Garbage gone perhaps inner conflicts or poor mood… then you want to focus on other things like finding a romantic partner.
This is simply a direct question.
What do you think about taking a 7 day wash out?
This is something I’ve done only in times of severe recon, such as during DR ST2. I don’t see the point of it now.
There’s so much stuff to journal about. The daily journaling habit dropped off hard, as evident in this journal right now. But where do I begin…well first things first, I’m going to a meetup tomorrow that’s centered around meeting new people and making friends. I’m curious how that will go.
It’s clear to me that I have a habit of overthinking. I need to start journaling daily again
Let’s Journal Again
Listening of the day:
- MFO
- Paragon Sleep (Listening Now!)
Today is my first day listening after a five-day washout. Unfortunately, it has been quite some time since I journaled daily. It fell off. All the overthinking and fears I came up with during a significant portion of this summer left me in a state of distraction and lack of motivation tothe journal. This is funny, because daily in-depth journaling would have helped me resolve some of my concerns a lot sooner and more efficiently. By this point a few of my close friends have advised to avoid overthinking, to take some time off (from work and other things), and even go so far as to say “take just one thing and think about that for an hour.” They were somewhat facetious there, but I took that as a sign to do journaling.
It’s clear to me that I have overthought a lot of issues lately. I would like to manifest an end to this. Anyways, this overthinking hasn’t done me much good lately. Especially since it doesn’t get connected to actions or anything else done to solve perceived problems. And if we’re to consider the act of manifesting, then overthinking can perpetuate the problem that the thinking is around.
There was even a point earlier today when I was thinking about how to stop overthinking. 
The Positive Drive Principle
There is an extremely interesting yet simple insight that I read about recently.
We consider the following observation to be self-evident: every single person, in everything they do, is just trying to achieve/maintain a happy existence.
Since reading about it I have thought a lot about it as I looked to solve a particular longstanding matter of mine. However, in days recently I have thought about how this applies in a general sense, far beyond that original matter. I bolded the part of the quote to show that the quote itself already implicates this far-reaching aspect. I thought about it for food, for when I choose to go out and hang with friends, for the things I think I should do for dating/romance. And now?.. I’m seeing how this principle applies to overthinking.
In the source text this may be likened to a heavy preference to think a lot. It is true, I do like to think a lot. I like to think a lot because I believe doing so will help me solve the problem at hand. Ultimately, there is a notion that I like to think a lot because I believe it will make me happier. But is that true? Has that been true? Especially in that first month after getting the virus I was thinking A LOT about my situation. Most of those thoughts have not provided much value and just caused unnecessary worry and anxiety!
I think I can think about 50% less and be at the same level I am today. I am referring to thinking outside of work since my work is inherently very analytical and knowledge base. I just look at this weekend and all the thoughts I have had during my idle times and have wondered why I choose to think such negative, dramatic thoughts. They just don’t help.
I clearly have the capacity to think much less while being conscious. It happened when I watched the TV show I did an hour ago, when I read, and when I focus on my precision-based sport. When I do these things I am effectively giving myself the permission to not do the thinking, because there is something else to think about, and thinking in that direction is what will make me happier at that moment.
I don’t have to spin my wheels at every given moment. If there’s nothing happening, why not take the time to enjoy the silence a little bit?
And even if in the end I think there are cases were thinking a lot helps, do it in a more effective and productive manner. Journaling fits that bill and it’s something I can do every single day—it is not dependent on the right people being around at the time of the thoughts.
1 Like
Emotionally Moved
Rest Day.
Today is also a day where I worked from home. I strayed a little bit from the tenets of the positive drive principle during the workday—or rather, I distracted myself the incorrect way by means of pmo. Under the positive drive principle, I have been seriously questioning myself whether pmo is an action that’s going to make me happier both in the moment and in the long term. The case in favor of pmo weakens by the day. The more I critically think about it, the more I understand that it is simply beliefs that have drived that behavior and the way out is to consider the myriad other options I have—be it certain courses of action such as eating or watching funny videos or just letting the uncomfortable feeling be, because I know for a fact that it is temporary, as has been proven time and time again.
