Hello!

Welcome to this years in-depth breakdown of my entire year. For all things growth - most importantly, growing closer to God.

This report both serves as a tool for others and a sort of "Learning Log" for me.

Because, well, learning is like oxygen for me and it should be the same for everyone else too.

Enjoy this years annual report and I truly hope and pray you get something beautifully useful out of this!

2021 Personal Statistics Quantified and Exemplified:

Something to note before going down this list is that my journal/goal/life schedule is abnormal. For brevity and understanding, my “New Year” is at the end of June:

• Words contained in my 20–21' Journal: 36,438 words
• Words contained in my 21–22' Journal so far: 25,040 words
• Pages compiled in my 20–21' Journal: 145 pages
• Pages compiled in my 21–22' Journal so far: 125 pages
• Videos accumulated in my 20–21' Video Journal: 2460 videos/pics
• Videos accumulated in my 21–22' Video Journal so far: 2050 videos/pics
• Books read in 20–21': 7
• Books read in 21–22' so far: 6
• Morning Routine Accomplishment Rate (new): 73%
• Evening Routine Accomplishment Rate (new): 58%
• A few things piquing my interest: The depth of the Bible and God’s beauty
• Adventures and Excursions thus far: 23
• Things that Pushed my Potential: Moving to Austin, TX; walking with Jesus Christ; public speaking; evangelism; working at TruckBux, Inc.; striving to write daily; Bible memorization; going to bed on time consistently (harder than you think)
• New Content Published: my entirely new site!; Coming [Back] to Christ; When I Feel; Suffering (Not Pain) is a Gateway to Understanding Jesus Christ

2021 Learning Log

In this years Learning Log, here is what you'll expect:

• My most important, pressing questions from 2020, now answered....
• My favorite links....
• My favorite words learned....
• My most applicable, helpful Bible verses this year....
• My favorite reflections....
• My favorite learnings....
• My favorite reads....
• My favorite videos....
• My favorite movies....
• My favorite pictures....
• And more....

In each section, I’ll be adding a comment or two using the following notation (i.e. black mark indentation with bold text):

“The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his feet.” (James Oppenheim)

So first, let's answer some questions I asked myself last year in my 2020 Annual Report in Happiness, for the purpose of answering this year!

Let’s open up shall we!

Jump To Where You Want To:

• 2021 Personal Statistics Quantified and Exemplified:
• 2021 Learning Log
• Jump To Where You Want To:
• "12 Questions to Answer in 2021" - NOW ANSWERED:
• 9 Questions to Answer in 2022:
• Links:
• Words Learned:
• Favorite Quotes This Year:
• Favorite Movies This Year:
• Favorite Books This Year:
• Favorite, Most Applicable and Helpful Bible Verses
• Quotes That Applied to My Life This Year:
• Realizations and Understandings I Had This Year (Dot-Connecting Themes and Meta-Themes to then Implement in my Life):
• Breakdowns to Breakthroughs:
• Models I Applied This Year (Subjective to 2021):
• People I Learned From and About:
• Words I Used the Most This Year:
• What I Learned:
• Cool Pics:

"12 Questions to Answer in 2021" - NOW ANSWERED:

(as taken from last years report: formerly "2020 Annual Report on Happiness")

1. How can I be as optimal as possible during the day with my tasks, while respectfully rejecting non-important, non-urgent outreaches from others?
• ANSWERED:

3/1/21:

What I've learned so far is that any inability to fend off non-important, non-urgent, can come from the following:

• a place of deep disrespect within oneself, thus always trying to appease others
• an unknowning or ignorance to one's wrong doing
• not understanding the value of one’s time and money proportionate to one's specific circumstance or scenario or situation in life

An amazing way to remain focused is to work in sprints and bursts. As Jerry Seinfield says in summary, just like you aren't going to workout without a limit, why do the opposite when it comes to any creative task or even operational task (which doesn't use the right brain):

• A task without a stopping point is shouting for burnout to occur. So, working in sprints/intervals, will allow for one to have efficiency and focus, then take a break to refresh or answer any urgent happenings.
• Just like I fast and have an omad diet now, the same applies to working. It's pointless to eat snacks throughout the day. So, why do the same when it comes to focus. Sprinkling one's time into answering messages and emails, especially unintentional and unneeded, throughout the day will be be cause to losing one's control of time. And over time, that can really cause one to go insane - most specifically for the one's who don't value their time as monetary or their money as time in the way that a productive, high performer should.

