Next Level University

No One Knows You Like YOU Do - Freestyle Friday (1887)

• Kevin Palmieri and Alan Lazaros

Share episode

Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.

0:00 | 36:03

What’s the one thing in your life that, if done consistently, could change everything? Kevin and Alan are here to share their journey of harmonizing passion, persistence, and self-care while hosting over 1,800 daily podcast episodes. They’ll inspire you to uncover your own “main train,” the driving force that leads to growth and fulfillment. Learn how to customize your routines, tackle mental health struggles, and stay committed when life gets tough. Don’t miss this honest, lighthearted discussion that might spark your next breakthrough!

Links mentioned:
Next Level Dreamliner: https://a.co/d/9fPpxEt
Next Level Book Club Registration - https://bit.ly/42E4n8M

______________________

NLU is not just a podcast; it’s a gateway to a wealth of resources designed to help you achieve your goals and dreams. From our Next Level Dreamliner to our Group Coaching, we offer a variety of tools and communities to support your personal development journey.

For more information, please check out our website at the link below. 👇

Website 💻  http://www.nextleveluniverse.com

_______________________

Any of these communities or resources are FREE to join and consume
Next Level Nation - https://www.facebook.com/groups/459320958216700
Next Level 5 To Thrive (free course) - ​​https://bit.ly/3xffver
Next Level U Book Club - https://bit.ly/3BQBYDr
Next Level Monthly Meet-up:  https://www.nextleveluniverse.com/monthly-meetups/

_______________________

We love connecting with you guys! Reach out on Instagram, Facebook, or via email. We’re here to support you in your personal and professional development journey.

Instagram 📷
Kevin: https://www.instagram.com/neverquitkid/
Alan: https://www.instagram.com/alazaros88/

Facebook ✍
Alan: https://www.facebook.com/alan.lazaros
Kevin: https://www.facebook.com/kevin.palmieri.90/

Email 💬
Kevin@nextleveluniverse.com
Alan@nextleveluniverse.com

LinkedIn ✍
Kevin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-palmieri-5b7736160/
Alan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alanlazarosllc/

_______________________

Show notes:
(2:55) Mental health and productivity
(7:46) The challenges of being a “dream chaser.”
(13:27) Kevin and Alan’s opposite approaches to morning and evening productivity
(18:54) At NLU, we want you to win! So, we’re giving tools and resources to ensure your success. Join our Monthly Meet-up every first Thursday of the month at 5 PM. https://bit.ly/40IJYAu
(24:38) How the podcast became their “main train” for success
(28:46) Handling life challenges while staying committed
(33:14) Finding

Send a text to Kevin and Alan!

🎙️ Hosted by Kevin Palmieri and Alan Lazaros

Next Level University is a top-ranked daily podcast for dream chasers and self-improvement lovers. With over 2,100 episodes, we help you level up in life, love, health, and wealth one day at a time. Subscribe for real, honest, no-fluff growth every single day.

Kevin Palmieri

honestly, I would never let myself off the hook if we were to miss an episode Like I would never. There's certain things that you can't ever miss, because if you miss them once, it's as good as missing it forever, and that, to me, that's like that's the thing Productivity, peak performance, whatever you want to label it.

Alan Lazaros

When are you at your best? For me, I hit my best when I do my morning wake up. I need to learn and eat protein first thing lately, love it.

Kevin Palmieri

Welcome to Next Level University. I'm your host, kevin Palmieri.

Alan Lazaros

And I'm your co-host, Alan Lazarus.

Kevin Palmieri

At NLU, we believe in a heart-driven but no BS approach to holistic self-improvement for dream chasers.

Alan Lazaros

Our goal with every episode is to help you level up your life love health and wealth.

Kevin Palmieri

We bring you a new episode every single day, on topics like confidence, self-belief, self-worth, self-awareness, relationships, boundaries, consistency, habits and defining your own unique version of success.

Alan Lazaros

Self-improvement in your pocket, every day, from anywhere, completely free.

