Zero Distortion with Russ Bates

Episode 60: Knowing Better Isn’t Enough: Why Smart People Still Don’t Change


Listen Later

Knowing better has never been easier.

Doing better has never been harder.

Most people don’t struggle because they lack information. They struggle because insight alone doesn’t change behavior. Understanding the problem feels productive — but it’s often safer than acting on it.

In this episode of Zero Distortion, we dig into why smart, capable people stay stuck even after they “get it.” Why clarity becomes a substitute for progress. And why awareness, on its own, rarely leads to meaningful change.

This conversation explores:

  • Why information isn’t the real bottleneck — behavior is

  • How intelligence and experience can quietly protect us from action

  • The role comfort, identity, and routine play in resisting change

  • Why certainty usually comes after action, not before

  • The hidden cost of staying where things work “well enough”

    Knowing better is necessary. But it’s not sufficient.

    Growth almost always requires disrupting something you’re protecting — time, comfort, routine, or identity.

    If you’ve ever said, “I know what I should do,” this episode is about what usually comes next — and why it so often doesn’t.

    ...more
    View all episodesView all episodes
    Download on the App Store

    Zero Distortion with Russ BatesBy batesruss3