1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:02,480 This week I turned 45 years old and 2 00:00:02,480 --> 00:00:03,919 today I want to run through the best 3 00:00:03,919 --> 00:00:05,839 lessons I've had in the last 25 years. 4 00:00:05,839 --> 00:00:08,400 What do I wish I knew 25 years ago 5 00:00:08,400 --> 00:00:11,120 having 25 years of business and 6 00:00:11,120 --> 00:00:12,719 adulthood. I started out as an 7 00:00:12,719 --> 00:00:14,960 entrepreneur in my early 20s. I built 8 00:00:14,960 --> 00:00:16,720 seven startups that went from 0 to a 9 00:00:16,720 --> 00:00:18,480 million in their first 12 months. I've 10 00:00:18,480 --> 00:00:20,080 helped three businesses that went north 11 00:00:20,080 --> 00:00:22,400 of 10 million in valuation. I've crashed 12 00:00:22,400 --> 00:00:24,000 businesses where I had to start again. 13 00:00:24,000 --> 00:00:25,760 I've done that multiple times. I've had 14 00:00:25,760 --> 00:00:27,760 an amazing marriage. I've had three 15 00:00:27,760 --> 00:00:30,080 kids. And I've had multiple billionaire 16 00:00:30,080 --> 00:00:32,079 mentors that I've spent actual hangout 17 00:00:32,079 --> 00:00:34,000 time with. I've traveled the world. I've 18 00:00:34,000 --> 00:00:35,920 been on private jets and big fancy 19 00:00:35,920 --> 00:00:38,320 yachts. I've backpacked through jungles. 20 00:00:38,320 --> 00:00:40,000 So, from all of that, I've learned lots 21 00:00:40,000 --> 00:00:41,360 of different lessons. And today, I want 22 00:00:41,360 --> 00:00:43,440 to run through all of my heristics, all 23 00:00:43,440 --> 00:00:44,879 of the key ideas that I've learned in 24 00:00:44,879 --> 00:00:46,960 the last 25 years that I would love to 25 00:00:46,960 --> 00:00:48,559 go back and share with someone in their 26 00:00:48,559 --> 00:00:50,399 early 20s is just getting started. In 27 00:00:50,399 --> 00:00:51,680 fact, the last lesson I want to share 28 00:00:51,680 --> 00:00:53,360 with you in this video, it's going to be 29 00:00:53,360 --> 00:00:54,800 a little bit emotional for me to share. 30 00:00:54,800 --> 00:00:57,039 Oh, this one makes me emotional. So, 31 00:00:57,039 --> 00:01:00,399 let's go through them one at a time 32 00:01:00,399 --> 00:01:02,160 in no particular order, but I'm going to 33 00:01:02,160 --> 00:01:03,840 start with this harsh truth. You get 34 00:01:03,840 --> 00:01:05,280 what you pitch for, and you're always 35 00:01:05,280 --> 00:01:06,880 pitching. So, let me be really blunt 36 00:01:06,880 --> 00:01:08,080 with you. I don't think you're pitching 37 00:01:08,080 --> 00:01:10,159 big enough. I really do not think that 38 00:01:10,159 --> 00:01:12,080 you are expressing who you really are in 39 00:01:12,080 --> 00:01:14,080 the world. I think that you contain 40 00:01:14,080 --> 00:01:15,840 really incredible insights. I think 41 00:01:15,840 --> 00:01:17,520 you've got great opinions. I think 42 00:01:17,520 --> 00:01:19,040 you've got great ways that you would 43 00:01:19,040 --> 00:01:20,799 love to steer the ship, but you're not 44 00:01:20,799 --> 00:01:22,159 telling people. You're not talking to 45 00:01:22,159 --> 00:01:23,600 people, or you're telling them in a 46 00:01:23,600 --> 00:01:25,280 soft, gentle way. you're not pitching it 47 00:01:25,280 --> 00:01:27,360 into existence. What I wish I could say 48 00:01:27,360 --> 00:01:29,600 to you if you're a 20-year-old Dan is 49 00:01:29,600 --> 00:01:31,200 get off the fence and start pitching 50 00:01:31,200 --> 00:01:33,040 things into reality. Harsh truth number 51 00:01:33,040 --> 00:01:35,119 two is prolific beats perfect. See, what 52 00:01:35,119 --> 00:01:37,040 I think is holding you back is that you 53 00:01:37,040 --> 00:01:38,240 just want to put something out that 54 00:01:38,240 --> 00:01:40,159 everyone loves and you're just scared of 55 00:01:40,159 --> 00:01:41,600 what people are going to say if you put 56 00:01:41,600 --> 00:01:42,640 something out that's a little bit 57 00:01:42,640 --> 00:01:45,040 mediocre or that's not great. You must 58 00:01:45,040 --> 00:01:47,520 get over this. Please, I'm begging you, 59 00:01:47,520 --> 00:01:49,200 put more stuff out there. If people 60 00:01:49,200 --> 00:01:51,200 don't like it, it's just data. The truth 61 00:01:51,200 --> 00:01:53,439 is in the age of algorithms, the stuff 62 00:01:53,439 --> 00:01:55,119 that's no good won't get traction 63 00:01:55,119 --> 00:01:56,720 anyway. Only a few hundred people are 64 00:01:56,720 --> 00:01:58,159 going to see it. It's only the stuff 65 00:01:58,159 --> 00:02:00,479 that's good that takes off. So the more 66 00:02:00,479 --> 00:02:02,159 stuff you put out there, the good stuff 67 00:02:02,159 --> 00:02:04,079 has an opportunity to rise to the top. 68 00:02:04,079 --> 00:02:06,479 Be more bold. Be more brave. Get more 69 00:02:06,479 --> 00:02:08,160 stuff out there. For me personally, I've 70 00:02:08,160 --> 00:02:09,520 written seven different books and I've 71 00:02:09,520 --> 00:02:11,520 co-authored a few as well. I've put out 72 00:02:11,520 --> 00:02:13,680 hundreds of different videos on YouTube. 73 00:02:13,680 --> 00:02:15,360 Some of them get great views, some of 74 00:02:15,360 --> 00:02:16,879 them not so much. You might have seen me 75 00:02:16,879 --> 00:02:19,599 on Diary of a CEO or Ali Abdal's podcast 76 00:02:19,599 --> 00:02:21,440 which got millions of views. If you look 77 00:02:21,440 --> 00:02:23,520 a little deeper, I've done hundreds of 78 00:02:23,520 --> 00:02:25,680 podcasts that got less than 200 views. 79 00:02:25,680 --> 00:02:27,200 And what I've discovered is failure or 80 00:02:27,200 --> 00:02:29,040 mediocracy is not the opposite of 81 00:02:29,040 --> 00:02:31,200 success. It's the leadup to success. 82 00:02:31,200 --> 00:02:33,280 It's a key ingredient of success. You 83 00:02:33,280 --> 00:02:37,280 can't have success without medioc. 84 00:02:37,280 --> 00:02:38,640 Here's the harsh truth. Older 85 00:02:38,640 --> 00:02:40,319 generations got the opportunity to buy 86 00:02:40,319 --> 00:02:41,680 property for cents on the dollar. And 87 00:02:41,680 --> 00:02:44,080 it's unbelievably unfair how difficult 88 00:02:44,080 --> 00:02:45,840 it is to get on the housing ladder. It's 89 00:02:45,840 --> 00:02:48,480 so unfair how difficult it is to buy 90 00:02:48,480 --> 00:02:50,239 into stock markets that are massively 91 00:02:50,239 --> 00:02:52,959 inflated at the moment in many cases. A 92 00:02:52,959 --> 00:02:54,400 lot of the traditional assets, the 93 00:02:54,400 --> 00:02:55,920 traditional ways that your parents and 94 00:02:55,920 --> 00:02:57,519 grandparents became wealthy and became 95 00:02:57,519 --> 00:02:59,920 rich and no longer accessible to younger 96 00:02:59,920 --> 00:03:01,760 generations. But here's the good news. 97 00:03:01,760 --> 00:03:03,680 This new generation has this new 98 00:03:03,680 --> 00:03:05,519 completely different type of asset. An 99 00:03:05,519 --> 00:03:07,519 asset is anything that adds value 100 00:03:07,519 --> 00:03:08,959 regardless of what you're doing. If 101 00:03:08,959 --> 00:03:10,879 you've got a book out there on Amazon, 102 00:03:10,879 --> 00:03:12,400 that is an asset that's adding value 103 00:03:12,400 --> 00:03:13,599 regardless of what you're doing. If 104 00:03:13,599 --> 00:03:15,120 you've got a YouTube video that's 105 00:03:15,120 --> 00:03:16,560 winning you business and bringing you 106 00:03:16,560 --> 00:03:18,239 clients, that's an asset that's doing 107 00:03:18,239 --> 00:03:19,920 things regardless of where you are. 108 00:03:19,920 --> 00:03:21,120 Whether you're on holiday or whether 109 00:03:21,120 --> 00:03:22,640 you're taking the dog for a walk, that 110 00:03:22,640 --> 00:03:24,159 video is out there winning business for 111 00:03:24,159 --> 00:03:26,400 you. These are new economy assets that 112 00:03:26,400 --> 00:03:28,879 you can buy really, really cheap. Your 113 00:03:28,879 --> 00:03:30,400 children and your grandchildren will 114 00:03:30,400 --> 00:03:32,159 say, "I cannot believe how lucky you 115 00:03:32,159 --> 00:03:33,920 were to be alive at the time when 116 00:03:33,920 --> 00:03:35,360 YouTube was just getting started, to be 117 00:03:35,360 --> 00:03:37,200 alive at the time where podcasts were in 118 00:03:37,200 --> 00:03:38,799 their infancy, to be alive at a time 119 00:03:38,799 --> 00:03:40,560 where you could put a book on Amazon 120 00:03:40,560 --> 00:03:42,159 relatively easy." Right? So there's 121 00:03:42,159 --> 00:03:43,680 these new economy assets, this 122 00:03:43,680 --> 00:03:45,599 intellectual capital turned into digital 123 00:03:45,599 --> 00:03:48,239 assets. That is your opportunity. And 124 00:03:48,239 --> 00:03:50,720 also those assets will then lead to 125 00:03:50,720 --> 00:03:52,400 being able to buy the more established 126 00:03:52,400 --> 00:03:54,400 assets. The first 15 years of my career 127 00:03:54,400 --> 00:03:56,159 was all about building digital assets 128 00:03:56,159 --> 00:03:57,920 that gave me enough money to then 129 00:03:57,920 --> 00:03:59,599 transfer some of that wealth into 130 00:03:59,599 --> 00:04:02,000 traditional assets. Please do not dwell 131 00:04:02,000 --> 00:04:03,360 about the opportunities that your 132 00:04:03,360 --> 00:04:05,360 parents and grandparents had. Get into 133 00:04:05,360 --> 00:04:06,799 the opportunities that are right for 134 00:04:06,799 --> 00:04:08,159 you. There are assets that you can own 135 00:04:08,159 --> 00:04:10,000 that cost you almost nothing to create. 