In this episode we're diving into another round of listener-submitted questions. I always appreciate the honesty and vulnerability of these questions, and this week is no exception. First up, what does it really take to be The Best? Whether it’s in sports, business, or even sweeping the floor, how much sacrifice and commitment are required to reach the top? Are the sacrifices worth it, what is the cost of greatness, and finding purpose along the way? Next, a question about being “good enough.” After a year of life upheavals, a listener reflects on his deepest fear—never measuring up, never being enough. It’s a feeling that drives him to improve but also leaves him questioning whether satisfaction and self-acceptance are achievable. Finally, a question from a listener dealing with night sweats and high blood pressure long after leaving military service. It’s a frustrating struggle, especially when medications don’t seem to help, and it’s now impacting his marriage. Today's Sponsors: Spartan Forge: https://spartanforge.ai/ Maui Nui Venison: Maui Nui Venison is offering listeners a limited collection of my favorite cuts and products. But... supply is limited by the nature of their work, so don’t wait. https://mauinuivenison.com/clearedhot
Chapter 1: What does it take to be the best at something?
All of those things, though, require understanding the alphabet and a mastery of each one of the individual letters and an understanding of how they compare with others. The people in my life who are the best at what they do don't focus on the novel or the book. They focus on the alphabet and specifically the single letters inside of that alphabet. And it is boring from the outside.
If you were to only focus on their desire to master the fundamentals, you might be bored. But if you only focus on what they are able to do with the mastery of those fundamentals... you're missing how they got to that place.
Chapter 2: What sacrifices are required for greatness?
If somebody is able to do something that is awe-inspiring for you, or you're on a range with a pistol or a rifle, and you are watching somebody shoot at a level that you don't understand, and all you can think of is, I want to be able to do that. I want to be able to replicate whatever it is that they're doing. And you chase that shiny object, you're missing how they actually got there.
You're missing the probably days, weeks, months, years, likely decades that it took them to get to that place. And if you chase that through an Instagram video or a YouTube tutorial that think that allows you or tricks you into thinking that there is a shortcut, I'm here to tell you right now, that is the fastest path that I have seen towards people failing. They try to find a shortcut and
They get frustrated when their performance doesn't align with their expectations and eventually they end up giving up. I'll give two examples, jiu-jitsu and shooting. The best shooters that I've ever seen, truly you see them on the range and you'll watch them and you'll look at the shot timer and what they were able to do and you'll ask yourself, How in the fuck is this person able to do that?
Well, I got to spend a lot of time around people that were able to do those things. And God, there was a range at the East Coast Command, open 365 days a year. You could have ammo in your cages. You could check your weapons out at any time. And there was a log, a paper log that you needed to sign in. And I would go in and I would shoot before work often. And I'd put my name on the log and
And this particular individual's name, who was one of the best shooters, his name was probably there five out of seven days out of the week, sometimes seven out of seven. Sometimes I would end up showing up there at the exact same time that this person was there. And they are not in this room doing high speed drills. They're not doing shooting and moving. I would watch this individual.
Practice, I'm not going to say for an hour, but for a time period longer than I would want to, the mechanics of getting your hands into position to index the weapon in his holster to pull it out to join his hands to present it towards the target, just with a pistol. Same drills with rifles. Dry firing. Magazine changes. sight alignment, natural point of aim, manipulating his equipment.
And then we'd go to the range and he would fucking destroy everybody else. Well, that's bullshit. He's just, oh, he must be natural, you know, or he's gifted. Let me tell you this right now. Being natural and gifted is a real thing. There are people as humans that are better at some things than other, but a natural gift does not outweigh experience and time in the saddle. You might be gifted, but
But that gift is going to bump up against a situation that you may not know what to do with it if you don't have the experience and time put in leading up to that point. If you can take somebody with a gift and get them to focus on their fundamentals, they are a weapon in every sense of the word.
They will just be able to cut through situations that other people are just – they're smashing their head into the wall. And if you're that person, good on you, because I've never been that person. But I've been very frustrated by that person because I just wish I could do the things that they could do.
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