I’m in Spain this week.
I’m celebrating my birthday with a small group of close friends. And for my birthday experience, I took them to see a flamenco show.
Not the flashy, tourist kind.
The real thing.
Low light. Raw guitar. A small room where you can see every line on the dancers’ faces.
And that’s what struck me first.
Their faces.
They weren’t just performing steps.
They were telling stories—of heartbreak, resilience, pride, longing.
You could see entire lifetimes etched into their expressions.
These were people who had lived.
And something inside me paused.
I caught myself thinking:
Their lives must be fascinating.
What would it be like to live a life like that?
Then a playful thought followed.
If I wanted to understand that life…
Why wouldn’t I just learn flamenco?
Not casually.
Not “once a week after work” learning.
Flamenco in London, squeezed between meetings and emails, would be like learning to surf in a bathtub.
So I asked a different question.
What if I did it properly?
What if I moved to southern Spain for a week?
Took daily flamenco classes.
Immersed myself in the culture.
Late dinners.
Struggled through Spanish.
.
Lived—briefly—a different life.
And that’s when something clicked.
I realized I’ve started thinking about life differently.
Over the last few years, AI and leverage have quietly changed everything for me.
What used to take 50 hours now takes one. Teams of 20 have become teams of two or three.
As a result, I’m building multiple new companies alongside Mindvalley with tiny teams, massive leverage, and far more freedom than I ever imagined possible.
But here’s the unexpected side effect of optimization:
It gave me time.
And time, I’m realizing, isn’t meant to be endlessly reinvested into more work.
It’s meant to be lived.
So I decided to test a radical idea.
I’ve committed to taking one full week off every month to deeply immerse myself in a different life—learning something new in the place where it truly belongs.
Some examples of what’s coming:
I’m considering spending a week living with monks in a Greek Orthodox monastery near Thessaloniki. No phone. No electronics. Waking at 5 a.m.
Working the land. Eating simple meals. Praying. Meditating. Napping in the afternoon. Cooking together. Sleeping as the sun sets.
Silence.
Simplicity.
Presence.
I briefly thought about moving to Paris to learn bartending… and then realized that probably wasn’t the direction my nervous system or my liver wanted to go.
So instead, I’ll spend a week in Paris learning French cooking, the way it was meant to be learned.
Each immersion follows two simple rules:
Rule #1: Meet locals.
Not wealthy. Not influential. Not “network-worthy.” Just locals. The baker. The bartender. The monk. Ordinary people living ordinary lives—because their stories are often the most eye-opening.
Rule #2: Learn the skill where it was born.
Flamenco in Spain. French cuisine in Paris. Orthodoxy in Greece.
No shortcuts. No simulations.
This curiosity isn’t just intellectual; it’s physical too.
As much as I love my current training, I’m now exploring entirely new relationships with my body. Pilates. Yoga. Aikido. Ways of moving I would never have touched before.
My goal is simple and slightly absurd:
I want to be in better shape at 60 than I was at 21, when I was 19 and representing Malaysia in the U.S. Open for Taekwondo.
And then there’s the biggest shift of all, now that I’m turning 50.
I’ve decided to stop chasing money.
If my company reaches a billion-dollar valuation, great.
Nice milestone.
But it’s no longer a requirement.
My goal now is this: Live 100 lives before I die.
I will be a flamenco dancer.
A monk.
A Bedouin.
A French cook.
Maybe even a barista.
Each for a week.
100 weeks.
100 lives.
This is worth more to me than a billion dollars in net worth.
I start today.
I’ve officially signed up for a week-long stand-up comedy immersion in London.
And yes, you’ll be seeing me perform in comedy clubs soon.
I’ll be sharing these experiences as I go, what I learn, what breaks me open, what surprises me.
And I’d love to hear from you too.
If you could live a different life for one week every month…
What would you study?
Where would you go?
Who would you want to live alongside?
Share them in the comments. I read them. They shape what comes next.
Thank you for being part of this journey, and this chapter of my life.
Here’s to living many lives.
P.S. If this idea of living many lives resonates with you, you’ll enjoy what’s coming next.
On January 18, we’re bringing together Social Media Summit Highlights:
This is a LIVE curated selection of the top-rated sessions from our recent summit.
You will learn how to build visibility, leverage, and impact in the modern world from Brendan Kane, Prince EA, Marie Forleo, and me.
