45 minutes

I listened to Episode 439 of the Tim Ferriss Show today while picking up a Facebook Marketplace purchase. Tim Ferriss has been my rock through the uncertainties of the lockdown. His massively important interviews have reminded me of the necessity to respond instead of emotionally react in challenging situations. This episode featured excerpts from his bestselling book I’ve yet to read, Tools of Titans, now available on audible.

The excerpt featured was Derek Sivers’ profile. Sivers founded CDBaby and Hostbaby and is a successful music producer, among other things. But the thing that struck me was his story about 45 minutes.

He likes to bike and this one trail near his home was the go-to spot. As American capitalism teaches, when he hit the trail he went max effort. He pedaled fast, was red in the face, and finished, exhausted, in about 43 minutes. After months of this practice, he began dreading the trail because it meant pain and misery.

But one day he decided to relax, to pedal slow and enjoy the view. He noticed trees and vistas he never saw before. The ride was easy and fun, and he felt energized the entire time. He rediscovered his love for biking, his enthusiasm for the trail. As he finished, he looked down at his watch: 45 minutes.

All of that extra effort, exhaustion, and misery for a two minute faster ride.

So many hard lessons came flooding back to me. I’ve been there before and I’ve done that before. I love running but recently it’s felt like a chore. It’s been difficult to stay motivated and tough to finish a run without extended stops along the way. But after hearing Sivers’ story, I put the theory to test.

I went out for a run and said I would run for an hour without looking at my pace. I ran for exactly an hour. 8.07 miles. 7:26 mile/minute pace, only 6 seconds slower than when I’ve been running all-out and stopping every mile and a half.

Sometimes, going slow is going fast. Sometimes fast is overrated and enjoying the run is more important than the pace.

This time I won’t forget. 45 minutes. Slow. Down. Thanks, Sivers.

Motherless Brooklyn

Edward Norton — On Creative Process, Creative Struggle, and Motherless Brooklyn (#393)

Leaders are learners.  A good leader is somebody who is open to new ideas and perspectives no matter what discipline they come from.  In terms of current events, I couldn’t think of a more powerful account of vision than Edward Norton’s vision in creating Motherless Brooklyn.  Based off of a 1999 novel by Jonathan Lethem, Motherless Brooklyn follows the story of Lionel Essrog, a New York City detective with Tourette’s.  

Shortly after reading the novel, Edward Norton read it, loved it, and secured the rights to create a film adaptation of it.  Norton worked on the film for over 15 years–he suffered a few writers blocks, a few breaks from acting, and couldn’t rest until he made the perfect film.  He wouldn’t be satisfied until his vision for the film matched the quality of the novel, a task few films ever meet.  This conversation on the Tim Ferriss show delves into Norton’s project of creating this film.  

His dedication to the creative process and final production of this film is truly inspiring for all of us leaders who have dreams that people don’t think we can attain.  Norton proves the opposite.  Apparently this movie is excellent, from the soundtrack to the cinematography. 

Nunc Coepi

Three days ago I listened to Episode #376: How Seth Godin Manages His Life — Rules, Principles, and Obsessions (Repost) of the Tim Ferris Show. I listen to a lot of podcasts, but this was one of the top 3 I’ve heard this year. Mr. Godin authors what is considered one of the most well-known blogs online. He has many opinions, but they all stem from his experiential wisdom. When he said, “You should blog every day. It should become your job to notice things,” I felt like he was singling me out.

This is radical advise. It doesn’t just mean starting a blog, posting here and there when it’s convenient and inspiring. No, blogging every day requires discipline, not inspiration. It means posting when I don’t have time and when there’s 20 other things on my agenda. It means no matter what my mood is, I’ll find the time to share something. And it means being more creative and personal than I’ve ever been.

As the hardest man on earth, David Goggins, says: Roger that!

This is the first of many blog posts. I will blog once a day for the rest of my life. This blog will be my living journal, my personal manifesto. When my work on earth is done and I’m ready to retire at 120 years old, people will look back through 36,000 blog posts to this, the very first one.

I told you so.

People say I’m extreme. I call it devotion.

Nunc coepi. Now I begin.