0:01

8 days spent in the woods with 12 other

0:03

men , with no technology . Four

0:06

of those days spent intentionally fasting

0:08

in isolation from the other

0:10

men of the group . No tent , just

0:13

a hammock in a sleeping bag and a journal

0:15

. For my thoughts , this was

0:17

the threshold rights of passions

0:19

experience that I went through just about

0:21

a month ago now , and it was such

0:24

a transformative and powerful experience

0:26

and everyone in my life has been asking

0:28

me so many questions about it . So in today's

0:30

episode , i'm going to be talking about what

0:32

that experience was like , why

0:35

I decided to take part in it in the first place

0:37

and what the incorporation has

0:39

been like since . Again , it

0:41

was such an amazing and incredible experience

0:43

and I'm excited to share what

0:46

it was all about and how I gained

0:48

so much from spending this time

0:50

with those 12 other powerful men

0:52

. Welcome

1:06

back to another episode of the Positive Performance

1:09

Podcast and I'm excited

1:11

to be back today . I'm excited to be back recording

1:13

. I took a few weeks off following

1:15

this threshold rights of

1:17

passage experience that I went through

1:19

just about a month ago and

1:22

I'm in the incorporation , integration

1:24

phase of that , but I'm really excited

1:26

to be back into this podcast And today's

1:28

episode . I'm excited to share a bit about what

1:30

that experience was like , why

1:33

I decided to do it , and answer some of the questions

1:35

that I've been getting from so many people

1:37

in my life . People have been asking

1:39

me why the heck did you go in the woods for

1:41

eight days ? Why did you not eat for four

1:43

days , why did you decide to sign up for this and

1:46

what was it like ? So I

1:48

want to answer some of those questions today , because

1:50

it really was such a profound

1:53

experience , and this

1:55

was eight days in the woods

1:57

with 12 other men . So there were four

1:59

men that acted as the guides , that were supporting

2:01

this experience , that really took

2:04

us every step of the way , even before

2:06

we actually went into the woods for that

2:08

experience . And then there was eight

2:10

other men , four of which were actually fluent

2:13

from Puerto Rico . By

2:15

the first three days , the Friday to

2:17

Sunday , we were with the group of men . We

2:19

did some intentional work leading up to that Monday

2:21

, which then we went in

2:23

isolation for four days . So we each

2:25

had our own spots that we marked out in

2:27

the woods and we spent four days

2:30

no contact with the other men . There

2:32

was no food , as we were doing intentional fasting

2:35

for these four days Now , we did have water

2:37

. We had a gallon of water for each day already

2:40

brought out to the campsite that we were going to be at

2:42

. We did not have tents , i

2:44

just had a hammock and a sleeping bag . I

2:46

had my journal and a couple of things

2:48

that I could make that I had , that I made a prayer

2:51

circle with , but that was really

2:53

it . It was really a time to just be

2:55

with ourselves , and

2:57

to so many people this sounds really crazy

2:59

, but honestly , the moment

3:01

that I heard about this experience , the

3:04

intention behind it and what it was

3:06

all about , i immediately knew

3:08

it was something that I had to do and I knew it was the right

3:10

timing for me . For one , i

3:12

love leaning into discomfort . I

3:14

love leaning into challenging things . So

3:16

being away from my phone and technology

3:19

for eight days , that was a huge growth edge that

3:21

I knew I wanted to lean into . And

3:24

then that isolation for four days

3:26

. There was just that burning question of like

3:28

, what can that do ? You know

3:30

, i couldn't remember the last time

3:32

that I completely disconnected from

3:34

everything , from all technology , from

3:37

all other human beings , my dog

3:39

, everything and just allowed myself

3:41

to be with myself and be

3:43

with nature , and I just knew

3:45

that there was something potent and powerful to be had

3:47

from that . And then to do that alongside

3:49

12 other men and be guided

3:51

through intentional workshops

3:53

and intentional things to gain the most out

3:56

of the experience . I just knew it

3:58

was something powerful . Now

4:00

, this experience that we went through wasn't

4:02

a direct native

4:04

tradition , but it was very much rooted

4:06

in the practices that pretty

4:09

much all of our ancestors had

4:11

done in the generations

4:13

leading up to where we are today . This