I feel the days in which I believe in using pmo in any shape or form are numbered and are coming to an end very soon. In fact, it’s possible that the last session is truly the final one. But if there’s anything I’ve learned, it’s that I need to give myself more time and space to think about the benefits of alternatives. This is a key reason why I think I should still go to the office frequently for a bit, at least during this early phase. What I would like to see is that in these next 18 days, I do a lot of thinking and reevaluation about the practice. I firmly conclude that in all possible situations, pmo is not the answer as it does not take me closer to happiness. All of the other options I have on hand get me closer to happiness, while simultaneously leave me feeling free. As a result of all of this, I attain true mental freedom from pmo and become totally abstinent from it. That carries easily into the trip that starts at the beginning of the next month, where the trip itself lasts multiple weeks. I’m away from my regular environment and I’m having too much fun so of course, that abstinence is on full display. So when I come back, it will have been many, many days and if it wasn’t already obvious before then that I was free, it will become obvious then.
I came here today to continue the journaling habit and also to remark on a profound speech I got from a good friend of mine today. He told me that I should not worry so much about finding my ideal relationship so soon. That just because I moved out and got my own place, getting into a relationship isn’t the immediate next step. This speech was particularly hard-hitting because he is in a similar place as me with regard to dating/relationships, has a similar cultural background, and is a few years older. Somehow he managed to embody the attitude of it not worrying him—another way to put it is that he isn’t pressuring himself. There’s a lot more to moving out than just being able to foster romantic relationships more easily. It’s about being able to enable experiences that allow me to truly grow up. To become independent—because moving out doesn’t automatically mean I have achieved full independence. To reflect, think, and change as a person. To fully mature and learn about myself. Don’t let myself be pressured by the time I have at the apartment. Be open to living in other parts of the country (this one, I quickly agreed on). He encouraged that.
I got so emotional because of how this guy was encouraging me to live my life properly. How, despite him being in a similar situation dating-wise, he’s taken an approach and attitude that is nearly the opposite of mine. I knew when I was listening to his speech that it was a speech I needed to hear.
I know for a fact I have been pressuring myself hard. Even though I am not living with my parents anymore and I am doing my best to not attend the cultural events of the related community, there’s still the pressure within me. It has been demonstrated above. It is why I have been upset and sad at things like why I haven’t been getting any results on online dating apps. Or even if I attend some interesting events (which I have started to this month) I feel a bit down because I do not walk out of there with a substantial result. This attitude was a factor in my infrequent journaling during the recent weeks. To be running MFO, Daredevil, and PCC and seemingly have little to say is disheartening.
But the small results are there. I’ve noticed some things which suggest I am shifting…but they are slower than I’d like them to be. 
At the same time, I AM shifting. 
So in the same way Joseph Rodriguez concludes his videos, I’m going to conclude this with a few statements that may be construed as affirmations, autosuggestions or manifestations.
- I take time to live my life properly, enjoy the present moment and fully grow up as an individual beyond that which is related to dating.
- I allow the process of relationships to unfold properly and I enjoy the process. As much as I have seen that other events and circumstances have unfolded and occurred at the right time, so too will relationships show up at the right now.
- I relieve myself of the pressure I have been giving myself where that pressure says I need to get into some kind of relationship (short term, long term or otherwise) right now.
- I allow the action I do take in general to feel effortless and natural.
- I trust the process and understand that while subliminals like MFO, Daredevil and PCC haven’t led me to those outstanding results which get double-digit likes here () that doesn’t mean they aren’t working. Things add up day by day.
- I am choosing to enjoy each day as they come.
2 Likes
More To Say
Listened:
- Daredevil
- PCC
In the first half of today, I spent my time staying on top of things at work. I started becoming more aware that there are some things missing in my work routine right now—this situation occurred due to idling around while dealing with long covid (imagined or otherwise) and also the multiple times I reproductively worked from home. I was considering WFH tomorrow, but after writing this down I believe the smarter decision will be to go to the office.
After work I went on what turned out to be a wild goose chase as I searched for a certain medicine for my upset stomach. As it turns out, there’s a shortage of this medicine across the country. So I got an alternative. The evening was mostly about logistics for the housewarming that I’m going to be holding as well as more setup to optimize sleep.
