READ ONLINE HEREhey friend, it’s your friend: jack 👋. today is a short letter, and is an end of book chapter taken from my book “consumption control”

You become what you tell yourself you are, so telling yourself nice things daily is quite helpful… here’s what I’ve been telling myself daily for some time now ( it’s made quite a large difference… especially in my willingness to do the work needed).

Estimated reading time: 1 minute, 26 seconds

Creation log update

Every week I put here a creation log about what I’ve been up to in hopes it inspires you to create more too. Here’s the weekly rundown, feel free to skip!

This month has been a 10x month for me. Last month my app to end doomscrolling made less then $200. 23 days into April and we are at $1900 for this month. Yeah, WOW! I didn’t even know how to code 9 months ago… anywayssss, go install Curiosity Quench and use it for absolutely free if you haven’t already.I added free trials, ads, and took away all the mini purchases. I also revamped the main home screen UI and it looks 20x better now and is much easier to use. Plus I did 40 more things but you probably don’t care (let’s be honest).something I wrote about “success” — not that I’ve “made it” just yet, but i’ve finally caught a big break after a long while:

A message to thyself that you can use daily

Believing in yourself is a daily process of proof and pudding. The following message is aimed to help you get your daily dose of pudding, and also to help you act to get the proof too! This is the message I would think my best self (from the future) would give to me if he had to pass along the same single message every day.

Feel free to steal this if you so please, or make your own daily message to read to yourself as a serving reminder that you can be much more than you currently are, if you wish to be.

. . .

Hello my young friend, I hope all is well. If all is not well, then keep going.  Also….

• You must not fear struggle… For there is no other way to grow. Struggle is a call to grow. And life becomes much more enjoyable when you more frequently accept the call. 

• Do not forget to love yourself every day. 

• Take action before a fortnight turns into a fort-year, since you cannot act tomorrow, but only today. 

• Keep creating cool s**t, and do so more than you consume. 

• Encourage and love others around you.

• Stay curious.

 I love you, take care,– Your old friend.

Whenever you're up for it, there are 3 ways I can help you:

1. Curiosity Quench: Destroy your scroll —addiction— and get on a roll with the stuff that actually matters. (app)

2. Consumption Control: Learn how to control your consumption tendencies and get on a roll with the stuff that actually matters. (eBook)

3. You Were Built To Create Cool S**t : Click to start. (book)

4. Deep work focus timer: a simple timer that gets you locked in and feeling good about it. (10,000% FREE)

READ ONLINE HEREhey friend, it’s your friend: jack 👋. todays letter is one for those who think all hope is lost, like they cannot amount to anything.I thought low of myself not long ago… here is how things went and how i proved myself wrong.

Estimated reading time: 2 minutes 33 seconds

Creation log update

Every week I put here a creation log about what I’ve been up to in hopes it inspires you to create more too. Here’s the weekly rundown, feel free to skip!

I’ve been working on curiosity quench every day and recently I’m learning figma so I can overhaul the current UX/UI and make it much more functional and easy to navigate. Some amazing news is lately I added in a more professional shop/ pay section and free trials and we’ve been making sustainable revenue which means I will be able to keep making this app more amazing and better :))) (actually it’s insanely huge, here’s a tweet i tweeted about it)things are finally coming together here 8 months after starting Curiosity Quench and some people bought my upcoming book “Consumption Control” !! (1st draft complete and editable and readable upon preorder)okay enough of all that, here’s the actual content below…

Do not lose hope for yourself, it’s okay to be afraid

As I write this it is April 6th 2024. The following image you see is a snippet from my journal about 5 months ago. Please read it.

You see, I have been lost many times. I have been scared often, perpetuated doubt has ruled me for nearly decades (and I am only 24). The truth I’ve come to discover is that it is perfectly normal to be afraid. The part that matters is not the level of one's fear, but the level of courage one can gather to face it. It is very hard to remain in fear of what is to come when you’ve shown yourself you have the courage to keep going anyways. When you show yourself how you can do hard things, it’s much more likely you realize that no matter what is thrown at you: you will be able to get through it.Your strength lies then not in your courage alone, but your courage to keep going despite your biggest fears crawling into your boots and tickling your feet.A voice whispered to me this last 5 months, the voice said “keep going! KEEP GOING! You must keep going!”, this voice was a friend, and it came to me only now after 24 years because I showed myself that I could handle the battle it was going to throw my way. It told me to keep going because I had shown myself that I can do things, I have put myself in the fiery pit even when I was not ready and suddenly I became ready. I did that before so now the voice whispering to me knew I could do it once again.So keep going I did, and now here we are:The “app” I mentioned with 137 users now has over 13,000 total users. 2,000 of which have joined in the last week alone from the launch of my mobile app. Considering I hardly knew how to code a website 5 months ago… Now I’m able to make a mobile app. I would say the voice that told me to “keep going” knew, all along, that I was underestimating myself. So I kept going, and now I am stronger. My fears are quieter. Progress is being made. It’s okay to be afraid… so long as you can gather your courage to keep going.thanks for reading,take care my friend,KEEP GOING!!!love jack ♠️

Whenever you're up for it, there are 3 ways I can help you:

1. Curiosity Quench: Destroy your scroll —addiction— and get on a roll with the stuff that actually matters. (app)

2. Consumption Control: Learn how to control your consumption tendencies and get on a roll with the stuff that actually matters. (eBook)

3. You Were Built To Create Cool S**t : Click to start. (book)

4. Deep work focus timer: a simple timer that gets you locked in and feeling good about it.

hey friend, it’s your friend: jack 👋. today we are going to talk about “taking quiet time”.

Recently I’ve ascended? to a new plain of conciseness? (i started meditating regularly) Anyways: I got rid of my belief that mediation is “not for me” - so today I want to share with you how life changing a simple 3 minute habit can be.

Estimated reading time: 

Creation log update

Every week I put here a creation log about what I’ve been up to in hopes it inspires you to create more too. Here’s the weekly rundown, feel free to skip!

I’ve been making a ton of progress on Curiosity Quench and my book “Consumption Control” :) and I’ve been logging it daily on my youtube channel. We hit over 8000 installs in now too 🥳

Taking quiet time

Taking quiet time is often referred to as meditation. This is a way to easily regain your focus. And focus is usually the lacking part of which you don’t have much of if you are stuck consuming. Our attention spans have been shot to s**t, and the best way to grow them stronger is by training them like we would train our muscles if we want them to grow.

Meditation is a word many people cringe at. Whatever negative associations you have with the word: lose them. They do you no good. I have labeled this writing “Taking quiet time” as this is what was told to me and got me to finally act upon building my attention span and focus muscles stronger.

If you want to stop consuming, a large help is having a longer attention span, so you can have time, and enough focus to do what matters to you when you figure that out.

Meditate for 3 minutes by closing your eyes and focusing on your breath, you will get off track but just come back to your breath. Do it. Train the muscle.

Do you want to be less distractible? Do you want to be more aware? Do you want to focus more on what really matters to you? Do you want to find out what really matters to you? Do you want to enjoy simple things again? Do you want to be less angry/sad/unhappy/anxious? Do you want to have more calmness and peace inside of yourself? Take some quiet time each day.At first this is a hard thing to do, our monkey brains are full of chatter and won’t shut up. The moment we close our eyes we have this thought of something we need to do: a person we need to message, an email we need to check… It’s hard to ignore the impulses that come, and it’s uncomfortable to sit in silence with nothing but your own thoughts.

I tried meditating many times, and thought I'd “failed” – “Am I doing this right?” I thought to myself. The truth is there is no wrong way to meditate. Sit in silence, watch your breath, if you end up lost in thought and catch yourself: then come back to the breath: repeat for 3 minutes -> 3 hours (whatever you wish). I used to dread this time with myself, “so boring”, but now it’s more peaceful. Now I look forward to time alone with my thoughts in a quiet space. Sitting with my eyes closed I see the world blossoming around me.

