Today I turn 55. I’m the fittest, sharpest, and happiest I’ve ever been. If I’m an outlier, it’s not because I’m built different or discovered a secret formula. The truth is far less glamorous: It’s a million tiny choices, compounded over decades. Here are 55 of them: 1. Walk 15+ miles a week, even if you do other exercise. Humans are uniquely made to move slowly over long distances—it’s critical to longevity. 2. Develop a writing practice. It’s the single best way to sharpen your mind. And remember, you don’t have to be a good writer to write. Start with 10 minutes a day. 3. Swap out your toothpaste, deodorant, lotions, soap, shampoo, and other personal care products for natural versions. Here’s a rule of thumb: Don’t put anything on your skin that you couldn’t safely eat. 4. If you have a positive thought about someone, don’t keep it to yourself—share it immediately. Encouragement defies the laws of physics: When you give energy, you also receive it. 5. Wear shoes with a wide forefoot (I like Topo Athletic) and wear toe spreaders around the house (search “yoga toes” on Amazon). Spine health begins with the feet. 6. Get sunlight regularly. Moderate sun exposure (without sunscreen) is hugely important for overall health. 7. Do a 3-minute deep (“ass to grass”) squat every morning. Deep squats are often called the anti-aging exercise. It’s been said that, “It’s not that you can’t do deep squats because you’re old, it’s that you’re old because you can’t do deep squats.” 8. Explore minimalism (it’s not what you think it is). 9. Set boundaries on toxic relationships. We tend to cling to relationships past their expiration date, and it takes a bigger toll on our health than we recognize. 10. Eat real food. Not too much. Don’t eat garbage. Binge occasionally. Fast occasionally. That’s the diet. 11. Learn about FIRE. It’s a great framework for financial success. 12. Don’t take antibiotics except in emergency situations. They’re massively over-prescribed and aren’t needed in most cases. Antibiotics have done untold damage to our guts, which is where health begins. Great natural alternatives are out there. 13. Get 8 hours of quality sleep each night. To optimize sleep: —Don’t eat after 6pm —Get blackout shades and cover LEDs with black tape —No screens 2 hours before bed —Try ashwagandha (an herb) to calm the nervous system 14. Stop drinking, even in moderation. People find all sorts of ways to justify drinking, but there’s no escaping the simple fact that alcohol is a toxin and it limits your potential. 15. Travel as much as possible. Nothing expands the mind like seeing the world. And travel doesn’t have to be expensive—the best experiences happen outside of fancy resorts, when you live like a local. 16. Let go of resentment. When you forgive someone, you release the prisoner, and the prisoner isn’t them… it’s you. 17. Show up on time, every time. Poor time management limits success more than most people realize. If you struggle with punctuality, stop everything else and fix that first. 18. Spend lots of time in nature and touch the earth. Humans evolved over 300k years to live in harmony with nature, and only recently have we retreated indoors. If you don’t spend time outside, you’re fighting biology (hint: You won’t win.) 19. Stop doing dumb things. As Leo Tolstoy said, “People try to do all sorts of clever and difficult things to improve life instead of doing the simplest, easiest thing—refusing to participate in activities that make life bad.” 20. Find your happy place and (eventually) move there. Most people live where they live because... that's where they live. We are products of our environment—choose yours carefully. 21. Find a hobby and pursue mastery. You can’t have a happy life without a passionate pursuit that isn’t your vocation. Your work—even if you enjoy it—isn’t enough. 22. Avoid mainstream medicine except as a last resort. The results are in—our healthcare (or more appropriately, sick care) system is badly broken and only makes people sicker. 23. Have a mindset of abundance. There is no advantage to being a pessimist—even if you’re right, it’s a miserable way to live. In a very real way… whatever you believe, you’re right! 24. Do hard things. Choose courage over comfort. Everything you want is on the other side of fear and hard work. As Jerzy Gregorik said, “Hard choices, easy life. Easy choices, hard life.” 25. Ignore haters. Hurt people hurt people. Negative/toxic people live in a prison of their own design. Don’t join them! 26. Say no. Protect your time and energy like it’s your most precious asset… because it is. 27. Become a water snob. As an alien said on Star Trek, humans are “ugly bags of mostly water.” You are what you drink—literally! We have Mountain Valley Spring water delivered in glass 5-gallon jugs and also have whole-house water filter (Aquasana Rhino). 28. Stop drinking sodas and sugary energy drinks. After a few weeks you won’t miss them, and a few months later they’ll seem disgusting. Refined sugar causes inflammation, which is the root of most disease. 29. If you’re over 35, find a good functional/longevity medicine doctor and start tracking your hormones. Modern life is hell on the endocrine system and restoring healthy hormone levels can change your life. As we get older, we either accept a slow decline in performance or we do something about it—choose the latter! 