The Future Is A Different Place (1947)

In today’s episode, Kevin and Alan share how balancing big-picture thinking with action leads to success. Discover practical ways to overcome procrastination, leverage your strengths, and build momentum toward your goals. Whether you’re a dreamer, a doer, or somewhere in between, this episode will inspire you to take that next step today.

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Show notes:
(3:35) Turning inspiration into action
(5:04) Momentum Vs. Procrastination
(8:27) Strategic thinking Vs. Immediate action
(11:50) Kevin’s journey: from dirt to clouds
(12:24) 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.
(14:12) Tethering big dreams into reality
(19:32) Which are you: Clouds or dirt?
(20:41) Outro

🎙️ 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.

Transcript

Kevin Palmieri 0:00

this isn't that big of a deal . In the grand scheme of things , it's not the end of the world , and the more you make it feel like the end of the world , the more it's going to feel like it is . So we have to make sure that we understand this is the short term . This doesn't have to be forever . It's not going to be forever . I think it's a very unique juggling act . I think it's a skill worth developing .

Alan Lazaros 0:22

When you do believe in your ability to manifest the decade , sometimes you can get lost in the decade and you forget about the now . And that's why you and I drove to five together and you were really good at tethering me to reality , and every time I had a bold idea you'd say , yeah , but it could snow or whatever Insert seemingly pessimistic thing . And now that I coach couples and I have been for the last four years there's almost always an overly optimistic partner and an overly pessimistic partner .

Kevin Palmieri 0:47

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

Alan Lazaros 0:52

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

Kevin Palmieri 0:55

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

Alan Lazaros 1:01

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

Kevin Palmieri 1:08

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 1:24

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

Kevin Palmieri 1:33

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 1947 , the future is a dangerous place , potentially . And maybe it's a little bit of a different perspective than you would guess from seeing that title . I had a call today with an amazing client , and this client is somebody who is very intuitive , very spiritual , very connected , and my fear and I said this to this person today is I think that's that's a potentially dangerous thing for your future . And let me explain why . So this client is somebody who has very big goals , has very big dreams , has very big aspirations and is very clear on what they want them to be . And I kept redirecting this client during the call because I would say okay , so what's the next step between now and the next time we talk ? What do you think is one reasonable , sustainable thing we can do ? And they say , all right , let me think about it for a sec . And then they would jump to the future again and they'd say , well , this is really the vision I see for the next few years , and I'd let them go , go , go , go , let's dream together I love it . And then we get to the end and I say , love that , love that , and . And we keep falling off when we're trying to figure out what the next step is . Same thing would happen . It happened probably four or five times and at the end I said I love all that and I have to hop in a couple minutes . I want to make sure we get some tactics here . What is the one , what are the two , what are the three things that we can do between now and the next time ? You and I talk , because my fear is all of this fire , all of this passion , all of this purpose you're feeling right now is going to die if you don't do something in the next week .

Turning inspiration into action

Kevin Palmieri 3:35

I know I was the kid who wanted to be a , or the guy who wanted to be a professional , full-time podcaster . I know , but that all happened after I was on Alan's YouTube channel and then the next day I went and ordered all the equipment . If I waited a week , this might not be a thing . If I waited a month , this might not be a thing . And maybe you're thinking yourself well , kev , if that's , if that's the case , maybe you didn't want it bad enough . I can understand how you might get to that conclusion . I don't think that's what it is . I think when you have momentum , when you have inspiration , when you have motivation , the resistance is a little bit lower . Does anybody ever have inspiration to do their taxes ? I don't know . I never have it sucks it sucks .

Kevin Palmieri 4:25

That's something you just put it on your calendar and you just gotta sit down and you gotta do it . But have you ever gone for a run ? I remember this happened back in the day when I would run . I'd go for a run around the town loop in Uxbridge , where we grew up , and I think the town loop's like three miles , and I'd get to the end of the first loop and I'd say I feel good , I'm gonna keep going , I'm already there , I'm already doing it , I'm already , I'm in momentum , I'm in motion , I feel good already . There's something to be said about that . Now , if I went back home and I said , well , tomorrow I'll come run , tomorrow I'll do six miles instead of three probably not gonna happen . So there's something to be said

Momentum Vs. Procrastination

Kevin Palmieri 5:04

about .

