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One wishes to be better each year as the clock strikes twelve.  Happenings of 365 days are suddenly all spoken in past tense.  That’s a big chunk of time.  When it’s over, you positively try to create a new sense of self.  It never fails.

The challenges of 2017 were unprecedented, but in the end change is a welcome concept.  Taking risks is a theme that echos after the time starts ticking into the new year.  It’s a part of human nature people struggle with because it’s fundamentally unnatural.  Biologically, people (and most animals) are conditioned to prefer safety and the known elements over that which causes instability.  The irony is inherent in the very evolution of humanity however, because nothing worthwhile or life-changing ever took place without immense struggle.

The new year will be a time where I open my eyes and start to live in my own skin, be my own boss, and walk to the beat of my skills that have been harbored within office walls for too long.  The truth is that it doesn’t matter where people go to school, or what they do for a living.  The truly important aspect of existence is to live out the passions that exist within you, and impart those streaks of knowledge throughout the world as best as possible.  The mistake many make (myself included) is to stay within the comfort cocoon of financial stability and equanimity.  The past four years have been exceedingly comfortable, almost as if I’ve lived out a part of my retirement already.  It was work that I did purely for the paycheck.  No passion, no drive, just sheer will power and determination to continue on with as much integrity as possible to get the job done.

That job ended in May of 2017, and although I saw it coming it still came as a surprise.  The economic climate reflected the hesitant consumer behavior that ended up derailing several sectors of the market.  Thankfully, this past holiday season has been much more successful, and for all business involved, congratulations. Truly.

In June, I started this blog.

Looking back, I’m not sure whether it was complacency or just the learned behavior to do what isn’t fun in order to eventually get to what is. Then one day you wake up and realize you’re never going to get there, because if you’re as ambitious and dream-spirited like most millenials, nothing is ever good enough.  No good deed goes unpunished.

I sold luxury clothing to the rich who live in or visited Beverly Hills.  Rodeo drive to be exact.  Fine Italian clothing that wasn’t necessary for any human being, just a luxury.   Pure and simple.  If the store hadn’t closed, I’d still be selling those fabrics at 4% commission on top of my salary.  The company treated me quite nicely, great benefits, great boss.  The only thing was my creative soul died a bit over those four years, and I was in Beverly Hills.  Tragic isn’t it?  One of the richest places in the U.S.  Just on an automatic journey, I was. (The latest Star Wars was a great movie, I don’t care what anybody says).  Well it’s time to push “off” on that automatic button, and switch to manual. Alas, light! We’ve got a chance. (10 points if you caught that).

The man with highly developed musical, analytical and motor skills was selling clothes.  Had this been my passion, I wouldn’t have minded, and I’d still be doing it elsewhere.  But it wasn’t, it isn’t. It was just a means to an end while I continued to throw my hat in the ring in Hollywood.  It was a job that fell in my lap.  What a dangerous concept.

Well, my hat never stuck. It just kept getting thrown around…but this is hardly a world problem to truly complain about so let us move on from my tainted ego shall we?

I’ve come to realize people don’t take the time to dig deep, and dive into the murky, slimy waters that peel away all their layers of pride to reveal their true purpose.  The Harry Potter character Dumbledore (Headmaster to Hogwart’s School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for those who aren’t aware) sat Harry down and told him, “When given the choice to do what’s right versus what’s easy, you must always choose what’s right.”

Shame on me.  I chose easy.  Time to change that.

What is work anyways?  In the physical sense it moves particles, objects and creates force and momentum.  In the economic sense, it creates a stream of financial stability for us humans to eat, drink, and be merry.  If you think about it, the physical sense and the economic sense aren’t that different.  The only difference lies in the precarious, insidious crevices of our mind.  Overthinking is dangerous, something of which I’m culpable.  Aside from intergovernmental covert operations or the operating room, when given a chance to do the scary thing, JUST DO IT.  The most popular sports brand of all uses that phrase to sell millions of product.  It has to stand for something.