4:16

was something that was done in every

4:18

single culture this rites

4:20

of passage where boys and

4:23

girls would be brought into men and

4:25

womanhood . They would go on these

4:27

vision quests where

4:30

life took this turning point of it

4:32

being about me and about

4:35

you know , when we're growing up , we're learning

4:37

, we're building ourselves , but

4:39

then , as we grow older , our

4:42

life takes a turn where it's about

4:44

purpose , it's about giving

4:46

back , it's about community , it's about being

4:48

a member of society . Especially

4:51

in the hunter-gatherer days , right

4:53

, everyone had a job , everyone had

4:55

a role , everyone had a duty , and

4:57

coming into manhood , coming

4:59

into womanhood , it was understanding

5:01

who you are , what your place

5:04

is in society and what

5:06

your purpose is . So this was what

5:08

a lot of this was rooted in and

5:10

also bringing in other modalities and

5:12

other functions to really help amplify

5:15

this experience . So so much care

5:17

and intentionality went into this . We had Zoom

5:20

calls in two months leading

5:22

up to the experience , where we really

5:24

dove into our why like , why are we doing

5:26

this ? And ultimately , to put it

5:28

simply , this process

5:30

was a death and rebirth

5:33

. So someone was walking

5:35

into those woods in that day

5:37

And a different version of

5:39

you was walking out of it . So

5:41

a lot of the work that we did , a lot of the intentionality

5:44

was you know , who's walking into that

5:46

, who's the version of you that got you to where

5:48

you are today . So a lot of this was reflection

5:51

of , like , who I've been , the

5:54

versions of me that got me to where I am today

5:56

, and then also , what are the things

5:58

that I'm looking to let go of , what are

6:00

the things that no longer serve me and

6:02

will no longer serve me into the vision that

6:04

I'm creating , cultivating and

6:06

evolving into . And

6:09

then , on the other side of that is who

6:11

is walking out of that woods

6:13

, making an exclamation of like

6:15

, how am I promising

6:17

to show up as a person

6:20

, as a human , as a functioning member

6:22

of society ? walking out of those woods

6:24

. How can I most embody

6:26

my purpose , what I want to do and who I

6:28

want to be in life and how I want to show up in

6:30

relationships and for other people . So

6:33

this was really the context

6:35

of this going in , reflecting

6:38

, seeing where I came from and who

6:40

I was , seeing what I want to leave behind

6:43

, and then claiming

6:45

actively , claiming who I'm

6:47

, coming out of those woods as

6:49

And again , it was

6:51

so profound And So

6:54

many beautiful things came to me and came

6:56

to all of them in . There was such

6:58

powerful shifts and emotions

7:01

and realizations that came up

7:03

before we went , even went into the isolation

7:06

portion of it , you know , just

7:08

in the fireside talks

7:10

and intentional conversations that we had

7:12

with the group leaders and

7:14

the other men sitting around the campfire And

7:16

then in isolation , having that

7:19

time to sit with ourselves , sit with our

7:21

thoughts , sit with nature

7:23

. Well , that was just like the icing

7:25

on the cake And it was amazing

7:27

to be able to hear the experiences of the other

7:29

men and truly what the other

7:31

men experienced have been imprinted

7:34

on me their experiences , their

7:36

growth , their lessons . I've

7:38

been able to , you know , not only see

7:40

them but feel that and embody

7:43

some of that into my own life , which has been

7:45

just so amazing and profound

7:47

As far as the

7:49

actual experience itself . So , like

7:51

I said , it was four days . So Monday morning

7:53

we hiked out at sunrise

7:56

and we had on Sunday we already picked our spots

7:58

out , so we marked our spot spots out

8:00

, we did a hike and we we

8:02

marked trees with with colored rags

8:04

, so we knew how to get to our spots . So

8:07

Monday morning I get to my spot , i

8:09

set up camp , i set up my hammock , as

8:12

I mentioned , i set up a prayer circle

8:14

which was a space for me

8:16

to spend each morning and times throughout

8:18

the day to really just drop in , meditate

8:21

and connect with the ancestors

8:23

and with nature and the things that I wanted to connect

8:26

with . So it was just an intentional space . I

8:28

had some meaningful items inside

8:30

of that space . I had some , some

8:33

jewelry from some past

8:36

relatives or some relatives that

8:38

