Starting 2020 Right: Gratitude and Plans for the Year!

Starting the year off right with nothing but pure gratitude.

Last year was both my best and most challenging year yet, but it's funny how God works to give you just a little bit more than you can handle, so your faith grows just a little bit stronger.

I am so grateful for these moments last year that made me who I am this year and put me on the course I am supposed to be on.

When I look back at these moments, while they were my most liked, I also like to think of them as decisive points in my life, where I had breakthroughs in discovering a little bit more about who I and what I am supposed to be doing.

I discovered my passion for creating, and learned how to use my skills to create from my passions and find fulfillment and in sharing those creations with others.

I learned the value of enjoying the moment, taking a step back, and savoring the calm before the chaos.

I noticed how a just a view has a way of cutting straight to me, and can change me for the better.

I amplified my affinity for learning about wine.

I unlocked my addiction for travel.

I learned to see mountains everywhere, and worked on my strategies for conquering them.

Lastly, I'm most grateful for meeting an amazing human being who works daily to meet me half way and supports me in all my endeavors.

Recently, someone asked me to sum up what 2020 will be for me in one word.

FOCUS.

I'm looking forward to taking more action on things that I care about and my priorities, like my career, my love of creating, and of course WINE!

I have some big things lined up for this year, and can't wait to share them with all of you, so here's to #wheretonext in 2020.

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Top Ten Travel Moments of 2019!

Everyone always wants to know my favorite place to travel to.

Instead of giving you the typical “Top 10 Places to Travel to in 2020” I’m going to give you my 10 favorite travel moments of 2019 as a starting point, and let you figure out what the places are that you want to travel to.

Hopefully these moments give you a little glimpse into the pure joy and gratitude I had in making these moments and some of the people I got to make them with.

Also, I hope they inspire you to create you’re own breakthrough moments in 2020 that can alter your world view and change the course of your life.

I also thought it would be fun to instead of list them from 1-10, out them in reverse order, with my favorite moment last.

SO! Without further adieu, here they are, my top 10 travel moments of 2019:

10) Sipping wine in a wine cellar in Alsace 🇫🇷 at a 300 year old winery while admiring a 100 year old oak barrel used in the Paris World Fair, that’s still in service.

9) Soaking it all up during the wine festival season in Germany 🇩🇪.

8) Linking up with the Grace’s for a 12 hours and drinking all the Tuscan wine in Siena

7) Wandering the banner strewn streets of Müenster

6) Relaxing and having a cocktail on the beach on the French Riviera

5) Attending an Italian Opera at the Teatro La Fenice

4) Touring the streets of Brussels, and learning the art of Belgian Waffles and Chocolates

3) Climbing a mountain in the Swiss alps

2) Watching the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Monaco

1) Playing Golf in Scotland

Going to these places and making these moments absolutely changed my perspective and gave me a greater appreciation for things I just take for granted in everyday life. I hope you make moments in 2020 that change the way you think.

Safe travels to all in the new year!

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Lessons From 2019

This Year, if there is anything I’ve learned about myself, it would be that the key to unlocking your best life is directly proportional how much you create.

This year has been full of Alpine Highs and Oceanic Lows, but what got me through it was keeping my faith, and unlocking my own personal kind of inspiration.

Traveling extensively absolutely unlocks your mind, releases your creativity and ingenuity, and shows you your world of possibilities.

But unlocking what you're capable of creating doesn't require you to travel far, or even travel at all. . It takes thinking abundantly, seeing the world as not a zero sum gain.

It requires persistence to keep creating when you don't feel like it, and self awareness to recognize when you aren't at your best and to keep pushing, keep grinding, until you produce your best work. . And it takes flair.

For some people they do the minimum amount of flair, because they have already limited their mind and what is possible.

But the ones that don't limit themselves, that don't limit their minds, they put on all their flair everyday and aren't afraid to showcase who they really are.

That's ultimately what we find valuable, or even attractive, though we may not want to admit it consciously. . It's the flaws, the too much secret sauce, the flair that we are attracted to.

It's what makes us human, and what connects us with other humans.

I don't have a secret book with all the answers to being at your best, or life hacks to get the results you want. . All I can give you is a process, an adventure, that you must go through to seek out where you're supposed to be, what you're supposed to do.

Just start.

Start creating, start doing, start running, start writing.

Then share.

Share it face to face with friends, family, co-workers, on the socials.

Be honest with people about where you're at right now, what you're creating. . Then keep going, keep creating, keep sharing, and let the process work.

Photo credit: Keegan Dunlap

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New Month, New Year, New Decade

Had such a great holiday week enjoying family time in the desert.

There's something about this place, almost like an oasis, that helps you rest and feel ready to take on the next challenge when you leave.

It's also a bit of a paradox, seeing mountains covered in snow as the backdrop for palm trees.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

As this chapter comes to a close, spending a week in a place as beautiful as Palm Springs is the perfect way to end it.

