Advice to My 22-Year-Old Self

a few steps on the path to an adventurous life

Find a constructive obsession 
and stick with it

Pursue moments of deep solitude and deep connection
and little in-between

Have a goddamn love affair with books
and articles, podcasts, documentaries—anything long-form

Be in a primary relationship with yourself
and an orgy with the universe¹

Work for dignity, purpose,
and occasionally money

Find someone who will teach you to work hard
and pay you for the privilege

Find something you do well enough to charge a high hourly rate
and don’t do too much of it

Fuck Instagram²
and mother-fuck the Joneses

Walk, run, ride, swim, paddle, trek
and do not assume you can tomorrow

Stop measuring times and distances
and start measuring states of mind

Become a ninja of hospitality
and forever-welcome vagabond houseguest

Become an instigator of low-cost good times
and see every dollar saved as a drop of freedom

Acknowledge your privilege
and redistribute it globally

Realize we already live
in a fully automated luxury communist future

Become a decrepit old tanguero of the soul
forever on the dance floor at midnight

Tango dancing at Not Back to School Camp, 2017

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I recently published an interview about my obsession with adventure. Listen here or search “Off-Trail Learning” wherever podcasts are found.

1. I borrowed this excellent phrase from Mel Mariposa.

2. Instagram didn’t exist when I was 22, but you take the point.