Milos Moda

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  • Sometimes, Discipline Is All You Need

    In today’s world—full of exciting distractions—it’s hard to stay focused on the things that actually move us forward. There’s always something new, fun, or urgent pulling our attention. Whether it’s a gym class, a dentist appointment, or a work task, if we’re not fully motivated, even thinking about when to start can feel overwhelming.

    That’s where discipline steps in.

    Discipline is what gets us going, especially when motivation is nowhere to be found. It carries us through until we become familiar with what needs to be done, conquer the uncertainty around it, and eventually learn to enjoy the process. That’s when things shift into habit—when tasks become part of who we are, done almost on autopilot, with a clear understanding of their outcomes.

    But to get there, we need to start. And that means doing the thing now—not waiting for inspiration, the perfect timing, or the right mood. Because the goal is to build a habit, not chase perfection.

    Every dream I’ve had—whether it was learning to play guitar, reading the classics, or committing to Brazilian jiu-jitsu—started to slip the moment I stopped doing those things regularly. They weren’t lost because I failed; they were simply replaced by whatever was more present in my life at the time.

    This isn’t about progress alone—it’s about creating a process. A rhythm. A structure you can rely on, so you know when you’re doing the things that matter to you. That’s how you achieve the goals tied to the dreams you’ve always carried.

    It doesn’t mean becoming a Navy SEAL or an ultramarathoner with a hyper-disciplined schedule. It means showing up for that late workout every Tuesday and Thursday, so you stay active in the sport you love. It means reading one chapter a week just so the book doesn’t get forgotten. We don’t need to over-discipline ourselves—we just need to keep our promises and be realistic about it.

    Doing something daily, weekly, biweekly, or even every two months—it all counts. As long as we keep doing it, we stay connected to what we care about. Even when life gets chaotic, those small acts of discipline keep us aligned with who we want to be.

    They say our best work lies in the things we’re avoiding. So let’s stop avoiding. Let’s decide it matters—and then make it happen.

    Godspeed!

  • Do Everything In Love

    It’s easy to forget what we truly want from life—or to produce mediocre results—when we lose motivation along the way. But the important thing is to keep the promises we make to ourselves and to put in our best effort to accomplish what we set out to do.

    Do Everything In Love

    I once heard Rick Rubin talk about the best creators he had worked with. He said they obsessed over their craft to the point where they’d feel comfortable gifting their work to God. That’s the kind of purpose we should aim for. If we’re going to do something, we should do it with care, intention, and pride—or not do it at all.

    I know it’s hard to maintain this mindset in a world that often pulls us in directions that don’t align with who we are. We’re constantly asked to work on things that don’t feel like part of our story. Still, there’s something powerful in building something with meaning—something that can stand on its own, with no shame or compromise.

    This doesn’t mean we need to be perfectionists. It means we should be aware of what we’re creating, how it might be useful to others, and how someone might genuinely enjoy it—whether it’s a product, a service, or even a simple act of kindness.

    Treat everything you do as if you’re crafting a piece of art. Don’t settle for anything less—not in your work, not in your values, and not in the way you live your life. Stay true to yourself. And enjoy the process.

  • Don’t Focus on the Outcome

    Lately, I’ve been reflecting on how I process things in my mind—constantly revisiting the same thoughts just to explain them again, hoping to reach some sort of complete understanding or internal “alignment.” But what I’ve noticed is that this rarely helps. More often than not, it traps me in a loop I call “cyclic thinking”—a state where I keep rethinking the same topics just to ensure I’ve covered every angle.

    Focus on Your Best Effort

    At the core of this habit is the need to make everything perfect and to avoid making mistakes at all costs. But this mindset is rooted in our most basic insecurities—the fear of failure, of being wrong, of not being enough. The truth is, we don’t need to constantly chase a perfect outcome. What we really need is to show up, do our best, and accept that the outcome—whatever it may be—is just part of the process.

    You don’t always need to be in perfect “alignment” with yourself to move forward. What matters is that you understand what’s happening, know what needs to be done, and keep pushing toward what you want—regardless of the fear, doubt, or discomfort along the way.

    It’s okay to feel unsure. It’s okay to be afraid. These feelings are simply a byproduct of our deep desire to be perfect, loved, and respected. Acknowledge them—and then keep going.