Kevin Palmieri

Welcome to Next Level University. They're completely free. Welcome to Next Level University, next Level Nation. Welcome back to another episode of Next Level University, where we help you level up your life, your love, your health and your wealth. Today, for episode number 1,887, it's Freestyle Friday. Also, I got a haircut. So, if you're listening, you have no idea that I am usually, and have been for the last several months, a disheveled mess. I got a haircut. So, if you're listening, you have no idea that I am usually, and have been for the last several months, a disheveled mess. I got a haircut today and that is cool. Strong work. Yeah, I went out into the world during the day and everything.

Alan Lazaros

What am I doing? I'm going to go get contacts during the day.

Kevin Palmieri

During the day when is the last time you left the house on a weekday between the hours of 9 am and 5 pm?

Alan Lazaros

I don't know Long time. We're going on a trip for Thanksgiving. Where are you going? Beaufort, South Carolina. Ah, yes, yes.

Kevin Palmieri

If anybody hears a meow, Fudge is in the office with me. He's locked in the office with me because there's mayhem going on.

Alan Lazaros

We're going to work, emil and I we're going to. Last time we road tripped. This time we're going to fly, pew Fly, and I'm still going to be coaching you and I are going to have to do 14 episodes the week before, though. Ooh, I hate that for me. You and I are going to have to do 14 episodes the week before though.

Mental health and productivity

Kevin Palmieri

Ooh, I hate that for me. Yeah, actually, I hate that for you more than for me, because no, for me, because that means it's going to be 9 am and 7 pm the week before will be tough, but Well, we'll figure it out. So this was my thought I had. I've had a rough two days. The last two days have been rough. Set myself up here, I feel like I'm not in the right spot. It's been rough internally. Externally, everything's good. I feel good externally, but internally there's just been a lot of stuff. I've been going through some stuff, and I had a moment today where it was like I don't want to do a fucking thing. I don't want to do a fucking thing.

Kevin Palmieri

I don't want to do anything I need to. I want to lay down. I have I'm like foggy because I'm so stressed out and so overwhelmed and I said, kev, just take a minute, go get in the shower, turn the hot, turn the hot water on, enjoy the shower. Give yourself 10 minutes, minutes, give yourself 15 minutes. Let's go back out and see how we feel. What do you need? No, I didn't meditate there, I didn't do.

Alan Lazaros

No, no, real quick yeah, emilia and I were on a walk last night under the stars, beautiful stars we were. We were bundled because it's getting cold, it is, and she somehow, on the walk, she said something about the showers and I I took I take long showers was from her perspective. I was like facts, yeah, okay we know this what do you mean?

Alan Lazaros

she's like no, I'm not making it wrong, it's totally fine, just you know. I said, well, how long are you know your showers? And I looked it up average, american and again, for anyone, global. I apologize that we americans make everything about us in advance, but I needed the statistics for, like the us average shower five to ten minutes. I was like, oh my god, I do take long showers Seven, seven max. No chance dude. What are we doing in here? I, I do. I brush my teeth, I floss. I'm learning Always.

Kevin Palmieri

You said you shave in the shower. So do I. Yeah, but I only. I only shave once a week. Same yeah, it doesn't take me long to shave. I have an electric razor. Boom, bada, bing, bada, boom Quick.

Alan Lazaros

Quickly. Well, here's my point. I apparently take long showers, that's all you do, and I never would have thought she's like oh yeah, I expected that. I started, I thought for sure a half hour would be the average.

Kevin Palmieri

I've been saying this for years.

Alan Lazaros

I knew that If you, were to ask A-L-E-X-A or S-I-R-I or any other AI device, what is the average length of a shower for the average American? What do you think the answer would be?

Kevin Palmieri

I would guess.

Alan Lazaros

I thought 30 minutes, for sure. What the freak.

Kevin Palmieri

I thought so I would have guessed 12 minutes max. Really the freak. I thought so I would have guessed 12 minutes max. Really 30 minutes, man, five to ten? Yeah, no, I'm not, I don't think 30 minutes. What do you? Do you have a closet to narnia?

Alan Lazaros

you walk through the shower into another world I'm just saying good 15 is good for me, a 15 is good for me. Look, who am I to judge?

Kevin Palmieri

apparently I'm spoiled with my shower you are very spoiled with your shower. Yes, I need it as a little reset. This is my thought for freestyle friday. Okay, this is my thought I don't took a 16 minute shower. No, I was like I had to. I had to wash my hair twice because I got my hair cut. You gotta get all the hair out. It's probably eight minutes. Eight minute shower. Nice, I don't mess around, man, I'm in a rush quick.

