So, it begins

We all have to start somewhere

Discovering mindfulness has been the most amazing experience of my life, aside from marrying my wife and having children of course (que the smiles from the crowd). The discovery has put life into a different perspective. Living true to nature fueled by values that honor who I truly am. Love for all, compassion towards others, understanding what it really means to live. Life slows down as you become grateful for things that used to be insignificant. Now, I look for the silver lining in everything. There is a reason for this, what can I learn from it. When your eyes become dilated on living true to human nature, your soul grows. You begin to find joy in the mere act of being. I have always had passion for human optimization, I just refused to accept its truth. Before I go any further, let me provide you a quick background on what led to my discovery.

Coming up on six months ago, I was uprooted from everything I knew. The U.S. military asked me to travel to a small country in Central America to help the population. Sorry, but I have to keep that part short. There I was, leaving the comforts of the U.S. in a twin-propeller cargo plane having no idea what I was supposed to do. Ironically, and I feel the Universe was at work without me knowing, my beautiful wife prior to me leaving was reading The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle. The book was on the Kindle I brought. I sat there in a daze, looking out the window at the limitless landscape. I opened the Kindle, and there it was. I said “screw it, I’ll give this book a go”. On that flight, I finished the book. To be honest, I still didn’t understand it. I was not ready yet.

When your faced with something like a military deployment, or any difficult time you have two options. Option one is suffer through it, looking at the calendar everyday dreaming of the end. Option two is thrive. Use it to find you. The inner passion, fortitude, and drive that exists in all of us but goes unnoticed because of the hustle and bustle of everyday life. I chose option 2. I chose to use this experience to grow as a human, living directly through my soul, not the monkey brain. Tim Ferris describes the monkey brain as the unconscious auto-pilot that drives our actions and decisions. I chose to live life intentionally, make the best with what the Universe had prescribed to me. Peeling back the layers of the onion that is Chris Perez. My Mindful Journey had begun.

I’m starting this site to document my journey towards mindfulness with the intent of hopefully helping others. Through the process I’ve uncovered my passion, helping others find fulfillment in their lives. Maximizing your existence each and every day. In order to pursue your dream, your personal legend, you have to start somewhere. This is my start. It won’t be pretty and aesthetically pleasing like other personal growth sites, but I don’t care. My ego is not involved. I’ll be sharing my return to the thing I love most, my family, and my personal views on what it means to live. I look forward to sharing with you.

Lastly, I would like to thank Onnit for providing my base and helping me understand what Total Human Optimization really means. Be the hero of your own movie. The movie is titled Life.