Recently, as I turned 36, my awesome lovely girlfriend Sarah gave me one of the coolest birthday presents. As one part of a multi-event birthday, she dropped me off at a place called the Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness (MSIA) near Culver City for the afternoon. While this place has its own cult-like spirituality about it, it was basically a super nice antiquated mansion, along with a series of gardens in the back with the purpose of meditation, prayer, and relaxation.

I had 2 hours here to explore this peaceful place.

Sarah had given me a small book with 30 questions to ponder. I realized that 2 hours wasn’t enough time to really think through all of the questions as they would deserve, so I am now doing this here. For the most part I will make these answers public, but there will be some I omit for my own privacy. I write this on a rainy Santa Monica Friday at the mall while dogsitting my little Lola in front of Nordstrom’s. This will be a continual effort, as I expect to take some time to really give each of these some good thought.

That said, here it goes:

1. My favorite way to spend the day is…. waking up early, around 6-7am, then going for a refreshing morning jog to soak in the beach air. It’s a quick 20-30 minute cardio to get the blood moving, and level set for the day. It’s in these moments I like to think about what I’m thankful for, what I need to do, and sometimes even think a prayer while I run. I then come back home for a nice home-cooked breakfast. I then check in for my work, see where we are with numbers, processes, and the such, and get ready for lunch. Usually I’ll cook this too. Sometime midday I’ll go hit the gym, and come back to check in on business once again, and address any necessary items. And on days like today, I love to write. Writing has become something of an outlet- a therapy for me over the years, and it’s something I truly enjoy doing, on paper or digitally. Dinner will come soon thereafter, and I will fill the time with reading, social activities, or these days, simply enjoying a good TV show with Sarah and Lola. Eventually, my favorite day will involve incorporating music production and composition once I develop and hone these skills. That’s a dream day for me. 🙂
2. If I could talk to my teenage self, the one thing I would say is… be more outgoing and grow a pair! I struggled with confidence growing up, and it took a lot to get me out of my shell. What I needed back then was a pep talk from the older me to give me the audacity, the courage, and the boldness to be wrong about things, to be confident and fearless about my image and myself. It was a real struggle for me when I was a teenager, especially, with raging hormones, and an environment that was riddled with cliques, competition, and smack talking.
3. The 2 moments I’ll never forget in my life are. . . The first moment I’ll recollect was back in the New Year’s Eve of 2012. A few buddies and I had gone to Rio, Brazil, and we were celebrating amongst the hundreds of thousands on the huge Copacabana Beach twilight. Upon midnight, we witnessed the most spectacular fireworks show in the bay, with over 7 barges out in the sea launching their lights into the sky. While I was enjoying this however, a local thugster ran full speed, snatched my phone out of my hand, and I immediately followed suit. I caught him, beat him down, but he had handed my phone off to someone in the crowd already. At the risk of getting stabbed or shot, I let it go. The other moment that I remember is saying goodbye to my aunt when I was 12 years old at Incheon Airport. For some reason, I knew it was the last time I’d see her, and I think she might have known it too. As I departed, I took one long last look at her, and said goodbye. She died of ovarian cancer a few months later. She lives on in my memory as my favorite aunt, who united my dad’s side of the family when she was alive. She gave me a hodori doll and a Fila hat, which I keep safe to this day. Perhaps it’s a bit sad that the 2 moments I’ll never forget aren’t the most blissful ones – but it’s the truth of what makes the top of the list… at least for now.
4. Make a list of 30 things that make you smile.  . . .
   1. spending fun times with the people I love
   2. a really good joke
   3. standup comedy
   4. traveling to new places, either by myself or with people
   5. traveling to places I’ve been, either by myself or with people
   6. enjoying really good food in good company
   7. playing drums in a band setting
   8. playing piano in a solo setting
   9. my little doggie Lola
   10. waking up to puppy kisses and Lola sleeping on my neck
   11. when Lola poops or pees ON the pee pad instead of my carpet
   12. when Lola successfully completes a trick
   13. when I find free EV car charging stations that are AVAILABLE
   14. when numbers are good for the day in my business operations
   15. deep conversations with close friends
   16. coasting down the Pacific Coast Highway with the top down
   17. winding through canyon roads in a manual shift car
   18. serving food for the homeless
   19. helping a brotha out in small anonymous ways
   20. bicycling down the beach trail on a hot summer day
   21. laying out on the beach and enjoying the soothing waves
   22. sushi. GOOD sushi makes me smile.
   23. discovering new life hacks that actually work
   24. playing role playing video games – Final Fantasy is my all time fave
   25. playing first person shooter games
   26. playing strategy games even though I suck
   27. this one’s a bit sadistic – when I see prideful people fall
   28. bowling and hitting a strike
   29. writing and spending time by myself
   30. making the people I love truly happy
5. The words I’d like to live by are. . . here I have no cliches or catchy quotes coined by famous people – I take from as many as I can. However, I do have a few of my own that I aspire to live by (not that I always do, but I try). They’re simple: do for others as you’d have done to you – and when you can, do for others more than what you’d do for yourself. The more you do this the closer you are to finding meaning in your life, and the closer you are to meaning, the closer to happiness you are. Live a life you won’t regret- you really only get one chance. Time is the enemy, so don’t waste it or it will waste you (from a Muse song). You can’t love what you don’t know, so get to know people and things as much as you can – then hopefully love will follow. Money certainly doesn’t always buy happiness, but damn when those bills are taken care of, I’m pretty damn happy! Don’t be afraid to pursue dreams at the expense of stability. I say this at the risk of sounding irresponsible, but if you do it right, being “stable” may actually be more irresponsible than it seems in the long run. Be honest in all your dealings – it actually gives you a peace of mind more than anything. Don’t hold grudges or hatred towards others, especially the people you love. It’s such a damn headache to carry around that angst and bitterness that festers like an infected wound. Forgive, and if you can, leave it in the past. Breaches of trust should never be forgotten, however, and trust is extremely difficult to regain once it’s lost. If you can, don’t allow others to waste your time. They might cost you money, but you can get money back from any number of places. Time, you’ll never get back – so don’t let people steal it from you. Finally, be bold and unafraid to make mistakes. It’s the only way to truly learn how to succeed.
6. I couldn’t imagine living without. . . if we’re talking about anything and everything, obviously the people in my life who are integral to my life – I couldn’t live without them. If we’re talking about objects, I guess I’d have to say it’s my MacBook Pro that I’m typing on. This awesome portable workstation is what I use to do everything digital, everywhere worldwide. This little machine has everything I need.
7. Make a list of the people in your life who genuinely support you, and who you can genuinely trust. I won’t list names here for the protection of their privacy – but they know who they are.
8. What does unconditional love look like for you? It’s the kind of love that is fatalistically beautiful and unrealistic at the same time. The only true unconditional love comes from one who lays down their life for another.
9. I really wish others knew this about me. . . hmmmm. there’s nothing really that I yearn for others to know about me that they don’t already know. I definitely don’t have a wish for anything.
10. If my body could talk, it would say. . . Stop drinking so much, watch your carbs, eat right, and for goodness sake lose the weight! YOU CAN DO IT, come ON!
11. Name a compassionate way you’ve supported a friend recently. Then write down how you can do the same for yourself. I helped someone out financially recently and they didn’t even know it. I’ve also been helping this person form their business ideas pro bono. There are other details I could include here but I would begin to incriminate myself.
12. What do you love about life? That it is new every day, that it rewards the bold, that it is filled with rich experiences and growth. I love that there is opportunity everywhere, and that I can spend the little time I have on earth experiencing joys with the people I love. THAT’S what I love about life.
13. What always brings tears to your eyes? Sappy Korean dramas, getting my heart broken, making other people happy, and other people who are crying, sometimes. I am not afraid to cry.
14. Using 10 words, describe yourself. writer. musician. traveler. food-lover. entrepreneur. lover. helper. ninja. efficient. batman-wannabe.
15. What has surprised you the most about your life or life in general? So far, it’s that I’ve been able to break through and create a $10M business from scratch. I thought that was impossible at first, but every day, I realize it more and more. It took a looooong way to get setup to do this riddled with countless failures, and looking back, I see each step of the way as being critical to my success. It’s a surprise to me that I have been able to do this at all.
16. What can you learn from your biggest mistakes? 1. Don’t trust pretty girls – they will trample on you when they find weakness, and they will find it eventually 2. Ego can destroy friendships and business partnerships (sometimes even before they begin) 3. Always leave yourself a buffer of money to survive for at least 4 months. 4. Cut bait with people and things in your life that consume excessive amounts of your time for no reason. Yes it’s good to enjoy once in awhile and smell the flowers and all that jazz, but when you find yourself going out 4 days a week and blowing cash on bottles, it’s time to do some spring cleaning of your life and your schedule.
17. I feel most energized when. . . more to come soon
18. Write a list of questions to which you urgently need answers. 
19. Make a list of everything that inspires you – from books to websites to quotes to people etc. 
20. What is one topic you need to learn more about to help you live a more fulfilling life?
21. I feel happiest in my skin when.  . .
22. Make a list of everything you’d like to say no to. 
23. Make a list of everything you’d like to say yes to. 
24. Write the words you need to hear.