136 00:04:10,000 --> 00:04:11,519 The next harsh truth is most 137 00:04:11,519 --> 00:04:12,879 opportunities are downstream from 138 00:04:12,879 --> 00:04:14,640 attention. Without attention, you can't 139 00:04:14,640 --> 00:04:16,400 make an opportunity come to life. The 140 00:04:16,400 --> 00:04:17,759 really harsh truth is that you have a 141 00:04:17,759 --> 00:04:19,280 business idea, you want to get it in 142 00:04:19,280 --> 00:04:20,400 front of people. You want to raise 143 00:04:20,400 --> 00:04:21,519 money, you've got to get in front of 144 00:04:21,519 --> 00:04:22,639 people. You want to sell products, 145 00:04:22,639 --> 00:04:23,680 you're going to have to get in front of 146 00:04:23,680 --> 00:04:25,759 people. Getting in front of people is a 147 00:04:25,759 --> 00:04:27,360 massive skill. Getting in front of 148 00:04:27,360 --> 00:04:29,360 people is an essential ingredient to 149 00:04:29,360 --> 00:04:31,360 success. There is no point being a hero 150 00:04:31,360 --> 00:04:32,800 in the eyes of your dog and your cat, 151 00:04:32,800 --> 00:04:34,880 and nobody else knows who you are. In 152 00:04:34,880 --> 00:04:36,960 order to be successful, you have to get 153 00:04:36,960 --> 00:04:38,479 attention. There are people who are 154 00:04:38,479 --> 00:04:40,720 massive introverts. Richard Branson is a 155 00:04:40,720 --> 00:04:42,160 massive introvert. I've met him. I've 156 00:04:42,160 --> 00:04:43,759 spent time with him. He's an introvert. 157 00:04:43,759 --> 00:04:46,080 Tim Cook is a massive introvert. He was 158 00:04:46,080 --> 00:04:47,919 able to hide in the shadow of Steve Jobs 159 00:04:47,919 --> 00:04:50,080 for many, many years until such time as 160 00:04:50,080 --> 00:04:51,600 he had to get out there and get the 161 00:04:51,600 --> 00:04:53,600 attention for Apple. These people, 162 00:04:53,600 --> 00:04:55,120 they're introverts, but they understand 163 00:04:55,120 --> 00:04:56,639 the power of attention. Getting in front 164 00:04:56,639 --> 00:04:58,479 of the right people is half the battle. 165 00:04:58,479 --> 00:05:00,080 Now, you sit there and tell yourself a 166 00:05:00,080 --> 00:05:01,520 story that you're not born into the 167 00:05:01,520 --> 00:05:03,040 right family. You're not born into the 168 00:05:03,040 --> 00:05:05,919 right location. Stop hiding. Stop 169 00:05:05,919 --> 00:05:07,840 playing small. Stop sitting in the 170 00:05:07,840 --> 00:05:09,440 shadows. Stop waiting for someone to 171 00:05:09,440 --> 00:05:10,960 point at you and say, "It's your turn." 172 00:05:10,960 --> 00:05:13,360 Or let me in this video point at you 173 00:05:13,360 --> 00:05:15,120 right now and say, "It's your turn." Get 174 00:05:15,120 --> 00:05:16,800 out there. Get in front of the people 175 00:05:16,800 --> 00:05:18,320 that you need to be in front of in order 176 00:05:18,320 --> 00:05:20,160 for your ideas to come to life. I have 177 00:05:20,160 --> 00:05:22,479 no qualifications. I have no special 178 00:05:22,479 --> 00:05:25,039 skills. And yet, I put myself out there 179 00:05:25,039 --> 00:05:26,400 and I say, "You know what? I'm going to 180 00:05:26,400 --> 00:05:27,840 write a book. I'm going to put some 181 00:05:27,840 --> 00:05:29,120 YouTube videos out there. I'm going to 182 00:05:29,120 --> 00:05:30,960 get myself on podcasts. I'm going to get 183 00:05:30,960 --> 00:05:32,800 in front of the right people." The more 184 00:05:32,800 --> 00:05:34,479 I've been able to capture attention, the 185 00:05:34,479 --> 00:05:36,000 more I've been able to grow and scale my 186 00:05:36,000 --> 00:05:38,240 ideas into reality. The next one is 187 00:05:38,240 --> 00:05:40,000 everything is a team sport. Everything 188 00:05:40,000 --> 00:05:41,680 that you want is a team sport. Even when 189 00:05:41,680 --> 00:05:43,440 you see a solo tennis player playing 190 00:05:43,440 --> 00:05:45,759 tennis by themselves on the court behind 191 00:05:45,759 --> 00:05:47,520 the scenes is an amazing 192 00:05:47,520 --> 00:05:49,840 physiootherapist, an amazing coach, an 193 00:05:49,840 --> 00:05:51,919 amazing assistant, right? Everything is 194 00:05:51,919 --> 00:05:53,680 a team sport. Half the battle of 195 00:05:53,680 --> 00:05:55,600 succeeding in life is recruiting the 196 00:05:55,600 --> 00:05:57,280 right team. You've got to get people 197 00:05:57,280 --> 00:05:59,440 onto your team. You cannot do it all on 198 00:05:59,440 --> 00:06:01,120 your own. I have never worked in 199 00:06:01,120 --> 00:06:02,960 isolation. I've never been on my own. 200 00:06:02,960 --> 00:06:04,560 When I was just starting out, I 201 00:06:04,560 --> 00:06:06,479 recruited people onto my team. Now, who 202 00:06:06,479 --> 00:06:08,319 did I recruit onto my team? People who 203 00:06:08,319 --> 00:06:10,000 didn't have many opportunities. Now, 204 00:06:10,000 --> 00:06:11,520 when most people think about recruiting 205 00:06:11,520 --> 00:06:13,039 a team, they think about hiring someone 206 00:06:13,039 --> 00:06:15,919 who's ex Google or ex JP Morgan, but the 207 00:06:15,919 --> 00:06:17,600 person at the local bar or pub is going 208 00:06:17,600 --> 00:06:18,880 to quit their job and come and work with 209 00:06:18,880 --> 00:06:20,560 you. That door-to-d dooror salesperson 210 00:06:20,560 --> 00:06:22,080 who's looking for something better will 211 00:06:22,080 --> 00:06:23,360 quit their job and come and work with 212 00:06:23,360 --> 00:06:25,600 you. Everything's a team sport. If you 213 00:06:25,600 --> 00:06:26,960 want to scale a company, you probably 214 00:06:26,960 --> 00:06:28,960 need some mentors, some angel investors, 215 00:06:28,960 --> 00:06:30,880 some salespeople to join your team. If 216 00:06:30,880 --> 00:06:32,400 you want to get fit and healthy, you're 217 00:06:32,400 --> 00:06:33,680 probably going to need a team of people 218 00:06:33,680 --> 00:06:35,360 around you who want to go on a fit and 219 00:06:35,360 --> 00:06:36,880 health challenge. Stop thinking that you 220 00:06:36,880 --> 00:06:38,720 can do this in isolation. Stop thinking 221 00:06:38,720 --> 00:06:40,479 that first you'll become successful on 222 00:06:40,479 --> 00:06:41,840 your own and then you'll start hanging 223 00:06:41,840 --> 00:06:43,919 out with the right people. First you 224 00:06:43,919 --> 00:06:45,440 build a team, then you become 225 00:06:45,440 --> 00:06:47,440 successful. I don't have any skills and 226 00:06:47,440 --> 00:06:49,120 I also have a fairly fleeting attention 227 00:06:49,120 --> 00:06:51,360 span. I leverage people around me who 228 00:06:51,360 --> 00:06:52,720 can get things done. I want you to 229 00:06:52,720 --> 00:06:54,479 pretend that you have no skill other 230 00:06:54,479 --> 00:06:56,160 than the skill of recruiting people onto 231 00:06:56,160 --> 00:06:57,840 your team. What if all of your success 232 00:06:57,840 --> 00:06:59,759 came from recruitment? Picking people to 233 00:06:59,759 --> 00:07:01,680 come and join your team, on boarding 234 00:07:01,680 --> 00:07:03,520 them, inspiring them, getting them 235 00:07:03,520 --> 00:07:05,199 aligned, giving them a vision, getting 236 00:07:05,199 --> 00:07:07,120 them all rowing in the same direction. 237 00:07:07,120 --> 00:07:08,960 Right? If that was your only skill, that 238 00:07:08,960 --> 00:07:10,560 would be enough. That leads into the 239 00:07:10,560 --> 00:07:12,800 next harsh truth that alignment is a 240 00:07:12,800 --> 00:07:14,880 form of magic. Getting people aligned to 241 00:07:14,880 --> 00:07:16,880 the same vision is an incredible form of 242 00:07:16,880 --> 00:07:19,120 magic. Unbelievable things take place if 243 00:07:19,120 --> 00:07:20,479 you can get a team of people into 244 00:07:20,479 --> 00:07:22,080 alignment. What does that actually mean? 245 00:07:22,080 --> 00:07:23,919 It just means that a group of three, 246 00:07:23,919 --> 00:07:25,599 four, five people all want the same 247 00:07:25,599 --> 00:07:27,759 things in the next 3 years. A group of 248 00:07:27,759 --> 00:07:29,520 people are all excited to achieve an 249 00:07:29,520 --> 00:07:31,039 outcome. A group of people are all 250 00:07:31,039 --> 00:07:33,360 excited to solve a problem. If you can 251 00:07:33,360 --> 00:07:34,960 be the person who gets a group of people 252 00:07:34,960 --> 00:07:37,039 into alignment, you will create magic. 