The Unhappy Rich Man

this isn’t about money

it’s about what I traded for it.

As the year ends, I have more money than I’ve ever had, but I’m unhappier than I’ve ever been.

This year was objectively a success.

Our media production business grew 4x.

We paid off all our bad debts.

I made some great trades.

I bought a ferrari, something I thought I’d never do.

So why the f*ck am I unhappy?

Over the holiday break, I got to finally sit down with myself and think.

I’ve read stories online about people who “made it” and still felt empty. I assumed I’d be different.

It turns out, it was my turn.

The uncomfortable truth is simple. Somewhere along the path of entrepreneurship and chasing generational wealth, I became obsessed with money. I became obsessed with the leaderboard, the score.

I used to love the game.

Eventually,

I became a slave to it.

The internet has changed my life in ways I could never imagine. In 2020, it pulled me out of being broke and gave me a gaming platform. That transitioned to crypto and twitter. Each year it got better and better.

Life became my video game.

But there was a moment where I stopped focusing on the quests, and became addicted to the stacks of gold increasing. What a boring ass way of playing the game.

I became so addicted to the dopamine of opening up social media and messaging apps because I had been conditioned to see opportunities every time. Addicted to waiting for the bell to ring, constantly watching the door, instead of working on the skills that have brought opportunities to our store in the first place.

All that to say, I live in a constant 24/7 limbo of wanting to find ways to grow my business, to look for more opportunities, always searching, never resting.

It’s really hell on earth if you let it become that.

Starting today, and with a full emphasis in 2026, I will regain my ability to live with intention and purpose.

Here’s how:

CREATION > CONSUMPTION

As I write this, I have yet to open up my favorite social media apps. That’s been a big change and I notice it dramatically. Somewhere along the way, I became a drone.

So before I go into one of my windows to understand the times, I set aside a 1h30m creative block. Just me and the pen, camera, blank canvas. The intention is to create with no other distractions or things that can pull my attention.

I’m just 22 minutes and 45 seconds in and I’ve already created so much. What humans can do with focus…

Try it, you’d be surprised.

CONTEXT SWITCHING

I’m many things. A creative. An operator. A husbando. A friend. A son.

Just like you, I am many things.

For a long time, I treated that like freedom, when really it was fragmentation.

I switch between writing scripts, filming, checking charts, taking trades, answering dms, posting on twitter, team meetings, mumbo jumbo throughout the day.

This year, I bounced between one category and the next within a 15 minute window. Then refresh the thing I just checked to get an extra hit of dopamine before coming back to the thing that matters.

Busy.

Unfocused.

Little to show for it.

Now I am looking at things in 2 hour windows. One role at a time.

When it comes to checking social, I’ll do that during the 2 times I’ve set throughout my work day. The smartest people I’ve learned are rarely on their phones, some don’t even have them.

Focus.

LOGGING OFF

A few weeks ago I tore my calf playing sports.

The moment it happened, I just switched to my other leg and immediately got mad at myself. As I was warming up that day, I knew. My body was exhausted from exercising everyday without any rest. My legs felt flat and heavy.

I should not play, I thought. So when the calf popped, I knew.

Our minds are so powerful, but in this context it is hard to see if they are tired because it’s invisible. If we never log off from the internet, from being connected to the digital world, we will never be able to rest. To recharge.

So new rule, after 7pm everyday, I’m offline.

These are the things that will allow me to do that:

“I trust in my work today”

“I trust in my work tomorrow”

I never want to be broke again, and that fear of failure drives me. I also understand there are limits. Balance.

Life is a push and pull.

We are constantly learning, improving, failing, living life how we want, living life how we don’t want. If we don’t like something, we implement changes and that’s what I am doing.

We live in this beautifully chaotic online world. Like it or not, it is connected to us.

The people who read this, like me, are addicted to improving their life and many times that means stacking more gold coins. However, just remember everything else that matters along the way to increasing that number.

The internet and social media have always been a part of my life. They are major reasons for me learning real skills in college when I was studying bs.

They gave me skills, friendships, opportunities, and a career. It’s core to who I am and how I create value in the world.

But nowhere in that deal did I agree to trade my entire identity for it.

I’m still working on this, and probably always will be.

Because eventually, you have to ask:

What is it all for?

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