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Philosopher's Notes
Touching the Dragon
And Other Techniques for Surviving Life’s Wars
by James Hatch and Christian D'Andrea
Jimmy Hatch is a retired member of SEAL Team Six and a new soul brother. A mutual friend introduced us via text while I was on a micro-sabbatical with my phone off for a month. I replied three months later, we were on FaceTime within hours, and I bought his book that night. It's PHENOMENAL. Jimmy was shot during a mission to rescue Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl. That bullet ended his first war and started a second one at home, a battle against despair, addiction, and suicidal thoughts that he describes with stunning honesty. This is a powerful look at the ultimate war, the battle within, and the Chain of uncelebrated Heroes who help us win it. If you've ever struggled in silence, I highly recommend this book. Big Ideas we explore include Reading Epictetus, Touch the Dragon, The Quilt, Close-Quarters Combat, and The True Hero.
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Philosopher's Notes
Conscious Capitalism
Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business
by John Mackey and Raj Sisodia
Brian was part of some of the very early conversations about what would become Conscious Capitalism, before the movement even had a name. Today, its principles guide our business and how I’m approaching my role as CEO, which is why Brian asked me to create this Note. My last Note was on Brian’s Areté, subtitled “Activate Your Heroic Potential.” This one, by Whole Foods co-founder John Mackey and Raj Sisodia, is subtitled “Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business.” Great individuals and great organizations share A LOT in common. They’re purpose driven, guided by virtue, and focused on shaping the future for the mutual benefit of all. If you want to lead your life and your business with higher purpose, I highly recommend this book. Big Ideas we explore include Fuel to Fulfill the Mission, Think Win-Win-Win-Win-Win-Win, Leaders, Learn and Grow, The Benefit of Self-Actualizing Human Beings, and The Secret Weapon of a Heroic Business.
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Philosopher's Notes
The Greatest Minds and Ideas of All Time
by Will Durant
This is my fourth Note on one of Will Durant's books. We're systematically walking through the five books of his I read in a week after I first discovered him five decades into my life. Durant was a national treasure, a philosopher turned historian who won the Pulitzer Prize for The Story of Civilization, which he wrote with his wife, Ariel, to whom he was married for SIXTY-EIGHT years. This book celebrates the mountain peaks of human greatness, from his list of the ten greatest thinkers to his hundred best books for an education. (Out of those 100 books, I've read a measly FIVE. Hah.) If you want to study the best of humanity so you can activate the best within YOU, I highly recommend it. Big Ideas we explore include Heroes, The Greatest Thinkers, An Hour a Day, Progress, and It's Day 1.
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Philosopher's Notes
The Lessons of History
The Celebrated Collection of Essays Compiling Over 5,000 Years of History by Two of the Greatest Thinkers of Our Time
by Will Durant and Ariel Durant
This is the third Note I've created on one of Will Durant's books. Somehow I didn't read Durant for the first 50 years of my life, but when I found him, I fell in love and read five of his books in a week. This one was written with his beloved wife, Ariel, and I'm not sure whether I love Will's writing more or the fact that they were married for NEARLY SEVENTY YEARS! In this brilliant little book, the Durants compress 5,000 years of history into timeless lessons on the nature, conduct, and prospects of humanity. The first lesson? Modesty. If you want a cosmic perspective on your daily challenges and a reminder that it's our greatest challenges that bring out the best in us, I highly recommend it. Big Ideas we explore include The Earth and History, Heroes of History, Morals and History, Clarity of Mind, and Progress.
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Philosopher's Notes
The Life You Were Born to Live
A Guide to Finding Your Life Purpose
by Dan Millman
I've loved Dan Millman for as long as I've been on this path. The Way of the Peaceful Warrior was the second self-development book I ever read, and it changed my life. A copy of this one's original edition sat in my Santa Monica apartment nearly 20 years ago on my very first date with my now-wife Alexandra, when we wound up reading each other's Life-Purpose System sections out loud. I spotted it on our bookshelf yesterday, smiled, and re-read the whole thing. It's FANTASTIC. This is the fourth Note I've created on one of Dan's books, and his wisdom on climbing the mountain of your life and putting your purpose into action is as profound as ever. If you want a map for your life purpose, I highly recommend it. Big Ideas we explore include Our Life as a Journey, My Birth Numbers, The Law of Flexibility, The Law of Expectations, and The Law of Action.
