An Excellent Wknd [25.07]
Some thoughts on building a life of fulfillment
Hi, hello, 👋
Welcome to the 37 new folks who joined us this week. To celebrate, I’ll be sending each of you some of the snow that continues to accumulate all around me.
Let's get into it.
🗓️ THIS WEEK
5 Ways Hard Training Makes Everything Else Easier (The Last One Is Gold)
Exploring how mental toughness & resilience developed through hard training extends far beyond the gym.
The Passion-Obsession Paradox: The Hidden Cost of Chasing Optimum Health
Answering a listener’s question about how to handle relationships when our pursuit of health, fitness, & fulfillment creates tension.
The Peace of Mind Paradox: Why Playing It Safe Is Your Riskiest Move
A deep dive into how the pursuit of security might undermine our chance at lasting peace of mind.
February Journal Prompts
Twelve thought-provoking prompts to deepen your self-reflection & personal growth.
Chasing Excellence in 80 Seconds
The most time-efficient explanation of what the heck we’re trying to do here we’ve ever put together.
We trust Momentous Creatine because it's the gold standard in creatine supplementation. It uses pure creatine monohydrate that is both NSF and Informed-Sport certified.
This amino acid plays a vital role in cellular energy production, helping improve muscle performance & cognitive function, boost energy levels, decrease recovery time, & even help protect nerve cells.
Shop now for 20% off your first order of Momentous Creatine with code EXCELLENCE.
🤔 SOME THOUGHTS
Building a life of meaning is fundamentally simple. It requires just two steps:
Know what truly matters to you
Align your daily actions with that vision
When we clarify our definition of success & ensure our actions support that end state, the path forward becomes obvious. The noise falls away.
Yet, why is it so hard to do if it's that simple?
Because we face two relentless enemies:
External distractions: A parade of notifications, obligations, & artificial urgency around other people's priorities
Internal distractions: A loop of judgment, expectation, & unhelpful stories that keep us spinning in circles but going nowhere
The solution isn't complicated, but it requires we embrace an uncomfortable truth: We are going to die. Maybe decades from now, maybe next Tuesday.
To embrace that is to understand something Marcus Aurelius had to remind himself of:
Suppose that a god announced that you were going to die tomorrow 'or the day after.' Unless you were a complete coward you wouldn't kick up a fuss about which day it was - what difference could it make? Now recognize that the difference between years from now and tomorrow is just as small.
This isn't meant to be morbid but clarifying.
When we truly internalize the finite nature of our time, it becomes a powerful filter for what deserves our time & attention.
Suddenly, that social media argument doesn't seem so important. That minor slight isn't worth holding onto. That "someday" dream can't wait any longer.
The math is simple. The execution is hard.
However, understanding how little time we have makes important decisions remarkably clear.
🙋🏽♀️ QUESTIONS
Do you have a question you'd like us to address in a future episode? We'd love to hear it!
A quick note before I go:
Apple Podcasts seems to have contracted the stomach flu last week & there was a day or two during which our episodes weren’t available. Thanks to everyone who reached out to see what was going on, & for checking back when it got fixed.
I’ll be back in your inboxes tomorrow with another recommendation round-up. Until then, enjoy your Sunday & keep CWTM.
🤙🏼 Patrick