Step 1: Observe Source

Your life philosophy isn’t something you come up with. It’s already out there.

To understand what I mean, you need to understand the concept of source, one of the greatest ideas by Rick Rubin.

In case you don’t know Rubin, he’s like the OG of the OG’s in the music space. He’s a producer who’s worked with almost all the big artists to help them facilitate their creativity. His book “The Creative Act” is one of my all-time favorites. Read it if you haven’t. Anyway - here’s the deal about source:

We tend to think that creative ideas come from inside our minds. Rick Rubin disagrees. In the book, he writes:

"Source material does not come from inside us. The Source is out there. A wisdom surrounding us, an inexhaustible offering that is always available.”

Source is everything around you.

Nature. Books. People. Yes, even your iced latte from Starbucks.

This universal creative intelligence is everywhere, all the time. And, channeled properly, it will give life philosophy to you effortlessly (more on this soon). Everyone experiences a source, but most are too distracted to give it their attention.

To plug into the source, we need to shut up, show up, and cut through the noise of a distracted world.

That means:

• Wandering in the wilderness far from the seductions of technology
• Seeking out new experiences of awe and mystery to short-circuit your default programming
• Simplifying your life to quiet your mind and pay attention to the world around you

You have all the answers. They’re right in front of you. You just need to observe them.

Your personal truth is what’s crystal clear to you, but what nobody else sees. (Click to tweet)​

Step 2: Surrender To Open Your Mind

Once you start connecting with Source regularly, profound wisdom will start flowing through.

Your job is to receive it. To let it work on you and through you.

Now, as founders, we tend to have a need for control. We’re industrious and outcome-oriented. We’re used to getting to where we want through sheer grit and willpower.

But receiving a source isn’t something you can force.

To build a powerful life philosophy, you must surrender your agenda. Hand the reins over to a deeper intelligence. Let the source flow through you.

When a thought comes into your mind, regardless of how crazy it sounds, write it down. Express it first, evaluate it later.

I’ve made the mistake to “marry my goals” too often. It made me inflexible. Goals can be empowering, but eventually, they can limit you. When I fixated only on my goals, it was like my old self’s ambitions held my new self in a birdcage. There was no room for serendipity. The danger of fixating on our mental map (or career goals) is that we ignore the real territory (existence).

Business isn’t life. It’s not even half of life. It’s one of the endless games of existence we can choose to play.

Why am I sharing this in a letter about life philosophy?

Well, the advice is that many founders make the mistake of viewing their philosophy too narrow. They view it as a means to an end, like a high-level business strategy.

But philosophy is the greatest of lenses for observing your existence:

Surrender to the source around you. Receive it. Then put it on paper.

Step 3: Create Your Directional Philosophy

At the end of the day, we’re founders.

Unlike philosophers, founders can’t just get stoned on source forever. We got work to do.

I call this creating an directional life philosophy. It should do two things:

Inspire you

Inform you

The final step is to integrate your insights into a cohesive worldview and compass. To distill the sacred into the everyday sacred.

Take what source has shown you and write that shit down. Crystalize your:

• Deepest values - what hill will you die on?
• Driving purpose - your existential "why"
• Vision for your one wild life
• Decision making rubric
• Daily non-negotiables for staying on track
• Ethical bright lines

There’s no “right” way or format for a life philosophy. It is, after all, unique to you. And that’s the very beauty if it.

But if you want a source of inspiration, you can read my life philosophy here:

Creating your philosophy takes time. It will evolve as you do. It's a lived inquiry, not an intellectual exercise.

But by putting stakes in the ground, you root yourself in your truth. You build yourself an ark for the great flood. An anchor for the existential shit storms. And as founders, we live through many of those.

My philosophy isn't some accessory. It's my lifeline. My promise to life itself. Yours will be too, if you do the goddamn work of uncovering it.

Philosophy Creator OS

If you’ve been reading this newsletter for a while, you know that my ethos is to bring you one system a week to grow your business.

This week, I created Philosophy Creator OS.

My goal is to make this existential work as efficient as possible for busy founders like you. So you can experience more flow and fulfillment, without the full-blown meaning crisis.

The system helps you create a life philosophy from a transcript. Simply take a walk, record your existential ponder, and feed it into AI with my system (full instructions in the system).

​>>> Access Philosophy Creator OS​

And if you ever want to collaborate on a deeper level, check out Founder OS. In our community of founders, I help you achieve your wildest dreams as a founder through proven systems. I want to see you win. So…

Let’s win together,

Matt

P.S. Whenever you're ready, there are 3 ways I can help you:

#1: If you want to learn more about how to create a funnel map, check out my YouTube video on How To Make Your Life Insanely Simple (In 6 Months)​

​​#2: I’ll pay you $1,000 for each founder you refer to Founder OS. Just copy this link and send it to 5 founder friends: https://www.founderos.com/claim?referred_by=

#3: Book me as keynote speaker. In my talks, I share practical strategies and systems for audience growth, brand building, and automation.

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