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“People are strange: They are constantly angered by trivial things, but on a major matter like totally wasting their lives, they hardly seem to notice.” - Charles Bukowski
Our private community, The Path, has been on fire recently.
So today, I thought we'd take a cruise through five of the best posts from the past few months.
Let's begin:
1. Kobe Bias
I only know one person who is a bigger Kobe fan than I am.
If you get him going, he will argue for hours about why Kobe is the greatest of all time.
He has piles of obscure stats, facts, and theories to back himself up, and in the 20 years I’ve known him, I’ve never seen anyone come up with an argument that can change his mind.
In other words:
He sees the world as he wants to see it, not as it actually is.
I’ve got as big a Kobe bias as anyone, but even I know there’s no logical argument that puts him higher than 3rd or 4th all-time.
I know MJ was greater.
I know Kareem has a better resume.
And, as much as I hate to admit it, I know LeBron has a better body of work.
(no, I take that last one back -- I'll never admit it)
But still, if you ask this friend of mine, he’ll tell you LeBron isn’t even top 5.
That's not logic. It’s Kobe bias.
We all have Kobe bias for something.
We all see the world as we want to see it, rather than as it actually is.
Then we fill our mind with information that supports that bias while rejecting information that doesn’t, which blocks us from receiving new information that might lead to deeper understanding and greater intelligence.
In other words, Kobe bias makes us stupid.
What is your Kobe bias?
2. Work The Problem
A very simple, very powerful mental frame I’ve been practicing recently is something I call:
Working the problem.
Notice how, when we run into a problem, our mind asks if the problem can be solved, and then self-generates reasons why it can’t.
“This market is too competitive, therefore my business idea won’t work.”
“The cost of advertising is too high, and I don’t have enough capital to fund it.”
“She likes someone else, so I can’t ask her out.”
In other words, our mind views problems as a reason to stop, rather than a question to answer.
Remember:
Our mind is wired for survival and energy conservation, which means the default state of our mind is scared and lazy.
So we need to “re-wire” it — ie. introduce a new pattern — of problem-solving rather than problem-avoidance.
“This market is very competitive, so what are the unique gaps in the market I can enter?”
“The cost of advertising is too high, so where can I find lower-cost advertising?”
“She likes someone else, so I should rear naked choke him in the showers after practice to assert my dominance.”
If others have solved it before, it can be solved.
But you need to train your mind to stop coming up with reasons why it won’t work, and focus on finding ways to make it work.
3. Stop Building Yourself Up
This one is so simple, so powerful, and so, so easy to forget.
In interactions with others, stop trying to build yourself up, and build everyone around you up instead.
Not only will everyone love being around you...
But by putting your mind on others, you take your mind off of yourself, which releases the self-consciousness that binds your personality.
In other words:
Stop worrying about yourself and just focus on giving good energy to others.
It immediately comes right back.
4. Don’t Be Satisfied With The Concept. Actually Do It.
How many times have you learned a concept you like, only to stop at the concept and never put it into real practice?
Once our mind is satiated by the dopamine hit of a novel concept, its next instinct isn’t to push deeper and actually use it.
It’s to start seeking the next hit.
This is the death-trap of modern self development:
An all you can eat buffet of insight where everyone goes home starving.
Do not tolerate idea-hopping:
It doesn’t matter how many times you think about taking the shot.
Until you can actually make the shot, it doesn’t count.
5. Joke’s On Me
Just had a hilarious moment:
It's 8 am in Mexico City and I'm sitting in a coffee shop.
An old couple walks in, tourists on vacation together.
They order coffee, then immediately sit down and stare at their phones rather than talking to each other.
Immediately, my mind starts judging them:
“I can’t believe these people are glued to their phones during their vacation together, how sad.”
Then I look down.
Joke’s on me:
I’ve been staring at my own phone since the moment I got here.
Bang.
If you’d like to join us inside The Path, reply to let me know.
Maybe we'll open it back up one day soon.
(If you're new here, The Path is where we hold our vault of masterclasses & programs, and offer personal coaching to up and coming founders. Not currently open to the public.)
Either way, have an amazing Friday… weekend… and every day after that.
You deserve it.
- T
P.S. If you’re still hungry (you savage), cue this up:
How To Survive Stage 2 Of AI
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