Don't get me wrong, it's important to allow for spontaneity and random occurences. But those come when one is in control and has a flow to their days. Whereas, the writing I had before points to the aimless ones, the meanders, the one's who don't value themselves as much as they should. Someone without an aim, purpose, or goal, will be in the category of taking whatever calls, whenever. But those who set boundaries and are headed to a destination they have dreamed of, and then planned out to reach, will be in the category of hedging anything that doesn't apply to that.

That's the difference. There is no general right or wrong. Rather, only a right or wrong subjective to one's own living.

4/19/21:

A new learning of scheduling all calls (esp. personal) for Monday and Friday. The other days can be for creative and personal work.

2. What other fears lay consciously hidden, yet unconsciously active within my mind? How can I frack deeper within my internal to extract the reason for its activity and stitch a better meaning over that fear?
• ANSWERED:

Fear of insecurity. That's it.

Read that sentence until you understand it.

Security can only truly be found in God, Jesus Christ, and the Word (which is God's).

3. How can I better modulate and harmonize my deep work and deep play/adventure?
• ANSWERED:

These are what I found to be true:

1. Schedule top important priorities, first. Urgent and work related things, second.
2. The next day starts the night before.
3. Set days for "making/creating". Set days for "managing/operational work". Set days for "adventuring and excursions".
• Know exactly how many hours in the day that activity will be? When in the week? Why? WIth who?
4. Don’t confuse activity with progress.
5. Listen to your body carefully! It will tell you what to do. But have the self-awareness to decipher when you should rest or when your mind is easing into comfort because it wants to avoid discomfort.
4. In what way can I create personal content on the internet that gives the most value to others, while always coming from a place of authenticity and passion?
• ANSWERED:

These are what I found to be true:

1. Document.
2. Use whatever medium suits me best and where I can reach those I'm trying to reach best and most.
3. Stay within my lane!
4. Talk about things that I can:
• talk about with friends easily,
• that friends always ask me questions about,
• and that I can give a 1-hour presentation on if I were asked to do such a thing right now.
5. What affirmative thoughts and customized environments must I create in order to consistently go to bed early, so that I can awake early?
• ANSWERED:

Living in Austin, TX alone with much isolation is helping me a ton. It's showing me how either constraints for the purpose of subtraction or overdoing things for the purpose of addition usually, always stems from one's environment.

It's also useful to have family and friends in the know of the goals I'm progressing towards in order to help in keeping me accountability to stay on path.

I also found that having a pm ritual (an evening ritual) is so helpful in maintaining a healthy relationship with one's sleep. Like having a habit of reading and then praying within a dim, colder environment an hour before bed.

Sleep is all about (1) duration, (2) intensity, and (3) timing. Get whatever lights, do whatever is needed, and say "no" to all things in order to abide by that.

Abide by this: ✔️Get Better Sleep Naturally: 5 Key Principles For A Good Night's Rest

This is within that article above. It's the key:

"So, relax your body. Supplements and biohacks aside (as will be the theme of this short article), you can try a series of simple yoga moves like this that you can perform by your bedside, accompanied by deep, nasal breathing. You can keep the lights dim, or even adopt the use of nighttime candles in your bedroom. You can finish any hard workouts 3 hours before bed (a concept I outline in detail here) or, as my friend Hylke Reitsma writes here, you can adopt a '10-3-2-1-0 sleep routine'":

• 10 – The number of hours before sleep in which you do not consume caffeine
• 3 – The number of hours before sleep in which you do not eat (or drink, but that is up for debate)
• 2 – The number of hours before sleep in which you do not work
• 1 – The number of hours before sleep in which you do not engage in screen time
• 0 – The number of times you hit the snooze button

Lastly, the breakthrough I realized is that I have to essentially be boring at night. If I want to master this, I'll have to say "no" to many things I used to do, which will also help me with my Christ-like living and Christian life (i.e. not going out late for unmeaningful events). People will hate the new me and not like me because of that, yet that's what happens when you're set in your values. Thus, and gratefully, one will always find the right people to be around thereafter - God never leaves a void if our life is sight on Him.