How can you add this habit to your life?

Do it in the morning when you wake up, or at night to help you fall asleep, do it whenever you can: and make it a habitual process. If you have a habit of brushing your teeth in the morning, then do it always after that, or if you have the habit of getting out of bed in the morning and then showering, do it in the shower! (The shower is often the time we accidentally fall into a meditation state anyways). Or do it after you get dressed… just connect it with another habit you already have ingrained into your life process, this makes it much easier to pick up as a habit. Look around and see all of the people who are living the most peacefully, they are all okay with sitting in a quiet room alone: they actually enjoy it immensely.

Meditation is something I’ve slowly opened up to over time, but the only way I ever was sold on it was after having the intense feeling of love and peace inside myself grow: all in a matter of just 5 minutes spent with my eyes closed. An uninspected mind is chaos, taking time to sort through your chaos brings you more peace, and peace is the ultimate goal. 

// Peace is the unconditional form of happiness. Happiness is what most of us aim for but it has too many conditions to satisfy in order to be sustained: making it unsustainable. You can not sustainably always be happy, but you can sustainably always be at peace.

— Thanks for reading my friend, I hope this was insightful/informative/entertaining. Take care, keep going, I love you.your friend, jack ♠️

Whenever you're up for it, there are 3 ways I can help you:

1. Curiosity Quench: Destroy your scroll —addiction— and get on a roll with the stuff that actually matters. (app)

2. Consumption Control: Learn how to control your consumption tendencies and get on a roll with the stuff that actually matters. (eBook)

3. You Were Built To Create Cool S**t : Click to start. (book)

4. Deep work focus timer: a simple timer that gets you locked in and feeling good about it.

hey friend, it’s your friend: jack 👋. Turns out, we actually have plenty of time…

The myth is that there isn't enough time. There is plenty of time. There isn't enough focus with the time you have. You win by directing your attention toward better things. – James Clear

What we lack is focus. Today I wrote a little short story about mastering time. I hope you enjoy it.

Estimated reading time: 2 minutes 44 Seconds

A talk with the time master

Human: Oh dear time master, thank you so much for giving me the gift of time… You are such a kind master.

Time Master: It was not I that gave you this gift: It is your birthright to be given this gift of time.

Human: Oh, but I’ve come to ask a question you see, I’ve used up all of my time on things that did not really matter to me, so now I need a simple favor.

Time Master: What may this favor be?

Human: Please gracious time master, can you give me some more time?

Time Master: Hahaha, oh my friend… I’m sorry but I cannot do such a thing. Just like it is your birthright to have time given to you, it is also your birthright that this time is finite. Not even I can get more time than I am given. One becomes a master of time by making the most of their time, not by creating more of it: such is impossible.

Human: Oh no no no, please Time Master, then can you please reverse my time so I may live through it differently? I beg of you.

Time Master: I am sorry, I cannot do that. Like I said, being a master of time does not mean altering how time flows or past flowed. A master of time is one who makes the most of the flow in accordance with the life they want to live.

Human: What can I do now then, to become a master like you? How must I change, to become someone like you? How can I find the strength to amount to your greatness? It all seems too impossible for me to master, I am lost.

Time Master: Fear not old friend, for the struggle you feel means you are making progress. You are much more capable than you can currently imagine.

Human: Old friend? Do I know you? I don’t think you know me, I am not capable of much: I am a lost cause.

Time Master: Hahaha, oh how funny you are. Here, let me take off my helm and show you… You see… I am you, my friend, I am you with time on my side, there is plenty of time to be indulged, it is only a matter of focusing on better things; the things that you most care about. That is where all of your time should go. Focusing on what you want to see more of. If you want to get more things done then you must focus more on the things you most want done.

Things to help you before you go

Simple focus techniques:

• Set a timer for 20 minutes, focus on a single task, repeat.

• Adjust the timer up to 90 minutes as your focus muscle gets stronger.

• Take breaks of 5-10 minutes: also try “Pomodoro” cycles, or look up “Deep work”. 

Simple sessions of deep focus every day working on what you want out of life will change your life.

What really matters to note:

• You have enough time

• You don't have enough focus

• Figure out what you want to focus on

• Focus more on that.

The hardest time to focus is when your monkey brain is telling you to just do this other thing for 30 seconds, these are the most critical times for staying the intended course. If you want to get what you want done: set your intentions and stick your focus to them. Wonder afterwards.

That’s all for today, take care my friend, of your focus and of your time <3
your friend,
- jack ♠️

hey friend, it’s your friend: jack 👋. Today we are going to talk about the grand idea of “doing your best”

+ Why you may actually want to embrace more struggle into your life (weird I know, stick with me though)…

I used to be a lot more anxious than i am today, and the truth is that you can disperse your anxiety by simply living up to your potential. You can do this on any given day, it doesn’t mean you instantly become a deity... it just means you're doing your best, daily; you get better

A quick quote from an old friend: "The future depends on what you do today." – Mahatma Gandhi

Estimated reading time: 1 minute 55 Seconds

Do your best

Why should you always do your best?

Because to be honest… It's much easier than doing anything else. If you want nice things, juicer fruits, or to live any better than you’re living now; then you’ll need to do better. If you want the best future, then all you can do is to do your best, today. That thought gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling, how about you?

It’s a real brain scramble, knowing and accepting that you can quite literally bend the future to your will, today. Don’t underestimate the power in which you hold to bend the future to your will. Act today, do your best today.

If you’re already doing your best each day truthfully, then each day your best will get better and soon your best will be greater than it ever was. Soon your best will become greater than you or anyone else perhaps thought it could ever be. Soon is relative, soon means before later. Don’t get caught too far up in how others best line up with your timeline, that’s not you: that’s them. Just do your damn best and keep swimming. Soon you will be better, perhaps even great. Wouldn't it be great to be better? Yes, I think so. 

I’m not suggesting that anyone must aim to be the best, that is not it at all. What I’m suggesting here is much more loving and peaceful. It’s doing your best, making mistakes, struggling, and then increasing your capabilities in small baby itty bitty ways with each passing day. I’m not asking you to expand your day to 25 hours. What I'm asking is for you to persistently give effort to doing the best you can do, on the things that matter most, to you. Not to me. Not to your neighbor, not to your mom. To you. 

Do your best. Do it for you. 

hey friend, it’s your friend: jack 👋. today we’re going to talk about Finding Work That Feels Like Play.

To me writing is play, building things like an app to end doomscrolling is also often play. Yes it’s often hard, but its a game I enjoy playing.

Writing multiple books, building an app, documenting myself daily — This may look like to you as a ton of work, but to me, a lot of it is just play.

Now I want to help you find the game that YOU enjoy, feels like play to you, but looks like worth to others.

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes, 12 seconds

Finding Work That Feels Like Play

“Do what feels like play to you, but looks like work to others” - Naval Ravikant

A big part of making progress is always prioritizing the work. This was easier for me in the last year of my life because work was not really work, it felt much more like play, a lot of the time.  How is work playful?

Of course, work as you know it right now is probably not your first choice of activity in a world with TikTok only two taps away, but (big but), there is something out there for every human that is their form of playful work. A form of work that does not really feel like work at all to them. It feels like play instead (only others see it as work).

The only way to find this is to try a lot of things. And the best way to try a lot of things that have a higher chance of being your “thing” is to explore your curiosity.

Explore your genuine curiosities by letting your curiosity live and taking away unnecessary distractions (scrolling, television). Embrace boredom more often than you do now (it won’t last that long anyways). If you have no ideas on where to start: Find books you want to read or topics you are interested in researching to help you get ideas. Act on those ideas in whatever means true to yourself and in totality you will be following your genuine curiosity. Do this as your search for your work that feels like play to you, this is the best way I know of for how to find your own way. 