Philosopher's Notes
Lives of the Stoics
The Art of Living from Zeno to Marcus Aurelius
by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman
This is the eleventh Note I've created on one of Ryan Holiday's books, and at this point I'll just say it: Ryan might be my favorite author. His writing is chef's kiss fantastic, his wisdom is profound, and his commitment to practicing his philosophy is inspiring. In Lives of the Stoics, Ryan and Stephen Hanselman bring 26 Stoic philosophers to life, from Zeno, who founded Stoicism on the other side of a shipwreck (the best expression of antifragility I know), to Epictetus, my all-time favorite teacher whose Heroic portrait stares at me as I type this. It's a beautiful reminder that philosophy exists for one reason, to help us become better people, moving from theory to practice to mastery, living with areté all day, every day, especially TODAY. If you love Stoicism, I highly recommend this one. Big Ideas we explore include Why Study Philosophy?, Zeno, Musonius Rufus, Epictetus, and Your Role.
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Philosopher's Notes
Read Your Mind
Proven Habits for Success from the World's Greatest Mentalist
by Oz Pearlman
I haven't had a TV in over twenty years, so I'd never heard of Oz Pearlman until this book landed in my hands. If you're a fan of America's Got Talent you already know him as the world's preeminent mentalist, and after reading this I loved watching a few of his jaw-dropping mind-reading performances with my kids. What I didn't expect was that Oz is ALSO an ultramarathoner who has run a 2:23 marathon and holds the world record for the most laps around Central Park in a single day. This book is PACKED with both inspiring stories from his own Heroic quest and practical wisdom we can put to work TODAY, from rewiring how we hear rejection to making our fear of failure magically disappear. If you want to master the most powerful weapon you have, your own mind, I highly recommend it. Big Ideas we explore include No vs. Not Yet, Failing Up, Fast Forward, Stack the Deck, and Decide to Be Happy.
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Philosopher's Notes
The Golden Rules
Finding World-Class Excellence in Your Life and Work
by Bob Bowman
I've admired Bob Bowman for years, but I didn't know he had a book until I was invited to join a roundtable podcast discussion with him and George Mumford, hosted by Ryan Sweeney. That conversation was AWESOME, and so is this book. Bob is the legendary coach who saw Michael Phelps' potential before he was a teenager and then spent decades helping him actualize his Heroic potential. In these pages he walks us through The Method and its 10 Golden Rules for finding world-class excellence in your life and work, all PACKED with wisdom on dreaming big, building a Game Plan, and chasing excellence rather than medals. If you want to close the gap between who you are capable of being and who you are actually being, I highly recommend this book. Big Ideas we explore include The Method, Dream Big, The Game Plan, Decide What's Next, and I See Heroes.
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Philosopher's Notes
The Right to Be Human
A Biography of Abraham Maslow
Abraham Maslow is one of my heroes. His Heroic portrait hangs in a frame on the wall in my office, and I got this book after reading Scott Barry Kaufman's brilliant Transcend, which extends Maslow's work into the modern era. We've already created Notes on his classics Motivation and Personality and Toward a Psychology of Being, plus the lesser-known Future Visions, and this biography by Edward Hoffman brings the whole man to life. It's packed with inspiring stories of the challenges Maslow faced and overcame, and packed with wisdom on self-actualization, human potential, and the courage to become who we are capable of becoming. If you want to close the gap between who you are and who you could be, and then give your greatest gifts in service of something bigger than yourself, I highly recommend this one. Big Ideas we explore include The Hero, An Iconoclast, Complexity, Don't Try to Escape, and The Heroic Self-Actualizer.
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Philosopher's Notes
What to Make of a Life
Cliffs, Fog, Fire and the Self-Knowledge Imperative
by Jim Collins
Jim Collins has been my favorite business strategist for a long time, so when this book arrived from Amazon, I opened the box mid-walk with Emerson and was struck by Jim's Soul Force radiating off the cover. It's AT LEAST tied for first as my all-time favorite. I read it while making big decisions about Heroic and my role within it, and it became one of my guides. Jim spent a decade researching paired remarkable lives, then two more years writing, to answer one Big Question: what to make of a life. He shows how to come into frame by discovering your encodings, flipping the arrow of money, and focusing your inner fire, then navigate the cliffs and fog we all face. If you want deeper self-knowledge and clarity on your path, I highly recommend this book. Big Ideas we explore include Your Heroic Guide, One Big Thing, A Constellation, Take the Next Best Step, and Catalytic Questions.
