The Super Smart Guy Podcast

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Today we talk with Raj Daniels. Raj is a subject matter expert in mindset, self awareness, and goal setting. He helps entrepreneurs navigate the business landscape. Blog post One Size Fits One – https://www.rajdaniels.com/one-size-fits-one/ “When something evolves, everything around that thing evolves as well.” ? Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist Book – https://www.amazon.com/You-Me-Raj-Daniels/dp/1979093822/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1530059437&sr=8-1&keywords=raj+daniels Website – www.rajdaniels.com

Identity as discussed in How to Lead When You’re Not in Charge: Leveraging Influence When You Lack Authority by Clay Scroggins I’m not religious but I read a book about leadership written by the lead pastor of North Point Community Church (NPCC) in Alpharetta, GA. I have to admit I like what he says about leadership and all the points he makes in the book. He’s a very likable guy and listening to him talk is hypnotizing – he has a rhythm and vocality that reaches out to the listener making for a highly entertaining experience. He narrates his own audio book. I recommend the book even if you are not religious. “your identity is the conception you have of yourself. It is those core beliefs about yourself that you tell yourself all day long. The most important ongoing conversation you have in your life is the one you have with yourself every day.” “Honestly, I don’t know which is more damaging—being too critical or thinking too highly of yourself. Either way, accepting a distorted identity is failing to live in reality, which will ultimately erode your ability to lead.” Identity as discussed in Mini Habits: Smaller Habits, Bigger Results by Stephen Guise. One push-up a day will maintain your identity as someone who works out. James Clear talks about how the key to building lasting habits is by focusing on creating a new identity. Small wins builds momentum and helps to build identity. Those abused are brainwashed into adopting a false identity. You are your own worst critic, how negative self-talk imposes a false identity on yourself. NLP and the power of words – you can kick-start a new identity by simply telling yourself what it is. Just as how we feel a movie is real when watching it, we feel an identity is real when being told it (by others or yourself). Stuart Smalley from SNL would say, “I’m Good Enough, I’m Smart Enough, and Doggone It, People Like Me!” Daily Affirmations with Stuart Smalley. Identity is a self fulfilling prophecy. For an identity to be effective one must take it seriously and believe it. You can’t simply say “I’m the best at …” then proceed to become an expert. It takes time for the identity to assist. It’s like a small push. The Compound Effect by Darren Hardy. Using a positive identity over time can have compounding results, when used with consistency. We often use our career or a major hobby as our identity. I’m an engineer. I’m a podcaster. I’m a Salsa dancer. Your identity as perceived by yourself vs. others. Reputation and built identity – another topic. (authority, example Oprah or Tony Robbins) We all have self beliefs and identities whether we realize it or not.

When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing by Daniel H. Pink * Opening story The year was 1915, Captain William Thomas Turner, a seasoned 58 year old captain heard that U-boats were in the area. He didn’t perform evasive maneuvers or use top speed when approaching port. The Lusitania was struck by a U-boat torpedo and sank. 1200 people perished. We don’t know why the very experienced captain put the ship in harm’s way and in the path of the German sub. The night before that captain didn’t get any sleep, and he was making decisions – analytical decisions, life-and-death decisions – at the exact worst time of day (early afternoon) and without a break. He made tactical errors. • Overview Timing is not an art, it’s really a science, . To further define timing, it’s when you make decisions or choose to do something, it does not mean luck or circumstance. From simple daily decisions: What time of day to hold a shareholders meeting. To the significant: Financial investments, business decisions, when should I abandon a project that isn’t working. Most people make their timing choices by default, not taking into consideration how timing can affect outcome. The Freakonomics guys talk about if and when to quit vs. staying the course – opportunity cost. So sometimes even when you carefully deliberate over these decisions timing should be carefully taken into consideration. If you could choose when to go run an errand, would you choose to do it rush hour or off-peak, during non-rush hours when traffic is light and stores are less crowded? The purpose of this book is to help make timing decisions in a smarter, more evidence-based way. * Circadian rhythm, Daily Timing The concept of peak, trough, and recovery. Chronotype, chronobiology, everyone is on a spectrum. Most creatures on the planet follow a circadian rhythm or some kind of schedule based on time, most commonly on a daily cycle – flowers bloom, animals sleep, people eat. There are longer term cycles such as seasonal, and even longer timelines like career and lifespan. Deciduous Trees And Shrubs add vibrant blooms in spring and summer, colorful foliage in fall and then drop their leaves prior to going dormant in the winter. Research was performed to analyze the emotional content of 500 million tweets generated by 2.4 million Twitter users in 84 countries. Scientists found that there was a change in mood over the course of the day, starting with a peak in the morning, then falling into a trough by mid afternoon, and finishing with a recovery in the early evening. We think that questions of “when” are less important than questions of “what,” “how,” and “who.” We squander our peak. Focusing first on the biological clock, there are three types of people as the author defines them; lark, owl, & third birds. Lark – morning people. Owl – night owls. Third birds – people who are on a sliding scale somewhere in-between. If our biological clock gets skewed we could suffer affects such as jet lag, hunger, or performance variance (mental and physical). During any normal day a person will experience a peak, a trough, and a recovery. During the morning peak we perform analytic work more effectively. This kind of work includes mathematics, precision, and following rules. Most of medical, legal, and engineering work fall into this category. What does one do in the early afternoon trough? Perform administrative stuff like answering emails, menial tasks, and things normally performed on auto-pilot. In the early evening recovery we are better at creative things because we’re in a slightly better mood and we’re less inhibited. Performance in the trough of early afternoon explains the 20 percent of the variance in human performance on cognitive tasks. Our moods and energy also follow the same pattern. Those of us who are strong night owls go in the reverse order where the creative peak is in the morning and the analytical peak is in the early evening. Examples – If you are in court, the disposition of the judge is a lot more lenient in the morning. If a parole hearing was scheduled in the afternoon, you had almost zero chance of winning a parole. However, if the hearing was in the morning or the judges took an afternoon break, their disposition drastically changed, and parole was far more likely. Hand washing in hospitals drops considerably during afternoons. Physicians are much more likely to prescribe unnecessary antibiotics in the afternoons. Endoscopists are less thorough during colonoscopies in the afternoons. Anesthesia errors are four times more likely at 3pm than at 9am. It’s better to have surgery in the morning than the afternoon as studies show significantly less mistakes are made in the morning). Auditions are more successful at the end of the day. In the morning judges are more idealistic, middle auditions are forgotten about, and end of day auditions are most memorable. In an eight-country study of American Idol–like contests, later singers advanced more often, and those who went last had a 10 to 15 percent greater chance of moving on. Research suggests that judges start out idealistic—evaluating contestants against an imaginary goal—but then settle into a less lofty baseline. One exception: election ballots. Voters tend to pick the first name on the list, whether they’re choosing city councillors or prom kings. Research out of Denmark shows that students who take standardized tests in the afternoon score systematically lower than those who take tests in the morning. During shareholder meetings, afternoon calls were more negative, irritable, and combative. Sometimes scheduling requirements and deadlines don’t give us the flexibility to choose when we do what. However there are plenty of opportunities where we can choose when to do more analytical and more creative activities, and when to do brainless administrative tasks like email. • Breaks Human beings are not inexhaustible supplies of energy. We need the recharge and rest a break provides. There is a puritanical tradition where naps and work breaks are looked down upon. Any break is better than no break. The best breaks are those done outside, with physical activity, socially, and not talking about work. Examples of breaks are a short naps, a lunch break. Take 10 minutes. Go outside for a walk without your phone. Professionals take breaks. Amateurs don’t. Breaks are a required part of high performance. The ”nappucino” (coffee and a nap). One Danish study showed that if students took a 20 minute break before a test, their scores were substantially higher. Breaks can improve our decision making. • Midpoint Perspectives Midpoints can create a sense of urgency. The midpoint may be a metric that is universally understood and taken seriously. hour, week, or month long projects provide a midpoint that can generate urgency. The term “midlife crisis” (a term used since 1965) is not accurate, it’s more like a midlife sag—a decrease in well-being. The absolute lowest point of well-being for American men is 52.9 years. U-shape dip in mid life crisis affects humans and apes alike. Mid points can cause us to panic or they can be a slump. It depends on the context. Midpoint of a sports game can be considered the end of the 1st half and share both characteristics of midpoint and ending. * 11th Hour Urgency and Endings 9-enders (ages of 29, 39, 49…) endings energize us Ball games score the most points with time running out on the clock. Cramming for an exam. When we reach an end, we search for meaning. The climax and grand finale in movies happens at the end. Dessert. A study that found that people who were given a gift certificate that expired in three weeks were five times more likely to use it than those given one expiring in two months. Why projects have deadlines. A study that gave two groups of college students a series of Hershey’s Kisses. Scientists asked the students to rate each of five candies, delivered in succession, on a scale. In one group, they were told that each chocolate was the “next one.” In the other group, they were told the final chocolate was the “last one.” “People loved that last chocolate,” Students rated the “last” chocolate much higher than the others. People like an “ending that elevates.” This explains why people prefer to hear bad news before good news • Synchronizing with others Choir singing is the new exercise. There’s something about synchronizing in time with others. People in India who deliver lunches sync with each other with impressive accuracy. • Long term timing in life and career Recessions impact on the luck at getting work after graduation. Timing of decisions seem to be made in a haphazard way with no thought behind it. Stock market investing, start late and get less earned interest. Also examine timing of investors during recessions – younger people have time to recover while those close to retirement do not. • Personal experiences Mardi Gras floats and throwing beads. • Other Precrastinators and procrastinators less creative. Precrastinators uses first good idea and procrastinators uses whatever they can get done in time. Incubation and divergent thinking. Haunakka – Candles sold are exact number needed but there are always candles left over. The ones forgotten about are those in the middle of the holiday.

