Life Lessons

The Descent of a Soul: A Journey Through Temptation and Reflection

In many ways, bad ways, I have devolved. Weaknesses have run amok. Coasting. Eating away the good fortune created yesterday.Stealing goodwill from tomorrow.  Where is my soul? Like being trapped by a black hole. Being pulled. I see the disasters, and rather than change trajectory, rather than fly back the opposite way, I flow like the river into…

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What ruins a community

Having qualms about a member of your community, sharing your qualms with others, but not having the guts to talk to the person directly. This plants seeds of resentment in your own heart, and seeds of doubt and dislike in the hearts of the listener. Some of those doubts and disenchantment are of the person…

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Getting out of a funk in 2021 Q4

Notes taken whilst listening to a Queen. Fri, Oct 29, 2021, 10:21 PM I want to feel understood and understood. Fri, Oct 29, 2021, 10:23 PM I don’t need other people to understand me, of I’m willing to understand myself. Fri, Oct 29, 2021, 10:25 PM To ___: 1. I’m so glad I talked with…

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Happenings

9:31 am // A few questions participants should ask. How do you define attack? How do you define defence? What is the relationship between claiming what is and asking what is? How do you stop the spread of suffering? What behaviours amplify and spread suffering? What is Truth if two or more parties witnessing an…

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Stop

Essentialism Stop trying to help everyone. Help only ten that will help ten. Too many projects on the go. We can only close so many projects at the same time. Initiatives: Beachhead Firing too many cannons in too many directions. I don’t want to be like N____l S_____y. Spread too thin. Behaving erratically. I must…

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Intense few weeks

Below are my unfiltered thoughts to myself. Thought I’d share. I’m either a commander, a captain, a ruler, or a commando. When I am a commando, everything seems to be too slow, an obstacle to overcome, an enemy to slice. Nothing is good enough. Things are not good enough. People are not good enough. I…

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Don’t be an “HNR”

Q: What is an HNR? A: Human Network Router Q: What does that mean? A: It means you’re literally moving information from one place to another. You cease to be creative. You are reactionary. Your time is mostly spent in emails, instant messaging apps, and social media. Don’t. Be a person. Live life.

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Opinions

Let’s have less of them. Fewer, but better in quality. Q: What is a quality opinion? A: One that has been thought through, and as close as possible to fact and far as possible from bias.

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Fast, reckless, slow, careful

Move fast, move recklessly. Move careful, move slow. Can you move fast and careful (with precision)? Many cannot. Yes, you can. Also know, how you move will communicate. Sometimes the truth, sometimes fiction. Move fast and with precision. Let it be magical, and fiction.

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I don’t need permission

To be the best leader I can be. Neither do you. I used to think I needed permission to be my best. I’m reminded of the following: Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness That most…

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Everybody has a story

Everybody has a magical fantastic story. Everybody. No exception. For some, it’s a sad story. For others, a story of triumph. Regardless of theme, everyone has an unbelievable interesting story worth hearing. Organizations are no different. They have a beginning, a middle, an end. And even a resurrection. We fall in love with these stories….

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Imitation

Imitate Why do what someone else is doing or being, when we are all One, anyway. You are him and he is you. Now be you, uniquely You. Open yourself to the UniVerse. Let it move you freely, ungrudgingly. MESSAGE TO J_____: A message to myself. Perhaps relevant in your life when you admire others…

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Only one

There is one mission. No other missions. Raise I+C high enough to reach Escape Velocity. There is one war. Fight against those that intentionally or unintentionally decrease I+C. There is one war. All other conflicts are battles. Some matter. Most do not. Winning can be measured. Individuals. Families. Communities. The world. Strategies not accounting for…

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The 15 second workout

Ridiculous, but effective! Let’s create an infomercial-style call-to-arms for those who don’t work out. What are we selling? The 15-second Workout! Super easy to do! Only takes 15 seconds! We dare you to NOT do more!

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Interacting with people comes with a risk, another song maybe?

Every time you speak to another person, you are at risk. Risk of what? Oh so many things. Risk of talking too much talking too little interpreting incorrectly interpreting correctly, and wishing you didn’t acting like a fool saying things you regret miscommunicating creating a new frienemy creating a new enemy sowing doubt, anger, hostility…

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The case for organizational health

Homo Dues page 132 …lacks flexibility. Bees cooperate in very sophisticated ways, but they cannot reinvent their social system overnight. If a hive faces a new threat or a new opportunity, the bees cannot, for example, guillotine the queen and establish a republic. Social mammals such as elephants and chimpanzees cooperate far more flexible than…

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The Courage To Be Disliked, a song

I’d like to create a song. Sorta like a children’s sing-along song. One on the importance of not giving a fuck, and being okay to be disliked. Something fun, cheeky, but also critical. Cast of people the song can refer to include Jesus, Galileo, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. Perhaps even a few non-people like…

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Men, and the West

The West is pushing hard for men to be more feminine. Cool. But other countries (our enemies) that look to devour us, are not feminine. They are not fair, equitable, beautiful, and complicated. They are masculine. Fierce. Dominating. Looking to devour its prey. Let’s not forget. For centuries, men were the protectors of women and…

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Trading, for what?