    Cheers

  • Always Be Willing to Challenge Your Beliefs

    For me, some of the biggest questions in life revolve around our views on morality, ethics, politics, and philosophy—and how we adopt identities based on what we believe in. As someone who has long identified as a left-leaning liberal, I’ve had my fair share of ups and downs supporting partisan views that didn’t fully align with who I am. But because I saw myself through that lens, defending those views felt natural—almost necessary. Looking back, I believe that was a mistake.

    Don’t stop believing but regularly check what you believe in.

    Take Stoicism as another example. It resonated with me deeply at one point because it promoted values like bravery, resilience, and perseverance—traits I still admire. But it also encourages radical acceptance, even in situations where change is possible and necessary. That’s where I started to feel a disconnect. Some things shouldn’t just be accepted; they should be challenged and changed, especially when no real sacrifice is required for some abstract “greater good.”

    I still believe it’s important to hold strong opinions and have a clear worldview—but those views should be flexible and open to growth. If you never challenge your beliefs, you deny yourself the opportunity to evolve. You end up clinging to outdated ideas simply because you feel obligated to “stay true” to them.

    Freeing yourself from that burden gives you space to grow and to genuinely support what resonates with you today—not just what once did. It allows you to stand for things that truly reflect who you are now and who you want to become.

    Don’t be a slave to your beliefs. Question them, reshape them, and let them grow with you.

    Cheers!

  • Sometimes It’s Easier to Stop Than to Start

    Not long ago, I stumbled upon a realization that truly shifted the way I approach self-improvement. Many goals I had set for myself—whether related to fitness, productivity, or personal growth—seemed to require building new habits or starting something fresh. But what surprised me was that sometimes, I could get better results not by adding something new, but by simply stopping what I was already doing.

    Sometimes it’s easier not to do something to accomplish our goals.

    Take fitness, for example. I used to think the only path forward was to train hard, join multiple classes, and push myself every day. But the real turning point came when I simply stopped overeating. Cutting sugar from my diet made a bigger difference than hours spent at the gym. In other words, subtraction often worked better than addition.

    The same goes for procrastination. I tried every productivity method I could find—time-blocking, to-do lists, daily planning—but the biggest breakthrough came when I fixed my environment. I stopped playing music while working, removed distractions like my phone or TV, and even set up a separate computer user profile with none of my usual apps or notifications. Just removing the noise made my focus skyrocket.

    It reminded me of something often said in business: great CEOs don’t just focus on growth—they rigorously control cost. In our personal lives, maybe we should do the same. Before rushing to adopt something new, we should first remove the things that are silently standing in the way.

    For me, that shift in thinking made everything easier—and more effective.

    Godspeed!

  • A Good Workout Can’t Outrun a Bad Diet

    There’s no shortage of advice on how to stay fit and lead a healthy lifestyle, but most of it ultimately comes down to developing consistent eating habits and making mindful food choices. While exercise is often treated as the go-to solution for getting in shape, I’ve come to realize it’s just one part of the equation—not the entire answer.

    Fix your kitchen before you hit the gym.

    From my experience over the past few years, I’ve experimented with everything from the chrono diet to keto, and from daily gym sessions to training Brazilian jiu-jitsu almost every evening. What’s worked best for me—and continues to work—is keeping things simple: sticking to a set of around 20 meals I genuinely enjoy, maintaining a calorie deficit, and working out moderately three to four times a week.

    Personally, a mix of the chrono diet and intermittent fasting has been the most effective strategy for managing my calorie intake. As for exercise, I follow a straightforward routine: rotating between back, chest, and leg days, and incorporating arms and biceps on alternating days. This structure keeps me consistent and motivated, and the results speak for themselves.

    Of course, every body is different, so it’s important to try different things and see what works for you. More importantly, always consult a physician or nutritionist to design a plan that’s safe and aligned with your personal needs.

    In the end, having a realistic and enjoyable diet, paired with a structured workout routine, made all the difference for me—and it just might for you too.

    Cheers!

  • Give Yourself Space

    One of the most important lessons I’ve learned along the way is the need to set things straight with yourself—to face your fears and insecurities head-on. If you don’t, they will quietly hold you back, causing you to miss out on the very opportunities you’ve dreamed about. They’ll make you abandon your goals before you’ve even given yourself a fair shot.

    Allow yourself to fail—and you’ll gain an unlimited number of chances to try again.

