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On the inaugural episode of our rebranded podcast "excellence, actually," Steve Magness, Brad Stulberg, and Clay Skipper discuss the rebrand of the show (previously FAREWELL), define what they mean by excellence, and show how it's available to all of us—starting with three counter-intuitive but significant mindset shifts that will help you in the pursuits that matter to you most, and that make you into the person you want to be. Not to be confused with the performative nonsense that is peddled online by grifters and influencers, these are the evidence-based systems that work for the best in the world, the tools that make them (and will make you) excellent, actually.
Transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TVnQlUGqeqG8FOrMbFgJWXRvyQt9fpKmGZFhOKjdPZk/edit?usp=sharing
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We all know we need to take breaks to allow ourselves to rest and recover, both physically and cognitively. But it can be especially hard to do when we feel like we need to keep pushing. So today, we're tackling that problem: What would it look like to design our days around sustainable rhythms rather than maximum output—and how do we do this while still meeting real-world demands? We talk about how to deal with the anxiety and guilty that can come with taking a break (and feeling behind); give you effective strategies to take both micro/daily breaks and macro/seasonal breaks; and talk about ways to think about building rest and recovery into a long-term path to sustainable success.
**ANNOUNCEMENT**: Next week, the podcast will be relaunched as "Excellence, Actually." Subscribe now so that the show still shows up in your feed. If you search for the show, make sure you search "Excellence, Actually."
Link to read an unedited transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1IhnkVxNQuL8u_cDf3VVT_KEVQlaiAl5z9yqI3sw4qZ8/edit?usp=sharing
If you have a questions for us, send an email to clay.growtheq@gmail.com or call our voicemail at (646) 893-9503.
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How do you know when to persevere through a rough patch—and when to give up entirely? And if you do decide to push through, what are the most effective tools to bolster your resilience and get you through to the other side? That's what we're breaking down on today's episode. We'll help you recognize when to continue striving despite setbacks and when it's wiser to avoid the sunk cost fallacy, stop, and pivot. Plus: we'll get into what we get wrong about quitting in today's world more generally. Then, we'll walk you through tips and strategies to build your grit: when to zoom in vs. zoom out, how take the next play mentality, and where you can employ frameworks like "strategic laziness" or H-A-L-T.
Link to an unedited transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TD8pyDn4rYq9I6-PyxlmJpkeOgGTtaUZVA7BUP-sJEI/edit?usp=sharing
If you have a questions for us, send an email to clay.growtheq@gmail.com or call our voicemail at (646) 893-9503.
Subscribe to The Growth Equation newsletter: https://thegrowtheq.com/newsletters/geq/
If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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Exercise isn't just a way to better yourself physically. In fact, through our years of running, competing, and working out, we've found some of exercise's greatest gifts to be the lessons it teaches us about ourselves and about life. Here we are sharing nine of our favorites that you'll find useful whether you exercise or not: how to stay patient, how to relax when things get hard, how to create some space between you and your thoughts, how to take the long view, how to be curious, how to stay out of the way when things are going well, and more.
Unedited transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DJZGaakGcLkHxt_laQBHEuyCkjGTlo1npCbhIlYEe7g/edit?usp=sharing
If you have a questions for us, send an email to clay.growtheq@gmail.com or call our voicemail at (646) 893-9503.
Subscribe to The Growth Equation newsletter: https://thegrowtheq.com/newsletters/geq/
If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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David Ricks first competed in a powerlifting competition in 1981, when he was 21 years old. At 66, he is still competing. Along the way, he's won 13 world championships, 32 national championships, and 71 world records. You might say he knows a thing or two about mastery, excellence, and sustaining both over a long period of time. Today, he shares his training routines, the importance of setting reasonable goals, and how he balances life, work, and lifting. Ricks emphasizes the necessity of listening to one's body, maintaining a healthy attachment to the sport, and adhering to disciplined yet flexible plans.
Link to an unedited transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1lKSppNA2f74MKzHtgfRujsE6oxy0arjQ2ULE0SnoBIQ/edit?usp=sharing
If you have a questions for us, send an email to clay.growtheq@gmail.com or call our voicemail at (646) 893-9503.
Subscribe to The Growth Equation newsletter: https://thegrowtheq.com/newsletters/geq/
If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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By some estimates, the voice in your head can spew up to 4000 words per minute, making it all the more important that we learn how to live with it. This can be especially hard when it's loud and critical, which (maybe you've noticed) it has a tendency to be at some of the most inopportune times: right before an important event. Today we discuss strategies for turning your inner critic into an inner coach before, during, and after a key performance. We discuss the neuroscience behind self-talk, its impact on your overall health and well-being, practices to reframe negative thoughts and to productively deal with failure, and the effect of the internet and cultural environment on our inner voices.
Books cited during this episode: "Chatter" by Ethan Kross
If you have a questions for us, send an email to clay.growtheq@gmail.com or call our voicemail at (646) 893-9503.