have passed away . So really just

8:40

calling them in , calling in that support

8:42

throughout this process And

8:44

the first day for me was

8:46

very reflective . You know it was getting

8:48

settled in and I really reflected on my life

8:50

. You know , year by year , month by

8:53

month , looking at all the versions

8:55

of me , you know all it took to

8:57

get to where I am . All the good stuff

8:59

, all the challenging stuff , all

9:02

the stuff that maybe I wish I didn't do

9:04

, but I did And I really

9:06

took a lot of time to come

9:09

to . A lot of self acceptance

9:11

, a lot of thanks , even the version

9:13

of me that I look back upon and I'm like man

9:15

, how did he act like that And why did he do

9:17

those things ? You know , the versions

9:20

of me that you know had a lot of self

9:22

hate , a lot of self deprecating . You

9:24

know , honoring that , because that version of me got

9:26

me to that experience

9:29

, it got me here , it got me to this point , you

9:31

know . So it was really reflecting upon

9:33

, you know , who I was and the experiences

9:36

that shaped me And , more importantly , coming to

9:38

it , just a state of really full

9:40

acceptance of everything , every

9:42

event , every version , every

9:45

action . You know , taking that accountability

9:48

and really , you know , coming full circle

9:50

with it . That was a lot of the first day . The

9:53

second day was a more forward looking , more

9:55

looking at you know , how do I want to make an impact

9:58

in the world ? What do I want to do ? How do

10:00

I want to show up ? What does that look like ? You

10:02

know , this is where I got struck with a lot of ideas

10:04

about having in person meetups , starting

10:07

to lean into doing more men's work , and

10:09

especially in person men's work at my

10:11

house , hosting retreats , also

10:13

doing online work , working

10:16

in the physical fitness space and nutrition

10:18

space . So a lot of ideas

10:20

had really came to me and I

10:22

really was able to tap into my heart and

10:24

my passion and what I'm meant to be doing on

10:26

a bigger scale . And that was a lot of . The second

10:28

day And then the third day

10:30

was the death rebirth day

10:33

. So they invited us to do this death

10:35

and rebirth ceremony . So I took

10:37

my sleeping bag . I found a

10:39

you know basically a hole

10:41

in the ground or like it was , like it was concave

10:44

in the ground . I put my sleeping bag

10:46

in , i put leaves over top

10:48

of it , I went into that sleeping bag , i

10:50

zipped the top of it up like

10:52

it was a casket and I had

10:54

a ceremonial death

10:57

and rebirth And this inside of there

10:59

again a lot of reflection and

11:01

just really looking at like what

11:03

parts of me need

11:05

to no longer be present

11:08

or need to evolve into this new

11:10

version of me . So really looking at those habits

11:12

, those patterns , those things that are just not

11:15

going to serve me . Moving into this next

11:17

version , this next iteration of my life

11:19

And then with that

11:21

, you know , the rebirth coming

11:24

out of that . It's like what are

11:26

the proclamations ? What are the proclamations

11:28

of how I want to show up to my family

11:31

, to my friends , to my clients , to

11:33

the world in general ? And I claimed

11:35

it and I anchored that in , and

11:37

I don't even know how long . There was no watch

11:39

, so like I could have been in there two

11:41

hours , four hours , i think it was between three and five

11:44

hours , but it was just a really powerful

11:46

experience . I did kind of a eulogy , you

11:49

know , of . You know , if there was a eulogy

11:51

for my death , what would that look like

11:53

? What would people say about me ? What would I want that

11:55

to look like ? So kind of going to the end

11:57

and looking backwards so that I could

11:59

understand who I want to be moving

12:01

towards that date , whenever it is . And

12:05

then the last day . The last day was about

12:07

play . You know , the first three days there

12:09

was a lot of reflection , a lot of internal

12:12

navigating , a lot of emotions , and the

12:14

last day was just like the reminder of like hey

12:16

, you can play too . I was , my

12:18

spot was on a stream , like a small

12:20

river stream . So I got in the water

12:23

, i enjoyed the sun , I did some naked

12:25

sunbathing out there , i was in the woods alone

12:27

. It was a nice , warm day . It was the day

12:29

after my birthday , because Wednesday was the day

12:31

of my birthday , so that death rebirth

12:34

day landed on my birthday