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Philosopher's Notes
Raise the Player, Not the Pressure
The Parent and Coach Playbook for Confident, Happy Athletes
Brandon Guyer is one of my favorite people on the planet, a dear friend, a big Heroic investor, and a Heroic Coach with whom I've traded Oura scores nearly every morning for years. I was honored to write a testimonial for the back cover, and I read the whole thing at a chess tournament the day after I got it. It's a super-quick read at only 88 pages, but it's PACKED with immediately applicable practical wisdom on raising confident, happy athletes. Brandon spent seven years in Major League Baseball, and this isn't a book about turning your kid into a star, it's about helping them become whole while chasing big dreams. And it's not just for sports parents. If you have a kid who competes in anything, chess like mine, marching band, debate, or drama, I highly recommend it. Big Ideas we explore include The Ultimate Game, The Fun Factor, The Pressure Paradox, You're a Signal, and Win or Win!
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Philosopher's Notes
The Daily Dad
366 Meditations on Parenting, Love, and Raising Great Kids
by Ryan Holiday
This is the ninth (!) Note I've created on Ryan Holiday's great books, following The Obstacle Is the Way, The Daily Stoic, Stillness Is the Key, Ego Is the Enemy, Discipline Is Destiny, Courage Is Calling, Right Thing Right Now, Wisdom Takes Work, and What You're Made For. As I've said in every one of those Notes, I'm astonished by Ryan, the depth of his wisdom, the quality of his writing, and the fierceness with which he practices his philosophy. I read this one during a parenting-book binge last year, and it was at least tied for first as the best parenting book I've ever read. It's 366 meditations structured as a daily ritual, a fantastic kick in the butt to practice our philosophy in the most important and most challenging domain of our lives, how we show up for our kids. Dads: read this book. Big Ideas we explore include A Little Fellow Follows You, Character Is Fate, Always Be a Fan, Struggle and Emerge, and Time Flies.
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Philosopher's Notes
Make Your Next Shot Your Best Shot
The Secret to Playing Great Golf
by Bob Rotella
I'm a HUGE fan of Bob Rotella, and this is the third Note I've created on one of his books, after Golf Is Not a Game of Perfect and How Champions Think. I devoured a bunch of his books during my read 101 books in 101 days sabbatical last year, in part because I love him and in part because I was working with Luke Donald and the European Ryder Cup team at the time, so I was happily binging on all things golf and mental toughness. Here's the thing though. This book isn't ultimately about playing great golf. It's about living a great life. If you want to close the gap between who you are capable of being and who you are actually being, and forge the kind of antifragile confidence that turns adversity into fuel, I highly recommend it. Big Ideas we explore include Dream Big, Persist, A Generational Golfer, Bounce Back, and Effective Routines.
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Philosopher's Notes
Metabolical
The Truth About Processed Food and How It Poisons People and the Planet
I picked up Metabolical during a deep dive I did on a series of books on nutrition, longevity, and energy, alongside Good Energy by Casey Means, Forever Strong by Gabrielle Lyon, and Outlive by Peter Attia. I'm pretty sure I got it on Casey's recommendation, and Dr. Lustig, one of the world's most respected endocrinologists, is a big part of her Levels app. I've also featured one of my favorite Lustig books, Fat Chance, in another Note. This one is a sobering, sometimes nauseating look at how processed food poisons people and the planet, and it lands on two simple precepts: protect your liver and feed your gut with Real Food. If you want to think for yourself about food and reclaim your Energy, I highly recommend it. Big Ideas we explore include Insulin 101, Dietitians, Waist Circumference, Two Simple Precepts, and Be the Change.
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Philosopher's Notes
Extreme Balance
Paradoxical Principles That Make You a Champion
by Ben Askren, Joe De Sena and David Sacks Ph.D.
