The Corner of 8th & Insanity
Today’s Mantra:
I AM leading by example,
modeling a new way.
Love is my guiding light.
6a Yin Yoga & Breath work
7a Yoga Nidra / Prayer
815a Breakfast
830a - 11a Trade & Write / @ Desk
11a - 130p Weight Room - Heavy Back
Warm UP
- Walk 3.5mi @12%
- Dead Hangs (3x 60sec)
- Toes to Bar (3x8)
- Cable Wood Chops (4x12/s)
- Cable Rows (5x6)
- Face Pulls (3x15)
- Dumbells Rows (4x6)
- Barbell Curls (Straight Bar - 5x8)
- Lat Pull Down (Neutral Grip - 3x15)
- Cable Curls til Burnout
1p - 3p Trade & Write
3p - 8p Family Time
8p - 9p Walk w/Tulip
9p Rest & Recovery
“If you cannot feel truth without thinking about it, you will not survive what’s coming. The world is filling with lies so perfect that your mind will believe them. The ones who rise in the years ahead won’t be the most educated, they’ll be the ones who still know how to listen to their blood before their brain talks them out of it”
Sun in Libra. Moon in Capricorn.
The Corner of 8th & Insanity
September tested you. Some moments lit you up, gave you joy. Others stretched you thin and cracked you open in ways you didn’t plan for. That’s life’s way of carving a man into something sharper. And here you are—still standing. Stronger. Wiser. Sharpened by both the wins and the wounds.
This is what it means to live in the masculine frame. To walk as the warrior, the protector, the builder. The warrior fights battles most men never see—on the inside and out. He gets knocked down, but he rises, scarred but unbroken. The protector shows up not just for himself, but for those he loves. Even when he feels empty, he shields them from the storm. And the builder? He keeps stacking bricks when no one’s watching, when there’s no applause, when the future feels far away. That’s how empires rise—quietly, piece by piece.
The wins of September matter. Celebrate them. Be grateful for the laughter, the clarity, the small victories that remind you why you fight. But don’t hide from the struggles either. Honor the weight you carried, even when it bent your shoulders. Honor the way you kept showing up when things didn’t break in your favor. That grit—the refusal to fold—is what separates men who live with purpose from men who fade into the background.
Now October arrives with new energy. A fresh battlefield. New opportunities. New storms. You don’t drag the weight of last month into this one—you reset. You square your shoulders, sharpen your focus, and step forward as a man forged in fire. October is not asking you to be perfect. It’s asking you to be present, decisive, and grounded. To show up with the discipline of the warrior, the heart of the protector, and the vision of the builder.
So… leave September with gratitude, but don’t linger there. Look October in the eye. Receive what’s coming with open hands and a steady spirit. Fight the fights worth fighting, protect what truly matters, and build what will outlast you. That’s how the masculine leads. That’s how a man walks forward—calm, clear, and ready. LFG
Enemies Within: How Men Haunt Themselves Through Others
The hidden mechanics of projection, shadow work, and the brutal cost of refusing to face yourself.
You Don’t See Reality. You See Yourself.
Men like to believe they see the world clearly. Traders especially pride themselves on precision—the clean read of a chart, the gut feel of a breakout, the instinct for a reversal. But here’s the uncomfortable truth: most of what you think you see—whether in people or in markets—is not reality.
It’s you.
You are shadowboxing with your own reflection. The arrogance you hate in another man, the laziness that infuriates you, the brilliance you admire, the power you envy—they’re not “out there.” They are disowned pieces of yourself.
The psyche cannot tolerate contradiction. So when a trait threatens your self-image—“I’m disciplined,” “I’m humble,” “I’m in control”—your ego ejects it. You exile it from your conscious mind. But what is denied inside doesn’t disappear. It reemerges outside. It attaches to others. You look at the world and see your own unfinished business painted across its surface.
This is projection. And until you face it, you will bleed energy in life the same way an undisciplined trader bleeds capital in the market: endlessly, predictably, and with no one to blame but yourself.
The Mechanics of Shadowboxing
Projection always follows the same sequence.
The Ejection – A part of you is labeled “unacceptable.” Rage. Desire. Vanity. Laziness. Ambition. It doesn’t fit the story of who you think you are, so it gets exiled.
The Haunting – You begin to “see” this trait in others. That man is arrogant. That woman is needy. That trader is reckless. You are utterly convinced of it because, unconsciously, you are staring at your own reflection.
