Stories

The Search For Happiness & Adventure

Two films focused on forgoing material things for experiential happiness. With all of lifes stresses and hardships it's kind of nice to realize that you could just stop and start fresh. There is always the option for radical change.  

Life Lesson

Definitely take a moment to read this important life lesson that a teacher taught his students!

The teacher filled up a jar with golf balls until he could fit any more. He asked the students if they agree that the jar is full. They agreed that the jar was indeed full. The teacher then picked up a box of small pebbles and poured them into the jar with the golf balls. The pebbles filled all of the openings in between the golf balls. He asked the students if the jar was full. Once again, they agreed. Now the teacher picked up a bag of sand and poured it into the mason jar. The sand filled in all of the empty space left between the golf balls and pebbles. He asked the class again if the jar was full. The students agreed. Then the teacher pulled out two beers from under his desk and poured them into the jar filling the empty space between the sand.

"I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life," he started. "The golf balls represent the important things. Your passions, family and friends. If everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles represent the other things in life that matter, such as your job, house and car. The sand is everything else. The small stuff. If you put the sand in first, there is no room for the pebbles or golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all of your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are most important. Spend your life immersed in your passion and create unforgettable memories with the people you love.”

Before the students left, one shouted out. "You never mentioned what the beer represents!" The teacher smiled and said, "The beer just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room to have a beer with a friend."

A Tribute To Discomfort

The fascinating story behind the cover.  

Take A Moon Shot

Everyday I wake up early and dedicate the first hour of the day to inspiration, discovery and creativity.  I allow the unpredictable pull of my imagination to take me wherever it pleases.  I often end up developing some far-fetched ideas, or as google’s founder Larry Page calls them “moon shots”.  My mind naturally steers in this direction because I believe the world is full of possibilities and moon shots are within reach.  

A couple years ago I woke up feeling an urge to create something unlike anything else, something that would inspire like-minded adventurers.  Not knowing quite what it was or where to start, I decided that everything would fall together after thinking of the perfect name.  After thinking up several terrible names like “Pretty Much Amazing” and “Goosebumps”, I thought of the name “Live Unbound”.  I started by drawing a little picture to represent what the word meant to me.  

Then I began writing what later became the LiveUnbound Manifesto and decided to create a series of videos to illustrate it. For me this was a moon shot because I was never a good writer, I had no funding and little time to devote to creative ventures.

Two years later the LiveUnbound message has reached millions of people and has given me the chance to live my dream.  The dream of making a living through my creativity, traveling the world and creating positive impact.  

Extraordinary things happen when you give yourself the opportunity to live in accordance with the boundless nature of our existence.  

HOPELESS SITUATION TO ENJOYABLE CHALLENGE

I recently got this incredible message:    

On September 14th I was rushed to the ER with severe acute pancreatitis and my liver and kidneys were starting to call it quits as well.  I don't remember my first 26 days there but I remember waking up and checking live unbound and seeing a post that carried me through everyday there, the bed rest at home, the first walks I took and the first trip back to the gym to regain the 40 lbs I had lost. The post said, "Dare to believe that something inside of you is superior to circumstances, this state of mind turns seemingly hopeless situations into enjoyable challenges." I have gained almost all my weight back, stopped drinking and living unhealthy for 76 days now and I've never been happier. Thank you live unbound.

That post was my take on a Bruce Barton quote which is “Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside them was superior to circumstance.”  This story encouraged me to always share and spread words of inspiration, there’s always someone who needs them.

-Yali

Photograph by © Zak Noyle // Surfer: Christian Redongo // Location: Teahupoo