“I don't think about art when I'm working. I think about life." — Jean-Michel Basquiat — Hello and my very best to you and yours. For obvious reasons, today's message will be pretty lightweight. But I wanted to wish you a happy holiday and share a few things I've been thinking about as we wrap up this year and enter a new one (3-minute read). *** on chasing your curiosityThe year was 2001. The place was Las Vegas, Nevada. Brandon Flowers, the lead singer of a newly formed band called The...
10 days ago • 4 min read
“We all see the world differently. And thank God for that. Otherwise, what a boring world this would be" — Philip Johnson — Hello and my very best to you and yours. Thank you for all the love last week for my new project — Writing to (L)Earn — alongside my friends Darius Foroux and John Pucay. If you're interested in improving your storytelling skills, I'm hosting our first workshop tomorrow (Friday) at 10 AM EST on how to craft engaging hooks for your personal stories. It's free to join and...
21 days ago • 5 min read
“The most important thing in the world is family and love." — John Wooden — Hello and my best to you and yours. As an American living in Spain, Thanksgiving is the holiday I miss the most. Turkey legs. Mashed potatoes. Pumpkin pie. My family. Football. Maybe not in that order. If you’re stateside, I hope you have a great day. If you’re outside the US, I hope you have a great day too. And a massive THANK YOU for all the love this past year on this newsletter and my book. I got news yesterday...
about 1 month ago • 4 min read
“All there is to thinking is seeing something noticeable, which makes you see something you weren't noticing, which makes you see something that isn't even visible." — Leo Strauss — Hello and my best to you and yours. Here are three things I've been thinking about lately that I'm excited to share with you. (4-minute read) *** on embracing boredomYou may have seen some video clips or posts about 'raw-dogging' — where guys get on a flight and do nothing but just be. No movies. No food. No...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
"If you’re trying to please everyone, then you’re not going to make anything that is honestly yours, I don’t think, in the long run." — Viggo Mortensen — Hello and my best to you and yours. I hope you all had a great Halloween. Here are three things I've been thinking about lately that I'm excited to share with you. (4-minute read) *** on not changingMy oldest son’s buddies banded together to get him a ukulele for his birthday earlier this week. The instrument made me immediately think of...
2 months ago • 4 min read
“Let everything happen to you. Beauty and terror. Just keep going. No feeling is final." — Rainer Maria Rilke — Hello and my best to you and yours. I was thrilled that Porchlight (a global leader in moving books in bulk) just featured an excerpt from Shy by Design. It’s a glimpse into my teaching style for how I help my students pursuing their masters to own their story, step into their voice, and realize they’re cool just as they are. If you're interested in checking it out, here’s a link....
3 months ago • 4 min read
“Sometimes you have to be a lion so you can be the lamb you really are” — African Proverb (courtesy of Dave Chappelle's mom) — Hello and my best to you and yours. Here are three things I’ve been thinking about lately that I’m excited to share with you (4-minute read). *** on risking it allDespite Kris Kristofferson living a life of lives, I was gutted when I learned of his passing on Sunday. Just a few weeks ago, I shared a story of how the legendary singer, songwriter, and actor helped...
3 months ago • 4 min read
“Stay with me. Let's just breathe.” — Eddie Vedder — Hello and my best to you and yours. I’m thrilled to announce that the hardcover of my book is officially live worldwide. If you’re not a fan of pre-orders and having to wait to get your copy, you can place your order here and you’ll have it in a few days. It’s been very cool to already receive feedback like this from Bangz Haung in Singapore as well as messages from readers in Ireland, Austria, and Australia about how excited they are to...
3 months ago • 6 min read
“My future starts when I wake up every morning.” — Miles Davis — Hello and my best to you and yours. Here are three things I've been thinking about the last few days that I'm excited to share with you. (4-minute read) *** on changeI once heard that the internet is nothing but people at different life stages yelling at each other about how to live their lives. I think there's a lot of truth to that. At the moment, there are a bunch of online writers bashing things like taking cold showers and...
4 months ago • 4 min read
“Listen to the child.” — Someone smart — Hello and my best to you and yours. I just got back home from a much-needed but very hot and sticky road trip with my family around Northern Italy. On the way back my wife asked our two kids what town they liked the most. Their answer? Turin. The reason? Because there's a park full of friendly squirrels that let you pet and feed them. Hard not to admire kids' ability to appreciate the simple things in life. Here are three things that I've been thinking...
4 months ago • 5 min read