As you know if you've been following along, I'm a big fan of Joe De Sena. I consider him a Soul Brother, and we've featured all of his prior books, from Spartan Up! to 10 Rules for Resilience. So when I saw he'd teamed up with Ben Askren and David Sacks, Ph.D. on this one, I immediately got it, reading the first half on a flight to serve some Heroic leaders and the rest the next morning. I've read a LOT of mental toughness and peak performance books, and this one is right there at the top. It's all about dissolving the false dichotomies of life and sport by replacing "or" with "and." Whether you're an athlete, a CEO, a coach, or a parent looking to forge excellence and activate your Heroic potential, I highly recommend it. Big Ideas we explore include Extreme Balance, Deliberate Practice, Process or Outcome?, Good Enough?, and Need a Spot?
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Philosopher's Notes
Maintain
The 3 Simple Shifts that Turn Temporary Weight Loss into Lasting Freedom
I love Susan Peirce Thompson. Her personal story, her wisdom, and her commitment to changing the world inspire me deeply. This is the third Note I've created on one of her books, following Bright Line Eating and The Bright Line Eating Cookbook. Maintain tackles what most programs leave out: how to actually keep the weight off for good. Susan maps three identity shifts, becoming Devoted to your program, becoming Resourced so you no longer use food as a crutch, and becoming Liberated from the cycle of yo-yo dieting and food obsession. It is neuroscience, psychology, and practical habit-building backed by Susan's own extraordinary transformation from crack addict to world-class PhD researcher. If you want to stop the cycle and find lasting peace with food and your weight, I highly recommend this book. Big Ideas we explore include Meet Your Guide, What Is Maintenance, Devoted, Resourced, and Liberated.
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Philosopher's Notes
Emotional Agility
Get Unstuck, Embrace Change, and Thrive in Work and Life
I discovered this book through Scott Barry Kaufman, who raved about Susan David and her work in his excellent book Rise Above. He told us that cultivating emotional agility was one of the primary ways to overcome a victim mindset and realize our full potential, and that was enough for me. Susan is a psychologist on the faculty of Harvard Medical School and the cofounder of the Institute of Coaching at McClean Hospital, and the book delivered on every bit of that promise. The core idea is powerful: emotional agility means holding your most difficult emotions loosely, facing them courageously and compassionately, and then acting in alignment with your deepest values. Not relentless positivity, but genuine humanity. If you want to move from bottling or brooding to showing up as the Hero of your own story, I highly recommend this book. Big Ideas we explore include Emotions, Showing Up, The #1 Tip, Dead People's Goals, and Emotionally Agile Kids.
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Philosopher's Notes
The Traveler’s Gift
Seven Decisions That Determine Personal Success
by Andy Andrews
I got The Traveler’s Gift after my friend Chris Duhon recommended it, and I’m glad he did because it’s a fun, fast, deeply inspiring read. Andy Andrews tells the story of David Ponder, a man going through a difficult season who finds himself traveling across time to meet seven extraordinary guides, each of whom shares one decision that can change a life. What emerges is a practical framework for personal success rooted in responsibility, wisdom, action, courage, gratitude, forgiveness, and faith. It reads like a fable, but the lessons are real and enduring. Big Ideas we explore include The Seven Decisions, The First Decision, I Am a Person of Action, I Will Choose to Be Happy, and Greet the Day with a Forgiving Spirit.
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Philosopher's Notes
The Gap and The Gain
The High Achievers' Guide to Happiness, Confidence, and Success
by Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy
This is the fourth Note I’ve created on one of Ben Hardy’s books, and The Gap and The Gain delivers one of the most powerful distinctions I’ve ever encountered. Co-written with Dan Sullivan, it shows why so many ambitious people stay stuck in dissatisfaction: they measure themselves against an impossible ideal rather than against the progress they’ve actually made. Once you really get the difference between the GAP and the GAIN, you can start building more happiness, confidence, freedom, and momentum right now by measuring backward, appreciating how far you’ve come, and using even difficult experiences to grow stronger and wiser. Big Ideas we explore include The Gap and The Gain, Harmonious Passion, #1 Hour in Your Day, Three Wins, and how to Become Antifragile.
