2026 August 11 Making our own reality

Hi, this is Jim Cranston from 7EveryMinute and 7EveryMinute.com, the podcast and website about reimagining your life. Thanks for joining me to talk about how we make our own reality. So, let's get started. If you like what you hear today, please leave a like, subscribe, tell your friends, send me a message.

This week we're going to be talking about how we interpret the world around us, or more generally, how we create our own reality — a favorite topic of mine.

Tonight I'd like to bring up the slide of the five pillars that we keep talking about, because tonight's topic really relates to three of the central pillars: our identity, which is how we perceive ourselves; our mind, which is all the things about how our mind forms the world around us and reacts with the world around us; and our body, which is our physical health — all the things related to aches, pains, being strong, being resilient.

So, those three pillars — we're going to talk about how not only do they interact with each other, but how one of them, our identity, kind of influences all three at once.

Now, obviously, at least in the classical physics sense, reality exists without us. That's actually a debated topic, but we'll assume that there is this constant reality with which we have to deal. If it's raining, we're likely going to end up getting wet. That's the immediate situation. But if we envision it differently, the outcome may be different. If it's raining, that may end up bringing us an opportunity that moves us to a better situation. If we leave our minds and hearts open to receiving it, we may find that because we ran out of the rain, we ended up in a storefront and met somebody nice — and we know what happened from there.

Most of us have gone through situations like this, where we experience something, and things go bad, but then, because of an unexpected change, an even more unexpected and good thing happens. So what was the reality of that situation? We could perceive it either as bad or good, and indeed people will split in their decisions as to whether they remember it as a bad day or a good day. That's why I say we can usually control how we perceive reality.

Case in point: this past March 2026, I didn't go see Wim Hof, the Iceman, in person in New York City. I live in Upstate New York — New York City is a bit of a haul, but it's fairly easy to get to. I almost got tickets back when the tour was announced in January, and it may have even been in December or earlier, but I talked myself out of it as being kind of irresponsible since I'd recently been let go from my job. Then, a few days ago, I started listening to a podcast interview with Wim, and I thought he said he was 80 in 2026. I was really bummed, thinking that might be his last tour in North America. Turns out I misheard, and he's actually only sixty-seven. Now I'm all excited that the prospect of still getting to see him is real. Even better, maybe I go on a retreat with him.

So for almost seven months I've been feeling kind of down about missing a really neat opportunity, and now I'm all excited about the possibility of an activity with him in the future. Total reversal. But the facts didn't change — only my perception of the world changed. And it's still not over, because now I'm thinking I have lots of time. But that's just another reality interpretation on my part. Nothing says either Wim or I will be here in a year, or even tomorrow, for that matter. And yet that's part of the illusion we tell ourselves.

There's this whole belief that time doesn't really exist — that it's wholly made up by people. I've seen a speaker on that subject a couple times, and among his other self-empowerment topics, one of my favorite sayings of his — and he laughs when he says it — is that he has to hurry up and finish his talk because we're almost out of time, which doesn't exist. Time's one of those things that both exists and doesn't exist, depending on how you want to make it fit into your reality. In many ways it's just a commonly agreed-upon thing. It seems we humans are probably the only things on the face of the earth that are regularly concerned about it, and even not all of us are equally concerned.

But the concept of reality and self-created reality goes much further than that. I've mentioned that I follow Gary V, Gary Vaynerchuk, pretty regularly. His message is simple: just do it. Focus on what needs to be done. Be willing to grow. Ignore the naysayers. Take risks when you're able. Make the most of this life. Love and accept. Don't waste time on hate and jealousy. Have faith in yourself. Live your own life, not the life other people have planned for you.

What he's really doing is encouraging people to shape their reality of the world. You can spend your time hating the haters, or living the life your parents planned for you, or you can focus on love and growth in your own life and the lives of your family. You can make either one of those paths a reality, and you see it every day, both online and in person.

Now, as we age, the negative aspects of aging are presented to us more frequently and much more dynamically, but that's not a reality we have to live. We like to forget how god-awful life was when we were 13 and starting to be interested in relationships, or 16 or 17 with the junior or senior prom coming up and all that pressure, or when we were nearing the end of high school with all those decisions, or starting a job, or starting — or not starting — a family, and on and on. Every single age threshold, every single life threshold, work threshold, every part of life has negative aspects, and they all have positive aspects. You see where this is going, I hope. We get to choose what to focus on and how to define our perception of every threshold we've had throughout our lives.

