Pursue Purpose, not Pleasure.

Our brains are constantly seeking pleasure.

Pleasure is transactional.

When you focus on finding your Purpose and nurturing it, its transformational.

Here are 9 ways to trick our moist robot brains into focusing on purpose instead of sticky-sweet pleasure.

1. Go backward.

Focus on where you will be in five years and work backward from there, developing long-term rewards.

2. Find meaning in small tasks.

Success is found in a thousand little things, not one audacious act. Recognize the daily systems that contribute to your greater purpose.

3. Build a value-driving routine.

Pleasure comes and goes, but purpose is sustained by consistent action. Build a daily routine based on your core values and let those guide your actions.

4. Enrichment beats excitement.

Pleasure excites us, but purpose fulfills us. Dont get me wrongI want that pleasure just as much as you do, but we need to mix it up with activities and relationships that leave us feeling enriched, not just entertained.

5. Get uncomfortable.

Chasing pleasure avoids discomfort, but purpose requires it. Everything we want to achieve is on the other side of being uncomfortable.

6. Contribution over consumption.

Pleasure focuses on consuming experiences or things. Purpose is about what you can give. How can I add value to others? Add value, and then let the Law of Reciprocity kick in.

7. Connections beat validation.

Seeking validation from others is a form of pleasure-seeking. Ive learned that nurturing genuine connections in business (and life) helps me grow and align with my values.

8. Focus on who youre becoming, not what youre getting.

Pleasure focuses on external rewards super transactional. Purpose focuses on internal transformation.

9. One page per day.

Write, write, write. Keep a journal, write a post on X, or send a long text to someone you care about. Reflect on the actions you took today that helped you achieve your purpose.

TL;DR: Pursuing Purpose > Pleasure

This stuff is hard. Im constantly seeking short-term pleasure, engagement, views on X, more sales, etc.

But my purpose is to add value to my life and others.

The more I give, the more I receive.

Whats your take?

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Adapt or Die

From November through January, I spend a lot of time near Sushi rice.

Let me explain

I've been waterfowl hunting since a buddy of mine in college took me along for a wet and freezing hunt years ago.

About 10 years ago, we secured a blind on a rice farm in the Sacramento Valley. This farm grows Sushi rice, most slated for export to Japan.

Shinto Priests will be at the farm in the spring, blessing the water and ensuring that the new rice shoots are handled according to their rules.

After the rice is harvested in the fall, the farmers used to light a match and burn up the dried-out rice stalks.

Thousands of acres of rice stubble.

This wasn't good. The smoke and ash were bad for everyone.

Burning was outlawed.

Did the farmers stop growing rice?

Nope.

They adapted and changed.

Now, the farmers flood the fields with water to decompose the stubble during the winter.

This has the added benefit of attracting waterfowl and other wildlife. It's like a massive marsh that is filled with wildlife.

The takeaway is that everything changes. Your life, your business, the products and services you sell.

Understanding that change is the only constant allows us to adapt and thrive.

Have a great week!

Shannon

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