Subscribe to The Growth Equation newsletter: https://thegrowtheq.com/newsletters/geq/
If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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Why are some people disciplined and others aren’t? It’s not because of an innate character trait, but because disciplined people have simply trained the skill of being disciplined. Today we break down how to do that by discussing how motivation and inspiration can (and often do) get in the way of discipline, the power of routines and constraints, strategies to embrace the discomfort of just getting started, the difference between positive and negative freedom, and the role that identity plays in discipline. Plus: dealing with the dread that comes from that one item on your to-do list that you can't ever get around to—and how to finally get around to doing it!
If you have a questions for us, send an email to clay.growtheq@gmail.com or call our voicemail at (646) 893-9503.
Subscribe to The Growth Equation newsletter: https://thegrowtheq.com/newsletters/geq/
If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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This is the second of two episodes we're devoting to the topic of masculinity. Last week, in part one, we spoke with Richard Reeves about how changing ideas of what it means to be a man have left many men feeling adrift. Today, Brad, Steve, and Clay discuss that episode, reflect on some clips from a few other voices who've thought deeply about this issue, and open a conversation about potential solutions or ways forward. They talk about why the masculinity crisis is really a crisis of meaning, mattering, and mastery; highlight problems with the concept of the "alpha" male, particularly as its portrayed online; discuss pathways to meaningful socialization and personal growth; and propose expanding opportunities for genuine human connections as essential to counteracting the destabilizing effects of screens and the internet. Together, we can chart a better path forward for us all.
Check out "The Crisis of Masculinity, and Why It Matters For All of Us (Part 1)" here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/116-the-masculinity-crisis-and-why-it-matters-for-all/id1505257676?i=1000705663607
If you have a questions for us, send an email to clay.growtheq@gmail.com or call our voicemail at (646) 893-9503.
Subscribe to The Growth Equation newsletter: https://thegrowtheq.com/newsletters/geq/
If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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Over the next two weeks, we're going to be exploring the topic of masculinity—more specifically, how changing ideas of what it means to be a man have left many men feeling adrift, and what a path to a more positive masculinity might look like, particularly amid a backdrop of hyper-productivity, optimization, and toxic influences like Andrew Tate. Today's show features an interview with Richard Reeves, author of "Of Boys and Men: Why the Modern Male Is Struggling, Why It Matters, and What to Do About It," who is one of culture's leading thinkers on these issues. Together, we explore one of our time's most pressing questions: How do we make better men without hindering societal progress and gender equality?
If you have a questions for us, send an email to clay.growtheq@gmail.com or call our voicemail at (646) 893-9503.
Subscribe to The Growth Equation newsletter: https://thegrowtheq.com/newsletters/geq/
If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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You've got questions, we've got answers. Today, we dive into listener emails and voicemails to answer some of your questions.
1) Can you give me a minimalist daily health checklist?
2) How do I tell the difference between a rut and burnout?
3) What do "good" breaks actually look like?
4) How do I stay committed to long-term goals when short-term stuff always gets in the way?
If you have a questions for us, send an email to clay.growtheq@gmail.com or call our voicemail at (646) 893-9503.
Subscribe to The Growth Equation newsletter: https://thegrowtheq.com/newsletters/geq/
If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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In the world of sport and performance, a lot is made of executing under pressure. "Don't choke," we often say. However, what is perhaps more impressive (not to mention realistic) is being able to bounce back from choking. (In some ways, this is what Rory McIlroy displayed in his Masters victory this past weekend, winning in a one-hole playoff after a couple of big misses—and, to be fair, many more great makes—on the back nine.) Resilience isn't about never crumbling under pressure, but about building yourself back up before falling into a complete spiral or meltdown. So today we offer strategies to help rebound from mistakes, discuss the physiological and psychological dynamics of choking, highlight stress inoculation practices for performance training, share "reset and refocus" rituals, and explain ways to reframe success internally.
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If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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As we often say, people have a tendency to drastically overestimate what they can do in a day and drastically underestimate what they can do in a year, particularly these days when so much of our world is oriented towards instant gratification. So today we're talking about the art of sustainable success and how to play the long game. We discuss how to overcome the difficulties of setting (and sticking to) big goals, strategies for staying disciplined and trusting your plan, ideas about how to build in short-term checkpoints, and ways you can hone the ability to zoom in on day-to-day progress while maintaining a longer perspective.
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If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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Today we're breaking down confidence. We discuss what it is (earned self-belief) and what it isn't (bravado, arrogance, positive thinking, or the absence of doubt and insecurity); how to build and maintain it; the cons (and some surprising pros!) of delusional confidence; how to keep from tipping over into complacency or arrogance; and practical steps to get your mojo back after a slump.
