Success Without Presence Is Empty

Dear friends,

What is the value of success if you can’t enjoy it?

How many times have you accomplished the goal you’ve been ruminating about and, in the moment you’ve been so dearly waiting for, you think about the next thing you’re looking forward to?

One of my most prominent experiences of this manner occurred at a Jcole concert. This was a concert I couldn’t have even dreamed of— Jcole is my favorite musical artist, and my mom bought me tickets for my eighteenth birthday for his one-time-only show at Madison Square Garden. I was absolutely ecstatic. Then, at the concert, I remember clearly thinking about how amazing it would be if I got to see him on tour for his release of “The Fall Off”: his final album.

How crazy is that?! I was amidst an experience of a lifetime, one I had been intensely emotionally salivating over for weeks, and I was thinking about another experience in the future!?

How absurd is that?

Be present goddammit Jack, I said to myself.

But how?

How can we override the millennia of human conditioning to constantly be thinking about the next thing and actually enjoy what we’ve been looking forward to?

I don’t know, but I’m trying to figure it out.

The idea of being totally and completely present all of the time is unrealistic and, frankly, unattractive as well; however, I would like to figure out how to become more present during the times that I want to be.

Instead of being a slave to whatever power is controlling my present and distracted on and off switch, I want to be able to control that. From my understanding, that is what meditation will do for you through consistent practice.

I have been meditating 10-15 minutes a day on and off for the last two and a half years, and I can confirm that it definitely helps, but for some reason, I really struggle to prioritize meditation as a high-priority task. If I am faced with the choice between meditation and working out or working on a podcast, meditation takes the back seat 99/100 times.

I need to work on this because, as I said at the very beginning, what meaning does the success I achieve through that work even mean if I can’t cherish it? From what I can tell if I don’t prioritize controlling my presence, I will just end up with a series of empty successes.

It would be a lie to say that I am writing this because I hope it helps you, whoever is reading this, prioritize appreciating your successes. I would love that to be a consequence of this, but the real reason is to reinforce in my brain that I need to work on prioritizing meditation. I need to. When I meditate, I feel so much better. I don’t quite know how to explain the things I feel, but it is amazing, and I am going to try to feel that as often as I can. I hope you can too.

The Grateful Podcast:

I have a podcast where I interview people much smarter and more qualified than me talking about how you can live a more purposeful life full of gratitude and ambition. 
I release episodes every Monday where I go over a lesson I’ve recently learned.

Every Wednesday and Saturday I release an episode with a very cool guest. 

You can subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or find the video version on YouTube.

This week’s episodes:

Monday: Success Without Presence Is Empty

I will dive into my thought process writing this newsletter and more personal examples of feeding obsession through scarcity.

Wednesday: Breaking the Chains of Toxic Fitness Culture with Mike Pridgen

Saturday: Chef Evan Hennessey on The Grateful Podcast (not yet titled)

Coaching:

If you’re ready to take action and need guidance, I’d love to help.

I have limited space available so if you’re interested, book a free 15-minute call with me to discuss your dreams and how to start making them happen. 

You can shoot me an email at [email protected] where we can get scheduled.

Make this week rock. Thank you so much for reading this; I’ll see you next week.

With love,

Jack Wagoner