Last week I wrote about the irrefutable truth that each of us can ONLY live an internal experience.

That there is no way for a human being to directly experience anything outside of ourselves. Only the model of the world that our brain creates.

That is the fundamental truth on which all my work rests.

But there are observations and implications that come from this truth.

And one of them is this—

When Your Mind Quiets, Different Thoughts Appear

If your mind is at all like mine, it can be a very busy place.

Lots of judgmental thoughts, thoughts that I am very familiar with about myself, about the world, about political leaders, about money, about my partner—you name it.

Over and over and over again.

When you begin to see this chatter for what it is, just thoughts that come and go, you get a little less attached to whether or not it is “true.” And you might also find, as I have, that the chatter slows down quite a bit when you know it’s just noise.

At that point, something deeper can emerge. Quiet, patient, simple.

It’s there waiting for you.

It’s been there all along.

It goes by many names. Wisdom, intuition, guidance. Even God. What word you use isn’t particularly important. What is important is that the experience of it will feel very different from your more “normal” way of operating.

Instinct? Or Intuition?

I was talking with a former client the other day, Michael Showalter, and he said one of the most valuable things that came from work together was something he didn’t even realize at the time.

“Before we started working together, I was operating from instinct,” he said.

I asked him what he meant. He said it was about reacting quickly, and without thought. Just doing the first thing that came to mind—what I have found a lot of people call operating “from the gut.”

When I talk about intuition, that is where most people think I am pointing.

But, at least for him, a lot of that instinct driven by his own programming—pleasing others, proving himself, looking good, avoiding conflict, etc.

Michael said when he was able to see that, he was able to get quiet and get access to a deeper kind of wisdom, which he called “intuition.”

“I just knew. No trumpets, no fanfare, no butterflies. When I got quiet, when I had access to it, what to do next was obvious. And typically simple, too, even if it often was the exact opposite of what “instinct” would tell me.

What Does Your Wisdom Feel Like?

It can be really easy to miss this in the moment. I know there have been many times where I said, “I knew I shouldn’t have done (or said) that,” after the fact.

Trusting this quiet wisdom before the fact, though, is a game-changer. As is understanding what it is and what it isn’t.

In my experience, it is a quiet guide to the next step. And relatively rare.

It ISN’T a way to play the stock market or a guide to sports betting.

But if you are willing to follow where it leads, and put what it suggests into action, it can change everything.

Two Days To Get Deeper Access

If this sounds like something you’d like to explore more deeply, I have two ways to dive in—one-on-one in a personal retreat, or in a group setting in Denver on October 20-21.

If you are interested in exploring either, like this post (so more people will see it) and send me a DM.

The only way that any of us can experience the world is through the model that our brain makes of the world. We build the model and live within it. Yet we ACT as though the world is solid and “out there,” happening TO us.

This is the basis of all the work that I do. The starting point. The foundational principle. And if and when you see this, you really GET this, your life will change.

When the Game is Up

Some spiritual teachers have called this “The Cosmic Joke.” We spend our whole lives trying to change our circumstances, to change the people around us, to change our bodies or appearances or bank accounts.

All in an effort to feel better about ourselves. To feel stronger or more loved or more powerful.

When actually, we are the ones creating everything. Even if this process is all but invisible to us.

I got my first glimpse of this in 2007 when I was sitting in meditation. It suddenly occurred to me, like a little thought bubble popping over my head, that this present moment is all that ever is. That everything else, the past, the future, my stories about both of those and my stories about myself and the world, I was making up in this present moment.

I laughed.

And I went back to living in the reality that I was creating. Just a little bit wiser for the experience.

But every few years since I have had another thought bubble pop. More and more I am able to witness myself creating the world that I live in.

The Irrefutable Truth of How Our Brains Work

Your experience (and mine) is comprised of three things—

Sensory data—whatever your brains tell you about the things you see, hear, smell, taste, touch.

Your physiological state—calm or triggered, to name two of many possibilities.

