Adam Lafferty
@adamlafferty.bsky.social
Connecting the many you's.
Less dogma. More dojo.
📬 Field Notes Sundays. Downshift Wednesdays.
adamlafferty.substack.com
Less dogma. More dojo.
📬 Field Notes Sundays. Downshift Wednesdays.
adamlafferty.substack.com
Impulse: spiky, urgent, wants relief.
Contact: steady, clean, wants honesty.
Louder when stressed → impulse.
Clearer when slow → contact.
Don't obey it. Test it.
Happy New Year. More contact in 2026.
Contact: steady, clean, wants honesty.
Louder when stressed → impulse.
Clearer when slow → contact.
Don't obey it. Test it.
Happy New Year. More contact in 2026.
December 31, 2025 at 11:09 AM
Impulse: spiky, urgent, wants relief.
Contact: steady, clean, wants honesty.
Louder when stressed → impulse.
Clearer when slow → contact.
Don't obey it. Test it.
Happy New Year. More contact in 2026.
Contact: steady, clean, wants honesty.
Louder when stressed → impulse.
Clearer when slow → contact.
Don't obey it. Test it.
Happy New Year. More contact in 2026.
Your body is not being dramatic.
It's being precise.
Your body isn't performing.
It's reporting.
Drift starts when you stop believing the report.
It's being precise.
Your body isn't performing.
It's reporting.
Drift starts when you stop believing the report.
December 29, 2025 at 11:47 AM
Your body is not being dramatic.
It's being precise.
Your body isn't performing.
It's reporting.
Drift starts when you stop believing the report.
It's being precise.
Your body isn't performing.
It's reporting.
Drift starts when you stop believing the report.
1 yes you regret.
Your mouth said "yes."
Your body said "no."
Then you did what you were trained to do: you overruled it.
The problem was never effort.
It was internal consent.
What are you pretending not to know?
open.substack.com/pub/adamlaff...
Your mouth said "yes."
Your body said "no."
Then you did what you were trained to do: you overruled it.
The problem was never effort.
It was internal consent.
What are you pretending not to know?
open.substack.com/pub/adamlaff...
You Already Knew
On the intelligence you stopped trusting
open.substack.com
December 28, 2025 at 12:30 PM
1 yes you regret.
Your mouth said "yes."
Your body said "no."
Then you did what you were trained to do: you overruled it.
The problem was never effort.
It was internal consent.
What are you pretending not to know?
open.substack.com/pub/adamlaff...
Your mouth said "yes."
Your body said "no."
Then you did what you were trained to do: you overruled it.
The problem was never effort.
It was internal consent.
What are you pretending not to know?
open.substack.com/pub/adamlaff...
10/10 year. Flat line behind the smile.
That's the drift nobody talks about: The wins pile up. You thin out.
Wrote a two-minute practice for tonight — for anyone who scored higher than they felt this year.
adamlafferty.substack.com/p/christmas-...
That's the drift nobody talks about: The wins pile up. You thin out.
Wrote a two-minute practice for tonight — for anyone who scored higher than they felt this year.
adamlafferty.substack.com/p/christmas-...
Christmas Eve Downshift: The Question Achievement Can't Answer
You hit the goal. Were you there for it?
adamlafferty.substack.com
December 24, 2025 at 11:23 AM
10/10 year. Flat line behind the smile.
That's the drift nobody talks about: The wins pile up. You thin out.
Wrote a two-minute practice for tonight — for anyone who scored higher than they felt this year.
adamlafferty.substack.com/p/christmas-...
That's the drift nobody talks about: The wins pile up. You thin out.
Wrote a two-minute practice for tonight — for anyone who scored higher than they felt this year.
adamlafferty.substack.com/p/christmas-...
Achievement-you has been lifting for 20 years.
Meaning-you hasn't broken a sweat since 2019.
So wins land like notifications: seen → cleared → forgotten.
That's not burnout. That's a training gap.
Which "you" got benched in 2025?
Meaning-you hasn't broken a sweat since 2019.
So wins land like notifications: seen → cleared → forgotten.