6. Since weaknesses are stepping stones for strengths, how can I address my weaknesses without bathing in pity and guilt?
• ANSWERED:

These are what I found to be true:

1. Jesus Christ is the way. The Bible is the way (as it says in: Psalm 19:38) (this was noted on 4/19/21)
2. “Negative emotions are emotional messages.” (Tony Robbins)
3. We are all weak. We, first, must accept it. Even atheists must as well. Habits are formed from a solid environment, not by willpower. You are human. We are all human. There is no getting around that fact!
7. In regard to Dream BIG & Co, how can I design systems and work better so that the 5-year set vision can be achieved in 12 months - all while maintaining high-integrity and a flourishing internal culture?
• ANSWERED:

These are what I found to be true (for any business I build):

1. Strong values creates a strong company that can grow efficiently. It's like the flag pole for the flag to move freely!
2. Having prestine systems are essential. Period.
3. The right team and partners is the key. Don't take that lightly.
4. Radical transparency. Trusting others so I can have a light subconscious and move fast.
5. Rooting all my work and company operations in the Bible and triangulating my views with Principles by Ray Dalio from time to time when necessary.
6. 4-Hour Work Week learnings: DEAL - Define, Eliminate, Automate, Liberation.
8. How can I better delegate tasks, in order to spend more time on deep work and deep learning?
• ANSWERED:

The Eisenhower matrix is great. In regard to its delegations sectio, don’t be afraid to lean on others heavily. That’s what they’re there for.

Automation, delegation, diminishing of unneeded tasks.

Also, having such clear communication as though the person on the other side of my explanation is an alien and has no idea what I’m talking about.

Seek understanding at ALL TIMES!

9. What fences must I hammer into my technology and communication with others, so that I can focus on spending 3–6 hours everyday, watering my own garden with the tools of reading and writing?
• ANSWERED:

These are what I found to be true (for any business I build):

1. No notifications or putting my phone in an area in which I won't reach for it. Even using airplane mode to avoid calls when I'm doing deep, creative work is helpful.
• Getting over the habit of "needing" to check social media.
2. Single screen tactic. Meaning, no tabs and having only one screen open with one desktop window to have the ultimate focus on a single task at hand.
3. Reading and writing for 90 minutes first thing in the morning with no distractions (i.e. a dark environment and not checking the phone until after work is done) is the key. Even working out and then reading and writing for 90 minutes straight or doing administrative work without distraction is essential.
4. As Naval Ravikant says, "No meetings before 11 am."
5. Create > consume.
• Many people consume unconsciously and unknowingly because they don't have a purpose of their own to dedicate their time too. Even if it was a purpose that relates to creating content on the Internet, he/she would be focused on that, instead of consuming everyone else's content because he/she has too much to do and is too focused on what must get done.
10. What best practices can I create to better retain and implement new information - to later transform it into specific knowledge?
• ANSWERED:

These are what I found to be true (for any business I build):

1. Repetition. Re-reading. Writing in order to ingrain in my mind what is being learned.
2. Teaching a specific topic of focus to another as though he/she is an elementary school student.
3. Taking notes at all times and reviewing them frequently. And most importantly, applying them, in order to learn that specific thing better!
4. Jim Kwik's information retention best practice for whenever one is taking notes while reading or taking notes in general: have notes on the left and ideas on the right - simply put a straight line down the middle of the paper to avoid any crossover and to having a visual divider to ease one's mind.
5. And this before bed every evening, so my subconscious works for me when in deep, REM sleep:
• What You End the Day with Principle - inspired by Josh Waitzkin
11. How can I win BIG in a duplicated manner without taking any shortcuts, ever? What financial actions must I set (i.e. investments, savings, debt payoff), to leverage compound interest in my favor?
• ANSWERED:

These are what I found to be true (for any business I build):

