I had a depressed thought in Patagonia…

I had a depressed thought in Patagonia…

I planned my entire life, my company, my relationships—everything—around being able to live remotely.

And at the top of my dream “where do I want to live” list was Patagonia.

So I took the leap and moved.

It was better than expected… summer in Patagonia?

The weather. The people. The f*cking food.

We explored the park, handled work, made new friends, and tried new foods.

And still, sometimes I had depressing thoughts.

I then realized something… I have also had wildly optimistic and invigorating thoughts in shitty, stressful times—like when my mom had a heart attack and I was in the hospital with her.

Our environment does not dictate our energy. We control it.

You can overcome your environment, but that’s not the lesson here. We all know that.

The lesson here is that there is no environment, no thing, and no accomplishment that will allow you to escape yourself.

It’s clear: if we are going to spend resources—time, money, energy—optimizing anything, it should be ourselves.

Not anything material.

Meditate before you work in the morning.

Journal before you watch a TV show at night.

Invest in a service like a therapist, a mastermind group, or a community event before buying the new iPhone.

Resources are limited. Rank your values and spend your resources accordingly.