253 00:07:37,039 --> 00:07:38,720 One of the craziest things is when you 254 00:07:38,720 --> 00:07:40,880 start a major project absolutely not 255 00:07:40,880 --> 00:07:42,720 knowing how the hell to do it or what's 256 00:07:42,720 --> 00:07:44,720 going to unfold, but just simply getting 257 00:07:44,720 --> 00:07:46,319 a team of people into alignment that 258 00:07:46,319 --> 00:07:47,599 together we're going to solve these 259 00:07:47,599 --> 00:07:49,039 problems. together we're going to get 260 00:07:49,039 --> 00:07:51,360 these outcomes. It unlocks magical 261 00:07:51,360 --> 00:07:52,560 things that you could never have 262 00:07:52,560 --> 00:07:54,720 predicted will happen. Alignment is 263 00:07:54,720 --> 00:07:56,560 truly a form of magic. I would go so far 264 00:07:56,560 --> 00:07:58,240 as to say if the people around you are 265 00:07:58,240 --> 00:08:00,000 not aligned to the same goals, it's 266 00:08:00,000 --> 00:08:02,080 almost impossible to succeed. What I 267 00:08:02,080 --> 00:08:04,960 would say to 20-year-old Dan is take the 268 00:08:04,960 --> 00:08:06,800 time to get people into alignment. Go 269 00:08:06,800 --> 00:08:09,120 out to that cafe, sit around the table 270 00:08:09,120 --> 00:08:11,039 with eight people, tell them your 271 00:08:11,039 --> 00:08:12,400 vision, tell them what you want to 272 00:08:12,400 --> 00:08:13,840 achieve, tell them problems that you 273 00:08:13,840 --> 00:08:15,599 want to solve, and see if you can get 274 00:08:15,599 --> 00:08:17,599 the people to stay at the table and say 275 00:08:17,599 --> 00:08:18,960 that they're committed to being part of 276 00:08:18,960 --> 00:08:20,160 that team and that they're aligned to 277 00:08:20,160 --> 00:08:22,160 it. I would also say to 20-year-old Dan, 278 00:08:22,160 --> 00:08:24,479 don't try and hoard success to yourself. 279 00:08:24,479 --> 00:08:26,160 Get other people to feel that if they 280 00:08:26,160 --> 00:08:27,440 succeed, they get to share in the 281 00:08:27,440 --> 00:08:28,720 success. We're all going to create this 282 00:08:28,720 --> 00:08:30,560 together. Give people opportunities to 283 00:08:30,560 --> 00:08:32,719 earn more money, to have more ownership, 284 00:08:32,719 --> 00:08:34,640 to have more fun, to achieve bigger 285 00:08:34,640 --> 00:08:36,719 goals, to take the credit. And if you 286 00:08:36,719 --> 00:08:38,959 can get other people into alignment so 287 00:08:38,959 --> 00:08:40,640 that they get all those benefits as 288 00:08:40,640 --> 00:08:42,640 well, you all get to achieve way more 289 00:08:42,640 --> 00:08:44,000 than you could on your own. The next 290 00:08:44,000 --> 00:08:46,240 harsh truth, life is an energy game. Low 291 00:08:46,240 --> 00:08:48,640 energy, low results. Negative energy, 292 00:08:48,640 --> 00:08:50,720 negative results. Positive energy, 293 00:08:50,720 --> 00:08:52,800 positive results. Optimism, great 294 00:08:52,800 --> 00:08:54,959 results. You might sound super smart as 295 00:08:54,959 --> 00:08:56,640 a pessimist, but guess what? The 296 00:08:56,640 --> 00:08:58,480 optimists win the game. The optimists 297 00:08:58,480 --> 00:08:59,920 win the game because they have positive 298 00:08:59,920 --> 00:09:01,680 energy. And positive energy attracts 299 00:09:01,680 --> 00:09:03,680 positive things into their lives. It 300 00:09:03,680 --> 00:09:05,360 attracts the people who say, "I'm up for 301 00:09:05,360 --> 00:09:07,120 that challenge. I'm ready to go for it." 302 00:09:07,120 --> 00:09:08,720 Negative people, people say, "You know 303 00:09:08,720 --> 00:09:10,399 what? You sound intelligent. You sound 304 00:09:10,399 --> 00:09:11,760 right. You sound like you know what 305 00:09:11,760 --> 00:09:12,800 you're talking about, but I don't want 306 00:09:12,800 --> 00:09:14,080 to join your team. I don't want to 307 00:09:14,080 --> 00:09:15,760 invest any money behind you. I don't 308 00:09:15,760 --> 00:09:18,080 want to send anybody over your way. Even 309 00:09:18,080 --> 00:09:19,839 though you sound like you're smart, I'm 310 00:09:19,839 --> 00:09:21,200 not going to allow you to succeed." 311 00:09:21,200 --> 00:09:23,040 Whereas the people who have good energy, 312 00:09:23,040 --> 00:09:24,959 they're the ones who get good results. I 313 00:09:24,959 --> 00:09:26,640 am seeing so many young people at the 314 00:09:26,640 --> 00:09:28,080 moment who have bought into the negative 315 00:09:28,080 --> 00:09:29,600 news and the negative algorithms. 316 00:09:29,600 --> 00:09:31,200 They've not stopped to think about the 317 00:09:31,200 --> 00:09:33,279 fact that those algorithms are fueled by 318 00:09:33,279 --> 00:09:35,519 outrage. They are fueled by negative 319 00:09:35,519 --> 00:09:37,519 energy. The human brain is twothirds 320 00:09:37,519 --> 00:09:39,040 optimized for negativity over 321 00:09:39,040 --> 00:09:40,480 positivity. You've got to make a 322 00:09:40,480 --> 00:09:42,000 conscious decision that you want to have 323 00:09:42,000 --> 00:09:43,760 good energy. You have to be the person 324 00:09:43,760 --> 00:09:45,120 who blocks out those negative 325 00:09:45,120 --> 00:09:47,120 algorithms. Recently, I was blowing up 326 00:09:47,120 --> 00:09:49,440 on X.com. I was getting literally 327 00:09:49,440 --> 00:09:51,279 hundreds of thousands of views, but it 328 00:09:51,279 --> 00:09:52,880 was causing me negative energy. was 329 00:09:52,880 --> 00:09:55,040 causing me to be down a rabbit hole of 330 00:09:55,040 --> 00:09:57,200 negativity. I called up my team and I 331 00:09:57,200 --> 00:09:58,720 said, "I want you to change the password 332 00:09:58,720 --> 00:10:00,880 on my ex account. Lock me out of it. 333 00:10:00,880 --> 00:10:02,480 Don't tell me the password. I need to 334 00:10:02,480 --> 00:10:04,160 get off this platform because it's too 335 00:10:04,160 --> 00:10:06,320 negative." Ever since doing that, boom, 336 00:10:06,320 --> 00:10:08,160 my energy levels are back up. I'm 337 00:10:08,160 --> 00:10:09,760 positive about the world again and I'm 338 00:10:09,760 --> 00:10:11,279 out there achieving positive things for 339 00:10:11,279 --> 00:10:13,360 my life. You know what? The world has 340 00:10:13,360 --> 00:10:14,959 plenty of positivity and it also has 341 00:10:14,959 --> 00:10:16,800 plenty of negativity. You get to choose 342 00:10:16,800 --> 00:10:18,640 which stream you want to jump into. Do 343 00:10:18,640 --> 00:10:20,000 you want to jump into the stream of 344 00:10:20,000 --> 00:10:21,360 negativity or do you want to jump into 345 00:10:21,360 --> 00:10:22,880 the stream of positivity? Now, when I 346 00:10:22,880 --> 00:10:24,480 say life is all an energy game, there's 347 00:10:24,480 --> 00:10:26,160 a deeper layer to this as well. There's 348 00:10:26,160 --> 00:10:27,920 actually five energies. There's the 349 00:10:27,920 --> 00:10:30,160 energy of purpose and vision. There's 350 00:10:30,160 --> 00:10:32,720 the energy of a strategic approach. 351 00:10:32,720 --> 00:10:34,880 There's the energy of the right people, 352 00:10:34,880 --> 00:10:36,959 getting the right people aligned, uh 353 00:10:36,959 --> 00:10:39,839 connecting with people, sharing stories. 354 00:10:39,839 --> 00:10:41,519 There's the energy of rolling up your 355 00:10:41,519 --> 00:10:43,279 sleeves and getting stuff done. Work, 356 00:10:43,279 --> 00:10:45,120 work, work, work, work. Like, get it 357 00:10:45,120 --> 00:10:47,120 done. Do the work that needs to be done. 358 00:10:47,120 --> 00:10:49,040 And there's the energy of refinement. 359 00:10:49,040 --> 00:10:50,640 Look at the data. Figure out a better 360 00:10:50,640 --> 00:10:52,560 way. Come up with a system. You need an 361 00:10:52,560 --> 00:10:54,160 approach where you figure out which 362 00:10:54,160 --> 00:10:55,920 energy am I in right now and which 363 00:10:55,920 --> 00:10:57,680 energy do I need to be in right now and 364 00:10:57,680 --> 00:10:59,519 how do I shift gearing to that energy? 365 00:10:59,519 --> 00:11:00,959 Now, I'm not talking about the law of 366 00:11:00,959 --> 00:11:02,880 attraction and manifestation. A lot of 367 00:11:02,880 --> 00:11:04,640 people take that to mean that you sit in 368 00:11:04,640 --> 00:11:06,000 your bedroom writing down your vision 369 00:11:06,000 --> 00:11:07,600 and your goals and you're not talking to 370 00:11:07,600 --> 00:11:09,120 anyone and you're not pitching anything 371 00:11:09,120 --> 00:11:11,440 and you're not taking any action. Yes, 372 00:11:11,440 --> 00:11:13,120 there is an energy called purpose and 373 00:11:13,120 --> 00:11:14,800 vision, but that energy is nothing 374 00:11:14,800 --> 00:11:16,480 without the other four energies. The 375 00:11:16,480 --> 00:11:18,480 next harsh truth may upset you and that 376 00:11:18,480 --> 00:11:20,959 is environment dictates performance. The 377 00:11:20,959 --> 00:11:22,560 environments that you show up in dictate 378 00:11:22,560 --> 00:11:23,839 how the rest of your life is going to 379 00:11:23,839 --> 00:11:25,680 play out. I have personally gone into 380 00:11:25,680 --> 00:11:27,680 prisons and I've worked with people who 381 00:11:27,680 --> 00:11:29,440 are prison inmates. I've worked with 382 00:11:29,440 --> 00:11:30,959 people who are drug dealers and I've 383 00:11:30,959 --> 00:11:33,120 spent my time helping to mentor them 384 00:11:33,120 --> 00:11:34,800 that if they keep showing up in the 385 00:11:34,800 --> 00:11:36,560 environment of drug dealing, they will 386 00:11:36,560 --> 00:11:38,160 go back to drug dealing. They'll end up 387 00:11:38,160 --> 00:11:39,920 back in prison. I also tell them that 388 00:11:39,920 --> 00:11:41,600 the entrepreneurial spark that sits 389 00:11:41,600 --> 00:11:43,279 within them that allows them to be a 390 00:11:43,279 --> 00:11:46,000 successful drug dealer could also allow 391 00:11:46,000 --> 00:11:47,519 them to build a legitimate business 392 00:11:47,519 --> 00:11:49,440 that's wildly successful. But the key 393 00:11:49,440 --> 00:11:50,880 thing that I tell them is environment 394 00:11:50,880 --> 00:11:52,640 dictates performance. You have to get 395 00:11:52,640 --> 00:11:54,079 yourself into an environment where 396 00:11:54,079 --> 00:11:56,079 legitimate businesses are being built. 