These are my Momentos, short personal diary entries I write daily – since 2013 – and publish monthly. Some links are affiliate links.
1
For my monthly challenge I was going to quit writing these Momentos, see how that felt. But I already know the answer: not good. I could go without publishing them for a month, maybe even forever, but I’d miss writing them. They’re a time for reflection, pause and think, conceive and create. Here’s to another five years of this.
2
Since reading The Big Leap, every time I have a setback I’m left wondering if it was self-sabotage, an act of rebellion by my subconscious. This evening, for example, I cut my finger and subsequently felt all the energy drain out of me. Maybe that was just a random occurrence, or maybe some wiser part of myself knew I needed a break.
3
The break continues. Quite proud of how I handled it today, actually. Didn’t binge on YouTube or Netflix, didn’t go off the rails with the diet. Mostly just sat around reading all day, went cover to cover on a novel and got to bed at a reasonable hour. Might be getting the hang of this exertion-recovery cycle thing.
4
Wrote too soon. Today came the binge. Now it’s almost eleven at night and I’m finally planning my week and freaking out a bit, not sure how I’m going to squeeze everything in before we leave for Spain on Saturday. Loads to do work-wise, behind on a few things now after this weekend wipeout, and a million little errands will surely pop up as we prep for the trip.
5
Waiting about fifteen minutes in the cold, watching Moscow go to work clearing the roads. It’s impressive how organized they are. Barely a flake falls before it’s swept aside and the people keep moving. Finally she arrives and we walk around to another building at the back, a building I’m not going to write about.
6
Ever think about all the things that could have killed you but didn’t thanks to modern medicine? I likely would have been dead from a burst appendix, from chronic diarrhea, and surely some cuts that required stitches would have gotten infected. Such thoughts have me appreciating my ancestors all the more. They must have been a hardy bunch.
7
Been in Moscow almost a month now, mostly indoors because of the cold and the snow. If I could do it over I’d make more of an effort to get outside, go for walks. There’s a park not too far away. I need less concrete, more green. I spent my childhood breaching ditches, climbing trees, and exploring the countryside. Don’t feel right when I’m away from nature too long.
8
One way the coaching is already paying dividends: he doesn’t let me forget my vision. I was letting it fade after some deflating experiences last week, but our call today got me back on track. The fact I’m paying him so much helps, too. Can’t ignore what he’s saying when I’ve invested a small fortune.
9
Did the Enneagram recently. The whole idea of it is that your biggest strength can also be your biggest weakness. I have great attention to detail, but that can become over-analysis and micromanaging. I am very persistent, but that can become stubbornness, banging my head against the wall. What’s your greatest strength? And how might it hold you back?
10
Don’t think I’m supposed to be driving these old town streets of Segovia. The whole place is a world heritage site. It’s after ten on a Saturday evening and I’m nudging this blue machine through crowds of partygoers and pedestrians, drawing strange looks, no other vehicles in sight. Google Maps tells me to turn right down a flight of steps. I keep going straight and arrive at the feet of a 2000-year-old aqueduct.
11
Rental car cost €32 for a week. Booked a parking spot for three days in Madrid and that cost €45. Doesn’t make much sense. Happy to pay for the parking though, will save us a lot of time compared to park and ride from the outskirts. The older I get, the more willing I am to pay for convenience. Also, this Parclick company is interesting.
12
Leaving Segovia, stopped in the shadow of the castle and found a bridge in the woods over the Eresma, enjoyed coffee and coconut cookies bought from an old nun a couple of hours before. Then we spun up to a hill overlooking the town, captured it looking all splendid and ship-like with the sun breaking through and snow-capped mountains behind.
13
While jumping around Spain these ten days I’m shooting video in various locations, part of a new email series about working online. Aiming to impart some good lessons and showcase the lifestyle. Had a make-shift studio set up in my Airbnb in Madrid today for recording, white sheet covering the window, mirror off the wall lighting one side, laptop propped on a suitcase to glance quickly at my notes.
14
Finally found a nice pair of shoes that fit me. They’ll replace the old brogs I bought in Mexico City more than three years ago now, been wearing them without laces the past several months. They served me well, almost a shame to throw them out. We’ve been through eighteen countries together, walked many a mile. Gotta be the best shoes I ever owned.
15
Liking Gretchen Rubin’s “updates” idea (number three here). Starting that with my cousin now. Rubin is so right about the need to build habits that strengthen relationships. The stuff we say is important to us tends to fall by the wayside unless we put some structure around it. Which relationships are important to you? What habits can you build to strengthen them?
16
Cork, Dubai, Bangkok, Cusco, New Orleans, Amsterdam, Porto… and now Toledo. Where I spent my last eight birthdays. Today we walked around tiny old streets, took photos, inhaled views, snacked on coffee and marzipan, zip-lined across the Tagus, and disappeared into the hills for a while. It was a good day.