12:36

, which is an incredible synchronicity

12:39

. And the next day was about play . You

12:41

know I'm always in my edge

12:44

. I like doing the cold plunges . You know

12:46

I go to the gym on a regular basis

12:48

. I'm always finding challenge

12:50

so that I can continue to sharpen myself

12:52

. And the message on Thursday

12:54

was like , hey , we can have fun

12:56

in the process too , and don't forget

12:58

that . Because I found myself like wanting

13:01

to like work out and do pushups and do

13:03

cold plunge , like I wanted to like

13:05

push on an edge , while I was already at an

13:07

edge , and the message I got was like

13:09

, hey , you don't have to be on the edge of your edge

13:11

of your edge , like , you're already

13:13

out in the woods , you haven't eaten in three days

13:16

, you're by yourself , like

13:18

there's nothing more you need to do , just

13:20

be . So the motto of

13:22

that day was just be , just

13:25

be , and it was just a really beautiful

13:27

reminder because I can , i could get so wrapped

13:29

up in pushing myself and pushing

13:32

myself , and it comes from a healthy , embodied

13:34

place , but remembering to play

13:36

is such an important aspect And

13:38

that was huge . For that , now

13:41

, i did ask so . Something I really wanted

13:43

was to really communicate with

13:45

nature , with my ancestors

13:48

, with some of my relatives who have passed

13:50

. So , whether that was a conversation

13:52

in my head , whether that was an animal

13:55

, whether you know , whatever form of communication

13:57

I could get , i really wanted to connect with my ancestors

13:59

, and how that came through

14:02

for me was in writing . As

14:04

I mentioned , i had my journal And

14:06

each day there were moments where

14:08

I felt called to write And

14:11

I felt called to write a poem , and

14:14

each day I wrote a poem . That did

14:17

not come from me . My

14:19

hands were writing faster than my brain could

14:22

process , so it wasn't coming

14:24

from my brain . I was just , if you

14:26

want to use the word , channeling through , or

14:28

I was just , you know , just writing out

14:30

this poem where you know , when I reflected

14:33

back , i was like , wow , there was a deep , deep

14:35

message coming through

14:38

to me from someone and something

14:40

from the divine , from my ancestors

14:42

, from the nature that was around , whatever it was

14:44

, and honestly it doesn't matter what it was , but

14:47

what does matter was the message and the potency

14:49

that came through , and I got the opportunity

14:52

to share these poems with the other men in the group

14:54

And it was just really powerful

14:56

. I have those , i want to

14:59

get those put onto plaques

15:01

or canvases , like the ones

15:03

behind me , and just have that reminder

15:05

of those

15:07

messages that needed to be put through

15:10

. I'll put a link to those . I'll

15:12

put those online . I'll get those linked up if anyone's

15:14

interested in reading those . Now

15:18

, part of this process , we

15:20

made a proclamation . As

15:22

I said , we had to proclaim who's

15:24

walking out of those woods , and

15:26

it had to do with leaning into an

15:28

edge of you know , something that's

15:30

uncomfortable , something we're not fully

15:32

embodying and we're moving into

15:35

. So my

15:37

power statement they called it . The

15:39

power statement was I am a beacon

15:42

for consciousness , with

15:44

unwavering belief and trust

15:46

in myself and the universe . So

15:49

a beacon for consciousness like this

15:51

, this for me , was like I want to live

15:53

my truth and live my purpose so fully

15:55

that I can just illuminate for others

15:57

. I can show the what's possible

16:00

, i can be that inspiration

16:02

for others by living my truth and speaking

16:04

my truth . So that was the first portion of it , and

16:07

then the last portion was with unwavering

16:09

belief and trust in myself and the universe

16:12

. Because , to be honest with you

16:14

, i have struggled , and still have a degree of

16:16

struggle , with imposter syndrome

16:18

, with wondering if I'm enough , if

16:20

people even want to listen , if

16:22

this is going to work out , if all the

16:24

dreams and aspirations I have are really

16:26

meant for me . I've done a

16:28

lot of work around that , a lot of

16:30

work around that , but I wanted

16:32

to sink more deeply into trust and knowing

16:35

that I can trust myself , i can trust

16:37

my heart , i can trust my passions , i can trust

16:39

my decisions And I can also trust

16:41