The Reaction – Now the fight begins. Criticism. Withdrawal. Gossip. Contempt. Or sometimes, obsession and worship. You spend your energy reacting to an external “enemy” so you don’t have to admit the truth: the enemy is within.
And so you keep shadowboxing, convinced you are fighting others, when really you are avoiding the fight with yourself.
The Tell of Projection
How do you know you’re trapped in it? The same way a trader knows he’s on tilt: the charge.
The rage that feels outsized for the situation.
The disgust that won’t let go.
The idolization that borders on worship.
The certainty that you know someone else’s motives.
Whenever the emotional reaction is larger than the trigger, you are not responding to reality—you are reacting to the ghost of yourself you’ve tried to exile.
It is never about them. It is always about you.
Why This Destroys Men
For men, projection poisons everything.
It sabotages brotherhood. You hate in other men the parts of yourself you cannot face. You envy in them the strength you’ve abandoned. You turn potential allies into enemies because their very existence forces you to look at the disowned parts of yourself.
It weakens leadership. You project neediness onto your wife while hiding your own hunger for intimacy. You project irresponsibility onto your children while dodging your own duty. You project arrogance onto other men while burying your own ambition under false humility. And so you never lead from wholeness—you lead from fracture.
It corrodes the masculine spirit. Because deep down, a man knows when he is avoiding himself. He knows when he is shadowboxing. And that quiet cowardice eats away at his strength like rust on steel.
Why This Destroys Traders
Projection isn’t just psychological—it’s financial.
Fear projected onto the market makes you see “uncertainty” where there is simply price action. Greed projected onto a ticker makes you chase garbage setups because you’ve disguised your own lack of patience as “opportunity.” Self-doubt projected onto the chart makes you miss clean trades because you confuse hesitation with risk.
You think you’re trading the market. You’re not. You’re trading your own unresolved ghosts. And the market charges you tuition for every blind spot.
No system, no guru, no edge can save you if you refuse to see that the biggest counterparty to every trade you take is yourself.
The Path of Reclamation
So how do you stop shadowboxing? Not by pretending the shadows don’t exist. Not by drowning them in positivity. Not by projecting them faster and louder onto others.
You stop by reclaiming them.
Catch the Charge – The next time you feel the surge—judgment, rage, awe—pause. That is your signal. The shadow is moving.
Turn Inward – Ask the only question that matters: If I am so sure he is arrogant, where does arrogance live in me? If I despise his irresponsibility, where am I neglecting my own duty? If I admire his strength, is that strength lying dormant within me?
Own the Shadow – Say it: “This isn’t about them. This is about me.” That is the act of masculine courage. To welcome home the parts of yourself you’ve disowned. Not to act them out recklessly, but to integrate them with awareness and discipline.
Clean the Mirror – With every projection withdrawn, the world grows clearer. Men stop being enemies. The market stops being a tormentor. Life stops being a haunted house. Every reaction becomes a clue pointing you back to yourself.
Shadowboxing as Initiation
This is not therapy talk. This is initiation.
Every man must fight this war with himself. Every trader must face the mirror. The battle is not with others, not with markets, not with fate. The battle is with your own refusal to see yourself.
The men you hate most are your hidden mentors. They force you to confront what you cannot face. The men you admire most are your future selves, showing you what you could become if you dropped your excuses.
The market itself is the most brutal mirror of all—cold, unfeeling, perfectly reflective. It never lies. If you project onto it, it will strip you of your capital until you learn the lesson.
The Masculine Call
So here is the call: stop shadowboxing.
Stop wasting energy on ghosts. Stop swinging at reflections. Stop blaming others, blaming markets, blaming fate.
Turn the weapon inward. Face the fight that actually matters. Own your shadow. Integrate your exiled parts. Withdraw your projections. Become whole.
Because the war is not out there. It is here.
The enemy is not them. It is you.
And the victory is not in conquering others—it is in conquering yourself.
Closing: The Trader’s Reflection
You can’t master the market until you master yourself.
You can’t lead men until you stop projecting onto them.
You can’t become whole until you stop shadowboxing.
The market is a mirror. Brotherhood is a mirror. Life itself is a mirror.
What you refuse to face in yourself, you will face in them.
What you own in yourself, you reclaim forever.
That is the real edge. That is the real initiation. That is the war.
LIVE FEARLESS, NOT RECKLESS.
Curious about working with me or would like to connect? Give me a shout, anytime. Here