Come to think of it, I remember @King talking about when I’d do a housewarming.
That was March 13…
And this from @ksub back then, too. I now remember that it’s because of @ksub that I discovered “Niclas / UPGRADE TO LIFE,” whose releases I now listen to all the time. Amazing to see how it’s been six months since I asked about manifesting the perfect apartment and I am here now in my apartment typing this all up.
3 Likes
What would be the best subs for me to run once I’m done with Daredevil and PCC? I plan to switch in January.
1 Like
I have been subscribed to his youtube channel for a while and the testimonials are impressive. Never tried his course yet. Is it that good?
My first thought was Khan since it has components of Daredevil in it among other things. If you like PCC, then Khan + PCC would be a very nice stack.
Is the goal seduction, dominance, social skills, all of that?
Let’s Keep It Up
My days for some reason or another keep ending relatively late. That’s okay, this time I’ll try to journal something more quickly. The workday was rather uneventful, but what happened after coming back was interesting. Although I decided to check out a nearby restaurant despite not feeling so good, I got a lot of value out of taking up that social interaction.
I received another motivational talk that lifted my spirits about my ability to succeed in what I want to do. I have a lot going for me, I just need to put myself out there. However, perhaps one of the biggest things I can do right now is to shift my attitude regarding the social interactions I’ll be getting myself to have:
Stop placing so many expectations on myself. For now, make the goal to have fun and to enjoy the moment as it is.
That really clicked with me. This attitude is key for this next part of my life. I had to rewrite that phrase because I first said “key for success,” but what is the success here? It is true that dropping expectations can do wonders for my life. It has certainly helped some of the biggest manifestations of this year occur. So what can it do for social interactions and events?
I looked back at past situations, even to ones that happened during this summer and I realized that in those situations where I had set less expectations for myself in social situations, I did comparatively better. It’s kind of weird how that works.
But what does this mean for my goals as they relate to subs? Well, I still do believe running my current subs is the right thing to do. PCC has a time duration of at most 3 stack rotations just to integrate it into my system. Better I install it now than to wait for some arbitrary moment in time where I can say “Now is the time PCC should be benefiting me.” I don’t want to wait for that. So there’s zero chance it sticks around for long.
As for Daredevil?..well, I think Daredevil is worth three stacks via the “three stacks goes a long way” heuristic, but I want to build on that in the next stack. @Lion’s suggestion to do Khan (either ST3 or ST4) following Daredevil is a pretty good idea since it has components of Daredevil. It’s like a successor.
Other titles I considered are:
- True Sell
- Libertine
Random idea: Is True Sell the antagonist to PCC? 
I don’t plan to take his course. The content he puts out on the channel is awesome.
1 Like
Friyay
Update on Paragon Sleep
I’ve been running Paragon Sleep just once a week. It’s hard to say what causes what, but I have been taking some pretty good action toward improving my sleep. Let me be clear: I was motivated to improve my sleep, before I started PaSl. In the past few weeks, I have made a few changes to my room, including installing blackout curtains and a special pillow designed for side sleepers.
Here’s my sleep report from yesterday—the quality % is really unusual given that it was a weekday where I worked from home and went to sleep a little later than I’d have thought ideal. Yea, I did sleep in a bit more than usual however for getting only as much sleep as listed it’s unusual to see a score of 96%.
The Day Was Awesome, From Start to End
I found the day incredibly interesting, despite not much happening in the first half. You see, I chose to WFH today, this Friday. I embraced the silence a lot more, and even though it was a day where things at work were slow and uninteresting I still embraced it and went along with those moments of boredom. I didn’t always chase stimulation. I didn’t seek for bad habits. Instead, I just rested in those moments. Allowed my mind to stay at ease. Make the choice that by not choosing to chase easy simulation I was going the route of further happiness because I’d more easily be able to focus on the tasks at hand and also engage with life.
Something to further move things along in the romance department: I got my online profile reviewed by a girl, who gave some interesting feedback! It’s going to be useful for when I get photos taken by an avid photographer friend 
Recap
It’s been a fun weekend! Yesterday, the housewarming that @King foreshadowed months ago finally occurred. Me and my good friend had a blast organizing it and having our friends from all over the surrounding areas come by. We’re very happy with the way we organized it and how it turned out. We have some ideas for how to improve upon it when we organize future hangouts at our place.
