Building Company

I had a wonderful weekend and I’m writing this post to remember it.

I just spent labor day weekend in Clearlake, California. Little did we know why it was so ridiculously cheap to book a lakefront Airbnb there.

But I’ll let you ask google yourself…

Two months ago my friend Luke Clancy invited me to a “boys trip” to Clearlake, CA for labor day weekend. I didn’t know a single thing about the area but I knew the group that would be there was going to be the best part.

Luke has a special skill of meeting and bringing together incredible people. When I committed to coming on the trip, I didn’t know a single thing that was planned. But what I love about Luke and his friends is that there is never a dull moment. He doesn’t filter for “founders,” “creators,” or “entrepreneurs.” Just awesome guys that happen to being doing cool shit.

I can’t speak for him but it seems like he just maximizes for fun, adventure, and LPM (laughs per minute).

That’s exactly what I got.

We also played played “mafia”, did yoga, hit some workouts, played spikeball, cooked group dinners, and had a whole lot of fun.

Instead of giving you a word-vomitted play by play of the weekend I would give to my crush while the watching sunset at Bernal Heights (hypothetically), I’ll share the top 7 takeaways from the weekend.

1. Age is just a number.

The age range of this group ranged from 22 to 31. And I had 9 years on one guy. That didn’t change the dynamic of the group at all. One reason why I love flexing up and down the age of whom I spend my time with is the energy you can get from the youth and the perspectives you can get from people older than you. Turns out, we all have the same feelings at 22 and 31. As the guys opened up I noticed we all struggled with the same battles: feeling behind, like we’re not doing enough, we’re not ready, antsy for what’s next, the fear of failure, and self doubt.

2. California has it all

I've said this a handful of times, and I'll say it again. Despite the high taxes and polarizing political issues within California, I think the state has it all, and I will happily pay the tax and high cost of living because of all the opportunities I get. Ranging from beaches, to cliffside views, alpine lakes, dynamic mountain ranges, ocean, snow, and having access to the two most potent economies in the world: tech and entertainment. Clearlake isn’t the most stunning part of California, but it was a reminder of the privilege I often forget I have to live here.

3. Guys don’t talk about their feelings (enough)

On Saturday morning, we did an activity that you would not expect a group of 14 guys to do on Labor Day weekend. Relational Presencing. Credit to Luke and my friend Eric on this one. The only thing that was asked is that we embrace discomfort for trying something new. It started with breath-work and ended with a whole lot of eye contact while speaking about physical and then emotional feelings. I've never tried this before, but it got me to open up in a way I feel like I haven't been able to open up with a lot of other people, and grow a deeper connection with the guys I was with this weekend. It made me realize, this never would have happened if we weren’t encouraged to lean in to the “woo woo” once in a while. I’m glad we did because I realized the connection you build when share your emotions with other guys.

4. No phones, no problem.

It might feel weird to tell 14 guys to throw their phones into a laptop bag for two days. But this was probably one of the best recommendations that Luke could have made. Starting Friday night, we were encouraged to put our phones away and use them as little as possible so that we would spend less time looking down and more interacting with each other. As someone who is constantly plugged in and engaged it was a great forced disconnect. While I think i could have done a good job being present and staying off my phone when I’m having a great time with the guys, I felt the extra pressure to be present the entire weekend instead of filling boredom with being hunched over a screen.

5. Working out with your friends is fucking awesome.

95% of the workouts I do (that are not running) I do alone. All the movement I did this weekend was done with other people, and it was incredible. Friday morning, I ran three miles with the guys. Friday night, another group of guys came in and wanted to run another three miles. We got a group of six together and did a sunset run before dinner. The following morning, I led a mini yoga session to get the blood moving. Followed by an afternoon HIIT workout at a drop-in gym that Aidan found. The entire afternoon of Saturday was spent playing spike ball, ultimate frisbee, tossing the football around, and kicking a volleyball like a soccer ball. There’s something special about tossing balls, throwing weights, and running in 90 degree weather with your friends.

6. Grown men (still) love rock paper scissors.

Does this sound familiar? You pay to equally split an Airbnb with a group of your friends for a trip. Yet you end up paying the same amount as the guy that got the king bedroom while you sleep on the couch. Well, on this trip that wasn’t a problem. Why? Everyone got to earn their bed with skill. Luke decided that we would get to choose the order in which we pick our sleeping arrangements through a rock paper scissors tournament. Never did I think I would be grateful to be sharing a queen size bed with a 6’ 4” ex college basketball player. But I was and it was fun “earning it.”

7. The company is the only thing that matters

I went on a similar trip like this organized by Luke back in February to Yosemite, and it was one of my favorite trips to date. Similarly, the house was not special… and we were an hour and a half away from Yosemite. It was the group of guys that made all the difference in making this normal house special. Something that I think Luke does really well and I take notes on is the ability to curate a group of incredible people and bring them together in such a simple way and turn that experience into an extraordinary time. It's not about what you're doing, but who you're doing it with that makes the experience incredible.

None of these things may seem groundbreaking in isolation, but the experience from start to finish was inspiring to do again with my own group of friends, knowing who inspired it and the why behind it.

I always return home feeling inspired to do one of these on my own, and I think that's going to be happening soon. I don't have a date in mind, but let me know if this is something that you would want to do when I plan my own.

Until Then ✌🏻🏔️

If you enjoyed this post or know someone who may find it useful, please share it with them and encourage them to subscribe here 🙌🏻

Things Worth Clicking

A few gems I found on the internet this week - no digging required

• How to build an app for boomers by Brock Anderson

• AI music is coming and here’s your chance (and mine) to capitalize

• No one can teach you conviction

I Dig So You Don’t Have To

1 Set:

2 IDs: