#183: Welcome to Intense Life, where we explore how to pursue more enterprising, high-performing, and focused lives. Serial entrepreneurs approach life with maximum intensity, and this show is here to share how you can, too. I'm Nicola, a startup enthusiast and your host. In this podcast, my guests and I share lessons from founding companies and living productive lives. Join us and stay intense!
Bonus Resources
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#182: Over the past two years, I have run a high-performance coaching business, helping over 40 clients become more productive. In this episode, I want to share the top 3 business lessons I've learned from this venture. Enjoy!
Timestamps
- 00:00:38 Lesson 1: Buy yourself time by learning from successful entrepreneurs who have already done it before.
- 00:03:00 Lesson 2: Test your critical business hypothesis quickly with a Minimum Viable Product (MVP). Always seek client feedback, incorporate it into your product, or pivot to a new business idea if necessary.
- 00:07:38 Lesson 3: Focus on building an exceptional product to minimize the need for extensive marketing and advertising.
Things Mentioned
Bonus Resources
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#181: In this episode, I want to show you how to get the most out of your books. Specifically, I’ll share eight strategies that can help you retain more of what you read and internalize the knowledge better.
Maybe you can relate to my experience. You read a book and can remember the content for maybe a week or two, but then the knowledge starts to fade because you don’t revisit it. When you finish a book, you feel euphoric and eager to implement the ideas, but that enthusiasm gradually wanes. I faced this exact problem when I started reading more and more books. That’s why I developed various approaches to solve this issue for myself. These are the strategies I want to share with you. They include techniques I practice myself and others that I discovered while creating this podcast, which I believe could be valuable for you.
For this episode, I’ve also uploaded a custom template that I use when reading books. It shows you exactly how I take notes on the books I read and how I create a summary once I finish a book. More details are in the episode. Enjoy!
Things Mentioned
- Book Notes Template
- Feynman Technique
- 11 Reasons Why Reading is Important
- Article by James Clear
- Video by Ali Abdaal
- Video by Mark Manson
- Taking Breaks While Reading – Video by Centered Learning
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#180: Think you're chasing your goals the right way? Think again. Quick fixes and silver bullets don't exist. Success is built with "Golden BBs" – small, consistent actions. Enjoy!
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#178: In high school, I was a chronic procrastinator. Today, I’m pursuing a master’s degree at an elite university in St. Gallen, have completed two internships, and have founded or co-founded three businesses. In this episode, I share a simple tactic I use to trick my brain into consistently getting hard work done. Enjoy!
Things Mentioned
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#177: "If you can’t be first in a category, set up a new category you can be first in."
– A quote from the book "The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing" by Al Ries and Jack Trout, which we'll be discussing today. Specifically, the second chapter: "The Law of the Category."
Are you trying to figure out how to start your business but haven't yet found the ultimate idea to conquer the market? Then, the Law of the Category might just help you out. This episode aims to provide you with insights on how to differentiate and set apart your business, your product, or your service from the competition in the market. Enjoy!
Things Mentioned
- The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing von Al Ries und Jack Trout
- Law #2: The Law of the Category – Eric Sink
- The Law of the Category – Niklas Rosenberg
- How to Start a Business or Podcast From Scratch | Tim Ferriss
- $100M Offers –Alex Hormozi
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#176: Over the past few years, I've transitioned from being a chronic procrastinator in high school to becoming a highly productive master's student at an elite university. Throughout this journey, I developed a 6-step planning process that not only structures my days but also saves me over 20 hours each week, allowing me to accomplish more. I promise that by listening to the end, you'll feel less overwhelmed by learning how to effectively organize your days, and you'll become more efficient by focusing on the right tasks.
In this episode, I'll share the six-step planning framework I use daily, along with six implementation steps to enhance your chances of success. Plus, if you stay until the end, I'll provide a free Cheat Sheet to jump-start your daily planning routine. Enjoy!
Bonus Resources
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#175: For more than a year, I went to bed and woke up at the same time every day, and it really made my sleep better. I found out seven cool tips that helped me sleep deeply and wake up feeling super refreshed. In this episode, I’m going to tell you all about these seven tips so you can sleep well without having to figure it all out by yourself. Enjoy!