Yes, I want to host more hangouts later. I want to take charge and become that central hub that connects people and runs the show. It makes me feel more powerful as I think I have more of an effect on how my social life turns out. So not will I go out to events and other people’s hangouts but I’ll also host some events. I can also pick and choose who to invite, too!
More Thoughts on Future Stacks
Another idea I came up with for the next time I do a stack switch is to run the following. This is inspired by an upcoming experiment in which I will lift six days a week.
- MFO
- Khan ST3
- EF ST4
Khan ST3 to make me take massive action Khan-style, and EF ST4 to give me a gigantic push SC-style towards my ideal body. Khan ST3 would build on top of Daredevil (I’ll have run 3 stacks of Daredevil by then) and aid me in my efforts greatly.
I think we’re getting near time for EF ST4, since I’ve been lifting for a while but I’m still aways from the body I’d like to have. With the huge trip coming up soon I know I’m going to get pushed further from the ideal body fat %.
Listening of the day:
- MFO
- Paragon Sleep (scheduled in an hour, for sleeping)
Things are going good. WFH today and I was minimally distracted there. I also feel like my life is progressing. The weekend’s experience made me more optimistic about my trajectory and it’s carried over.
I also started my experimental workout routine where for this week I lift 6 days. I wish I was already running EF ST4 and having massive gains! Anyway, I’ve got a trip coming up that I need to do more prep for, so I’ll get to that.
Rest Day.
I feel a little impatient with moving things along. But that’s fine, I get that sometimes. In fact, I should really be commending myself for not taking this day so harshly. I didn’t do anything in particular wrong, besides some weird driving on the way to work today that I’m not going to forget about. I intend to look at my phone while on the way to work much less often now.
Things at the office were not particularly noteworthy as it was a meeting-heavy day.
I know for a fact that there was a recent jump in social momentum recently due to the events of the weekend. However, I wonder what the big trip coming up will do to all of this. What I intend for is for the trip to provide a huge mental refresh and to also provide some personal insights.
Listened:
- Daredevil
- PCC
These days adhering to the Positive Drive Principle is interesting. I am able to work from home much more easily while maintaining my focus. And in those moments where I do pause from work for a bit, I am still doing things that move me in a better direction. For example, during a work break today I shopped for more things I need for my upcoming big trip. That action, of course, is one that moves me towards happiness because I’m getting more things checked off on my trip preparation action items.
The evening’s experience brought a bit more reflection because it was an offsite with my coworkers. Aided by Daredevil, the talks from that good friend mentioned a few entries ago and the understanding from my successes hosting an event last weekend I thought to myself that in this evening’s interaction I should focus on nothing other than enjoyment. Enjoyment of the food, and of the conversations I can be having with them. There’s no need to look for how it all fits in the bigger picture. That was the intention.
Enjoying food nowadays, however, is a little difficult due to some weird digestive issues I have been having lately. With unusual bloating and slight heartburn, I am inhibited from consuming as much as I usually could per meal. Don’t get me wrong, I was still pretty happy with the meal especially given that it was comped. I also got to take home quite a few leftovers.
The flip side is—you guessed it—coworkers. Here I’ve talked at length previously about that. “What to do here, now that I am no longer in career progression mode?” I did do my best to just enjoy things as they happened but a lot of old thoughts and observations came up again. Thoughts like how a certain group of people have their own clique, and also how I was seated in a certain spot in the table that wasn’t exactly optimal.
Perhaps the most intriguing development in all of this was when someone next to me made some comments that segued into me opening up a bit more about how I was feeling about the whole thing. The developments here were rather unexpected:
- This individual admitted that they discussed me with their friends, because this individual had observed earlier that something had changed about me, that maybe I was going through something. When I heard this, I felt seen. And that alone was a good feeling.
- This dilemma was originally not going to be mentioned to anyone at work.
My biggest takeaway from the ensuing discussion was that I wasn’t the only one who felt a little out of place in the current team culture. Things have changed a bit in the team, and it’s okay to feel the way I do right now. And also, I’m not the only one who’s intentionally withholding parts of myself in this situation.
