What would my 2036 self be frustrated to discover I was still tolerating after September 2026? 1. FRAME — What is 2026 actually about? Start with Ben’s original questions, but press beyond the first answer. What does 2026 mean to me and my life? - If I had to give this year a title, what would it be? - What is the deeper theme beneath everything that has happened? - What has 2026 been trying to teach me that I resisted learning? - Where have I changed most since January? - What has become clearer about who I am? - What has become clearer about who I am not? - What matters to me now that mattered much less nine months ago? - What did I think 2026 was going to be about—and what has it actually been about? Then ask: What would make 2026 a genuinely pivotal year rather than simply another year? 2. THE 2036 VIEW — Let the future judge the present Now go ten years out. Imagine it is September 25, 2036. You are looking back at this period of your life. Ask yourself: - Why did 2026 turn out to matter so much? - What decision did I make in 2026 that changed the trajectory of the next decade? - What did I finally stop doing? - What did I finally become willing to pursue? - What relationship, opportunity, capability, or identity began here? - What did I have the courage to walk away from? - What did I stop needing permission for? - What did my 2036 self eventually realize I was dramatically underestimating in 2026? - What did I think was a huge risk then that now looks obvious? - What did I nearly miss because I was too busy maintaining my current life? And one especially useful question: What would my 2036 self be frustrated to discover I was still tolerating after September 2026? 3. FLOOR — What can no longer come with you? Hardy defines the floor as the cutoff: what you filter out and therefore no longer do. A bigger future raises that floor because many current options simply cannot produce the future you want. So ask: - What am I tolerating that the next version of me would immediately eliminate? - Where am I lowering my standards because something is familiar, comfortable, profitable, or hard to disappoint? - What commitments belong to an earlier version of me? - Which goals once mattered but are now lesser goals? - What am I continuing simply because I have already invested time, money, reputation, or emotion into it? - What activities make me feel productive while actually keeping me small? - What relationships or roles require me to remain an outdated version of myself? - Where am I solving the same problem repeatedly instead of changing the system? - What am I saying yes to because I fear what saying no would mean?

Clegg shared some excellent prompts for our call today to help us finish the year strong. I put these on a slide deck to facilitate our meeting. Looking forward to discussing this with you.

Today's call link will be for a Zoom as discussed last week.

We've talked about this in the last few Friday calls. Thought I would share with the group. https://youtu.be/tp7TQJ2q5QE?si=00QkN7Im6In4Qh4z I've been working to serve young men growing up without fatherly guidance for years now. I have had some successes along the way, but at the cost of my professional salary, which I stepped away from when I felt directed to do what I'm doing now. There have been a couple of times in this 8-year journey where I have decided to stop. In both cases something happened to point me back to continue making videos giving instruction, encouragement, and love to those who don't have the benefit of a loving, involved dad. I still don't know how this will work out, but I know this is what He wants me to do right now, whether or not I attain the success I hope for with these efforts. Hopefully this might give some of you encouragement too.

For those of you that cannot make it that are in the US. I hope you have a great three day weekend and are ready to get back after it following the holiday week.