What if I told you this relentless pursuit of money, status, and possessions was actually preventing you from achieving true happiness?

But instead there was something else that had a significantly higher importance over obtaining your most desired life outcomes.

Let’s dive deeper:

Since childhood we have been conditioned directly/indirectly to believe everything we could ever want is found outside of ourselves.

[Insert every on going debate “money doesn’t buy happiness“ here]

This is considered completely normal as it has been shown countless times through advertisements, movies, tv shows, social media and the list goes on.

Want to be like James Bond?

Buy an Aston Martin so you can get the girl by appearing this cool.

Want to be like [insert your favorite athlete]?

Buy [the athlete’s endorsed product here] so you can look this good while playing.

There are many other influential dynamics at play here such as increased perceived status, brand values, market demand and more like:

Someone has a desirable product [that others want] causes you to want it as well via proof of concept i.e. apple’s iPhone is a perfect example of this domino effect.

You see.

Advertisements convey to the population’s subconscious mind:

“This too can be you if you buy this product/service”.

A complete transformation can be made simply by making a purchase.

It meets the ever so common instant gratification demand [stay comfortable, avoid pain, seek pleasure, experience change without effort].

Now consider the following:

• time it takes during the ‘im thinking about it’ pre-purchase phase

• this thrill while making the purchase

• post purchase ‘problem solved’ gratification

• imagining ‘what it would be like’ while waiting for it’s arrival

• experiencing the actual product/service

After a while the feelings wear off because the motivation has faded then you go back out there… seeking the next purchase high all over again.

A ‘bandage over a wound’ habit that continues to delay the responsibility of exploring your internal world to solve the wound at it’s very source.

I’m not advocating that capitalism is bad or incinerating anything relating to that. In fact: my believe the upsides heavily outweigh the downsides if the individual can be responsible.

These facts simply outlay the consumerism tendency society values today.

I simply want to paint a picture so you too can see the nuance conditioning that is happening right before your eyes without you realizing it.

Ultimately the morals and integrity of the entrepreneurs and marketers involved hold the responsibility to what is conveyed about their product/service.

Some tell the truth, some keep it vague [out of risk of losing the sale] followed by persuasive language and many to sell the magic pill to the masses as that is just how they think.

To each is own.

The point I’m making here is very simple:

We are conditioned to blindly believe happiness and fulfillment can only be obtained outside of yourself through material possessions and value others perception of you higher than oneself.

If you are not careful - you can and will - remain in this never ending cycle for the rest of your life.

Quite frankly, these so called “influencers” with inflated egos and limited life experience have become the role models to a very naive and impressionable generation then blindly accept the next narrative pushed forward.

Especially those that have just exited the “system” that told them what to do for the majority of their life.

The first time they have the opportunity to think for oneself, they accept the next narrative, without exploring the depths of discovering who they actually are.

A critical time that will change the trajectory of their life outcome as it has with mine.

The effects are accelerated even more when algorithms intention is to sell advertising space to the companies that are willing to pay the most.

Now multiple that by how addictive social media has become to a user base that lacks self-control…

Hopefully, after reading this entry, it will help you snap out of this haze I see many are in so you too can start seeing the Way as well.

By acknowledging the bigger picture of life [it has given me and my inner circles such an incredible life experience] that far exceeded our imaginative expectations from years ago.

For me, it is not necessary possessing these experience [that provided this phenomenal sensation of being alive] as the past is the past.

Instead it is more aligned to a simple existence that lead to those gained unique life experiences.

The desired life outcomes came as a byproduct of the Way.

This extremely abstract sensation has been heavily examined through - western philosophy, psychology and eastern philosophy - by some of the most brilliant minds in history.

After ten of thousands of hours studying philosophy [and continuously experimenting with these ideas in my own life and others] this is my most up to date interpretation…

DEFINE THE WAY

To the trained eye:

The Way is seen in all things of life.

No matter the contrast and differences of interests, culture, tradition, language and the list never ends.

The Way is timeless and infinite.

When you have embodied the Way into your Self and existence - your desirable results actualize - as a by product without proactive effort.

When I say without proactive effort what I mean is it comes naturally as a by product of who you are.

Yes, there is “effort” but not what you perceive as effort now [expanding time and energy]

Effort is different after you’ve embodied the profound wisdom that comes from the Way.

Effort becomes a passage of time - simply existing.

Like the billions plugged into consumerism - those who do not see the Way’s existence - will not acknowledge the value to be gained… even if it is working in their favor without conscious awareness.

Instead they give it all up to enter a never ending chase at the expense of their own demise.

Unfortunately many end up facing this truth when their time has almost run out.

You see.

Maybe these people appear to be happy on the service [especially in today’s vanity metrics of what success looks like] but deep down inside they are nothing but an empty void desperately seeking the next thing to hopefully experience fulfillment.

Not the type of fulfillment of achieving a desired outcome which is nice for a select period of time before it fleets once again.

Instead I am referring specifically to the actual meaningful type of fulfillment [where you feel a deep sense of happiness] as a result of fully developing your abilities, character and potential.