I felt better knowing that I’m not at this alone. That changes a lot.
What keeps me going and maintaining positivity in this specific moment is, in descending order of importance:
- All the motivation one of my good friends had given me through his talks last week (wow, just last week—these weeks are not going by quickly). I don’t feel like I should let him down, that I can let him down.
- I’m going to be mentally refreshed again soon via the big trip. And who knows, perhaps I will discover some interesting things about myself.
- These subs continue to run in the background, helping me learn from my experiences and improve.
- That I’m not going up against that high of expectations when it comes to this situation. Those expectations are generated by myself, to be clear; it’s unusual that I set low expectations when it comes to social stuff, but it’s a setup I have to remember. I have to remember that those are the expectations set, that I’m just here to enjoy and have fun when I’m not dealing with work issues.
I mean look, I see momentum building up for an exciting social life on the weekends so I don’t see the experiences above as an indictment that I’m going to be a social loser or something like that. Just a little discouraging that not everything is perfect—but then again, when is everything perfect?
Rest Day.
Nice day working from home. Got a lot done due to the lack of meetings, and throughout the day I remained focused. This is despite not eating much—wanted to give my body a rest after all that’s happened.
The coming days are going to be more eventful, with me hosting another meetup and doing more trip planning with friends and family. I also need to go shopping too, haha.
Listened:
- Daredevil
- PCC
- Paragon Sleep (Weekly Listen)
Today was a fairly quiet day—I focused on shopping for the upcoming trip. In the evening, I did have a good chat with my flatmate about some stuff and what’s been holding me back from advancing the social momentum and I felt a lot better as a result of it. Later, I decided to enjoy a good meal while watching the latest episode of a show I’m currently into.
Now looking a bit into manifestational content.
Already in a Washout
Rest day…that’s part of a washout. My last listening day was featured in my last entry. Yea, I could have had a shorter washout per the guidelines.
My next stack starts on October 1. Calling it another stack is just a formality right now, however—October 1 marks the continuation of the same subs I’ve been running since August 15:
- MFO
- Daredevil
- PCC
I’m not counting PaSl or AsCh as part of the official stacks, but I foresee PaSl being a part of my upcoming stack. This is especially because I’ll be on a trip for a majority of the stack duration. Yes, you heard that right. It’s a pretty big trip.
Emotional Conversation
The highlight of today was when I decided to open up to a friend about wishing he’d better keep my secrets. I had been back-and-forth on this for weeks due to how he practically admitted he can’t help but share with others. Not long after that, I felt like I could not talk to him anymore but I also felt sad, too. Sad because I thought that individual was one of the few in the related social circle whom I could be open with. I felt sad because I was shutting the door on what was otherwise a good thing. But I reconsidered. To cast someone away like that after knowing for so long felt wrong. I wanted to try and change things. So we talked today. I got my point across, however, I unexpectedly got rather emotional about it.
I definitely was not thinking about my subs and how to act in alignment with them. However, my friend still respected my opinion and thoughts, and the fact that I did this. He’ll try to do better. The conversation got pretty real here and yet it ended amicably.
Let’s conclude this entry with some autosuggestions.
- I choose to be brave in expressing my opinions and be open with my friends, while also keeping the appropriate amount of composure and control over my emotions.
- I express myself in a way that not only reflects who I am but also enables both understanding and respect by those who listen.
- I make the best of efforts to set things aright in my friendships.
Stack Progress
I have some time to kill and seldom do I feel like writing out the stack progress of the year for the second half!
Stack 5: July 1 - August 15
- MFO
- Rebirth
- Khan ST1
Stack 6: August 16 - September 30 (Current stack)
- MFO
- Daredevil
- PCC
Future plans
Stack 7: October 1 - November 15
- MFO
- Daredevil
- PCC
Stack 8: November 16 - Dec 31
- MFO
- Daredevil
- PCC
As you can see, I currently don’t plan to change titles for the remainder of the year. However, for the first stack of next year…
- MFO
- Khan ST3
- EF ST4
I’m thinking of pushing myself towards massive action, guided and aided by subliminal. I want super-fast body development and also action for social/romance that builds on top of Daredevil.