Join The Growth Equation Academy today. 40% off for a limited time!
https://the-growtheq-academy.mn.co/
If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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Today, we talk about how to navigate life and athletic performance amidst stress. We discuss the impact of mental and emotional stress on physical performance, and share personal anecdotes and scientific insights on the interplay between cognitive stress and physical endurance, including effects on the immune system and cortisol levels. We've also got some practical advice on adjusting training intensity, work tasks, and daily routines during high-stress periods, and break down how to set realistic expectations about what you can do, prioritize what's important, and best apply stress management tools.
Join The Growth Equation Academy today. 40% off for a limited time!
https://the-growtheq-academy.mn.co/
If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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March Madness is back! In honor of its return, we put together a special edition FAREWELL bracket with sixteen of the world's best performers, across sports and entertainment. Following a random seeding, we broke down each matchup until we had our lone champion. So give it a listen and find out who took home the title of World's Top Performer. And then please let us know what we got right, and what we got very, very wrong. Email us at clay.growtheq@gmail.com or leave us a voicemail at (646) 893-9503.
Join The Growth Equation Academy today. 40% off for a limited time!
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If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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"All of humanity's problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone." The French philosopher Blaise Pascal said this in 1654. A study published in 2014 found this to be true: many subjects chose to administer an electric shock to themselves rather than sit alone with their thoughts. It's a universal difficulty being with the discomfort that sometimes bubbles up out of our own brains, be it boredom or anxiety. But it's often on the other side of this difficulty that we find our most creative breakthroughs. Plus, achieving excellence in any craft requires an ability to negotiate with the negative voice in your head. So today, we go deep on strategies for mastering the art of solitude, detailing our own struggles with it and the tools we use when we feel the urge to short-circuit mental discomfort by reaching for a distraction.
Join The Growth Equation Academy today. 40% off for a limited time!
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Now offering up to $5 for ideas, questions, or guests that make it onto the show. Email Clay at the clay.growtheq@gmail.com or leave a voicemail at (646) 893-9503
If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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A couple of recent events—Elon Musk parading onstage with a chainsaw at the Conservative Political Action Conference and bragging about DOGE's 120-hour work weeks, and Timothée Chalamet saying he wanted to be one of "the greats" in an acceptance speech at the SAG Awards—ignited a conversation on the Growth Equation text thread about what role work should play in our lives. In a society that sometimes overly valorizes busyness or performative productivity, and also sometimes overly critiques the type of obsessive work that excellence demands (lauding "balance" instead), what does the actual hard work of greatness look like? For help, Brad and Clay tapped in Cal Newport, friend of FAREWELL and host of the podcast Deep Questions with Cal Newport, who writes and thinks (deeply, as you might've guessed) about productivity, work, and how they intersect with a meaningful life.
"Elon Musk Is the World's Richest Man. Why Is He Sleeping on an Office Floor?" (The New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/27/opinion/elon-musk-billionaire.html
Join The Growth Equation Academy today. 40% off for a limited time!
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Now offering up to $5 for ideas, questions, or guests that make it onto the show. Email Clay at the address above or leave a voicemail at (646) 893-9503
If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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Today we're sharing our all-time favorite quotes we've collected over the years. These are words about everything from performance to spirituality to decency that we keep coming back to when we need inspiration, a thought-provoking prompt, or a tidy bit of wisdom. Message us at clay.growtheq@gmail.com with a few you liked from today's episode, or some favorites of your own.
Join The Growth Equation Academy today. 40% off for a limited time!
https://the-growtheq-academy.mn.co/
Now offering up to $5 for ideas, questions, or guests that make it onto the show. Email Clay at the address above or leave a voicemail at (646) 893-9503
If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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From years of experience working with NBA players, CEOs, para jumpers, and Olympians, performance psychologist Alex Auerbach has learned about the most effective strategies for giving some of the world's most elite performers a mental edge. Today, he walks us through how to use those tools in our own life: how to manage pressure, performance anxiety, and impostor syndrome; how to think through setting goals (including the difference between outcome, performance, and process goals—and which you should focus on); how to master the art of self-regulated learning through deliberate practice; and how to stay present and focused despite not being at full capacity.
If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
Got a question, feedback, or ideas for the show? Email clay.growtheq@gmail.com or leave a voicemail at (646) 893-9503
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Two topics for you today. On the back of the Super Bowl, Brad shares a message of resilience inspired by Eagles' quarterback Jalen Hurts. Then, a discussion, inspired in part by Hartmut Rosa's book "The Uncontrollability of the World," about the role of technology in helping us achieve peak performance and live a meaningful life. How can we use devices in such a way that they aid our objective performance without becoming so obsessed with control that we lose touch with our subjective experience? How do we know when the tools we're using are helping, and when they're hurting, the pursuit of our goals?
If you are enjoying FAREWELL, do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
Got a question, feedback, or ideas for the show? Email clay.growtheq@gmail.com or leave a voicemail at (646) 893-9503
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