Now, if you’re curious how ideas turn into movements on social media (and how people design lives with more freedom once they have an authoritative personal brand), I’d love for you to join us there.
407 Responses
My favourite post for sure, Vishen!😍 I have seen genuine flamenco dancing from spain so I know exactly what you mean about the flamenco dancers expressing their lived experiences in their faces and dance footwork!
I absolutely love your inspired idea to live 100 lives! …. in taking on this weekly challenge, you are going to really live and evolve into an even more amazing human being than you already are!❤️🙏
Please read this book ‘4000 weeks’ which is the average lifespan we humans have…it is in keeping with what you are doing and will inspire you with even more ideas.
I am an oral Storyteller and live in London so good luck with your week studying stand up comedy.. I think you’ll be very good at it, judging from your latest posts on social media!😊 Please let me know when you do perform stand up comedy on stage…l will come to see and support you!😍🙏 And I look forward to hearing about each of your other lived lives!🙏
I personally would like to learn singing, guitar and piano, writing memoirs, and wildlife conservation.. would like to travel to see the famous Fingals cave on Staffa island near the Scottish Highlands, the isles of Scilly and Guernsey, the northern lights in Norway, the Galapagos islands, New Zealand, Peru, India and the mountain gorillas in Uganda.
This is EXACTLY what I would do if I could.
Explore all the paths not taken just to get a taste of “what if…”
I’d watch your experiences if you film them.
Happy 50 years young with many more to go! I’m 55 and feel like I am steadily working toward my best life! i feel healthier now thanks to Mindvalley, myself and what I try to do! I love this new way of thinking of immersion and living 100 lives! I co sister myself a lifelong learner and appreciate taking in different cultures, perspective and ways of being to enhance my own life and those around me! Cheers!!! I’ll be traveling to Croatia with 11 women later this summer and look forward to it! I hope I can take on more immersion in my life as a way to learn and experience all that life has to offer!!! – Rani Shah
This is a great idea! Anyone can implement learning something new in their daily life. It makes us grow. Thank you for reminding me to do something new! I would love to go on an archeological dig! Or learn more about them.
Happy birthday 🎂🍾🥰 this is such an inspiration! Super kudos to you!!!!
I am turning 82, and your vision really tickles me😁 I glanced at all the other responses and the neat invites that have come your way. It was the Wild Quest, swimming with the dolphins that really jumped out at me! I aspire TO LIVING, LOVING AND LEARNING . But connecting and being present is really where it’s at. I hope to have another 20 years myself so I’ll see what I can fit in. Thank you for all that you do and the wonderful leadership and inspiration that you offer. 🥰😍🤩
Welcome to the 50’s – this year I transition to 60 – how did it go so fast? Mentally 27 ish!
If I were able to be released from the financial stresses of this modern world – I’d go anywhere as long as my lil fur family were with!
Each week would be committed to being in flow & creating – not reacting!
My dream job would be to take folk on guided meditations after having them tune in & choose what to disguard on multiple levels 🙂
The mind is a wonderful tool when tuned into – intention is the key!
Hello Vishen,
Here are some opportunities to immerse in a culture and have a worthwhile experiences.
There are amazing volunteer positions on the Galápagos Islands which include: giant tortoise conservation, sea turtle nest monitoring, conservation marketing and social media positions and so much more. Check it out by googling volunteer in the Galápagos Islands.
First of all, happy birthday to you Vishen! What a wonderful way of celebrating and honour life. I just love the idea of you immersing yourself in 100 hundred lives. Congrats for this new insights in your life and the way of living it. I simply love you!
I’m joining you for the Paris week! want to taste your french cuisine drinking a good bordeaux one.
Firstly Happy Birthday Vishen! I cant believe you are reading my mind! I am blown away really. How many times do I think of doing so many different things, being in so many different places and having so many different experiences… Almost everyday.. Like you said perfectly, to live 100 lives before you die.. In a way, i feel I have kind of lived so many kind of lives because I have changed so many jobs in my life, in so many different industries, that i now consider myself to be so rich in life’s experiences with people, adapting to new places, new jobs, new situations etc. On many occasions, i feel like I have already had the new experience – which i cant explain, and it feels so familiar, but this is probably another conversation to dive into. 🙂 I live in Athens Greece and I would love for you to arrange a meet up in the centre of Athens before or after your visit to the Greek Orthodox Monestary. I would love to hear your thoughts and experiences and dreams for living a 100 lives – in person!