Today’s guest Jason Treu talks about: 1) Team building 2) Growing your self-awareness through understanding your historical patterns and aligning them with your current challenges. 1) How to Build a High Performing Culture in 45 Minutes   The premise of Jason’s TEDx talk, “How to Get CoWorkers to Like Each Other” is that any organization can increase company performance and employee engagement and retention by getting to know people on a deeper level at work. Research shows if we like the people we work with, we increase communication and collaboration and resolve conflicts better. In addition, if people bottle up their personal problems, it affects their performance and the team’s performance. Jason created a short workshop and a game (Cards Against Mundanity) that teams can play (4 people up to 15 optimally). Jason tried it with a dozen organizations and it has worked extremely well. Two pieces of research are at the core of Jason’s talk: Google found the #1 factor for creating the highest performing teams was psychological safety. And it was the only factor they found across every single team. Psychological safety is getting to know people at a deep personal level, being able to raise controversial ideas, and the freedom to ask any questions. In 1997, psychologist Arthur Aron, ran a famous experiment where he had complete strangers play a game of question-and-answer. At the end of 45 minutes of playing, 30% of the people said the relationship they just created was closer than the closest relationship in their lives. He replicated the study dozens of times over the years with similar results. There is a famous New York Times article on this as well. And Jason lists quite a bit of research in his talk that you can check out.   2) Great leaders start with self-awareness, and then social awareness follows.  (Here is an article in Harvard Business Review on it). Very few people are self-aware (data is 10-15%). But most leaders think they are. They overestimate their abilities. Blind spots and patterns that we’ve held onto since kids are our biggest stumbling blocks. The average person has 6000-7000 thoughts day, but we are aware of 1% of them. We play our fears over and over every day sabotaging our success. We are hardwired for survival, not happiness. So our choices are about keeping us safe. When leaders can link their current challenges with past patterns they are much quicker to change. Because then it is more about pattern recognition than they are “broke” and need “fixing.” Every leader has imposter syndrome and that fear runs their lives Jason’s web site: http://www.jasontreu.com/

Do you pay attention to how you look? You don’t get a second chance to make a first impression. -How to find and develop your own style and personal brand. -Why it’s important to have a “sense of occasion” in the world now. -How to structure your online presence. -First Impressions and what they mean to your success. -The power of color on psychology. -How style and grooming can help your mentality. Patrick Kenger is the founder of PIVOT, a men’s image consultancy. His services have helped best selling authors, entrepreneurs, and single men from around the country improve their appearance and connect better with their audiences. To learn more, visit pivotimage.com or follow him on Twitter.

In the light of recent events I felt compelled to discuss the subject of Facebook. I don’t meant to single out Facebook specifically. However this is the right time to talk about how great power in technology can influence our lives. I started reading a week ago and am 3/4 done: The Four: The Hidden DNA of Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google by NYU Stern marketing professor Scott Galloway Facebook claims to be a technology platform and not a media company. Facebook does not mediate, curate, or fact check any content. The democratization of content is a double edged sword. Facebook has over 2 billion users. A phenomenal amount of time is spent by users on it. Facebook doesn’t pay for content, the users generate it for free. Facebook charges for advertisement and use of its data. Facebook has all the upside of a media company (ad revenue) with none of the downsize (doesn’t pay for content generation, no accountability for content) The New York Times wrote: Russian agents intending to sow discord among American citizens disseminated inflammatory posts that reached 126 million users on Facebook, published more than 131,000 messages on Twitter and uploaded over 1,000 videos to Google’s YouTube service, according to copies of prepared remarks from the companies that were obtained by The New York Times. Cambridge Analytica used Facebook data to which has links to President Trump’s 2016 campaign, exploited a loophole in Facebook that allowed it to access data using an app created by a third-party research firm. Reference False news moved through Twitter “farther, faster, deeper and more broadly” than the truth, said Sinan Aral, a professor of information technology at MIT who studies social media networks. Reference You can never guarantee something posted to the web can be erased. Always treat anything posted on the internet as public.

