21 thoughts from 2024
I wrote all of this months ago - never finished it - and have come back to publish today - mostly to log it on the internet
all the below is from September 5th, 2024 - I meant to write 28 bullets for 28 years but didn’t happen-
I wrote this last year - 27 years 27 thoughts - it’s been a while since my last email
I’ve been working a ton and building my business, running and got really lost in the year - as it’s been one of the fastest and hardest years
I had hip surgery last week to fix a torn labrum and a bone issue in a hip joint - I believe I tore my hip in January of 2024 and weathered through it until May 2024 when I got an MRI and found the torn labrum and bone impingement issue. I delayed surgery until after summer because the PT is 2-4 months and I didn’t want to do that all over summer. (Now in 2025 almost 100% healed).
Looking back on the year, not being 100% healthy threw off my routines, took away from training, and took a mental toll to find balance in life for a relationship with my gf, fitness, racing, business, and working.
Overall, there’s a lot of improvements to make going into this year from mistakes from last year -
I don’t measure a new year by New Year Eve/day - I measure a new year by my birthday. My brain organizes each year of age as the new year.
here are the lessons and thoughts
listen to your body - it’s always speaking to you
the gut is more powerful than your emotions
we die without breath after what, 3-5 minutes? but we can go days without food, water, sleep, and exercise. breath is the most important. we can control what we can inhale, what we can eat, what we can drink, when we can sleep, and when we can work out. the body and brain react to everything.
all great things stem from energy - the sun is energy - we need the sun just like plants - spend as much time in the sun as possible. take every phone call you can in the sun. exercise in the sun. eat in the sun. spend more time outside. It’s what keeps us alive. East Coast winters can be a bit depressing and low energy because of lack of sun.
contracts in business will save you thousands - this year I made a few mistakes with ex-clients that resulted in over 20,000 of funds not being collected and not worth chasing after due to legal costs. if contracts were used and tight, this would never have happened
I am still seeking fulfillment - it was my #1 focus last year - fulfillment is important and I don’t think it’s an easy quest because life throws things at you that require you to do things sometimes to keep going forward in the search for fulfillment that you might not wish to do. The most important part is to never stop pushing forward after your curiosity and what is working.
talk to everyone, everywhere. the most random people will give you insights you would never have thought about unless you strike up a conversation.
ice baths are overrated, saunas are underrated. why? saunas make you sweat out and rid your body of toxins - ice baths mostly give you a dopamine high for doing something hard. Ice baths are great for post-marathon recovery, but saunas cleanse your body off all the things that need to be sweat out.
don’t be afraid to ask people for help in business, become friends with people in other industries to trade value with no strings attached. giveaway what you’ve learned for free. ask people who are doing well what they are struggling with and how you can help them if possible. everything in business is a value exchange.
selling is a muscle. the more you sell the better you get. if you aren’t closing deals, you probably aren’t good at selling what you’re selling, or it’s a bad offer. things that people need will sell easily. it’s your job to put the sale in front of someone who needs what you offer. convincing someone to buy isn’t needed when it’s a good offer of value. the best things sell themselves.
ai is changing the world - people won’t realize how much it has until it’s too late to adapt - you can learn pretty much anything about it off YouTube and use tons of applications for free or cheap that will allow you to unlock new things you didn’t even have access to years ago. I’d say 33% of the things I did before with my brain I use AI to help me today. It feels like cheating time. One of my favorite things is using the chat gpt mobile app, having ideas and speaking to the ai to record and analyze the idea while also keeping those idea’s logged into my chat gpt account to go back and review. You can use ai as a personal journal with feedback, that is private and analyze your ideas and thoughts with perspectives you never would have.
being a victim doesn’t help you, it only hurts your brain more and makes you locked into a ‘poor me’ mentality. people can sense it in others as well. stay away from people constantly playing victim games.
you’re one move away from a different life. you’re one deal away from a moonshot client. you’re one call away from a new opportunity. you’re one run away from a PR. you’re one social media post away from a new client. you’re one conversation away from a date. shoot your shot way more, take risks, and don’t be afraid of rejection. rejection is a poisonous fear that holds back even the best. keep shooting.
read more books but don’t read shit you don’t like. I get a few chapters in a new book and shelf it if I’m bored. There are too many good books out there to be reading something that doesn’t get your brain turning. A good book you won’t want to put down, you’ll want to finish it as fast as possible because it’s hard to put down.
Ozempic is cheating but everyone is looking for shortcuts instead of hard work.
Instant gratification is the greatest way to zap your brain of going for more, our phones are zapping us every day, and we’re programmed the second we have a free second to pick up our phone and start doing something. we’ve eliminated boredom but at what costs? boredom is where great ideas are born or interests and thoughts are pondered.
if something is bothering you, it’s best to get to the bottom of it and fix the problem. nothing good lingers for a long time. most things have solutions. many issues are caused by ourselves not taking the time to reflect on what is bothering us and why.
the WAR of ART has been the only book I come back to and re-read every 2 months when I’m feeling resistance in life and work. it’s a masterpiece and was gifted to me by Casey Niestat - he told me it’s helped him many times in life and I didn’t believe him until I read it the first time and applied a few parts, then kept it on my desk and flipped through pages I underlined and added notes too. highly recommend for everyone, not only for creative people, but for everyone.
support local businesses - give your money to the local hustlers trying to keep their doors open. find that family-owned burger shop instead of the chain. hit local markets. support local farmers. support those trying to keep their lights on. they worry the most about survival.
storytelling wins. he or she who can write and create the best stories will be in high demand. real stories = real attention
this was as far as I got before I shelved this piece - so I’m not going to finish the final 8 because I wrote these all months ago and my mind is in a different place today than in September. Sorry my grammar isn’t great/perfect
-Hunter Weiss
February 3rd, 2025