3 Minute Monday
Hi friend,
I’ve had a hard week.
I know it’s great to do something you love for work.
But graft is still graft.
The effort that goes in behind the scenes to discover, schedule, research, record, edit & publish 3 episodes per week is ungodly.
It doesn’t matter how much I enjoy it, the workload is savage.
When I’ve got a full team of researchers, producers, editors and a chauffeur it’ll be nice to remember “the good old days” but for now it’s still frog-eating time.
An employee asked Tim Cook about whether it should still feel like hard work when you do something you love…
“You’ll have to work harder than you ever have before in your life, but the tools will feel light in your hands.”
Congratulations if you’ve been lifting your tools recently, you made it to another Monday.
And if your work is something you love, don’t feel ashamed that it can still be challenging.
Your Calling is supposed to be enjoyable, not easy.
Also, getting to the top of a mountain via hiking is more satisfying than via cable car.
Why?
Because the value of achievement is directly proportional to the effort required to achieve it.
No one is impressed by a car driving 100 miles.
But a human running 100 miles is savage.
Lean into your discomfort as if you invited it through the door.
The challenges are why you’re here.
This discomfort is a feature, not a bug.
And everyone else you’re competing with is feeling it too.
I discovered this week that Peloton doesn’t show you the entire league table when you’re racing.
But it does show you the person who’s just a little above you.
So…
Imagine the person who’s just a little above you in your chosen pursuit is next to you when you’re feeling that discomfort.
And realise that they’re feeling it too.
You can grin to yourself, lean into it and know that if they want to keep up, they’re going to need to get even better because you’re not stopping or slowing down.
It’s time to put the hammer down.
Let’s move some mountains this week.
MODERN WISDOM
I do a podcast which has had 20 million+ downloads. You should subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
This week’s upcoming episodes:
Monday.
Shane Parrish – founder of Farnam Street, one of my favourite bloggers and the man behind the Mental Models movement over the last few years talks how to make good decisions and creating better content.
Thursday.
Nicole Arbour – comedian, YouTuber and controversy-magnet Nicole discusses haters, dealing with critics, mental health, American politics and dating tips. Really good insight into her.
Saturday.
Richard Lang – what does it feel like to be headless? Really. What is having no head like? Richard was one of my favourite guests on Sam Harris’ show last year and he didn’t disappoint here either.
THINGS I’VE LEARNED
1.
The guy who took “those skyscraper construction worker photos” is a king.
2.
Men say I love you first more.
A study found that men say ‘I love you’ first around 61.5& of the time.
The researchers also found that men, on average, first start thinking about saying “I love you” 97 days, or about three and a half months into a new relationship.
3.
“Popularity among the soundly asleep may not be the best criterion by which to judge a method for waking up.” – Jed McKenna
LIFE HACK
Spiritual Enlightenment: The Damnedest Thing is outstanding.
I got introduced to Jed McKenna’s books by Jim O’Shaughnessy during our podcast episode.
I get recommended a LOT of spirituality books.
But I was intrigued by an author claiming he was enlightened but anonymously using an alias.
Why claim enlightenment if you’re not going to use it for clout?
… unless you’re actually enlightened.
I’ve been reading it this week and it’s outstanding.
Reads half like a personal journal, half like an insight into the purest, truest vision of the human experience, and half like a huge middle finger to all the BS of the spirituality ecosystem.
Very easy to read, quite funny, super accessible, ridiculously clear.
Big love,
Chris x
Listen to me on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
Say hi on Twitter or Instagram.
PS
I hit 200k Subscribers on YouTube!! Thank you all you beautiful humans.
