3 Minute Monday
Hi friend,
Some good news:
My TEDx Talk went perfectly. Single take, one & done.
It’s so weird to spend months working on something all for 15 minutes of performance.
But anyway, all done and I’m very happy with how it went.
Honestly, the next time you’ve got something big coming up, just prepare like heck and see how much better it goes.
Preparation is a hell of a drug.
In other good news…
Dr Jordan B. Peterson is confirmed on Modern Wisdom at the end of the month.
Very #BDE
Onto today’s discussion…
I’ve been thinking about the cost of decisions this week.
The quality of your external life depends upon the quality of your decisions.
(the quality of your internal life depends upon the quality of your thoughts)
Mental Models nerds like to talk about Opportunity Cost – the price of choosing one thing over another.
An hour spent studying is an hour not spent in the gym, or enjoying leisure time.
Let’s imagine this situation.
You’re in first year at college and you really fancy someone.
You see them from across the common room on your first day and are stunned.
They’re hot and cool and popular and funny and have an amazing smile.
They don’t really know you exist though, and you haven’t spoken to them yet.
You’re too nervous.
You continue to be besotted with their existence for the remainder of your college career.
You haven’t spoken to them BUT you’ve been so obsessed that you haven’t been interested in meeting anyone else in case one day you pluck up the courage to actually speak to this person and they’re interested in you.
You’ve stayed available, just in case.
Because you haven’t made a decision, you’ve spent years existing in a holding pattern, like an AirBus A380 without runway permission.
Now the discomfort of speaking to someone you fancy is terrifying, easily enough to make it feel like mañana-ing this conversation for an entire college-career makes sense.
But in retrospect, you see that the Opportunity Cost of NOT making a decision has compounded into years being wasted.
Treating time as a precious, scarce resource can help here.
If you see time as the non-renewable, insanely valuable treasure that it is – you should stress-test your theory about your potential soulmate as quickly as possible.
What if you went up to them that first day and discovered that they’re a total dick?
Or that they had awful breath?
Or dreadful values, or weren’t interested in you?
You are now liberated to move on with your life outside of this thing.
This is why unfulfilled dreams are dangerous.
Because thinking about running a marathon gives you a tiny bit of satisfaction, but gets you no closer to having done it.
Thinking about leaving your job to start a business, or moving to another city, or talking to that hottie over there all do the same thing.
We fear stress-testing our dreams in case they don’t come true.
But by never chasing them, we guarantee their failure.
You become the architect of your own mediocrity.
In my experience, most people err on the side of caution far more than recklessness.
Most of us can afford to just jump, and learn to fly on the way down.
“The sooner you make a choice, the sooner you can make an adjustment.” – James Clear
MODERN WISDOM
I do a podcast which has had 13 million+ downloads. You should subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
This week’s upcoming episodes:
Monday.
Ben Bergeron – coach of some of the fittest athletes on the planet and one of my favourite coaches joins me to explain how to create a life of excellence. Do not miss this.
Thursday.
Kalle Sauerland – one of the most powerful promoters in world boxing talks about the most hilarious and extreme stories from his career managing world champions.
Saturday.
Brian Christian – the alignment problem of getting AI to do the things which are good for us is really hard, learn why.
THINGS I’VE LEARNED
1.
There are almost 50 million kangaroos is Australia and 3.5 million Uruguay citizens.
If the kangaroos were to invade Uruguay each person would need to fight at least 14 kangaroos.
This is an issue no one is taking seriously enough.
2.
Dog the Bounty Hunter met Beth Chapman, his late wife, in 1986 when he posted her bond after she shoplifted a lemon.
3.
Success does not earn happiness.
Happiness is being satisfied with what you have.
Success comes from dissatisfaction.
Choose.
LIFE HACK
The Reebok Nano X1 are the best training shoe ever.
If you train and are still wearing soft cushy running shoes to lift weights in, please stop.
You want something with a flat sole profile for stability and a little bit of a heel drop to help your ankles.
Ever since I tried a pair of Nano 8’s on 3 years ago, I’ve never worn anything else.
They are without a doubt the most stable, supportive & comfortable training shoe I’ve found.
Plus they look sick.
Say what you want about CrossFitters and how they dress, but they know how to design a great shoe.
Get a pair for under £90 with the Code: MW20, plus it gets you 20% off everything else too.
Shop Now.
(if it says the code isn’t valid – just change the colourway)
Big love,
Chris x
Listen to me on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
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PS
I did a new video about the #1 Factor For Success Online. Watch here:
