personal development

32 Tips I’ve Almost Learned from 32 Years

Alas, I am 32, and like most birthdays, I feel the same. However, I have noticed myself feeling more anxious over the last couple of years. It took me some time to figure it out but eventually I realized what the problem is. As a pretty ambitious person, I felt perfect in my early 20’s. After all, failures and set-backs didn’t mean much. I had loads of time left. Now they do mean something, at least to me. One failure feels like 100.

So, in learning to deal with that and to celebrate 32 years of learning about life, I thought I’d write out a list of 32 things I’ve “almost learned” over the last 32 years. I say “almost learned” because I certainly haven’t mastered all of them. I have simply learned them and will continuously try to implement and improve on them throughout life. Isn’t that what it’s all about?

I hope this list inspires you in some way. Feel free to share more tips that you’ve learned in the comment section below!

32 Tips from 32 Years

In no particular order… [Read more…] about 32 Tips I’ve Almost Learned from 32 Years

30 Tips from 30 Years of Life

by Matt 4 Comments

I turned 30 on July 31, 2014. Just one day ago.

Wow.

That’s really all I can say. I feel like I’m getting really old even though I’m living quite an amazing life. Much more amazing than my teenage years and most of my twenties.

As someone who has grown tremendously over the last ten years, travelled all over the world, met amazing people from all walks of life, started a blog that has introduced me to hundreds of entrepreneurs and adventures, married a sweetheart, and has started successful online business ventures…I thought it would be cool to think deep and share some advice that I wish I had when I was 20. Actually, I wish I had someone tell me these when I was younger than that, though who’s to say I would have listened. Of course, the advice isn’t just for twenty-somethings. It can be for anyone of any age. All of us have different backgrounds and lessons we’ve learned over the years. In fact, each of us can learn something from each other and I’d love to hear from you in the comments below on a tip/lesson you’d like to share.

Before you go on, I should warn you that this post is more tun 4000 words. Oh c’mon, it’s not THAT long.

These are my 30 tips on life from 30 years of life.

How to Create Your Own Burning Man Experience Without Going to Burning Man

by Matt 3 Comments

Wow. What can I say.

Burning Man was fantastic. A journey more than an event. Truly a “life” experience.

68,000 people camping in the middle of an inhospitable desert.

Dirty. Excited. Open.

Dressed in costumes, people parade around proudly gifting things to one another and appreciating the generosity of others.

Massive art projects give an impressive life to the playa, mesmerizing people by day and dazzling them with neon lights at night.

Seminars and workshops around everything you can imagine go from dawn til dusk. Sex, spirituality, flexibility, change, dance…you name it.

But not everyone wants to make the journey to Black Rock City. Not everyone wants to live on a desert for a week. Not everyone wants to go without a shower for 7 days or wait in a 12-hour lineup to get in.

If you can’t make it out to one, you could always create your own at home. You’d simply have to…

Organize space for a large gathering of open-minded people from all walks of life.
Arrange for massive, expensive and extremely detailed art projects to be lined up all over the community. I’m talking about large climbable 30-foot iron statues of wolves, 20-foot tall human hands that can cup you like a baby and big tents with the most insane psychedelic paintings known to man-kind. This is just a start.
Find extremely generous people who are willing to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars and years of effort to transform their vehicles into giant mutant flaming octopuses, disco-dance floors and double-decker armadillos.
Encourage generosity amongst all participates where people gift everything from hugs, kisses, food, alcohol, and even free plane rides.
Organize hundreds of “seminars”, “meet ups” and “talks” around subjects of all kinds. Things like samba dancing, female masturbation classes, yoga, unconditional love, TEDx talks, erotic massage, improv, Michael Jackson Thriller dance sessions and so forth. Yup, anything goes.
Set up massive parties all over the place every single night that don’t stop until the sun comes up. Bring in DJ’s from all over the world willing to perform for free.
Make a human carcass wash come to life with hundreds of naked people cleaning each other just like a car wash. Pre-soak, soap, rinse and squeegee.
Create a safe environment where people can try new things, challenge their boundaries or simply be themselves. This includes walking around completely naked, dressing in ridiculous costumes or anything else that participants feel they need to do.
Create a large, impressive structure to go with the events theme. Maybe a UFO that people can walk in and play around with. Build a giant “man” on the top of it. Make it beautiful. Then burn it down. Actually, make it explode after launching an insane amount of fireworks into the sky.
Build an absolutely stunning temple for people to visit and feel. Here, people can leave prayers for loved ones who have passed away, write down things they wish to change about themselves, share their love for the event, or anything else they feel compelled to do. They can just sit and think about life or make plans for the future. Anything they want to say, think or pray about. The temple is a peaceful place for all. At the end of the event, burn it down.