Try a lot of things you're interested in. There is likely a constant curiosity inside of you that is interested in learning more about something, follow that. Follow your curiosity. Not the curiosity that wants to see what happens next in the television or video necessarily, but the curiosity that is eager to learn more about something on a deeper level. The curiosity that is attempting to understand things you find interesting or intriguing. This is your best friend in the world of finding your play inside what others deem as work. This is the most likely way to mix your vocations with your avocations.

“I’m always “working.” It looks like work to others, but it feels like play to me. And that’s how I know no one can compete with me on it. Because I’m just playing, for sixteen hours a day. If others want to compete with me, they’re going to work, and they’re going to lose because they’re not going to do it for sixteen hours a day, seven days a week.” – Naval Ravikant

Learning and progress will almost always be found to be joined with struggle or strain, their two best friends. When you’re learning something you’re genuinely curious about the struggle is not gone, but it is much quieter. You don’t care to not struggle because you want to learn more than you don’t want to struggle. So it feels like a much easier and more fluid process.

It’s often still quite difficult, especially viewed from outside eyes, but if it feels like playing most of the time then it is by nature much more fun. And We all want to have more fun of course, so we do this “work” for a lot of time each day, because it’s often a lot of fun. In turn work is fun for specific people, it’s not a burden but a creative outlet, a worthwhile activity to spend ample time on. Work is no longer a dread, it's play time.

This is very optimistic ideal thinking of course, I’m not trying to tell you that you will find your “thing” in 3 months and stay on this very thing for life. That would be rather boring anyways. The whole point of life is the journey isn’t it? So go try some things, see what doesn’t work, take notes. See what you enjoy, see what you despise, take notes.

Try some more things, read some new things, experiment as much as you can. Experiment with your own capabilities, beliefs, world views, perspectives, limits, like, dislikes. Have fun, enjoy some hard work: you have to do the work still to find the work that feels like play, it’s a recursive ideal, but as far as I can tell all good things worthwhile come from raw work and strained effort still. As of this century at least.

Find work that feels like play to you, yes. But also; enjoy the hard work and your time here on this earth as much as you can regardless if you’ve found your “thing” yet (much easier to type this out or read it, than it is to live up to it)

Great book recommendation if you enjoyed this letter or want to lean even further into related wisdom for wealth and happiness: Almanack of Naval Ravikant (navalmanack.com) It’s also free to download and read on all versions on the website I’ve linked above by the author.

hey friend, it’s your friend: jack 👋. Today we are going to go over how you can rewire your internal needs to up the enjoyment of things you perceive as hard.

• yes it is quite possible

• yes we will formate a team to help you

• yes you can actually enjoy making progress on a daily basis

• yes this is a chapter from my latest book that I’m writing to help people scroll less

• yes this has a similar theme to last weeks article about becoming a non-scroller, because this is heavily related.

Estimated reading time: 8 minutes, 45 seconds

Rewiring Dopamine

How do we rewire where we get our dopamine from? How can work be enjoyable? It’s simple! All we need to do is restructure our brains hierarchy of desires (okay maybe not that simple, but still, entirely doable).

Restructuring your desire hierarchy sounds like some monumentally impossible task that can only be accomplished with a team. While you will need a team to control your consumption, you don’t need to travel far to find the best of teammates. They are all already laying dormant inside of you waiting for you to pick up their call. These teammates will come with you anywhere you go assuming you keep their line connected, and on speed dial in case you get disconnected. The journey of what you once thought of as monumentally impossible will soon feel ominously possible, and a lot less scary, with these teammates on your side.

Who are these teammates? The ones that have been waiting for you to heed their call for your entire life?...

First we have Purpose, then we have its brother 2nd: Reason… which pairs well with the two parents Devotion and Stubbornness. These four teammates have the ability to rework your hierarchy of dopamine in little time, assuming you allow them to help you and do not decline their calls.

Purpose: This is your big "why" - what drives you and gives your actions meaning.

Reason: This is your "because" - the specific reasons behind what you're doing.

Devotion: This means being all-in on your goals, letting them become a part of who you are.

Stubbornness: This is about not giving up, no matter what gets in your way.

Having a purpose is the backbone to having a good internal reason for doing hard things and in turn: enduring struggle. The secret ingredient to being better is holding yourself accountable to a Purpose which requires you to be.

The helping teammate of purpose is Reason. Reason is there to remind you why your purpose matters. The parents: Devotion and Stubbornness are also consistently on the line offering their assistance assuming you don’t hang up on them.

Devotion is there to instill your purpose and reasons into the subconscious of your brain. Stubbornness is then there to make sure you're too stubborn to go any way but towards your purpose and reason through devotion to yourself. When things get hard and you could very well quit: Your devotion and stubbornness will keep you in the arena of leading a worthwhile time on this earth. “Worthwhile” being entirely deemed by your own devoted purpose and reasons.

Finding and defining your teammates

How do you find and define these teammates? Purpose doesn’t just sneak into your head in the middle of the night. Neither does Reason - both of which would need to be quite compelling to you in order to have Devotion to them and the Stubbornness to keep going when clearly everything is telling you to quit.

You can find your teammates simply by consistently asking and pondering on a simple question of self reflection: “What do I really want out of life?” 

To you it may be to have a happy family above everything, it may be to live in a nice house, to take up a certain occupation, or a mix of these things. It may be that you want to have complete control of your time, or perhaps you want to build muscle and compete in bodybuilding competitions. Perhaps you want to run marathons, or in general: challenge yourself to explore the upper limits of your capabilities; only to discover that your capable limits are almost always much higher than you had previously imagined. 

Ask yourself frequently and reask yourself: What do I really want out of life? Then evaluate if your daily actions are leading you there. After this: many decisions become much more black and white. Tough temptations become a simple choice once you’re devoted to pursuing your answers for what you really want out of life.

The real shift

The real shift here works in two sort-of ways, the first way is “loving yourself enough to lead the life you actually want to live” - with the stubbornness to not worry too much about how others will perceive you (it’s your life, not theirs!). 

Then the second way, which is really just another way of embracing the first: It’s to opt your daily actions and decisions for the long term over the short term. If something isn’t going to matter in a few days from now or weeks, then why bother letting it hold you down in anger, sadness, or misery. 999 times out of 1000 it’s not worth it. It just isn’t. The cost of always needing to be right is your happiness. Conduct yourself as a kind and loving fool and much less misery would come your way in the spark contrast to appearing to be educated about everything.

Reworking where we get our dopamine from is all about changing what makes us feel good. Instead of quick fixes, we can find joy in meaningful work and goals. Using your Purpose to guide you means that you are opting for the long term Reasons with a Devotion to loving yourself enough to let yourself be free, as you always have been. Finally you can then gift yourself the Stubbornness to keep going on this path when many warn you against it; against loving yourself and letting yourself be free to lead the life you actually want.

Call upon your teammates my friends, they are here for you always, you just have to call them and keep them on the line. They will not hang up on you. Signal may be spotty but it will be at no fault of your teammates. You must call them again when you’ve become disconnected, they will answer when you need them and be there even when you think you don’t. These four teammates can absolutely reorder your brain's dopamine hierarchy in the best of ways, if you allow them to.

What will happen if you stay with these four teammates?

• Your choices will bloom further into alignment with your deeper goals.

• Soon enough the hard work is no longer as hard, oftentimes it is actually quite blissful.

• Every day the time you get to spend moving towards your ideal future and living in it now is time well spent.

• It’s not unusual to wake up excited to get out of bed (on the first alarm, or even before your alarm!)

• You can endure enormous amounts of resistance: When your others would have quit, or your past self: you double down in your path.