Alan Lazaros

I know this is totally irrelevant.

Kevin Palmieri

I'm very thorough in my cleanliness. It's becoming irrelevant.

Alan Lazaros

Is it fair to say I'm a clean I? Told you, man, I said I'm very clean, I'm a clean man. I would say you're a clean man. I'm very thorough in my cleanliness, so I realize that that's probably why.

The challenges of being a "dream chaser."

Kevin Palmieri

Some of that's my desire. Okay, we're going to move on. I went in the shower, mm-hmm, and I had a moment where I don't think that we talk about it a lot, but I don't think that mental health is talked about enough, and what to do when you're having a mental health day. I don't think people really talk about that Because I don't know. I don't know if it feels like it signifies weakness or Because there's always. I have two dialogues One Kev push to the degree that you think is constructive. You're not 100%. If you're really struggling and your mental health you feel like it's off, you've got to make sure you're taking care of you. There's one piece and there's this other piece of me that's like, ah, just work harder anyway, a little bit. I have that piece. Some days that helps for me. Other days it doesn't. But like last night, I was answering messages until like I don't know what time did I text you. I was on WhatsApp until like 9 o'clock last night, so it was a.

Kevin Palmieri

That'll ruin a whole week. It was a 15 hour day Like an 81 sleep score.

Alan Lazaros

So we're good. Strong work we're good. I was up messaging at 3.30 in the morning. Not good and I still got an 83. Went back to bed after that.

Kevin Palmieri

I got a 59 the night before Oof.

Alan Lazaros

And then I worked 64.

Kevin Palmieri

The night before Then I worked a 16 hour day, not great, no, so that's why I got an 81. But that's my thought for this episode. I don't know If you're a dream chaser. Nobody is really going to be there to tell you to speed up or slow down, and you have to be the one who knows yourself. I think that's another reason why self-awareness is so important. We didn't talk about this, did we? I was talking to a podcast host that I was on their show a long time ago and I reached out and said, hey, long time, no talk. How are things? And he said well, I left my full-time job and I'm doing this entrepreneur thing. He said let me tell you, kevin, very humbling, when you leave a full-time job and then you're like, oh, I have so much time, I'm going to accomplish so much, and you just have no idea what to do you're just like so much time and so little direction.

Kevin Palmieri

That's being a dream chaser. But I I think it also goes the other way of say you have a list of 50 things that need to get done and you're sick or something. You feel like your mental health is off, whatever, whatever, whatever it is, do you push through or do you take the time? I think that's a really important thing to understand about yourself and what's your natural tendency? Do you naturally say, well, I'll worry about that later, and then you never, you never work on it? Do you feel like maybe on the other end, you say I have my. I have a little, a little tickle in my throat. I need to take the day off. I have a little tickle in my throat, I need to take the day off. Where are you on this? Because I had COVID once and we were grinding. It was right before. I think it was right before Christmas 2022, I think Mind-blowing. It was that long ago and we were grinding. That's when I was on like 20 other shows a week. It was nuts yeah, that is nuts.

Kevin Palmieri

It was nuts and I remember I think it was on a friday I woke up and I felt terrible. I had a migraine, my throat was sore, I was like dizzy and I think I had nine calls that day and I I was like oh, this is going to suck. This is going to suck so bad.

Alan Lazaros

And you know what the weird thing is You're grateful for the nine calls.

Kevin Palmieri

I was super grateful.

Alan Lazaros

As a business owner, I always say this. And for the dream chasers out there, jesus, dream chasers, for the dream chasers, for the dream chasers out there, two types of challenges. One is not enough demand, the other one's too much demand. Yes, and when you wake up with nine sessions back to back, you are grateful for that, because you remember when you had two calls and couldn't get anyone on your calendar crickets. So you can't forget. Crickets is worse than nine calls. But here's thing when you have nine calls, and that becomes the norm, how do you sustain?

Kevin Palmieri

that, yeah, there's no, you kind of can't. It's not like you can't have a day off, it's like you can't have three hours off.

Alan Lazaros

So what was your? I've been there and I'm going to tell you mine, but I want to know what you did. What did you do?

Kevin Palmieri

I hammered it. Yeah, I hammered, I hammered everything and then I got to the end of the day and I have never my head has never hurt as I I. I remember trying to go to bed that night and I was just laying in bed and I physically couldn't move because of how bad bad my head hurt it was. I've never had a headache like that. It was excruciating. It was one of the worst pains I've ever experienced.

Alan Lazaros

It was terrible Hammer, some ibuprofen, I don't know.

Kevin Palmieri

Probably, Honestly, probably not. I don't like ibuprofen. I tend not to take it. I try not to take it ever. I try to take almost no medicine. I think it's a stubborn part of me. Kev nobody cares. Hey, nobody cares. You know, take it. You need a little NyQuil. Why don't you take it? You're only hurting yourself.

Alan Lazaros

Tools versus crutches. We've done an episode on that. I know, but I NyQuil every now and then. You can't become dependent on it. But I'll tell you what you want to sleep like a baby. Yeah, well it was terrible Every now and then.

Kevin Palmieri

I felt like absolute garbage and it was brutal.

Alan Lazaros

So I've been there and I know for the listeners this is whatever it is. You wake up and you're not in it, not good. And you look at your calendar and or your day and you go how in the hell am I going to do this? Oh yeah, and what I try to do is I'll try to move my first one so that I have a little extra. Like, if I buy myself an hour max too, I can usually get it done and that way it I basically move. So, let's say, I move one or two podcasts or coaching sessions, usually not coaching, so coaching's, so everyone who's listening, long-term listener, I have a thing called a G3 target, genius zone. Do it in coaching all the time. All my clients know.

Alan Lazaros

For new listeners I'm changing it to P3, priority one, priority two, priority three. I think that makes more sense and for each quarter we have a P3 target. We have priority one, two and three. We did a meetup on this recently. My number one priority is coaching, so I wouldn't move a coaching session. My priority two is training. My priority three is podcasting, so I might move and reschedule a podcast. Maybe If I'm really struggling I'll move that. So you used to talk about tetris calendar. Tetris, I'll try to move my calendar so that I have a space where I can actually take care of me, why the morning?

Kevin Palmieri

why do you do it in the morning as opposed to I for me?

Alan Lazaros

it's the opposite evening. Yeah, it's get it done, and then, and then r and r for me it's I need the time in the morning. Yeah, interesting, yeah, which is interesting for sure.

Kevin Palmieri

Isn't it weird how One of the weirdest things about you and I working together for as long as we have is we are almost the polar opposites in everything. I would rather get up early and work early, and I'm not saying you had a phase where you were up every day at whatever 4 or 5.

Alan Lazaros

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Kevin Palmieri

I don't. I hate working late. I hate it.

Alan Lazaros

I hate getting up early, so interesting.

Kevin Palmieri

I know I when I used to be a personal trainer sorry I interrupted you, but you were gonna interrupt me if I didn't interrupt you first had to go. When I used to be a personal trainer it was dumb. You had no matter what if worked a shift. You had to do like two check items. So you had to do. You had to clean the treadmills and clean the bathroom or clean the back office, whatever. It was dumb. I always made sure everything I had to do was before my last client, cause the second. My last client walked out the door. I was out of there always. Yeah, I'm not cleaning the bathroom before I go, I'm gonna clean the bathroom before the client comes in. Then I'll give it a real quick make sure everything's good before I leave. No, I am. I prep heavily when it comes to that. When I'm, if I am leaving like say I'm working a day and then I'm going somewhere later I prep my stuff in the morning to make sure everything is ready.

Alan Lazaros

When we travel together, kevin is always. I wake up, mosey downstairs and he's already working. He's been working for an hour and a half, maybe two, and the moment we're done with whatever we're doing, I'm done, kevin's done. Last night I couldn't sleep, so I ended up doing messages, social media, different things, and then I went back to bed and I knew I was going to sleep in because I had already gotten most of my morning routine done. So at the end of the day, you do the gym in the morning, you do the gym in the morning, I do the gym in the evening.

Alan Lazaros

You put a lot of willpower into your workouts, I think so you probably get better workouts than I do. I think I get better, probably, morning routines than you do, most likely, and not not morning routines. In terms of the amount of time, I think you probably have more time typically, but I'd be willing to bet that my cognitive output and again to make this relevant to the listeners productivity, peak performance, whatever you want to label it when are you at your best? For me, I hit my best when I do my morning wake up. I need to learn and eat protein first thing. Lately, lately, love it Dreamliner in an ideal world.

Alan Lazaros

Romwod hasn't been happening, romwod's mobility, and then I would shower, for apparently, three hours, yeah, no, no, 15 minutes while learning, get dressed, do my thing, and then I get to my first session, I'm ready to rock and I'm good till I. I mean, we're working till 8 30 at night tonight. Emilia, yeah, that is excessive. I usually try to cut it at 7 30 latest. And then we go to the freaking gym dude, sometimes we're sitting in the parking lot and it's emilia and I'll get downstairs and she'll we'll have worked a whole day too and I'll say I need you to hold the line, and she'll she'll say the same thing one of us has to hold the line because I'm ready to call it, that's why I do in the morning, let's do a walk you won't do it.

Kevin Palmieri

You're gonna walk instead tonight. We're gonna walk.

Alan Lazaros

We're supposed to go to the gym. We're gonna go walk 8 30. You think I'm going to the gym.

Kevin Palmieri

You resent that at all? You resent the fact that you again I'm not gonna say you can't go to the gym? Do you resent the fact that it's harder now to go to the gym?

Alan Lazaros

if you're being real with us, yeah, I would say it pisses me off a lot that I cannot reach my standards in all things, but I also that frustration I use to get better. So, for example, I think my workouts so we've been doing 45 minute workouts. We've been exercising every day 45 minutes. We've been doing weight training every other day, but honestly, it's probably at minimum one every three days and so so. So we're going to double up on Friday and Saturday.

Alan Lazaros

Emilia and I, every single week, every Sunday, we set up the week for success and she we have it on our whiteboard Monday through Saturday, monday through Sunday. But we do this on Sunday so that never really happens. And we we have metrics that we track. We have what we're going to eat, we have whether it's a walk or a workout, and so it's push, pull legs, and so it's walk, push, walk, pull, walk legs for the week, and then we pivot and then she. So she has group coaching tonight, so she puts whatever the big items are in our calendars so that we know and we can be more proactive.

At NLU, we want you to win! So, we're giving tools and resources to ensure your success. Join our Monthly Meet-up every first Thursday of the month at 5 PM.

Alan Lazaros

Okay, so I need to do dinner on the night that she's doing group coaching. She needs to do dinner on the night I'm doing group coaching. These systems and tools and structures sound insane. It's almost like the more that you're trying to accomplish, the more you kind of have to do these wonky things that are very unusual. Nlu listener, what is happening? I just wanted to jump in here and let you know if you want to get to the next level faster. We have a free virtual monthly meetup at the first Thursday of every month. You can connect with like-minded people and become a bigger part of this amazing global community.

Kevin Palmieri

The link to register will be in the show notes. I think that's why so many of the morning routines you hear are just out there, because it's it's people that have way different goals than most people yeah, that's why they have weird morning routines you remember when you and I we went to a brendan burchard event and later that night we so we were pictures with the speakers and tagging instagram.

Alan Lazaros

That was back when we were doing a lot of instagram and brendan burchard he posted a video of him doing the ice bath the night before. These things that people do are customized to what they're doing. He's on stage all day, on his feet all day for five days straight during high performance academy. You don't need to do that unless, right, that's what you're doing.

Kevin Palmieri

You and I aren't on our feet all day on my butt a lot of my arse all day so you and I might not need a night, a cold plunge first thing every morning.

Alan Lazaros

So people take these morning routines. What they don't realize is that these are customized. Don't just drag and drop a morning routine, you need to customize it completely. That's why I love one-on-one coaching so much. I have one client doing this morning routine, one client doing. Everyone has a different system. Everyone does goals, metrics, habits, skills and identity, but everyone has a different set of metrics and habits, as you should, yeah as you should.