30. Develop a morning routine and follow it faithfully. Win the morning, win the day! 31. Invest in experiences, not things. People frequently regret buying things, but rarely regret investing in great experiences (especially when shared with loved ones). Remember, there’s nothing you can buy in a mall that you’ll remember in ten years. 32. Explore spirituality. It’s arrogant and small-minded to believe there’s nothing going on in our universe that is beyond our comprehension. We know less about our universe than an ant meandering on a sidewalk understands about this planet. 33. Have a strong bias toward action—doing rather than talking. If you ask a bunch of old people about their regrets, they’ll talk about the things they *didn't* do—the shots they didn’t take—more than the things they did do (even if it went wrong). As Wayne Gretzky famously said, “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” Most people don’t take enough shots. 34. Stay lean. Men in particular are obsessed with muscle mass these days, but bulk doesn’t age well. The goal is to be strong but lean. The fittest guys in their 50s and beyond aren’t meatheads, they’re lean guys who are serious about a sport. 35. Curate your inner circle carefully. Surround yourself with people you admire and who challenge you to grow. Remember, we’re the average of our 5 closest relationships. 36. Be the fittest version of yourself. Your body is your only vessel for experiencing life—so treat it as such. Fitness isn’t working out a few times a week, it’s a lifestyle. The older you get, the more time you need to devote to your health. 37. Take the time to appreciate art and beauty in all its forms. 38. Think globally, but act locally. Too many people put their energy into far-away problems they don’t understand and can’t impact, while ignoring problems right under their nose. Want to change the world? Start at home. 39. Try psychedelics. It’s one of those things everyone should do at least once, and it might be the breakthrough you’ve been looking for. 40. Limit bad habits, including unhealthy thought patterns. We all have them—practice avoidance and find substitutes. Get professional help if needed. 41. Be a lifelong learner. Your brain is just like a muscle—if you don’t feed and flex it regularly, it will atrophy. 42. Find your purpose. People with a strong sense of purpose are happier and live longer. Lack of purpose sucks energy and magnifies depression. 43. Only take advice from people who embody the traits you want to have. Talk is cheap—emulate those who have DONE it. 44. The goal is not to retire and do nothing, it’s to build a great day-to-day life that you don’t need to escape. A life of leisure is a slow death. Happiness isn’t possible without a little struggle, uncertainty, and skin in the game. 45. Have fun! Do frivolous and silly things that make you smile. As George Bernard Shaw famously said, “We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” 46. Whatever you want to do or achieve in life, start NOW. Don’t fall victim to “someday thinking” because someday never comes. 47. Accumulate assets—things that grow in value over time. It’s the #1 habit of rich people, and it can be done in tiny chunks. Instead of spending $100 on an impulse purchase that has no lasting value, put that money into an index fund or Bitcoin. It becomes addictive (in a good way). 48. Don’t ignore the big 3 canaries in the coal mine for health: —Low libido (and ED) —Frequent sinus & respiratory issues —Depression These usually aren’t medical conditions in themselves, they’re symptoms of an underlying problem. Find a good doc (outside of the mainstream) and figure out the root cause. 49. Have a clear vision for your future. How can you decide which direction to go if you haven’t clearly defined the destination? It sounds obvious, but 95% of people haven’t defined their “Ideal End State” in detail and in writing. (Check out my thread on this topic.) 50. Make your own decisions. We live in an era where most of what society tells us is wrong. Don’t be afraid to break from societal norms—if people say you’re crazy, it’s a sign that you’re doing something right. 51. Get hardcore about mobility exercise. As you age, it’s usually the knees, hips, and lower back that limit physical performance. 30 min a couple times a week can spare you a lifetime of pain. YouTube is a great resource. 52. Go all in on family. Get married, stay married, have kids. Burn the boats. In the end, family is all that matters. 53. Be ruthless with your time. Money comes and goes. Time only goes. Audit your calendar ruthlessly—cut the trivial, double down on the meaningful, and spend your hours like your life depends on it. (Because it does.) 54. Have a strong bias toward action. Be curious, try things, meet people—it’s how you increase your surface area for serendipity, the most powerful unseen force in our lives. 55. Reinvent yourself every decade. Over time, we slowly drift off course from our priorities, values, and true identity. Take stock and don’t be afraid to hit the reset button. Bold, calculated moves made for the right reasons almost always pay off—usually even more than you can imagine. 🎁 P.S. If you enjoyed this post, would you give me a birthday gift? Repost or comment with the item number(s) you liked best?