Now it's time to get back to work, as a new set of mountains to climb are upon us!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

Safe travels to all this week as we all move into a new month, new year and new decade! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

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Wine: Weekly Download

Weekly wine download:

Checked out Carmel Valley and one of the wineries there, Boekenoogen Wines, and had a nice little tasting, although my palate is still recovery from a nasty little cold that knocked me out for a week, hence the lack of posts.

Nothing a little wine won’t fix!

Stopped in Paso Robles last night, and perused through some Spanish varietals of Diablo Paso which provided the perfect amount of spice to free up the sinuses. They are famed to have the best Tempranillo in Paso and this doctor concurs!

After getting a quick recommendation I rolled over to Indigene Cellars and got to sample some great Reserve Pinots (actually picked in Carmel Valley from up the road) and good Sangiovese.

Raymond, the owner, knows how to pour his wines and make you feel welcome in his spot. . After a little wine this weekend and kicking this cold, current priorities of work: more wine. I mean Christmas shopping... Two birds with one stone? Lotta bottles going in the stockings this year!

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Live in the Present

“You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment. Fools stand on their island of opportunities and look toward another land. There is no other land; there is no other life but this.” - Henry David Thoreau || Joshua Tree National Park, CA, USA ||

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Joshua Tree - Image Winery

The other night, while hanging out in Joshua Tree, I got to enjoy one of my favorite wines from this year, Imagery Winery Pinot Noir.

I was fortunate enough to visit them back in March when I was scoping out different wineries in Sonoma County.

What I remember best was how I was the only one there, yet they pulled out every stop to make sure my wine tasting experience was five star, regardless of who I was.

Also, got to meet their head winemaker, Jamie Benziger, who gave some insights and context in how they distinguish their wines, and gave me some great recommendations on where to go next.

Needless to say, I'll be making a visit back to Imagery Winery very soon…

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New Mountains to Conquer

Finding new mountains to conquer remains a critical component to the eternal quest of getting better.

Success and achievement don't equate to fulfilment.

Fulfilment comes from a place of being constantly challenged, adapting to our current situations we find ourselves in and then pushing our limits a little bit further so we can climb a little taller mountain next time.

The journey of finding the next mountain and doing what we have to do to be able to climb that mountain is where fulfilment comes from.

Those mountains can be in different aspects or domains in our lives, but continually seeking out those mountains is what keeps us on our path that's been laid out for us.

We don't have to reach the top of those mountains, as sometime we never will.

But what is important is that we keep climbing, and keep putting one foot in front of the other.

Heading into this week with a mindset of gratitude for the mountains I've been fortunate to climb in my own life both with strength from God and alongside others.

Those mountains have made me who I am today.

Now it's time to find the next one.

Hitting the road again, eagerly in anticipation to see what awaits.

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Lessons From the Road

Continually moving forward and holding true to your priorities requires immense adaptability and being flexible.

But it also requires foresight to recognize a little left of bang when things aren’t going to go your way so you can implement corrective action a little bit before you’re going to derail.

This helps you minimize the downside, the negative effects of not getting done the things you need to get done, the things that you value and you prioritize.

You also have to be creative and look at things from a different perspective.

This helps you see the value in doing something a way you’re normally not used to.

Don’t focus on the things you can’t control: Other people Your environment you’re in right now What resources you have access to

Instead focus on what you can control: The places you choose to go to next How you choose to allocate your time How you use the resources you have

In the long run, moving forward in this way makes your more decisive and allows you to break down actions and elements into there most basic form and see them for that they are and what they give you.

You start to see while certain things or activities aren’t a 100% match to what you’re looking for, you can substitute an activity, or resource for something that gets you an 80% solution, and keeps you moving forward, toward the goal, towards the endstate.

That focus, on what matters, begins to emerge slowly over time, as you go a little bit further, and push your limits, your capabilities and your resources a little bit more everyday.

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Vagabonding Starts Now

“Thus, the question of how and when to start vagabonding is not really a question at all. Vagabonding starts now. Even if the practical reality of travel is still months or years away, vagabonding begins the moment you stop making excuses, start saving money, and begin to look at maps with the narcotic tingle of possibility. From here, the reality of vagabonding comes into sharper focus as you adjust your worldview and begin to embrace the exhilarating uncertainty that true travel promises.” - Rolf Potts || Gila National Forest, NM || .

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Texas Hill Country

You don’t really appreciate a place until you’ve spent a significant amount of time there, and then leave it and spend as much time away from it.

When we are gone, I think we find ourselves thinking about those one or two places that always put us in the best mood, where the sun is always shining, and we instantly feel better when we arrive in those places.

For me, that’s the Texas hill country.

When I’m gone, and I’m thinking about places I wish I was, my thoughts always find their way back to this countryside.

It’s gives me a place to go, when things aren’t what I want them to be or easy around me. . And gives me something to look forward to.

I don’t know if you feel the same way as I do about the, but I hope these photos show why I love the Texas Hill Country.

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Find the Magic in Every Day

We can't always be in the places we want to with the people we want to, but we can focus on our surroundings and seek the beauty we find near us.

Finding the magic in our daily lives keeps things fresh when everything goes stagnant, and prevents us from getting complacent.

Seeing what truly is around us gives us a greater sense of gratitude, that makes us even more grateful for those few moments we get to spend with those who make our worlds whole.