1. Do the important things before they become urgent.
2. Pay yourself first in business.
3. Focus on what things are holding one back (i.e. debt payoff) and increase one’s fire hose power (i.e. income; debt refinancing) to put out the flames of that fire.
4. Preparation matters and goes a long, long way in maintaining consistency and conviction throughout.
5. Saving little and little and little and then LOTS and LOTS and MORE and MORE and MORE. Once one does that more and more, they see themselves as a "saver" and become a saving and investing king over time.
6. Automate investsments through Roth IRAs, 401-Ks, strong mutual funds, and/or diligent, deep research of single companies to invest in listed on the stock market. Also, only invest in things you understand and you trust in their playing out over the long-run. Trust your intuition as much as you are logical in doing such financial activites.
7. Creating a business and paying less taxes by being a partnered LLC or S-corp. Just know that a single-member LLC or single member propriety business has all the weight on the individual because they are responsible and liable for anything that goes wrong.
8. Buying real estate and leveraging good debt to compound wealth.
9. Improving one's skills and my mindset and simply seeing money as tool. Like water that needs to be directed. Thus, in applying this mindset, one will have money work for them in order to build wealth.
12. How can I continue the 2020 momentum of deepening my faith and trust in God?
• ANSWERED:

These are what I found to be true (for any business I build):

1. Daily Bible reading.
2. Reading Christian-focused books by Christian authors.
3. Praying daily.
4. Repentance daily.
5. Forgiveness of my sins through prayer and God’s mercy when I do wrong.
6. Isolation to allow for reading and writing and reflecting on the Word (I'm truly thankful for being in Austin, TX beyond what can be expressed right now).
7. Church life.
8. Integrating myself into a strong, Christian community.
9. Watching lectures, audio, or video on Christianity.
10. Live out Proverbs 3:5-6 always.
11. A full belief and trust in Jesus Christ that He is my Savior and Lord and knowing that the only way to heaven is through Him to the Father.
12. Memorizing the bible through a Bible memorization plan.

9 Questions to Answer in 2022:

1. Q: Is there a spot in the Bible that talks about the Lord trying our faith and not tempting our faith? Because I know God doesn’t tempt His children. Only the Devil tempts God’s children. Tempting and trying are two different things….
• A:
• 2 Corinthians 13:5 - tells us to test ourselves to see if we are in the faith
• 1 Peter 1:6-7 - tells us that there is joy in trials and a reason for such a thing
• 1 Peter 4:12-13 - “12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; 13 but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation.”
• James 1:1-3 - applies to the purification of our souls, but doesn’t exactly say that God “tests us”. Nonetheless and as my pastor, Tawfiq, of Grace Church Austin once said, “The Lord tests our faith the way that fire tests precious metal. To make it more pure and remove impurities.” Although James in James 1:2 is talking about the poor, and persevering through the rich that are exploiting them, during this time, it still goes to show that one’s character can grows stronger through difficulties.
• 1 John 4 touches on this as well when it says:

“Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. For there are many false prophets in the world. This is how we know if they have the Spirit of God: If a person claiming to be a prophet acknowledges that Jesus Christ came in a real body, that person has the Spirit of God.” (1 John‬ ‭4:1-2‬)

• Hebrews 12:5-6 talks about the Lord disciplining his children - those He loves most
• Zeceriah 13:9:
• “This third I will put into the fire;

I will refine them like silver

and test them like gold.

They will call on my name

and I will answer them;

I will say, ‘They are my people,’

and they will say, ‘The Lord is our God.’”