I could go on. This is just a start.

Then again, you could just make a trip to Burning Man.

Welcome to the playa.

Have you been? Do you want to go?

Adding Life to Your Years

by Matt 2 Comments

Far too many people these days are concerned with adding years to their life when it would be far more productive to add life to their years instead.

The world is obsessed with extending life. Pills, gizmos, apps, dieting fads – you name it. Everyone seems to crave a longer life. The ironic part is that most of these people don’t even enjoy the life they have.

Why extend it?

Why would you want to continue living longer and longer if you’re not even making use of the years you already have.

This is what we should be obsessed with – Adding LIFE to our YEARS. Forget living a couple of years longer. Let’s actually LIVE in the first place, which will likely lead to a longer life anyways.

I know so many people who agonize over what they should be doing to live a little bit longer. They take all sorts of health and vitamin pills without taking the time to just eat better food. They stay out of the sun in hopes of not getting cancer. They say this and that will avoid getting this or that ailment. They don’t step out of comfort zones for fear of danger. They start diet fad after diet fad only to fall right back into bad habits immediately when it’s over. They buy funny bracelets that gives you ‘energy”.

The list goes on.

I have a lot of older people in my family. Many have lived to be 80, 90, and even 100. Trust me, by the time you hit 80, there is a very high chance you won’t be doing any of the things you’ve always dreamed of doing. It’s just the way it is. Living a little longer won’t help that.

Start adding years to your life now.

Why do you want to extend life?

What is it that you want to do?

What would you hate to NOT attempt before it’s too late to do so?

Who do you want to say I Love You too?

Where do you want to go?

What do you want to accomplish?

What activity have you always wanted to try?

What job have you always wanted to experience?

These are just a few of the questions we should be asking ourselves. Don’t put things off any longer. You’re alive. You’re healthy. Your mind is working. You’re smart.

Start spending 30 minutes everyday on something you’ve always want to do. If it’s starting a little business, spend 30 minutes every day towards it and it will be we’ll on it’s way in a year. If it’s a marathon, get up every morning and jog for 30 minutes. If it’s connecting more with your wife or husband, spend 30 minutes each day on an activity you both enjoy.

Whatever you do, don’t let the life you already have fade away in hopes of a distant future when everything falls into place.

It won’t.

Now is always the best time. Now is the only time.

8 Adventures that Changed my Life (and Can Change Yours too)

by Matt 4 Comments

When I think back to moments that changed my life, many come to mind. These are times when I really pushed myself to do something that scared me. Being able to really push my limits and eradicate some of my limiting beliefs completely changed my mindset and allowed me to become much more courageous than I had ever been. Suddenly, change wasn’t so scary anymore and I found myself actually looking for adventure and embracing uncertainty.

aucklandbungyjumping — With knees trembling and palms sweating, I manage to crack a smile

There are a number of events that had a profound impact on me but the eight mentioned below really stand out.