the universe to know that I'm fully

16:44

guided and supported in every action

16:46

and everything that I do . So this

16:48

was the biggest thing for me , because the only

16:50

thing holding me back from my potential is my

16:52

trust , because when I act out

16:55

of fear and lack mentality

16:57

and scarcity , i make not

17:00

the wrong decisions , but I make decisions that

17:02

put me on a path that may be a little bit longer

17:05

than I'd like to take , because I feel like

17:07

we can never fully

17:09

lose track of our destiny . We can never fully go

17:11

off track Right Going to the store

17:13

. There may be one road to get there right , and

17:15

that may be our road to our destiny or what's

17:17

meant for us , but we can also

17:20

take 32 roads to get there . So

17:22

sometimes , when we take those actions that are fear

17:24

, lack and scarcity , we're just taking

17:26

that longer route and the universe is going to keep

17:28

rerouting us . So that's

17:30

why I want to lean more fully into

17:32

trust in myself and the universe , knowing

17:34

that I can jump and there's a safety

17:36

net and I'll always be caught

17:39

. So this was really

17:41

what the core of this experience

17:43

was like forming what I gained out

17:45

of it . And now I'm in the portion of it called

17:47

incorporation . Integration

17:49

. Because , listen , if you have powerful

17:51

experiences like this whether it's

17:53

through time in the woods , a

17:55

seminar , tony Robbins , a psychedelic

17:58

experience or even just a life experience

18:00

or a death the experience

18:03

is the experience . It has something to show you . But

18:05

if we don't incorporate the lessons , if we don't

18:07

actively bring them into our lives in a

18:09

day to day basis , then they

18:11

just exist as a memory , just it exists as

18:13

an experience that happened . Trust

18:16

me , i've gone through that . I've had the psychedelic

18:18

experiences where a huge

18:20

epiphany lesson came through and then

18:22

I didn't integrate it , i didn't take action on it

18:24

And then I found myself in the old patterns

18:26

Same thing with lessons in life where

18:29

life has tossed me a lesson or a challenge

18:31

, i've overcome it And I was like , oh wow

18:34

, that's something that I need to incorporate

18:36

. And then I didn't do it , i didn't embody it And guess

18:38

what ? The same lesson got thrown at

18:40

me by the universe again . So this

18:42

is where incorporation comes from and

18:45

involves daily embodiment , involves

18:47

self-awareness and it involves community

18:49

. This is a key aspect of it . This

18:51

is a big one for me , because I've really grown

18:54

a comfort zone for isolation

18:56

, for being alone , for doing the work alone , for

18:58

being comfortable not being around

19:00

other people as much . The fact

19:03

is , community is power . The

19:05

more that we can lean on other people , the

19:07

more we can be in a community of people

19:09

with like-minded goals and aspirations

19:12

and that can honestly and truly

19:14

hold a mirror to us from a heart-centered

19:16

space . This truly

19:18

changes everything . It amplifies

19:21

our growth in such enormous

19:23

ways And this isn't

19:25

just anecdotal . They have science

19:27

and they've done studies to prove it

19:29

How being around others

19:31

, being around other driven individuals , being

19:34

around other individuals that are

19:36

going to push us , propel us and

19:38

come from a place of love and support . The

19:41

science and data is there . It amplifies

19:44

our progress 10 , 20

19:46

, 50 , 100 fold . So

19:49

community is a big part of this process

19:51

and , gratefully , through this process

19:53

, through the modern Renaissance man , they have an

19:55

amazing community that become a part of . And

19:57

also I've been inspired over this

20:00

past month to begin building my own community

20:02

and Unsure exactly what

20:04

that's gonna look like . For now I'm actually hosting

20:06

my first men's Meet

20:08

up this weekend at my house , where we're gonna have

20:11

some intentional conversation and

20:13

bring men together in a safe space

20:15

to grow and evolve

20:17

with one another and support one

20:19

another , to fully be seen and to be

20:21

able to see other people and the

20:24

feeling of this , the liberation of

20:26

this , and just being able to express

20:28

your truth in a safe container , to

20:30

have other men receive you , to receive

20:32

that and then to provide healthy reflections

20:35

. I Can't even describe

20:37

how powerful it is and the experiences

20:40

