"We are not donkeys, meant to be weighed down by burden. We are eagles, meant to fly." - Reggie Ray

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​I'm about to board a flight to our fifth annual summer retreat; my favorite week of the year.
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I've been light on emails over the past month, as I've been preparing a mountain of new content for it (and an insane new AI tool, TBD).
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But we'll be back to business as usual once I'm home, rested, and up and running again in early September.
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In the meantime, let's take another cruise through a few of the most popular posts that have dropped inside The Path recently.
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(I recommend trying #3 asap)
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Let's begin.
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1. What differentiates you is the time you spend not under the influence of other minds. ​
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I think this is one of the most important and urgent ideas of the moment: ​
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The time you spend with your own mind — not under the influence of an AI mind or a podcast or social media — is the only time original, differentiated ideas and thoughts can occur.
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This is an idea I've heard from a few places now, most notably Cal Newport.
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IMO it's never been so important as it is now that A.I. is doing a huge amount of our thinking for us.
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Bot-thinking is already an epidemic and is about to spread through the world like a disease.
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The antidote is time alone, in solitude, thinking for yourself.
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And more of it than you think.
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2. Never Attempt To Reason With "Crazy" People​
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Crazy = anything from:
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1. Temporarily triggered — try again later once they're calm.
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2. Chronically deluded — ie. traumatized and/or underdeveloped — in which case, don't try at all.
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You will not get through to them. They will not see it your way.
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There is no magical combination of words you can say that will lead them to finally seeing the truth, because the part of them that is capable of seeing the truth is offline.
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And so anything you say will be distorted and manipulated into a shape that fits their paradigm, making an even bigger mess than if you'd said nothing at all.
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There is no winning these interactions, except for avoiding them entirely.
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Sounds harsh, but even harsher is learning the lesson in real time, the hard way.
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I recommend the easy way.
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3. The Fully-Actualized Self Contemplation​
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This is one of the most powerful, to-the-point contemplation exercises I've come across:
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Write, in detail, about the highest version of yourself that you can imagine. Focus on how that person thinks, feels, and behaves on a daily basis.
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​What do they do?
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What goals do they pursue?
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How do they carry themselves around others?
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What thoughts do they think about themselves and the world?
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How does it feel to be that person?​
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Write in detail until you can feel that person within you viscerally.
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Then list all the ways in which you behave opposite to that individual's behaviours:
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​The thoughts that you think
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The feelings that you feel
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The actions you take
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The ways you carry yourself​
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…Everything misaligned with the version of yourself you want to become. Write them out in clear detail.
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Then, understand:
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​As soon as you begin behaving like the highest version of yourself, you are. ​
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That's all it takes.
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And every time you find yourself falling back into the opposite pattern, you can welcome it wholeheartedly as an opportunity to burn away and transcend everything holding you back from becoming the full force of who you really are.
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4. You Can't Think Your Way Out Of A Thinking Problem​
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Most of our problems are simply a result of our attention being locked onto our thoughts.
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Notice how as soon as you take awareness off of the contracted thinking pattern, everything loosens up and starts to self-correct.
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You can't think your way out of a thinking problem.
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When you're stuck in a cell, the solution isn't to give it nicer decorations — it's to get up and leave.
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5. Emotions & Business​
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Question from a Path member:
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​"Anyone else hit a point where the wins stop landing emotionally, even when the numbers are objectively great? How do you deal with that without it messing with your drive?"​
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My response:
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On the emotional stuff: meh.
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Our business isn't meant to satisfy our emotions, it's meant to make money and provide a service for our customers.
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Emotional highs and lows are mostly just distraction.
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I don't know any experienced, high level entrepreneurs who are also highly excitable about superficial metrics like revenue.
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BONUS: Remember To Consider What Happens If You Succeed​
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If you're worried it won't work, the business will fail, she'll reject you, you'll never heal, and the worst will come true…
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​…Remember to also consider what happens if you succeed. ​
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​Bang.​
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If you'd like to join us inside The Path, reply to let me know.
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Maybe we'll open it back up sometime after our retreat, as we get ready to release this year's recordings to our members.
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​(If you're new here, The Path is where we hold our vault of masterclasses & programs, and offer personal coaching to up and coming founders. Not currently open to the public.) ​
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Either way, have an amazing one over there.
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I'll see you on the other side.
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- T
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