Should you trust your gut? The short answer is yes and no. It depends. Google search “trust your gut” vs. “don’t trust your gut” A gut reaction is your subconscious mind pattern matching. The problem is that you can’t control what your subconscious absorbs. Often as we read fiction and watch movies and TV, we absorb inaccurate data. Also when we read fake news or fall prey to the evils of cognitive biases we skew our subconscious minds ability to be accurate. Trust your gut for decisions based on a field of study where you have focused many years of concentrated effort. Those gut decisions are more likely to be accurate. Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell Don’t allow emotions to sway your judgement. Emotions are good for elevating something to a higher level of urgency or importance, and for red flagging things. Use that information as a clue but not a end decision. Decisions made with emotions are often incorrect. An impulse purchase is an example of a gut decision fueled by emotion. Don’t perform knee jerk reactions. This happens all too often in social media. Often times we need more information in order to make the best decision. Time allows emotions to settle down and logic to take over. Much of the fake news and inaccurate memes floating around are propagated based on knee jerk reactions and our impulse to share the post before fact checking it. Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman – The fast brain is the subconscious and the slow brain is the logical, conscious side. It’s very important to rely on facts, statistical data, and research/studies. All too often we use poor judgement to make decisions and call it a gut instinct. There are many biases that can influence our decisions and cause inaccuracy. Here are some: Prejudice of race, religion, sex, age, background, LGBT, and many others Stereotyping/profiling Political bias Seeing something once and thinking that’s the way it always is False sense of expertise from a limited exposure to a subject False data from a “trusted” source – choose what you trust with caution Wikipedia List of cognitive biases NLP filter – deletion, distortion, generalization Peer influence and social proof The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree Bad decision making, jumping to conclusions Optical illusions Often our mistakes can be contributed to this problem. Have you ever said to yourself, this must be the solution but it’s not working! Or you look for your lost keys in the same places – it must be here! Some strategies that will help are to: Randomize thought patterns – change the subject, work on something else, take a break and come back to the problem later Try to argue a viewpoint front he opposite perspective. We get entrenched in one side that often we lose perspective. Research more on the subject. Often we are lacking data or the sample set of data is too small. Adopt a healthy sense of humility. We get tripped up in our own hubris. Recommended books: The Signal and the Noise: Why So Many Predictions Fail–but Some Don’t by Nate Silver Superforecasting: The Art and Science of Prediction by Philip E. Tetlock and Dan Gardner Yes I know I recommend these books often but there is a good reason why they are 2 of my favorites.