That's not burnout. That's a training gap.
Which "you" got benched in 2025?
December 23, 2025 at 12:25 PM
Achievement-you has been lifting for 20 years.
Meaning-you hasn't broken a sweat since 2019.
So wins land like notifications: seen → cleared → forgotten.
That's not burnout. That's a training gap.
Which "you" got benched in 2025?
Meaning-you hasn't broken a sweat since 2019.
So wins land like notifications: seen → cleared → forgotten.
That's not burnout. That's a training gap.
Which "you" got benched in 2025?
Which version of you survived this year?
The one who performed?
Or the one who felt it?
The one who performed?
Or the one who felt it?
December 22, 2025 at 12:06 PM
Which version of you survived this year?
The one who performed?
Or the one who felt it?
The one who performed?
Or the one who felt it?
I survived 5 layoffs.
Everyone said I should feel lucky.
I felt nothing. 🧵
Everyone said I should feel lucky.
I felt nothing. 🧵
December 21, 2025 at 11:25 AM
I survived 5 layoffs.
Everyone said I should feel lucky.
I felt nothing. 🧵
Everyone said I should feel lucky.
I felt nothing. 🧵
Preparation becomes procrastination the moment it's protecting your identity.
One more book. One more course. One more plan.
All legitimate. Until they're not.
The tell: busy but stuck.
The exit: start before you're ready.
Still learning this...
One more book. One more course. One more plan.
All legitimate. Until they're not.
The tell: busy but stuck.
The exit: start before you're ready.
Still learning this...
December 20, 2025 at 12:45 PM
Preparation becomes procrastination the moment it's protecting your identity.
One more book. One more course. One more plan.
All legitimate. Until they're not.
The tell: busy but stuck.
The exit: start before you're ready.
Still learning this...
One more book. One more course. One more plan.
All legitimate. Until they're not.
The tell: busy but stuck.
The exit: start before you're ready.
Still learning this...
Friday reflection: week 2 of naming D.R.I.F.T. publicly.
The surprise: people don't need convincing. They need naming.
"I'm bad at deciding" = verdict.
"I'm in Decision Quicksand" = weather.
Verdicts make you heavy.
Weather moves through you.
What's your weather this week?
The surprise: people don't need convincing. They need naming.
"I'm bad at deciding" = verdict.
"I'm in Decision Quicksand" = weather.
Verdicts make you heavy.
Weather moves through you.
What's your weather this week?
December 19, 2025 at 10:47 AM
Friday reflection: week 2 of naming D.R.I.F.T. publicly.
The surprise: people don't need convincing. They need naming.
"I'm bad at deciding" = verdict.
"I'm in Decision Quicksand" = weather.
Verdicts make you heavy.
Weather moves through you.
What's your weather this week?
The surprise: people don't need convincing. They need naming.
"I'm bad at deciding" = verdict.
"I'm in Decision Quicksand" = weather.
Verdicts make you heavy.
Weather moves through you.
What's your weather this week?
Speed wins the day.
Rhythm wins the decade.
Your nervous system knows which game you're playing.
Rhythm wins the decade.
Your nervous system knows which game you're playing.
December 18, 2025 at 3:22 PM
Speed wins the day.
Rhythm wins the decade.
Your nervous system knows which game you're playing.
Rhythm wins the decade.
Your nervous system knows which game you're playing.
The silence that looks like focus might be something else.
A part of you that stopped volunteering—because it learned it wouldn't count.
New Wednesday Downshift: what goes quiet when we "get serious"
open.substack.com/pub/adamlaff...
A part of you that stopped volunteering—because it learned it wouldn't count.
New Wednesday Downshift: what goes quiet when we "get serious"
open.substack.com/pub/adamlaff...
Wednesday Downshift: The Silence That Looks Like Focus
What if your discipline is actually a desertion?
open.substack.com
December 17, 2025 at 12:47 PM
The silence that looks like focus might be something else.
A part of you that stopped volunteering—because it learned it wouldn't count.
New Wednesday Downshift: what goes quiet when we "get serious"
open.substack.com/pub/adamlaff...