397 00:11:56,079 --> 00:11:58,079 So I tell these ex drug dealers that 398 00:11:58,079 --> 00:12:00,079 when they get out of prison, they don't 399 00:12:00,079 --> 00:12:01,600 go back to the same places that they 400 00:12:01,600 --> 00:12:03,360 used to go back to. They go to a 401 00:12:03,360 --> 00:12:04,800 different part of town. They start 402 00:12:04,800 --> 00:12:06,720 networking in angel investor circles. 403 00:12:06,720 --> 00:12:08,160 They go to a high net worth bank and go 404 00:12:08,160 --> 00:12:09,680 to events that are being put on there. 405 00:12:09,680 --> 00:12:11,200 They join a business membership and 406 00:12:11,200 --> 00:12:12,480 start meeting legitimate business 407 00:12:12,480 --> 00:12:14,240 people. They get themselves enrolled in 408 00:12:14,240 --> 00:12:16,320 a tech incubator or a tech accelerator 409 00:12:16,320 --> 00:12:17,680 and they start getting around tech 410 00:12:17,680 --> 00:12:19,279 entrepreneurs. They stop listening to 411 00:12:19,279 --> 00:12:20,959 certain types of music that glorify 412 00:12:20,959 --> 00:12:22,800 their old life and they start listening 413 00:12:22,800 --> 00:12:25,120 to podcasts that talk about strategies 414 00:12:25,120 --> 00:12:26,959 for the new life that they want. So I 415 00:12:26,959 --> 00:12:28,399 talk about this idea of environment 416 00:12:28,399 --> 00:12:30,160 dictates performance. In the right 417 00:12:30,160 --> 00:12:32,320 environment, everything changes. Now for 418 00:12:32,320 --> 00:12:34,560 me personally in my early 20s, someone 419 00:12:34,560 --> 00:12:36,560 dragged me along to a dance class. I had 420 00:12:36,560 --> 00:12:38,240 never even thought of going to a dance 421 00:12:38,240 --> 00:12:39,920 class in my life. And it was the most 422 00:12:39,920 --> 00:12:41,839 embarrassing thing turning up to a dance 423 00:12:41,839 --> 00:12:43,839 class for the first time. Little did I 424 00:12:43,839 --> 00:12:45,360 realize this was one of the most 425 00:12:45,360 --> 00:12:47,279 unbelievably cool environments I could 426 00:12:47,279 --> 00:12:49,600 have ever been part of. Within my first 427 00:12:49,600 --> 00:12:51,760 lesson, I'm spinning girls around and 428 00:12:51,760 --> 00:12:53,440 I'm doing dips and I'm discovering all 429 00:12:53,440 --> 00:12:55,920 of these moves. 3 years later of doing 430 00:12:55,920 --> 00:12:58,079 three dance classes a week for 3 years, 431 00:12:58,079 --> 00:13:00,000 I've got this incredible skill and 432 00:13:00,000 --> 00:13:01,680 dancing is just the most normal thing in 433 00:13:01,680 --> 00:13:03,120 the world. But that never would have 434 00:13:03,120 --> 00:13:04,560 happened if I hadn't have shown up and 435 00:13:04,560 --> 00:13:06,160 put myself in an environment that felt 436 00:13:06,160 --> 00:13:08,240 really awkward in week one but felt 437 00:13:08,240 --> 00:13:10,160 totally natural in week 10. So here's 438 00:13:10,160 --> 00:13:11,839 the thing. You are holding yourself back 439 00:13:11,839 --> 00:13:13,120 because you don't show up into 440 00:13:13,120 --> 00:13:14,240 environments that make you feel 441 00:13:14,240 --> 00:13:16,560 uncomfortable. You resist showing up in 442 00:13:16,560 --> 00:13:18,160 environments that you are the smallest 443 00:13:18,160 --> 00:13:19,680 person in the room. And I want you to 444 00:13:19,680 --> 00:13:21,120 say to yourself, if I was the best 445 00:13:21,120 --> 00:13:22,720 version of myself, what are the types of 446 00:13:22,720 --> 00:13:24,079 environments that I would be showing up 447 00:13:24,079 --> 00:13:25,839 in a regular basis? The next harsh 448 00:13:25,839 --> 00:13:28,240 truth, this is the greatest time ever to 449 00:13:28,240 --> 00:13:29,920 be alive. Now, I'm hearing a lot of 450 00:13:29,920 --> 00:13:31,440 people at the moment, they're like, "Oh 451 00:13:31,440 --> 00:13:33,360 my goodness, the world's such a horrible 452 00:13:33,360 --> 00:13:36,160 place. The politics, houses are so 453 00:13:36,160 --> 00:13:38,480 expensive, and there's not great jobs 454 00:13:38,480 --> 00:13:40,240 anymore." And all these kind of things. 455 00:13:40,240 --> 00:13:42,560 Shut up. If we took a long line of the 456 00:13:42,560 --> 00:13:44,720 last thousand ancestors that you had 457 00:13:44,720 --> 00:13:46,560 that lived on this planet, and they had 458 00:13:46,560 --> 00:13:48,480 a chance to push a button and swap 459 00:13:48,480 --> 00:13:50,560 places with you to live in this time, 460 00:13:50,560 --> 00:13:52,079 they would push it as fast as they 461 00:13:52,079 --> 00:13:54,240 humanly could. This would not even be a 462 00:13:54,240 --> 00:13:56,880 question. Not long ago, tuberculosis 463 00:13:56,880 --> 00:13:59,199 killed 25% of the population. Not long 464 00:13:59,199 --> 00:14:01,440 ago, most men worked down a coal mine. 465 00:14:01,440 --> 00:14:03,040 They worked on a fishing boat. They 466 00:14:03,040 --> 00:14:05,360 worked in the military getting shot at. 467 00:14:05,360 --> 00:14:08,639 Life has been horrible for centuries. 468 00:14:08,639 --> 00:14:10,800 And finally, we have this incredible 469 00:14:10,800 --> 00:14:12,720 moment where you can share a message 470 00:14:12,720 --> 00:14:14,399 with the world. You can connect with any 471 00:14:14,399 --> 00:14:16,240 group of people. You can learn from 472 00:14:16,240 --> 00:14:18,000 anyone on the world. Everything you want 473 00:14:18,000 --> 00:14:20,160 to know, ChatGBT is there to tell you 474 00:14:20,160 --> 00:14:21,760 about it. You've got a lawyer in your 475 00:14:21,760 --> 00:14:23,440 pocket. You got a doctor in your pocket. 476 00:14:23,440 --> 00:14:26,240 You've got every PhD ever written fully 477 00:14:26,240 --> 00:14:28,560 accessible to you. Oh my goodness. This 478 00:14:28,560 --> 00:14:30,399 is the most mind-blowing time in the 479 00:14:30,399 --> 00:14:33,519 world. Do not glamorize the past. There 480 00:14:33,519 --> 00:14:35,040 was all the same horrible stuff that 481 00:14:35,040 --> 00:14:36,880 we've got today, except they didn't have 482 00:14:36,880 --> 00:14:38,800 algorithms for speeding it to them. 483 00:14:38,800 --> 00:14:40,079 You've got to get control of the 484 00:14:40,079 --> 00:14:41,600 algorithm in your head and say, "You 485 00:14:41,600 --> 00:14:43,199 know what? I've been born at the most 486 00:14:43,199 --> 00:14:45,199 incredible time in history. I'm not 487 00:14:45,199 --> 00:14:46,720 going to waste this opportunity dwelling 488 00:14:46,720 --> 00:14:48,079 on the negative stuff." Now, if I was to 489 00:14:48,079 --> 00:14:49,839 talk to 20-year-old Dan, he kind of got 490 00:14:49,839 --> 00:14:51,680 it, but he didn't go all in on it. He 491 00:14:51,680 --> 00:14:53,680 kind of noticed that YouTube was 492 00:14:53,680 --> 00:14:55,440 emerging, but he didn't go all in for 493 00:14:55,440 --> 00:14:57,440 another 15 or 20 years. He kind of saw 494 00:14:57,440 --> 00:14:58,800 that digital businesses were a 495 00:14:58,800 --> 00:15:00,480 superpower, but he didn't go all in for 496 00:15:00,480 --> 00:15:02,800 the next 15 years. And I would say, my 497 00:15:02,800 --> 00:15:04,480 goodness, don't just like 498 00:15:04,480 --> 00:15:06,959 intellectualize it. Really own it and go 499 00:15:06,959 --> 00:15:08,720 all in on it. We are living in 500 00:15:08,720 --> 00:15:11,120 incredible times, young Dan. Make the 501 00:15:11,120 --> 00:15:13,199 most of it. Go all in. Kick the damn 502 00:15:13,199 --> 00:15:14,959 doors off the hinges. Okay. The next 503 00:15:14,959 --> 00:15:16,639 lesson is about how money has a 504 00:15:16,639 --> 00:15:18,079 language. There is a language that goes 505 00:15:18,079 --> 00:15:19,440 around money and if you speak that 506 00:15:19,440 --> 00:15:21,279 language, money just opens up to you. 507 00:15:21,279 --> 00:15:22,800 The language is called the language of 508 00:15:22,800 --> 00:15:24,160 opportunity, not the language of 509 00:15:24,160 --> 00:15:26,399 requests. I see so many young people who 510 00:15:26,399 --> 00:15:28,320 have a request for the world. I'm 511 00:15:28,320 --> 00:15:30,160 passionate and I want some money to go 512 00:15:30,160 --> 00:15:32,639 lift my passion. That is a self-centered 513 00:15:32,639 --> 00:15:34,959 language around what you want. Money 514 00:15:34,959 --> 00:15:36,399 doesn't speak that language. Money 515 00:15:36,399 --> 00:15:38,160 speaks the language of the opportunity 516 00:15:38,160 --> 00:15:39,920 for the person who puts the money in. 517 00:15:39,920 --> 00:15:42,160 Money moves around certain documents. 