• Every action you take it passed through your teammates for evaluation (consciously at first, then subconsciously)

Together, these four traits can shift your brain's focus from short-term pleasures to long-term satisfaction. It's about enjoying the journey, celebrating small wins, and making choices that align with your deeper goals. This way, the hard work feels rewarding, and sticking to your path becomes a part of your daily life. A journey of self-discovery, making life not just bearable but fulfilling. Keep asking yourself: What do I want out of life, and why? This will guide you to a more meaningful way of living, where your actions and joys are deeply connected to your true self.

So ask yourself, think for yourself: What do you really want out of life? Why? Where do you want to go? Why? Who do you want to become? Why?

… Are you on your way there now? Or are you already there? What’s next? Yes, you can do it.

—

That’s all for today. thank you for reading my friend, now off you go: To create some cool s**t, to explore your curiosity, to lead the life you want to live. You are free.

your friend,
jack ♠️

hey friend, it’s your friend: jack 👋. Today we are going to talk about the process of becoming someone else, & perhaps: becoming a non-scroller (if that’s what you want)

The main content today is taken directly from my book in progress: consumption control. — If you want to help me make the book better, give me suggestions or feedback on this newsletter! (Or just tell me what parts you liked most) 🫂

Estimated reading time: 7 minutes 40 seconds

Becoming someone else

To become someone else does not mean to leave yourself behind in a cloud of what used to be.

To become someone else means to shed your burdens and forgive yourself for the past transgressions that you’ve made against yourself; just as you would forgive a close friend. You must let yourself be free to become someone beyond your current burdens.

Life will not get any easier, you must simply become better. Good news: Yes, you can!

In order to become someone else, and ideally: someone better, someone without as many burdens. We must undergo an internal shift. This shift is sometimes grown gradually and leaped off of like a cliff… Other times the shift is like one of those drop towers that you always see at amusement parks: A quick up and even quicker down, back to a new reality. In both realms there is a come up, and a come to (moment).

To undergo a positive shift in your brain there are a lot of things that are in play. A lot is an understatement; there are infinite things in play! This is the reason why this book may help someone in the first chapters, and it may help someone else in only the last half. 

We all have different thoughts, these thoughts are based on our different experiences, which are based on our different reactions and perceptions of our past thoughts, past experiences and past relationships with others past and present thoughts and experiences. It’s a lot, I know. I’m confused too, don’t worry (kidding, kind of).

Now, how do you become someone better? Someone who has control of their consumptive habits? How do you undergo a positive change? Well the first question before we go any further is knowing where you want to go.

If you don’t know where you want to go then you likely won’t be going anywhere you want to go. It’s simple, really simple (like most things). It’s okay if this is a hard question to answer right now, you don’t need to figure all of life out in one day, no one figures it all out in one day (truthfully no one ever figures it all out, those who say they do come in two forms of people known as liars and fools). “Figuring it out” is not an event, it’s a process.

Your attention has been stolen in many forms of consumption: That video you watched last night that grinded your gears has you on edge with your spouse; you guys just can’t agree if you should/ shouldn’t wash your air fryer. The lady on the internet said you don’t need to after all. Simple things permeate in your brain and take up all of your mental bandwidth. It’s no wonder most humans in today’s age feel overwhelmed: They have left only the last squirt in a ketchup bottle’s worth of bandwidth for themselves. 

Watch any T.V. show attentively and see how the next week is filled with brain clouds referencing that very show. Your bandwidth is being taken up, we need to free up some space.

In order to become someone who can shed the burden of a capped out bandwidth you must first want to become said person. You will not progress in any direction you do not want to progress. The thing about wants is they are like a bundle of tangled up shoelaces floating around in our heads. You have this one gray and dull shoelace that wants to wake up feeling good and well rested… Then you have this other, more sexy, hot pink shoelace that wants to stay up consuming media for just a few more minutes. 

Figuring your s**t out

How do you shed your burden(s) – the hot pink shoelace – and become someone else? You have to swap the shoe laces you are putting in your shoes. Where do you want to go? You must put in those laces first, give your hot pink laces some rest.

Do you get what I’m saying? Yes? No? Maybe so? Either way: here are some questions that would be highly beneficial to write out your thoughts to. 

Don’t want to write? That’s fine! Close the door, find a quiet place, stare at a wall: and just think for 5 minutes about some answers.

Yes your brain will be a mess, it will be chaos up there. Sitting with our chaos is the only way to see it for what it really is. It’s us. Calm the chaos by feeling for answers to hard questions. There is no wrong way to do this: ask questions, seek answers, seek questions, ask for answers, etc. Just take the time to let yourself get lost in your thoughts…

Questions to figure out who you may want to become: (Answer whichever ones grab you most, or don’t, it’s up to you: you are free.)

What do I want out of life?
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

How would I define finding success in my own life?
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Is the path I’m on now one I chose for myself, or one that someone else put me on? Explain.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

What is the very first step I can take to get on a path to realizing what I want out of life, today?
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


Are the actions I take and habits I have today treasonous to what I want out of life and where I want to go? Explain.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

What do I really want out of life?
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Remember: Your answers are not permanent and the only way to find the best answer is to sort through the wrong answers first. Once you have some answers on what you really want: put in your most favorable pair of laces, and get going!

– 

For reference, I will share with you some of my answers in a brief manner, if you want you can read them below. These answers probably change yearly in some way, nothing is set in stone (except for that one rock that has carved into it: “nothing is set in stone”).

What do I want out of life?: Control of my time, a loving family, meaningful work: A healthy body and mind.

How would I define finding success in my own life?: Daily progress in a direction of my own choosing.

Is the path I’m on now one I chose for myself, or one that someone else put me on? Explain: Yes, the path I am on now is a result of finding my own way, against the advice of many others who would have not to endure my decisions or live my life. 

What is the very first step I can take to get on a path to realizing what I want out of life, today? I am already on the path. The only step for me now is to continue learning and putting in daily focused effort towards where I want to go (in order stay on the path).

Are the actions I take and habits I have today treasonous to what I want out of life and where I want to go? Explain. A very small percentage of the actions I take and habits I have now are treasonous to what I want out of life. So yes, some still are: The important part here is that I am doing my best and my best keeps getting better. 

What do I really want out of life? Control of my time, a loving family, meaningful work: A healthy body and mind (same as before!).

—

Have you some answers for yourself now? To one of the above questions? Ok now put in those laces, and get going!

Can you get going? Can you keep going?

Yes, you can.

That’s all now.

Sent with love from your friend,
jack ♠️

hey friend, it’s your friend: jack 👋.

If there’s one motto I had to put forward to represent the best way to scroll less on social media it would be this: Creation > Consumption. In other words, create more than you consume.

The truth is you can do all the tricks in the book for curbing social media addiction, but most of these things are just prescriptions.

Yes, they often work! I won’t deny that. But if you really want to be the person who doesn’t feel tempted to scroll then you’ll need an antidote, not a prescription.

Today I’m going to tell you not only the antidote that worked for me, but how to make it work for you too.

Estimated reading time: 6 Minutes 47 Seconds

The Maker Mindset

“The only way to “make it” is to be a maker of things, a solver of problems, a producer and creator first and foremost. Wealth from all angles starts with a healthy mind and body putting problems to rest.”

The majority of humans prioritize consumption over creation. Which is fine, our human machine is a functionally working system. But it could be better, right? Absolutely it can. And you can make it better for yourself while making it better for others too. The catch? You will have to switch teams. Right now if you are someone who spends more time consuming than creating then you will have to flip this script in order to join team producer.

“Ok but why is this team so great? I’m not going to leave my team just because you told me too!”

