Break Up With Your Life

healthy

Habits Over Goals

I feel like I’ve stumbled upon a life hack that probably doesn’t actually qualify as a life hack so much as a synthesization of a concept from James Clear’s Atomic Habits i.e. Goals are bogus.

happy

Embracing the Uncertainty

That feeling when everything goes according to plan might be one of my favorite feelings ever. Unfortunately, it rarely happens. Is this the nature of getting older and life becoming more complex? Or is the world we live in becoming more chaotic?

happy

Your Truth Will Set You Free

I’ve only ever had one mantra in my life that seemingly appeared from nowhere and that was “Speak your truth.” This phrase has become one of my North Stars this year for reasons I can't adequately explain. Maybe it's because I’ve lived most of my life not feeling like I could fully tell my truth.

happy

The Calm Before the Joy

I have this recurring nightmare (or possibly daymare.) I’m standing on a mountain looking at the beautiful landscape below. And all I can think of are the emails piling up in my inbox or an interaction with a client that didn’t go perfectly. We all know the feeling, right?

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How to Quit (or take a break)

One might argue that it’s harder to quit than it is to start. Quitting is deciding to stop doing something that was initially worth your time and energy - that you were probably pretty excited about at one time. And then something changed.

healthy

Feel Your Feels

I recently read that our vices are triggered by wanting to feel different from our current state. I find this revelation fascinating, albeit a little scary. We've effectively taught ourselves how to avoid negative feelings by using nonconscious habitual behaviors.

resolutions

How to Start

It's almost a revolutionary act in this frenetic paced life to start something slow with thoughtfulness and presence of mind, but I assure you that when you approach tasks in this manner, you'll find you enjoy them more.

healthy

Exercise for Longevity Part 2

What is your "why"? What do you want to be doing physically now and into your old age? Peter Attia, author of Outlive says the answer to this question should direct your exercise routine. Let's discuss the three other exercises he recommends that weren't covered in Part 1.

healthy

The Most Powerful Longevity Drug

When I discovered that Peter Attia had been working on a book for several years, I knew it would be jam-packed with useful information for living a healthier life. I didn't know how strong a claim Dr. Attia would make regarding how exercise can improve your life.

deciding Featured

Climb Your Everest

Countless hours have been spent debating what makes the ideal job i.e. is it whatever makes you the most happy or is it the one that can make you the most money? What about a job that fulfills you the most but pays you the least?

happy

Solving for Happiness

In my late 20s, I moved to Houston to take a new job with a fat pay raise. Little did I know that I would quite literally hate it there.

happy

Presence is a Gift

What I didn't realize is how much of a gift it is to experience being fully present. I've also since realized this helped me come closer to living a life that's true to who I am, and not what others want of me - because I was able to tune in to myself.

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What I Learned From Not Working

I've learned a lot during this time off, mostly as a result of finally having time - time to do whatever I wanted, time to pursue my interests, time to just sit with my thoughts, and enough time to be bored (a glorious feeling!) These are my favorite lessons learned from my time spent not working.

resolutions

Life is the Obstacles

The answer to "What can I accomplish in one year?" or "What do I want to accomplish this year?" can change so quickly. In January, you might feel like there are a million things you can and want to do, but by February you may be tempted to delete 90% of your goals or just give up altogether.

happy

Happy (Self-) Love Day

I've been reflecting on where I was a year ago: packing up my belongings from the house I had lived in with my ex during the prior year. I had just ended our 2 1/2-year relationship, and he wanted me out of his house ASAP. Snowstorm (or lack of housing) be damned.

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On The Other Side - Part 2

This is a continuation of last week's post, which discussed quitting my engineering career in July 2021 and what it felt like making several big life changes at once.

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On The Other Side - Part 1

I thought alot about what it would feel like after I quit my job. I fantasized about the first morning I could wake up and not have work looming over me. Unfortunately after I turned in my work laptop, there was no instantaneous feeling of elation like I had fantasized about

resolutions

Are You Having Fun?

Okay I need to talk to you about something serious. I need to talk to you about having fun. Yes, that's right. That thing we used to do but for whatever reason stopped. Blame it on the advent of social media in 2004, the pandemic, workplaces becoming less friendly . . .

resolutions

January is a Try-Out

I half-jokingly refer to January as a try-out month for a good reason: this is the time to try on your resolutions, see how they fit and adjust accordingly. It's also the time where you set yourself up to achieve your goals

resolutions

Happy 2024!

These resolutions/goals/mantras that you create this month should act as your North Star to guide you to become the person you want to become. They'll help you identify one-time actions to take, new habits to create, what joy-less activities or people to avoid . . .

resolutions

A Past Year Review

When creating resolutions, I've discussed at length how I envision my future self when determining who I want to be. However if you're generally satisfied with your life, it may be hard to envision yourself one year from now that's much different than your current self.

deciding

The Power of Short Term Thinking

Thinking you have one year left forces you to hone in on what's really important, forget the silly stuff, and go after things now instead of later. For me, this meant quitting my job, something I'd been fantasizing about for years, and living on the road.

resolutions

Identity-Based Habits for Quick Results

The single most effective way to create or break a habit is by tying the habit or action to your identity. Take the focus away from a specific goal or thing you want to achieve e.g. run a marathon, and instead focus on the type of person you wish to become e.g. a runner.

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Feeling Stuck? Do Something That Scares You.

In November 2020, I hit a wall. Or I was languishing. Or maybe I just didn't know what the point of it all was. Blame it on the pandemic, but I suddenly realized I didn't know why I was doing what I was doing, especially if it didn't make me happy.

resolutions

On Resolutions - What 2021 Taught Me

I achieved a lot of "firsts" in 2021: I completed my first trail race, finally attained my goal weight (something I've tried for 10+ years), quit my job with no new job lined up (a glorious feeling!). . . It was a big year with big accomplishments.