“What is great in man is that he is a bridge and not an end.” ― Nietzsche — Competing in martial arts (or doing anything similar) is a great tool for personal development. Signing up for a competition forces you to deal with your nerves, dial in your diet, be disciplined with your training, and focus deeply on improving your skills. You must do this, or else you…

Your dream might only be a nightmare away. — For the last 2 months, I’ve been really busy getting beat up all over the world. In early March, I was competing and training Jiu-Jitsu on Long Island, New York. Then, a few weeks later I was competing in England. Then, I competed again in Chicago in mid-April, and then…

All that knowledge is making you dumb. — For the last few months, I’ve had this anxiety in my chest that’s slowly been festering. It’s the anxiety of my ego being threatened. The anxiety of me getting comfortable. The anxiety of me thinking I’m doing great when I know deep down I’m holding myself back. On the surface…

Be here now, even if it sucks. — I had a rough spring. At the very beginning of February, I popped something in my knee and I was unable to train Jiu-Jitsu for several weeks. Then, I competed in March and lost in the first round of a tournament I had expectedto win. …

A simple guide to authenticity. — From 18–23, I was obsessed with maximizing my output in every aspect of my life. Every single workout I did, I pushed myself as hard as I could. Every single week, I wrote and read as much as I possibly could and rested as little as necessary. …

Living life in platitudes. — I used to hate cliches. I still kind of do. They’re corny, preachy, and annoying. They take the complexities of life and oversimplify them into platitudes that frankly piss me off. I never stopped to think about why they pissed me off until recently. Cliches have always bothered me because…

The f*cked up origin story of human happiness. — I’ve never really considered myself “a confident person”. Other people might say otherwise, but those people have never been in my brain, which is riddled with anxieties, intrusive thoughts, and insecurities — all of which I’ve worked tirelessly to deal with over the years. But in the last year or…

Everything is simple. Nothing is easy. — Having a good life doesn’t come from any sort of grand gesture. It’s not (as I used to believe) about grinding till you drop, winning a shiny medal, or writing thousands of words. …

Making difficult things easier. — I meet a lot of people who are what I’ve come to think of as “industrious sadomasochists”. They’re “mentally tough”, but they’re also kind of crazy. They’re kind of addicted to pain, and they wear this pain as a badge of honor. People all over do things in the sub-optimal…