Back to junior or senior prom night — did you order a fancy dinner on prom night only to find out it was actually the French name for raw oysters? And then you have to act like you really love them, eating a whole plate full of them. Clearly a memory you could either still be mortified about or still be laughing about. And that reaction, that perception, that reality you create will affect you both mentally and physically every single time you remember it for the rest of your life. The same is true with how you perceive aging, both your own and those around you.

Have I tried to make adaptations as I've aged? Of course. Does that make me depressed? No — actually it makes me feel fortunate and blessed that I have the wherewithal to notice the changes and proactively work around them or work on them. I know many people, and one friend in particular, who severely restrict themselves because they're older — to the point they won't walk down a grassy hill because that's "dangerous" as you get older. Not shockingly, they're now unsteady on their feet and losing the ability to even walk except on pavement. This wasn't a medical problem. It was them telling themselves they were no longer able to do something. They're in their late 50s, early 60s, and I know many other people who have done that to themselves. Your brain tries to make you correct in all situations — so if you tell it that you cannot do something, it will believe you.

So what reality are you creating for yourself as you age, and as you ponder your life after your initial career changes or ends? Are you telling yourself that you'll be invisible and of little value? Or are you telling yourself that you can hit the ground running and do whatever you please? Are you feeling hopeless and abandoned? Or do you see tremendous opportunity to live life more on your terms, with multiple options? Because those stories you tell yourself, and tell your brain, your brain believes — and your brain will always try to make what you believe come true. That's its job, and it does it very well.

I had some friends in Colorado I was working with a few years back. At the time they were in their mid-70s; now they're in their 80s and still going strong. I looked them up a couple days ago, actually. Back in their 70s, they used to go mountain biking, they still summited the high peaks around Denver, and they started a rather esoteric water remediation company that's still doing well. They were clearly telling themselves — and focusing on — the positive aspects of aging. I'm sure there were changes they had to accommodate, but that didn't change the reality of their world, which was still full of opportunity and adventure.

We get to choose a reality every day, often every minute. Remember, one of the strongest of our five pillars of life is identity, because it affects all the other pillars at the very core level. If we decide the reality is that life is essentially over, then that is how we'll live it. But if we decide the reality is that life is always providing us opportunity and adventure, that is also how we'll live it. Our lives may not turn out exactly as we planned, but the overall route tends to follow the story we tell ourselves — and that's founded on how we create our reality.

So, in every age, and especially as we age, create the reality you want to live. Remember Gary V's messages: just do it. Focus on what needs to be done. Be willing to grow. Ignore the naysayers. Take risks when you're able. Make the most of this life. Love and accept. Don't waste time on hate and jealousy. Have faith in yourself. Live your own life, not the life other people have planned for you.

Society generally tells a big, bad, unpleasant story about aging. It doesn't have to be true. Be the older adult people look at and say, "I can't believe they're still doing that at their age."

That's it for the evening. Our Five Pillars of Life and Aging short video is up, where I explain how our lives are shaped by the five major influences in our life and how we can balance and adjust those views as we age. Check it out at 7EveryMinute.com — there's a Five Pillars freebie, and if you check that out you'll get to spend some more time with me as I go through and explain the five pillars. There's also a workbook that goes along with it, with additional questions and space for you to write your answers. We're pretty excited about the whole thing, so take a look and let us know what you think.

And of course, please continue to join us. As always, remember one of the best ways to care for yourself is to care for others. You can check out UKR7.com — that's links to people who help the people in Ukraine right now — and WCK.org, World Central Kitchen, who work in disaster areas around the world. Those are two great international sites, but local charities are always looking for help too. If you're not in a situation where you can help with time or money right now, even just a simple smile can change someone else's day for the better in ways you can't imagine.

So, as always, thank you for stopping by. If you found something interesting and useful, please pass it along. Please subscribe, hit that like button, and drop me a comment about what you'd like to hear. Have a great week.

Remember to live the life that you dreamed of, because that's the path to true contentment. Love and encouragement to everyone. See you next week on 7EveryMinute and 7EveryMinute.com.