Sep 21, 2026 · Theme of the week: gratitude
Mental Monday - Edition 38
| Mental Monday |
| Hello everyone, |
| I hope you are well and excited for the first Mental Monday since our rebrand. For those who missed our surprise announcement last Friday, let’s get you up to date. |
| Over the past nine months, Path to Becoming has grown beyond its original focus as a men’s mindset platform and now reaches athletes, cancer survivors, caregivers, and people from many different backgrounds. Based on your feedback, Mental Monday and Feeling Friday will now officially welcome everyone while continuing to offer the same honest stories, meaningful mindset lessons, and practical Friday exercises. |
| Men’s mental health remains deeply important to us, which is why new readers can now opt in to receive an additional monthly newsletter created specifically for men. |
| We have also launched a completely redesigned website that reflects everything PTB has grown into, including our coaching services, team workshops, public speaking, newsletter, and evolving mission. |
| You can explore our new website at pathtobecoming.ca. |
| Now without further ado, onto Mental Monday! |
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| “The reward for a good deed is in the having done it.” - Seneca |
| Theme of the week: gratitude |
| In the past, a common theme for me was to push beyond each goal I achieved and immediately set a bigger one. |
| In football, I had the goal of becoming a professional goalkeeper. I achieved it. I signed a full-time professional contract in the UK that paid me 52 weeks a year. It was a dream come true... |
| But I remember signing that contract and still feeling empty. I thought I would suddenly experience this sense of permanent euphoria, but that was not the case. |
| This also became evident again in my financial life. I would set a financial goal for myself, and when I reached it I still felt empty, flat, unfulfilled. |
| Looking back, I can see that I was feeling this way because all I cared about were results, achievements, and success. I didn't allow myself to be happy for what I had because I was too worried about the next big thing. |
| This was not a healthy mindset. I was so focused on outcomes and achievements that I failed to appreciate the journey, the resilience I was building, and the personal growth happening along the way. |
| When I was diagnosed with cancer, it gave me a whole new perspective. My only goal became survival: to live long enough to see another sunrise and sunset. It forced me to recognize the beauty in the in the every day. |
| Cancer changed my perspective because it stripped life back to what truly mattered. The goals I had once chased—professional success, financial security, and the next achievement—suddenly felt insignificant compared with the simple desire to stay alive. I could no longer take my health, my time, or my future for granted. Each day became something to appreciate rather than something to rush through on the way to the next milestone. Cancer taught me that life is not guaranteed, and that meaning is not found only in what we accomplish, but also in the ordinary moments, the people beside us, and the strength we discover while moving through difficult circumstances. |
| At one point, I was proud of myself simply for walking down a set of stairs. Another time, I was proud when I came off a morphine drip and ate for the first time in five days because of the pain I had been experiencing. |
| What I have learned and hope to share with you is that; the goals—the end results—are irrelevant on their own. The mindset, “I will be happy when…” is nearly impossible to fulfill. So stop trying to fulfill it. |
| Be happy now. Be happy over the simple things. And seek gratitude in every moment. |
| Stay strong, even when you are not. It’s okay, you are not alone. |
| Love always, |
| Michael Argyrides |
| pathtobecoming.ca |
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