17
Reading Ray Kroc’s autobiography. Dude started McDonald’s when he was 52 years old. What was he doing before that? Selling paper cups, selling real estate, selling blenders. He tried selling a fold-out kitchen table that was a massive flop. But he kept going, never stopped hustling. Now, several decades later, you see the result of his persistence in every town you go to.
18
I’ve been tracking my daily productivity on a scale of 1-10 for years now. Today was a rest day, stayed in and watched Netflix mostly, the kind of day I’d usually mark down as a 2 or 3. Been rethinking that. Days like this are what make my 9 and 10 days possible. Like the pull-back on a slingshot. So can I really mark it as unproductive?
19
Saw the tomb of Christopher Columbus today, at the cathedral in Sevilla. Interesting thing about Columbus is that he never believed he’d found a new continent. Eleven years and four voyages back and forth still had him thinking he’d reached a few outlying bits of Asia from the west, despite all evidence to the contrary.
20
Flying from Sevilla to Gran Canaria, down along the Guadalquivir and out over where sea meets ocean – you can see the clash clearly from the colors of the waters. Sanlúcar is the town at the mouth of that river, got me thinking of another explorer: Ferdinand Magellan. That was his last stop on the peninsula before setting out to do what had never been done before.
21
On a call with my coach. He stops me sometimes and repeats back what I just said, throwaway words or phrases I never thought to question. Today we unpacked some words of mine about finding clients. Led to a discussion about depth versus breadth. I’ve been so busy trying to find new clients that I almost failed to see the opportunities with those I already have.
22
A quote from Charlie Munger I came across today, from an article entitled, Avoiding Stupidity is Easier than Seeking Brilliance:
It is remarkable how much long-term advantage people like us have gotten by trying to be consistently not stupid, instead of trying to be very intelligent. There must be some wisdom in the folk saying, `It’s the strong swimmers who drown.’
23
Got a little out of shape after my month in Moscow. Getting back into the circuit training now in Las Palmas. Today’s workout looked like this:
- 20 seconds step-ups on chair
- 10 seconds rest
- 20 seconds push-ups
- 10 seconds rest
- 20 seconds crunches
- 10 seconds rest
- 20 seconds side jumps over rolled-up yoga mat
- 10 seconds rest
- 20 seconds quadrupedal movement
- 40 seconds rest
Three rounds, eight minutes, gasping for air.
24
Read something recently that stuck with me, from The Prosperous Coach: “Failing is not a problem you will face. Failing is how you get there.” Editing video that I shot a couple of weeks ago and I realize the lighting is terrible. So terrible that I know I’ll never make the same mistake again. That failure helps get me where I want to go.
25
Travel expenses mounting. This week alone we booked flights to Montenegro, London and Ireland, and reserved accommodation for Copenhagen and the Faroe Islands. I know I’ll enjoy those trips and be grateful when they’re happening, but right now it mostly feels like I’m bleeding money. Gotta try change that mindset. Shouldn’t feel bad about paying for experiences I value.
26
Fascinating stuff from Farnam Street:
In 1814, Pierre Laplace explored determinism through ‘Laplace’s demon.’ This is a theoretical ‘demon’ which has an acute awareness of the location and movement of every single particle in existence. Would Laplace’s demon know the future? If the answer is yes, the universe must be linear and deterministic. If no, the universe is nonlinear and free will exists.
27
Spending fifteen hours per week on video now. Not sure if it makes sense financially – time will tell – but I’m loving the work. Today I was cracking myself up splicing in videos of Scandinavian teenagers frolicking around on hobby horses and a cat battling with a vacuum cleaner. If video does become my main thing, that’d be alright by me.
28
Gran Canaria is being hit by the Calima, a dust storm made of sand blown over from the Sahara. It dries everything out, gets stuck in your throat, can cause forest fires and airport closures. The dust carries on across the Atlantic to fertilize the Amazon. Walking to the beach today, you could look right at the sun through the dust, a pale yellow ball stuck in the sky.
29
Pitch night at The Roof, about thirty people here. I’m content to be a spectator but a friend convinces to show my 7 Years video. It goes on last and gives goosebumps, everyone loves it, handshakes and hugs from strangers. Yeah, I definitely need to be making more of these things.
30
Probably the best thing about growing older is getting to know yourself better, learning how you operate in certain situations, learning what your needs are and how best to meet them. You’d think after spending thirty years or so with yourself you’d know everything there is to know, but here I am at 36 and the insights keep coming. Makes you wonder: if there’s always more to know about yourself, how can you ever really know another person?
31
Rented a car, escaped to the mountains. It’s beautiful up here, hiking towards a volcanic crater formed some 900 centuries ago. We don’t see another soul for hours, Las Palmas glinting in the distance, red soil under our feet, flowers of blue and red and yellow all around, pine trees lining a ridge.