I’m not asking you to switch yet. You don’t have to decide to become someone else, someone who is on a new team, today, or ever. Consume all you want for now, explore either team. Just read this, make your own mind up, and ultimately accept the responsibility that you will lead your own life. I can’t and never will be able to lead it for you. Even if I could, it’s your life: you should be allowed to choose which direction you choose to walk in.

Your parents, family, and friends will always push you where they know the odds are best. Key words: “they know''. If they knew better, they would do better. But they often don’t know any better, so you must make your own choices with that in mind. If you search far and wide for the people who are living a life you would enjoy living, the most commonly shared trait is a maker mindset. Creation > Consumption. Control of your path > Letting someone else take control of your path.

I know… I owe you an explanation. What is the “maker mindset”?  It’s simple (not easy). A maker mindset is one containing core beliefs such as:

• I must produce/create/make more often than the time I’m spending consuming others' creations in order to make forward progress and or to find more meaning in my existence. (Creation > Consumption)

• Creation comes in all shapes and sizes: You can create a new pathway, an experience, a thing, a feeling, a vibe. A general rule of thumb: all things exclusive of consumption are mostly creation based forums.

• The best returns in life come from creating things that help other people. Those who make things are more likely and more capable of solving widespread problems, at scale.

• It is better to try out a dream, as wild as it may appear, than it is to let it die without ever attempting to give it breath.

• Failure is the only path to growth; which, in turn, is the only key to progress and desired success. If I fail at first, I must learn, grow, then proceed to do my best.

• Society pays people who solve problems with IOUs known today as money. The more lives you touch, and the more you positively affect such lives: the more money you will receive. The only way to solve a problem is to offer a solution. 

• Life is a never ending session of learning, if I want to grow or simply stay where I am I must keep learning. Today's problems are tomorrow's growth, and my lifetime’s progress. The more aware I am, the more I will be prepared to learn. The more I learn, the more aware I can become and the better I will be. Never stop learning. 

• Everything is hard at first. Don’t give up just because something is hard. Rather: Move on if you determine something is not worthwhile. “It may seem difficult at first, but all things are difficult at first.” –Miyamoto Musashi

• Problems are opportunities, and opportunities are chances to grow.

• The process of creation is the greatest fruit one can give to themselves. Positive events that follow are always complimentary to the process.

• The more time I spend in creation, the happier I become. The opposite of this is true.

A maker mindset is one of selfish selflessness. Choosing to solve problems while enjoying your life more; more money, more fulfillment, and more peace of mind granted from your realized capabilities.

I come bearing great news for you, you can make things, great things. You are a natural born creator. It’s in your blood just as it is to consume. You have now a choice: which part of your natural abilities will you prioritize?

You cannot swallow this pill

Taking this ‘antidote’ is not what you’re used to. You’re likely used to swallowing a pill and having a symptom of your problems solved.

This is different. This is not a solution aiming to use your current human behavior against you. Inheriting a new way of life is not just a pill you can swallow, or something you can buy to magically solve your problems. The best doctor in the world can give you the best advice in the world, but if you don’t follow it… Well, it ain’t worth much.

If you do not change, nothing will change. I’m not asking that you become someone entirely new, I’m only asking if you want to shed your burdens, and if you do: I’m here to tell you that you can. You can shed your burden of overconsumption by replacing it with its predecessor: Creation.

Become a maker, a creator, a producer. Inject this worldview into your bloodstream and make it your own. If you want to. The choice is up to you, my friend.

Take care,
Your friend,
jack ♠️

Friendly sidenote: All of the things that I create are ever expanding, by the nature of writing this it will be outdated as I learn and grow more frequently than I can update this writing. This is my best attempt, tomorrow my best will be better.

hey friend, it’s your friend: jack 👋. Today we’re going to talk about the ironic side effects of trying to make an app to destroy tikt0k (and end doom scrolling) Yes, I’ve fallen into the consumption pit more than I have in a long time.

We’re also going to go over how to make progress and do work that feels like play to you.

a tweet, from me

If you don’t already know, Curiosity Quench is the name of the app I’m making. there’s a 85% chance if you’re reading this, you’ve signed up already… but incase you haven’t… idk I got nothing, just read this if you have the time. If you would rather create something or work on a creation of some sort, then please go do that by all means. (We’re all about creating cool s**t > consuming cool s**t, over here)

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes, 59 seconds

Re: Addicted and still making progress

The truth is: Social media is highly addictive. It’s not just you or your grandma who falls into its Venus fly trap like apparatus. All human beings by their natural nature are susceptible to it’s grasp.

Being human myself, I fall into the above category. Ironically enough, the place I open on my phone most lately has been Instagram. For the last year before I started trying to end doom scrolling, it was always twitter I went to. The tides have changed here now because I open Instagram to get my dopamine hits. This is where all my vanity metrics come from. The shiny likes and big numbers, they are fuel to the fire of social addiction.

It feels like you’re on the progress track because it feels so good to see the likes roll in. But then I check how many people I’ve helped, wait no: I cant check that! It’s not sitting conveniently on a tally like my follower count is. So I open the comments of Instagram to get my feeling of importance, to see I’m helping people. And then I get stuck in the old fashioned dopamine shiny numbers trap. I end up checking my Instagram — an app I opened maybe 20 times all of last year — 20 times a day! Downtime? Instagram check. Poop time? Instagram check. Wakeup? No, we do not go on social media, not until we’ve paid our dues (do the f**king work).

And there it is, this is the reason why I’ve been still able to make progress while being a dopamine addict after hours. Priorities. Writing this out now also makes my habit to check Instagram a lot less attractive. The good part is I rarely mindlessly scroll, I know how much time can be sucked away from me doing so, and I can think of a million better ways to spend such time. I am addicted to social media not because of it’s contents, but the feeling I get when I see shiny likes and nice comments on my page.

This is a new dilemma(checking social media numbers and likes) on top of the dilemma I’m trying to solve for others (doom scrolling). The truth is, the first half of the problem for me has been solved. I create more than I consume and I rarely ever scroll into doom. The guide and thesis I wrote on this has helped people, and it’s the exact blueprint that I used to be where I am now.

But there remains more to improve upon. There is more wiring yet to be rewired properly. This is the quest we are on, to become someone new, someone better than yesterday. If we can do our best today, and can continue to do our best, soon our new best will be beyond what we could imagine beforehand

Work that feels like play

A big part of making progress was always prioritizing the work. This was easier for me in the last year of my life because… Work for me is actually fun nowadays. It’s fun because it’s inline with my longer term vision and curiosities. Curiosity: It seems that’s a key part of all of the puzzles I’m out to solve.

“Do what feels like play to you, but looks like work to others” - Naval Ravikant

Of course, work will not always be your first choice in a world with TikTok only two taps away, but (big but), there is something out there for every human that is their form of play work. Their form of work that does not really feel like work at all to them.

The only way to find this is to try a lot of things. And the best wat to try a lot of things that have a higher chance of being your “thing” is to to explore you curiosity.

I wrote 30,000+ words on this topic, but here’s the 30 word version of how to explore your curiosities:

You explore your genuine curiosities by letting your curiosity live and taking away unnecessary distractions (scrolling). Embrace boredom instead. If you have no ideas: Find books you want to read or topics you are interested in researching to help you get ideas. Act on those ideas in whatever means true to yourself and in totality you will be following your genuine curiosity.

hey friend, it’s your friend: jack 👋. Today I want to share with you some BIG updates on some cool s**t I’m creating and also reflect a little bit on making profit from the cool s**t you may be making.

Here’s the gist of today’s text:
- Updates on my app to destroy TikTok and help you scroll less.
- Making money from the things you create, and problems you solve
- Is it a bad thing to profit?
- How to create cool s**t, have fun, and maybe also make some $$$ (maybe)
- A full guide to scrolling less so you can create more cool s**t (free guide)

Estimated reading time: 6 minutes, 56 seconds.