518 00:15:42,160 --> 00:15:43,920 There are certain documents that if you 519 00:15:43,920 --> 00:15:45,839 have that document, you get to make more 520 00:15:45,839 --> 00:15:47,839 money. At a very simple level, if you 521 00:15:47,839 --> 00:15:50,240 create a product brochure or a landing 522 00:15:50,240 --> 00:15:52,560 page, you get to sell products. If you 523 00:15:52,560 --> 00:15:54,399 create a pitch deck, you get to raise 524 00:15:54,399 --> 00:15:56,000 money. The number one reason why people 525 00:15:56,000 --> 00:15:57,759 get stuck around money is because they 526 00:15:57,759 --> 00:15:59,519 don't speak the language of money. If 527 00:15:59,519 --> 00:16:00,880 you want to have money, you need to 528 00:16:00,880 --> 00:16:02,000 learn how to speak the language of 529 00:16:02,000 --> 00:16:03,680 money. You need to know the structures. 530 00:16:03,680 --> 00:16:05,519 You need to know the documents. You need 531 00:16:05,519 --> 00:16:07,519 to do your research into how money 532 00:16:07,519 --> 00:16:09,519 works. It sucks, but money is going to 533 00:16:09,519 --> 00:16:11,600 be a massive part of your life for the 534 00:16:11,600 --> 00:16:13,360 rest of your life. All the things you 535 00:16:13,360 --> 00:16:14,720 want to do are going to involve money 536 00:16:14,720 --> 00:16:17,040 other than maybe meditation. So why not 537 00:16:17,040 --> 00:16:19,360 invest a little bit of time ASAP to 538 00:16:19,360 --> 00:16:21,279 understand just how money works? What 539 00:16:21,279 --> 00:16:22,560 are the different structures in the 540 00:16:22,560 --> 00:16:24,480 economy? How is a company different from 541 00:16:24,480 --> 00:16:26,480 a trust, different from an individual? 542 00:16:26,480 --> 00:16:28,399 What are the tax implications of all of 543 00:16:28,399 --> 00:16:30,079 those structures? How do you raise money 544 00:16:30,079 --> 00:16:31,360 if you need money? If you've got a big 545 00:16:31,360 --> 00:16:33,680 idea, but it needs $500,000, how do you 546 00:16:33,680 --> 00:16:36,000 get your hands on $500,000? I promise 547 00:16:36,000 --> 00:16:37,680 you, it's not because you're passionate. 548 00:16:37,680 --> 00:16:39,199 It's not because you want it. It's not 549 00:16:39,199 --> 00:16:40,959 because you need it. It's not because 550 00:16:40,959 --> 00:16:42,880 you requested it. It's because you know 551 00:16:42,880 --> 00:16:43,920 how to speak the language of 552 00:16:43,920 --> 00:16:46,000 opportunity. When I was 24 years old, I 553 00:16:46,000 --> 00:16:48,000 got offered to buy my company for $14 554 00:16:48,000 --> 00:16:49,680 million. And it was an incredible 555 00:16:49,680 --> 00:16:51,120 opportunity, but I didn't know how to 556 00:16:51,120 --> 00:16:52,480 handle that. I didn't know the 557 00:16:52,480 --> 00:16:53,759 documents. I didn't know the structures. 558 00:16:53,759 --> 00:16:55,920 And the deal fell through. I didn't get 559 00:16:55,920 --> 00:16:58,000 $14 million that I could have gotten at 560 00:16:58,000 --> 00:17:00,160 age 24. And it was simple. I didn't have 561 00:17:00,160 --> 00:17:01,920 a mentor who steered me in the direction 562 00:17:01,920 --> 00:17:04,319 of talking that level of money. And 563 00:17:04,319 --> 00:17:05,760 because I didn't have all the things in 564 00:17:05,760 --> 00:17:07,679 place, the deal didn't go ahead. I 565 00:17:07,679 --> 00:17:09,199 learned that lesson the hard way. And I 566 00:17:09,199 --> 00:17:10,559 don't want you to learn the lesson the 567 00:17:10,559 --> 00:17:12,240 hard way. I want you to be ready for 568 00:17:12,240 --> 00:17:13,919 those big opportunities that come along. 569 00:17:13,919 --> 00:17:15,919 This brings me to my next harsh truth. 570 00:17:15,919 --> 00:17:18,240 There is gold in gray hair. Most of the 571 00:17:18,240 --> 00:17:19,760 problems that you're going to face, 572 00:17:19,760 --> 00:17:21,760 somebody's faced them before. If you 573 00:17:21,760 --> 00:17:23,439 were to sit down with someone who's 50 574 00:17:23,439 --> 00:17:25,839 or 60 years old, who's been 10, 20, 30 575 00:17:25,839 --> 00:17:27,199 years on the planet longer than you 576 00:17:27,199 --> 00:17:28,960 have, who's faced this thing, who's seen 577 00:17:28,960 --> 00:17:30,720 it before, who's seen it a dozen times 578 00:17:30,720 --> 00:17:32,640 before, you would discover that some of 579 00:17:32,640 --> 00:17:34,160 your biggest problems have easy 580 00:17:34,160 --> 00:17:36,080 solutions. You are not spending enough 581 00:17:36,080 --> 00:17:38,160 time around older people. They sound a 582 00:17:38,160 --> 00:17:39,200 little bit different. Some of their 583 00:17:39,200 --> 00:17:40,960 values aren't aligned to your values. 584 00:17:40,960 --> 00:17:42,880 Some of their language is out of date, 585 00:17:42,880 --> 00:17:44,799 but I promise you, there is golden gray 586 00:17:44,799 --> 00:17:47,280 hair. I have learned so much by having 587 00:17:47,280 --> 00:17:49,200 mentors over the age of 60. When I was 588 00:17:49,200 --> 00:17:51,280 in my 20s, I had mentors who were 60 589 00:17:51,280 --> 00:17:53,520 plus. It is incredible how much you can 590 00:17:53,520 --> 00:17:55,440 fast track your life if you just sit 591 00:17:55,440 --> 00:17:57,280 down with someone who's 15 or 20 years 592 00:17:57,280 --> 00:17:59,120 older and ask them, "Have you faced this 593 00:17:59,120 --> 00:18:00,559 before? Or do you know someone who's 594 00:18:00,559 --> 00:18:02,559 faced this several times before? Who can 595 00:18:02,559 --> 00:18:04,080 you put me in touch with that helps me 596 00:18:04,080 --> 00:18:05,600 to solve this?" For thousands and 597 00:18:05,600 --> 00:18:07,039 thousands of years, we understood the 598 00:18:07,039 --> 00:18:08,880 value of having elders in our tribe. We 599 00:18:08,880 --> 00:18:10,799 knew that we used to go to elders in 600 00:18:10,799 --> 00:18:12,400 order to extract the wisdom that they 601 00:18:12,400 --> 00:18:14,240 had. And we've lost that ability. We 602 00:18:14,240 --> 00:18:15,919 think that everything is on the 603 00:18:15,919 --> 00:18:17,840 internet. Everything's chat GBT. Well, I 604 00:18:17,840 --> 00:18:19,679 promise you, you will discover that 605 00:18:19,679 --> 00:18:21,520 people with gray hair have gold. They 606 00:18:21,520 --> 00:18:23,520 have wisdom to share. Get around a 607 00:18:23,520 --> 00:18:25,120 mentor who's got some gray hair. The 608 00:18:25,120 --> 00:18:27,120 next lesson is about having three core 609 00:18:27,120 --> 00:18:29,200 values. There came a point in my life 610 00:18:29,200 --> 00:18:31,200 where I sat down and I made up three 611 00:18:31,200 --> 00:18:33,200 core values. Be brave, have fun, make a 612 00:18:33,200 --> 00:18:34,799 dent in the universe. Being brave is 613 00:18:34,799 --> 00:18:36,559 getting out of my comfort zone. Having 614 00:18:36,559 --> 00:18:38,400 fun is working with people I enjoy 615 00:18:38,400 --> 00:18:40,559 working with, getting into alignment, 616 00:18:40,559 --> 00:18:42,720 going to fun places, doing fun things. 617 00:18:42,720 --> 00:18:44,400 And making a dent in the universe is 618 00:18:44,400 --> 00:18:46,400 giving back, trying to make an impact, 619 00:18:46,400 --> 00:18:48,240 doing things that uh add value to 620 00:18:48,240 --> 00:18:50,080 others, doing things that change the 621 00:18:50,080 --> 00:18:51,760 game, speaking in a way that improve 622 00:18:51,760 --> 00:18:53,440 somebody else's life, engaging in 623 00:18:53,440 --> 00:18:55,120 projects that improve people's lives. 624 00:18:55,120 --> 00:18:57,039 How did I make them up? I imagined 625 00:18:57,039 --> 00:18:59,760 myself as a 99year-old man laying in a 626 00:18:59,760 --> 00:19:01,440 bed and a young person comes to me and 627 00:19:01,440 --> 00:19:03,039 says, "What's the key to a great life? 628 00:19:03,039 --> 00:19:04,480 What are the three lessons that you want 629 00:19:04,480 --> 00:19:06,480 to pass on?" What came to me is be 630 00:19:06,480 --> 00:19:07,919 brave, have fun, make a dent in the 631 00:19:07,919 --> 00:19:10,240 universe. And those three things, I 632 00:19:10,240 --> 00:19:11,600 wrote them down and I said, "You know 633 00:19:11,600 --> 00:19:13,280 what? That's going to be my compass. I'm 634 00:19:13,280 --> 00:19:15,039 going to make up three values and I'm 635 00:19:15,039 --> 00:19:16,880 going to try as hard as I can to live to 636 00:19:16,880 --> 00:19:18,640 those three values. As soon as I made up 637 00:19:18,640 --> 00:19:20,320 those three values, a lot of decisions 638 00:19:20,320 --> 00:19:22,400 became easy. No one ever comes and taps 639 00:19:22,400 --> 00:19:23,679 you on the shoulder and says, "These are 640 00:19:23,679 --> 00:19:25,039 the three values that will serve as a 641 00:19:25,039 --> 00:19:26,720 compass in your life." You have to be 642 00:19:26,720 --> 00:19:28,080 the one to make them up. Imagine 643 00:19:28,080 --> 00:19:30,240 yourself as a 99year-old laying in a bed 644 00:19:30,240 --> 00:19:32,720 passing on wisdom to a teenager. What 645 00:19:32,720 --> 00:19:34,960 would be your three key pieces of advice 646 00:19:34,960 --> 00:19:36,720 that you would love to give to them? 647 00:19:36,720 --> 00:19:38,320 Right? Write those three pieces of 648 00:19:38,320 --> 00:19:39,919 advice down. Those are the your three 649 00:19:39,919 --> 00:19:42,000 core values. and live according to those 650 00:19:42,000 --> 00:19:43,919 values for as long as it serves you. 651 00:19:43,919 --> 00:19:45,919 This next harsh truth came to me from my 652 00:19:45,919 --> 00:19:47,760 very first sales manager, George. He 653 00:19:47,760 --> 00:19:49,760 said, "Dan, the only truth is the 654 00:19:49,760 --> 00:19:51,520 results." Damn, that hit me like a ton 655 00:19:51,520 --> 00:19:53,679 of bricks at the time. I thought I knew 656 00:19:53,679 --> 00:19:55,280 what I was talking about, but my results 657 00:19:55,280 --> 00:19:56,640 weren't showing it. I thought I was good 658 00:19:56,640 --> 00:19:58,160 at building rapport. I thought I was 659 00:19:58,160 --> 00:19:59,760 really good at talking to people. I 660 00:19:59,760 --> 00:20:01,120 thought I was good at asking for the 661 00:20:01,120 --> 00:20:03,200 business, but my sales results were in 662 00:20:03,200 --> 00:20:04,799 the bottom third of the team. Now, there 663 00:20:04,799 --> 00:20:06,080 was another guy on the team called Nick, 664 00:20:06,080 --> 00:20:07,600 and he was at the top of the results, 665 00:20:07,600 --> 00:20:09,200 and I just didn't like the way he was 666 00:20:09,200 --> 00:20:10,799 doing things. I thought that he was 667 00:20:10,799 --> 00:20:12,240 pissing people off. I thought he was 668 00:20:12,240 --> 00:20:14,000 asking questions that were too harsh. 