The Simmonds Signal

Weekly insights for writers, creatives, and storytellers to turn writing into a fulfilling, sustainable career (while designing a life just as inspiring as their work)

Lately, I’ve been obsessing over a concept that’s been quietly transforming my life: agency.

Agency is the opposite of going through life on autopilot.

It’s like being the director of your own movie, rather than just acting in a script someone else wrote for you.

It’s the power to shape your own life, instead of letting life shape you.

There’s this running joke that most people today are NPCs—Non Playable Characters. They go through life on autopilot, reacting to it rather than actively shaping it. With no control over their future.

I'll be the first to admit: I’ve been an NPC.

I remember high school as a blur. Just mindlessly going through the motions, unaware of how my thoughts, emotions, and past programming were secretly controlling my life.

More recently, I’ve had moments where my “shadow self” took over, leading me to act out of fear and insecurity, saying things to people I love that I regretted.

Afterward, all I could do was stare at myself in the mirror and think, I’ve got to do better.

This has me asking myself:

• How can I do better?

• How can I continue to develop more agency?

• How can I take full control of my life—not just to survive, but to truly thrive?

Thankfully, I’ve had some mind-blowing insights recently that have helped me get clearer on this, and I’m excited to share them with you today.

A quick PSA:

Do you love to write and want to turn it into a full-time business?

Dakota Robertson and I are opening up our program, Growth Ghost on January 6th.

In it, we give you all the systems and frameworks we used to scale our ghostwriting businesses to $40K per month.

Click here to join the waitlist:

The 3 Selves Theory: Unlocking Agency

Lately, I’ve been diving deep into some fascinating ideas with Jens Honach, a member of the Microcreators community. We’ve been geeking out over metaphysics, alchemy, and spirituality.

During one of our conversations, Jens shared an insight that’s been rattling around in my brain for days:

These three elements—the body, mind, and soul—form our sense of self. Everything we see, hear, and feel shapes us, and to really take control of our lives, we have to learn to master all three.

Mastering yourself isn’t easy. It’s a process. But it’s guaranteed to change everything.

A Guide to Mastering the 3 Selves (Reaching Self Mastery)

To live without mastering all three? You fall into the trap of being an NPC.

If you only control your mind, when your emotions hit, you’ll be triggered into actions you’ll regret. That’s when we snap and harm ourselves and others—like I did recently.

But to master all three? That’s where true agency lives.

1. Mastering Your Emotion Self

When you learn to process and control your emotions, you gain the ability to act despite how you feel. Allowing you to make decisions that align with your long-term goals instead of succumbing to immediate impulses.

Imagine you’re in an argument with a friend, and you feel the urge to lash out. But instead you've mastered your emotional self. You can pause, breathe, and make a more thoughtful response instead of reacting impulsively.

Action step:

• Practice impulse control

Emotions come and go, but we don’t have to act on every whim. Next time you feel that urge to grab a cookie for breakfast, acknowledge it, and let it pass.

2. Master Your Psychological Self

To unlock the ability to think more clearly, stay present, and avoid getting stuck in dreadful mental loops, learn to quiet and focus your mind.

A past or future focused mind is a liability. A mind deeply grounded in the present moment is an asset.

Action step:

• Practice meditation

When your mind drifts toward the past or gets lost in distractions, gently bring it back to the present moment. This is an active practice that leads to immense clarity and focus.

3. Master Your Spiritual Self

When you learn to listen to your soul—to that quiet inner voice—you tap into a deeper wisdom that helps guide your decisions. Keeping you aligned with your values, and raise your vibrational frequency instead of reacting to your emotions.

Action step:

• Pause and listen before making decisions

Make time to reconnect with your higher ideals on a daily basis—whatever they may be—and let them guide your actions. This helps ground you in your purpose and values.

This prevents you from letting your lesser self control your actions.

A final note on this:

Famed AI scientist Joscha Bach—who may be the most brilliant intellectual with a public voice right now—believes that the conscious mind evolved to bring coherence to the mind, body, and soul.

Think of your intuition as Jiminy Cricket. Reminding you when you’ve strayed from your path—warning of incoherence.

This process takes effort, and trust me, you won’t always feel like doing it. But that’s why most people never evolve past being an NPC. It feels like too much work.

But here’s the thing…

I’d much rather go through the slightly painful process of change than the excruciating pain of living without control over my life.

Yes, change can be uncomfortable. But that’s the beauty of growth.

It’s like strengthening a muscle. At first, it’s hard. But the payoff is incredible. You gain more control over your life, and that’s always worth the effort.

So I'll leave you with one last question:

Will you choose the path of change? Or will you let life choose for you?

-Taylin John Simmonds

PS.

Jens has become my favorite intellectual sparing partner when it comes to business and metaphysics.

You can check out his content HERE.

PPS.

The opportunity that allowed me to gain financial control over my life was ghostwriting.

If you want to learn how I was able to land $4,200 /mo clients…

Dakota Robertson and I are opening up our coaching program, Growth Ghost, on January 6th.

In it, we give you all the:

• Content frameworks

• Marketing strategies

• Sales systems

We've used to turn our love of writing into a full-time career.

Join the waitlist here:

Results from our past students: