The I AM Project

Reclaiming Ancestral Wisdom for a Balanced Life

wellness Feb 14, 2025

In today’s fast-paced, tech-driven world, we are constantly bombarded with new solutions for health, happiness, and success. Yet, despite these advancements, many people feel more disconnected, exhausted, and unfulfilled than ever before. Could the answers we seek lie not in what’s new, but in what we have forgotten?

The Lost Art of Living in Alignment

Our ancestors lived in tune with the rhythms of nature, their bodies, and their communities. They didn’t separate mind from body, nor did they see themselves as isolated individuals. Instead, they lived by principles that modern science is only now beginning to validate.

Natural Cycles & Well-being – Research on circadian rhythms shows that exposure to natural light regulates sleep, metabolism, and mood. Ancient cultures followed the sun’s rhythms, rising with daylight and winding down as night fell.
The Power of Gathering – Studies reveal that loneliness is as harmful as...

Affected Realism and Intimacy

#personal development Oct 08, 2024

My interest in neuroscience began many years ago when I was helping people reclaim their health. I noticed a connection between how we interpret physical and emotional pain, which led me to some fascinating insights. The most important thing I realized is that we all have a choice when it comes to pain—whether it’s physical or emotional. We can either let it overwhelm us or seek ways to stabilize ourselves, both physically and emotionally. These seem to be the two paths available to us.

Recently, I’ve been exploring how this idea applies to intimacy, and I’ve found that traditional approaches might not be enough in today’s complex world. Understanding how our mind and body respond to what’s happening around us, both neurologically and philosophically, offers a new way to look at intimacy.

Take "Affected Realism," for example. It refers to how our current emotional state shapes what we believe to be true. This can lead to misunderstandings...

The Foundations to Vibrant Health

Uncategorized Oct 03, 2024

Despite how complex the world may seem, if you stay with the complexity long enough, you will see the patterns emerge. There are, I believe, foundational tenants or philosophies (rules even) that sit underneath everything in our world, waiting for us to open our eyes to see them.

I believe where we go wrong is when we grab onto one small idea or possibility and hope that it will fix the many things we are choosing to ignore. One area that I find this tendency to be especially prevalent is the world of human health.

Bio-hacking is a new word for an old practice of using various nutritional or physical practices to improve health. I certainly fall into that category, as it has been an interest of mine for the past 30 years. I had made the same error as many as I purchased various pills, powders, and herbs to support my health. Though not totally ineffective, I eventually found a foundational pattern that helped me pull it all together.

That pattern consists of a few key elements,...

Be Impeccable with your word

Uncategorized Sep 23, 2024

I was on a call with someone this morning, and the conversation was about integrity. It reminded me of a post I shared a few days ago about being impeccable with your word and how vital it is to live in alignment with this principle.

When I reflect on all the things I wish to do in life—the experiences I long to have, the relationships I want to nurture or create—I realize how much time we can lose by not living in integrity with our heart and soul’s desires.

Being in integrity is not just about keeping promises you’ve made to others. It’s equally about honoring the commitments you’ve made to yourself. Whether it’s a personal goal, a boundary you set, or a path you know in your heart you need to follow, staying true to that inner voice is crucial. It’s what allows us to move forward with clarity and purpose.

Ask yourself today: Where can you live more in alignment with your truth? What promise have you made to yourself that you...

But I didn't Know...

#personal development Sep 11, 2024

In a world of complexity, it is easy to say, "I didn't know how." Last night, I sat with a group of clients, discussing how the mind will push us away from exerting effort or changing our behavior if the cost of change seems too high. Our brains constantly weigh the cost of implementing a new behavior against our current lifestyle and way of thinking, and if the costs seem too high, then it will be difficult for us to change.

This seems counterproductive, seeing that change can often be not only very good for us but necessary for our health and happiness.

This happens typically because the potential pain we may experience from changing limiting behaviors and relationships will cloud our judgment and inhibit our capacity to make necessary changes in our lives. So it is inaccurate to say, "I didn't know," but more truthful to say, "I don't want to know."

The vision for a new and brighter future must be clear and meditated on daily to overcome the limitations of our natural fear...

Tired of not "feeling like yourself"?

Uncategorized May 19, 2023

Have you ever wondered where the phrases such as "that is so unlike her" "this is totally out of character for her" or even "I am not myself today", come from?