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Philosopher's Notes
Champion Mindset
Coach Yourself to Win at Life
I’m a big fan of mental toughness and peak performance, so I jump at any chance I get to sharpen the sword of performance excellence, and Champion Mindset is a fantastic book. Patrick Mouratoglou, one of the world’s most respected tennis coaches, gives us ten keys to forging a champion mindset, with practical wisdom on self-esteem, confidence, failure, motivation, and what it really takes to perform at your highest standard at all times. What makes this book so powerful is that Patrick is relentlessly clear that the ultimate battle is in your own mind. He shows us that confidence is built through action, failure is fuel, your entourage matters more than you think, and the real goal is not just winning matches but making your life a masterpiece. Big Ideas we explore include At All Times, Self-Esteem, Failure Is Fuel, One Bad Apple, and The Ultimate Game.
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Philosopher's Notes
Excellent Advice for Living
Wisdom I Wish I'd Known Earlier
by Kevin Kelly
Kevin Kelly helped launch Wired and is a wonderfully brilliant, iconoclastic, wise human being. Excellent Advice for Living is a tiny little book packed with pithy wisdom, the kind of book where I could literally open to any page and riff on a gem or two. What makes it so fun is that each compact line opens into a much bigger truth about how to live, work, recover from mistakes, stay enthusiastic, and keep aiming at what matters most over the long arc of a life. This Note plays with a handful of my favorite seeds from the book and connects them to wisdom from Emerson, Wooden, Rotella, James Clear, and others, all in service to helping us apply the ideas right now. Big Ideas we explore include +25 IQ Points, The Only, Behavior -> Thinking, Compound Interest, and Good Bad Days.
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Philosopher's Notes
How to Be Happy All the Time
This is the sixth Note I’ve created on one of Yogananda’s books, and How to Be Happy All the Time is a tiny but deeply inspiring guide to one of the biggest questions in life: where real happiness is actually found. Yogananda reminds us that happiness cannot be chased in the outer world because it is not a thing to possess but a state of consciousness to cultivate. He shows us that bad habits, restlessness, and our constant search for pleasure steal our peace, while inner calmness, good discipline, meditation, reading, and equanimity help us create the lasting joy he calls true happiness. It is packed with simple, practical spiritual wisdom on how to stop looking outside ourselves for what can only be found within. Big Ideas we explore include Happiness and Where to Find It, The Rose of Happiness, Happiness Thieves, Best Indoor Sport, and The #1 Condition for Happiness.
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Philosopher's Notes
Runnin’ Down a Dream
How to Thrive in a Career You Actually Love
by Bill Gurley
Bill Gurley wrote Runnin’ Down a Dream for anyone who wants more than a paycheck and suspects work can be one of the most meaningful expressions of a life well lived. The core message is simple and powerful: life is a use-it-or-lose-it proposition, and eighty thousand hours is far too long to spend doing something you do not love. Gurley offers a practical playbook for stepping off the conveyor belt, chasing your curiosity, finding your obsessive interest, honing your craft, and having the courage to run down your dream, whether you are just starting out or changing direction midcareer. It is optimistic without being naive, grounded in real stories, and relentlessly focused on the parts of success we can actually control. Big Ideas we explore include The Conveyor Belt, Obsessive Interest, Hone Your Craft, It’s Never Too Late, and Use It or Lose It.
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Philosopher's Notes
Personality Isn’t Permanent
Break Free from Self-Limiting Beliefs and Rewrite Your Story
This is the third Note I’ve created on one of Ben Hardy’s great books, and Personality Isn’t Permanent is all about one of the most empowering ideas in modern psychology: people can and do change, a lot. Ben systematically dismantles the myths that keep us stuck, then walks us through a practical framework for becoming the architect of our own personality by getting clear on our future self, choosing one major goal, making committed decisions, and redesigning our environment to support who we want to become. It is packed with practical wisdom on confidence, identity, goal-setting, and the power of strategic ignorance in a world full of distraction. Big Ideas we explore include The Myths of Personality, The Truth of Personality, Chasing Your Hero, Your ONE Major Goal, Decision Fatigue, and Strategic Ignorance.
