Well-Being Man - My pivot to video

Agenda:
- Life in Chiang Mai, Thailand
- My pivot to video 
- The journey a man travels
- Nine Pillars of Well-Being
- Suggestions for men over 50

Well-Being Man – My pivot to video

Hello from Thailand!
I wanted to bring you up to date on what I’m doing now.
First, thank you – to all of you – who reached out – wondering – where I disappeared to.

I’m living in a city called Chiang Mai – it’s in northern Thailand - Myanmar.
Chiang Mai is a Magical place!

Click here for the video

Here is the video script:

As you might imagine, I get a range of reactions about my move here.
- Some people – think I’m crazy.
- Other people – think it’s the coolest thing to move to the other side of the world.

Agenda
My agenda for this video - is to tell you about 5 things:
1. Show you a little bit about – my life here in Chiang Mai. I'll share some videos.
2. Tell you about My pivot from writing newsletters to shooting videos. Same content, but a new brand – “The Well-Being Man.” The focus is on men over 50.
3. Talk about My Journey. It's not about Thailand, or changing jobs. It’s about the journey every man travels as he ages, as he faces mortality.
4. Give you an overview of My “Nine Pillars of Well-Being.” My point is that to experience Well-Being requires a lot of Work. And the work is never ending.
5. I want to offer some suggestions to men over 50 

1. My Life Here
First, Why did I move to Thailand?
To be honest, I grew restless in the US. I needed something new, a new challenge.
I had a craving for a new place, new continent, new way of life. Life is short – I want to explore, grow, learn, adventure.

Asia has always intrigued me – so many different cultures.
I strongly believe being far away from home for a while is healthy.
It can bring clarity about our life.
It pushes us out of our comfort zone – making it easier to cope with discomfort.

Chiang Mai is a special city.
It blends ancient history with modern life.
There are hundreds of temples – lots of cafes, night markets, festivals.
It’s in the mountains – close to nature, tropical forests, waterfalls, hot springs.
There's a huge university with  36,000 students, studying medicine, engineering, digital innovation, arts, and more.
There's a big expat community; people come from Canada, Europe, US, Japan, Korea, Australia.
And Chiang Mai is a great homebase to explore southeast Asia.

I shot this video from my condo here in Chiang Mai. It sits at the base of the famous Doi Suthep mountain.

Next, I share some of my amateur videos of my neighborhood.

Here's the narrative from the videos:

The moat around the city.
It's a square-shaped moat that surrounds the old city.
It was built in the 13^th century, each side is a mile long.
The old city began as the capital of the Lanna Kingdom.
The moat was built to protect the city from invading enemies.

Other videos show Tha Phae Gate, my condo and lobby, street food and shopping.
I shot the videos using my new DJI Osmo Pocket 3 camera. It's amazing technology.
I promise my videos will improve over time.

2. My Pivot to Videos
Thank you to those who encouraged me to shoot videos, especially those half my age.
It’s amazing what you can learn from young people.

My motivation to start a YouTube channel:
- I don’t want to retire.
- I want to stay engaged with something meaningful.
- A new project – be creative, have fun.
- Videos are an easy way to stay in touch – and meet interesting people.

My Goal is to continue to develop my work on Well-Being for men.
I want to be informative, inspirational, and useful.
I wish to share my, and other guys, personal experiences of aging.
My primary audience is men over 50 – it’s also highly relevant for men younger than 50.

It's not easy to start something new.
Getting in front of a camera, and then sharing it, can be scary.
I’m finding it takes a lot more courage to shoot videos, than to write newsletters.

There’s a lot to learn – cameras, microphones, lighting, screen recording, film editing, social media.
It's a humbling process – and I’ve barely scratched the surface.

Finally, regarding my pivot, I’m super grateful for the positive feedback I’ve received from my newsletters.
I’ve written about – Loneliness, Friendships, Mindset, Self-Image, Self-Control, Downsizing as we age.
The feedback has given me a lot of confidence to continue my work.
The content resonates with a lot of men. And I’ve learned there’s a huge appetite for it.

3. The Journey
Some of the happiest men I know are busy working on something.
Not necessarily full-time, but for sure something that gives them Purpose.
They wake up enthusiastic, excited to get to work on something they enjoy.
This Purpose gives them energy.

For Well-Being, we need something to do.
We need to feel relevant – and love what we do.

I think as we age, our Purpose evolves.
Sometimes we need to embark on a journey to find it.
Many of the ideas I talk about are from conversations I have with men, or my own personal challenging experiences.
A lot of it is simple ancient wisdom that bears repeating.

Wherever we are in the world, men face the same challenges.
It’s frightening to start something new.
Change careers, start a business, write a book, becoming a painter, or shooting videos.

My hope is that my pivot to YouTube is inspiring. If I can do it, you can do it.

4. Nine Pillars of Well-Being
Three years ago, I started writing about the Nine Pillars.
My conviction in them has grown.

By "Well-Being" I mean:
- Health as it relates to Mental, Cognitive, Physical, Emotional, and Spiritual health.
- It means having energy, feeling good when you get out of bed.
- And having Self-confidence, Self-control, Self-exploration.

My basic premise is there are two approaches to Well-Being – Passive and Active.
The Passive approach is a short-term fix – drugs, alcohol, porn, social media, therapy….
The Active approach is a long-term solution – involves working on the Nine Pillars.

Here is a brief run-through of the Nine Pillars of Well-Being:
1. Having Purpose
2. Enjoying friendships
3. Financial security
4. Active learning
5. Meaningful intimacy
6. Managing thoughts and emotions
7. Regular vigorous exercise
8. Strict nutrition
9. Restorative rest - sleeping well

5. My suggestions for men over 50
When my dad died, I wrote a newsletter called Eulogy for Dad.
It was one of my most popular newsletters, especially the 19 Lessons from dad.

Here are some of my suggestions for men over 50:
- Take care of yourself
- For Well-Being - it’s either self-help or no help
- It’s okay to rest – have a nap
- Evolve - Take a chance - Try something new
- Have a purpose – And have more fun
- Live life and learn
- Let go of success addiction
- Don’t be hard on yourself - Don’t try to be perfect
- You don’t have to impress anyone
- Do more of what you want to do – Not what they want you to do, whoever they are.

Conclusion
I know a lot of men over 50 who suffer.
They are alcoholics, addicted to drugs, financially broke, obese, sick, diabetic, depressed, unhappy in their marriage, and so on.
Some are dead.

I hope I can be useful – to motivate men to do the work of the Nine Pillars.

I look forward to sharing my experiences as I age.

Thank you,
Peter

Click here for the video