Bonus Resources
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#174: Struggling with an overflowing email inbox? Discover how I achieved inbox zero with three simple, effective steps to streamline your email management. Enjoy!
Things Mentioned
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#173: Jim Rohn said, "Reading is essential for those who seek to rise above the ordinary."
I found out that reading has made my life much better. It helps me understand why people do what they do and teaches me how to live a better and more meaningful life. In today's episode, I want to share five big ideas from five non-fiction books I've read. I'll tell you the most important thing from each book, or something that really stayed with me and made my life better. Enjoy!
Things Mentioned
- "Think and Grow Rich" by Napoleon Hill
- "Serve to Win" by Novak Djokovic
- "Beyond Order: 12 More Rules for Life" by Jordan B. Peterson
- "Small Giants: Companies That Choose to Be Great Instead of Big" by Bo Burlingham
- "The Obstacle Is the Way" by Ryan Holiday
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#172: It is often difficult for people to discover their passion in life, and I was no exception. In this episode, I will be sharing with you how I found my calling.
From my personal experience, it seems that passion is not something that is found, but rather developed through a series of trials and errors. Enjoy!
Things Mentioned
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#171: If we don't regularly tidy up our productivity system, things can get really messy and hard to handle. Today, I'll share something called the Weekly Review. It's a method that has helped many people, including me, stay organized. Enjoy!
Things Mentioned
- GTD Weekly Review Template
- Ali Abdaal
- Getting Things Done by David Allen
- How to Choose the Perfect Note-Taking App
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#170: In this episode, I propose an alternative to the common tendency of blaming others for our negative emotions and mistakes. This alternative approach empowers us to take control of our lives and shift our focus from problems to solutions. Enjoy listening!
Things Mentioned
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#169: In this episode, explore 10 life-changing rules from Dr. Jordan B. Peterson, from his bestselling books 12 Rules for Life and Beyond Order: 12 More Rules for Life. Dr. Jordan B. Peterson is a renowned psychologist, author, and online educator. Enjoy!
Things Mentioned
- Dr. Jordan B. Peterson
- 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos
- Beyond Order: 12 More Rules for Life
- My Old YouTube Channel
- Alex Hormozi
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#168: In this episode, I share five lessons I've learned from Alex Hormozi to live a more productive life. Enjoy!
Things Mentioned
- Alex Hormozi
- David Goggins: How to Build Immense Inner Strength
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
- Atomic Habits
- 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos
- Solve for Happy
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#167: Back in high school, I almost exclusively aimed for the outcome, ending up unsatisfied in the present moment.
In this episode, I offer an alternative that served me well in achieving my goals while feeling good on the way to the outcome. Enjoy listening!
Things Mentioned
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#166: Establishing and maintaining healthy habits can be difficult. This episode provides strategies for consistency. Enjoy!
Things Mentioned
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#165: Most people give more weight to the negative than the positive.
In this episode, I explain how we can use this to our advantage to overcome procrastination. Enjoy!
Things Mentioned
- Albert Einstein
- Episode #079 with my boss Stefan Baer
- Steven Bartlett
- Richard Branson
- IKEA founder
- David Neeleman
- #047: ADHD Your Entrepreneurial Superpower! Prof. Dr. Isabella Hatak
- Atomic Habits by James Clear
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#164: Many of us with ADHD are overwhelmed, we focus on the wrong things, or suffer from perfectionism.
In this episode, I share with you the key ideas of 4 of my Instagram posts that have helped me to create good conditions for success.
These practices supported me in gaining clarity on who I wanted to become to turn ADHD into a true high-performance asset for peak productivity. Enjoy!
Things Mentioned
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#163: As a novelty-loving ADHDer, I have let more and more apps and technologies into my life for years without questioning whether they actually make my life easier.
In this episode, I offer a practical solution to decluttering our digital lives, freeing up energy for the really important things. Enjoy!
