gm!
Took two months off from Farcaster/X/newsletter in general.
Initially had some personal stuff going on so was just offline. But then I decided it might be a good time to just do an overall reset. So I turned off notifications and moved the apps out of my Home Screen.
What I thought was just going to be a 2-3 day thing ended up being 2 months and Iām really glad I took my time with being offline.
After 5-6 years of being chronically online in the crypto-tech world, I didnāt realize how messed up some of my mental wiring was. I truly needed to zoom out and just reset my brain.
Below, Iām just noting down some brief thoughts mostly for myself. I have a lot of reflections but wanted to start somewhere. Maybe if anyone else is feeling burnt out or stuck, hopefully this helps.
Regardless if you read or not, Iām really happy to be back and have fun here with my friends. Wont be using my twitter anymore for the near future.
1) Sometimes when it feels like everything is going to shit, you just need a win that is in YOUR control. You need a quest. For me, I decided 6 weeks ago āfuck it Iām gonna sign up for a half Ironman thatās in Septemberā. (Yes I know itās a privilege to do this but can be lower stakes as well). I had no choice but to just go all in on training, fix my diet, get sleep, etc. I quite literally didnāt have time to be overthinking. And last weekend I just finished my first sprint tri. Channeling all my anxious energy to something else got me out of my head and let me think with a clear mind.
2) Itās liberating to see how much you donāt matter. After years of tweeting and building somewhat of a following I thought people would be like āhey why isnāt he sending out a newsletter?ā. Rather, the only people who gave a shit were my FRIENDS and a few loyal subscribers I made on this niche purple app that actually gave a shit about me as a person. And that felt fucking awesome. Makes you rethink what your north star is.
3) I absolutely hated it when people told me this, but I get it now: you canāt engineer your lifeās work, you need PURPOSE. Burn out, self doubt, chasing the shiny thing, etc are all just symptoms of not having purpose. I was doing my creator work purely from the lens of an engineer. How do I get more subs? How do I optimize open rate? In regards to #2 above, itās freeing to know that no one cares about what you do for the most part so you might as well do something thatās inspiring. For me, that means rethinking what / how / why I write. Something that helped me a ton was just writing without publishing. When you know no one is going to see the page, what naturally comes out? Purpose gives you the fuel when youāre in a work drought. I have a much better idea now, but itās a never ending refining process.
4) We all know this, but Iām making an effort to remind myself that working hard and spending all day on your laptop doesnāt mean youāre some giga chad beast who is changing the world. 99% of us in the startup world are just coping and hiding behind our laptops from actually going out and experiencing our lives. Inspiration isnāt on the google doc planning, itās by talking to people, trying new things, and yesā¦allowing yourself to have fun and embrace the serendipity. I tried a bunch of things recently that I would have said no to because I have to work and it was bizarre how much those experiences connected back to my work and helped me feel unstuck when I was back at my desk.
5) Creators and founders should treat themselves like elite athletes. If you have purpose, then this is your lifeās work. Donāt try to finish it in 3 years. All your success is downstream of how mentally calm and sharp you are as well as how energetic and physically fit you are. I want to be a life long writer so Iām going to build the endurance for that and make sure itās top priority. When Iām 77 I want to be be like fuck yea baby Iām still going.
Last quick point, be there for yourself. Donāt confuse the grind mindset with shitting on and punishing yourself. Do not be cruel to yourself. Be proud of yourself and where you are and know that growth and even better things are 100% down the road.
In regards to the quote cast below, the darkness you feel will go away when you know that youāll be your biggest fan no matter what happens. As fruity as it sounds, itās probably the single biggest mindset shift for me recently. When you embrace that itās not an external thing, you will have zero doubts that dawn has arrived. 65 replies
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