Making money and solving problems

me in shock from making money from solving problems (scrolling addictions)

Honestly… 2 weeks ago I had enough self doubt to fill a truck.

Now it’s much smaller, and a big part of it is people betting on me: so I don’t want to forget this wins.

They are absolutely critical mass wins because: these little bits, extrapolated over a long timeframe, become the biggest of bits.

Money is not the root of all modern evil

“Money is the root of all evil” — a misquoted line from the bible.

The real verse? “For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. By craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.” (Timothy 6:10)

Someone mentioned to me earlier this week that profiting off of problems means I don’t actually want to solve them (which would be kind of evil!), but the truth is: I do. I do because I myself have been stumped by the decay of consumption too (for reference, the problem I’m trying to solve is doom scrolling/ phone addiction).

Now: If I can solve it and help others, making money is a double whammy.

But I’ll make it my solemn oath that I will not let greed supersede my effectiveness in solving problems for people. I don't want to create another monster where people cant get off my app, or use my problem solving mechanism as a prescription that never ends nor expiries (Pharmaceutical companies refer to this as MRR, aka monthly recurring revenue).

My basis of business is not recurring revenue in its primary form, although revenue is required to keep solving problems. In an ideal world: you pay for a solution, and when you have it or don’t need it any more: you stop paying. Because your problem is more solved than it was before, solved enough, or solved entirely. This of course does not apply broadly, it is specific to someone solving a problem in a certain way. It’s specific to someone selling something that costs them close to nothing to duplicate (code or media / access to an app or resource).

Here’s a fun way of making money and solving problems:

Help for free → Expedite for money → Keep a better baseline forever (based on the problem you’re trying to solve)

If you have the choice of:

A) help people only enough to keep them using your product (more MRR)

or B) Help them once and solve their problem right out (less MRR)

Which would you choose?

Of course it’s never so black and white, but image it was, where does you love of money lie? Where will it lead you? Is it worth it if you are to zoom out? These are questions I try to ask myself all the time. To make sure I’m on the right track.

Creating cool s**t and making money

I wont pretend to be a super money making machine here, and I’m not here to sell you something that will skyrocket your income. I’m only here to outline how you were: 1. Built to create cool s**t, and 2. Could also make money from said cool s**t.

Could. Not will, won’t, or if, but could, if you want to. If you are creating cool s**t, which is really just creating anything more than nothing (any shit is capable of being cool shit), then you will eventually come to this crossroad. The crossroad of profit, of evil, of a love for money, and a love to enjoy creating things.

Here’s the most concise paragraph I can muster to help you enjoy what you create while profiting from it too, if that’s what you want to do…

Be as human as you can, share your process, and be honest. If you faulter, do not hide. If anyone is going to pay you money for your s**t they want to know it was made by a human, not a robot. This is how you connect with people on a real level and up your odds of receiving genuine encouragement (sometimes in the form of dollars) which is really something I think is needed. The more you that you can be the better, really. Secondly if you want to make money you need something that you can give people in exchange for their money. If you have nothing to sell ever, you will not make any money (I didn’t get this for 3 years and though ad revenue from YouTube would keep the lights on). Offer a pre-order to see if people want your cool s**t, worse case is you need to refund people. best case? People support you to create cool s**t and you create something awesome.

TLDR; Be human, be honest, find and hold onto encouragement, make it easy for people to give you their money… and finally: create cool s**t. What is cool s**t? that’s up to you. Creation without profit is still absolutely worth it at the end of the day too.

Re-encouragement: One person on your side telling you you’re doing good when you are, and holding back condemnation when you’re not. One encouraging person will change your course, for life. This person could even be your inner monologue. It will make all the difference. You can do this my friend, You can create cool s**t, you can help other people, and solve your own problems too, but you must keep creating, building and going where you want to go. You just and must… keep going.

Scroll less, create more cool s**t

In the last 3 weeks I’ve been editing and perfecting this guide to help you scroll less and live more (in 5 minutes). This is an offer to take a new path, to help anyone who wants help. You can read it here for absolutely free. All feedback is appreciated — if you think it would help more people.

Final note on my creations, for reference: I’m writing a book about the value of encouragement too; oddly enough. It’s a follow up to my first book. At the same, time while building an app to destroy TikTok, I’m writing a book about controlling consumption (which is the mortal friend and enemy of creation). Just some things to know, I’m doing my best to be a proponent of my ideal creation philosophies to show you one path of many.

hey friend, it’s your friend: jack 👋. Today I wanted to share with you a short and sweet guide I’ve been writing.

This guide may be different from the typical advice you’ve heard on stopping doom scrolling, but it shows the entire filosophy of valuing curiosity.

We’ll go over:

• How to end your consumption addiction (the new path) allowing you to focus more on what matters most

• Getting on the path and understanding how to move forward

• Staying on the path and becoming a more consistent enjoyer of life

• How to start today because “tomorrow” never comes

• + More tips for the journey to bulletproof your success

Estimated reading time: 6 minutes, 33 seconds

Yes You Can!

Two hours a day on your phone may not feel like much on any given day, but it adds up quickly.

Maybe you already know this, maybe you don’t. Here’s something you definitely should know… You have ~4000 weeks in your lifetime (76 years old). What does a week count for? Well, one single week makes up for ~2% of each year.

Two hours a day every day means you’re missing out on 30 days of your year. In other words: just over 4 weeks. Meaning if you scroll for 2 hours mindlessly each day, you will miss out on 8% of your year. Yes, a whole frikin month.

And now you’re here. You want to stop scrolling… or scroll less. In general: put an end to your mindless consumption habits.

You can stop scrolling, certainly you can. But what you really want is to become someone else. Someone who doesn’t scroll. A non-scroller, a life enjoyer, a maximalist of time, a lover of doing.

Good news, great news actually: You can. You are entirely capable.

Ready to rumble? Think you can do it? Yes, you can!

. . .

The new path to breaking free

The typical advice for someone consuming too much goes something like “NO, STOP THAT! THAT’S BAD FOR YOU!!” or “You know that there are a million other things you could be doing right now, right?” or “Block all your apps, delete them, then you can’t use them anymore!” All of these sorts of advice may be many parts effective even, yet they miss the most important mark.

They miss the why, and they miss the proper focus. These together are the basis for real change to transpire. If you want to scroll less, you already have your own worst critic inside of your head telling you such is bad and you should feel ashamed for doing the thing you told yourself you want to do less of. You already have an inner monologue of “don’t do that”, but that isn’t enough, and it won’t truly bring anyone out of such a consumptive slump.

To condemn someone, or yourself, to judge: this is not the way to enforce retribution nor a path to revelations. The true path I have found is to focus on your why, and to find things you are genuinely more interested in then consuming mindlessly.

Instead of forcing ourselves to delete the apps, gathering pure willpower , or condemning ourselves, let us try this new path… (you can still make your phone and or devices less tempting, it won’t hurt either)

The new path to breaking free: This path is a potion mixed together, combining “focus on what you want to see more of” + “follow your curiosity”. This is where your biggest interests and passions will be discovered, which are always unique to you.

. . .

Getting on the new path

To get on this new path we first need to look at what curiosity is, and why it’s important. Once you’re on the path, I’ll tell you how to stay on the path using your directed focus in the next section.

“Success in anything is just a byproduct of learning, and learning is a byproduct of curiosity. Ultimately, if you are curious about something, you will be successful at it, and the more curious you are about it, the more successful you will be at it.” – Naval Ravikant

Inherit this above message into your world view. Now, can you see how this alt path of following curiosity could lead us to stop scrolling? To do more of what we enjoy in all parts of our lives? And do less of what we don’t enjoy or find interesting? Can you see it? 

