A few months ago I decided to go on a diet. It was not a change in my eating habits but a change in my mental consumption. I had caught myself over the course of the pandemic reading more and more news articles, scrolling through endless youtube videos, and occasionally losing myself in social media–often when it was time instead Read More …
The biggest barrier to getting great work done is trying to do great work. Prolific writer and blogger Seth Godin shares that for every blog post he publishes he writes at least three, and this man publishes one post a day. The lesson is that producers of great work don’t have a higher ratio of quality output, they just have Read More …
If you can kick butt, does that make you a martial artist? Not necessarily. The word “art” is etymologically related to the word “artisan”. To the renaissance man, something was an art because it is based on well-ordered principles. A sound art is able to efficiently and effectively achieve a desirable end through a seamless alignment with nature, as the Read More …
“The only thing that happens before you begin, is not beginning.” This is a beautiful quote from Kevin Ashton, author of How to Fly a Horse: The Secret History of Creation, Invention, and Discovery. He goes onto say that ideas are not what matter but our execution on those ideas. A thought that is echoed by many of the world’s Read More …
It’s me. This may seem a bit conceited, narcissistic, or narrow: When I write, I write for me. When I teach, I teach for me. I started a sword fighting school because I was passionate about swordplay. I began this blog because I wanted to challenge myself to write and share myself. I dance because I love creating dynamic art. Read More …
I came across an idea the other day when browsing a book called The Happiness of Pursuit by Chris Guillebeau (a very interesting guy to look into, he’s travelled to every country in the world before age 35). Chris is a big advocate for finding purpose and throwing yourself into the pursuit of it. He feels that the ability to Read More …
“A mind is a terrible thing, so waste it.” Brad Blanton, Radical Honesty. Between my being and the world is a filter. It’s my mind. Through its machinations I create a persona that allows me to appear as consistent as possible. I form a view of myself and a view that I want others to see and spend my precious Read More …
Anger has never been a very strong part of my emotional repertoire. At least not my outward one. Not to say that I didn’t get angry I have just been exceptionally good at anger management. Yet I have practiced this to the point of often feeling I have very little access to my anger. I have often found myself envious Read More …
“Be realistic”, “Don’t set yourself up for disappointment”, “Grow up and get a real job”. There will always be doubters when you set yourself on the road less travelled. If you succeed in stepping out of the ‘realistic’ route then you’ll cast a light on the limitations of others. This light can be painful. So the small try to keep Read More …
Do I agree with everything I write? No. Some things I agreed with as I wrote them. For some my thoughts and feelings on the topic changed weeks later and some as soon as they were done. Many I still agree with now and some I never agreed with. Writing is art. It has the power to not only express Read More …