Ben Wilson

And then the third thing to do when framing is almost never accept that anything is impossible. Napoleon famously hated the word impossible. Elon Musk has a great quote about this. He says, physics is the law and everything else is a recommendation.

And then the third thing to do when framing is almost never accept that anything is impossible. Napoleon famously hated the word impossible. Elon Musk has a great quote about this. He says, physics is the law and everything else is a recommendation.

And this is a good way to think about it because once you accept that something is possible, you just have to ask whether you are willing to pay the price. If something is possible, there's a price for everything. There's a famous Sherlock Holmes quote. He says, when you have eliminated all which is impossible, then whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.

And this is a good way to think about it because once you accept that something is possible, you just have to ask whether you are willing to pay the price. If something is possible, there's a price for everything. There's a famous Sherlock Holmes quote. He says, when you have eliminated all which is impossible, then whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.

And I would just change that last word to the solution. When you have eliminated all which is impossible, then whatever remains, however improbable, must be the solution. So... When you assume that a problem is possible, if it doesn't defy the laws of physics, then you get some pretty improbable solutions when you think about stuff.

And I would just change that last word to the solution. When you have eliminated all which is impossible, then whatever remains, however improbable, must be the solution. So... When you assume that a problem is possible, if it doesn't defy the laws of physics, then you get some pretty improbable solutions when you think about stuff.

Good example of this, again, going back to Elon Musk, there's a great story from, what's the biography? It's his SpaceX biography, where he needs to get his rockets from Texas, where they are built, to Florida, where they are launched. And he wants them there in three weeks, which is impossible. All rockets are moved via barge on the Gulf of Mexico, and there just aren't that many barges.

Good example of this, again, going back to Elon Musk, there's a great story from, what's the biography? It's his SpaceX biography, where he needs to get his rockets from Texas, where they are built, to Florida, where they are launched. And he wants them there in three weeks, which is impossible. All rockets are moved via barge on the Gulf of Mexico, and there just aren't that many barges.

They take a long time to get from Texas to Florida. It's just not possible on a barge with the existing system. So he says, what if we drive them? And they say, well, that doesn't really seem possible either. And he says, it's not impossible. It doesn't defy the laws of physics to drive a rocket ship from Texas to Florida.

They take a long time to get from Texas to Florida. It's just not possible on a barge with the existing system. So he says, what if we drive them? And they say, well, that doesn't really seem possible either. And he says, it's not impossible. It doesn't defy the laws of physics to drive a rocket ship from Texas to Florida.

So the response is from his team, yeah, it might not defy the laws of physics, but that would require finding an incredibly circuitous route that avoids underpasses the entire way from Texas to Florida. And we would need to bring like a support crew to move power lines. And we would need to drive all throughout the night for two weeks straight in order to make this possible. Okay.

So the response is from his team, yeah, it might not defy the laws of physics, but that would require finding an incredibly circuitous route that avoids underpasses the entire way from Texas to Florida. And we would need to bring like a support crew to move power lines. And we would need to drive all throughout the night for two weeks straight in order to make this possible. Okay.

That right there seems improbable. That's very complicated. There's a lot of stuff, but that is a solution to get them there in under three weeks. And that's exactly what they do. They have a truck drive in front of the rocket ship and they have a pole to raise power lines so that it can drive under power lines.

That right there seems improbable. That's very complicated. There's a lot of stuff, but that is a solution to get them there in under three weeks. And that's exactly what they do. They have a truck drive in front of the rocket ship and they have a pole to raise power lines so that it can drive under power lines.

And they map out the world's most torturous driving route where they go through all these back roads in order to avoid underpasses. And they do it. They're able to drive it from Texas to Florida in under three weeks. All right, so that is part one, defining problems in a way that allows you to be high agency.

And they map out the world's most torturous driving route where they go through all these back roads in order to avoid underpasses. And they do it. They're able to drive it from Texas to Florida in under three weeks. All right, so that is part one, defining problems in a way that allows you to be high agency.

First, reframe every problem as, I don't know how to X. Then define the problem in excruciating detail. And then assume that anything that does not violate the laws of physics is in fact possible. That's how you want to frame a problem you have in your life in order to become more high agency, take more control. By doing those three things, framing the problem I think is half the battle.

First, reframe every problem as, I don't know how to X. Then define the problem in excruciating detail. And then assume that anything that does not violate the laws of physics is in fact possible. That's how you want to frame a problem you have in your life in order to become more high agency, take more control. By doing those three things, framing the problem I think is half the battle.

Once you've framed it the right way, I think finding solutions, executing in some ways comes natural, although we'll talk about better ways to do that. Okay. So that does it for free listeners. If you want to hear the rest of the podcast, you can go subscribe at takeoverpod.supercast.com. Or if you're listening on Apple Podcasts, you can go ahead and subscribe right in the app.

Once you've framed it the right way, I think finding solutions, executing in some ways comes natural, although we'll talk about better ways to do that. Okay. So that does it for free listeners. If you want to hear the rest of the podcast, you can go subscribe at takeoverpod.supercast.com. Or if you're listening on Apple Podcasts, you can go ahead and subscribe right in the app.