The Power of Broke: How Empty Pockets, a Tight Budget, and a Hunger for Success Can Become Your Greatest Competitive Advantage by Daymond John and Daniel Paisner When I started reading this book I didn’t know Daymond John was on Shark Tank. I’ve seen the show before but only a couple times. I am not a fan of reality TV because I know they dramatize reality shows to the detriment of accuracy. They jack up the entertainment value, and in doing so they portray events inaccurately. I’d rather watch this kind of show to learn rather than to be entertained. Books on business and entrepreneurship are great not only for business types but also for anyone who wants to improve their performance in work or their personal life. The principals of smart business practices translates to all aspects of life. I believe in the entrepreneur, and in the employee who can be an entrepreneur inside someone else’s business. They can use the entrepreneurial spirit to innovate and achieve, an intrapreneur. Daymond would use his van as a bus. Daymond John started his business FUBU (short for “for us, by us”) with $40. He made knock-off hats at home that were similar to more expensive ones, and sold them out of his trunk. He later grew the brand making it a lifestyle. FUBU is now a 6 billion dollar business. The main theme of the book is: a lack of resources can motivate you to be innovative in growing the business. The idea of being “broke” will cause the entrepreneur to work really hard to be creative in coming up with ways to advance the business. The author is against large infusions of cash into the business. He says that the the entrepreneur becomes lazy, dependent on the cash – when the cash runs out, the business goes under. Also when you receive cash for the business it comes at a cost, usually in the form of control or ownership of the company. The author tells a story of not financing 200K to an athletic shoe duo , they diversified the product line too far. Having a couple styles of shoe is ok. However considering the fact that they needed 12+ different sizes of each shoe type in inventory at all times led to problems when the owners grew the shoe style lineup to several different models, this 12x’s or more their manufacturing and inventory requirements. Daymond John was one of the sharks who rejected the deal. Ouch. Nobody’s perfect and this isn’t the first deal to slip through Sharktank’s fingers to go on to become a blockbuster hit. However, the author’s tips in the book are still quite valid. Hindsight is 20/20. https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/27/amazon-buys-ring-a-former-shark-tank-reject.html The author uses several case studies in making his points. Tim Ferriss – Multi-NYT best selling author, podcaster, performance optimizer, etc. In 2001, Ferriss founded BrainQUICKEN and sold the company to a London-based company. Ferriss is an angel investor and advisor to startups. Acacia Brinley – one of the top influencers on Tumblr and social media “Selfie” Queen. Sponsors and endorsements. Harvey Finkelstein – made t-shirts for his college to put himself through law school. He was one of Shopify’s first customers sh he had experience building an online store on their platform. He became their Chief Operating Officer. Kevin Plank – played fullback at the University of Maryland, invented better moisture-wicking fabric and started Under Armour. Rob Dyrdek – world-renowned skateboarding star, built identity and used his passion to build a multimillion-dollar brand. He is the founder of the Street league Skateboarding (SLS) Skateboard competition. Loren Ridinger – founder of Market America, a fashion business and internet merchant. Moziah Bridges & Tramica Morris – started making bow ties at nine. At 13 he’s sold 200k worth of handmade ties. Mark Burnett – Worked as a nanny, sold t-shirts by using a fence at Venice Beach. Later went on to produce popular reality shows, such as Shark Tank, Survivor, The Apprentice, and The Voice. He is known as the father of reality TV. Ryan Deiss – launched his first web-based business from a college dorm room in 1999. He went on to found over 40 different.businesses. Linda Johansen-James – sold products out of small, 60 square-foot kiosks in malls. Now her company manages over 1,000 retail locations Josh Peck – Started with Nickelodeon, later made funny short videos with his cell phone on Vine and other social media platforms. Now does tv shows and movies. Jay Abraham – Saw a floundering 8-track business and found a way to successfully buy and distribute the tapes. Later he bought a small company and saved it from bankruptcy. Re-launched it as Icy Hot. He is one of the Top 5 Executive Coaches in the country. Steve Aoki – Deeply in debt from starting his own record label at age 19. Used “By Any Means Necessary” and “Do It Yourself” motto, He became one of the top DJ’s in the world. His dad founded Benihana. Christopher Gray – received over $1.3 million in college scholarships created an app to help other students do the same. Gigi Butler – cleaning lady who started a cupcake shop in Nashville, Tennessee. Now has 100 Gigi’s Cupcake stores, generating over $35 million in annual sales. The author created an acronym “SHARK” to communicate his philosophy on business: S. Set a goal not too high or too low, but just right. Write it down. Grow your business slowly. Make affordable steps forward. start small. pace growth. H. Homework. Learn from others mistakes. Twitter is just an updated messenger pigeon. OPM Other People’s Money/Mindset/Magic A. Adore what you do. If you believe then others will too, but have realistic expectations. Do something you love. Have fun. R. Remember you are the brand. Connect with others. Define yourself in a couple words. K. Keep swimming. It takes hunger to build success. 8 out of 10 businesses fail in the 1st 18 months. Execution is key. Businesses built on steroids and injections of capital are living on borrowed time. when the money runs out the business runs its course. Steve Jobs sold his car and Steve Wozniak’s sold his calculator so they could scrape together enough money to build the prototype of the computer circuit board that would become known as the Apple one. In the United States emigrants are twice as likely to start a business as US citizens. Embrace your failures. 52% of small businesses are home based according to Forbes. 70% of small businesses are owned and operated by a single person. Milton Hershey started 3 candy companies as a young man and all of them failed before he found success with the Hershey company. Before becoming one of the most beloved figures on television and a pop culture icon, Oprah Winfrey was fired from her job as a broadcaster and us because she was accused of being “unfit for television”. More than 35% of US entrepreneurs have dyslexic traits. Dyslexia is far more common among entrepreneurs than it is among executives. Let other people guide you, mentoring is important. Walt Disney was turned down 302 times before getting financing for Walt Disney World. Today the resort attracts over 25 million visitors each year. Before publishing his first book Stephen King was ready to give up on the writing career. After getting 30 rejections he threw his first novel in the trash but his wife retrieved it and urged him to keep going. Since then he has gone on to sell over 350 million copies of his books many, of which have been made into motion pictures. Keep one shrimp to yourself red lobster. They reduce the number of shrimp in there scampi by one rather than raise prices. In 2011 there were 5.68 million employer firms and United States 99.7% of businesses had fewer than 500 employees 89.9% had fewer than 20. For almost all retailers inventory is the single largest asset on their balance sheet but in most cases it’s also the least productive asset. Seek new sources of revenue and new methods of delivery. According to a Harvard business school study 83% of the population does not take the time to set professional goals 14% have goals in mind but they don’t write them down and 3% set down their goals on paper and commit to them. People between the ages of 55 and 64 have the highest rate of entrepreneurship in America. 97% of the entrepreneurs who give up become employed by the 3% who never quit. Always dedicate time to the business on a regular basis. Don’t rush or ignore. Make goals based on specific times. Think about your customer. (bridges BPP #4 solve other peoples problems, and 6 understand their perspective) Take inventory of yourself. What resources do you have. What are your talents. Sell the truth. “cola” vs. Coke. 4 stages. Item, Label, Brand, Lifestyle It’s easier now than ever before to start a new business. Asses risks carefully. Rise and grind. Money doesn’t guarantee growth of the business. You give away some control or a percent of your business. You don’t know if it will work until you try to sell it. Asking for advice, everyone will love it and give “nice” advice. *I have read this from other sources and it appears to be a common theme. Broke Power Principles 1 Use all the resources available to you. Have patience. Use resources to your smartest advantage. Jay Abraham talked about OPM – other people’s money, mindset, and magic. 2 Honesty and authenticity. At the end of the day the more humility and integrity you put into the world, the more you’ll connect with others who want to help you succeed. 3 Optimize. Make the best use of all resources. Time – don’t waste it. 4 You will be rewarded for solving other people’s problems or filling holes in the marketplace. Figure out how to do something better than anyone else. 5 “Put all your Passion and purpose behind whatever it is that you’re doing. If you don’t believe in yourself, in your product , your service , or your business , you can’t expect anyone else to either. That said , you don’t want to come across a nut, so don’t be fanatical or unreasonably optimistic. Remember that you’re selling people on the idea of trusting you, because people invest in people , not just a product or service.” 6 Build relationships with everyone. Understand their perspective. Be their cheerleader. Communicate you care. They will respect you for respecting their reality. They may reciprocate. 7 “Think beyond the moment. This can be tough to do, especially when you’re up against it. Find a way to support your vision with logic, data , and realistic projections. Wishful thinking and conjecture have a way of working against you , and breaking you in a bad way.” 8 Be optimistic and believe that you will succeed. It’s like a self-fulfilling prophecy. Believe in yourself. Also be realistic. Keep pushing forward. Keep your goals in sight and in reach.

In the news: The Stock markets tank. Amazon is using masterful methods in habit and momentum to keep you coming back. Coming soon, book reviews: Win Bigly by Scott Adams, When by Daniel Pink, and The Power of Broke by Daymond John. The post Amazon and Facebook’s Secret Weapon, Bonus: Stock Market Madness – 121 appeared first on Super Smart Guy Podcast.

In the news: The Stock markets tank. Amazon is using masterful methods in habit and momentum to keep you coming back. Coming soon, book reviews: Win Bigly by Scott Adams, When by Daniel Pink, and The Power of Broke by Daymond John.

Many people attempt new years resolutions. The vast majority of these fail in just a few weeks. For behavior to be permanent it must be sustainable. How do we make behavior sustainable? Use autopilot. Make behavior automatic and instinctual without having to exert effort or think about it. Here are 2 podcast episodes where I discuss habits and strategies. Switch! By The Heath Brothers – 92 Mini Habits – 99 Predicting future events is critical for investing, business planning, and politics just to name 3. In the books Superforecasting and The Signal And The Noise, probability of the occurrence of events is discussed and how to best predict such events. Superforecasting – 70   The Signal and the Noise – 108 I loved learning how the brain really works in the book Brain Rules. The following 3 podcast episodes are a summary and in-depth review of the book. Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School   Brain Rules Book Review Part 1 – Episode 24   Brain Rules Book Review Part 2 – Episode 26 I found it very useful learning about Deep Work. Deep Work – 95 Deliberate practice.   Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise – 98   And the difference between the two. Deep Work vs. Flow vs. Deliberate Practice – 97   Currently reading: When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing by Daniel H. Pink Read and working on podcast episodes: The Power of Broke: How Empty Pockets, a Tight Budget, and a Hunger for Success Can Become Your Greatest Competitive Advantage by Daymond John and Daniel Paisner Win Bigly: Persuasion in a World Where Facts Don’t Matter by Scott Adams The Science of Likability: 27 Studies to Master Charisma, Attract Friends, Captivate People, and Take Advantage of Human Psychology by Patrick King In the queue to read: The Four: The Hidden DNA of Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google by Scott Galloway To Sell Is Human: The Surprising Truth about Moving Others by Daniel H. Pink The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact by Chip Heath The post What’s To Come In 2018 – 120 appeared first on Super Smart Guy Podcast.

