That’s been the reaction to most of my life.
High school dropout. World-famous DJ. Got banned from the US. Went bankrupt. Built a multi-million dollar tech company. Hypnotized 5000+ people on stage. Wrote 4 books. Took on climate change because why the hell not.
Now? I’m chasing serendipity instead of goals. Savoring fatherhood. Waiting to be in the room when something impossible becomes inevitable.
350+ articles and 7 years of figuring this out in public are here if you want them. So is my story.
Anyone who knows me or follows what I’m up to in the world knows I regularly use fear as my compass. I’ll often ask myself “What scares me?” and then, if possible, literally do that thing. Well, a couple of months ago my answer to “What scares me?” was “Don’t write for your blog”. It’s been a weekly practice, starting in 2018, that has...
Many (most) of my Frolic 100 article writing comes from the prompt “What do I need to hear most right now?” However, today I asked “What am I scared to admit right now?” and I had an immediate answer: This is all there is. Over the last couple of weeks I’ve been coming to terms that I’m dealing with another existential crisis, possibly the 3rd in my life. There are ebbs and flows. This one caught...
A trap I still regularly fall into is the idea that I’m the one that needs to change. Despite my 50 years on this planet, the conventional successes I’ve had in multiple fields, as well as my own personal achievements of success I keep trying to change how I do things. Why? Because there’s a voice inside of me telling me to. That I’m (still) not good enough. Whose voice is this? I believe it’s a...
Everything great that has ever happened to me happened because I was willing to face a fear, and walk through that door. Shermain Melton and I used this as the topic of the most recent Accomplished Misfit gathering. There’s a distinction between talking about old, vanquished fears, and ones you are actively facing today, or in this very moment. We had a spirited call where everyone used...
I have a belief, informed from my first-hand experiences, that to know where we’re going we must first look at where we’ve been. For most of us, we skip the most interesting parts. What if becoming a student of your own self-mastery, studying the life you’ve already lived, was the piece you were missing from making your next chapter your greatest chapter? What if by being willing to share...
My friend, Shermain Melton, and I hosted the first meeting of Accomplished Misfits. Inspired by Shermain’s mission of solving loneliness, we came up with the idea of the particular kind of lonely that happens from succeeding in all the wrong ways. We had everyone share their answers to these four questions: What is your “weird”? What is your “accomplished”? What is...
The Island of Misfit Toys was part of the story of the 1960s perennial Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Christmas special. During his adventure, Rudolph is brought to this island, where unwanted toys are brought to be together. It’s a powerful metaphor about the community misfits can find with one another. I remember a good friend of mine using it to describe the community that formed around my...
Accomplished Misfits create industries, whole new categories, and their success may look inevitable in hindsight, but seemed impossible at the outset. Accomplished Misfits also feel lonely in their methods. My friend Shermain Melton and I are hosting a free Zoom on this topic as we continue to create our once-in-a-lifetime Toronto event: Weird, Successful, Lonely, with Unfinished Business. An...
What if you already had all the knowledge for every challenge you’re facing? I just found and digitized an old VHS tape from 1997 of me appearing on Groove Radio 103.1 FM in Los Angeles to promote a new kind of music barely anyone had heard of called happy hardcore. I wanted to challenge myself to not just use this video of nostalgia from a bygone era, but to help me with my ongoing mission of...
Ever have one of those moments where it seems the universe has resorted to having to scream a message at you that you were doing your best to ignore? Today was that day for me. Like many of my Frolic 100 articles, I often start with the prompt “What do I need to hear most right now?” and I did so today. I literally write it out on my Word document, and had those words staring at me from a blank...
Last week I created a challenge for myself and invited anyone who wanted to hear me pitch an event I’m collaborating on in Toronto with my friend, Shermain Melton, where all we have is a date so far and a commitment from both of us that it will happen. Instead of figuring out what it is first, we’ve decided that working together is the most important part and that the ideas will come after...
I love breaking rules. I love taking risks. I love risking failure. As part of the “scary conversation” series of chats I had this week, I challenged Frolic 100 member Leslie to pitch me on her current program. I was proud of her for stepping into her courage and doing so. But then she unexpectedly turned the tables on me and asked me to pitch her on my October program, which at this time was...
