In 2024, it was the year of sustainability and I failed miserably. So I played it back and made 2025 the year of real sustainability. And it was. Success! But it was far more than that. Looking back, 2025 became the year of unexpected healing.
I don’t know how much I can share, but I’ll try and we’ll see where it leads.
For my career, the biggest win of the year was having Simon & Schuster buy the rights to publish “Linking Your Thinking” in a major deal. It’s validation in my efforts. It’s validation in our movement around the desire to feel the satisfaction that comes from making the most of our minds.
I won’t write a lot about this one. I know how I haven’t shown up in the way I’ve wanted to, to the standards I have, and this year, with the help of plant medicine, this realization hit me hard. Since then, in ways big and small, small and steady, steady and mundane, I’ve been changing this. I’m becoming the type of adult figure I can be proud of. Personally, it’s my proudest achievement of the year.
It was only the person I’ve been with for the past 15 years ;) But on a serious note, with a depth and level of clarity I’ve never felt before—with blazing certainty—I understood that my Love is also my soulmate.
I didn’t leave Montana in disrepair; I left in good standing. However, living in NYC for 3 years and LA for 10 years distanced me from so much of the majesty of my home state. My work ethic and aspirations distanced me from great friendships.
Living half the year back in Montana allowed for unexpected healing in so many different places. I’m exercising more. I’m listening to more music. I’m reading more. I’m reaching out to friends new and old more frequently.
From attending a friend’s grandmother’s funeral, to hosting family and friends multiple times, to our college’s Homecoming, to the several times I saw my mom’s car pull up in the driveway 🥲—it’s been the year of unexpected healing.
I healed my “annoyance” at loud noises: Between the neighbor’s dog, to the Dodge Charger starting up at 6:03am, to the trains that pass through Helena, Montana, I’ve become more and more affected by loud sounds and infrasound over the past decade. Then one day I had enough, and forced myself to make friends with the train.
I read more fiction than ever before. I’ve always read fiction, but I upped the level this year, developing a bit of a writer’s crush on Ursula K. Le Guin. The power of fiction is immense. If your diet is only non-fiction, I can’t encourage you enough: Read fiction. You’ll “gain” and “achieve” more fiction, without even trying, than from reading yet another non-fiction book. Balance out your diet. You can quote me on this: From one author I’ve learned more about men and women than any other, and her name is Le Guin.
I produced a play in NYC. I love theater, big and small. How nice to return to it and remember why.
I love writing. I love writing books. Between pressing demands in the business, I would always return to writing the book, and every time fall in love with the challenges: the turns of phrases, the peeling back layers of built-up complexity to distill a concept down to the essence, and much more. Needless to say, really enjoy the process of writing the book, and this won’t be the only one.
I continue to repair my relationship to the feminine and masculine. I’ll talk about this one more down the road.
Found consistency with exercise again. Is it any surprise that this has happened back in Montana, where I feel most physically alive?
Along with getting the book sold to Simon & Schuster and successfully running the Knowledge Accelerator for thousands, we also:
Launched Ideaverse Pro 2.0 in April then launched Ideaverse Pro 2.5 on Novemeber to include “bases.”
Launched Obsidian Bases Masterclass to help people expertly resurface their notes in Obsidian. That and the newly launched “AI + PKM Masterclass: Use Al while keeping your voice.” are only available inside our core accelerator offering.
Launched the Sensemakers Assessment, helping lifelong learners better understand how they go about thinking and learning. You can join thousands and take the free assessment now.
It’s easy to drone on in an annual review, but that’s really it.
Okay fine, here are some of my favorites from the year.
The Language of the Night: Beautifully written essays on everything about writing from Ursula K. Le Guin. And it has the best cover art too.
Tehanu: Fantasy done with heart.
Tiny Experiments: Upends goal-setting. Inspiring.
The Inner Compass: Small book, powerful punch.
Honorable Mentions
Children of Time: Thought-provoking
Wild Courage: Empowering
Sketch Your Mind: Visual PKM
Neuromancer: Genre-defining
Yes, there were good movies that came out this year, but my favorites were of films already released.
The Man Who Killed Don Quixote: I loved the book and Terry Gilliam adapts it in an unexpected way that completely captures the essence of the Don Quixote. What a gem!
Florence Foster Jenkins: Sweet, touching. Beautifully acted.
Honorable Mentions
The Exorcist: I finally got up the nerve to watch it. It’s intense, but the reason it resonates is only partly because of the spectacle. The other part is a deeper unease it leaves you with.
The Lord of the Rings - The War of the Rohirrim: I mean, c’mon, after The Hobbit debacle, the bar was low, and I as dressed up as Aragorn for the Return of the King premiere (only to be confused for Frodo 😒), you could say I’m a bit of a fan.
On Her Majesty’s Secret Service: I used to watch Bond films with my dad but this one we never did. I think George Lazenby was generally disliked, but I think with time, perception of his Bond performance is changing. Diana Rigg is phenomenal, especially when you realize she played Olenna Tyrell, the elderly matriarch of House Tyrell, 48 years later!
I much prefer a whole album that I can put on repeat. These are my faves from the year.
Are you Experienced? (The Jimi Hendrix Experience): I knew the hits, but every song, every one, is a treasure, especially hidden gems like May This Be Love, Third Stone from the Sun, and the titular Are You Experienced? NOTE: These all benefit from playing louder than normal.
De mi selva (Rainer Scheurenbrand) - A newer musical genre for me. Love it.
Jardim (Rainer Scheurenbrand) - I really like his music!
Out of the Blue (by Electric Light Orchestra): You already know about Mr. Blue Sky (likely from Guardians of the Galaxy), but the whole album rocks.
Returning favorites
TRON - Legacy (Daft Punk) - I listened to this for 144 hours. I’m in the top 0.002% of all listeners in the world. I dare you beat that!
Redline (Lazerhawk): Another classic I always return when both focus and energy are needed.
Alien: Earth (Season 1): Fresh.
Foundation (Season 3): Best season thus far.
Severance (Season 2): Finally! Not bad.
Honorable Mentions
Obsidian: The best app of them all
CleanShotX: The best underrated app (mac only)
I’m thankful for 2025 and excited for 2026.
I’ll complete writing the Linking Your Thinking book.
We’ve added monthly themes into our flagship program, Knowledge Accelerator.
And we’ll gear up to make a big launch for the book, aiming for Spring 2027.
That’s it.
If anything resonated with you, I'd love to hear from you in the the comments.
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