Many people attempt new years resolutions. The vast majority of these fail in just a few weeks. For behavior to be permanent it must be sustainable. How do we make behavior sustainable? Use autopilot. Make behavior automatic and instinctual without having to exert effort or think about it. Here are 2 podcast episodes where I discuss habits and strategies. Switch! By The Heath Brothers – 92 Mini Habits – 99 Predicting future events is critical for investing, business planning, and politics just to name 3. In the books Superforecasting and The Signal And The Noise, probability of the occurrence of events is discussed and how to best predict such events. Superforecasting – 70   The Signal and the Noise – 108 I loved learning how the brain really works in the book Brain Rules. The following 3 podcast episodes are a summary and in-depth review of the book. Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School   Brain Rules Book Review Part 1 – Episode 24   Brain Rules Book Review Part 2 – Episode 26 I found it very useful learning about Deep Work. Deep Work – 95 Deliberate practice.   Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise – 98   And the difference between the two. Deep Work vs. Flow vs. Deliberate Practice – 97   Currently reading: When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing by Daniel H. Pink Read and working on podcast episodes: The Power of Broke: How Empty Pockets, a Tight Budget, and a Hunger for Success Can Become Your Greatest Competitive Advantage by Daymond John and Daniel Paisner Win Bigly: Persuasion in a World Where Facts Don’t Matter by Scott Adams The Science of Likability: 27 Studies to Master Charisma, Attract Friends, Captivate People, and Take Advantage of Human Psychology by Patrick King In the queue to read: The Four: The Hidden DNA of Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google by Scott Galloway To Sell Is Human: The Surprising Truth about Moving Others by Daniel H. Pink The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact by Chip Heath

Examples of negative behavior are: Overeating, excessive TV/gaming/Web surfing/alcohol/smoking. Use all resources available to help you. Mini habits – walk 5 minutes a day Curate your environment – throw out snacks, booze. Put away video games, TV remotes. Stock cupboard with healthy snacks like fruit and nuts. Create autopilot habits that need little effort and guide you into the right direction – exercise first thing after work, create recurring health-conscious grocery list, batch cook healthy meals. Be kind to yourself – if you fall off the bandwagon don’t beat yourself up. Rather objectively look at how it happened and how to avoid the mistake. Be aware of triggers – what sets you off to want to drink or smoke? Being at bars or around friends doing it? Avoid those triggers. Journal – this is so important. Often we are not aware of our behaviors that lead up to the bad habit. If we journal in detailed manner, we will gather the evidence we need to assess the situation. Journaling is the reality mirror. Be as accurate as possible. Write down what you do and exactly how you do it. Like got up at midnight and ate a whole pint of ice cream. We can’t fix what we don’t measure. Don’t tell others what you are doing. Research shows that telling others about your plans affects the brain in a similar way to actually doing the plan. It erodes hunger and desire to follow through with your plan. Some people think telling others will put you in a position of accountability but in reality the effect on your brain as experiencing it and thinking it’s done is a stronger influence. It is good to have an accountability partner, this is different than bragging about your plans then not following through. The accountability partner is a single person or group that works with you to get it done. They can be exercise partners, moral support, or others with the same goal offering a bit of FRIENDLY competition (how many steps did you do today, I did 15K steps…) The marshmallow test. https://www.apa.org/helpcenter/willpower-gratification.pdf Willpower is an exhaustive and renewable resource. Use willpower like tinder to start a fire. The fire is the good habit or behavior. Use willpower sparingly. Problem is many people rely too much on willpower. To build a fire you must start with a spark and tinder. Then catch small twigs on fire, then sticks, then eventually the large logs which can burn for hours. Strategies can steer you away from temptations and vices. Distract yourself with exercise and activities. Use habits to guide your behavior into the right direction. Be patient – many people give up too soon. Big change takes a while. But try to keep progressing. Sometimes we hit a plateau because we are not trying hard enough. The most growth happens outside your comfort zone. Remember you can’t reach your personal best every day. When we hit a PR we get excited and try to exceed it every day. Of course a PR is a peak, this won’t be a daily occurrence. Sadly we get demotivated if we can’t be doing better every subsequent day. Don’t let that stop your progress. Chart your average and track that, the average is much more important over time than individual PR’s. But when you do hit a PR make sure to celebrate your hard work. Make sure you are performing deliberate practice if your goal is to perfect a technique. Masterful coaching is also very important. And 10k hours. The post Strategies to avoid vices and guide yourself towards rewarding goals – 119 appeared first on Super Smart Guy Podcast.

Examples of negative behavior are: Overeating, excessive TV/gaming/Web surfing/alcohol/smoking. Use all resources available to help you. Mini habits – walk 5 minutes a day Curate your environment – throw out snacks, booze. Put away video games, TV remotes. Stock cupboard with healthy snacks like fruit and nuts. Create autopilot habits that need little effort and guide you into the right direction – exercise first thing after work, create recurring health-conscious grocery list, batch cook healthy meals. Be kind to yourself – if you fall off the bandwagon don’t beat yourself up. Rather objectively look at how it happened and how to avoid the mistake. Be aware of triggers – what sets you off to want to drink or smoke? Being at bars or around friends doing it? Avoid those triggers. Journal – this is so important. Often we are not aware of our behaviors that lead up to the bad habit. If we journal in detailed manner, we will gather the evidence we need to assess the situation. Journaling is the reality mirror. Be as accurate as possible. Write down what you do and exactly how you do it. Like got up at midnight and ate a whole pint of ice cream. We can’t fix what we don’t measure. Don’t tell others what you are doing. Research shows that telling others about your plans affects the brain in a similar way to actually doing the plan. It erodes hunger and desire to follow through with your plan. Some people think telling others will put you in a position of accountability but in reality the effect on your brain as experiencing it and thinking it’s done is a stronger influence. It is good to have an accountability partner, this is different than bragging about your plans then not following through. The accountability partner is a single person or group that works with you to get it done. They can be exercise partners, moral support, or others with the same goal offering a bit of FRIENDLY competition (how many steps did you do today, I did 15K steps…) The marshmallow test. https://www.apa.org/helpcenter/willpower-gratification.pdf Willpower is an exhaustive and renewable resource. Use willpower like tinder to start a fire. The fire is the good habit or behavior. Use willpower sparingly. Problem is many people rely too much on willpower. To build a fire you must start with a spark and tinder. Then catch small twigs on fire, then sticks, then eventually the large logs which can burn for hours. Strategies can steer you away from temptations and vices. Distract yourself with exercise and activities. Use habits to guide your behavior into the right direction. Be patient – many people give up too soon. Big change takes a while. But try to keep progressing. Sometimes we hit a plateau because we are not trying hard enough. The most growth happens outside your comfort zone. Remember you can’t reach your personal best every day. When we hit a PR we get excited and try to exceed it every day. Of course a PR is a peak, this won’t be a daily occurrence. Sadly we get demotivated if we can’t be doing better every subsequent day. Don’t let that stop your progress. Chart your average and track that, the average is much more important over time than individual PR’s. But when you do hit a PR make sure to celebrate your hard work. Make sure you are performing deliberate practice if your goal is to perfect a technique. Masterful coaching is also very important. And 10k hours.

