Optimize With Brian Johnson | More Wisdom In Less Time

Stoic Negative Visualization Part Deux Not too long ago, we talked about Happy our Rooster. He wasn’t doing so well then and, I’m sorry to say, he didn’t make it.     We talked about Happy and his crowing in the context of remembering to practice alchemizing things that might (at least on occasion!) annoy us into reminders of just how precious the little things in life are.    As you may recall, I connected that wisdom to the master class I created for Emerson on Conquering Toilet Paper 101.     Today I want to continue the conversation and shine a brighter light on the ancient Stoic practice that the modern Stoic William B. Irvine describes as “negative visualization.”    Then I’ll tell you how I practiced that when we couldn’t find the kids for a few minutes yesterday.    First…   The Stoics.    As we discussed in +1 #851, Stoic philosopher William B. Irvine wrote a great book called A Guide to the Good Life.    He tells us that the Stoics “recommended that we spend time imaginin

And Notice When You’re Not This morning I was on the trail, listening to my 33-minute playlist of 11 of my favorite songs by my favorite band The Score while getting in my 30 minutes of movement and 15 minutes of MAF work.   I had just hammered out 10 pull-ups and 100 burpees and 1,000 meters of rowing. I pulled out my bat phone, which I use to hit Heroic targets when I’m training and in Deep Work mode.    Target swipe.  Target swipe. Target swipe.    That’s like me to have 51 targets hit by the time I come online en route to 101 targets for the day!! (101 Heroic Targets a day truly do keep the daimon in play, folks! )   And…   As I was putting the ol’ bat phone back into the ol’ pocket…   I missed.    The phone fell to the ground and my old-school, corded headphones got disconnected.     And…   The music stopped.    And…   That’s when I knew I needed to create this +1.    Want to hear the music of life?   Awesome.   Stay plugged in.    Period.    Want to more and more consistently show

You Don’t Rise to the Occasion, You Sink to…  Continuing our tour through Brian Cain’s mental toughness fables, let’s talk about another Big Idea from The 10 Pillars of Mental Performance Mastery.   Remember: Brian has coached an INCREDIBLE number of SUPER-ELITE athletes and coaches. Eight UFC Champions. Four Cy Young Winners. MVPs. Olympians, etc, etc., etc.   One of the things he teaches them?   The fact that, as he puts it: “You don’t rise to the occasion, you sink to your levels of training and habits.”   Here’s how his guide Coach Kenny puts it in the fable.    He tells us: “‘The key is to make your habits so strong and your training so good that when you sink to your worst day, you sink to a level higher than anyone else on their best day,’ Coach Kenny said. ‘It’s easy to say, hard to do, and only possible if you follow the 10 pillars of mental performance mastery.’”   Then he says: “’Everyone talks about raising the roof. In reality, it’s about raising your basement so that you hav

The Best of the Worst and Worst of the Best In our last several +1s, we’ve been having fun hanging out with world-class mental toughness and peak performance coach, Brian Cain.   And, trust me.   Any time spent with Cainer is going to be fun.   He is EASILY one of the most inspiring human beings on the planet. You can’t help but feel energized just being in his presence.   So…   Today we’re going to talk about one of the lines in his little fable on The 10 Pillars of Mental Performance Mastery that jumped out at me and tattooed itself on my consciousness.   It’s about being average.   Coach Kenny is the guide in the fable. He’s coaching a burned-out executive.   He tells him: “‘You are like most people,’ Coach Kenny said. ‘And we call that average. Like I have said, I hate the word average. It means you are the best of the worst and the worst of the best. It’s a terrible place to live.’”   Me: Oh, snap!     Average.    It’s the best of the worst. And the worst of the best.   Stuck right

Want to Get 998,822,690,009,590 Times Better?   In our last +1, we talked about Brian Cain’s wisdom on The 1% Intention.   Let’s review the math.    There are 24 hours in a day. 60 minutes per hour. That’s 1,440 minutes per day.   1% of that?   14 minutes and 24 seconds.   1% of your day.   Here’s the question: What’s the #1 thing you KNOW you could be doing that, if you spent just 1% of your day doing it, would have THE most positive impact in your life?   Seriously. What is it?   How can YOU invest just 1% of your day into getting 1% better Today?   Think about it.   And…   As you do, let’s think about some James Clear wisdom on the subject to bring the point home—because the math is CRAZY.   Actually…   Before we go there…   I have to say that I want your potential investment of 1% of your day into HEROIC to be (goosebumps) at least considered as one of the highest-leverage things you could do to improve your life 1%.   14 minutes and 24 seconds.   Choose your own adventure with how you

