Hey there, it’s Dennis.
In today’s issue:
The moment fear tried to push me out of the circle
The unexpected support that changed everything
How Fire Flow helped me find a community I didn’t know I needed
Plus: PLAYWORKS 2026 — a new full-day transformation experience
High performers don’t burn out because they’re weak.
They burn out because they’re stuck in a cycle of pressure without recovery.
That’s why you don’t need more discipline, you need more play.
For 2026, we are using the PLAYWORKS approach to integrate movement, creativity, and embodied learning into personal and professional growth.
Because breakthroughs don’t happen under constant tension. They happen when your body and mind reconnect.
When you play, you:
• Reduce mental noise
• Access deeper focus
• Break old patterns
• Learn faster
• Strengthen confidence and clarity
• Reignite purpose
This isn’t fluff, it’s neuroscience.
Your best ideas, your boldest actions, and your clearest decisions come when you’re out of fight-or-flight and back in flow.
If you want 2026 to feel different, your approach has to be different.
🔥 PLAYWORKS 2026 is our full-day immersive experience designed to reset your mindset, activate your creativity, and end with a transformational firewalk.
Reserve your spot and experience the difference yourself.
Finding My Flowmies
The heat from the fire radiated outward, all 6 feet of both whips burning brightly, causing my heart to beat faster and my breathing to quicken. I was nervous and not for the reason you are thinking.
I did not fear a burn from the fire, instead I feared making a mistake, looking like an amateur; basically, I feared performing badly and being found out as an imposter who didn’t belong.
As I glanced around, looking for those faces, those eyes that would be telling me to drop the whips and leave the circle because I didn’t belong in the circle. Instead, I saw something unexpected, something different; as I saw Zach sitting there as the safety, I saw encouragement in his eyes and the words I heard in my mind were:
“Alright, best get on with it then.”
Without another thought, that is what I did.
It was not smooth and the whips tangled a bit a few times. Yet, I took that step forward, and with it, the Tiger that had been roaring, telling me I didn’t belong and that I was going to make a fool of myself, fell silent.
As I neared the end of my time, and certainly when I was wearing out, Bill joined me in the circle and offered to take the whips. In that moment, the old me would have felt slighted and admonished. Yet this time was very different. I was grateful to have a friend who had recognized that I could use a helping hand. His approach was not that of a hero stepping in to “save” me; rather it was that of a trusted friend offering his support.
Fire Flow has been an amazing experience thus far for me. I feel like I am still quiet and reserved when I am Ember’s in The Eather.
In part that is because I am still so much in awe of the welcoming and loving environment that everyone creates. It is a bit of a shock to my system, and yes, it is a good shock. The myriad of people spanning 50 years of age from youngest to oldest.
Literally the first “Safe Space” I have been able to experience firsthand, where your age, sex, color, religion, experience, etc. does not matter.
Everyone welcomes you with love and friendship, seeking only fellowship with the Fire that burns in all of us. After a night at fire flow, I have to admit that I feel like the Grinch on Christmas morning, and my heart has grown 3 sizes plus.
As we go through life, we often end up on a path that has been set for us based on family and society in general. We go to school or enter the industry that others have nudged or pushed us toward. Then once firmly on this path, we shape ourselves to align with the path’s expectations including what we wear, how we talk, who we associate with and what we do. We train ourselves to “fit in” with the expectations of the path we are on.
Sure, while traveling down the path there are experiences that catch our eye, people we meet who peak our interest and ideas which excite us.
However, unless they are aligned with the expectations of our path, we push them aside and continue forward. To be more clear, we learn to judge people based on criteria that is aligned with our path and in doing so, we miss out on amazing relationships and experiences.
The greatest travesty is that in doing so we never truly find ourselves and our one true path.
I shudder to think how I would have viewed the flow circle before my awakening through fire. How small and closed minded I was at points in my life. The past though is already written and the future is yet to be decided, and we decide the future based on the actions we take today!
There is more that I want to do, to continue growing and improving. To share the Fire Walk experience with them and broaden their relationship with fire. Yet, this morning I am reminded simply of the Robert Frost poem “The Road Not Taken” and I am forever grateful for the decision that helped me move off the well-trodden path that I was on to take the road less traveled.
That day, pushing past my Tiger’s roar, I found a family I did not know was out there and they have helped me to truly understand that it is the journey we are on and not the destination.
Quote of The Week:
“Sometimes the place you fear you don’t belong is exactly where you’re meant to grow.”
Have you ever noticed that voice that reverberates in your head the minute you consider a new experience or an action to make your dreams a reality? The one that seems to whisper “You’re not ready” or shouts “What if you fail?”
That is the Tiger that I refer to and the idea of creating the metaphor for the Tiger came from Jim Lawless in his book, Taming Tigers.
It’s fear and self-doubt dressed up as protection, convincing us to stay safe instead of stepping forward and growing. The Tiger is loud, convincing and relentless, but here’s the truth: it only has the power we give it.
Every time you step forward in spite of that roar, you weaken its grip and strengthen your own. That is what Tiger Letters are all about, sharing knowledge, experience, fears and inner strength to make your dreams a reality.
So, the next time your Tiger ROARS, smile at it, step forward reclaiming your power and break through the fear barrier into your growth zone.
Before you go, here is ONE way you can work with me.
Book your FREE Kickstart Call with me - 1:1 performance coaching to help you break through fear, self-doubt, and procrastination—so you can finally move forward with clarity, confidence, and courage.
Until next time!
The Tiger Is Inside You.