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Philosopher's Notes
The Art of Winning
Lessons from My Life in Football
If you are into football, leadership, or sustained excellence of any kind, Bill Belichick is one of the most believable voices you could study. Widely regarded as the greatest football coach of all time, he makes it clear in The Art of Winning that winning is not a moment, a mindset, or a motivational speech, it is a process built through preparation, consistency, discipline, and relentless improvement. What makes the book so powerful is that Belichick is not interested in hype, he is interested in what actually works. Over and over again, he brings us back to the same truth: the price of success is paid in advance, confidence comes from doing, and the only success that matters is sustained success. Big Ideas we explore include Win All the Time, 1-2-3 the 49%, Consistency, Discipline, and Confidence.
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Philosopher's Notes
How to Control Your Anxiety
Before It Controls You
by Albert Ellis
Albert Ellis basically founded the cognitive behavior therapy movement, and this book is a practical, funny, deeply useful guide to doing exactly what the title promises: controlling your anxiety before it controls you. What makes Ellis so compelling is that he did not just create REBT in theory, he used it to conquer his own fears, then spent decades helping others do the same. This book is packed with practical wisdom on the difference between healthy and unhealthy anxiety, why uncertainty is part of life, how our irrational beliefs create so much unnecessary suffering, and why universal self-acceptance is one of the most powerful tools we have. Big Ideas we explore include Meet Your Heroic Guide, Anxiety, Uncertainty, Irrational Beliefs, and Self-Acceptance.
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Philosopher's Notes
The Yes Brain
How to Cultivate Courage, Curiosity, and Resilience in Your Child
by Dan Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson, PhD
Dan Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson have written some of the most practical and powerful parenting books I’ve ever read, and The Yes Brain is all about how to help our kids develop the qualities that matter most: balance, resilience, insight, and empathy. As per the subtitle, this book is about cultivating courage, curiosity, and resilience in your child, but what makes it so powerful is that it ties all of that to the deeper goal of helping our kids build a truly healthy, integrated brain and, ultimately, a eudaimonic life filled with meaning, connection, and equanimity. It is packed with practical wisdom on how to expand our kids’ window of tolerance, teach response flexibility, model these qualities in our own lives, and help bring forth the inner spark within them. Big Ideas we explore include Eudaimonic Brains, Integration, Window of Tolerance, Response Flexibility, and The Inner Spark.
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Philosopher's Notes
Marcus Aurelius
The Stoic Emperor
Donald Robertson is one of my favorite writers and humans, and this is the fourth Note I’ve created on one of his books. He is one of the world’s leading scholars and practitioners of Stoicism, but what makes his work so powerful is that he so clearly practices what he teaches. In Marcus Aurelius, Donald gives us the perfect biography of the Stoic emperor, weaving together Marcus’s inner life, private philosophy, and outward actions while showing us how Stoicism shaped his character under the immense pressures of power. This is not just a book about a Roman emperor, it is a practical look at virtue, self-mastery, mortality, and what it means to live in agreement with Nature. Big Ideas we explore include The Choice of Hercules, To Himself, Epictetus, On Loan, and The Ideal Sage.
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Philosopher's Notes
What You’re Made For
Powerful Life Lessons from My Career in Sports
by George Raveling and Ryan Holiday
George Raveling was known to many simply as Coach, and if you know anything about his life, you know that title barely begins to capture the man. From his extraordinary journey through basketball, leadership, mentorship, and service, to the way he impacted people like Michael Jordan, Phil Knight, and so many others, Coach lived a life that made a profound difference. Co-written with Ryan Holiday, What You’re Made For is not a memoir so much as an exploration of purpose and meaning, and a call to reflect on your own path, question the arbitrary limitations placed upon you, and ask what you were made for. It is packed with hard-won wisdom on trailblazing, studying books, winning the day, serving others, and making your life count. Big Ideas we explore include To Truly Live, To Be a Trailblazer, Study Books, Win the Day, and Make It Count.
Philosopher's Notes
True and False Magic
A Tools Workbook
by Phil Stutz
I love Phil Stutz. If you’ve been following along, you know he’s my Yoda, my spiritual father, and one of the people who has most profoundly shaped my life and work over the last decade. This is the fourth Note I’ve created on one of his books, and like Lessons for Living, reading it felt like sitting in a coaching session with him. In True and False Magic, Phil gives us a practical workbook on how to access our infinite potential by leaving the Safety Zone, becoming a conduit for higher forces, and doing the hard thing even when every part of us wants to avoid it. The message is pure Phil: your potential exists outside your comfort zone, action drives creativity, and the only way to build a life of real power is to keep the promises you make to yourself. Big Ideas we explore include Your Infinite Potential, Higher Forces, The Safety Zone, Action Drives Creativity, and You Must… Keep promises to yourself.
