Missoula Counselors are always looking for the next great idea. As such, here are 5 spectacular thoughts from “Tribe of Mentors” by Tim Ferriss:
1.
Susan Caine the author of “Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking,” told Tim Ferriss:
“I wanted writing to be a permanent source of pleasure, and never to be associated with financial stress or, more generally, the pressure to achieve. Of course, I’m not saying that the smart, driven college student in your question should spend ten years in finance before striking out creatively! But they should be planning how they’re going to make ends meet. That way, the time that they do spend with their creative projects—whether it’s 30 minutes or ten hours a day—can be all about focus, flow, and occasional glimpses of joy.”
Tim then asked her:
When you feel overwhelmed or unfocused, what do you do? “I love espresso and would happily consume it all day. But I only allow myself one latte a day, and I save it for when I’m doing my creative work—partly because it jumpstarts my mind almost magically, and partly because this has trained me, Pavlovian style, to associate writing with the pleasure of coffee.”
I do the same thing too! Save it for the creative endeavors. I love the idea of saving it. Otherwise for me at least it can become an escape …
Have you ever become so high off coffee it’s like pure survival?
2.
KYLE MAYNARD is a best-selling author, entrepreneur, and ESPY award–winning mixed martial arts athlete, known for becoming the first quadruple amputee to reach the summits of Mount Kilimanjaro and Mount Aconcagua without the aid of prosthetics. Oprah Winfrey called Kyle “one of the most inspiring young men you will ever hear about.” Arnold Schwarzenegger described him as “a champion human,” and even Wayne Gretzky has spoken of Kyle’s “greatness.”
Kyle was born with a very rare condition that resulted in arms that end at the elbows and legs that end about at his his knees. Despite this, and with the support of his family, Kyle learned as a child to live life independently and without prosthetics.
Tim says: He has become a champion wrestler (inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame), CrossFit Certified Instructor, owner of the No Excuses gym, world record–setting weightlifter, and skilled mountaineer.
What more do you need?
3.
Tim asked Kyle: What is an unusual habit or an absurd thing that you love? Upon which he replied: “I think suffering is probably the most absurd thing that I love. Suffering is the greatest teacher I’ve ever had.”
He then says: “It took three times for my best friend Jeff Gum to make it through BUDS, going through “Hell Week” – with viral gastroenteritis and rhabdomyolysis. The day he finished ten years as a Navy SEAL, I asked him what the best moment was, and he said it was having everything go wrong and watching the instructors try everything they could to make him quit.”
4.
Tim asked Kyle:
In the last five years, what have you become better at saying no to? “My biggest shift came after listening to a successful CEO talk about his philosophy for hiring people. When his company grew and he ran out of time to interview people himself, he had his employees rate new candidates on a 1–10 scale. The only stipulation was they couldn’t choose 7. It immediately dawned on me how many invitations I was receiving that I would rate as a 7—speeches, weddings, coffees, even dates. If I thought something was a 7, there was a good chance I felt obligated to do it. But if I have to decide between a 6 or an 8, it’s a lot easier to quickly determine whether or not I should even consider it.”
5.
We are going to keep going on this I love this whole section.
Tim asked Kyle: What advice would you give to a smart, driven college student about to enter the “real world”? What advice should they ignore? “Since I read Joseph Campbell’s line ‘follow your bliss,’ it has become my true north. It helps me in those moments when I’m staring off in the shower for hours looking like someone put me under hypnosis. Thinking of what makes me happy doesn’t give me the same clarity as thinking about what gives me bliss. For me, it’s the freedom I feel on top of a mountain or the breeze I feel laying on a catamaran net halfway around the world.
“Bliss is the highest peak of what brings you joy. If happiness is just above the status quo, bliss is what makes you feel most alive. Expect it will take courage to follow your bliss, and expect it will suck at times. Expect you’re going to have to take risks for it. Expect others won’t necessarily understand. And also expect that what gives you bliss today may not be what does tomorrow. Just follow it all over again.”
And before I leave you here’s a bonus – a couple quotes Tim is pondering:
“People think focus means saying yes to the thing you’ve got to focus on. But that’s not what it means at all. It means saying no to the hundred other good ideas that there are. You have to pick carefully. I’m actually as proud of the things we haven’t done as the things I have done. Innovation is saying no to 1,000 things.” –Steve Jobs Co-founder and former CEO of Apple
“What you seek is seeking you.” –Rumi 13th-century Persian poet and Sufi master
And
“Anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination.” –Oscar Wilde Irish writer, author of “The Picture of Dorian Gray”