What I'm doing NOW
(This is a /now page inspired by Derek Sivers. If you have your own site, you should make one, too.)
Updated October 19th, 2026, from Chiang Mai, Thailand where I will be until Feb 2027. After that, I'll most likely be in Ko Lanta, Thailand for about four weeks.
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If we haven’t talked in a while, here’s the big picture
I’m a new dad, living slowly in Chiang Mai, writing again, and building a business that leaves room for all of it.
Learning to be a father
William arrived this year. He’s rearranged everything, mostly for the better and occasionally at 3am. Most days the real work is being present for him and for Nicole, and everything else fits around that. It’s the best job I’ve had, and the one I’m least qualified for.
A few months in Nimman, Chiang Mai, Thailand
We’re living in Chiang Mai for a few months. It immediately felt like home. Now, we are continuing to find our cafés, walking the same streets until they feel like ours. I love Chiang Mai.
Writing again
I’ve restarted my letter, Field Notes, on Substack. It has photographs, notes on fatherhood and building a business, slow travel, and thoughts I haven’t quite finished. If you only follow me in one place, make it that one.
One name, fewer accounts
I’m closing my second Instagram account and putting everything under @ChrisSpiegl, on Instagram, YouTube and Substack. Less juggling, more care.
Photography: Seeing with one lens
After years of wanting one, I finally have a Leica Q3 28mm. I’m relearning how to see with a single fixed lens and walking a lot slower because of it. I’m writing a short series about it.
Building, quietly
Nicole and I are growing Niyama.Academy, and we’re building BOLSTair, an inflatable yoga & fitness bolster you can travel with. It hasn’t made us rich. The goal is a business that pays for a good life and leaves room to actually live it.
A thought I can’t shake
When a famous person travels under a different name to be a nobody for a while, we find it romantic. But most of us are that nobody every day, and we don’t notice what a gift it is. I’m turning it into an essay.
Not right now
I’m not taking on consulting or client work at the moment. If you want to talk about any of the above, send an email. I read everything.