Nudges from Nature

About a month ago I was invited to join a program designed for creative individuals with "entrepreneurial and spiritual tendencies." I tend to avoid organized groups like this. I don't really know why. I think by default I'm a very private person, and I tend to find value in reflection, writing, and one-on-one conversations. Sharing with groups is just not my thing. But something about this one seemed different. The invitation was subtle in its wording, but it was unique in its appeal to three important aspects of my identity: professional, creative, and spiritual.  So I agreed to participate.  I didn't expect results quite this fast, and I'm disoriented, in a way. Disoriented, yet also feeling like I'm able to hold strong and fast to a sort of steering rudder.  It's like I'm suddenly gaining speed, and accelerating at a rate that ignites a bit of nervousness inside me, but also realizing that I'm not floating around in a dingy anymore. I'm

I read the other day that now only 12 people control half of the world's wealth. I also read that the U.S. Department of Energy now concludes that an unintentional lab leak resulted in the Covid pandemic, albeit with a "low level of confidence", whatever that means. Other recent news includes a $400,000 missile being used to shoot down a Chinese spy balloon over the U.S. What is wrong with us? I've long struggled to understand the hoarding of wealth. Look, I'm all for having financial security. It certainly seems like a nice position to be in to have no mortgage, all your basic expenses paid for and beyond, and the freedom to travel or purchase just about anything you want.  And I suppose the ship has sailed on spending money to find better ways to kill each other. That's a sickness that seems unlikely to fade away anytime soon. But when does enough become enough?   When I walk along the California coast, in all its incredible beauty, you know two things that

Can you really "Think and Grow Rich", as Napolean Hill wrote 86 years ago? I'm a skeptic when it comes to these things, but lately, I've been starting to wonder. Or perhaps my expectations have just been wrong all along. I began a 21 day meditation, visualization, and surrender program a few weeks ago. I'm coming to the end of it, and I wonder if, perhaps, it really has made a difference. If it has, it's likely to change my life. Significantly. The program has all the hallmarks of a typical mindfulness program. There's nothing all that unique about it. It involves some common tools: goal-setting, mind movies, visualizations of ideal outcomes, surrendering limiting beliefs, and expressing gratitude and appreciation. Little weird things have been happening. I called home the other day from the road to offer to swing by and take the kids out for frozen yoghurt. My wife relayed the message to the room and my daughter yelled out, "I was just  texting dad t

The mountains around the Monterey Bay reach 4 or 5,000 feet. Snow in the area fell as low as 1200 feet last night. Snow is unusual in this part of the state and to get eight inches of it is a rarity. The landscape is dramatically changed with all visible peaks and ridges covered in white. It’s shocking in a way. On a regular day, the mountains, in all their beauty, tend to dissolve into the background of the sand and ocean. Today they pop out as if to declare their presence with boldness and courage. Nature is so striking at times. All the time, if we care to look. A month ago our coast was pounded with high tides and extreme waves. Businesses along the coast were flooded. The beaches are still covered with enormous piles of driftwood. They are quite a sight to be seen. And yet today, the mountains declare their moment in the spotlight. The Monterey Bay area is truly a feast for the eyes.

The rule is simple: Write today. There is a trick to it --  insist on keeping it simple, and follow the rule again tomorrow. Ignore all temptation to add more layers to it. Don't complicate it. Write today. No other qualifiers needed. More rules on top of this rule just complicate things. They're unnecessary and only make room for an increased risk of failure. You don't need to write every day for a week , or write every day for 365 consecutive days.  You don't need to write 1000 words today or write for an hour today. Just write today. Every day you have an opportunity here for success. An easy one, really. As I mentioned in a past post , just writing two words satisfies the criteria. And of course, you're likely to write much more. Which is great, but not a requirement to claim success for the day. Give it a try. Write. Today.  And begin again tomorrow. 

Having developed a habit of meditation has been a gift. Habits are hard to give up. Good habits have a unique sense of reward.  One of the ironies of a meditation or mindfulness habit is that it somewhat runs on auto-pilot. I wake now and just do it. I don’t think about it. Although, that’s not true — it’s like a light switch — I wake and I am drawn to meditation in an automated way, and yet the practice I immediately settle into is one of mindfulness. I’m a spiritual skeptic. Despite having some inexplicable and surreal experiences both during formal meditation sessions and without, there’s just some kind of thought-barrier I can’t quite get past. And yet, I don’t think it impedes me at all from extraordinary benefits of a regular spiritual practice. I think it’s my curiosity that fuels the habit. On the most modest of days, I know that the daily practice of training my mind to be aware — aware of thoughts, aware of feelings, aware of my body, aware of what, by direct observation, rea

To my 15-year-old self, Write every day. That's it. That's my advice to you. Don't wait until a better day, a better time. Don't wait until the day when you think you have enough experience to write. Or until inspiration takes you over. Just start writing. Don't give a care to who will read it, who might like it, and certainly, certainly not who will buy it. The money may come, or may not, but this isn't about a career. It may become one, but it's not about that, at its core. Your writing is about you. Your writing is about understanding yourself, and your place in the world. By writing every day, you're building the invaluable practice of discipline, and you're doing one small thing to serve that insatiable curiosity of yours. It's a healthy habit for you to meander through your thoughts about the meaning of things, the unfairness you witness in life, the wonder you have about the size of the universe, the love you have for so many, the hatred y