Barking Up the Wrong Tree by Eric Barker, The Surprising Science Behind Why Everything You Know About Success Is (Mostly) Wrong Recommended book for beginner/intermediate. The first half of the book introduced me to some new information and the second half was a review of what I’ve already known. Still good stuff though. Givers, takers, matchers. Givers are at the top and bottom of the list are the Nice guys that finish last. The givers at the bottom let themselves get taken advantage of. The givers at the top of the list learn to trust people and therefore take more chances and become more successful. Matchers are people who get and give in more or less equal amounts. Takers make sure they “come out ahead” and take more than they give.Givers at the bottom, takers and matchers are in the middle, and givers who trust are at the top in achievement and success. Pirates, gangs, and organized crime use trust and an honor system to organize their activities. Allegedly Blackbeard killed exactly 0 people and made exactly 0 people walk the plank. Because that’s expensive in doing business. You’d rather scare the merchants into giving up right away versus having to fight them which is costly to both sides. Moldova does very poorly economically because nobody trusts each other. Jerks finish 1st in the beginning. However this is not sustainable and in time they will finish last. Valedictorians and good employees never become super successful. It’s the outliers and the major deviation that become great. Dandelions vs. orchids. Stick to your expertise, your niche – be true to your self and you will be successful and happy. Picking the right pond. Are you in a place that recognizes and respects your qualities. Multiple yardsticks used to measure happiness in life is required. You need various metrics. The 4 metrics: 1. Happiness: Feelings of pleasure or contentment in and about your life. enjoyment 2. Achievement: Accomplishments that compare favorably against similar goals others have strived for. winning 3. Significance: A positive impact on people you care about. counting to others 4. Legacy: Establishing your values or accomplishments in ways that help others find future success. extending Collapsing strategy – just focusing on one metric, like making money (double down on one metric) Sequencing strategy – first make money, then focus on relationships, then health (focus on one while neglecting the others) You can’t achieve success in your life sequentially. For example the guy on his deathbed says he wish he worked less and spent more time of this family. Eric Barker really goes into detail with this topic on his blog: http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2013/11/making-the-most-out-of-life/ People who practice gratitude are happier people overall. Having too many choices is bad. Limitless freedom is paralyzing. Satisficing is living with good enough. Maximizing is exploring all options and getting the best. Satisficers are happier. Local vs. global maxima – engineering. Traveling Salesman problem. NP-Complete. http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2015/02/how-to-find-happiness/ Big networks make you successful. Organic, authentic relationships and making friends is a much more effective way to network than just making a lot of acquaintances. Operate at a level of Confidence that is natural and authentic. The Superconnectors of Gladwell’s Tipping Point. filtered vs. unfiltered leaders. Filtered – heavily vetted. Unfiltered – less classically trained, less predictable. The author discusses Angela Duckworth’s work in the area of Grit. The author also mentions the work of Martin Seligman on optimism. Grit requires optimism. Optimists say bad stuff is temporary and isn’t universal and not their fault. This concept works for individuals and groups. Seligman and colleagues proposed that our ability to deal with setbacks is largely determined by three P’s of Explanatory style: 1 personalization — the belief that we are at fault 2 pervasiveness — the belief that an event will affect all areas of our life 3 permanence — the belief that the aftershocks of the event will last forever Flexible optimism is tendency to face reality with a positive outlook without dwelling unduly on the negatives. Viktor Frankl – “When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.” “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” Friedrich Nietzsche – “He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.” You can have false memories, caused by confabulation, or the brain’s attempt to fill in missing memory gaps by adding fabricated facts and experiences. The human memory can’t be trusted to be exactly accurate. It assimilates similar experiences, even if they are unrelated. [Recalling a memory reactivates the neurons composing the memory trace, spurring them to form new connections. The altered circuitry then becomes stable again, and the memory is “reconsolidated.”] http://theweek.com/articles/680378/science-why-experience-false-memories Suggestibility is the tendency to believe what others suggest to be true. People can assimilate real events with stories from movies or books and later recall an event that never actually happened. One thing I am concerned about are the existence of fantasy and science fiction movies, although a lot of fun to watch, can influence people to believe things that are not true. Same goes for fake news. The result can lead to people with beliefs of incorrect data. The notion of cognitive biases was introduced by Amos Tversky and Daniel Kahneman in 1972. Daniel Kahneman is Professor of Psychology and Public Affairs Emeritus at the Woodrow Wilson School, the Eugene Higgins Professor of Psychology Emeritus, discusses cognitive biases. Kurt Vonnegut — ‘We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be.’ Navy Seals and an injured mountain climber gamify to succeed. WOOP. An acronym for 4 steps to achieving any goal based on research by Gabriele Oettingen: Wish- Motivation. Don’t fantasize or daydream. Don’t tell people about it. Outcome – Get specific with your outcome. Obstacle – Acts as motivator. If goal is unrealistic that will be realized too. Helps to prepare. Plan – How to react to obstacles. Can I build this? Never give up vs. fail fast. Freakonomics quitting is good. Opportunity cost. Having friends You can talk to is extremely important How to get a mentor – be worthy. Confident people are more successful on average. Successful people have an internal locus of control. They takebigger risks on avg. Narcists are more successful but empathy can temper the negative traits. The Dunning–Kruger effect is a cognitive bias in which unskilled people make poor decisions and reach erroneous conclusions, but their incompetence denies them the metacognitive ability to recognize their mistakes. They rate their ability as much higher than it actually is. Self compassion Loving what you do is more important than making a lot of money. Too much OT leads to decreased productivity and added stress. Sleep is important to productivity. Gangass Khan Always have a plan Journal your time to see where you are wasting it. Look for hot spots and improve on them. To do lists are the devil. Schedule things. Fixed schedule productivity. Cal Newport. The peak and the way something ends sticks in memory more than average experience. Colonoscopy example. The post Barking Up The Wrong Tree by Eric Barker – 118 appeared first on Super Smart Guy Podcast.

