Ghost Mode
This is my first ever blog post. It is something that I have fantasised about doing for a long time but it never felt like the perfect moment. Now I know that the perfect moment is always right now. I have no expectations for this blog. I just want to write about things that interest me and hopefully connect with like-minded people.
Chaos has built up in my life and I feel like I have lost my way on the divine path; I have lost touch with my intuition and my heart voice. I think that this is because my mind is crowded with the loud voices of the ego and primitive urges. Ghost Mode or Ghost is my attempt to bring order to that chaos. I want to set myself free and open myself up to the world - outside of my current blinkered existence in the rat race.
Ghost is a mental toughness challenge to support in building discipline and resilience. It is inspired by other mental toughness challenges such as 75Hard and the DEF Reset but with my own personal spin on it - bringing it into alignment with my own life philosophy. The name symbolises the death of an old identity as well as the intention to operate under the radar, while nobody is watching - like a ghost.
Fundamental to Ghost are the seven core practices:
- ☯️ Breathe - take time each day to be present in the now. The breath is an anchor to the present moment. Everything is always happening now. Listen.
- 👣 Move - experience the joy of using the body. Walk, run, jump, lift, push, pull, squat, twist, hinge, lunge, stretch, feel. Move because you can.
- 🔥 Create - our essence is creation. Create something that makes a difference: a thought, an idea, words, actions, progress, insight. Be intentional.
- 💧 Hydrate - our bodies are mostly water and function optimally when they have enough water. Let the lifeblood of earth enrich every cell.
- 🥦 Nourish - provide the body with what it needs to perform, recover and grow. High quality nutrition is essential for the good life. You truly are what you eat.
- 🌑 Rest - growth happens during rest. Rest heals the body, reduces stress, improves productivity, boosts creativity. Being still is a gift.
- ♥️ Love - do something out of love, whether that’s for yourself, for others, for earth, for the universe. Be grateful, be kind, be humble, be joyful, be true.
Ghost is committing to one action for each of the practices for a set amount of time. I am choosing to do it over three months, from 1 January to 31 March 2024. There is no plan B, no consideration of "What if I fail?" - I have a deep knowing within me that even though this is my 100th attempt at some kind of transformation, this is the one. Every day for 91 days I will:
- ☯️ Breathe - dedicate 10 minutes to a mindfulness practice. This may be meditation, yoga or breathing exercises.
- 👣 Move - complete two 45 minute intentional workouts. The workouts must be three hours apart and one must be outside (aligned with 75Hard). Includes walking, yoga and Jiu Jitsu.
- 🔥 Create - do one Power Hour - a timed hour of deep work focussing on what I perceive to be the most important thing at that moment.
- 💧 Hydrate - drink 1 US gallon (3.8 litres) of water each day (aligned with 75Hard).
- 🥦 Nourish - stick to a diet (aligned with 75Hard), for me that's do not eat junk food and consume at least 144g of protein unless fasting.
- 🌑 Rest - spend 8 hours in bed (to the best of my ability)
- ♥️ Love - practice self-love by focussing on the good habits I want to build and bad habits I want to destroy. Every day I want to read 10 pages, take a progress photo, use a task list, not play video games, not take drugs (including alcohol and caffeine), not gamble, not use social media, and not browse the internet.
The commitments may seem extreme to other people but as David Goggins' says: "I'm not crazy, I'm just not you". Once Ghost is over I will reflect on the previous three months and think about how I want to live my life going forward, and how I can use what I have learnt to grow into this next phase of my life.
Bravo Six, going dark.