If you’re curious about something, it means you’re interested. And if you’re really interested, then  learning is the natural flow. No one needs to tell you to learn more, if you’re interested, if you’re really curious: you just will. If you’re really interested in something… You will no longer be consumed by consumptive habits, you will be consumed with learning, with trials of your own will. And this is the new path. The new path is to do things you are genuinely interested in and curious about so that you can find things you'd rather be doing anyhow than scrolling.

This is not a foolproof path, but this is our path that we must focus on if we want to become someone else, our ideal selves. Now, we only must stay on it.

. . .

Staying on the path

Who are you now and how does the person you wish to become differ? 

In order to become whomever that you wish to become: you must first be able to imagine yourself capable. If you can imagine yourself becoming who you wish to be then you have already overcome half the battle. 

So who do you want to become? Whomever you wish to become, chances are: you can. Will you? I’m not sure yet, but I know you can. In some world, maybe even this one, you can. Yes, you can.

Becoming a non scroller

        It sounds to me,
        That you would like to be,
        Not just someone who,
        Deletes the apps,
        But someone who,
        Will not come back.
        Someone new.
        ———

How do you become someone new? Well you first stop trying to become someone else. You focus on where you want to go and not where you want to escape. If your goal is to stop scrolling or consuming then you must focus on where it is you wish to escape to. You must focus on where you’re going! 

Imagine you’re trying to learn how to play the piano and someone whacks you with an elastic band each time you play a wrong note. You don’t like being whacked, so you develop a fear for playing wrong notes. Soon enough you are only playing wrong notes. In your course to focus on not playing wrong notes, that’s just about all you end up playing.

It’s the same way with trying to stop scrolling, or wanting not to be last in a marathon. You will go where you focus, so focus on where you want to go, not where you are running away from.

. . .

Start walking the path

It’s time to get going! A week is 2% of the year my friend, we must be on our way!

– You know the new path, and how to stay on it, but how can you start walking on such a journey?

The most important part here is to simply internalize how vital your curiosity is for success in learning something, anything really. If you are not curious, you will not be interested, and you will not desire to learn further. You will choose mindless consumption over just about anything you aren’t interested in. So get curious, and get interested!

To internalize this message: try new things, see what interests you, and give yourself some time each day to explore what you actually want to learn more about. Set a timer for 20 minutes, and just dive into something that’s on your mind (a question, a topic, an interest, something you’re curious about!). It could be literally anything: learning how to make a website, making a diagram of how trees give us oxygen, if you’re interested in learning, or doing a thing: do it in this time with no expectation of any result. Just do the thing, anything that sparks your curiosity.

Something else that will help you on your travels is writing things down or keeping a journal of your own thoughts. If you wish to understand yourself and what you are genuinely curious about more deeply than writing will help bring you clarity. If you have a worry, write it out. If you have a question, write it out. If you find yourself curious, write it out. The more you write things out, the further you will think through them, and the more calm and clear minded you will come out on the other side. Note: Doubts and strains are natural to making progress and growth, if you want to go anywhere higher, then you’ll need to stretch. Gather your courage and take on the challenge.

“When you feel overwhelmed with too much to do and not enough time, don’t panic, simply assume that life wants you to grow, remember you are not alone, gather your courage, and take on the challenge.” – @orangebook_ on twitter.

That’s all for now my friend. If you have any suggestions on how I can improve this guide, or comments on which parts you liked: please let me know. I want to make this guide and curiosity quench as helpful as possible, so your feedback is critical to help improve.

Take care, follow your curiosity, love yourself along the way, create cool s**t, encourage others✌️

Your friend,
jack ♠️

Bonus resources

If you want to explore 500+ different interests and curiosities with actionable plans, laid out step by step: try Curiosity Quench (yes, this is an app I made under the thesis I just told you above). If you can’t afford it, shoot me a mail: jack@frikit.net, I'll make sure you can.

Additional tips:

- Make your biggest temptation to consume more boring. It can still help a great deal to set up your phone or other device intentionally so there is overall less temptation, especially as you transition to becoming your ideal self. Example: I took all the apps off my home screen for my phone and just put the three apps I want to use on the bottom bar. This way I end up choosing to read instead of opening social media more often.

- Turn off notifications, only allow notifications from messages: everything else can probably wait, and even messages sometimes. I go into d0- not-disturb when I need to focus on work.

- Get your priorities in order: Don’t open social media or email for the first 4 hours of your day, get your things done, do your stuff: create, then consume (what really matters to you?).

hey friend, it’s your friend: jack 👋. Today we’re going to talk about:

• giving up on yourself (no hope)

• how to make a internal comeback

• why you cannot count yourself out

All so you can ultimately craft a worthwhile life, y’know one that you enjoy for the most part.

Estimated reading time: 6 Minutes, 40 seconds

Giving up on yourself (no hope)

6 months ago I started writing a book seriously. I’ve always wanted to write my own book; back when I was little I had this idea in my head about a story which took place in only a waterpark… Sadly, I let that one slip.

Anyhow, earlier last month I made up for it. After 5 months of writing and editing I released by first book. On Amazon too! Self-published.

Me holding my book on launch day to show the world (and my mom)

This was a large part of my dreams to be honest. The next parts where also coming together this month. The app I was working on was seeing substantial growth, people were genuinely connecting with my messages, things were going great for my grandeur vision of a global takeover using creation, curiosity, encouragement, and love.

No one called me means names, (that I can recall), well maybe they did: but the good far outnumber the spited… I was putting in the work I needed to everyday, taking my daily steps (Writing, Building, Documenting) to get to where I want to go.

And then I opened my book sales dashboard…

My account: closed.
My book: taken off of amazon.
My stomach: sank low enough to get under any limbo.

At this point I was just starting my day of work, I only wanted to quickly see if I had any new book sales, and I get this slap to my face cheeks. The good old’ account ban, book taken down 1-2, 1-2.

If I’m being honest I felt like crying, 6 months just snapped into a simple message, The “Account Closed” + “Terminated” cheat code to destroying my hopes and dreams for that day.

Luckily I didn’t let it get me down enough to give up completely. I emailed Amazon and asked for an appeal, they said to give them 5 days to review.

These 5 days were the most I’ve ever checked my email. I would find myself checking my email, putting my phone down for 30 seconds, and then opening it back up again to check my email.

This behavior only instilled more hopelessness in myself, it only made me feel less and less in control. My dreams just fell apart in a single morning, or so it seemed…

How to make a internal comeback

Finally on day 3/5 of waiting I had a mini epiphany. I realized there’s nothing I can do right now, so I need to get to work on the other things in my control and enjoy the day anyhow.. And I did for the most part, but… My heart was still mending itself, I was angry, a bit lost, and still had only a small trace of glimmering hope left to use up on my grandeur mission.

Leading up to this epiphany, I needed to make this small trace of hope bigger. So I asked for help. I asked for encouragement and support from strangers and friends on the internet and they delivered. My close family and friends also showed me support. They knew I would get through this and having others believe in you even when you want to give up; it can make a world’s of difference, it really can.

With the support of many kind people I got back to work, I also distracted myself when not doing work by playing some games and spending lots of time with my partner, bless her soul.

I started to check my email less and less. What helped to still do my work was knowing that the only way to recover, and to still aim for my ideal life, was to keep going. By day 4 my internal state was back to a much higher place of function, I was back to my routine more or less, writing on my 2nd book. Each day I still did most of my routine, but it was easier now.

The impending email from Amazon I was still awaiting. I was already wishing they would just put me out of my misery and get it over with. On my fifth day of waiting, I got my wish.

Why you cannot count yourself out

I woke up to the email “We will not be reinstating your account. Your account will remained terminated indefinitely. We stand with our decision”.

Another morning waking up to my stomach sinking.

