Summer is the supreme season but for most business owners it tends to slow down. That can cause anxiety or stress. But it doesn’t have to feel that way.

Last week’s mini Wall Street meltdown illustrated that even people who know better still panic and bring the wrong emotion to the moment.

It also reminded me of this quote from Warren Buffet: “Be fearful when the world is greedy and greedy when the world is fearful.”

Easier said than done (we’ll get into that).

But the idea to me is this: when something “bad” happens can you change your emotions to feel and do the opposite? To welcome the thing you fear? If you do this you’ll start to ask yourself: is this actually bad? Or is it just an opportunity to bring me closer to what is right?

Big ‘rejection is protection’ vibes.

After many unnecessary meltdowns throughout my life, I’ve learned that emotions are clues about how to respond (or not respond). They serve as feedback and — with discipline — they can help propel you toward your goal.

But doing that is…

Simple, Not Easy

It turns out almost all of our problems have simple solutions. It’s the execution that’s hard. That hardness gets labeled complicated. But in reality it’s consistency over time. And we get sick of consistency. We don’t see results and so we waiver. We wonder if we’re doing it right and far too often we give up.

Losing weight is simple. Eat meat, fish, eggs, fruit, and vegetables. Drink coffee, tea, and water. No bread, rice, cheese, alcohol, soda, etc. Do this consistently and you will see results. Simple, not easy.

The same is true for getting shredded. The same is true for building a business. The same is true for strengthening a relationship.

The problem is that we’re conditioned for immediate gratification. Constant stimulation has messed with our patience.

The work is where the many different threads on which you have been toiling come together to deliver to you an idea.

There is real power in getting to this level of expertise but many never do. The yearning for distraction keeps their brain firing only long enough to make it to the next distraction.

We must find the joy and satisfaction in working without receiving any feedback (or sometimes negative feedback).

Simple, not easy.

Stop the Scroll

It’s hard to exist in the world today and not come to the conclusion that we are unwell. And none of our systems are designed to make us well, not even our health system (it’s focused on our survival).

We are encouraged to scroll, to consume content that leads to comparison, to get into fights, to buy stuff to assuage our insecurities or numb our pain.

You are what you consume. The algorithm feeds more of it to you in such a way that you don’t even know you’re consuming it. That’s how this system is designed.

But we can brainwash ourselves in the opposite direction — to be optimistic, hopeful, creative, etc.

If we’re on the way to living in a virtual world we might as well make it one that encourages our delulu dreams.

When you improve what you consume, you improve. This will get you to start choosing better. And if we want to be well we need to make better choices.

I’m sorry for being a broken record but: get outside, connect with people, eat food grown in the ground, pursue something of value.

This requires effort and time. It won’t come naturally. It will require discipline. Because mindless consumption is the default.

If you start making these kinds of lifestyle changes you’ll reduce your reliance on constant stimulation. You’ll find walks and books just as enriching as content. You’ll see opportunity everywhere and you’ll foster your unique perspective that isn’t informed by the content machine.

This is when the ideas start to come.

My Swipes

And if that bummed you out, a reminder:

Lol Tweets

Love you, bye!