Happy birthday Vishen! What a schedule for the next eight and a half year, approximately approaching 6x by then!!! I’m sure, lots of us will be tempted (if one could afford it both financially and time wise) to do the same now and then, picking from your list or find sg ourselves. Good luck, enjoy your weeks! Hopefully you will find something interesting to do in Hungary too: vine making / vinyard work / cellar management, processing paprika, work on an organic farm, wild herb collection, making Hungarian folk pottery, weaving, embroidery, sourdough bread, cheese, pickles, etc… You’ll be so much richer inside after your 100 weeks. I’m looking forward to even hearing about your adventures!
I love you so much Vishen! You go go go 🙂
You are wonderful. I think your ideas are amazing.
How amazing. Silence, cooking and learning a language would be how I’d like to spend 3 weeks. This is so possible to do… Thank you
Sounds like heaven Vishen.
Love your new adventurous approach to life.
So mine would definitely be ballroom dancing in an elegant style.
It has been a desire for some considerable time.
I would certainly learn French, another desire not fulfilled!
I am looking for a mentor.
How about we connect to accelerate my new AI creative idea into formation?
Hi Vishen! The first thing I thought was that living all these new experiences must be great. The second thing was, that stop chasing money, is a wonderful decision. I think this is the decision that will let you grow and find happiness. You have already achieved so much, without the money in mind I am sure you will achieve so many other things. Congrats for your decisions and Happy 50s!
Love the idea, and eager to heat more about the experiences: I am retired now and now want to experience the different intelligences we are make of. I draw, followed some conferences about music, about numbers and their abstract logic, dance and much more. I read more novels ( shere use of words and poetry, but about “how” but about emotions and lives). I am discovering along the way that at my age, people have had sometimes tremendous fascinating lives. I am a “baby boomer” which means this is the first time that we are so numerous as getting older. Fascinating to get into this autumn experience.
i love it. I also recommend you to go visit Mongolia and live in remote place outside of the city which brings you total peace and love of the locals.
I love the idea of the 100 lives! In the past, I had some similar unique experiences, and loved them. Your idea of building it each month is truly inspiring. Last year, I hiked solo through the Atlas Mountains and slept in Berber villages, and it was enlightening. I once volunteered at a Wildlife Warriors Hospital and took care of injured Koalas for the entire week—so great memories. I’m now inspired to seek more of these joyful experiences! Happy 50. Birthday, Vishen!
Life begins at 50. Happy Birthday Vishen!
Your words resonated. May I share one of my 3MIQ entries: Embrace one new adventure or skill every month for seven days.
I’m 56—and only halfway through.
I plan to live to at least 110, which means my 50s are basically my new 30s. Age, after all, is just a program.
Spiritually? I’m ancient. I’ve lived lifetimes and I’m still learning.
In this one lifetime alone, I’ve lived on four different continents. Four different lives. Different languages, landscapes, and versions of myself.
Physically? I’m in the best shape of my life.
The other day, my neighbor—she’s around 60—asked if my son was still in town. She needed help carrying a car battery into her condo.
He wasn’t.
So I picked it up. No drama. No bulging veins. No negotiations with my spine.
Her jaw dropped.
“How are you so strong… for your age?”
For. Your. Age.
(She said 56 like I should be shopping for rocking chairs.)
And here’s the twist: she inspired me just as much as I surprised her. Because I felt a fire light up inside me. I don’t want to neglect my wellness. Not at 50, not at 60, not ever.
What’s essential to me now is this: deliberately pushing myself out of my comfort zone.
Not gently.
Not politely.
Almost mercilessly.
Right now, I’m living a new life one week every four months—but once every four months feels too polite. Too restrained.
A new life every week, once a month feels right. A natural, bohemian embrace of curiosity, movement, and becoming.
Last year it was the kayaker, the explorer, the painter, and the photographer.
The explorer cracked me open.
Flying into the Amazon to volunteer at a wildlife sanctuary didn’t feel like excitement or fear—it felt like familiarity. The jungle mirrored a version of me buried under obligation, expectation, and dried-up routines. I started digging into the fertile soil of my soul. And there I was.
This year? The tango dancer. The pilgrimage walker. The old-village explorer. The writer.
I’m following steppingstones toward financial freedom through my own business—so I can shift from one new life every four months to one every single month.
This isn’t about escape. It’s about expansion.
Vishen, I’m looking forward to hearing your stories as they unfold. 🌟✨🌟