2. Q: In the Old Testament, it tells the Christian to “Honor your Father and Mother”. Although, we newly live by our faith in Jesus Christ, and not the Law of Moses anymore, if our everyday actions honor the things that represent who raised us as young children, are our sins and bad behaviors also dishonoring our parents? So, now are our sins are double sins - dishonoring God, the Law, and our parents?
• A:
• It can be seen as that. But the thing to remember is, we are ultimately sinning against God whenever we sin. God’s Law is the highest law of them all. Although, as a Chrisitan, one doesn’t abide by the Old Covenant of the The Law anymore but rather by the New Covenant, which is in Jesus Christ life and work, God’s Law is still God’s Law.
• Jesus did say to love the Lord thy God with all your heart, soul, and mind and to love thy neighbor as thyself (Matthew 22:37-40; Deuteronomy 6:5). If one is in sin, they are going outside of what Jesus commanded. That can be seen as disobedience as well - especially for the believing Christian.
3. Q: What can I do to spread more of the Kingdom of God and the Gospel?
• Tell everyone about the Good News.
• Live a life that leaves a scent and trace of following Jesus Christ.
• Read the Bible often.
4. Q: How can I be more involved in my local church and local community?
• Be of service in any way possibly needed. Giving, sharing the Gospel with others, providing service via a skillful knowing, etc.
• What are your gifts? Use such things to be in service to the local church, which can help the local community too.
5. Q: Rather than me starting from scratch, how can I go where God has called me to be and use what I have for his Glory?
• Being resourceful is a great way to live. So, do as the question says and, by faith, go where He says and use what you currently have for his Glory.
• If Jesus Christ has really transformed one’s life it will show in the fruit of that person - first by the change in their heart, then by the change in their behavior, and lastly by overtaking every area of their life, as to Honor God with it.
6. Q: Is reading a couple books thoroughly more useful than reading many books fast?
• In my personal findings, yes.
• Also, reading what you enjoy most, helps to the utmost!
7. Q: How can I passionately and aggressively spread the Truth without doing it forcefully and pressing it upon others awkwardly [to them that is]?
• Realize that I was once in their shoes before too.
8. Q: How can I be disciplined and grounded, yet calm and free? How do I best exude such a beautiful balance in my everyday living?
• Don’t judge myself.
9. Q: If we are all created in the image of God, why are certain people created as “vessels for destruction” on purpose by God, if they even are?
• Because God’s will is God’s will.
• Isaiah 55:8-9 - “For My thoughts are not your thoughts,Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord.

Links:

This year I consumed videos within these 3 main categories: mindset, business, and everything and anything relating to the faith.

Words Learned:

Brazen: endure an embarrassing or difficult situation by behaving with apparent confidence and lack of shame.

Gargantuan: enormous.

Impetus: the force or energy with which a body moves.

Lethologica: the time we have all experienced - the tip-of-the-tongue syndrome

Ki: a physical energy that is in every living and nonliving thing - humans, animals, plants, the Earth, water, and even the air.

Compersion: a feeling of joy for someone else’s success or happiness.

Corroborates: confirm or give support to (a statement, theory, or finding).

fait accompli: something that's already done.

Ephemeralization: the ability to gradually do more with less

Ditto: the etymology of this word is Italian! From the word detto which means said.

Otaku: Japanese for describing something that's more than a hobby but a little leess than an obsession

Interesting words of the English language that are derived from Latin, Hebrew, or Japanese are absolutely fascinating to me.

Favorite Quotes This Year:

“A lot of people's unhappiness stems from their assumptions of others.” (AJD III)

”It’s not what you say, but how you say it.”

"If you live gladly to make others glad in God, your life will be hard, your risks will be high, and your joy will be full." (John Piper)

“The path to wealth is making others happy.” (Garry Tan)

"Pray like it all depends on God, but work like it all depends on you." (Dave Ramsey)

“McCullough keeps a reminder of that story above his desk and uses it whenever he teaches writing because writers are really professional observationalists.” (David Perrel)

I’m starting to lessen my focus on quotes from the world and focus more on verses within the Bible. However, these were thoroughly and thoughfully picked throughout the year and they apply perfectly to different parts of my life.

Favorite Movies This Year:

Tiger (mini-series)

Wish Man (drama)(true story)

Parasite {wowwwww}

Faithkeepers (documentary)

14 Peaks: Nothing is Impossible

Same Kind of Different as Me

End of the Spear

Awakenings

A River Runs Through It

Free Guy

King Richard

Sabina: Tortured for Christ - The Nazi Years

The Harder They Fall

Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom

The Terminal

Uncut Gems

Chef

Rush

Silence

The Chosen

Parasite

Wish Man

Tiger

Extraction

The Queen’s Gambit

Lots of movies this here! Lots of great ones - all ranging from action to documentaries to true story films. Every. Single. One. On. This. List. Is. Incredible.

Favorite Books This Year:

What Happens in Tomorrow World by Jordan Gross

Merr Christianity by C.S Lewis

The Holy Bible

Purple Cow by Seth Godin

I Will Teach You to be Rich by Ramit Seth

The 4-Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss

The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas by Frederick Douglas

Frederick Douglas is an extremely gifted writer. His story is eye-opening. Along with that is C.S Lewis. He is a great writer that makes Christianity so digestible to the believer and non-believer. And of course, be on the look at for what Jordan Gross does. A gifted writer that I’m grateful enough to call a friend.