Close the Gap TODAY In our last couple +1s, we spent some time hanging out with world-class mental toughness coach Brian Cain.    We broke some arrows, ate some fire and got an invitation to a big UFC event where one of his fighters made Epictetus proud by smiling as he got punched in the face.     Today we’re going to spend some more time with Cainer.    We’re going to talk about getting 1% better.    Let’s head back to his little fable (appropriately called “One Percent Better”) where his characters Sunny and Mr. Big are having a little chat.    “‘Good morning, Mr. Big! It’s time to get juiced. Either we are going to dominate the day or the day will dominate us. Are you ready?’ Sunny asked this with the excitement of a kid on Christmas Day.   As we began walking the halls to the scent of bacon and breakfast, Sunny started asking me about math. ‘Mr. Big, there are 24 hours in a day and 60 minutes in each hour. How many minutes are there in a day?’   I quickly took out my phone and asked,

Break Arrows with Your Neck Lately?   In our last +1, we talked about the fact that Brian Cain recently visited me and the Johnson fam out here in the country outside of Austin.    I casually mentioned that the kids and wifey and I had fun learning how to eat fire and break an arrow with our necks and do other fun things we didn’t think we could do.    Today I’d like to talk more about those broken arrows.   First, a little more context.    As we discussed, Brian is one of the world’s leading mental toughness coaches. He’s also a long-time student of mine and easily tied for first as one of the most inspiring, energized human beings I know.   His client list includes four Major League Baseball Cy Young Award winners, eight UFC world champion mixed martial artists, World Series and Super Bowl Champions and MVPs, Olympic medalists, and countless other elite athletes and coaches.   When he visited, he left a couple books with me as gifts: The 10 Pillars of Mental Performance Mastery and One Perce

What to Do the Next Time That Happens   Brian Cain is one of the world’s greatest mental toughness coaches.    His client list includes four Major League Baseball Cy-Young Award winners, eight UFC world champion mixed martial artists, World Series and Super Bowl Champions and MVPs, Olympic medalists, and countless other elite athletes and coaches.    He’s also a friend and longtime student of mine who has his clients read PhilosophersNotes to go to the next level. (Cainer: !!!)   We’re going to be talking about him and his wisdom more in the weeks and months ahead—check out the PhilosophersNotes on his books The 10 Pillars of Mental Performance Mastery and One Percent Better.    Today I want to chat about one of his clients.    Quick context.    Brian recently visited me and the Johnson fam out here in the country outside of Austin. The kids and wifey and I had fun learning how to eat fire and break an arrow with our necks and do other fun things we didn’t think we could do.    Now…   Th

Stay in the Ring and Let’s Go!   In our last +1, we spent some time riding appropriately big waves and reminded ourselves that, when we’re wisely surfing the beautiful oceans of life, we remember to ENJOY the waves.    Today we’re going to bring my all-time favorite teacher (Epictetus!) back to the party to hear his take on the subject.    But…    Before we go there…   Let’s pause for a moment and think about the great big-wave surfer, Laird Hamilton.    The guy is obsessed about finding THE BIGGEST POSSIBLE WAVES HE CAN FIND!    Why?   Because that’s how he knows he can see what he’s made of and HAVE THE MOST FUN!!   Crazy?   Of course.    And that’s how he is fulfilling his idiosyncratic, Heroic destiny and inspiring all of us to do the same in our own unique ways as well.    Side note: Have you seen Finding Joe yet? Laird tells his story in it. Along with Tony Hawk. They talk about all the FEAR they felt pursuing their big, hairy, audacious dreams. Watch the trailer here. Full movie fo

With Yoda and Laird   In our last +1, we revisited our thinking on our Targeted Thinking practice.    As you may recall, we added a Step 0 to the protocol that involved accepting our reality COMPLETELY before we shift to figuring out how we’d like to create a better reality and what, specifically, we will do RIGHT NOW to create it.    Today I want to chat more about acceptance.    We’ll bring my Yoda, Phil Stutz, back to the party to tap into more of his near-infinite wisdom.    Btw. Phil and I have been working together for nearly six years now. It’s remarkable to me just how deep we can go these days as I have fun truly practicing my and our philosophy at deeper and deeper levels.    Btw2. The reason I’m able to practice even more deeply is because I have taken on bigger and bigger challenges—as Phil says, I’m dealing with “real bullets” now.    And, as another dear friend and mentor (Matt McCall!) puts it: I’m officially working out in “the big boy gym.”     (Lifting Real Weights vs. Styro