669 00:20:14,000 --> 00:20:16,240 And George said, "Dan, the only truth is 670 00:20:16,240 --> 00:20:18,000 the results. Nick is at the top of the 671 00:20:18,000 --> 00:20:19,280 ladder. You're at the bottom of the 672 00:20:19,280 --> 00:20:21,200 ladder." Right? If your results don't 673 00:20:21,200 --> 00:20:23,280 show it, you don't yet know it. So, you 674 00:20:23,280 --> 00:20:24,720 need to go out there and take Nick to 675 00:20:24,720 --> 00:20:26,240 lunch and ask, "What does he know that 676 00:20:26,240 --> 00:20:28,159 you don't know?" Having great theories 677 00:20:28,159 --> 00:20:30,000 about life is one thing, but if your 678 00:20:30,000 --> 00:20:31,760 life doesn't reflect that those theories 679 00:20:31,760 --> 00:20:33,200 work, you need to question those 680 00:20:33,200 --> 00:20:34,799 theories. If you look at someone who has 681 00:20:34,799 --> 00:20:36,320 the life that you want and the results 682 00:20:36,320 --> 00:20:37,679 that you want, but they think a little 683 00:20:37,679 --> 00:20:39,520 bit different to you, you should assume 684 00:20:39,520 --> 00:20:41,120 that their way of thinking is actually 685 00:20:41,120 --> 00:20:43,600 working. The only truth is the result. 686 00:20:43,600 --> 00:20:45,679 See, in theory, you should be able to 687 00:20:45,679 --> 00:20:47,360 get academic success. You should be able 688 00:20:47,360 --> 00:20:49,440 to get a PhD and suddenly your life 689 00:20:49,440 --> 00:20:50,720 works out really well. But I can show 690 00:20:50,720 --> 00:20:52,400 you lots of people with a PhD who are 691 00:20:52,400 --> 00:20:54,559 totally broke. In theory, that person 692 00:20:54,559 --> 00:20:56,240 who's a little bit scrappy, that person 693 00:20:56,240 --> 00:20:57,840 who just goes and knocks on doors, that 694 00:20:57,840 --> 00:20:59,520 person who's cheeky and playful and goes 695 00:20:59,520 --> 00:21:01,200 talks to strangers, in theory, that 696 00:21:01,200 --> 00:21:03,039 person should be pissing people off. But 697 00:21:03,039 --> 00:21:04,960 in reality, they often are the person 698 00:21:04,960 --> 00:21:06,960 who succeeds. So you can have these 699 00:21:06,960 --> 00:21:09,360 luxury beliefs. You can believe that the 700 00:21:09,360 --> 00:21:11,280 world is a certain way. But I tell you 701 00:21:11,280 --> 00:21:13,679 what, the only truth is the result. If 702 00:21:13,679 --> 00:21:15,360 your life doesn't reflect excellence, 703 00:21:15,360 --> 00:21:17,039 you don't have excellent beliefs. You 704 00:21:17,039 --> 00:21:18,799 have to question your beliefs based on 705 00:21:18,799 --> 00:21:20,480 the idea that the only truth is the 706 00:21:20,480 --> 00:21:22,080 result. Let's do another harsh truth 707 00:21:22,080 --> 00:21:23,919 about money. Money is nothing but a 708 00:21:23,919 --> 00:21:25,840 tool. It's completely made up. It's a 709 00:21:25,840 --> 00:21:27,600 human invention. It's a story that we 710 00:21:27,600 --> 00:21:29,200 tell ourselves. That paper isn't real. 711 00:21:29,200 --> 00:21:30,799 It's a shared agreement. Even something 712 00:21:30,799 --> 00:21:32,720 like gold, it's a shiny rock that we've 713 00:21:32,720 --> 00:21:34,559 all agreed is valuable. Money isn't 714 00:21:34,559 --> 00:21:36,640 real. Money is a way of keeping score. 715 00:21:36,640 --> 00:21:38,720 Now, if you were passionate about sport, 716 00:21:38,720 --> 00:21:40,400 it's interesting to keep score because 717 00:21:40,400 --> 00:21:41,840 that makes the game interesting. But 718 00:21:41,840 --> 00:21:43,760 that's not the game. The game is what 719 00:21:43,760 --> 00:21:45,360 happens on the field and the scoreboard 720 00:21:45,360 --> 00:21:46,720 reflects the way that you're playing. 721 00:21:46,720 --> 00:21:48,559 Now, here's the craziest things about 722 00:21:48,559 --> 00:21:50,880 money. We constantly make up new money. 723 00:21:50,880 --> 00:21:53,200 Banks literally issue debt out of thin 724 00:21:53,200 --> 00:21:55,039 air. The governments, they print money 725 00:21:55,039 --> 00:21:57,039 when they need to. Pursuing money for 726 00:21:57,039 --> 00:21:59,120 its own ends is a fool's errand. I can 727 00:21:59,120 --> 00:22:00,480 tell you from having friends who have 728 00:22:00,480 --> 00:22:01,840 sold their companies for hundreds of 729 00:22:01,840 --> 00:22:03,280 millions of dollars, you can have 730 00:22:03,280 --> 00:22:04,640 hundreds of millions of dollars and 731 00:22:04,640 --> 00:22:06,480 still be miserable. The idea that money 732 00:22:06,480 --> 00:22:08,320 is going to make you happy is absolutely 733 00:22:08,320 --> 00:22:10,159 crazy. It's like saying having lots and 734 00:22:10,159 --> 00:22:11,760 lots of ingredients in your cupboard 735 00:22:11,760 --> 00:22:13,760 will make you happy. It's the joy of 736 00:22:13,760 --> 00:22:15,440 cooking that makes you happy. Now, with 737 00:22:15,440 --> 00:22:17,520 that said, life gets totally easier with 738 00:22:17,520 --> 00:22:20,000 money. Let me be really, really clear. 739 00:22:20,000 --> 00:22:21,840 Your time is precious. And when you've 740 00:22:21,840 --> 00:22:23,679 got money, you can free up your time to 741 00:22:23,679 --> 00:22:25,280 do more of the things that you want. You 742 00:22:25,280 --> 00:22:26,960 can have a cleaner who comes in and 743 00:22:26,960 --> 00:22:28,559 cleans the house. Instead of driving 744 00:22:28,559 --> 00:22:29,919 yourself, you can jump in the back of an 745 00:22:29,919 --> 00:22:31,520 Uber and make a few important phone 746 00:22:31,520 --> 00:22:33,280 calls. If you get a great business idea 747 00:22:33,280 --> 00:22:34,559 and you've got money and you can take 748 00:22:34,559 --> 00:22:36,400 two weeks off to explore that, 749 00:22:36,400 --> 00:22:38,320 fantastic. The beauty of having some 750 00:22:38,320 --> 00:22:40,559 money is really the ability to control 751 00:22:40,559 --> 00:22:42,320 your time in a new way. A lot of people 752 00:22:42,320 --> 00:22:44,000 don't understand the value of actually 753 00:22:44,000 --> 00:22:45,520 having money. They think money is just 754 00:22:45,520 --> 00:22:47,440 for spending. There is a value that 755 00:22:47,440 --> 00:22:49,120 comes from having money. There is a 756 00:22:49,120 --> 00:22:50,400 value that comes from having three 757 00:22:50,400 --> 00:22:52,080 months worth of living expenses in a 758 00:22:52,080 --> 00:22:53,760 savings account. There's a value that 759 00:22:53,760 --> 00:22:55,919 comes from having money that is separate 760 00:22:55,919 --> 00:22:57,039 to what you're doing with your business 761 00:22:57,039 --> 00:22:59,280 or career. The value of that is the 762 00:22:59,280 --> 00:23:01,039 freedom that it gives your mind to think 763 00:23:01,039 --> 00:23:04,080 bigger. What you're buying with money is 764 00:23:04,080 --> 00:23:06,480 mental freedom, time freedom, and 765 00:23:06,480 --> 00:23:08,320 creative freedom. So, you need to start 766 00:23:08,320 --> 00:23:10,080 accumulating some money so that you get 767 00:23:10,080 --> 00:23:11,440 that level of freedom. It's the 768 00:23:11,440 --> 00:23:13,520 enjoyment of running a business, growing 769 00:23:13,520 --> 00:23:16,080 a career, building a network, traveling 770 00:23:16,080 --> 00:23:17,760 through life with the right people. 771 00:23:17,760 --> 00:23:19,280 Those are the things that are actually 772 00:23:19,280 --> 00:23:21,840 real. Do not let people lure you away 773 00:23:21,840 --> 00:23:23,919 from the real stuff with the fake stuff. 