I live to tell stories, and when someone says something to me like “What a story!” I know I’ve accomplished something incredible. It’s even more powerful when I can catch that I’m living through a story, or that one is in front of me – if I just say “Yes” to it. Here are the elements of what makes an incredible story. One where you change, and the people that hear the story change as well. This...
Something I’ve learned about myself, and continue to learn, is how attracted I am to new creation, and not re-creation. That is why I don’t do nostalgia, and I’ve never had an interest in revisiting the chapters of my life. At least, not in the exact same way. I’ve also painted myself into a corner, where in recent years I will take on a topic or challenge, and then not feel any energy to return...
Last week I spoke about the trap I can fall into comparing the impact I have in the world with billionaires, and in the past I’ve also spoken about an “inner mob boss” who lives within me and tells me I’m not doing enough: “I’m only as good as my last envelope”. I live within a paradox where I want to feel at peace, and at the same time I want to believe my best is yet to come. But the chase for...
Do you ever think nothing you ever do will make a difference because of the power other people have in the world? This past week Bill Gates made the news, sharing how he will donate the rest of his net worth over the next 20 years to make the impact it can make today, specifically targeting saving lives in parts of the world where that money will make a huge difference. At the same time, he...
A colleague of mine had a client worth $100 million and he shared with me that THEY worry about money constantly. It was hearing that story that made me realize “Oh… so this feeling will never go away”. Peace, or more specifically “Inner Peace”, is hard to quantify. It’s a feeling. For me, it’s not worrying about something, and ideally, not worrying about...
Yesterday I was reminded of what can happen when you throw plans out the window. The following is a transcript of an audio message sent to a friend of mine, Rita, with a few edits for readability and a conclusion added: Robin and I just had this really fun time yesterday. When Robin was waking up, I said, why don’t we go for a drive today? We considered going to this bakery about a ninety...
What if the greatest threat to democracy isn’t the ‘other side’ winning, but millions of us voting without understanding what we’re actually voting for? As I write this, Canadians are voting this week for our Federal election, and what party will be leading us and who will be the next Prime Minister. As is the trend with every election, this one “is the most important”...
If there was one single piece of advice I’d have to give anyone, it’s to “follow the energy”. Earlier this week I had registered a webinar, by an author whose books I own, on a topic of personal interest to me. I thought I’d try to expand my circle a bit so I clicked “Attend”. But, if I’m being honest with myself, there was definitely some...
What if I told you one of the most powerful life philosophies I ever learned came from managing drug use at my 1990s raves and could be the key for a better world? I was first introduced to the term Harm Reduction during my rave promoter days. It spoke to the idea that young people and drug use has been going on for time immemorial and there was no point trying to stop it or pretending it...
Isn’t it funny how all our best growth moments come from when we push ourselves? Last week I wrote an article titled “This… AGAIN?” which felt good, and got some very thoughtful responses showing me how much it resonated. Writing that article also gave me another layer of my own self-mastery. Here are the steps of what happened: I had a weekly commitment to write an article, and as the deadline...
I woke up, around 2am, and felt difficulty breathing. I could feel a tightness in my chest. I took in a deep breath – good, I still could, and let it out. For some reason, I was having an anxiety attack in the middle of the night. It woke me up. Years ago I used to think these symptoms were a heart attack. Because it never was, I learned it wasn’t, and no matter how bad I felt, it would pass. I...
Do you have an insidious voice that lives rent free in your head always telling you nothing you do is enough, nothing you have is enough, and you’re never enough? I do. Today I decided to write to an earlier version of me, from seven years ago. A letter I have all the authority in the world to write, because I know the truth, having lived it. The letter is below: Dear 2018 Chris from 2025...
For over seven years now, once a week, I’ve sat down and tried to capture a thought, an experience, a lesson learned, and turn it into a short article. I started it at first to prove to myself I had something to say and value to add to the world. The things I write about shift and change as my interests do. I’ve literally turned collections of past articles into the foundation for a book. I can...