Things Mentioned
- Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport
- Evernote (Note-Taking App)
- Things (To-Do List App)
- Todoist (To-Do List App)
- Trello (To-Do List App)
- Google Calendar
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#162: Living with ADHD can be challenging. It was like that for me for years until I learned to use this condition to my advantage.
In this episode, I share with you 3 steps that helped me to effectively utilize the strengths of ADHD while reducing the negative aspects. Enjoy listening!
Timestamps
- (00:00:00) Introduction
- (00:00:32) About Me
- (00:01:11) Feeling Different
- (00:02:24) The Need for a New Name
- (00:03:35) Healing Our Relationship to the Word
- (00:06:50) Realizing Non-Linear Thinking
- (00:08:45) Taking Notes: Step 1
- (00:09:32) Taking Notes: Step 2
- (00:11:46) Taking Notes: Step 3
- (00:12:14) Conclusion
Things Mentioned
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#161: Leo Kösters is the founder of beyond-you.net, a psychology student and social scientist.
In our busy world today, people don't talk much about mental health. It's often misunderstood and judged wrongly, even though we know a lot more about the mind and brain now. So, how can we then improve mental health in the population? How can we include third-world countries in that endeavor?
Expect to learn how Leo wants to improve mental health worldwide, 3 lessons from his ADHD journey, the connection between ADHD and unconventionality, three books that have greatly influenced his life, his favorite failure from the past, and much more.
Timestamps
- (00:01:50) Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl.
- (00:07:26) 3 lessons from his ADHD journey.
- (00:14:16) ADHD and unconventionality.
- (00:18:48) Elon Musk.
- (00:20:55) ADHD and sensitivity.
- (00:32:14) His favorite failure.
- (00:33:57) How he reduces overwhelm.
- (00:35:54) Practicing gratitude.
- (00:40:55) How we try to make a positive impact on this planet.
- (00:46:44) Marketing, sales, and acting from abundance.
- (00:54:18) 3 traits of the ultra successful.
- (00:55:06) About his start-up, beyond-you.net.
- (01:06:40) Third-world countries.
- (01:10:51) Questions by Tim Ferriss.
- (01:17:30) Support Leo.
Leo Kösters
Things Mentioned
- Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl
- Elon Musk
- Jack Dorsey
- Big 5 personality test by Dr. Jordan Peterson
- The 4-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss
- How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
- 12 Rules for Life by Jordan Peterson
Episode Clarifications and Corrections
- (00:03:26) - Correction: The individuals discussed are legally mandated to stay in a psychiatric hospital, not jail.
- (00:32:40) - Clarification: "Now I am" should be "now I am not."
- (00:38:40) - Amendment: The correct term is "first world," not "third world."
- (00:39:40) - Fact Check: Nigeria's minimum wage is about 65 dollars per month.
- (00:55:00) - Misconception: The "Napoleon complex" refers to shorter individuals' aggressive behavior, not a belief in achieving more. Recent research debunks this theory.
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#160: In this episode, I share my personal journey of building healthy habits, focusing on my gym journey and how it helped me with my ADHD. I discuss the importance of consistency and playing the long game when it comes to maintaining habits. I also touch on the impact of nutrition and the challenges of transitioning to a new language for my podcast. Enjoy!
Timestamps
- (00:00:00) Background Story
- (01:05:00) Gym Journey
- (02:31:00) ADHD Journey
- (03:46:00) First Time in the Gym
- (04:49:00) Motivation and Accountability
- (05:29:00) Fluctuations in Consistency
- (07:48:00) The Ultimate Goal
- (08:20:00) Playing the Long Game
- (10:13:00) The Importance of Staying in Shape
- (11:48:00) The Long Game Approach
- (13:51:00) The Positive Feedback Loop
- (15:03:00) Defining Daily Inputs
- (15:34:00) Applying the Concept to Your Life
- (16:15:00) Eating Healthy and Energy Levels
- (16:55:00) Resolving ADHD Symptoms
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#159: In this episode, my guest is Stefan Baer, the chief operating officer (COO) of Stadler Rail US, a Swiss railway rolling stock manufacturer.