A part of you that stopped volunteering—because it learned it wouldn't count.
New Wednesday Downshift: what goes quiet when we "get serious"
open.substack.com/pub/adamlaff...
Most "discipline" isn't discipline.
It's escape velocity—moving fast enough you never have to feel what's underneath.
Ambition moves toward. Escape moves away.
If this landed—you learned to outrun yourself before anyone taught you to stay.
It's escape velocity—moving fast enough you never have to feel what's underneath.
Ambition moves toward. Escape moves away.
If this landed—you learned to outrun yourself before anyone taught you to stay.
December 15, 2025 at 12:38 PM
Most "discipline" isn't discipline.
It's escape velocity—moving fast enough you never have to feel what's underneath.
Ambition moves toward. Escape moves away.
If this landed—you learned to outrun yourself before anyone taught you to stay.
It's escape velocity—moving fast enough you never have to feel what's underneath.
Ambition moves toward. Escape moves away.
If this landed—you learned to outrun yourself before anyone taught you to stay.
If your next milestone feels like relief… not resonance… read this 🧵
December 14, 2025 at 12:16 PM
If your next milestone feels like relief… not resonance… read this 🧵
At 60 mph, GPS recalculates fine.
At 200 mph, you miss every turn.
That's the velocity trap.
New Wednesday Downshift: Too Fast to Navigate
open.substack.com/pub/adamlaff...
At 200 mph, you miss every turn.
That's the velocity trap.
New Wednesday Downshift: Too Fast to Navigate
open.substack.com/pub/adamlaff...
Wednesday Downshift: Too Fast to Navigate
You’re not off-course — you’re just moving too fast to read the signs.
open.substack.com
December 11, 2025 at 9:38 AM
At 60 mph, GPS recalculates fine.
At 200 mph, you miss every turn.
That's the velocity trap.
New Wednesday Downshift: Too Fast to Navigate
open.substack.com/pub/adamlaff...
At 200 mph, you miss every turn.
That's the velocity trap.
New Wednesday Downshift: Too Fast to Navigate
open.substack.com/pub/adamlaff...
We inherited a railway worldview: straight lines, fixed destinations, optimize the route. But life never really fit on tracks — it moves like a coastline, not a corridor. Keep your rails. Maybe just grow a reefline at the edges.
December 8, 2025 at 10:53 AM
We inherited a railway worldview: straight lines, fixed destinations, optimize the route. But life never really fit on tracks — it moves like a coastline, not a corridor. Keep your rails. Maybe just grow a reefline at the edges.
You didn't lose yourself.
You just stopped listening to most of you.
You just stopped listening to most of you.
December 7, 2025 at 11:17 AM
You didn't lose yourself.
You just stopped listening to most of you.
You just stopped listening to most of you.
Every year, the gingerbread house collapses.
Same kit.
Same directions.
Same pile of crumbs.
Yesterday I finally saw why
Same kit.
Same directions.
Same pile of crumbs.
Yesterday I finally saw why
December 1, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Every year, the gingerbread house collapses.
Same kit.
Same directions.
Same pile of crumbs.
Yesterday I finally saw why
Same kit.
Same directions.
Same pile of crumbs.
Yesterday I finally saw why
This morning I'm at my parents' lake house. Flan in the fridge.
Coffee in my hand.
We drove 4.5 hours through a snowstorm last night. My nervous system still thinks it's on I-94.
Coffee in my hand.
We drove 4.5 hours through a snowstorm last night. My nervous system still thinks it's on I-94.
November 27, 2025 at 11:57 AM
This morning I'm at my parents' lake house. Flan in the fridge.
Coffee in my hand.
We drove 4.5 hours through a snowstorm last night. My nervous system still thinks it's on I-94.
Coffee in my hand.
We drove 4.5 hours through a snowstorm last night. My nervous system still thinks it's on I-94.
This week’s theme:
Making before figuring out.
Hands before head.
Touch before certainty.
Making before figuring out.
Hands before head.
Touch before certainty.