Kevin Palmieri

That's why it's so challenging. That's the other thing too Just because you do somebody else's morning routine does not suggest you're going to get the results that they get. That's only one piece. I think it's supplemental that really adds value to the primary. So I'm pretty sure there's science out that has disproved that cold water does anything for healing. I'm pretty sure, like that's out there now it's like Is it lower inflammation or whatever? No, I don't think so. Even the ice thing I don't think that's real. I'm pretty sure that's been like debunked, that icing something doesn't really do anything. Don't quote me on it, but I saw a study is it?

Kevin Palmieri

rice rest, rest, ice compression and elevation elevation. Yeah, I think the person who came out with that was like I messed up, I think again, don't quote me on this, I'm not.

Alan Lazaros

Wouldn't be the first time, it wouldn't be the you know what actually pluto's not actually a planet.

Kevin Palmieri

I have a question how many times do you make that plan on Sunday and then does it actually happen?

Alan Lazaros

like that?

Kevin Palmieri

Do you ever make the plan on Sunday and then it just actually happens? What percentage of stuff gets shifted?

Alan Lazaros

I had to have a challenging conversation with Amelia once about her relationship with pivots. She doesn't like to pivot, understandable't pivot. You're screwed. You set up this. What is the? The quote is planning is indispensable, but plans are useless. It's it's the planning that's super important, but you're gonna pivot throughout the week and I'm much more. I have a much better relationship with pivoting than emilia. She's come, come way up, which is awesome. So the other day we're going to do a conscious couples podcast episode and I I walk into the office just like this with my head down, for those of you can't see and she's like you need to pivot. It's like, yes, we're not doing this today?

Alan Lazaros

No, the answer is no, not doing it. We're going to move it. You want to know why? Because we can, and I can't do it right now, and obviously I'm being playful, but never once has the whole week been planned and there wasn't a pivot. Even you and I, how many times a week do we do it?

Kevin Palmieri

This wasn't even on the calendar until yesterday. This wasn't even supposed to happen. I woke up no, before I went to bed last night. I was like we don't have an episode for Friday, we have to record an episode tomorrow.

Alan Lazaros

People ask us, podcasters ask us. So many people ask us. People ask podcasters. How do you do one a day? I don't understand how you sustain that and what would your answer be to that, because it's obviously not just one answer the best answer I I think I could possibly give is outside of my wife.

Kevin Palmieri

It is the main priority. I put the podcast over me. It's not about me, it's about the podcast.

Alan Lazaros

If it doesn't matter, if I don't feel it's, yeah if you had to give five things, how we did this, what would you? What would be the five One?

How the podcast became their "main train" for success

Kevin Palmieri

I think we are. That would be the first one. Two we are naturally consistent human beings, bodybuilders, fitness. That helps Like there's something to somebody who knows just do the input, do the input, do the input. So that's two. The third one is there's two of us, so there's always extra accountability. One is there's two of us, so there's always extra accountability. The fourth one would be we literally have it in our branding, so there is even more account, uh, public accountability there. Self-improvement in your pocket, every day, from anywhere on the planet, completely free. Yeah, I locked it in. It's it's locked in. Honestly, I would never let myself off the hook. If we were to miss an episode, I would never. There's certain things that you can't ever miss, because if you miss them once, it's as good as missing it forever. And to me that's the thing. Yeah, it's like we wear it as a badge of honor.

Alan Lazaros

It's hard to explain, but I can wear it as a badge of honor. It's hard to explain, but it is. It's a badge of honor, it's it's it's a self against self. It's you versus your potential. It's public and private.

Kevin Palmieri

It's and it's a mission. It's not a podcast, it's a mission. It's like I don't. It's not even about the episode, it's about the fact that this is the mission. This is what we do. We we're going to try to do an episode every day for as long as humanly possible. That's what it is yeah, it compounds it's.

Kevin Palmieri

It's very cool but it's a priority. I think that's the biggest difference is it's it's a priority. It's a priority. It's outside of my wife. I. Almost nothing else matters. If the episode hasn't been recorded, it doesn't matter. That I haven't eaten, it doesn't matter, it's not, I don't, I'm not, I can't think about that right now.

Alan Lazaros

My future father-in-law is coming over in six minutes, but we have. We have some time for this. I'm grateful he's coming over in nine minutes. I have a timer set for six, the, and when I say future father-in-law, everyone assumes I'm engaged.

Kevin Palmieri

we email and I are very future oriented.

