What Is Humans?

Cal Newport is an expert on productivity, and he recently went on a podcast that we love called the Rich Roll Podcast. In this episode Rich actually spoke about a coach of his that talked about running a marathon. The coach says, “The fastest runner never wins the race, but rather the runner that slows down the least.” This quote is interesting on many levels. One because almost always we believe that the fastest runner will almost always win the race, and two because of the way this quote reaches outside of the realm of running altogether. The fastest runner would have peaks and valleys to their race. Sprints and walks Sprints and Walks. The runner that never slows down only on the other hand either maintains or gets faster. 

When it comes to productivity in any facet of our life we can sometimes believe that life is more sprints and walks than a long term effort, in which we are only getting faster. The discipline it takes to restrain ourselves from sprinting away into the distance to get ahead of others, only to see them slowly passing us later as we are hunched over wheezing. Our relationship with time, and immediate gratification is who we have to thank for that. We believe that we always need to be at the next step right NOW…faster, better, stronger, but in reality the way Cal Newport sees things is that slower is better. 

Planning your life in such a way that consistent effort will allow you to achieve your goals is a more sustainable and enjoyable approach than the latter. Getting all worked up and then burning out, in a moment’s notice is enticing, but usually more taxing than we think. This week work on focusing on fewer things, and going deeper rather than wider into the things we care about. Value deep work over quick wins. If it won’t matter in 5 years don’t spend more than 5 mins on it.   

We are getting in our own way. Everyone does it. We think that we can do everything or we believe that if we ask for help or seem like we aren’t the best at everything we will in some way look dumb. The reality is that when we have the self awareness moment that we don’t need to take on absolutely everything we can set our minds at ease and invest more into the things that are important to us. The more time we spend on mundane tasks or ones that are outside of our core competency that we really aren’t that interested we are giving up time that could be spent somewhere else. We are constantly getting in our own way. 

The reason we get in our own way could be lots of things, one of them in particular could be our egos. It can feel like at all times we need to control everything or do it ourselves if we want it done right, but oftentimes it’s the exact opposite. By letting other people in and being able to ask for help we can alleviate a lot of the stress that is already weighing on our shoulders. Other individuals have different and better skill sets than our own sometimes and in order to thrive we have to let them execute on those activities. 

Think about the time in your day that is spent doing things that are mundane or don’t necessarily apply to you that are slowing you down. Optimize your schedule by allowing others to help where it applies and focusing on what you do best. If you find it hard to understand what you do best, then look at where you spend your time and where you enjoy it most. This is where you can spend more time doing something you are good at that also brings you joy, and then delegating tasks and activities that will slow you and the other people around you down.

This title is much more ominous than the conversation. Today we discussed a new take on an old theme at the What Is Humans? Podcast…Expectations. In a recent conversation that Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang gave to a group of Stanford Graduates he wished them pain and suffering. You might be thinking that sounds pretty malicious who would ever do such a thing, but Jensen thinks otherwise. High expectations are often born out of circumstances in which we are expecting certain things to happen. Outcomes that have almost always been there for us, given our effort, our upbringing or a myriad of other inputs. When things like this go exactly according to plan, it kills the resilience that we naturally build inside of ourselves, and that was what Jensen was aiming at. 

Resilience comes from facing obstacles and getting up and trying again, continuously pushing forward with vigor. This resilience is what Jensen was looking for. Selfishly, this felt so good to hear coming from the CEO of one of the most successful companies in the world currently. An individual that was wishing pain and suffering on Stanford grads, what could be better? While there is some satisfaction in hearing this, there is also an application factor that we have to acknowledge in our own lives. Have we at home been exercising our own pain and suffering. Putting ourselves in uncomfortable nearly impossible situations only to become stronger when we inevitably fail because of them. 

We have talked many times about getting comfortable being uncomfortable, but this should just be more evidence that we need to double down on such things. Use your own pain and suffering to better yourself and constantly seek it out. Fan the flames of your relationship with failure and pain, and we will all surely become stronger because of it. The moment that we start expecting things to happen because of this or that we become soft and less likely to bounce back when things don’t go our way.

