That One Time with Adam Metwally podcast

August 26, 2026 Polite Persistence: The Only Thing I Was Ever Good At

I'm the guest this time. This first went out on The Fieldswell Podcast with Lauren Fields, and it's the story I skip on my own show.

I grew up in a small Australian city and I've been average at everything I've tried. I still saved $100,000 before I finished university, opened a nightclub at 22 and bought my first house at 25. What I credit is not talent and it is not discipline. It's what I call polite persistence. Chip away, forgive yourself when you drop it, start again tomorrow.

We cover the four days in New York that turned into six weeks and then a two year unwind of my whole life back home, the uncle who handed me The Richest Man in Babylon at 18, why I quit the morning routine I built my life around, Jeff Bezos and the idea of one way and two way doors, how I use AI every day, four years sober, and the ADHD diagnosis behind my obsession with locking in.

Thanks to Lauren Fields and The Fieldswell Podcast for having me: https://www.fieldswell.com/ // https://www.instagram.com/laurenfields/

Lauren's book Send It is coming soon: https://www.fieldswell.com/pages/send-it

🕒 TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 - Why this one is different

00:55 - Four days in New York that turned into a life

02:48 - One couch, six weeks, and a nightclub offer

03:22 - Unwinding a house, a business, a family and a dog

04:40 - The two books my uncle gave me at 18

06:04 - The housemate who quit teaching

08:35 - What stops people going after what they want

09:58 - Staying home, $150 a week, saying no to Melbourne

11:17 - Pay yourself first, and why I went to 30%

12:32 - A nightclub at 22, $100k saved, a house at 25

13:15 - The GFC, five grand, and my dad's advice

14:16 - Performing high without burning out

17:55 - Why I quit my morning routine

19:43 - Polite persistence

22:11 - One way doors and two way doors

25:02 - Building the person you want to become

28:58 - Goggins, faith, and forgiving yourself

31:27 - What AI is, and how I use it daily

34:52 - The interview me method

36:27 - The output that saved me $700

39:04 - What send it means in Australia

39:39 - Four years sober

41:35 - ADHD, locking in, and the Pomodoro timer

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💭 ABOUT US:

Every week I sit down with someone worth listening to and work out how they live. Not the highlight reel, the habits. Three pillars: health, wealth and wisdom, leaning into health and mindset. Expect longevity, training, sleep, mental health, sobriety, money, business and biohacking. If you're between your late twenties and early forties, ambitious, a bit tired and looking for things that work, this is for you.

More: www.thatonetimepodcast.com // https://www.instagram.com/thatonetime_podcast/

Hosted by Adam Metwally.

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