774 00:23:23,919 --> 00:23:26,000 When you discover that your time is 775 00:23:26,000 --> 00:23:28,480 real, your experience is real, and money 776 00:23:28,480 --> 00:23:30,640 is fake, then the whole game shifts. If 777 00:23:30,640 --> 00:23:32,000 you're trading your time and your 778 00:23:32,000 --> 00:23:34,720 passion and your creative energy in 779 00:23:34,720 --> 00:23:37,120 exchange for this fake madeup stuff, 780 00:23:37,120 --> 00:23:38,640 then you're losing the game. The next 781 00:23:38,640 --> 00:23:40,400 one is the truth about failure and 782 00:23:40,400 --> 00:23:43,280 success. All failure and all success 783 00:23:43,280 --> 00:23:45,039 give you nothing more than stories and 784 00:23:45,039 --> 00:23:46,880 data. And once they've happened, it's 785 00:23:46,880 --> 00:23:48,240 how you tell the story and how you 786 00:23:48,240 --> 00:23:50,080 interpret the data. I've had massive 787 00:23:50,080 --> 00:23:51,440 failures, but I've remained positive 788 00:23:51,440 --> 00:23:52,880 because I've said, "Well, you know what? 789 00:23:52,880 --> 00:23:54,159 I've got new data and I've got new 790 00:23:54,159 --> 00:23:55,520 stories to tell." I've had huge 791 00:23:55,520 --> 00:23:57,039 successes. I've said, "hm, that's 792 00:23:57,039 --> 00:23:58,400 interesting. I've got some new stories 793 00:23:58,400 --> 00:23:59,919 and I've got some new data to share." 794 00:23:59,919 --> 00:24:01,440 When you start seeing success and 795 00:24:01,440 --> 00:24:03,360 failure as the same thing, that it's 796 00:24:03,360 --> 00:24:05,919 just stories and data, you realize that 797 00:24:05,919 --> 00:24:07,679 everything's just an experience. And you 798 00:24:07,679 --> 00:24:09,520 get to be the storyteller about how that 799 00:24:09,520 --> 00:24:11,360 experience impacted you. You get to be 800 00:24:11,360 --> 00:24:13,520 the one who sees that all experiences 801 00:24:13,520 --> 00:24:15,360 are part of your mountain of value. your 802 00:24:15,360 --> 00:24:16,880 high points, your low points, your 803 00:24:16,880 --> 00:24:18,799 triumphs and your disasters. They are 804 00:24:18,799 --> 00:24:20,799 all stories and they're all data. It's 805 00:24:20,799 --> 00:24:22,559 all part of the ingredients for what you 806 00:24:22,559 --> 00:24:24,159 do next. I have seen people who have 807 00:24:24,159 --> 00:24:25,760 failed dramatically and then they've 808 00:24:25,760 --> 00:24:28,400 gone on to succeed wildly because they 809 00:24:28,400 --> 00:24:30,000 took the story and they took the data. 810 00:24:30,000 --> 00:24:31,840 I've seen people succeed massively and 811 00:24:31,840 --> 00:24:33,520 then they've been miserable because of 812 00:24:33,520 --> 00:24:35,279 the story that they took from that. Now, 813 00:24:35,279 --> 00:24:36,960 you may be slow to learn this, but you 814 00:24:36,960 --> 00:24:38,240 will come to know that you will learn 815 00:24:38,240 --> 00:24:39,600 more from your failures than your 816 00:24:39,600 --> 00:24:42,400 successes. Me personally, I had a boom, 817 00:24:42,400 --> 00:24:44,320 then a bust, then a boom, then a bust, 818 00:24:44,320 --> 00:24:47,039 then a boom, then a bust. I had 15 years 819 00:24:47,039 --> 00:24:48,799 of becoming a millionaire and losing it, 820 00:24:48,799 --> 00:24:50,159 and becoming a millionaire and losing 821 00:24:50,159 --> 00:24:51,440 it, and becoming a millionaire and 822 00:24:51,440 --> 00:24:54,080 losing it. And actually, that's why I 823 00:24:54,080 --> 00:24:56,240 succeeded really big after that because 824 00:24:56,240 --> 00:24:57,919 all of those stories and all of that 825 00:24:57,919 --> 00:25:00,240 data informed really good decisions 826 00:25:00,240 --> 00:25:02,320 after those facts. I really learned 827 00:25:02,320 --> 00:25:04,320 about how the world worked. I never lost 828 00:25:04,320 --> 00:25:05,440 trust in the fact that I would 829 00:25:05,440 --> 00:25:06,960 eventually succeed. There must be 830 00:25:06,960 --> 00:25:08,640 something really valuable that I need to 831 00:25:08,640 --> 00:25:10,559 learn here that will really help me make 832 00:25:10,559 --> 00:25:12,640 it big later on down the track. I 833 00:25:12,640 --> 00:25:14,080 haven't actually learned that much from 834 00:25:14,080 --> 00:25:16,000 wild success. Wild success is a really 835 00:25:16,000 --> 00:25:17,919 poor teacher. Failure, a good slap 836 00:25:17,919 --> 00:25:20,400 around the chops. Unbelievable lessons. 837 00:25:20,400 --> 00:25:21,760 Here's the harsh truth. Work life 838 00:25:21,760 --> 00:25:23,600 balance is mostly an illusion. There is 839 00:25:23,600 --> 00:25:25,600 a season to work hard at the exclusion 840 00:25:25,600 --> 00:25:27,360 of other things. There is a season to 841 00:25:27,360 --> 00:25:29,120 prioritize your health and wellness at 842 00:25:29,120 --> 00:25:31,039 the expense of your career. There is a 843 00:25:31,039 --> 00:25:32,720 season where you should go all in on 844 00:25:32,720 --> 00:25:34,000 your friendships and a season where 845 00:25:34,000 --> 00:25:35,760 money really, really matters. And you 846 00:25:35,760 --> 00:25:38,000 need to pick what is the main focus that 847 00:25:38,000 --> 00:25:39,520 is going to dominate a lot of your time. 848 00:25:39,520 --> 00:25:40,720 Now, here's the other thing that I would 849 00:25:40,720 --> 00:25:42,320 say to someone in their 20s. I'd say 850 00:25:42,320 --> 00:25:44,400 this to myself at my 20s. You don't have 851 00:25:44,400 --> 00:25:46,159 that many things to balance just yet. 852 00:25:46,159 --> 00:25:48,240 So, work life balance should mostly be 853 00:25:48,240 --> 00:25:50,880 about work and a few key friendships and 854 00:25:50,880 --> 00:25:52,720 a few key relationships. So, here's the 855 00:25:52,720 --> 00:25:54,480 harsh truth. By the time you get into 856 00:25:54,480 --> 00:25:56,559 your 30s and 40s, you have to balance a 857 00:25:56,559 --> 00:25:58,240 lot. You're probably going to be taking 858 00:25:58,240 --> 00:25:59,679 care of kids. You're probably going to 859 00:25:59,679 --> 00:26:01,440 be taking care of parents. You're 860 00:26:01,440 --> 00:26:03,760 probably going to be a responsible 861 00:26:03,760 --> 00:26:05,919 provider. and a lot will fall on your 862 00:26:05,919 --> 00:26:07,679 shoulders. You need to build up to that. 863 00:26:07,679 --> 00:26:09,200 You need to be ready for that in your 864 00:26:09,200 --> 00:26:11,360 20s. If you can lay strong foundations 865 00:26:11,360 --> 00:26:13,200 around your work, your career, your 866 00:26:13,200 --> 00:26:14,640 money, around your health, your 867 00:26:14,640 --> 00:26:16,880 wellness, and especially around key 868 00:26:16,880 --> 00:26:18,720 relationships, you are going to set 869 00:26:18,720 --> 00:26:20,880 yourself up for a very easy game in your 870 00:26:20,880 --> 00:26:22,720 30s and your 40s. If you distract 871 00:26:22,720 --> 00:26:24,400 yourself by trying to have this perfect 872 00:26:24,400 --> 00:26:26,480 work life balance and you don't lay 873 00:26:26,480 --> 00:26:28,240 strong foundations, life gets pretty 874 00:26:28,240 --> 00:26:29,919 hard later on. Now, the other thing I 875 00:26:29,919 --> 00:26:31,760 would say is life is long. You don't 876 00:26:31,760 --> 00:26:33,360 need to go to that five-star hotel in 877 00:26:33,360 --> 00:26:35,039 Maitius. There will be plenty of time to 878 00:26:35,039 --> 00:26:37,360 do that in your 40s or your 50s or your 879 00:26:37,360 --> 00:26:39,520 60s or even your 70s. You don't have to 880 00:26:39,520 --> 00:26:41,279 cram everything into your 20s, but you 881 00:26:41,279 --> 00:26:43,120 do need to lay some strong foundations 882 00:26:43,120 --> 00:26:44,799 that set you up for your 30s and 40s. 883 00:26:44,799 --> 00:26:46,480 Another harsh truth, you're not taking 884 00:26:46,480 --> 00:26:47,840 enough risks. You're not putting 885 00:26:47,840 --> 00:26:50,000 yourself into risky situations that 886 00:26:50,000 --> 00:26:51,919 could really pay off. See, we don't get 887 00:26:51,919 --> 00:26:53,679 taught how to evaluate risk in high 888 00:26:53,679 --> 00:26:55,360 school. We get taught that starting a 889 00:26:55,360 --> 00:26:56,880 business would be risky and having a 890 00:26:56,880 --> 00:26:59,039 career is safe. But at the moment, we 891 00:26:59,039 --> 00:27:01,360 live in a time of asymmetric risk, where 892 00:27:01,360 --> 00:27:02,960 starting a business could cost you a few 893 00:27:02,960 --> 00:27:05,200 thousand that make you millions. Having 894 00:27:05,200 --> 00:27:07,120 a career could give you a few thousand a 895 00:27:07,120 --> 00:27:08,880 month, but cost you your ability to 896 00:27:08,880 --> 00:27:10,559 start a business. In your 20s, you 897 00:27:10,559 --> 00:27:11,919 typically don't have little kids that 898 00:27:11,919 --> 00:27:13,760 you have to provide for. You could take 899 00:27:13,760 --> 00:27:15,360 a risk. You could end up sleeping on a 900 00:27:15,360 --> 00:27:16,880 friend's couch, and it wouldn't be the 901 00:27:16,880 --> 00:27:18,480 end of the world. What does taking a 902 00:27:18,480 --> 00:27:20,799 risk really look like? It looks like 903 00:27:20,799 --> 00:27:22,080 talking to that person that you're 904 00:27:22,080 --> 00:27:23,679 romantically attracted to and asking 905 00:27:23,679 --> 00:27:25,600 them out on a date. It looks like 906 00:27:25,600 --> 00:27:27,440 starting that business and seeing how it 907 00:27:27,440 --> 00:27:29,520 works out. It looks like jumping on that 908 00:27:29,520 --> 00:27:31,760 plane and attending that conference even 909 00:27:31,760 --> 00:27:33,279 though it kind of puts you out of your 910 00:27:33,279 --> 00:27:35,279 comfort zone. Talking to that investor 911 00:27:35,279 --> 00:27:36,559 and seeing if they're willing to put 912 00:27:36,559 --> 00:27:38,400 some investment behind your big idea. 913 00:27:38,400 --> 00:27:40,080 Going along to a networking event where 914 00:27:40,080 --> 00:27:41,919 people are older than you and wealthier 915 00:27:41,919 --> 00:27:43,360 than you and more experienced than you 916 00:27:43,360 --> 00:27:45,679 and you feel totally out of your depth. 