This episode was recorded at 7ish in the morning. Tanner sat down in the studio with us and settled in. We were lucky enough to steal a couple of minutes of his time as he was boarding a flight to Japan later in the day. It seems this detail is important to share because it mirrors so much of his way of life. From the outside looking in he moves quickly to and from the next adventurous and awesome pursuit, but always taking the time to engage and connect with friends in his home, Venice Beach. The conversation we had today begins to peel back some of the layers that explain exactly how Tanner got to where he is now. Like many Tanner wasn't an overnight success. From his hometown in Minnesota to photographing stars like Dwayne Wade, to becoming a model and now content creator everthing kind of seems like a blur. 

Tanner as we already knew is an open book. He explains how he fell in love with photography, despite family and friends choosing more traditional hobbies and career paths. His love of skating created some unique opportunities down the road, but not without some obstacles in the way. He teaches us valuble lessons in believing in yourself and taking the leap long before you think you're ready. His life today is a testament to this. Whether it was when he moved to California without a plan, or becoming a model in the middle of the pandemic with zere prior experience he is constantly going all in on his dreams. Tanner's most recent journey into content creation makes complete sense considering all his roles up to this point. Listen in on today's conversation to learn a little more about what it's like to photograph Oscars nominees, model for brands like Hoka and Converse all while eating some of the best food in the world! 

We are shaped and molded by our experiences. Our worldview and outlook changes over time as we grow up and begin to form opinions of our own. The lens that we begin to then see the world through shapes our interactions as well. We have a closed understanding of what is possible and what isn’t the way the world is and the opportunities and obstacles that exist. This perspective is solely based on our experiences. The minute that we widen that lens and open ourselves up to new ideas and ways of thinking we change the lens through which we look. 

The lens that we look through is based on our experiences and this can be comforting to most. We have a way of understanding the world and the way it works and for us as humans that is undeniably necessary. We cling to the idea that we KNOW what’s going on. Nobody likes to feel like they have been left out of the loop. Here’s the truth though, just like a camera lens when we widen our lens we let in more information, and thus are exposed. Our reality comes under fire, but what if our reality is only a product of the lens that we are looking through. 

Today we are working on widening our lens, readjusting to what is possible and re upping on those expectations. Our experiences in the scope of the world are few…we have to continue to pull on new information and either affirm or recreate what we believe the world to be. By staying locked in our perspective we then can become inflexible or scared of new and radical ideologies which may only seem that way because we have never experienced them. Ask questions, be vulnerable and challenge what you believe to be true. You may see a whole new world, if your’re lucky.

Broken promises are the answer to your success. That might seem counterintuitive but we would like to argue the case. Broken promises exist at a place where you are stretching and reaching past what you think you might be capable of reaching. As long as those promises are calculated, studied, and aligned with what matters most to you then broken or not everything will ultimately work out. If you fail to hit your goals and keep your promises that become the breeding ground for learning moments that can ultimately propel you to even higher heights. 

Internal promises and external promises exist and a lot of times we are stretching ourselves to keep promises that we really don’t care about.Those reasons could be acceptance or approval from others, or the idea that our worth is equivalent to the outcome of those promises. “If I don’t make it to their birthday they won’t be my friend anymore.” People understand when we need to put ourselves first, but we often build up the severity in our heads that it is worse than it truly is. 

When it comes to setting promises that matter to you we have to look inward. Figure out what is most important to you and if the promises you are making are aligned with them. Then find out what your current threshold is. Do some research based on your own experiences and see what you’re capable of. Most people make the mistake of making promises that are way outside of their normal experiences or things that they have never done before and then are upset with themselves…of course they are. The work doesn’t end when you break a promise it only begins.   

Communication is key, at least that’s what we are told. How much communication? How often? Are we speaking the same language? Are we on the same page? All of these sayings come back to one commonly misunderstood principle: communication. Whether this is in your professional career or in your personal life, typically nobody has benefitted from oversharing. We all fall victim when sharing too much information, but those consequences are far better than the latter. When we aren’t clear about what we want and what we need it can lead to resentment because we assume that the other part understands through context what we need but that is seldom the case. 

Communicating early and often can be tough. We often get in our own heads wondering if the person across the way will respond the way we hope, if we’ll lose something in the process, potentially even a friend or client. All of that is what will happen if you withhold honesty. Your needs are pertinent and relevant to the people around you and in no way make you weaker. Others expect the behavior that we have always outwardly expressed. If we are in opposition to that internally we will naturally be misaligned. 

