John Graham

And so I got it fixed through surgery. At the same year, I changed schools. Completely new school, lockers. It was eighth grade, all new teachers, all new environment. And here I was, I couldn't carry more than five pounds of books to class because of my surgery. And I was healing and I had to leave five minutes early to avoid bumping into people.

And so I got it fixed through surgery. At the same year, I changed schools. Completely new school, lockers. It was eighth grade, all new teachers, all new environment. And here I was, I couldn't carry more than five pounds of books to class because of my surgery. And I was healing and I had to leave five minutes early to avoid bumping into people.

And it was those extremely scary, anxiety-filled time. I remember walking to class Mr. Bailey's woodshop class every morning. And I would look outside and if there was snow on the ground, I had this irrational thought that my mom was going to get into a car crash because of the icy and that she was going to die. And I would worry about her all throughout class.

And it was those extremely scary, anxiety-filled time. I remember walking to class Mr. Bailey's woodshop class every morning. And I would look outside and if there was snow on the ground, I had this irrational thought that my mom was going to get into a car crash because of the icy and that she was going to die. And I would worry about her all throughout class.

You could tell, you know, looking back, anxiety was very, very prevalent then because of how unsafe I felt in my environment and all the things that were going on.

You could tell, you know, looking back, anxiety was very, very prevalent then because of how unsafe I felt in my environment and all the things that were going on.

We cope with it in so many different ways. I think me personally was productivity and achievement. accomplishment. I always needed to be doing something, earning something, achieving something, making something. And there's nothing wrong with that. But always being busy and rushed and thinking about the future can be very much a coping mechanism for that, just to bury those feelings.

We cope with it in so many different ways. I think me personally was productivity and achievement. accomplishment. I always needed to be doing something, earning something, achieving something, making something. And there's nothing wrong with that. But always being busy and rushed and thinking about the future can be very much a coping mechanism for that, just to bury those feelings.

I earned my third trophy, my third USA Memory Championship trophy about a year ago. And it was an amazing feeling. You're holding in your hand, it's like everything I've imagined and earned, and I love it, I'm so happy. And then I put it on my nightstand that night, and I felt immediately a little empty. And I thought, I need to prepare for next year.

I earned my third trophy, my third USA Memory Championship trophy about a year ago. And it was an amazing feeling. You're holding in your hand, it's like everything I've imagined and earned, and I love it, I'm so happy. And then I put it on my nightstand that night, and I felt immediately a little empty. And I thought, I need to prepare for next year.

I stepped back for a second, I said, this never ends, does it? Like I had a real life-changing moment. I said, this never, ever ends. And I realized all the money I was chasing, you know, the tens of thousand dollars a month or whatever goal I had or the travel or the family or, you know, the cars, all of that, anything external from me,

I stepped back for a second, I said, this never ends, does it? Like I had a real life-changing moment. I said, this never, ever ends. And I realized all the money I was chasing, you know, the tens of thousand dollars a month or whatever goal I had or the travel or the family or, you know, the cars, all of that, anything external from me,

can't give you lasting fulfillment or happiness or contentment ever, ever. And that's always been my driving force. Achieve, get, acquire, accomplish, right? Accumulate. And it doesn't last. My life changed in that moment. It's not that those things are bad. It's not that I don't have those things. But to have that as your driving core force will never solve anything.

can't give you lasting fulfillment or happiness or contentment ever, ever. And that's always been my driving force. Achieve, get, acquire, accomplish, right? Accumulate. And it doesn't last. My life changed in that moment. It's not that those things are bad. It's not that I don't have those things. But to have that as your driving core force will never solve anything.

All of this happiness that we could talk about, this is all internal. It's an internal releasing of all the blockages in the way and the preferences that we have that block us from feeling that flow of happiness at all times.

All of this happiness that we could talk about, this is all internal. It's an internal releasing of all the blockages in the way and the preferences that we have that block us from feeling that flow of happiness at all times.

Yeah, that's a good question. I was sort of a jack of all trades at the time, meaning I was afraid to dive into one thing exclusively. Magic came to mind. Not that I was a magician or anything, but I was like, I want to be really cool. I want to have an ability that everyone drops their jaw and like wonders what I'm doing and like amazing. And when I read that book, I thought, this is it.

Yeah, that's a good question. I was sort of a jack of all trades at the time, meaning I was afraid to dive into one thing exclusively. Magic came to mind. Not that I was a magician or anything, but I was like, I want to be really cool. I want to have an ability that everyone drops their jaw and like wonders what I'm doing and like amazing. And when I read that book, I thought, this is it.

This is a superpower. Not everyone knows about it, right? Everyone I meet to this day doesn't know about memory competitions in these feeds. So I thought, I'm just going to go all out. I'm going to win Grandmaster of Memory, that certificate that's behind me. I wanted to win that in my first competition.

This is a superpower. Not everyone knows about it, right? Everyone I meet to this day doesn't know about memory competitions in these feeds. So I thought, I'm just going to go all out. I'm going to win Grandmaster of Memory, that certificate that's behind me. I wanted to win that in my first competition.