Stop Performing, Start Feeling: A Conversation with DJ Dickinson Alejandro
If you’ve ever been called “the strong one”…
If you’ve ever done everything right and still felt off…
If you’ve ever wondered why success feels hollow even after you’ve checked every box…
This one’s for you.
Because today’s conversation isn’t about hustling harder or squeezing more productivity out of your already drained system, it’s about something deeper.
DJ Dickinson Alejandro, founder of Pleasure-Led Life, isn’t interested in teaching people how to push past burnout. He’s on a mission to help high performers trade pressure for presence, and achievement-addiction for true embodiment.
From Medical School to Meaning
DJ’s story isn’t the usual motivational cliché. He spent a decade clawing his way back into medical school after being academically disqualified. He pulled overnight shifts, slept in cars, and lived the grind most people only talk about.
But when he finally “made it,” the cracks showed. He watched the healthcare system prioritize procedure over people. He witnessed an avoidable tragedy, brushed aside as “policy.”
The moment he realized that turning a blind eye had become the norm was the same moment he decided he couldn’t sacrifice his values for a title. He walked away.
And instead of chasing prestige, DJ built a new path: helping entrepreneurs and high achievers stop overthinking, break free from performance addiction, and reconnect with what actually matters.
The Myth of the “Strong One”
We all know the type. Maybe you are the type.
The one everyone leans on. The one expected to have the answers. The one who can’t admit when things are falling apart because, to the outside world, they look like they’ve “made it.”
But here’s the hidden cost: when you’re the strong one, vulnerability feels unsafe. You’re praised for your achievements, not your authenticity. You end up performing life instead of living it.
As DJ puts it:
“There is strength in vulnerability. Who you are matters more than what you do. Titles don’t make you a better person, your values do.”
Clarity Over Consistency
Most entrepreneurs are told to worship consistency. Work longer. Grind harder. Stack more 16-hour days.
But DJ flips the script.
Clarity, not consistency, is what separates productivity from busywork. If you know what’s truly yours to handle, and what should be delegated, deferred, or deleted, you move with purpose.
That’s how you build momentum without burning out.
Reclaiming Identity Through Values
Here’s the trap: when someone asks, “Who are you?”, most of us respond with what we do. Job titles. Roles. Achievements.
But your identity isn’t what you do. It’s what you value.
DJ teaches clients to strip it back to three to five core values, the anchors that guide how you handle conflict, set boundaries, lead, and live. Without those, burnout is inevitable. With them, fulfillment becomes possible.
What It Means to Live a Pleasure-Led Life
A pleasure-led life doesn’t mean hedonism. It means presence. It means aligning your actions with your true desires, not inherited expectations.
It’s choosing fulfillment over success.
It’s valuing clarity over conformity.
It’s filling your own cup so you can give from the overflow.
And it’s understanding that legacy isn’t something you leave behind when you’re gone. Legacy is built in the habits you practice today.
Your Permission Slip
If you’ve been surviving on productivity hacks, endless consistency, or external validation, this is your permission slip to stop performing and start feeling.
Because success without fulfillment is just another box checked. But fulfillment, that daily sense of alignment, presence, and joy, that’s where life actually begins.
👉 To learn more about DJ’s work and explore the Keep It 100 Challenge, head over to pleasureledlife.com.