Communication is difficult. It can take many individual times to really get through to someone. Don’t let that stop you from being honest and open about what you want and need. You won’t always be met with open and loving arms, but that external conflict will be much better than pretending everything is hunky dory when you are screaming on the inside. If we can proactively communicate what is going on we can better service those around us, and in turn they can better help us too! 

In today’s episode we discuss the idea of hurriedness. This term manifests itself in different ways, physically, mentally and more often than not it becomes a state of being based on the first two. “I’m busy” is a socially acceptable term in the western world that signifies much more that what it says on the surface level…. This is a good thing, it means you are doing a lot and people like that…it means that you don’t have much time aka you’re in demand. These are things that we have been trained to seek as approval when it comes to our state of being. In this episode we will argue for the latter…an elimination of hurry. Cut back on the hurry and recognize the stress that you can omit from your life if you just stop rushing around. 

As we stated before hurriedness manifests itself in different ways…one of them primarily being the individual that outwardly projects themselves as such. This can be the bull in a china shop analogy. They rush around from place to place, like a tasmanian devil constantly on the move. While this person may feel comfort in staying in motion they are most likely frantic and frazzled when entering a meeting or an interaction. This energy can be off putting and exude chaos as opposed to control. This type of chaos that exists around hurriedness is exactly the stress we want to try and avoid because the reality is that rushing doesn’t do much good if it is all that you are doing. 

Having urgency and rushing are two very different things. Important people that have jam packed schedules have urgency and understand the value of their time. Rushed people jam a million things into one calendar day, week and month without rhyme or reason, unable to draw boundaries and put themselves first. When it comes to showing up for others in your life a rushed version of yourself is a lesser version of yourself. We make mistakes, we snap at those closest to us, it just isn’t a great look. We want to challenge ourselves to say no more often and prioritize the things that are most important to us. Understanding what you need means more to others around you than you will ever know.

Today we are joined by Hope Forman; Attorney at Law, Ultra Marathon Runner, and Ice Cream Entrepreneur. Hope is a long time friend of ours, but more importantly she is one of the hardest working and most disciplined people that we know. In our conversation we run through her early childhood, adventures to Africa, and how she got into long distance running in the first place. Her undeniable sense of self has allowed her to choose what she loves over the status quo time and time again, rarely bending to adhering to trends or society based on what others believe to be “cool” or “popular”. 

It hasn’t always been roses though in Hope’s athletic or professional career. She outlines struggles with identity, guilt and an eating disorder. While we all struggle with similar things in our own lives, Hope has done a remarkable job to listen and sit with that pain in order to find new inspiration when things look most bleak. Her ice cream business, “Only The Good Stuff” was born out of a battle with an eating disorder and a need to consume more calories whilst embarking on long and grueling training sessions. Her love of long distance running actually began as an escape from other imbalances in her life. 

Listen to the stories that Hope has to share today, and the takeaways that speak most to you. There are many to choose from, but her tenacity and discipline to achieve in everything that she puts her name to will always be a line through that anyone in any industry or personal battle can look to emulate. She remains a constant inspiration in our lives and we are excited to share that light with all of you! We hope you enjoy our conversation with Hope Forman!

Today we are discussing mentorship. Primarily this conversation will be through the eyes of seeking mentors in the space that you wish to improve. While we don’t touch much on how to become a better mentor the advice and questions should apply equally! It has been something that people have told us about ever since graduating high school it seems. Whether you are reading it in a book or a linkedin post every single well to do article talks about the importance of mentorship. Successful people have mentors…but what does that mean? How did they find them? Who are these “mentors”? These were the same questions we had, and to be completely honest ones that we really hadn’t seen the value in until recently. Mentors were always just captains, coaches, and managers to us. They were much more given rather than chosen. While you can’t choose your boss necessarily you can choose your mentor, and you should. 

When it comes to finding a mentor, you should keep a couple of things in mind. You want to find someone that you believe is further along in their journey than you. That could be in a multitude of ways. They could be further along in their career, or in your industry. Choose what that mentor is going to be able to contribute best for you. Number two, never show up empty handed. These mentors likely won’t have a ton of time to give you. Whether that is buying coffee, or offering to drive out of the way to make it more convenient for them, make sure you are doing your best to pay it forward because their time is more expensive than yours right now. 

Mentors can really make or break your journey. They can speed up processes, help your avoid pitfalls and connect you with the right people. Spend time and energy seeking out mentors to help smooth the learning curve of life. Asking for help can be hard, receiving none is much harder!