On this episode of AlignedLife, my guest is my youngest son, Silas, who's 8 years old and just wrapped up recording an episode of my dad's podcast, The Encore Phase, right before this one.

I wanted to sit down with Silas because I love how freely he follows his creativity, and I wanted to explore that with him. We talk about how he goes all-in on his interests, from WWE to the NBA to painting rocks and selling them, and how he lets go of the old thing without any guilt when something new grabs his attention. That gives me the chance to introduce him to the sunk cost fallacy and tie it back to why his mom closed her store this year after 12 years, on her own terms, once it stopped making her happy.

We also get into his YouTube channel, HooperFN, which he started about two weeks ago and has already used to post over 70 videos of basketball, video games, and hanging out with friends. I love that his channel has zero strategy behind it. It's pure, unfiltered creativity from a kid who's just doing what he wants to do. We talk about subscriber counts and views, and I lay out the one rule for keeping the channel alive: the second those numbers start affecting how he feels about himself, we're done.

If you have kids, or if you've just lost touch with why you used to create things before you worried about what anyone else thought, I think you'll get something out of this one.

This is the first of five talks I'm hosting at our house for Roman and Leo's friends and teammates. The goal is to introduce them to ideas, concepts, and tools that will not only help them on the court or field, but more importantly in life. I'm just trying to plant some seeds!

The series covers Mindset, Mindfulness, Meditation, Breathwork, and Visualization.

Only 3% of high school athletes play college basketball. What separates that 3% from everyone else isn't talent — it's mindset.

In this first session of Mindful Mondays, I sit down with a group of teenage athletes to break down what mindset actually is, why fear is the #1 thing working against you, and how belief drives everything you achieve (or don't). We cover the Kobe "Mamba Mentality" mindset, the difference between your brain and your mind, why comparison (especially on social media) kills confidence, and the exact tools — journaling, affirmations, visualization, and more — that turn doubt into belief.

This is part 1 of a 5-part series built for young athletes, but the lessons apply to anyone chasing a goal.

In this talk:

- The stat that shows how rare it is to go pro — and why mindset closes the gap
- Why "you cannot achieve what you do not believe"
- Brain vs. mind, and why you can't control one but can control the other
- Fear: what it actually is (False Evidence Appearing Real) and how to face it
- The Messi penalty-miss story — and what elite athletes do differently after failure
-Building confidence through preparation, self-talk, and routines
- Simple journaling prompts to start strengthening your mindset tonight

Next up in the series: Mindfulness — the difference between mindset (the doing) and mindfulness (the being) on 7.27.26

Book referenced: The Mindful Athlete by George Mumford

Session 2 of Mindful Mondays--a series for teen athletes on mindset, mindfulness, and the mental side of sport. This episode breaks down what mindfulness actually means, why elite athletes like Jared McCain and Michael Jordan rely on it, and how presence unlocks flow state on the court, field, or pitch.

We look at NBA forward Aaron Gordon's string of soft-tissue injuries and the connection between unprocessed grief and physical breakdown — a real example of the mind-body connection in action. We hear Phil Jackson describe building mental strength into championship Bulls and Lakers teams. And we dig into Nick Anderson, an 88% career free-throw shooter who never recovered his form after four missed free throws in a playoff game — a case study in how the past can hijack performance if you let it.

Topics covered:
The real definition of mindfulness — and why "without judgment" is the hardest part
Presence: why "be where your feet are" is the key to playing without fear
Mindset vs. mindfulness — the doing vs. the being
How fear only exists in the past or future, never in the present moment
Flow state (aka "the zone"): what it is, its characteristics, and why trying harder pushes it further away
Practical tools to build mindfulness: breathwork, visualization, journaling, routines, and honest self-check-ins
Why bottling up emotions works against you, on and off the field

Next up: a guided introduction to meditation.