Favorite, Most Applicable and Helpful Bible Verses

James 4:13-16

Luke 12:22-26

Matthew 19:26

Exodus 14:14

1 Chronicles 16:11

1 Peter 3:15

Romasn 8:31

Romans 1:17

Proverbs 1:7

Proverbs 3:1

Proverbs 29:25

Proverbs 16:18

Proverbs 27:1

Proverbs 3:5-6

Proverbs 16:20

Romans 13:10

Philippians 4:13

Philippians 4:19

Philippians 3:10-11

John 3:30

John 13:34-35

Psalms 119:11

Psalms 119:9

1 John 4:19

Psalms 77:12

Galatians 5:25

Proverbs 22:17

Deuteronomy 6:5

Ephesians 5:15-17

James 1:14-15

Luke 12:22-26

Memorization shouldn’t be for fueling the fire of one’s pride. Rather, it should only and ever be used for helping one become a more morally excellent individual.

Quotes That Applied to My Life This Year:

"You can have anything you want, just not everything you want." (Oprah)

"What you appreciate, appreciates." (Oprah)

“Importance, to me, creates the energy of urgency. You should prioritize those things of importance and give them urgency instead of allowing urgent things to become important.” (David Meltzer)

“To be unclear is to be unkind.” (Dave Ramsey)

"Pray like it all depends on God, but work like it all depends on you." (Dave Ramsey)

"Simplicity requires ruthlessness." (Tim Ferriss)

"Am I inventing things to do to avoid the important?" (Tim Ferriss)

“The person who pays an ounce of principle for a pound of popularity is badly cheated.” (Anonymous)

Same goes as for the other section a couple slots above - similar to this one. I’m starting to lessen my focus on quotes from the world and focus more on verses within the Bible. However, these were thoroughly and thoughfully picked throughout the year and they apply perfectly to different parts of my life.

Realizations and Understandings I Had This Year (Dot-Connecting Themes and Meta-Themes to then Implement in my Life):

[from my Twitter] "When you see everything as a learning experience, there is no room for shame, embarrassment, or internal ridicule to breathe. Suffocate that. See everything as a way to improve.

Second and third order thinking is critical. Thinking about how someone might feel if you do something. Thinking about what you want two steps down the line. Thinking about the consequences of your actions and projecting yourself into the future. All while still remaining fully present.

Preparation is being kind to your future self. Preparation is one of the best things you can do for yourself.

Your “calling” can be discovered by: calling yourself what God calls you. Blessed. Loved. Etc…

Pay yourself first. Even if you own the business.

Believe in yourself. Even more so, believe in yourself through deeply rooting your identity and values in something. You are unstoppable once you do that. For me, it is Christianity and accepting Jesus as the Lord of my life.

It can take decade or two decades for your actions to come into fruition of what you aspire to. Hold on to the journey, not the destination. Live the journey!

Schools make walls tan and white for a reason. They make desks uniform for a reason. All of that. To numb you to your high frequency of seeing many colors, of walking barefoot and earthing, of curiosity and spontaneity. Yes, maturity requires ownership and responsibility. But don’t conform to a system without question why you’re a part of it first.

I’ve learned that my life is an amalgamation and compounding of failing better. That’s it. Simply that.

Don’t be dependent upon anything besides God.

Learn to scrap your plans whenever is necessary. Be agile. Yet, don’t ever stop planning.

The only thing TRULY holding anyone back is lack of access to information or poor information exchange (a.k.a bad communication).

An idea I’m thinking about more. Never using my own disposal income to but stuff. Rather income generated from my investments to buy stuff 🤔🚀

After my older cousin John died: Experiences of pain allow the passage of faith to shine through. Depending on one’s faith, this can happen or not happen.

Suffering is an opporunity to understand and love Jesus Christ more.

Be patient with others, just as God is patient with you.

I would love to know what stood out to you most from the above learnings. Message me via social on what your thoughts are.

Breakdowns to Breakthroughs:

Without priorities, your schedule will make them for you. That's something you don't want to happen.