that I've had with this in this past month

20:42

, over the threshold Experience

20:45

and even in times before that . So

20:47

my purpose and what I'm gonna be doing , moving

20:49

forward , is cultivating more of that on

20:51

a Continual basis , because the world

20:54

needs it more than ever and listen . The virtual

20:56

space is nice , but we need

20:58

to be in person . We need these in person experiences

21:01

and relationships , and then we need the

21:03

community and support systems afterwards

21:05

to ensure That

21:07

we can keep up with

21:09

the required Actions

21:11

. Inspired , aligned actions

21:13

I was gonna say work , but I didn't want to call it

21:15

work as it doesn't need to be work . Inspired

21:19

, inspired , aligned actions

21:21

bring us towards The

21:24

version of ourself that we're moving towards , from

21:27

a place of love and compassion

21:29

and ease and grace , because

21:31

we can do it from that place . We

21:34

can never hate ourselves into a version of ourselves

21:36

that we love . We have

21:38

to have that self-love first and

21:40

then we can come from a place of passion

21:43

and devotion . And let me tell you

21:45

something the energy is so much different

21:47

, the resilience is so much

21:49

different , the ability to maintain

21:51

, maintain consistency is so

21:54

much different , and I'm gonna cover

21:56

this in my next podcast how I'm

21:58

really , in this stage of my life , really

22:00

reaching a point where I'm transcending

22:03

discipline . You know , discipline

22:05

is really an interesting topic and

22:07

can have a lot of Shadow

22:10

side to it , a toxic side to

22:12

it , where it comes from this place of self-deprecating

22:15

, it comes from this place of punishment

22:18

and That may work in the

22:20

short term , but you

22:22

always got to pay the dues on that , and in

22:24

the back end and in the long term . So

22:27

, beyond discipline , we could come to a place

22:29

of devotion . So

22:31

, instead of having to be disciplined , we're just devoted

22:33

to our future . We're devoted to the version

22:35

of ourselves that we're looking to become . We're

22:37

devoted to Who we

22:39

are becoming . We're devoted to our purpose

22:42

. The energy in this is

22:44

so much different . I've been evolving into this

22:46

and really stepping into this deeply in this past

22:49

month and let me tell you , every

22:51

single thing has shifted in my life . How

22:54

I show up physically , mentally

22:56

, emotionally , my relationships

22:58

is Indescribable

23:00

. So I'm gonna I'm gonna pin

23:02

mark that there for the next podcast

23:05

and at that I think

23:07

I've really explored I'll leave

23:09

that at that for this threshold

23:12

rights of passions experience that I went

23:14

through . If you're interested , if you're

23:16

listening to this and you're like , wow , you

23:18

know , i could use an experience like this or

23:20

this sounds like something I could really benefit from , by

23:23

all means , please reach out . I would be happy to connect

23:25

you with the organization that continues to do

23:27

these throughout the year . They only do a

23:29

couple , but I would be happy to connect with

23:31

you with more information on

23:34

that . And listen , we go through these

23:36

, we go through these thresholds throughout

23:38

our life , these big Transformational

23:40

experiences , and we're gonna continue to go through

23:42

them . We're gonna get through them through life

23:44

challenges . We're gonna get them through

23:47

things that we choose to embody and go

23:49

through and They're

23:51

just so potent , they're so powerful

23:53

. But remember , it's about that incorporation

23:56

, that integration and that support system

23:58

. So , you know , do an audit

24:00

of the people around you and

24:02

are they uplifting you , are they supporting

24:04

you ? Are they guiding you towards the version of

24:06

you you want to become , or are they

24:08

holding you back to the version of you

24:11

that you're maybe trying to move away from

24:13

? You know , this is one

24:15

of the most important things you can audit and

24:17

you can look at . So , all in all , i'm

24:20

so grateful for this experience , i'm so happy

24:22

to be back in the podcasting space

24:24

And if you have any more questions

24:26

about the experience , reach out . I'll be happy to answer

24:28

the questions and until next time

24:30

I will see you . On . The next time we will talk

24:33

about discipline and really

24:35

transcending discipline into devotion . Until

24:38

then , stay growing .