MISERABLE but COMFORTABLE

Jake Luehrs
June 21, 2025

ONE QUESTION

Which distractions in your life have been disguised as priorities? - J. Clear

ONE THING TO PONDER

Entitlement creates more pain than it prevents.

ONE PERSPECTIVE

There's a moment. You know the one I'm talking about. It's when you're standing in front of the mirror, or lying awake at 3 AM, and something inside you whispers: "This isn't working anymore."

We improve our lives at the exact moment we’re willing to commit to what is required to improve it.

It's never my goal to convince people to see my perspective.

Here's the thing—if your life feels extraordinary right now, if you're genuinely thriving, you might want to bookmark this for later. Because even if this isn't your season of struggle, someone you love is probably wrestling with these very thoughts.

The Obstacle Isn't Out There.

Your obstacle is you. My obstacle is me. And paradoxically, this is the most hopeful truth I can offer you.

We tend to complicate things with external circumstances, what others are doing, what has happened to us, and end up creating a foggy picture of 'truth' only to keep ourselves miserable but comfortable.

WANTING to change and WILLING to change are distant cousins who rarely visit each other.

Wanting feels good. It's inspirational. It makes great social media posts.

Willing feels terrifying. It demands sacrifice. It asks us to face the parts of ourselves we've been avoiding.

It’s the little subconscious lies that are slowly killing our legacies.

"I'm too busy." Too busy for the most important relationship you'll ever have—the one with yourself?

"I'm fine." Are you, though? Or are you just really good at managing?

"I don't know what I want." Fair enough. But you know what you don't want, don't you? Start there.

"It's not my fault." You might be absolutely right. And that changes nothing about what happens next. Don't confuse blame with responsibility—they're different beasts entirely.

The time when most of us choose to improve is when the pain of staying the same exceeds the discomfort of changing.

We all have areas of our lives we want to improve. And there is also a little voice that whispers truth, the truth that would be easier to avoid.

- The truth that we need to stop drinking.

- The truth that we haven't earned what we are seeking.

- The truth that we made a mistake in a relationship.

- The truth that we are hiding who we truly are.

Until that inner voice lines up with what you do, nothing is going to change. Stop trying to fool others into believing what you say when you don't believe it yourself.

When there's a gap between what you say you want, what you actually do, and what you know to be true about yourself, you're living in a state of constant internal friction.

And friction creates heat. And heat burns you out.

There can never be alignment until there is honesty.

If we really want answers, we have to be willing to ask and answer hard questions
honestly.

- What small things am I doing every day that are in direct conflict with the person I want to become?

- What problems or challenges am I creating that I’m acting like a victim to?

- If I were to set aside my ego and fear, what would I confront head on?

Your Invitation to Truth

I'm not here to convince you to see the world through my eyes. I'm here to invite you to see yourself through your own—clearly, compassionately, and courageously.

Because the moment you're willing to stop running from your own potentially painful but helpful truth is the exact moment your life begins to change.

And that moment? It can be right now.

I’ll see you along the way!

Onward and Upward!

PODCAST

How to have Uncomfortable Conversations w/ Emmanual Acho

The Ed Mylett Show

There is power in our willingness to have uncomfortable conversations without making assumptions or judgements that may not be accurate. It’d difficult to do, but mighty powerful. This episode may offer insight and perspective of the value of uncomfortable conversations with those you care about.

BOOK RECOMMENDATION

The E-Myth Revisited
by Michael E. Gerber

If you’re an entrepreneur and you’re trying to do everything all the time, I’m going to suggest you pause for a moment and read this book. Entrepreneurship is a unique way to live, it requires something different from you each day, but what I know is that you cannot do it all. Take a read.