Undeniable

A Pirate's Adventures.

Dear Permission to be Powerful Reader,

I’m a Pirate.

An Extremist.

A Daredevil.

You are not talking to a normal person.

Buyer beware.

In 2019, I used to listen to these Mooji guided meditations on my iPhone.

My partner sometimes criticized Mooji.

I didn’t like that.

So, I never played him on TV, or out loud.

I lived in secret.

Maybe you know what that’s like—hiding the things that light you up because someone else might not approve.

That silence eats you alive.

Same thing with running.

I stopped running for years.

Got fat…

Very fat…

And worst of all…

I stopped dancing for 8 years.

I practically forgot how.

And what was I doing instead?

Being enmeshed.

Isolated.

Depressed.

Smoking weed.

Watching Sex and the City on Netflix.

But then one day…

I pulled a 180.

I flipped the script.

I started showing up for myself.

I joined the Zen Center…

Started meditating for days at a time…

Learning from real Zen masters….

Then I moved into the Goddamn monastery.

I started running 5ks, 10ks, half marathons.

Most people will run a 5k once or twice, if ever.

I told myself I wanted to do 100 more before I die. And I already sailed way past 100, so thankfully I didn’t sign a binding contract.

I lost 50 pounds.

I even joined a running team.

And, perhaps best of all…

I brought back dancing.

I partied harder in these last 3 years than all the rest of my life combined.

I partied so much…

I came back a Pirate.

I’m the type of guy people start filming out of the blue.

I enjoy being a spectacle.

When I walk into a room, I don’t blend in.

EVER.

I can do something most people can’t.

I learned how to be a force of nature.

I traveled all over America in search of the best dancers.

Atlanta, Orlando, NYC, Toronto, Chicago, Philly…

I even had one glorious night of salsa dancing in Italy.

I escaped the sweltering heat and the dull sightseeing.

And I discovered all the beautiful women.

It’s the only part of the trip I can’t forget.

I even joined a dance crew.

I went from ghost to spectacle.

From invisible to unforgettable.

So, what am I saying, here?

What am I getting at?

If you look at each of these arenas, what do you see?

I went from being silent, to loud.

Invisible to undeniable.

Notice…

My interests never changed.

But the passion I put into them did.

And that’s the part no one tells you: your life doesn’t need new passions. It needs new intensity.

And you know what?

This wasn’t a surface level shift.

It was an identity level transformation.

I was the same, yet entirely different.

In some ways, I believe in the opposite of what I used to believe.

Most people like living their lives in the shallow end of the pool.

Netflix and chill…

They might try a salsa party once.

Monthly maybe, if they’re extroverted.

I danced up a goddamn storm.

There are many people who are so tightly wound, a spontaneous night of salsa dancing would be way outside their comfort zone.

They don’t realize that if they lightened up just a little bit…

Stop being so hard on themselves…

Stop taking themselves so seriously…

They might discover a whole new realm of adventure they previously knew nothing about.

Imagine…

You discover something so fun… it rewrites your very concept of fun.

You didn’t even know you could have so much fun in a single night.

AND on a regular basis.

That’s a massive upgrade in your quality of life many people are too neurotic to enjoy.

But for those who do… just a little taste and they’re hooked.

I’ve seen it happen a thousand times.

Yet some people can’t let their guard down long enough to actually enjoy themselves.

It’s sad.

They truly have no idea what they’re missing out on.

Most people train for months to run a single 5k.
They treat it like a bucket-list item.
Check the box. Move on.

I run one every week.

While they Netflix their lives away, I’m out in the storm—
running trails, kissing strangers,
or sitting in the zendo.

I’ve learned that depressed people do depressed people shit.

Fat people do fat people shit.

Happy people do happy people shit.

It’s really that simple.

So ask yourself—what kind of shit are you doing right now? And what does it say about who you are?

There’s NO LIMIT to how deeply you can pursue any passion.

You’ve been living your whole life in the kiddie pool…

Yet, there’s a vast ocean out there you know nothing about.

How sad would it be to punch the ticket without ever sailing the seas even once?

If that stings a little, good. That means part of you knows it’s true.

Although personally, I recommend every day.

Always, I’m daring myself to double down.

To become an even purer version of myself.

From secret guided meditations to a Buddhist monk.

From fatass to 100+ races.

From no friends or social life to a veteran salsa dancer.

How deep can you go?

Most people never dive.

They spend their lives wading, ankle-deep, telling themselves stories about safety.

But safety is a mirage.

You either burn, or you fade.

I chose to burn.

And if you’ve read this far, some part of you already knows: you were never built for the kiddie pool.

So here’s your choice.

Keep circling the shallow end… Netflix, excuses, half-hearted adventures…

Or—tear up the map. Go off course. Dare yourself into the deep.

Not tomorrow. Not next year.

Now.

Because the water is dark, dangerous, infinite…

And it’s where you’ll finally come alive.

Tony V.

Editor-in-Chief

Permission to be Powerful