Grateful this week for the awesome memories I've shared with some amazing people in the past month, but also really enjoying the daily process of moving forward, and seeing what great views and allure lie around the next corner.

Being home always fills me up with the things I need, but gets me hungry for what's coming next.

Explore more today and find the enchantment that is always around you.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

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Those Who Risk Going Too Far...

“Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far they can go.” –T.S. Eliot || Montserrat, ESP 🇪🇸 ||

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Fashionably Late...

Like wine? Yep, me too. Show up late to all the parties? Two things we have in common.

That’s why I put together a short list of four holiday wine picks that can show up fashionably late but still deliver in style.

Check it out in my stories on Instagram, and get a couple ideas for when you’re at the grocery store tomorrow at 2:59pm and the store closes at 3 pm and dinner was served at 1…

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EAX Camp and Organizing Priorities

A little late on this post, but wanted to really digest all the different nuggets we picked up from EAXCamp a few weeks ago. Taking action should be a core ethos of our message and story. That's why when I found out Evolution Athletics and Jeremy Kane were holding a camp about taking action to get to the next level not just with fitness, but also with lifestyle, I knew I needed to be there.

I also saw it as a final "see you later" to a gym that significantly impacted my view of fitness, lifestyles, and to a greater extent, life.

The EAX Camp was everything I needed right now, as I am going through a period of significant transition in my life, and it gave me an opportunity to think about what I want my lifestyle to look like in my next chapter.

The Camp wasn't just about optimizing my fitness habits, but more about taking some time to think strategically about my fitness and lifestyle. Here was my favorite takeaways from the entire two full days of camp:

• What are three priorities in your life right now?

• What are three things you are doing for those priorities right now?

• What are three things that can get in the way of those priorities?

• What can I do to get those things out the way of my priorities?

What is interesting to note with these lifestyle focusing questions is how you need to take the time in the first place to work through each of these questions, and how every single activity of your day either supports or takes away from these priorities.

Also, it's ok if these priorities change. That's why it's great to take the time while like at camps like these to think long term about your priorities, fitness and lifestyle. Just be intentional with what you add into and take away from your life. What are your three life priorities right now and what are you willing to do for them?

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Fortune Favors the Prepared Mind

“Fortune favors the prepared mind.” - Louis Pasteur || Benton, LA, USA ||

Having been on the road for almost a week now, I’ve started to notice things in myself. .

Being in a constant state of motion physically puts you into a constant state of movement mentally.

But if you want to capitalize on that movement, on those new states you find, you have to be ready.

The best way to be prepared for what a new day or places holds for you is having routine that opens up your mind and body for the day, so you can find a state where you’re ready to receive what the day holds.

Hitting certain areas or touch points of different parts of yourself helps focus you and helps you learn more about yourself and the world around you.

It doesn’t happen overnight, it takes work, a lot of trial and error, and a lot of failing.

Sometimes some habits or routines stick immediately and others seem impossible to start.

But the key is to keep moving.

So find what works for you, and keep moving towards what your travels and your day holds for you.

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Sweet Moments and Celebrations

When life gives you those sweet moments to share with those who matter most to you, celebrations are in order.

And what better place to celebrate in than New Orleans.

Thanks so much to Phil and Jean for the bottle of Veuve Clicquot that we all got to share in!

Having been to Champagne, France, when you open a bottle of champagne, and not just any sparkling wine, you have a little greater sense of appreciation for the people who crafted these fantastic products.

Even more fun is being able to share insights and stories from these places you’ve been to and being able to explain the why behind the wine.

Not to mention, dining at little local eateries like Oak Oven Restaurant just adds to the ambience of an evening out.

P.S. Happy birthday to the big guy, UK. Tonight will be quite the soirée!

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Thoughts On Perspective and Context

If we want to transform something in our life, we have to walk the edge.

Because on the edge is where we get to see the combination of both worlds: the one we are currently in and the one we are transforming into.

This gives us perspective.

The perspective to see what we are leaving behind and what we have to look forward to.

With perspective comes context.

Why is context so important?

Because it’s the difference between doing something bold and doing something brash.

It’s the difference between doing something that will get us to the next level and doing something that’s only going to hold us back.

Context is the medium that helps us put to use the information we have to use.

Whether we are telling a story, making a decision or just starting a new path, without the right context, we lose meaning.

And when we lose meaning, we lose purpose.

Walking on the edge and finding new edges everyday that push our perspectives to change, gives us the context we need to have meaning and fulfill our purpose.

Safe adventures and living life on the edge this week.

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There are No Foreign Lands

“There are no foreign lands. It is the traveler only who is foreign” – Robert Louis Stevenson || Fidra Island, North Berwick, Scotland || .

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Traveling is a Brutality

“Traveling is a brutality. It forces you to trust strangers and to lose sight of all that familiar comfort of home and friends. You are constantly off balance. Nothing is yours except the essential things: air, sleep, dreams, sea, the sky - all things tending towards the eternal or what we imagine of it.” -Cesare Pavese || Stuttgart, Germany at dawn ||

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