Most everyone would like to live a life in accordance to their values. I hate to start a newsletter with something so damn obvious except for the fact that when I look around, I see a lot of people not actually doing that. Oftentimes, myself included.

So what is going on here? Is it not so obvious after all that life is better lived in alignment with your values?

I think there’s a basic reason for why this dissonance happens.

First of all, I’ve felt that sometimes my core values are a little “inconvenient” for lack of a better word.

Why do I say this?

I like making money as much as the next guy. It’s not evil to make money. But money is not a core value, it’s an attachment (to anything money can bring/represent — comforts, status, a certain kind of lifestyle, whatever it might be).

Attachments and core values are not the same thing.

Now, my brain is made to adapt quickly to how things are, so it has felt nice — and then very quickly just normal — when my income has increased, and it has not felt great when my income has dipped.

On the other hand, one of my core values is that I want to take my time and make things that I find beautiful. That often doesn’t align with my attachment/desire to make a good living because nowhere in the sentence “I want to take my time and make things that I find beautiful" is there any mention of words like efficient or productive, which are the kinds of things that help you make more money.

The process of making art is none of those things. That’s not why you make art.

So when I say my core values are “inconvenient”, what I mean is that there’s a conflict between a life that I could live that feels superficially good and a life that I could live that feels good in my soul. And those two just don’t always overlap.

So that’s the internal conflict. But there’s an external conflict too: humans like to make up rules about how things should be.

We often take these rules for granted, but if you dig a little bit more deeply, you’ll realize that these rules are often made to help people maintain a feeling of comfort or control.

We’re quick to create ideas around what we “owe” each other or how others should behave. But you don’t owe people anything and people don’t owe you anything. It feels nice when someone shows up for you, I think we can all agree on that, but it’s not like they owe you this. That’s in your head.

What does all of this come back to? Attachment. The thing that will pull you off from the things that matter to you in your life — your core values — are attachments. Attachment to your idea of how things should be, of what your life should look like, of what the people around you should do.

Notice the word “should” starts popping up all over the place. It’s almost always a projection of the ego: how you think/want/wish/believe things SHOULD be instead of how they ACTUALLY are.

So the answer to the problem is simple but it isn’t easy: it’s not like any of us are going to suddenly shed our attachments to who we are or what we desire. But an awareness of what’s going on beneath the surface can do nothing but help. Because it’s always worthwhile to question how you’re spending your life, and what’s really driving you.

I have a very exciting announcement I want to share with all of you. We’re entering a new era that I’m calling Nathaniel Drew 4.0. If you’re curious to understand more about what the heck I am talking about and what the other 3 versions of Nathaniel Drew were, I explain everything here.

Speaking of core values: I’m wanting to change the format and approach of my videos. I want to feel less like I am making videos for the YouTube algorithm and more so that I am pushing my own boundaries artistically. This may come with less viewership or brand deals or relevance numerically. So be it. My heart is telling me this is what I need to do. I just thought you’d like to know, and that a lot more of this new chapter is to come very soon.

I am very excited about this new leg of this journey I am on and I hope you are willing to join me for the ride.