An Update on Our Targeted Thinking Protocol   In our last +1, we continued our discussion about what to do when you’re going 0 for 12 in life and discussed the importance of doing that ONE thing that is most important RIGHT NOW.   Then, because I can’t go longer than a few +1s without referencing my tattoo that serves as the one-word summation of my entire philosophy, we brought my right forearm into the discussion and celebrated the ancient word ARETE.   (Cue Maui from Moana’s “You’re welcome!” for the incessant repetition. )   Today I want to chat about YET ANOTHER way to win that ultimate game of life—closing the gap between who you’re CAPABLE of being and who you’re ACTUALLY being RIGHT.THIS.SECOND!   It’s time to chat about Targeted Thinking. (Again.)   Since our last chat, I’ve refined my thinking on it. Here’s how I currently practice and teach it. (See Basic Training Objective 2, Lesson 5 for more!)    Actually…    First…   Here’s how I framed it in that +1 from a couple of ye

To Get What You REALLY Want   Not too long ago, we chatted about MLB All-Star Sean Casey (The Mayor!) going 0 for 12 one season when he was batting nearly .400.    As you may recall, his coach told him that he didn’t care about those numbers. What his coach cared about was whether or not he was dominating his protocol.   In that context, I asked you if YOU were going through a rough patch—perhaps feeling like you were going 0 for 12 in your Energy or your Work or your Love.   Then I gave you a couple of hugs as I playfully told you that I love ya () and… I don’t ultimately care about the current state of those things.    Then I said that what I DO care about is whether or not you are working your protocol.    I asked:   Do you know who you are at your best in your Energy, your Work and your Love? Are you recommitting to being that best version of yourself every morning?   Do you know what virtues that best version of you embodies? Are you recommitting to showing up with those virtues every mo

“Why Is It on the Ground Again?!”   In our last +1, we talked about our rooster, Happy. He’s still hanging in there.     Today I want to continue the theme we explored in that +1 and see if we can get better at using the things that currently trigger us to feel annoyed, to instead, trigger us to feel grateful.   Here’s an example from the Johnson house to help you think of things YOU might want to reframe in YOUR house.    So…   My son Emerson is a high-energy kid.    Note: I was going to say my “little guy” Emerson but he’s almost 10 as I type this and he’s NO LONGER little. It’s shocking to see the speed with which he’s growing!   As we’ve joked before, when he wakes up, he kinda runs out of the room like Kramer from Seinfeld—all energy all the time.    It’s FANTASTIC.   Except, of course, when it’s not. (Hah.)   So…   Mundane example.    For some strange reason, when Emerson uses the toilet paper in the bathroom, he often rips it off the little horizontal bar it rests on and the ro

Alchemizing Bread Crumbs, Dishes and Legos   Alexandra just walked into my office to tell me that she thinks our rooster, Happy, is dying.    Before we talk more about that…   Yes, our rooster’s name is Happy.    Emerson and Eleanor are phenomenal pet namers. We have Happy the Rooster, Lovey and Floppy and Spikey and Longbeak and Goldie the chickens.    Then there’s Zap—the dog that showed up on our property one New Year’s Day a couple of years ago and adopted us. And don’t forget Wags, another awesome dog who decided he wanted to move in one day as well.    Now…   If you’ve ever listened to one of my Zoom calls, you’ve probably heard a rooster in the background.    Sometimes, I have to admit, I find his crow charming while other times I find it distracting—whether it’s on a Zoom or in my morning meditation when he’s doing his thing RIGHT outside my office window.    But…   This rooster is truly an awesome rooster. We hatched him ourselves and he does his job protecting his hens Heroically

And… How to Make Yours Heroic    In the last few +1s, we spent some time talking about how to win the game of life by focusing on WHAT’S IMPORTANT RIGHT NOW.    I’d like to continue that discussion. And, this time, I’d like to invite my friend Sean Casey back to the party so he can share HIS insanely (!) inspiring take on the subject.    Quick context.    As we’ve discussed, Sean was voted the friendliest guy in baseball. They nicknamed him “The Mayor.” He’s now part of Major League Baseball’s Emmy-winning show MLB Tonight.    He also has his own podcast. It’s appropriately called “The Mayor’s Office.”   Recently, he had a guy on his show who was also a fan of Heroic. They had a little chat about the app.    And…   Sean WENT OFF about how the app has changed his life. It’s probably the best overview of the app (especially for sports fans!) I’ve ever seen.    It’s so good that I want to share it here now. So, let’s head to The Mayor’s Office for a special field trip. I’ll see you in less