November 23, 2025 at 11:32 AM
This week’s theme:
Making before figuring out.
Hands before head.
Touch before certainty.
Making before figuring out.
Hands before head.
Touch before certainty.
This week, a Vietnam vet called to remind me we hadn't spoken.
What he taught me about stopping appeared in three places this November.
A thread about hands that break becoming hands that make
What he taught me about stopping appeared in three places this November.
A thread about hands that break becoming hands that make
November 16, 2025 at 2:04 PM
This week, a Vietnam vet called to remind me we hadn't spoken.
What he taught me about stopping appeared in three places this November.
A thread about hands that break becoming hands that make
What he taught me about stopping appeared in three places this November.
A thread about hands that break becoming hands that make
Someone asks "How are you?"
Your chest: tired, over-clocked, unsure.
Your mouth: "Great. Busy, you know."
You didn't lie. You performed.
The line arrived before you. It fits the role. Not the person.
Your chest: tired, over-clocked, unsure.
Your mouth: "Great. Busy, you know."
You didn't lie. You performed.
The line arrived before you. It fits the role. Not the person.
November 9, 2025 at 11:07 AM
Someone asks "How are you?"
Your chest: tired, over-clocked, unsure.
Your mouth: "Great. Busy, you know."
You didn't lie. You performed.
The line arrived before you. It fits the role. Not the person.
Your chest: tired, over-clocked, unsure.
Your mouth: "Great. Busy, you know."
You didn't lie. You performed.
The line arrived before you. It fits the role. Not the person.
Brian Setzer released two new songs for a comeback tour.
Three days later: canceled all 21 dates.
Months at Mayo. Hands that felt like gloves. Recovery signs. New music.
Then: "I've been trying everything I can… but it is just not possible."
Not failure. A system message.
Three days later: canceled all 21 dates.
Months at Mayo. Hands that felt like gloves. Recovery signs. New music.
Then: "I've been trying everything I can… but it is just not possible."
Not failure. A system message.
November 2, 2025 at 12:50 PM
Brian Setzer released two new songs for a comeback tour.
Three days later: canceled all 21 dates.
Months at Mayo. Hands that felt like gloves. Recovery signs. New music.
Then: "I've been trying everything I can… but it is just not possible."
Not failure. A system message.
Three days later: canceled all 21 dates.
Months at Mayo. Hands that felt like gloves. Recovery signs. New music.
Then: "I've been trying everything I can… but it is just not possible."
Not failure. A system message.
1/ Most “problems” aren’t problems.
They’re rules in disguise.
They’re rules in disguise.
October 26, 2025 at 9:31 AM
1/ Most “problems” aren’t problems.
They’re rules in disguise.
They’re rules in disguise.
September 28, 2025.
I read a bankruptcy headline about a company I'd never heard much of.
My chest tightened immediately.
Three weeks later, $2.3B had "vanished."This is the story of 30 seconds vs. 3 weeks.
I read a bankruptcy headline about a company I'd never heard much of.
My chest tightened immediately.
Three weeks later, $2.3B had "vanished."This is the story of 30 seconds vs. 3 weeks.
October 19, 2025 at 10:09 AM
September 28, 2025.
I read a bankruptcy headline about a company I'd never heard much of.
My chest tightened immediately.
Three weeks later, $2.3B had "vanished."This is the story of 30 seconds vs. 3 weeks.
I read a bankruptcy headline about a company I'd never heard much of.
My chest tightened immediately.
Three weeks later, $2.3B had "vanished."This is the story of 30 seconds vs. 3 weeks.
forced alignment 2 weeks = resistance
one question flipped it:
"how might you contribute?"
leaders stopped defending. started building.
same goals. different grip.
one question flipped it:
"how might you contribute?"
leaders stopped defending. started building.
same goals. different grip.
October 12, 2025 at 2:23 PM
forced alignment 2 weeks = resistance
one question flipped it:
"how might you contribute?"
leaders stopped defending. started building.
same goals. different grip.
one question flipped it:
"how might you contribute?"
leaders stopped defending. started building.
same goals. different grip.