from my new book, 2-Minute Pep Talks*. If you enjoy it, you can buy a copy for as little as $3.99 here*. If you took an IQ test right now, there would be two possible outcomes. One, you get a result that’s below average. Two, you…

The factory worker age says “one employer/income.” This idea has aged worse than Michael Jackson’s life philosophies. — Rule #1 — Obsess over acquiring assets like you obsess over small children Financial success is built on a foundation of financial assets. If all you own is material possessions and a bunch of horse sh*t liabilities, you’ll feel unnecessary pain that’ll make life 10x harder. Assets store time for future consumption.

The ancients were fond of an expression: Character is fate. It means that character is deterministic, that who you are determines what you will do. Self-discipline is one of those special things that is both predictive and deterministic. It both predicts that you will be great, AND it makes whatever…

“The purpose of life is to experience things for which you will later experience nostalgia” — Most advice isn’t worth the oxygen used to say it. But some advice stands out. I’ve seen some great tips over the years from many quiet, humble mentors who took me under their wing. Here are the most impactful pieces of advice you’ll find useful. Some came directly from people…

This is a story about two roads — Should and Must. It’s a pep talk for anyone who’s chosen Should for far too long — months, years, maybe a lifetime — and feels like it’s about time they gave Must a shot — There are two paths in life: Should and Must. We arrive at this crossroads over and over again. And each time, we get to choose. Over the past year I’ve chosen Must again and again. And it was petrifying. And at times it was dark. But I would never, ever…

The best philosophy book I’ve read in 3 years. — Looking back at my reading list for this year so far, 2022 has been a year of spiritual curiosity for me. I’ve read a boatload of Eastern philosophy books that I never thought I’d touch, like Striking Thoughts by Bruce Lee and Siddartha by Herman Hesse. However, the book that…

Anyone can understand Einstein — I have a ball. The ball has mass. Mass tells us how much matter is in the ball. Matter is stuff we can see and touch. I have another ball! It’s bigger than the first. The bigger ball has more mass. The smaller ball has less mass. I place the…

A mental model is an explanation of how something works. It is a concept, framework, or worldview that you carry around in your mind to help you interpret the world and understand the relationship between things. Mental models guide your perception and behavior. They are the thinking tools that you…

“You are the Universe experiencing itself” — Alan Watts — I. The Beauty of Life It was a warm, spring day. There sat I — with eyes closed and legs crossed. Meditating. My forearm tingled. Before my brain could send electrical impulses down the chute, to flick away some insect, I had an aha moment. For roughly a minute, I escaped into single-pointed concentration. The…

The old crocodile was floating at the river’s edge when a younger crocodile swam up next to him, “I’ve heard from many that you’re the fiercest hunter in all of the river bottoms. Please, teach me your ways.” Awoken from a nice long afternoon nap, the old crocodile glanced at…

Steal these pieces of wisdom and use them — Do the opposite of others — 9 times out of 10, you’ll win in life by betting against the crowd. If most people don’t live the life you want to live, why follow in their footsteps? This seems simple, yet few follow this piece of advice. Watch what people do…

Don’t wait until your hair is as white as flames on candles — Everyone has a light within them. Deep down, we all want it to burn bright. But keeping the flame alive requires effort. The strong winds of adversity, loss, hardship, and pain can threaten to blow out our flame. Our job, however difficult, is to keep the flame lit. For those…

Nature offers the lessons we forget to learn ourselves. — One of the most unusual and remarkable viewing experiences in all of nature is here in Florida. You won’t find it at a zoo. You won’t find it in a nature preserve. You’ll find it — of all places —at a power plant. There is a channel of water by…

The key to making progress. — “Can I ask you a question?” “Sure,” I said. I’d just got done doing a set of pull-ups, somewhere between ten and fifteen. Another guy at the gym approaches me for weightlifting advice. “Here’s the thing. I want to get better at pull-ups, but I’m stuck. I’m only able to…