Gandhi, the Gita, Bagger Vance, and YOU   In our last couple +1s, we’ve had fun hanging out with some world-class peak performance coaches: Harvey Dorfman and Phil Stutz.    What did they teach us?   They tell us that it’s ALL ABOUT focusing on the PROCESS of TAKING ACTION rather than the unhealthy obsession on the OUTCOMES.    They, of course, are not alone in this perspective.    We talk about it in one of my all-time favorite +1s called “Did I Win? How to Sink a $1m Putt and Do Other Great Things.”   Short story: Lanny Bassham worked with a golfer who hadn’t won in a while. Lanny told him to not even think about winning a tournament. Instead, they developed a protocol. His job was to EXECUTE that protocol every shot of every round he played.    Fast forward a few tournaments. It’s the final shot on the final hole on the final day of the tournament. Our golfer steps up, executes his protocol and makes the putt.   Then his wife runs onto the green and leaps into his arms.    His response?   “

On Action, Action, and More Action   In our last +1, we hung out with one of the friendliest guys in baseball (The Mayor Sean Casey!) and his legendary coach Harvey Dorfman.    I want to spend a little more time with Sean and bring another legendary coach to the party—MY coach, Phil Stutz.    It’s funny because when Sean told me the story shout how Harvey RUTHLESSLY focused on the process goals NOT the outcome goals, I immediately thought of Phil.    As we’ve discussed, Phil says the same thing in his own way.    He says that most people focus on the OUTCOMES in their lives when they should be focused on the ACTION they are taking in pursuit of their desired outcomes.    The way he frames it is to imagine pearls.    You can spend all your time COUNTING how many pearls you have (or don’t have!)…   Or…   You can ignore the counting and simply focus on STRINGING THE NEXT PEARL.    Over and over and over again we focus on what needs to get done right now.    What’s important RIGHT NOW?   Do

Who Cares? Work Your Protocol, Hero!   One of my new dear friends is a guy named Sean Casey.    Sean is a former Major League Baseball player. He was an All-Star who played first base. They called him “The Mayor” because he chatted up EVERYONE who made it to first base.     He was SUCH a nice guy that Sports Illustrated declared him the friendliest guy in baseball.    I met Sean through a mutual friend named Brian Cain who happens to be a longtime student of mine AND one of the world’s best mental toughness coaches. We’ll talk more about Cainer and his wisdom soon.    For now, I want to talk about a story Sean told me about his playing days. It goes something like this…   Once upon a time, while playing with the Cincinnati Reds, Sean was having an insanely great season.    It was summer time and he was batting near .400—which, if you know anything about baseball, you know is an insanely hard thing to do.    Then…   Sean went 0 for 12.    Now, going 0 for 12 is never a good thing for a pro

Breath + Heroes + Virtues + Stillness + Quest   In our last +1, we talked about my new Heroic Mantra Meditation practice.    Our one-word mantra?   Areté.    On the inhale…   Areté. Areté. Areté.    On the exhale.    Areté. Areté. Areté.   Repeat.    I actually came up with that idea while rowing. I paused the workout on my ol’ Suunto watch, went into the house, grabbed my batphone (that I use for offline/deep work mode stuff like this), and wrote that +1.    Then I got back to my workout. And started repeating my mantra.    ARETE. ARETE. ARETE.    Today I want to chat about my Heroic Meditation practice.    Nearly every day in the 18+ months after I founded Heroic, I meditated for an hour every morning. The connection I felt with my daimon and our Heroic vision has been GREATLY enhanced from the practice.    Here’s the Heroic meditation I created. You can make it work in as little as 3 minutes.    With VERY rare exceptions, I meditate at the same time every morning: right after I get up. 

Here It Is…   This morning a friend of mine (thank you, Jon!) sent me a link to an article on Ray Dalio’s meditation practice.    As you know if you’ve been following along, I’m a big fan of Dalio and his wisdom.    We’ve featured Notes on his great book Principles and the kids and I enjoyed his kids book as well.    We’ve also chatted about his 5-step process for success (note: Step 2 is FAILURE!!) as part of our “win or learn” and “learning is winning” so “win or win!” philosophy.    But…   It wasn’t until this morning that I learned about Dalio’s meditation practice.    He says it’s his secret weapon.    His approach?    Transcendental meditation. Otherwise known as TM.    The key features of that approach include two, twenty-minute meditation sessions. Dalio does his first session after waking up and his second before dinner.    Note: He reduces the variability of his behavior to increase the likelihood of making the habit stick which—as you know if you’ve gone th