Blog Archives - Page 36 of 81

It’s the People, Stupid

This is a reminder to myself much more than it is for you, so be forewarned.

This weekend I was in Kansas City as one of the Esteemed Exhalted and Beneficient Speakers for The Fitness Summit. Truly it’s a highlight event for the year and one I was sad to miss for the first time in five years last year.

And while there is always something to gain from those who take the podium, they’re true experts after all, the formatting and packaging of a presentation usually means that it’s not something you can’t get from articles or books they’ve written.

So I’m sitting in the back of the room having a great conversation with James Clear and I’m remembering, for the thusandth time: it’s the people.

The genuine connections and conversations you have with real live people can’t be replaced with facts and charts and tables or articles for that matter.

Time and time again I need the reminder that people are the key to everything.

Apple and Microsoft didn’t change the world, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates did.

The Southern Leadership Christan Conference didn’t change America, Martin Luther King Jr. did.

University of Zurich didn’t change physics and science, Albert Einstein did.

And so on and so on.

You gotta remember this. People are the answer.

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Human Skills: How to Make a Custom Ring

One of the core pillars we identified at Man Camp (the annual event I host with John Romaniello for men and those who identify as men who want to improve their lives) is that of skill.

After physical culture I believe acquiring and building skills is one of the most fundamental things you need to do if you want to live your best life. Some people go really deep in one particular skill or set of skills and perhaps be the best at it. Others, which is the camp I fall into, are more interested in developing a wide range of skills and abilities. I don’t think I’ll ever be the best at anything, except maybe the best at getting good at a lot of things.

This is the first in what I’m hoping will be a series you all enjoy. I want to take you along for the ride as I explore new or interesting things. My hope is that it might give you the spark of an idea or inspire you to step into the discomfort of learning new skill.

You know, people usually say dilettante like it’s a bad thing. I’m thinking we take it back.

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What Are Experts Good For?

Have you ever left an appointment with an expert feeling disappointed? Left with that feeling of “Really? That’s it?” Like everything you just heard was stuff you already knew and could have saved yourself a couple hundred dollars.

I almost did today. I felt that for a fleeting moment.

But then I remembered that experts can play two distinct roles.

In one they reveal new information to you that is like a key that unlocks a door. Without it you could have been fumbling in the dark for who knows how much longer before you figured it out. And their expertise and experience in knowing what you don’t know is very much what you’re paying for.

But there are other times when it’s just as valuable for an expert to close some doors, take away some options, and focus your attention on the doors right in front of you that you might have forgotten about.

It’s easy to write that off: “I already KNEW this.”

But if you knew it and weren’t taking the right action the expert’s advice is just as good as if you didn’t know in the first place.

And that’s worth its weight in gold.