Barking Up the Wrong Tree by Eric Barker, The Surprising Science Behind Why Everything You Know About Success Is (Mostly) Wrong Recommended book for beginner/intermediate. The first half of the book introduced me to some new information and the second half was a review of what I’ve already known. Still good stuff though. Givers, takers, matchers. Givers are at the top and bottom of the list are the Nice guys that finish last. The givers at the bottom let themselves get taken advantage of. The givers at the top of the list learn to trust people and therefore take more chances and become more successful. Matchers are people who get and give in more or less equal amounts. Takers make sure they “come out ahead” and take more than they give.Givers at the bottom, takers and matchers are in the middle, and givers who trust are at the top in achievement and success. Pirates, gangs, and organized crime use trust and an honor system to organize their activities. Allegedly Blackbeard killed exactly 0 people and made exactly 0 people walk the plank. Because that’s expensive in doing business. You’d rather scare the merchants into giving up right away versus having to fight them which is costly to both sides. Moldova does very poorly economically because nobody trusts each other. Jerks finish 1st in the beginning. However this is not sustainable and in time they will finish last. Valedictorians and good employees never become super successful. It’s the outliers and the major deviation that become great. Dandelions vs. orchids. Stick to your expertise, your niche – be true to your self and you will be successful and happy. Picking the right pond. Are you in a place that recognizes and respects your qualities. Multiple yardsticks used to measure happiness in life is required. You need various metrics. The 4 metrics: 1. Happiness: Feelings of pleasure or contentment in and about your life. enjoyment 2. Achievement: Accomplishments that compare favorably against similar goals others have strived for. winning 3. Significance: A positive impact on people you care about. counting to others 4. Legacy: Establishing your values or accomplishments in ways that help others find future success. extending Collapsing strategy – just focusing on one metric, like making money (double down on one metric) Sequencing strategy – first make money, then focus on relationships, then health (focus on one while neglecting the others) You can’t achieve success in your life sequentially. For example the guy on his deathbed says he wish he worked less and spent more time of this family. Eric Barker really goes into detail with this topic on his blog: http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2013/11/making-the-most-out-of-life/ People who practice gratitude are happier people overall. Having too many choices is bad. Limitless freedom is paralyzing. Satisficing is living with good enough. Maximizing is exploring all options and getting the best. Satisficers are happier. Local vs. global maxima – engineering. Traveling Salesman problem. NP-Complete. http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2015/02/how-to-find-happiness/ Big networks make you successful. Organic, authentic relationships and making friends is a much more effective way to network than just making a lot of acquaintances. Operate at a level of Confidence that is natural and authentic. The Superconnectors of Gladwell’s Tipping Point. filtered vs. unfiltered leaders. Filtered – heavily vetted. Unfiltered – less classically trained, less predictable. The author discusses Angela Duckworth’s work in the area of Grit. The author also mentions the work of Martin Seligman on optimism. Grit requires optimism. Optimists say bad stuff is temporary and isn’t universal and not their fault. This concept works for individuals and groups. Seligman and colleagues proposed that our ability to deal with setbacks is largely determined by three P’s of Explanatory style: 1 personalization — the belief that we are at fault 2 pervasiveness — the belief that an event will affect all areas of our life 3 permanence — the belief that the aftershocks of the event will last forever Flexible optimism is tendency to face reality with a positive outlook without dwelling unduly on the negatives. Viktor Frankl – “When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.” “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” Friedrich Nietzsche – “He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.” You can have false memories, caused by confabulation, or the brain’s attempt to fill in missing memory gaps by adding fabricated facts and experiences. The human memory can’t be trusted to be exactly accurate. It assimilates similar experiences, even if they are unrelated. [Recalling a memory reactivates the neurons composing the memory trace, spurring them to form new connections. The altered circuitry then becomes stable again, and the memory is “reconsolidated.”] http://theweek.com/articles/680378/science-why-experience-false-memories Suggestibility is the tendency to believe what others suggest to be true. People can assimilate real events with stories from movies or books and later recall an event that never actually happened. One thing I am concerned about are the existence of fantasy and science fiction movies, although a lot of fun to watch, can influence people to believe things that are not true. Same goes for fake news. The result can lead to people with beliefs of incorrect data. The notion of cognitive biases was introduced by Amos Tversky and Daniel Kahneman in 1972. Daniel Kahneman is Professor of Psychology and Public Affairs Emeritus at the Woodrow Wilson School, the Eugene Higgins Professor of Psychology Emeritus, discusses cognitive biases. Kurt Vonnegut — ‘We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be.’ Navy Seals and an injured mountain climber gamify to succeed. WOOP. An acronym for 4 steps to achieving any goal based on research by Gabriele Oettingen: Wish- Motivation. Don’t fantasize or daydream. Don’t tell people about it. Outcome – Get specific with your outcome. Obstacle – Acts as motivator. If goal is unrealistic that will be realized too. Helps to prepare. Plan – How to react to obstacles. Can I build this? Never give up vs. fail fast. Freakonomics quitting is good. Opportunity cost. Having friends You can talk to is extremely important How to get a mentor – be worthy. Confident people are more successful on average. Successful people have an internal locus of control. They takebigger risks on avg. Narcists are more successful but empathy can temper the negative traits. The Dunning–Kruger effect is a cognitive bias in which unskilled people make poor decisions and reach erroneous conclusions, but their incompetence denies them the metacognitive ability to recognize their mistakes. They rate their ability as much higher than it actually is. Self compassion Loving what you do is more important than making a lot of money. Too much OT leads to decreased productivity and added stress. Sleep is important to productivity. Gangass Khan Always have a plan Journal your time to see where you are wasting it. Look for hot spots and improve on them. To do lists are the devil. Schedule things. Fixed schedule productivity. Cal Newport. The peak and the way something ends sticks in memory more than average experience. Colonoscopy example.

Stephen R. Covey, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People 1 – Be Proactive You choose your life Take responsibility in your life Circle of Influence and Circle of Concern proactive vs. reactive Own it, then you can change it. No excuses allowed! Between the stimulus and the response is your greatest power–you have the freedom to choose your response Viktor Frankl 2 – Begin with the End in Mind all things are created twice. There is a mental (first) creation, and a physical (second) creation Envision what you want Fast progress doesn’t help if it’s in the wrong direction Understand how people make decisions act based on principles Are you who you want to be? How do you want to be remembered? develop a Personal Mission Statement 3 – Put First Things First Prioritize and triage 1) Important and Urgent 2) Important and not-urgent 3) Not Important and Urgent 4) Not important and Not urgent Pareto Principle 80 / 20 rule The next three habits talk about Interdependence and working with others 4 – Think Win-Win Zero sum gain Ecology Abundance Mentality/Mindset vs. Scarcity Desired Result: What is to be done and by when Guidelines: What can and can’t be done Resources: Who and what can help Accountability: How will we measure success and how often Consequences 5 – Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood We usually respond to someone in 4 autobiographical responses: 1. Evaluate: agree or disagree with what is said 2. Probe: ask questions from our own frame of reference 3. Advise: give counsel based on our own experience 4. Interpret: try to figure out the person’s motives and behavior based on our own Use empathetic listening build rapport Gain understanding of their circumstances The Habit 5 is greatly embraced in the Greek philosophy represented by 3 words: 1) Ethos – your personal credibility. It’s the trust that you inspire, your Emotional Bank Account. 2) Pathos is the empathic side — it’s the alignment with the emotional trust of another person communication. 3) Logos is the logic — the reasoning part of the presentation. paradigm, paradigm shift 6 – Synergize The whole is greater than the sum of its parts Teamwork Organization 7 – Sharpen the Saw – Continuous Improvements “Upward Spiral” self care four intelligences – physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual Physical: Beneficial eating, exercising, and resting Social/Emotional: Making social and meaningful connections with others Mental: Learning, reading, writing, and teaching Spiritual: Spending time in nature, expanding spiritual self through meditation, music, art, prayer, or service The 8th Habit[edit] 8 – Find your voice and inspire others to find theirs. Which inspired me to think about: Send the elevator back down We need more mentoring for people of all ages, esp. young and at risk Pay it forward The post Stephen Covey, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People – 117 appeared first on Super Smart Guy Podcast.