This never ending chase seeking happiness outside the inner world is evidently shown time and time again when individuals sacrifice everything at the expense of chasing after the next possession and goal.

Happiness is delayed and can only be experienced after having the object of desire found outside oneself.

When examined closely… this looks like the dog trying to bite it’s own tail [which is completely out of reach] yet barks out of frustration trying to achieve the unobtainable as it continues to waste more time.

There comes a crossroad:

Continue down the never ending consumerism cycle like everybody else playing a game set up for them to fail or…

Own up to responsibility by exploring existentialism and meaning of life to arrive on the infinite path that provides serenity and contentment.

Something that cannot be bought - even if you had all the money in the world.

When in doubt always take the road less traveled.

DISCOVER THE WAY

To understand such an abstract concept:

You must analyze your identity and past experiences to arrive closer to your self-concept.

Who are you?
What are your values?
Why do you live this way?

What is the underlining reason behind your Way of life?

No matter what story you think to your self and tell others - it is your objective actions that reveal your actual self-concept.

Only a tiny percentage of the population today are actually self-aware enough to notice the misalignments of their thoughts, words and actions… while the vast majority are completely oblivious.

The past holds tangible collected life experiences which become the originating source of your recurring thoughts and ideas based on a tangible belief systems that you identify with.

Here’s a secret:

No matter what the objective facts of the past, you are currently holding onto outdated subjective interpretations stored as memories that nobody but you allow to single handled hold yourself back.

If you do not make the commitment to understand your past, it will dictate your daily actions which directly determine your future life outcomes.

Many parts of the past bring significant meaning to our very existence due to the interpretations that we have given to it that dictates our daily actions… and the actions only reenforce this identity even deeper.

Often times we still view the past through a naive child like perspective.

And how much have you grown since then again?

Yet you seriously continue going about life [without ever really taking a second look back] after years and decades have passed?

Look.

Exactly like the alignment of your thoughts, words and action - the unexamined self-concept continues to seek evidence to further reenforce the self proclaimed identity you possess now.

Creating self limiting beliefs that hold you back from reaching your highest potential while capping your stagnate life experience to what it is now.

Bare in mind: human beings will hold onto their belief systems as if it were a life and death situation

Proof?

People are rarely able to entertain the mere idea of opposing view point without the ability to temporarily remove their own thoughts and beliefs.

Go look at any disagreement that leads to an emotional argument…

During the self examination you must identify the Way.

What actions are you doing right now that resulted in your current undesirable outcome?

These set of actions are the Way of your current existence.

Maybe not a Way that is leading you to your most desirable life experience… and now you will see the reason why.

The Way is Way… regardless if it is good or bad.

Important: it is possible to be completely unaware of the Way’s presence - when you mindfully walk the path, you will notice it’s presence - learn and understand it’s timeless wisdom.

The Way - also known as Being [or Behavior influenced by habits] - are ongoing set of actions you consciously/unconsciously follow religiously which got you to where you are today.

Identity like clay is moldable… only through conscious control x obtained knowledge x self-discipline will you reach unconscious competence that reshapes your new identity as it directly effects your subjective experience of objective reality.

Identity, actions, thoughts, the Self, Being have become elements that feed off of each other in your Way ecosystem.

Listen.

It is through discovering the Way that you can have a fighting chance of creating different realities and life experiences.

Remaining oblivious, by not attempting to progressive move your life forward, you become a leaf in the wind that is at the mercy of environments [does not have your best interests in mind] while allowing short-term self-sabotaging emotions dictate your life experience.

Can you see the madness that ensues?

Modern society reflects this nature, but it is to be expected with such unexamined tendencies which require years of work to make a difference and quite frankly how can you expect change when instant gratification is the norm.

KNOW THE WAY

Comprehend the Way by understanding your past collected life experiences that grounds abstraction into something tangible.

Make your unconscious behavior [has been dictating the direction of your life] conscious as it ultimately got you here today.

Instead of becoming a victim of your circumstances, control your mind and set intentions.

Consciously invest your time to focus on:

aligning your actions to the Ideal
creating novel life experiences you desire
hand selecting individuals you want to share life with
transforming your entire identity because you have free will

If you haven’t already noticed:

There is an unlimited supply of content freely available to help you determine what you want life to be [and more than enough information on the how to get there].

What determines you actually achieving your most desired life experiences?

Your ability to execute on the information consistently [which is based on your level of self-discipline] combined with the factors that are outside your control which you leverage into your benefit via mental jiu-jitsu.

Your life experience is capped only to your level of imaginative creativity and the speed of the exponential growth of today’s innovation that determines what possible is.

After determining the what and how, the only question that remains is when.

Instead of associating the future with anxiety and concerns - you feel the excitement and thrill as you highly anticipate the inevitable future that will be flooded with experiences you’ve always dreamt of having.

Remember: success always leaves clues - the one and only way success is not obtained? The very moment you give up.

In my early 20s - I collected a life experience that massively influenced my life trajectory.

It’s one of the very reason why I have so much empathy for others stuck at certain paradigms because I understand exactly where they are coming from.

