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principles
there are threads and themes i continue to obsess with and embrace:
turn toward truth
heliotropism — the act of turning toward the sun. not being the sun, but practicing continuous reorientation toward what's actually nourishing versus what's merely bright.
"the heliotropic question: what would you build if you weren't running from anything?"
see the trick
15 years of magic taught me: the audience fools themselves. the magician just creates conditions. same with founders. the work is catching yourself mid-trick, seeing the invisible assumption that's creating 90% of the problem.
default to action
reversible decisions: 30-second timer, go with gut. irreversible decisions: write thoughts, discuss, wait for alignment. most decisions are reversible.
orientation before optimization
before you pay attention to something, you've already decided what direction to face. most people optimize for attention (what to focus on) when the real leverage is in orientation (what to face toward).
the binary is the avoidance
most leaders get stuck in false choices. should i push harder or slow down? build more or feel more? the trick is thinking you have to choose. doing both at once is the discomfort we're avoiding.
build once, sell twice
everything you create becomes inventory. the live curation becomes the compiled archive. the call notes become the frameworks. the frameworks become the courses. nothing is wasted.
mysterious externally, crystal clear internally
what does heliotrope do? "depends on what you need." is it advisory? media? investing? "yes." but internally: help people see themselves clearly so they can do their best work.
intellectual lineage
the thinkers heliotrope builds on: