​Read this on matthewdoan.com​

Read time: 3 minutes

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Hey Reader,

As a coach, I gain shocking views into the lives of people headed for disaster — where their career dominates their life.

Some soften the pain and say, “It won’t happen to me.”

Nope, I refuse to let that happen.

So today’s secret is another red pill moment. I hope it helps you.

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The Secret

“If I stay on this path, it’ll ruin me.”

That was my dominant thought in 2017.

I’d finally cleared years of personal turmoil and gotten my demanding corporate job under control.

Yes, I was happier and healthier…but I still wasn’t thriving.

Looking up at my bosses, I realized they were all prisoners — justifying the need to give everything to the job because “that’s what it takes.”

BULLSHIT.

I refused to accept that fate.

I saw through them.

They were:

• Miserable
• Unhealthy
• Neglecting family

Getting sucked into the Corporate Vortex can make you blind (and numb) to all your sacrifices.

You start normalizing all the downsides, telling yourself, “This is just how it is.”

Know this: if you act like the crowd, you’ll be like the crowd.

To clarify, this crap situation is not your fault.

It’s just the conditioning your subconscious internalized over many years.
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Consequences of the Corporate Vortex

When caught in the Corporate Vortex, we struggle to grasp the dangerous long-term consequences of staying there.

And we become blind to the multitude of exciting possibilities available to us.

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I average a dozen conversations with struggling professionals each week.

When we shine a light on their situation, here’s what they predict will happen if it doesn’t get better:

• Divorce
• Not part of kids’ lives
• Decades of daily misery
• Dying early from cancer or heart attack
• On their deathbed, consumed with regret
• Suicide

Yes, that is what’s at stake here.

I’m not trying to scare you, but that’s how bad it can get if you continue to accept “what is” and let the pain spiral out of control.

Right now, you might point at all external “pressures” and “realities” of your life and say, “Look, how hard it is!”

Yes, it is hard…if you say it is.

Truth is, you don’t have to accept this default path at all.

You don’t have to feel stressed, anxious, or regretful.
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Say "yes" to a brighter future

Let me paint a better picture:

1. Mondays excite you
2. You wake up peaceful and in control
3. You control your time and attention
4. Your job provides short-term utility, and you’re emotionally free
5. You’re present and joyful around family
6. You’re leveraging your strengths to build a meaningful new career path
7. You gracefully say “peace out” to corporate on your timeline
8. Your new business unlocks real lifestyle freedom

Now, do you believe there’s even a 1% possibility you could achieve this?

If so, you have to try.

(Remember the Corporate Vortex alternative we just discussed...)

I’m not suggesting this new reality is easy to create.

​You’ve got to do the hard work.​
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Your journey ahead

I’m warning you: your new path will hurt.

Here’s what you have to do:

1. Create space: permanently reclaim time, energy, and mental capacity in your days for just being and living in flow
2. Activate your future self: craft and adopt the identity (and behaviors) of your ideal future self
3. Build entrepreneurial freedom: leverage your corporate career into an exciting business that enables the life you want

Listen, I’m not here to judge.

Based on all I’ve experienced, I'm just here to shine a light.

If your head and heart say, “I’m good,” I wish you well.

But if this message is gnawing at you, zoom out for a moment.

Imagine how your current path will play out over the next 10-20 years.

Is your current path unacceptable?

Well, my friend, you’ve got some critical work to do.
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Mind-Bender

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Podcast

​Delusional Minds Chase Passive Income: "Passive income" is not the holy grail you think it is. In fact, it can lead you down a dangerous path. But if you crave real career and lifestyle freedom, we unpack a more effective and efficient strategy in this episode.

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That’s it for today, my friend! I appreciate you.

—Matt

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