I have a friend who is worth $50 million and makes another $5 million every year. But he parks in the remote lot at the airport. I jokingly call him the world's worst rich person. There's a lot to be said for staying humble and living below your means, but also… In the end, money is just numbers in the ether. The only thing it's good for is improving our lived experience and helping others do the same. Money can't buy happiness, but it sure can eliminate a lot of hassle. What’s the value of your time and state of mind? The amount of time I want to spend on a shuttle bus from the remote lot is zero. I’ve earned that right. This sticky note hangs on our fridge at home. It's become our family mantra. My wife and I are careful spenders. We don’t buy a lot of fancy things, but our budget for experiences is unlimited. And often it’s the little things that make experiences great. Just yesterday, I treated my daughter and me to upgrades on an upcoming flight. The cost was $300. Her reaction… 
Priceless. P.S. To be clear, my overly frugal friend is extraordinarily generous. He gives millions to help others.

Predictably, the CA “Billionaire Tax” is a net negative. And that’s just the short term impact. The bigger long term impact is losing the world’s greatest entrepreneurs, employers, and capital allocators to other states.

Despite what the hustle bros on X tell you… You can be ambitious without living life on hard mode. There’s a season to grind, but seasons are temporary.

On September 13, 2025 I had my best day ever on the rock (and one of the best days of my life). What’s equally notable is… I remember almost nothing about it. I sent an objective called Jurassic Park. It’s a 5 pitch linkup that goes at 12a, 13a, 13a, 12b, 11b. I became the oldest (and heaviest) person to send it. I was so deep into the flow state that my conscious mind shut off. Basically, I blacked out. It felt like I was floating. I get chills when I think about it. If you’re lucky, you get two or three days like that in your life. Most people will never experience it because they don’t show up enough times for the stars to align.

In my early teens, I tagged along with my dad to look at some warehouses. An older guy in denim overalls was fixing a broken bay door. He was covered in grease, had a cigar in his mouth, and spoke with a thick Texas accent. Dad spoke to this guy for a long time, so on the drive home I asked, “Why did you talk to that repairman for so long?” Dad's response blew my young mind: “He’s not a repairman. He owns dozens of warehouses and is probably the wealthiest guy in town.” I thought "successful" people wore suits and sat in corner offices, but I had it all wrong... Most of those suits are just highly paid employees. Real wealth is having money AND control. Doing exactly what you choose... even if that means getting dirty. Fast forward 40 years, and if you bump into me in Boulder there's a good chance I'll be wearing a tattered tshirt and shorts, covered with dirt and blood from rock climbing. I’m the guy in the overalls (though I’m far from the wealthiest guy in town) and I can confirm it feels pretty cool.

Reminder: Like most markets, the auto market is efficient. Everything is priced in. In this case, 50% off today… and the other 50% paid as repairs over the next three years.

