You don't need more information. You need the right few things, packed well, within reach when the weather turns.
Nothing lives in here that I haven't used myself.
Gear for the trail. Everything here is meant to be carried out and used.
Taking a Bearing
The one-page worksheet. Where am I, what is the terrain doing, which direction is actually mine. Use it before a session, before a hard decision, or any morning the ground feels unfamiliar.
Prompts for the work between sessions. One at a time, added to as we go. Not a diary. A logbook. You're recording terrain you'll want to remember.
The Field Journal
Books, podcasts, and gear I actually use and vouch for. Each one with a line on why it earns its weight. Nothing here for the sake of a list.
Provisions
The load-bearing ones
These four aren't recommendations. They're structural. Pull one out, and I'd be a different person.
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance (Robert Pirsig) · Self-Reliance (Ralph Waldo Emerson) · Walden (Henry David Thoreau) · A Happy Death (Albert Camus)
For the road
The wandering shelf. If you're in a nomad season, these are your company.
On the Road (Jack Kerouac) · The Road (Jack London) · Siddhartha (Hermann Hesse) · The Vagrant Viking (Peter Freuchen)
For the work
For anyone who makes things, runs things, or leads people.
Shop Class as Soulcraft (Matthew Crawford) · Iron and the Soul (Henry Rollins) · The Sickness Unto Death (Søren Kierkegaard) · The Henry Miller Reader (Henry Miller)
When the ground shifts
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams) · Into the Wild (Jon Krakauer)
Listening — for the quiet doors
Life Wisdom, Words of Taoism (Chen Li) · The Daily Stoic (Ryan Holiday) · Hidden Brain (Shankar Vedantam) · The Art of Manliness (Brett McKay)
Listening — for the work
Modern Wisdom (Chris Williamson) · The Koerner Office (Chris Koerner) · Jocko Podcast (Jocko Willink) · Finances Unfiltered (Gabe Bult)
Reports from the Road
Every dispatch from the newsletter, archived. If you're new to the fire, this is the trail so far.
The Vagabond Philosophy
Our curated resources are designed to help you reconnect with your internal compass. Every recommendation is chosen to support leaders navigating transition with clarity and intention, providing the exact tools needed to plot your own course through professional and personal growth.