Chapter 10: A Year Defining Challenge

A Japanese ritual, doing hard things, & how to change your life

Eric Dodds
February 08, 2025

What if, instead of playing it safe with a dozen small goals, you picked ONE challenge so big it defined your entire year?

A challenge so audacious that, no matter the outcome, it fundamentally changed you.

That’s the idea behind Misogi.

Misogi started as a Japanese purification ritual where one would stand under an icy waterfall to cleanse their body and mind.

Entrepreneur and ultra-endurance athlete Jesse Itzler took this idea and turned it into a rule for life:

"Every year, do one challenge so hard that it impacts the other 364 days."

It’s simple. It’s uncomfortable. And it’s life-changing.

Most people never push themselves past what’s comfortable.

Think about it. When was the last time you did something that genuinely scared you?

Not just something uncomfortable… but something that made you question whether you could even pull it off?

Most people avoid those moments. They optimize for ease. They build lives around comfort. And in doing so, they stay the same year after year.

Misogi forces you to break that cycle.

I started doing this in 2023, and it changed everything.

2023: Marathon – Before this year, I had never run more than 7 miles. No formal training. Just a decision to do it and figure it out along the way.
2024: Ironman – This wasn’t just about fitness. It was about discipline. About learning how to keep going when every part of me wanted to quit.
2025: Business Misogi – This time, the challenge isn’t physical—it’s financial. Build a business from 0 that cashflows a minimum of $15K/month. A different kind of endurance test, but just as daunting.

Each challenge forced me to level up. Each one stretched me beyond what I thought was possible.

The best part?

Once I proved to myself I could break past my “limits”, I stopped seeing them as limits.

Jesse Itzler’s two rules for a great Misogi:

It should be so hard that there’s a real chance you fail. If it’s a guaranteed win, it’s not big enough.
It should have an impact, even if no one else knows you did it. It’s not about external validation—it’s about internal transformation.

Your Misogi doesn’t have to be physical. It just has to scare you. Some ideas:

Whatever feels “impossible”. That’s the one.

You won’t remember the days you played it safe.

You’ll remember the moments that changed you.

The challenges that felt impossible—until you did them.

So, what’s the challenge that will define your year?