The STORIES you tell yourself about what inputs mean.

Your brain is building a model of the world in real time and living in that model. And the vast majority of us think that model is not only real, but the one right and solid reality.

Over the next few weeks I am going to explore some of the implications of this fundamental truth.

But if you know you are up for a deeper exploration of this (in a way that will change your leadership and your life), I have two ways you can do that—

First as a two day one-on-one retreat.

Second as a group event in Denver on October 20-21.

If either of these appeal to you, like this post (so more people will see it) and send me a DM.

“I’m Winston Wolf. I solve problems.” — Pulp Fiction

I had a conversation recently with a founder I’ve been coaching for a while. Nothing dramatic happened—no big exit, no new venture just launched.

But something was different.

He Was Showing Up Differently

He sounded lighter. More clear. He was describing conversations he used to dread that now felt easy. He was building relationships, asking great questions, and genuinely enjoying it. Not performing—participating.

He told me about:

• Hosting a major industry event and enjoying being recognized for leadership

• Connecting deeply with people at a wellness startup launch

• Taking in two hours of a live Eckhart Tolle presentation with no notes, no urgency to “get everything down”

• Exploring franchise opportunities—not to escape his day job, but out of real curiosity

• Giving up alcohol, not with fanfare, but because it just made sense

• Reworking his schedule to include tennis, yoga, strength training—and sleeping better than ever

Leading by Letting Go

He also told me he’s ready to step away from the business he sold to private equity—his “day job,” as he called it—with clarity, not bitterness. He’s actively developing his team, handing them more responsibility, and watching them thrive without him in the room.

None of this came from trying harder. It came from letting go of the pressure. The pressure to prove, to perform, to control every outcome, to find and solve every problem.

And when that pressure dropped? Possibility showed up.

He’s not “on fire.” He’s not “crushing it.” He’s not selling someone on his 7-step plan.

He’s just building a life that actually fits him now—and noticing what’s worth leaning into.

A Subtle but Life-Changing Shift

Sometimes the shift we need isn’t tactical. It’s internal. It’s not about having a plan. It’s about having space.

This shift doesn’t just happen to founders. It can happen to anyone.

When you are looking for problems, you find them.

When you are looking for possibilities, you find them, too.

If that’s a shift you’d like to explore, there are two ways to spend two days getting exposed to viewing from possibility.

First, as a one-on-one retreat. Second, as a group event in Denver October 20-21.

If either of those possibilities appeal to you, like this post so more people can see it, and send me a DM.

“I’ve suffered a great many catastrophes in my life. Most of them never happened.” — Mark Twain

“Be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful.” —Warren Buffet

Recent events have convinced many people that we are headed for a recession or worse. That it is time to hunker down and play it safe.

Yet time and time again, the worst economic times have led to the biggest opportunities.

It’s Not About What You See—It’s About Where You Are Looking From

I confess I have no idea, yet, what the big opportunities are in this time of incredible uncertainty.

But here’s what I do know. They are a lot easier to see if you are looking for them.

If you are convinced that doomsday is coming, then by all means build a bunker. Stop living life. But keep in mind that both Uber and AirBNB came out of the financial crisis of 2009. And there are startups from COVID times that continue to thrive. I know for me, it was during COVID that my access to and focus on founders became much more clear than it had before, and I have never looked back.

I now look at COVID as a turning point for my business.

Time and time again there have been turning points when things looked most difficult.

Will this be a turning point for you?

If This Was the Biggest Opportunity You Had Ever Seen, What Would You Do?

Because here’s the secret. Every market creates winners, and down markets create some of the biggest.

In every conversation I’ve had with a founder in the past few weeks, they have come away convinced that their biggest problem is not a coming recession, but taking advantage of all the opportunity that both exists and is coming.

Would you like to see that, too?

Reach out and let’s talk.

Remember, you don’t have to know right now. You just have to know that you can see it if you look for it.