“A wealth of information creates a poverty of attention.” – Herbert Simon — Monday February 24th — —

I love listening. It is one of the only spaces where you can be still and moved at the same time. — Nayyirah Waheed — Monday February 24th — —

“What art does — maybe what it does most completely — is tell us, make us feel that what we think we know, we don’t. There are whole worlds around us that we’ve never glimpsed.” Greil Marcus — Monday February 24th — —

Into the Well

with Ryan Willms

More than ten years ago we were proud sharing and selling the first issue of INVENTORY magazine; ‘a curation of Ideas in Product, Craft & Culture’ by Ryan Willms. The magazine was published for years, gained a big international following and with that knowledge of culture Ryan created a solid practice of brand building and design, collaborating with the likes of Stüssy a.o.
After a few years of refuelling and redefining the self and well-being Ryan is back with Into the Well, ‘a platform for connection and learning to live in harmony’. With an online publication, newsletter and a podcast together with Sean Hotchkiss it’s becoming an interesting landing point to guide you through contemporary mindfulness, movement and well-being.
We asked Ryan for a little intro, his favourite run and the latest books to read. Enjoy >

Can you tell us a bit about yourself?
‘I’m Ryan Willms, holistic life coach and creative director based in Los Angeles. Focused on holistic brand experience and specializing in brand strategy and creative direction, working between fashion, wellness and sportswear — I’ve created a variety of global campaigns, products and experiences for innovative brands and retailers.

In recent years I’ve focused on a path of growing a deeper sense of self-awareness, healing and a unique approach to personal well-being. Having worked with a variety of teachers, modalities, and movement practices, I felt inspired to launch a new platform to support sustainable wellness and provide a roadmap to personal freedom.

After struggling with my own health issues, I founded Into the Well as a place to share my experiences, lessons and tools that have helped me grow and heal on this journey. Through articles and editorial, podcasting and workshops, my aim is to create an engaging holistic growth experience inspired by living in harmony.’

What is your favourite run/route?
‘The last 18 months have been challenging physically as I’ve been rehabbing my ACL and its taken longer than I would have liked. Finally I’ve been getting back into running, and luckily Griffith Park is nearby. My favourite run since my injury was when I left my apartment on a one way trip, I decided to run to Griffith Park, up the east side and as far as I could go. I ended up running up and down, through the park for about 2 hours, clocking 10 miles until I finally sat down on the curb with a smile on my face, and called myself an Uber.’

Four books to read?
I. Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen
This is an amazing book, in many ways. The story itself is so engaging and exciting to read through, but the way in which Christopher McDougall weaves in science, research and parallel stories creates an educational, rich and inspiring read that’s helped me to be more healthy myself.

II. The Untethered Soul
Evolving my relationship with my thoughts and my mind has been one of the biggest factors in achieving a deeper sense of peace, enjoyment of life daily and avoiding unnecessary stress. This book is one of reasons why I’ve been able to do that, and truly helped me to be more kind to myself and realize that I am not my thoughts.

III. How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence
In the fall of 2017 I had my first real inward experience using psychedelics, Ayahausca specifically. It was massively impactful in learning about myself and after these first ceremonies I decided to dive deep into the research and learn what is happening in these experiences. Michael Pollen’s book was a great place to start and he makes it very relatable, inspiring and educational.

IV. The Mindful Athlete: Secrets to Pure Performance
As my spiritual and emotional experience has grown, its been exciting to apply these techniques and a new level of mindfulness to sports. George Mumford’s book is a great way to dive into this practice, as he communicates these ideas and ways of changing our perspective around performance in a tangible way.

Thank you Ryan for sharing this!
Make sure to follow Ryan here and here, and read Into the Well.