Having a deep relationship with your own employees can be challenging as an executive, especially if you lead hundreds of people like Stefan. However, Stefan has found a routine that has dramatically elevated the bond with his team.
Expect to learn the three characteristics of Stefan as a COO, what a typical day in the life of a COO looks like, the first time speaking in front of a huge crowd as an executive, how to become good at math, how to set the right priorities as a manager, what skip-level interviews are, his career at STADLER RAIL and much more.
Timestamps
- (00:02:00) The relationship between a sense of urgency and success.
- (00:10:30) Why did he start an apprenticeship as an automation technician?
- (00:16:20) How to follow through.
- (00:25:40) Identity, growth mindset, and how to become good at math.
- (00:31:20) Reflecting on actions and being able to admit mistakes.
- (00:44:03) Being a service manager at ABB.
- (00:52:40) His ice hockey journey and its impact on his career.
- (01:07:50) Carl Jung's psychological theory and what drives Stefan as a COO at STADLER RAIL.
- (01:21:46) The first time speaking in front of a huge crowd as a COO.
- (01:25:03) Three characteristics of Stefan as a COO.
- (01:31:55) Skip-level interviews.
- (01:41:19) About his engineering education.
- (01:58:25) His success habits to perform high as an executive.
- (02:07:37) A typical day in the life of a COO and what provides mental stimulation.
- (02:15:05) Advice to 20-year-old Stefan.
- (02:18:40) Three life lessons he would like to be remembered for.
Stefan Baer
Things Mentioned
- Cal Newport: "Follow Your Passion" Is Bad Advice
- Atomic Habits by James Clear
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey
- David Goggins
- How I Developed Confidence (Alex Hormozi)
- My German interview with the CEO of the SPAETER Group, Thomas Freuler
- What Is a Skip-Level Meeting? (And How to Prepare for One)
- $100M Leads by Alex Hormozi
- 3 Traits of the Most Successful
- Deep Work by Cal Newport
Nicola Flückiger
Contact Me
- Email me with any feedback, ideas, or insights you've gained from the episodes: nicolafluckiger.me@gmail.com
#183: Welcome to Intense Life with Nicola Flückiger
1:34
#182: 3 Business Lessons from Coaching 40+ Clients
11:06
#181: 8 Tips to Remember More from Your Books!
33:34
#180: You’ve been chasing your goals wrong!
17:17
#179: 3 Simple Hacks to Master Your Calendar Instantly!
17:22
#178: From Procrastination to Productivity with a Simple Brain Hack
21:07
#177: This Law Changed How I Approach Business
16:56
#176: My 6-Step Daily Planning Routine That Saved Me 20+ Hrs a Week
36:55
#175: How I Sleep Like a BABY - 7 Tips
28:30
#174: How I Mastered My Emails in 3 Steps
15:23
#173: 5 Life-Changing Lessons from Top Non-Fiction Books
31:56
#172: How I Found My Passion
40:47
#171: A Weekly Routine You Can’t Afford to Miss - 4 Steps to Maximize Productivity
25:41
#170: How Being Proactive Changed My Life! [Habit 1]
20:44
#169: 10 Rules I Learned From Dr. Jordan B. Peterson
53:11
#168: 5 Lessons I Learned From Entrepreneur Alex Hormozi
36:54
#167: How I Successfully Achieve My Goals
21:39
#166: The High-Performance Mindset for Creating an Identity Shift & Establishing Consistency
40:01
#165: Overcome Procrastination With Albert Einstein's Help
15:23
#164: I'm So Overwhelmed. Where Do I Start?
27:00
#163: ADHD & Digital Minimalism: The Power Of Less
18:34
#162: 3 Steps How I Turned ADHD Into a Superpower
10:01
#161: He Wants To Transform Mental Health Globally - Leo Kösters, Founder Of beyond-you.net
1:19:08
#160: This is WHY I didn't stick to my HABITS as an ADHDer!
29:32
#159: COO Reveals: This Is How You Strengthen The Bond With Your Employees - Stefan Baer, Chief Operating Officer Of Stadler Rail US
2:23:42