Moving to a different city

To be honest, I wasn’t going to include this one at first. Moving to a different city seemed so trivial. But as I thought about it more, this was one of the most pivotal moments for me. Not only did I move to a city where I had no friends or family but I was also leaving some toxic friends behind. It was a chance to create a new me without any of the personas or stigmas attached from my hometown. It was also my first time living on my own, which allowed me to grow even further. I ended up meeting so many new and awesome friends, graduating from university, buying and investing in real estate, and ultimately changing my mindset completely. I also learned a lot about myself, such as my ability for jumping into any opportunity that sparked my curiosity. I learned that I wasn’t afraid of putting myself in uncomfortable situations anymore.

biking in Port campbell australia — Finding coconuts in Northern Australia

Traveling solo

This is another thing that dramatically changed my life. Since I was 17 years old, I had wanted to go to Australia and New Zealand. I’m not really sure why but it was always in the back of my mind. Instead of just going, I kept waiting for the perfect moment and for friends to come with me. Finally, at the age of 24, I decided to go solo. As a first step, I went to Boston for a week on my own before visiting family in Newfoundland. I met new friends, experienced solo independent travel and had such an incredible time. After Boston, I completed one more semester of university (which is when I met my fiancé) and then left to Australia for my first long-term solo trip.

Sky-Diving

I arrived in Queensland, New Zealand at six in the morning. My cousin had also just arrived, ready to join me for the first month of adventures. We took a taxi to the hostel and signed in. As we were signing in, I noticed an advertisement for sky diving in the area. My hairs stood up and I immediately convinced my cousin to do it with me. Before we knew it, we had booked ourselves to jump out of an airplane the next morning. We had no time to back out. The next morning was an experience I’ll never forget. It was such a crazy feeling to roll out of an airplane at 15,000 feet and fall towards Earth at 200MPH. It was an incredible rush and it gave me the courage to try anything else that came my way. [Read more…] about 8 Adventures that Changed my Life (and Can Change Yours too)

LL 008: A Live Limitless Interview with John Bardos

by Matt 2 Comments

In the eighth episode of the Live Limitless podcast I chat with John Bardos of JetSetCitizen.com and the TEFL job site YouCanTeachEnglish.com.

John is originally from Calgary, Canada but moved to Japan in 1997. There he met his wife and started an English school and online learning platform for children. In 2009, they made a one year plan to sell their business, house and all their possessions to leave Japan and embark on a nomadic travel lifestyle. They have been location independent ever since. By keeping living costs to a fraction of their old lifestyle, they are able to focus their efforts on personal, volunteer and not-for-profit projects such as the UnconferenceforSocialGood.com and initiatives to bring English teaching resources to children around the world.

In this episode, we talk about:

Johns experience in Japan and why he loves it so much
Why John sold his business in Japan and became location independent
Johns new project called Unconference for Social Good
Social entrepreneurship
The reasons why John lives an unconventional life
Biggest challenges of living an unconventional life
The positive aspects of living an unconventional life
Human trafficking and life around the world
And MUCH more…

Listen below or download from iTunes by clicking here. (Please note: If you’re reading this from email, you may need to visit the site to listen)

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If you’re running short on time;

(1:30): Why John moved to Japan and what he was doing before that

(3:00): Why John specifically chose Japan

(3:37): John starts his own english school in Japan

(5:11): John and his wife sell the business and become location independent

(7:06): What were some of the steps they took to live a nomadic life

(8:34): What John is doing at the moment including JetSetCitizen and Unconference for Social Good

(10:10): We talk about the Unconference for Social Good

(11:18): The movement towards social entrepreneurship

(12:10): The reasons why John lives an unconventional life

(15:42): Biggest challenges of living an unconventional life

(18:27): We talk about Johns father and how he escaped communist Hungary in 1956

(21:06): What are some of the most positive aspects of living an unconventional life

(25:45): Is it difficult to live in Calgary (a very corporate and rich oil city) with such an unconventional mindset

(28:00): Johns advice for listeners who are craving a big change in their life but are held back by fear or limiting beliefs

(34:40): We talk about lifestyle change, human trafficking and much more

(38:20): I talk about my wonderful experience in Myanmar

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Hope you enjoyed this interview with John Bardos.

Please leave a review at iTunes and/or share with your friends.

Want more inspiration to live limitless? Check out this one with Wandering Earl.