I’m lazy. Way too lazy to deal with the consequences of bad choices. Cleaning up messes is too much work. So I’ll sweep the floor today to make my life easier tomorrow. If you’re lazy like me, here’s a foolproof formula for avoiding a lot of work (and heartache): 1) Do things that make your life easier. 2) Stop doing things that make your life harder. (And quit pretending you don’t know which is which.) A surprisingly small amount of work done consistently—day after day, year after year—makes life a whole lot easier. And yet most people choose hard. I guess they’re not as lazy as me. 📸: "Sweeping the floor" to make my next crag session a little easier. I’m lazy like that.

Of the 50+ podcasts I’ve done, this is by far the most in-depth and personal. I bet you’ll hear one thing that will change the way you think about life. (Apple and Spotify links in the comments below.) piped.video/watch?v=9mBbRxGf…

Last night / This morning Vegas is the best place on Earth for high contrast experiences.

You’re not exhausted because you do too much. You’re exhausted because you do *too little* of what stirs your soul. There’s an old saying: “Most men die at 25 and aren't buried until they're 75.” We become adults and lose our sense of wonder and adventure. We abandon the things that make us feel alive. Let me ask you a question: What are you looking forward to? Today, tomorrow, next week, next year? Do you leap out of bed most mornings, excited for the day ahead? Or are you just going through the motions? That’s no way to live. An exciting life doesn’t happen by accident. You have to build it. Kick-start it TODAY by… Doing someone a favor Going for a long walk Reconnecting with an old friend Saying hi to that cute guy or girl Trying a new hobby Putting a trip on the calendar Doing something that scares you a bit Going to church today Life is electric, bro. But only if you make it so.

Another stop on the comeback tour... and a photographer tagged along. I had to go "a muerte" to send this one. It's the best I've felt since surgery. ✅ Hasta La Hueco, 5.12d 5.6 ✅ 5.7 ✅ 5.8 ✅ 5.9 ✅ 5.10 ✅ 5.11a ✅ 5.11b ✅ 5.11c ✅ 5.11d ✅ 5.12a ✅ 5.12b ✅ 5.12c ✅ 5.12d ✅ 5.13a Photo credit: Tristan Blommer (TristanBlommer.com)

A key to a great life: Find the thing you’re obsessed about. The weirder, the better. ⭕️ Check out the latest episode of The Inner Circle below or on Apple or Spotify.

<This post will change someone’s life.> There's no such thing as wealth inside The Matrix. Not even the richest people have real freedom and contentment. I had this epiphany after reaching the top of the corporate ladder and observing that most of my peers were miserable, with poor health, broken families, and no interests outside of work. At one point, my boss—a CEO worth over $100 million—confided in me: “I’m not happy and I don’t know what to do about it.” Meanwhile, through rock climbing I observed lots of people who were relatively poor, but had vibrant lives, full of adventure, connection, and meaning. These people escaped The Matrix. My friend Tom is one example: Tom has never made more than $75k/year, but lives a richer life than 99% of Americans: > Does gig work he enjoys, on a schedule he controls > Lives on $40k, invests the rest > No debt and a nice nest egg > Climbs, restores classic cars, goes to 50+ concerts a year > Travels 3 months a year > Shares a nice rental home with his fiancée @p_millerd is another example (check out his book, The Pathless Path). The lives Tom and Paul have built aren’t possible in The Matrix, where people organize their entire lives around their job, then spend all their money on stuff they don’t really want to impress people they don’t really care about. Most people don’t even know they’re in The Matrix... or that there’s an alternate universe out there of people who’ve chosen to opt out of society’s stupid games. It’s time to take the red pill: Step one is to search your soul and decide what kind of life you really want (not what society tells you to want). I call it The Ideal End State (see the comments below for more details). I’ve gone through this exercise with over a hundred people, from billionaire business tycoons to broke college students. It turns out that most of us want the same basic things: > Control of our time > Challenging, meaningful work done on our terms > A lasting marriage and thriving family > A strong, fit body > A bulletproof inner circle of friends > An inspiring place to live That life doesn’t require fabulous riches, but… It does require courage. You have to be willing to go against the grain of society. People will call you crazy. But when you make the leap, you’ll find that you’re not alone. And you’ll realize that you're not the crazy one. It's those who are still inside The Matrix.