We’re always trading. Trading time, friends, experience, and so on. But for what? How often are our trades making us richer? Not often. North American culture of consumerism, individualism, and atheism is what is being sold. Sold to us in trade for what? In trade for minimalism, essentialism, and wealth? Individualism at the exchange of…

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The Cult Elephant in the Room

Are we becoming cult-like? Yes and no. We must be careful. We must be inclusive of different people and ideas, while maintaining and adhering to our core values. We must know the difference between cult and not. Cults require blind Faith. Healthy organizations consist of curious people who question and engage in healthy conflict. From…

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Great power

Uncle Ben said, “Peter, with great power comes great responsibility.” True. But you know is truer? With great responsibilities, come great power. Choose to take on more. Choose to be responsible for more. Choose to be a leader, a motivator, a champion of goodness. The greater your responsibilities, the more power the universe will give…

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Be okay with getting shed, and shedding friends

We will grow apart. This is a non-negotiable reality. If you’re working hard, studying, learning, and growing – there’s a very high likelihood that you have friends that are not keeping up with you. This is normal, especially when you’re young. Or perhaps, you have a friend or two that’s really pushing themselves, and you…

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To say we want diversity is a half truth

We want diversity only if it is profitable. Profitable being defined as something that is good for us. What use is diversity if it negatively impacts ones culture, one’s organism? We call that a virus, which can lead to an eventual mutation of the organism. Diverse thoughts and thoughts that lead to a degradation of…

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Conquer her dragon

On the subject of woman: I conquered. What does that mean? Did I conquer her? No. Her dragon. Did I save her? No. I joined the party and saved her some time. Princesses become Queens that can conquer their own dragons. Sure. Just like a Lady can open her own door. A Gentleman takes pride…

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The loving wife – A story from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

The loving wife – A story from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

From the book: Hagakure – The Book of the Samurai Written by Yamamoto Tsunetomo (1659-1719), translated by William Scott Wilson Shambhala Publishing Inc 1979, 2002 Hagakure was a great read. A time machine back to an era of Japan where honour and dignity meant life and death, and cutting heads and committing suicide was somewhat…

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Regarding Lannie and Marriage

Regarding Lannie and Marriage

The first person that’s gonna scold me after reading this is most likely my wife Lan. She’s advised me time after time, not boast, especially about my marriage. And you know, she’s right. For the most part, I’ve stopped. That said, this is my first time writing about my marriage. Sorry. Point being – this…

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Admitting to my complacency

Admitting to my complacency

True or false: we resemble tiny insects with roles and hierarchies, fate is almost certain, with little to no actual ability to maneuver our positions and change our directions in life, let alone do grand things that we’ll be remembered and be immortalized for. Those who have are celebrated, and become celebrities, and for good…

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You are being attacked

You are being attacked

There is an attack on us. Don’t be fooled. It’s everywhere, and at the same time, nowhere. It’s prevalent in our lives, quietly hidden under our beds, in our knapsacks, and in the shows we watch and the sites we visit. The attack is on your brain. Their weapon: Distraction. The booty, the bounty, the…

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When should I get a mentor?

When should I get a mentor?

Part 01: When? Now. – End of Part 02: Why? What? Where? Who? Why should you get a mentor now? Simply, because a mentor will drastically increase the speed of your development and growth. You shouldn’t wait until you have a crisis before you seek out mentorship. Your crisis will most likely kill you before…

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Prioritizing your dreams

Prioritizing your dreams

In our youth, we are filled with dreams and aspirations. As we age, dreams we once held sacred and critical to our identity slowly begin to dematerialize. There are many reasons for this, none that really matter. What matters is, that as the possibilities of obtaining our dreams begin to fade, so do our childhood…

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It’s your responsibility to grow

It’s your responsibility to grow

It’s a privilege that your employer creates time in your workweek for you to study and learn new things. However, don’t get this confused with the responsibility you have for your own growth and prosperity. For far too many, this new-age-hippie tech industry has created this false idea that it’s the employer’s responsibility for you…

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Doing the uncomfortable

Doing the uncomfortable

Change is the only constant I love the uncomfortableness of change. It’s such a beautiful feeling. I fucking love diving into a cold lake knowing very well the ice-hell that awaits. I love public speaking knowing I’m about to lose my shit right before going up – and possibly throughout. I love being amongst those…

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What The Matrix got wrong about our future

What The Matrix got wrong about our future

What is reality? The question what is reality has been studied and discussed for millennia. Despite of our attempts to understand reality through meditation, prayer, philosophy or science, there is still no clear answer. One thing’s for sure: We’re living in a Matrix of sorts. We take in over 400 billion bits of information per…

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Rituals that make my day awesome

Rituals that make my day awesome

“Rituals are a form of structure that makes life flow more easily. They’re mindless — you do them without thinking. Perhaps most important of all, they orient you as to where you are and what you should be doing.” – W. Doyle Gentry, Happiness For Dummies[01] I choose to have an intense life My life…

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We are all crazy. Let’s deal with it.

We are all crazy. Let’s deal with it.

We’re not crazy. We’re batshit crazy. There’s no doubt about it. The best among us know it and have quietly acknowledged their craziness, while the rest live in denial. Personally, I’ve acknowledged this – and that there’s a finite time before my craziness gets out of hand. Broken brains How fucked up would it be…

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I’ve fallen back in love again

I’ve fallen back in love again

Young love At the beginning, there was a lustful obsession; an intense infatuation. A desire to impress and a willingness to be impressed upon. The relationship was new, and like all new relationships, I was blindly optimistic, romantically hopeful, and expected nothing but eternal bliss – forever. Like all relationships – the honeymoon stage ended…

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Paint your project: Avoid the black-hole

Paint your project: Avoid the black-hole

Problem: Creative’s Black Hole Often times Creatives (artists, designers, writers, speakers, and entrepreneurs) get stuck in what I’d like to call The Creative’s Black Hole. Similar to a blackhole, the Creative’s attention and focus is trapped in one small area of a project. So much that the rest of the project’s completion is threatened. I’ve…

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