917 00:27:45,679 --> 00:27:46,799 But that's the place that you're going 918 00:27:46,799 --> 00:27:48,400 to get the mentor or the breakthrough. 919 00:27:48,400 --> 00:27:50,480 Your risk profile changes as you age. My 920 00:27:50,480 --> 00:27:52,240 decisions now, they impact my whole 921 00:27:52,240 --> 00:27:54,000 family. They impact my kids. They impact 922 00:27:54,000 --> 00:27:55,919 my parents. They impact my siblings. 923 00:27:55,919 --> 00:27:57,760 They impact my friendship groups. If I'm 924 00:27:57,760 --> 00:28:00,080 too reckless right now, it's not just me 925 00:28:00,080 --> 00:28:01,520 that's going to end up sleeping on the 926 00:28:01,520 --> 00:28:03,279 couch. It's going to be my whole family 927 00:28:03,279 --> 00:28:04,880 who have to find a place to stay. 928 00:28:04,880 --> 00:28:06,480 Recently, I did something stupid. I 929 00:28:06,480 --> 00:28:08,159 jumped on a skateboard. I fell off and I 930 00:28:08,159 --> 00:28:10,240 broke my wrist. There was no upside for 931 00:28:10,240 --> 00:28:11,760 doing this and a huge downside for 932 00:28:11,760 --> 00:28:13,600 getting it wrong. And as a result, I've 933 00:28:13,600 --> 00:28:15,360 put pressure on my wife where I'm not 934 00:28:15,360 --> 00:28:17,360 able to help out around the house in the 935 00:28:17,360 --> 00:28:19,360 same way that I was while I'm healing. 936 00:28:19,360 --> 00:28:21,120 It was a dumb, silly mistake. Now, 937 00:28:21,120 --> 00:28:22,559 that's the type of thing in my teens and 938 00:28:22,559 --> 00:28:24,399 my 20s that didn't impact anyone else's 939 00:28:24,399 --> 00:28:26,320 life. A broken arm in my 40s affects my 940 00:28:26,320 --> 00:28:28,480 whole household. Also, in your 40s, if 941 00:28:28,480 --> 00:28:29,919 you do something stupid with your 942 00:28:29,919 --> 00:28:31,919 reputation, it's very, very hard to get 943 00:28:31,919 --> 00:28:34,080 that back. No one really cares what you 944 00:28:34,080 --> 00:28:35,760 do in your 20s. You can do all sorts of 945 00:28:35,760 --> 00:28:37,279 dumb stuff. You can fall flat on your 946 00:28:37,279 --> 00:28:38,799 face a dozen times. And people say, 947 00:28:38,799 --> 00:28:39,919 "Well, it's great that you're trying 948 00:28:39,919 --> 00:28:41,360 things. It's great that you're learning. 949 00:28:41,360 --> 00:28:43,120 Once you get into your 40s, if you fall 950 00:28:43,120 --> 00:28:44,640 flat on your face a dozen times, they 951 00:28:44,640 --> 00:28:46,399 say, "Well, this person's probably not 952 00:28:46,399 --> 00:28:48,320 going to achieve very much." So harness 953 00:28:48,320 --> 00:28:50,159 your 20s as a time where you can take 954 00:28:50,159 --> 00:28:52,240 more risks. Bones are going to heal. 955 00:28:52,240 --> 00:28:53,840 Businesses are going to bounce back. 956 00:28:53,840 --> 00:28:55,120 Your career is not going to be damaged 957 00:28:55,120 --> 00:28:57,840 by a silly decision. Right? Enjoy your 958 00:28:57,840 --> 00:28:59,120 20s. Take some risks. 959 00:28:59,120 --> 00:29:01,440 >> Oh, this one makes me emotional. 960 00:29:01,440 --> 00:29:03,200 >> The final lesson is a big picture 961 00:29:03,200 --> 00:29:05,200 lesson. What do I think life is about? 962 00:29:05,200 --> 00:29:06,880 What do I think success is about? Life 963 00:29:06,880 --> 00:29:08,799 and success is about finding really 964 00:29:08,799 --> 00:29:10,720 great people and traveling through life 965 00:29:10,720 --> 00:29:12,399 together. Isn't it an incredibly weird 966 00:29:12,399 --> 00:29:14,000 thing? We are on a rock hurdling through 967 00:29:14,000 --> 00:29:17,440 space orbiting a massive ball of fire. 968 00:29:17,440 --> 00:29:20,080 We're here for a split second of time. 969 00:29:20,080 --> 00:29:22,240 We get to travel through life. We get to 970 00:29:22,240 --> 00:29:24,320 travel through space with a small group 971 00:29:24,320 --> 00:29:26,080 of people who matter. There will come a 972 00:29:26,080 --> 00:29:28,240 day where you will get a phone call that 973 00:29:28,240 --> 00:29:29,840 one of those people has passed. There 974 00:29:29,840 --> 00:29:31,760 will also come a day where some of the 975 00:29:31,760 --> 00:29:33,360 things that you took for granted go 976 00:29:33,360 --> 00:29:35,600 away. You just can't run as fast as you 977 00:29:35,600 --> 00:29:37,039 once could run. You can't get through 978 00:29:37,039 --> 00:29:38,799 that hit training class the way you used 979 00:29:38,799 --> 00:29:40,159 to be able to get through it. You can't 980 00:29:40,159 --> 00:29:41,520 lift that weight that you thought you 981 00:29:41,520 --> 00:29:43,279 could lift. You turn up at a party and 982 00:29:43,279 --> 00:29:44,799 you suddenly feel like, "Hey, I'm the 983 00:29:44,799 --> 00:29:46,480 oldest person at this party. I feel out 984 00:29:46,480 --> 00:29:48,559 of it." Life has a funny, unfair little 985 00:29:48,559 --> 00:29:50,320 way of just sneaking up on you. One day, 986 00:29:50,320 --> 00:29:51,919 you look at your parents and suddenly 987 00:29:51,919 --> 00:29:55,799 they do actually look old. 988 00:29:56,080 --> 00:29:58,640 One by one, your grandparents go, "The 989 00:29:58,640 --> 00:30:00,320 thing that I'm most proud of is 990 00:30:00,320 --> 00:30:01,840 traveling through life with some great 991 00:30:01,840 --> 00:30:04,880 people. My co-founder I met at 14 and 992 00:30:04,880 --> 00:30:06,799 we're still running businesses today. 993 00:30:06,799 --> 00:30:08,240 I've got people on my team that I've 994 00:30:08,240 --> 00:30:09,760 known since I was 10 years old. I've 995 00:30:09,760 --> 00:30:11,039 gotten to a point now where I've got 996 00:30:11,039 --> 00:30:12,320 friends in my life who have been there 997 00:30:12,320 --> 00:30:14,399 for 30 years plus. Few people talk about 998 00:30:14,399 --> 00:30:16,000 these achievements. On Instagram and 999 00:30:16,000 --> 00:30:17,679 YouTube, you'll often hear about cars 1000 00:30:17,679 --> 00:30:20,720 and apartments and houses and travel. 1001 00:30:20,720 --> 00:30:23,520 You won't hear about the achievement of 1002 00:30:23,520 --> 00:30:25,440 comforting a friend when their parent 1003 00:30:25,440 --> 00:30:28,399 goes through a stroke. It's rare to hear 1004 00:30:28,399 --> 00:30:30,640 someone talk about what it feels like to 1005 00:30:30,640 --> 00:30:32,559 comfort a friend through a divorce. And 1006 00:30:32,559 --> 00:30:33,919 that stuff's going to happen. Checking 1007 00:30:33,919 --> 00:30:37,200 into a big fancy hotel, that's cool. 1008 00:30:37,200 --> 00:30:39,120 checking out, you forget it pretty 1009 00:30:39,120 --> 00:30:42,159 quickly. When you look back on 20 or 30 1010 00:30:42,159 --> 00:30:44,159 years being there in a hospital with 1011 00:30:44,159 --> 00:30:46,159 someone, that feels like a real 1012 00:30:46,159 --> 00:30:48,559 achievement. What I'd say to young Dan 1013 00:30:48,559 --> 00:30:50,880 is that you're excited about these huge 1014 00:30:50,880 --> 00:30:54,399 achievements like multi-million revenue, 1015 00:30:54,399 --> 00:30:56,080 being told that your company is worth a 1016 00:30:56,080 --> 00:30:58,320 lot of money, being able to jump on a 1017 00:30:58,320 --> 00:31:00,159 plane and go to an incredible holiday. 1018 00:31:00,159 --> 00:31:01,520 What you probably don't realize when 1019 00:31:01,520 --> 00:31:03,679 you're when you're 20 is that the big 1020 00:31:03,679 --> 00:31:06,080 achievements will be hanging out with 1021 00:31:06,080 --> 00:31:09,520 people during ups and downs. Being there 1022 00:31:09,520 --> 00:31:11,760 when a parent or a loved one has to go 1023 00:31:11,760 --> 00:31:14,080 into hospital, speaking at your 1024 00:31:14,080 --> 00:31:15,760 grandparents funeral, and even if you 1025 00:31:15,760 --> 00:31:17,279 achieve all the big stuff that goes on 1026 00:31:17,279 --> 00:31:19,440 Instagram, some of your biggest regrets 1027 00:31:19,440 --> 00:31:20,960 will be not jumping on the plane and 1028 00:31:20,960 --> 00:31:23,200 being at your friend's wedding. It'll be 1029 00:31:23,200 --> 00:31:24,960 not being there when your grandparent 1030 00:31:24,960 --> 00:31:27,120 went into a nursing home. The stuff that 1031 00:31:27,120 --> 00:31:29,520 we think of as peak experience is 1032 00:31:29,520 --> 00:31:31,200 actually pretty meaningless. And the 1033 00:31:31,200 --> 00:31:33,440 stuff that really does offer peak 1034 00:31:33,440 --> 00:31:35,120 experience doesn't make Instagram. But 1035 00:31:35,120 --> 00:31:36,960 if I was to sum up this lesson, it would 1036 00:31:36,960 --> 00:31:39,200 be to spend a little bit of time on a 1037 00:31:39,200 --> 00:31:41,279 rock around the sun with a small group 1038 00:31:41,279 --> 00:31:43,360 of people that truly matter. Don't 1039 00:31:43,360 --> 00:31:46,399 overlook that.