Alan Lazaros

We talk about it. We intend on it. All this stuff. I just marry the future, yeah, yeah. How does someone set, okay, let's just say, kevin and I, it's our job to help you be successful and fulfilled holistically health, wealth, love, awesome. That's the train, that's the point of the podcast, that's the purpose, that's the mission. Spread self-improvement Awesome. The podcast is the one thing that drives everything else Deep conversation. Okay, you and I improve ourselves. We lead by example, we help others improve. It also builds a brand. It also builds credibility. It also helps us build grit and accountability. It also allows us to grow and scale the brand and become known. It also allows us to share our products and services Like that's the one train that allows all the other trains.

Alan Lazaros

I used to do this and I don't know if it'll land because I don't know if this is. Maybe we're too old now for this but the very first Matrix movie. There's the second one it's called Matrix Reloaded and there's this scene where he's flying through the Matrix I this isn't where you thought I was going and I always pull it up on my coaching sessions. I haven't done it in a while, but I used to all the time because I tried to explain this concept. And neo's flying through the matrix to try to save trinity.

Kevin Palmieri

You've seen these movies I think I saw the first one and I was like it's too old, too far gone.

Alan Lazaros

Yeah, floppy disk right out of the front, so major reloaded flying through the matrix. He's the one he's doing it. He's hammering so fast that there's cars and glass spoiler alerts.

Alan Lazaros

Spoiler alert I mean, come on, this came out what in 2002? It's all fine. So this is a kid and he's flying through, I think, new york city, some large city, and there's glass and there's cars and there's all these things, this vortex of he's flying so fast that there's all these other things surrounding him. I pull that picture up and it's Neo in the center and all this debris around it. I say what's your Neo? The podcast is the Neo for Kevin and I, for Kevin and I.

Alan Lazaros

If you took away this podcast, you would take away a large percentage of you and I's growth, you and I's business, you and I's brand, you and I's impact, you and I's profitability, you and I's learning, you and I's identity. So for anyone out there watching or listening, this isn't what probably kevin tended with freestyle friday. But what's the one train that if you really did stay consistent at it and you really did make it the priority other than your wife or husband or family or kids or whatever and you never missed that one thing, it would change everything. That's a great question. If I never missed this one thing, it could change everything. What's that thing?

Kevin Palmieri

Yeah, it's hard. It's hard to juggle life for a long period of time, a long period of time, in a constructive direction. It's really hard to do that because there's there's so many life things that are going to happen, that that I think that's when it gets challenging Days like today, where I'm overwhelmed and I'm stressed out and I had some stuff happen and I'm not. It just sucks.

Alan Lazaros

It's like ah, it's not the end of the world.

Kevin Palmieri

It's not. It's not going to be super hard to record an episode, but when, when we were going through some family stuff and somebody in the family was passing away and we were going back and forth to see this person, it's like you and I had to. We recorded an episode at like nine o'clock at night or something. I was like, hey man, I I have to be there, I can't, I can't miss this. Are you available later?

Alan Lazaros

Yeah, of course.

Kevin Palmieri

And then there's been times where I don't know what happened I don't know if you like I think you might have been no, you weren't sick. I don't know if you overslept or something and you missed a meeting on Saturday morning and we were supposed to record and I was like dude, I can't record later, I'm not going to be home, or something and you and I ended up recording on sunday like sunday's family day. We very, very, very rarely I can probably count on one hand how many times you've actually recorded on sunday, for nlu at least, and I'm sure, yeah, yeah, for sure, I do, you do.

Alan Lazaros

I can't stand doing front-facing stuff on sunday every now and then I have to with emilia. But quick story I 2020. I have a coach his name name's Alex and one of the best coaches I've ever had. I screwed that up, but he said what are your dreams? I've told this story before, but it's super important, especially for the new listeners. And I told him all of them fitness model, fitness competitor speaker, commencement address at my alma mater. You know all this, all of it, all this stuff.