What it stands for is champions. People who embrace their gift and have the tenacity to go full force with it until they reach the very top of their craft.  Their craft.  One can’t do everything, no matter how much of a Renaissance man one wants to be.  Unwavering focus, and the perspicacity to keep getting back up to push on within one’s lane.  That’s a champion, and in my opinion Nike chooses wisely who they endorse.

So 2018, the dream is still there.  The spark is still reflecting in my gaze.  The only difference is this year will hopefully mark when I finally become a grown man; somebody who thinks on behalf of others and makes connections to improve the world for the better, regardless of income.  Money is a necessary evil.  But this year I will truly earn it.  Believe me, it’s not going to be easy.  Working for the cause of health and mobility in the fitness field is as cliche as it gets in Hollywood.  I get it, I do.  I almost went into medicine, and I think through a health lens so why not combine my thoughts with a potential career.  Besides, no two stones are the same, and people do have hobbies, side gigs, community activities.  [Cue overly dramatic, perhaps corny statement now]. I hope to be the stone that makes a bigger dent in the ground when dropped this year.

There.  I bet you’ve never read that before.

So cheers.

Cheers to making your dent in the world.  There are so many amazing people, and I am awestruck at times with the inspiration I get from them.  For example, I heard an invigorating speech this year where the speaker said, “Don’t look to the past.  There are rarely any helpful ideas stemming from there.  Keep looking to the future.  Stay moving fast, stay moving forward and stay on track.”  Part of staying on track is removing any distraction that may interfere, forming time-sensitive habits and filling time with work that means something to your heart.  If everybody worked from their heart, not just their minds, think of the amount of difference they can make in the world.  It’s stronger, more powerful and has the potential to move ideas into reality.

Rousseau, Aristotle, Descartes, Hippocrates, Kant, and even the U.S.’s own Thomas Jefferson. They all purported that the human body be respected, as it’s the only mode towards work.  This is all around us in advertisement, but whenever I see pain, and frailty among my fellow man (I’m being antiquated on purpose), either in the airport, or some other public space, I think wow, that really can be prevented.  Not always, but most of the time.  What you do to your body affects your whole self, now and into the future. As somebody who loves philosophy, the human body, and who did all kinds of sports, it’s a no-brainer. The shoe fits.

I looked in the mirror this morning and saw somebody who settled for comfort in not just 2017, but the prior 2 years as well.  Sure there were moments of risk, and tenacity…but nothing like what’s about the come.  I recognized my error, and I made a plan to change.  2018 will undoubtedly be a very challenging year for me.  But for the last four years, that’s all I ever wanted.  A challenge.  Have you ever seen the cartoon “Emperor’s New Groove?”  You know when David Spade’s character Kuzco drifts over the waterfall while helplessly bound to a log with his quirky servant Kronk?  He looks at the audience and mutters, “Sharp rocks at the bottom? Bring it on.”

That’s precisely how I feel, and I hope you understand my honesty within this blog. It’s a reflection of my thoughts, which have been known to flow through an artful filter with a hint of pragmatism.  It’s me. My channel, and I am starting to believe that channeling ones thoughts is extremely productive, be it on a blog, YouTube or both.  Learn, think, teach, inspire, repeat.  That’s the goal.

So Bring it on 2018. Tackle me, slam me against the wall. I’ve been waiting for you. I will write more, work more in what I’m passionate about, and in the small ways I know how, teach what I’ve learned to those who cross my path; as much as humanly possible.

You bring it on too, whoever’s reading.  Dig deeper, go crazy.

I serendipitously saw the last Space X rocket launch the other day, and that visual exemplifies this motivation quite well.  Do what needs to be done, and make it happen.  Thank you for reading.  I’m aware of my corny motivational verve.  But it works for me.  Do what works for you. Ciao

Happy New Year,

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