Stephen R. Covey, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People 1 – Be Proactive You choose your life Take responsibility in your life Circle of Influence and Circle of Concern proactive vs. reactive Own it, then you can change it. No excuses allowed! Between the stimulus and the response is your greatest power–you have the freedom to choose your response Viktor Frankl 2 – Begin with the End in Mind all things are created twice. There is a mental (first) creation, and a physical (second) creation Envision what you want Fast progress doesn’t help if it’s in the wrong direction Understand how people make decisions act based on principles Are you who you want to be? How do you want to be remembered? develop a Personal Mission Statement 3 – Put First Things First Prioritize and triage 1) Important and Urgent 2) Important and not-urgent 3) Not Important and Urgent 4) Not important and Not urgent Pareto Principle 80 / 20 rule The next three habits talk about Interdependence and working with others 4 – Think Win-Win Zero sum gain Ecology Abundance Mentality/Mindset vs. Scarcity Desired Result: What is to be done and by when Guidelines: What can and can’t be done Resources: Who and what can help Accountability: How will we measure success and how often Consequences 5 – Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood We usually respond to someone in 4 autobiographical responses: 1. Evaluate: agree or disagree with what is said 2. Probe: ask questions from our own frame of reference 3. Advise: give counsel based on our own experience 4. Interpret: try to figure out the person’s motives and behavior based on our own Use empathetic listening build rapport Gain understanding of their circumstances The Habit 5 is greatly embraced in the Greek philosophy represented by 3 words: 1) Ethos – your personal credibility. It’s the trust that you inspire, your Emotional Bank Account. 2) Pathos is the empathic side — it’s the alignment with the emotional trust of another person communication. 3) Logos is the logic — the reasoning part of the presentation. paradigm, paradigm shift 6 – Synergize The whole is greater than the sum of its parts Teamwork Organization 7 – Sharpen the Saw – Continuous Improvements “Upward Spiral” self care four intelligences – physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual Physical: Beneficial eating, exercising, and resting Social/Emotional: Making social and meaningful connections with others Mental: Learning, reading, writing, and teaching Spiritual: Spending time in nature, expanding spiritual self through meditation, music, art, prayer, or service The 8th Habit [edit] 8 – Find your voice and inspire others to find theirs. Which inspired me to think about: Send the elevator back down We need more mentoring for people of all ages, esp. young and at risk Pay it forward

The Happiness of Pursuit: Finding the Quest That Will Bring Purpose to Your Life by Chris Guillebeau The book is not about happiness or how to become so. It’s about the ambition of the pursuit and the desire to do whatever it took to keep going. Some quests take years or even decades to complete. “Deciding to improve one’s life, however meaningful it might be on a personal level, is not a quest. Quit smoking, lose weight, get out of debt, are not quests. A quest: Has a clear goal and a specific end point. Presents a clear challenge. Requires sacrifice of some kind. Is often driven by a calling or sense of mission. Requires a series of small steps and incremental progress towards the goal. Reasons to quest: Self-discovery (find yourself). Reclaiming (re-discover heritage or new cultures). Response to external events (Getting laid off). Desire for ownership and empowerment (Being told you can’t do that). Taking a stand for something (Activism). Why start a Quest: Do you like lists? Enjoy setting goals? Motivated by making progress? Enjoy planning? Misunderstood hobby or passion? Daydream about a different life? Obsessed with a hobby or passion? John Francis walked across america. Activist against folssil fuel based transportation. struggling with the “what next” which can feel quite a bit like postpartum depression Estimate the cost of the quest. Quests can cost time, money, opportunity. Don’t let risks stop you. Mitigate risks. Risk and cost make the quest challenging. Pursuing a quest can make you happy and/or fulfilled. Don’t confuse the two. You will figure things out along the way. Walk across america Live with urgency. Make your life count. Some discussion about how people on their deathbed let go of BS. They get very real and honest. I read something else recently that had a similar theme. This struck a chord with me. Recall the author saying a quest “Presents a clear challenge” and “requires sacrifice of some kind”. Something to think about, people who commit to a quest must have the resources and circumstances to do so. People with young children or pets will find it very challenging to commit to a quest. Especially the types of quests that require peoples time in great amounts. The girl who sailed around the world, the man who walked across the country. These people can’t have commitments like a job, pets, or kids. There are other quests that one can fit into their life with some sacrifice, such as the cooking a meal from each country or taking pictures of birds. I can imagine that the time required for a quest would significantly eat into watching their kids’ soccer practice or taking them to the mall/birthday parties. It is a simple observation to me that for your activity to meet the authors definition of a quest, is not feasible to the average soccer mom or dad. Does this mean a quest is reserved only for the rich or care-free childless or empty nest household? I would say no. You can use the inspiration of the quest to drive you forward to a quest-like mission. In the book, the author discusses how working to lose weight, get out of debt, or read more are not “quests”, they can still be pursued like a quest. Don’t give up on a noble activity because it’s not a quest. The problem with modern society is that we are flooded with news of peoples larger than life accomplishments. They seem to take away from our accomplishments. You ran 5 miles today? I ran 20. etc. I feel your accomplishments are yours to celebrate. Running 5 miles is more than running 1 mile. And if you are running 1 mile a day, up from zero, then that’s an accomplishment! Avoid the “go big or go home” syndrome. A win is a win, take a win when you can. Don’t let your social media friend demotivate you because they ran farther, lifted more weight at the gym, or bought a nicer car. Measure your progress against yourself, not others. Also it’s possible to engage in a quest someday in the future when you have more time and resources. But do what you can today – don’t wait to live your life. There is always some kind of mini-quest you can do, today. It’s funny because I didn’t think this book would be about quests. I read the title and thought it would be about the fact that it’s more important to be satisfied because you are doing things in life vs. trying to be “happy”. I have read elsewhere that the pursuit of happiness is really chasing after a dopamine rush. This is a fake happiness. The chemical reaction causes addiction. People start chasing the dopamine rush by doing things not beneficial in their lives like using substances, spending money, partying, etc. It is better to pursue something like a quest. Have a purpose and a mission. Doing things has rewards, and those rewards also give a dopamine rush. Except this time it’s not an empty addiction. It’s sustainable and has rewards outside just feelings. Business/Development books usually fall into 3 categories: Motivate Convey experiences Provide actionable intelligence   The post The Happiness of Pursuit – 116 appeared first on Super Smart Guy Podcast.