What happens when intellect alone stops serving your deepest needs? In part two of my blog series recounting my quest for self-knowledge, I share the turning point when I realized that mindset shifts and productivity tools weren’t enough to bring the vibrancy I craved into my life.
On October 3-4, 2024, we hosted our very first in-person Second Brain Summit in Los Angeles, and honestly, it was a dream come true. This event felt like a “bucket list” moment in every way. I’d count it among my top five life milestones, right up there with getting married, witnessing my children’s births, and…
When I left the religious faith of my youth, everything collapsed – my certainty, my sense of purpose, the very foundations of my life. What do you do when the reality you once believed in dissolves away? This is the story of my unexpected 20-year journey to rediscover myself.
I’ve read hundreds of books on productivity and self-improvement over the years. Many of them are filled with vague prescriptions or clichéd advice, but a small number were truly transformative for me. They served as intellectual lighthouses on my journey, helping me understand what was happening to me as I explored my past, my psyche,…
I recently attended a 3-day intensive program designed to shift people’s attitudes toward money, hosted by executive coach and teacher Joe Hudson and his team. I didn’t really know what I was in for. I went mostly to accompany my wife Lauren, who said she needed a new perspective on money and thought I might…
I recently announced my next major book project: a book on how to complete a year-end life review as a ritual for self-reflection and growth. I’ve had an annual review practice in some form since 2008, and I can’t think of anything else that has more dramatically impacted my life in that time. I can’t…
In August of 1998, when I was 14 years old, my parents pulled my three siblings and me out of school, packed up our house and our bags, and left the country. Instead of starting 8th grade in the wealthy suburb of Laguna Niguel, I would be attending a public school in a working-class neighborhood…
This is a compilation of all the personal annual reviews I’ve published, as well as other writing I’ve done about my long-term vision and goals. I’ve also included articles I’ve written about how to make such periodic reviews more effective, including annually, mid-year, monthly, and weekly.
In October 2023, I took part in my first Ayahuasca ceremony. I had heard about the substance and its effects for years when I lived in the San Francisco Bay Area, but I didn’t want to do it in some random apartment in Oakland. I wanted the “real” experience. I had always thought that meant…
This year feels like an especially major milestone, for a few reasons. First, because it officially marks 10 years that Forte Labs has been in business. In June 2013, I left my consulting job with plans to work on independent projects for a couple months before seeking my next one. Little did I know those…
One of the most common sources of confusion I see in the world of productivity and self-improvement is a failure to distinguish between beginner-level advice and advanced-level advice. In any given pursuit – tennis, chess, jiu-jitsu, painting – there is a hierarchy of skills that you have to acquire one by one to progress. More…
Around the time my first book Building a Second Brain came out in June 2022, I started looking for a speaking coach. I had just delivered my first keynote to a large audience at World Domination Summit, followed soon thereafter by my Google Talk. These experiences had been not only fantastic promotional opportunities but fulfilling…