Who is Chris Barclay?

Chris Barclay is a novelist and essayist based in Chiang Mai, Thailand. He writes about the nature of consciousness, reality, and personal transformation on his blog UnboundedLife.

What has Chris Barclay written?

Chris Barclay is the author of UnboundedLife, a collection of essays exploring the nature of reality and identity. He also wrote the novel The Forgetting Game.

What is UnboundedLife about?

UnboundedLife is a blog featuring essays on becoming Chris Barclay, exploring themes of consciousness, identity, personal transformation, and philosophical inquiry.

Where is Chris Barclay from?

Chris Barclay is a Michigan native, and long-time China entrepreneur. He is currently based in Chiang Mai, Thailand, where he writes and publishes his essays and fiction.

What themes does Chris Barclay explore in his writing?

Chris Barclay explores the nature of reality, consciousness, identity, personal transformation, and philosophical questions about existence and self-awareness.

Unbounded Life – Page 3 – Essays on becoming Chris Barclay

The perfect you

Posted on July 31, 2018August 25, 2019 by Chris Barclay

Everything is perfect and there is always room for improvement — Shunryu Suzuki. For those suffering from self-induced pressures of striving to be perfect, here is a reprieve. It doesn’t involve daily affirmations that we are already good enough and should embrace our shortcomings as part of what makes us special. Nor does it reject […]

The happiness trap

Posted on April 18, 2016July 5, 2016 by Chris Barclay

Happiness is so overrated. Think about it. When we’re happy, we’re content with how things are, which is another way of saying complacent. When we’re complacent, we take things for granted, stop being curious and lose our interest in learning. We forget our appreciation for what it means to be free. We become busy and switched off to […]

On being Lisa

Posted on June 2, 2015August 2, 2018 by Chris Barclay

It would be a lie if I told you that I am not scared. For me, the most frightening part of being smashed against the wall of mortality is the feeling that my life has been a failure. That I haven’t had enough time to realize all of my dreams and to make the kinds […]

You get a purpose! You get a purpose..!

Posted on July 10, 2014May 14, 2015 by Chris Barclay

It’s been almost a year since I last wrote, as I haven’t been struck by anything in particular that inspired me. Then yesterday I was at Starbucks minding my own business, when I was assaulted by Oprah Winfrey. Oprah is now selling her own branded tea, which includes putting her inspirational quotes on the insulating […]

Being there

Posted on July 28, 2013August 1, 2013 by Chris Barclay

Almost weekly, I will be mistaken by someone who swears that they know me. This has been going on for many years, and I’ve become used to it. I enjoy the surprised look on people’s faces, and then joking with them, “Well, there are a lot of short bald white guys around.” For those who […]

Loafing toward salvation

Posted on May 10, 2013August 1, 2014 by Chris Barclay

The unbounded life is perfectly content is its pointlessness. It’s not a formula for any kind of traditional measure of success, nor intended to achieve any specific purpose. It’s defined by a spirit of infinite and cheerful uselessness that is found in all forms of play, and born from a desire to avoid the evils […]

Slowly and all at once

Posted on January 7, 2013December 16, 2023 by Chris Barclay

It’s a rare kind of person that knows early on who they want to be, and commits to becoming it with a singular, persistent focus. For the rest of us, we slouch through life, wondering what our purpose is while resigning ourselves to making a living. When we talk about purpose, we’re really talking about […]