These are very precise and accurate statements pointing to the occurrence of when we are drifting into a past way of feeling or being. When something in the outer world happens we instantaneously match it to a previous experience to give us the meaning (feeling representation) of what we are currently experiencing.
This is wonderful when we are getting ready to eat our favorite food and the familiar wonderful feelings from past experiences flood the body around similar experiences (your grandmother's amazing cookies for example) making your mouth water and you smile at the fond memory.

Where this becomes a problem for many of us is when we find ourselves in circumstances where our brain is comparing the more challenging parts of our history with what is currently going on. Perhaps it's trying to date again after a divorce but...

Client Testimonial

Uncategorized May 02, 2023

Hi. My name is Rob. David asked if I would like to share some parts of my journey through the I AM Project. It won't be easy to keep this short simply because of the timing of when I was introduced to the project, and much will be left out for the sake of length.

In the five years before going through the I AM Project, I was separated, divorced, let go from a long-time job, found out about a terminal diagnosis in my second wife, and eventually lost her during the pandemic lockdowns. That was a lot, to say the least. Shortly after that, I reached out to David, who thought that the I Am Project might be a good fit, which, it turns out, was the beginning of some of the most significant changes in my life.

David challenged me to establish some 'core values.' The way he went about helping me to discover what these could be and then helped me embody them, it was like having a door flung open, and I suddenly had access to a stable foundation from which my life could be viewed, much needed...

Is Addiction a Choice

Uncategorized Dec 19, 2022

He sat in the chair across from me, head down, not saying much as I tried to reach him. What I knew about him was the past four years were very challenging emotionally, leaving him withdrawn and angry. I knew that he had a three-month-old daughter with an ex-girlfriend he was estranged from. I also knew his family was very supportive but exhausted.

The next few minutes of our discussion were going to be crucial otherwise this would be another dead end for this family, so I posed a simple but powerful question..."I can either work with an addict or I can work with a man and a father, which one do you wish to show up as"?

This simple but powerful question gave us the foundation to achieve in just over three months what the past four years did not accomplish. One of the beautiful things about humans is that we are extraordinarily resilient and highly capable of overcoming incredible adversity.

This young man and father proved to himself that love is the most...

Are you able to stay with your pain?

Uncategorized May 16, 2022

I am a fan of ancient stories and philosophies mainly due to the fact there are so many great lessons to be learned. There truly is a difference between simply suggesting you believe something to be true and wrestling with deep ideas and their deeper meaning.

I remember reading in a Time Magazine that was dedicated to Mother Theresa and her work and there was a passage about her writing a letter to a bishop stating that she had felt cut off from God for the past 20 years... this incredibly stoic woman reframed her experience as she was given the gift of "christ's last moments on the cross" where mankind had rejected and his friends betrayed him, and his father had not yet accepted him back, and his words were "my lord, why have you forsaken me"?

To be emotionally exiled and yet still maintain your faith and do the work you know is the right thing to do to me is simply a testament to the absolute will and character of this woman. I stayed with the story for a while...

From the Mind to the Heart

Uncategorized May 15, 2022

I was attending a training today on the science of "manifestation" and was intrigued by the scientific approach, of course. I shy away from most things with an overly esoteric language as it carries with it images of face painting, bonfires, and dreamcatchers.

I being a bit sarcastic here but to my point, there is much about our ancient cultural practices that are powerful tools when studied and employed correctly, which intrigues me, but I am careful to try and separate the weak representation of ancient wisdom from the real deep practice of old wisdom.

She discussed her father and grandfather and the issues they had with addiction, depression, and their hyper-analytical minds. Their minds were so busy, often so chaotic that they had to use drugs or alcohol to muffle the noise. They could solve complex puzzles, invent new ways of doing things, and see possibilities that others could not, but it was at a high cost. She was a gifted student and was in many...

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Author

David Gilks

Mindset Expert

David Gilks is a well-respected mindset coach, poet, successful entrepreneur, awarded competitive natural bodybuilder, chartered herbalist and MEDP (medical exercise program director). He holds advanced training in Neurolinguistics and is the founder of the I AM Project. For more than two decades, he has taught clients from numerous backgrounds all over the world how to gain true mastery in all aspects of their life.

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