Life is truly beautiful. It’s even better lived when you stop relying on just yourself to do everything. Lean on God. Lean on others who lean on God. Ask for what you want. Be specific with God.

If you don’t know, don’t do it. If you can’t decide, the answer is no.

Arguments aren’t just arguments. People, from what I’ve seen, actually don’t solve their disagreement and argument because they don’t strive to see the others “misperception”/perspective. Healing a dispute is mostly about getting on the same page.

Communication and honesty. It’s everything in every type of relationship in life. Without it, bad things happen.

Never make assumptions.

Lack of time = lack of priorities - THIS WAS A BIG ONE

Doing God's Will doesn't mean kicking back and letting Him work things out for you. It means praying, fasting, reading Scripture daily, intensely living out the life that mimics Jesus Christ, and then walking out in faith through that. Do those things first, then go live. You will be a living vessel in that way! This applies to finding a partner for a marriage as well!!!!!!

To second the above point, it all, first and always, start with faith. No amount of work one does will make one right with God - only oneself - which is a path to always falling short. So, just know that the only thing us humans apply to God’s work on earth is our faith in Him and the scars we gave Jesus Christ.

I tell you mannn, the best learnings come upon the sunrise of a tough moment in life. Within suffering and uncomfortable, such fortune can be found.

Models I Applied This Year (Subjective to 2021):

Ontological Design

Habit Formation Feedback Loop

21-Day Daniel Fast!

Regret Minimilization Framework

Mind Mapping

UI/UX Design

Feng Shui

Industrial Design

Goggins 4x4x48

The Precautionary Principle - It emphasizes waiting for more complete information before risking causing damage, especially if some of the possible impacts would be irreversible, hard to contain, or would affect people who didn’t choose to be involved.

Zeroth Principle - "is about building blocks, or the structure of all things, whereas first-principles thinking is about system laws, or how things interact"

First-Principles Thinking

Second-Order Principles

Omad Diet (I started doing this last year, yet changed from eating once a day in the evening to eating once a day in the morning after doing fasted cardio/workouts/etc.)

Writing as a way of understanding, purification, and dot connecting

Pareto Principle - 80/20 rule, whereas 80% of things come from 20% of things

Parkinson's Law - "dictates that a task will swell in (perceived) importance and complexity in relation to the time allotted for its completion to the time allotted for its completion (Elon Musk uses this well to get tasks done in what seems to others as impossibly short deadlines)

Being a student of my calendar

Valuing my hourly rate at an insanely high, yet realistic, amount for myself.

Memorization of Scripture

This years models pushed me to the brink of what I thought I was possible of.... more than ever.

People I Learned From and About:

Jordan B. Peterson

Jesus Christ

All of my closest friends in my circle

All of my brothers

My immediate family

My mother

My father

My relatives

Jordan Gross

Paster Michael Todd

John Rondi

Jack Dorsey

Nick Nanakos

Julian Dorey

C.S Lewis

Fred Rogers

Paul Washer

J. Cole

Tobe Nwigwe

David Goggins

Kanye West

Jony Ive

Matsuo Bashō

Bryan Johnson

Tim Ferriss

Tom Colella

VJ Stay

Daniel Williams

Tawfiq Cotman-El

Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Spurgin

Paul Washer

Ben Stuart

Voddie Baucham

Francis Chan

Daniel, Marquel, Williams

Ray Comfort

The most random people and the most important people in your life, they both serve just as important of a purpose as the other. Don’t disregard anyone or anything. It’s all trying to teach you something. God uses the most random things to teach one what is needed to be taught in this life (well, our minds perceive them as “random”, but to God they are perfectly perfect and in His Will).

Words I Used the Most This Year:

God

Jesus

Him

Yeah

Great

Yeah.

What I Learned:

Being away from my family has drawn me closer to both thankfulness and love for them.

Separation makes the heart grow fonder.

My immediate family and my grandparents (on my dad’s side, as they are the remaining grandparents that I have) past experiences and current living, in all of their rights and wrongs, teaches me so much.

The first 10k is the hardest. The first 10 customers is the hardest. The first of anything is the hardest. Just do and adjust from there.

”It’s not what you say, but how you say it.”

A lot of people's unhappiness stems from their assumptions of others.

Be independent in your thinking, yet triangulate your view when necessary (e.g. amongst an unknown, a weak area, or a blindspot). You usually know what’s right - since you know yourself so well now.

Change your behavior. Change your thoughts.

Repetition leads to mastery (or at least formation of something).

Surround yourself with people who prioritize learning.

Drink a lot of water.

Write in order to speak better, speak in order to write better.

Sacrifice is required, pain as going to happen, and suffering is guaranteed. What you suffer for matters most.

Workout daily, read daily.

Discipline in all facets of life will give you freedom.

Question yourself and your principle, values.

Laugh plenty.

To stay focused on your tech, go full screen mode and have no other desktops. It’s a great way to stay locked in. Thanks for the top Danny Miranda.

The faster, more unintentional the cold message/outreach, the quicker the rejection.

If people don't know, like, or trust you, they won't by into you at all. (person in Clubhouse room).

A shortcut, and tip, to making time slow down and to extend the bandwidth of thoughts: working out and movement.

The world will known what to give you when you know what you want for yourself, for your brand, for your organization, etc.....

The faster, more unintentional the cold message/outreach, the quicker the rejection.

If people don't know, like, or trust you, they won't by into you at all. (person in Clubhouse room)

A shortcut, and tip, to making time slow down and to extend the bandwidth of thoughts: working out and movement.

3 Ways to Increase Living if the Following Are Done Correctly:

• Automation
• Delegation
• Letting Go

Priorities are VITAL. Without them, your life will naturally prioritize for you. So, task out your priorities, don't let your schedule do it for you.

Design is so important for good living. Ontological design: design thinking, lifestyle design, human design, architectural design, design design (haha)

For presenting and using good design to do so: one page, one idea (or replace idea with: story, video, picture, etc....)

Design is storytelling. Design is in everything. If great designers and storytellers make their audience feel in flow or joyous when consuming such a work from them, that means the designer or storyteller probably took leaps and bounds to make it so.

When you write, you begin to understand.

“You should sacrifice everything in you that isn’t serving that to that (to growth towards the good and away from the bad)” (Jordan Peterson)

“How do you know your painting is bad if you haven’t messed up yet.” (Tom)

Our priorities should be centered around something eternal.

Be wise with who you share good information with and who you allow closest to you in your life.

It's better to be direct in your explanation of truth to others, than to "beat around the bush".

Life is suffering. To outweigh the suffering, take on more responsibility.

Praying in the morning and evening adds more time to my day, not the other way around. Meaning: when I pray, I then move with God throughout my day. Things are slower and I’m at peace (even amongst any chaos that uprises). Thus, I don’t lose time when I pray, rather I gain time because I’m moving better.

In being away from my parents/family since I moved to Austin at the end of March of 2021 and observing couples in my church with many kids, there are 2 important things to heed from their advice and my reflections:

• Enjoy, cherish, and optimize your season of singleness
• Selflessness and giving is what it means. It takes much more effort than you’ll ever know. For your wife/husband, kids, and while giving to others around you at the same time and maintaining your responsibilities!

Be detailed in your communication with others. Assumption is always bad, but for this case it’s good: assume that others know something you don’t. This causes you to speak with clarity [learning with Daniel when he was in Austin, TX in September].

Never forcefully exude that which doesn't come naturally.... but practice becoming who you want to be daily....

Walk because you are so - a child of God, a vessel of God.

Be interested, not interesting (former brings the latter).

A real brother of Christ will expose you to your good and bad sides. It's up to you (the individual) to reach a point of acceptance over those things and learn from them.

Are you living in a constant state of learning or elimination?

The best of believers don’t conform the Bible to accustom their life, they conform their life to fit and match what the Bible and Jesus says.

The things that will happen to your heart when you let go and let God are far greater than anything you would’ve held onto if you hadn’t.

The best woman to chase is one who’s heart is so close to God that only a man who is chasing God can find her (vice versa for a woman towards a man).

Bountiful lessons. This year felt like 2 years.

Cool Pics:

#3:

I’m such a visual learner. Pictures truly get to my soul.

© Anthony Dap III | Dream BIG & Co. LLC 2023