Tudor Matei: The Journey to 180

My name is Tudor Matei, I’m 20 years old, and my philosophy is simple: regardless of their starting point, anyone can “turn it all around” (180°) - to the point where somewhere along the winding road toward adulthood they’ll have no more major “what ifs”.

Now, know that wanting to not have any major “what ifs” by your late teens / early 20s is gonna get you called “delusional” by all accounts. This is largely because internet alphas and dollar-store gurus —male and female— have constantly pushed the agenda that I like to call “extremist sacrifice”, i.e., “you can’t have [this] unless you give up [that]”. Common examples include

● [partying/vast social life] ≠ [discipline/success]

● [romantic relationship] ≠ [ability to pursue your dreams]

● [good grades/pursuit of a good university] ≠ [vast social life]

and the list goes on.

A few years ago, with a deplorable starting point of my own (my present reality and future desires were in a sort of David and Goliath dynamic), I decided to spend my high school years trying to prove the extremist sacrifice narrative wrong - or die trying.

The process wasn’t pretty - largely because I had nowhere to look for advice. It’s safe to say I was dangerously close to the “die trying” part at times (metaphorically speaking, of course). In time, however, and with a plethora of road bumps and “why is this happening to me”-like moments in between, I’ve been able to coherently sum up everything I’ve learned, done, and how I rewired my brain to change my circumstances entirely.