    Shyness can do the same. It will rob you of chances before they fully form. The only way to move past these emotions is to understand them, accept them, and move forward with clarity and purpose. That means giving yourself space to try, to grow, and to evolve without the fear of failure, ridicule, or judgment from others.

    It’s not always easy to grasp this idea. But think of how you treat your closest friends—with compassion, patience, and belief in their potential. That’s how we should treat ourselves too. Creating space means stepping back enough to separate our emotions, thoughts, and desires, allowing us to approach things with a clear and honest perspective.

    So give yourself space to fail and learn, to adjust and improve. All meaningful progress comes from these quiet iterations—especially when you’re working on something that truly matters to you.

  • Remember Who You Are

    Sometimes we forget.

    We forget who we really are, what we stand for, and where we came from.

    As time passes and I gain more perspective, this question of identity becomes more important. The deeper I understand my surroundings, the more I realize how much our roots, values, and character shape our experience of life.

    Stay true to yourself.

    I’ve never subscribed to the idea that we should shed our identities. On the contrary, I believe that without them, we lose something essential—something that makes each of us unique and irreplaceable. I also don’t believe in the popular notion of “finding yourself,” as if you’re lost somewhere out there. It never made much sense to me. You’re here, living your life—surely you know what you like, what you’re drawn to, what lights you up.

    What I do believe is that we can invent ourselves. We can align our desires with reality. We can choose how we show up. And in doing so, we shape an identity that is both honest and intentional.

    Lately, I’ve noticed more people returning to what feels authentic—leaning into their past, their passions, and the things that make them feel at home in their own skin. I think that’s a beautiful direction to take. Looking into what we love, where we come from, and how we live each day can help us see ourselves more clearly and accept ourselves more fully.

    Know who you are. Then live like it.

    God speed!

  • See the Things as They Are

    One of the most powerful shifts we can make in life is learning to see things as they truly are—not as we wish they were, not as we fear they might be, but simply as they are.

    It’s hard, but it helps us move forward.

    Our minds are constantly buzzing with thoughts—some from within, some triggered by the outside world, and all layered with filters we’ve built over time. These filters were often formed to keep us safe, comfortable, or happy during childhood, but they can end up distorting reality. Instead of experiencing life directly, we interpret it through a lens of past fears, assumptions, and unmet needs.

    Over time, I realized that our consciousness is like a quiet observer. It’s the part of us that watches, listens, and processes all these inputs. When we slow down and tune into this observer, we begin to notice patterns in how we react and what thoughts keep resurfacing. This is where the real work begins.

    By going to that base level of awareness, I started identifying the thoughts and feelings that show up in different situations—especially the ones that made me feel not good enough, unloved, or disconnected. I began writing them down, tracing them back to their roots, and questioning the assumptions beneath them.

    This process helped me understand which fears and insecurities were built on illusions, and which parts of my mindset I could gently let go of. It’s not always easy—but it is freeing. Seeing things clearly, without judgment or avoidance, allows us to address what truly matters and release what doesn’t.

    As the saying goes, “If you think you can do it, you probably can. If you think you can’t, you definitely won’t.”

    Don’t be afraid to face reality head-on. Don’t shy away from truth, even when it’s uncomfortable. Accept what is, without shame, blame, or fear. That’s how you begin to change your life—from a place of clarity, not illusion.

    Everything will fall into place when you stop resisting what is and start seeing things exactly as they are.

  • Novablast 5: A Comfortable and Versatile Sneaker for Sport or Everyday Use

    I’ve always been a fan of good running shoes—even long before I took running seriously—because it felt like having a piece of the latest tech on my feet. Back in the day, I’d go for the most colorful pair or the one with some cool extras (remember Nike+?).

    ASICS Novablast 5 in Full Black

    Somewhere along the way, I stumbled upon my first pair of ASICS Nimbus sneakers, and they felt almost magical—better than I ever expected. They managed to survive the grind of marathon prep and multiple races without letting me down.

    This year, I decided to try out the new ASICS Novablast 5, and honestly, I was blown away. The comfort is next-level, and the slightly forward-tilted design gives you the feeling that you’re always ready to start running. The look is also futuristic and sleek. While they might run half a size bigger than most sneakers, they wear extremely well and pair nicely with running pants or shorts.

    I went with the all-black version, but there are several great colorways available depending on your style. Overall, I’d say this is a solid pick—one of those sneakers you’ll want to keep grabbing for daily runs or casual wear. I’ll definitely get another pair when I catch them on sale again.