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+1s
Stop Fidgeting—It’s Weak
#2032
& That’s Not Like You!
Continuing our exploration of micro moments of practicing and teaching philosophy to those we love…
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Average or Excellent?
#2031
Hunt for Awesome
In our last +1, we talked about Emerson’s practice of analyzing every move of every game so he can vacuum up mistakes and tap into his Heroic potential over the chess board.
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Freak Out Lately?
#2030
Summary and Lessons
I’m typing this at Gate B33 at the Boston airport.
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How to Teach Your Kids Philosophy
#2029
Speak Loudly; Use Words When Necessary
I’ve written more Notes on Ryan Holiday’s books than any other author.
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+1s
A Tool for Your Mind
#2028
Talk to Yourself!! (Don’t Listen!!)
Not too long ago, we talked about how I coached Emerson to flip the switch rather than freak out.
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+1s
Want Charisma?
#2027
Do These Three Things
In our last +1, I told you about some of the things I admire about Emerson and I challenged you to think about and share some of the things YOU admire about your loved ones.
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What Do You Admire
#2026
In YOUR Loved Ones?
In our last several +1s, we’ve been mining parenting 💩 for antifragile ⛽️.
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Now That You Don’t Need To Be Perfect
#2023
You Can Be Good
In our last +1, we talked about falling short of my parenting ideals.
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You Fall Short Lately?
#2022
Bring Forth Your Best!!
I’m typing this one after dropping Emerson off at YET another chess tournament match.
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Next-Level Metamorphosis
#2021
The Cicada on My Desk
As we’ve discussed many times, we live out in the country outside Austin.
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+1s
Raise the Player
#2020
Not the Pressure
I’m typing this from the Hilton hotel lobby surrounded by a bunch of chess kids and their parents.
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+1s
The Zone of No Judgment
#2019
Yoda Says…
Yesterday, my Yoda, Phil Stutz, and I had our first session in a while.
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+1s
Believe It
#2018
Motivation = Value x Expectancy
In our last +1, we talked about why (I think) people don’t change their lives.
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Turn Up the Heat
#2017
It’s Time to Activate
In our last +1, we talked about one of Emerson’s brilliant friends and the importance of CELEBRATING other people’s awesomeness.
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+1s
Be That Guy
#2016
Celebratory Love (Again!)
Last weekend, the kids and I went on yet another chess adventure.
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+1s
Who’s YOUR Angel?
#2014
Appreciate How Blessed You Are
I’m typing this from the parking lot outside a Wal-Mart.
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+1s
Mundane Miracles
#2013
& The Broken Pump
I started typing this from the gas station as I filled up the ol’ gas tank.
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+1s
Efficient vs. Effective
#2012
Tasks vs. People
In our last +1, we chatted about the joys of being on the RECEIVING end of presence and celebratory love.
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“Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow!”
#2010
Me Walking on Rocks
As you know if you’ve been following along, we live out in the country outside Austin.
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+1s
“Hey Kids!”
#2009
“Have I Told You About…”
In our last +1, we had a nice little chat about a nice little chat Emerson and I recently had regarding the power of focus.
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“Dude! Put That Away!”
#2008
FOCUS, Solving Life Puzzles and Deep Connections
I’m typing this a few feet away from Emerson as he works on a challenging chess puzzle.
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+1s
Raising Heroes
#2006
As a Wise Mentor
In our last +1, we talked about the power of helping our kids “earn prestige.”
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Earned Prestige
#2005
Trophies, Cash, & The Ultimate Prize
I’m typing this in the dark from the bathroom office.
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+1s
“Happy Birthday!”
#2004
Family Ties
In our last several +1s, we’ve been exploring ALL the little ways I try to get out of my cocoon of self-absorption and connect with people when I’m out in the wild.
Locked
+1s
“Please, After You!”
#2003
Another Micro Practice
We’re kind of on a roll inventorying all the little ways we can practice our philosophy while out and about.