Alan Lazaros

He said okay, if you had to pick one, no, no, no, no. I've been told what I can't do my whole life. You're not going to be one of those people, are you? He said, no, no, bear with me, hypothetically, if you had to pick one this is back in the hyper conscious podcast days If you had to pick one to go all in on which one would it be? And I said it would. I really had to sit with it. This like took a minute. I had to really think Because I was so committed to all my dreams and I said it's the podcast. He said okay, why? I said I don't need someone else's permission to practice my craft. I can just go practice speaking with Kev as much and as often as we want, and it's where we're having the biggest impact. We're meeting listeners. We used to meet listeners constantly back in those days when Instagram actually worked.

Kevin Palmieri

I'm kidding.

Alan Lazaros

But, like it's the podcast, it's the most fulfilling answer, answer, answer. He said well, here's the secret If you go all in on that one, you can have all the rest. And he's absolutely right, except for fitness.

Kevin Palmieri

I talk about that all the time on podcasts. I think that's one of the most profound things I've ever learned, because that's the thing. I never wanted to be a speaker, I never planned on being a speaker, I never thought I'd get paid to speak. That happened because of the podcast, all of that happened.

Alan Lazaros

If you wrote a list out of all the things that happened because of the podcast, that would be insane. It'd be like everything, it'd be 90% of your impact and your success Same.

Alan Lazaros

And that's if you can find that for you out there watching or listening. I got a opportunity again. We'll see, but I might be going to WPI tomorrow for an opportunity to speak. I had some students reach out. That was because of the podcast. Right, the podcast is not only the impact but it's also the credibility. So you never know what's your thing. What's the main train that, if you were consistent, maybe it's personal development every day, maybe it's listening to this show every day, maybe it's making sure you exercise every day. That's been a game changer for me. What's the main train that makes all the rest of your life work better? And then if you just focus some time and effort on making sure that thing happens and that you adapt and keep it sustainable, it can change everything.

Kevin Palmieri

It can definitely change everything. That was a little Freestyle Friday action. I enjoyed this one very much. Same. The takeaway for me would be I don't even really know. You got to know the way you flow through your day, because when you pivot which you most likely will have to at some point your pivot's going to be different than mine, which is going to be different than Alan's, and I think that's super important. I don't know if cold water matters at all. Evidently, that's another thing that we talked about today. And one thing what is the one thing that will be the train that gives you the opportunity to attach other trains to it, Not a train, the train, what are the things that you attach to it.

Kevin Palmieri

You're asking the wrong guy guy. I guess it's like the engine and then the carts. Yeah, there you go. You find your engine and everything else kind of becomes carts Interesting. All right, cool Next Level Nation if you have not purchased your Dreamliner. Next Level Dreamliner. Alan was talking about it. No, you were talking about fitness. I am doing this every day. It's a game changer for me. Again, we talk about the stuff we believe in. I believe in it very deeply, so we will have that as a link in the show notes, the direct link to Amazon. Alan, what do you have going on that you want to?

Alan Lazaros

talk about. What do I have going on? Book club, we're starting a new book Texting pops.

Kevin Palmieri

Yes, new new book the art of thinking. Clearly. Do you know the guy's name? Absolutely not rob ralph. I think it's ralph. I believe he's european, maybe I don't.

Alan Lazaros

I don't know uh, it's the art of thinking clearly. It's about the cognitive biases, it's how to think more rationally and it's how to eliminate cognitive distortions. I always say you can't make good choices if you're not thinking accurately. This is going to be the book to help you think more accurately so you can make better choices. Book Club the link to register will be in the show notes. We have a little WhatsApp community. It's not recorded, it's totally private. We set intentions each week. We really hope self-improvement books for self-improvement people, next level books with next level people. We hope that you join us. We've been doing it for almost four years years.

Outro

Kevin Palmieri

If you want to read more books, a great way to do it. We talked about how we've stayed consistent accountability and necessity. Accountability and necessity. As always, we love you, we appreciate you, grateful for each and every one of you, and at NLU we don't have fans, we have family. We will talk to you all tomorrow.

Alan Lazaros

Stay consistent Next level nation.

Kevin Palmieri

Thanks for joining us for another episode of Next Level University. We love connecting with the Next Level family.

Alan Lazaros

We mean it when we say family. If you ever need anything, please reach out to us directly. Everything you need to get a hold of us is in the show notes.

Kevin Palmieri

Thank you again and we will talk to you tomorrow. You.

Head Shot

Alan Lazaros

Host
Head Shot

Kevin Palmieri

Host