This revelation has allowed me to freely enter new paradigms that are beneficial to my life. If it were not for this experience I would have wasted years of my life and not be reaching my fullest potential.

Read carefully here.

Imagine being in a headspace where you cannot hear, see, feel, taste or smell anything…

Can you comprehend this?

Most likely not.

Because with the way modern culture has been designed we have all five sense constantly being stimulated.

Second after second
Minute after minute.
Hour after hour.
Day after day.
Week after week.
Year after year.
Decade after decade…

It never stops unless you can create an environment with the intentions of giving the five senses a complete break from the stimulation to channel that energy elsewhere.

Luckily we live in innovative times, you do not have to expend the time and energy to create such a complex invention, as someone else has already done that for you.

It is called a "Sensory Deprivation Tank”

This contraption has the temperature set to your core body’s temperature [both the room and water] so you do not feel anything.

The water has thousands of pounds of salt so you can effortlessly float above water and become weightless [ear plugs in so noise disappears on top of being in a room that blocks out the outside world].

This tank is so dark that you could not tell the difference between your eyes are closed or open.

If I could explain such a sensation:

This is the closest thing you can experience that resembles death yet still be alive.

As you can imagine I do not think many have the sheer will power to overcome such thoughts as their body goes into panic mode, but with self-discipline I persevered.

I remained in this state of mind for two hours and life has never been the same since having this massive epiphany:

You are not your thoughts. This idea you have of what “you” is abstract.
You are awareness - observing your thoughts passing one by one - and most of the time “you” are attached to your thoughts when objective reality reveals you are awareness aka observer vs observed.

One of my friends has studied meditation for years and stated that the majority who dedicate their entire life existence to this discipline - do not come to this realization - to give you an idea of how profound this revelation is…

Understanding this intellectually does not come remotely close to actually experiencing the sensation with your entire Being.

You see.

It becomes very clear to me that life is exactly like a video game.

You are the main character that has unrealized potential: the free will and ability to explore then interact with both mental and material world.

Your awareness controls your mind and body [which control your life outcomes] while in the presence your primal nature which has a mind of it’s own intelligence.

Who wins the logical mind vs primal mind battle is entirely based on your level self-discipline.

The winner dictates your future life outcomes.

Why did I bring this up you might be thinking…

Because when you start viewing yourself as a separate entity like a fictional video game character it becomes easier for you to clearly find then know the Way.

You view your past Selfs through multiple lenses to gain objective perspective of your life.

Imagine: if you could line up every version of yourself [in one year increments] all side by side.

When you put all your pursued interest together, no matter how difference - you create an overlap - that is where you will learn to know the Way.

Similarities appear that you never acknowledged before.

This is when you look back on your journey [to discover why the past unfolded the way it did] as it starts making sense now.

Experiences do not happen to you, but experiences happen for you.

And once you start seeing the Way broadly it will help you navigate your uncertain future with conviction.

A delusional blind faith that remains undefeated.

BE THE WAY

With so much information available, there is no excuse to not know what to do.

Just start somewhere to progress in the direction of your Ideal Self as what you are doing now got you here.

Unfortunately it is tricky to navigate the online education swamp due to the fact there are more bad than good instructors out there not willing to do the right thing with integrity.

Morals and integrity are entirely dictated by the individual and quite frankly I do not think enough people examine those life essentials enough.

So you can imagine how complicated this gets when the unexamined misalignment of thoughts, words and action kick in.

I do not want to get too deep into this - maybe in a future entry - I just want to warn you to proceed with caution and trust your gut instincts.

Anyways.

To become your Ideal Self you must behave like your Ideal Self that has your most desired life experiences.

You do this by engaging in the habits as it’s required to consistently take action in order for a last changing to occur.

acquired knowledge x relentless self-discipline = embodied wisdom via tangible results called desired life experiences

In practical terms:

You must audit how you exactly are expending your time.

From there you create a schedule that your Ideal Self would have.

At this point it will become crystal clear why you have not experienced your desired life outcomes yet.

You follow this schedule religiously.

Be mindful to the point your controlling yourself like a video game character.

Analyze the objective facts to uncover the truth - do not backwards rationalize.

Become your biggest critic so that you can constantly refine the process to develop efficiency while effectively making progress to your desired life outcome.

If your level of self-discipline is high enough, you will notice you are following your Ideal Self schedule on autopilot.

When you’ve transitioned into Unconscious Competence:

You feel you are expending less energy [to do what previous required more energy] as everything enters autopilot response.

During this phase - momentum kicks in - heavily playing to your favor.

On a deeper level, you have transformed your identity, based on consciously deciding what actions you must engage in to self-actualize your Ideal Self who has your most desired life experiences.

Your very Being has undergone the self-actualizing process.

This is what it means to Be the Way.

The Way is apart of your very existence.

The Way is Being.

Remember: only through conscious control can you change your current Way/Being/Behavior to engage via self-discipline in a new Way/Being/Behavior that is aligned to your Ideal Self that has your most desired life experiences.

See you on the mats,

POJ