It was at this point, that I put out this video. Titled: “all you want to do is give up: what should you do?”

day 5 morning of Amazon KDP termination appeal email (still banned)

This video was kind of a pep talk to get myself out of my own funk. I just received news that my appeal was denied and my hopes to have my book back up and running were crushed.

Giving myself this pep talk and telling myself the truth: If I want to still have any hope of making my life the life I want then I must keep going — II got over my dread and did somethings about it.

I spend an hour figuring out exactly how everything happened and I came across some information that changed my mind on giving up on my Amazon account. I realized most of the replies Ide gotten were pretty standard and likely automated replies.

I spent the bulk of my day trying to send emails that would cause me to break out of the automated system, finally I caught a break.

The same day I got an email telling me there was no hope, I got an old account back, then I had it closed (you are only allowed one account, otherwise you will be banned on Amazon KDP), then shortly after… I got the account with my book on it back!!!

My book got unbanned :) The reviews are even still there and my pending royalties.

I almost did gave up on trying to get my account back, but I didn’t give up on myself, and I didn’t count myself out.

Go see the book live on Amazon for yourself
[ click here ]

The less happy endings

I had this happen before on another seller program for Print on Demand t-shirts with Amazon called “Merch by Amazon” and it didn’t work out so happily.

Ultimately that failure and despair let me to where I am now, on a more personally tailored path vs making t-shirts designs. At the time it was the end of my entire world view, I was lost for a month back then.

Even if I didn’t get my book back, I know I would have figured things out. In the end, everything will be okay.

and as my mom says: “Everything happens for a reason” (There is a good chance your mom has said this too you too).

Don’t count yourself out, even when everyone else is, do not give up on yourself my friend. You got this. Time’s going to pass either way, might as well make the most of it.

What now?

Now it’s time to continue my semi-boring routine that I also love which is brining me where I want to go.

Write on my book every day, Build my app that helps people every day, Document it every day.

and then a bunch of other small stuff that is also important but probably boring.

The book sales will come, the $$$ will come, if I genuinely help people: so that’s mission #1.

Create value > Everything else

hey friend happy new year! from me: jack 👋. Today we’re talking about Affordability, not your typical “I wish housing/groceries/living was more affordable”, but rather the affordability of your ideal life. Your dreams.

A perfect start for the new year I'd say.

Can you afford your ideal lifestyle now? Why, why not?

Estimated reading time: 5 minutes, 5 seconds

Affording your dreams

“Today I'm going to focus fully like I did yesterday, I can't afford distractions any more. I just can't.” -me, to myself, in my journal, yesterday.

Consistently in a human’s life there comes a time when one’s back is against the wall. We’re out of money, or faith in ourselves; sometimes both. Finally, we must pull ourselves together. We must be better than we ever were today, and we must embody the parts of ourselves that we kept telling ourselves we would but never did. 

As I write, my back is against the wall. Right now I am in a timed session to write, after this I have another 4 hours of work I need to fully focus on with no distractions. If a distraction snags me, or I open my phone because my brain wants those feel good chemicals: then I’ve lost, i’ve been defeated. I have some grandeur goals, I have people who will be depending on me, If I want A, or B, and most importantly: if I want both, then I need to be the best version of myself that I’ve ever been.

So I’ve decided while writing a book about consumption control that I can no longer afford consumptive distractions in working hours. I can get 3 days work done in 1 if we put consumptive distractions out of play vs in play.

There is still inside of me this little monster that wants some candy, or some dopamine from my phone seeing people like my post. There is still a little monster who tries to foil my plans. But I can no longer afford to let him in. I have come face to face with my own reality. My dreams cannot afford to entertain this little monster any longer.

This method may not be for all. It’s all about finding what works best for you. This is why I have so many things to not only write about, but also attempt to implement in my own application. This method of “I have no other choice but to stop my self destruction” is one of survival. In my case it’s survival of my dreams. In your case it may be survival of something else.

When one’s back is put up against a wall, or one is simply sick and tired or being sick and tired: one will have a desire to change for the better. For themselves to be better means their life can be better. For someone who doesn’t like where things are going or where they are now: the only path forward is to evolve.

When you cannot afford to be distracted, you won’t be. For me it took outside factors and some failures to convince me that I can no longer afford to be distracted from where I want to go and who I want to be. So one way to go about bringing your focus completely together is to simply convince yourself that you can’t afford not to. 

// I came to these conclusions after I had my back against the wall. The wall in my instance was that I was working all hours and not giving enough time to the many important things and people outside of my work.

In this scenario, I mapped out what my perfect day would be and found that If I could work with absolute focus from 8AM to 1PM then I could get the same amount of work, or more, done that I usually get done in a day. All the while I can also have intentional time away to read, to think more clearly, to spend with my partner, to exercise, and to ensure I get plenty of sleep each and every night. 

If I want to pursue my dreams and have a real chance at helping people, all the while retaining my well being and fostering continuing love with my partner, then I can no longer afford distractions. This means things like: No email or social media for the first 6 hours of wakeup (basically no phone).

I must be extremely devoted, boringly so at times, if I want to afford my dreams, and if I want to afford all that life has to offer me (my dreams, eternal love, etc. etc.).

This is what the affordability of consumption looks like for me, it has come to the time where I cannot afford to be mindless in my ventures, I just can’t.

I've determined, I can however, afford consumption still: but the key here being I make it my intention to consume and then I do so, which always for me, comes after I have deeply worked on my dreams.

Happy boxing day (it’s a Canada thing) my friend, it’s your friend: jack 👋. Today we’re talking about using a metaphorical reverse UNO strategy in your very real life.

We’re going to use the reverse UNO strategy to help us scroll less and create more cool s**t. If you don’t know what a “reverse UNO” is, I’ll catch you up too in just a sec…

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes, 15 seconds

UNO and Life Strategy

In the game of UNO there is a reverse card that allows you to pass the turn “back to you”, changing the direction of which turns take place (clockwise to counterclockwise, or vice versa).

Reverse UNO Card

This short letter is about how one may go about finding their own reverse uno card to play in the game of a distractible life. The concept here is the idea that we don’t necessarily need to delete the apps, or make it a monumental thing to quit our addiction to scrolling and consuming, we only need a better distraction, we only need to search the deck of cards we were dealt for our very own reverse UNO card. 

How does one find such a thing? The answer is simple. Most good things tend to have simple answers, but they are often not all that easy. The answer is by following curiosity, this is hard because of the existing distractions that are deployed all around you: the news, the shows, the endless videos, the drama in which does not concern you in the slightest, the gossiping.

It’s all one big, juicy, mouth watering melon of distractions. The things that make you feel good now but have no thoughts about the future version of you. These things on their own may not be so bad, they may be genuinely innocent and fun, but in isolation they are also death eaters of your attention for things on a longer timeframe, for things such as your curiosity. They want a bite of it, and they won’t stop munching, ever, so long as you allow them to. 

To pull the reverse UNO we must first fall flat on our face, probably end up being in some state of despair, or boredom: and then eventually rise to the occasion that is our own realization of “hey! things aren’t so bad on this side of the fence, they are actually quite nice, there is a lot of peace in finding your own distractions as opposed to being assigned short lived hits of dopamine”.

Using the internet with curiosity to me is a skill that must be honed like any skill, it will take many years for someone to be fully optimized for curiosity while on social media or other consumptive media. It will take a lot of conscious effort to make following curiosity subconscious. If you want to optimize for curiosity though, you can.

If you want to change the direction in which you’re going, if you want to say… reverse it, you can.

To pull the UNO reverse on distraction is to say NO to the things you did not set out on, and YES to following the lingering and lasting questions in you head that will have you enjoying the process of learning.

Thank you for reading,
go create the cool sh*t I know you are entirely capable of creating,

your friend,
jack ♠️