Kevin Palmieri 5:04

Yes , yes , planning for the future is super important and having a time perspective around the future is super important , and being intentional and strategic is super important . But the future starts now and there's got to be something that happens today . Last thing , before I kick it to you , alan , I shared a quote the other day If you want to accomplish something really big this year , do something really small today . It's the best way to start . It's the best way to start . I love the fact that this person has a vision for the next five years . I love that , but if we wait a year to start , we have way less time . We could literally do something today that actually makes a dent in that dream . So that was what was on my mind today .

Alan Lazaros 5:51

I have a client who runs a business and we're trying to figure out who's the best role for each part of the business and I'm asking the pros and cons of each person . Everyone has strengths and weaknesses for each part of the business . And I'm asking the pros and cons of each person . Everyone has strengths and weaknesses , and someone on his crew is extremely action oriented . They take action really , really quickly , but sometimes they don't think that strategically or that long term . So they needed a tool and instead of going and getting the tool , they like postponed doing the thing . And if they thought a little more strategically , they would have been able to go get the tool . They like postponed doing the thing and if they thought a little more strategically , they would have been able to go get the tool , come back and do it in time or whatever . And I was just talking about strengths and weaknesses and this whole clouds and dirt this long-term strategic thinking versus in the moment doing . The problem with achievement , success , fulfillment , is that you need both . When you and I first started working together , you went , you were Kevin was ready . Fire no aim , aside from a simple Google search Ready aim , no , ready fire , ready fire . I was ready . Aim , aim , ready aim . Aim is always planning , never actually doing . Ready fire is doing a lot of stuff at the expense sometimes of progress . We all need to be ready aim fire and it's , I think , the important piece of this episode is which one is your strength and which one it comes with an inherent weakness . If you're really good at clouds , you're not going to be as good at dirt . That's the whole idea between behind white collar , blue collar , blue collar work with their hands but they maybe don't think as long-term . And then white collar thinks long-term but doesn't . Isn't as gritty usually . And again , that that's just a metaphor . I'm not saying white collar , blue collar , as a negative thing , but that's kind of the idea is a lot of times there's laborers who work with their hands , plumbers and all that kind of stuff , and then there's white collar . Is , you know , thinking long term and numbers , and that's how people think of it . And I think the truth is is that they're all skills . You have one skill of thinking long-term , strategic , and then another skill of actually implementing , and I can think of some people and I'm going to keep this , of course , but Emilia and I have this conversation all the time because we're all trying to get our clients results . That's ultimately what we're trying to do . We're trying to have our clients be successful and fulfilled . She does it through the mental health frame , I do it from the business coaching frame . But ultimately we're trying to help people live their goals and dreams , achieve their goals and dreams , and some people get a lot more results than others .

Strategic thinking Vs. Immediate action

Alan Lazaros 8:27

It's so obvious , especially over a year or two . So I've been reflecting a lot on 2024 , and I have certain clients that just crushed and certain clients that maybe didn't get as much out of it . It's always the clients who take immediate action , take action really quickly , who get results . Always they implement so fast . Bianca's a good example of this . She'll just we'll change her system and then she'll just implement immediately . She'll do it that day or the next day . Now here's what I've realized If long-term strategic thinking is my strength , if someone else has the strength of taking immediate action and is very coachable and humble , of course that's a powerful combination . So that's what I've figured out the people who do the best in my coaching are the people who can implement quickly . The people who don't do that well in my coaching are the people who also think they're good at long-term strategic thinking , which means they brainstorm about , brainstorming , about brainstorming .

Alan Lazaros 9:19

Now , trigger warning for everyone out there . I'm going to call this mental masturbation . What I mean by that is talking about talking , talking about concepts . I get caught in this sometimes too . I love deep conversations .

Alan Lazaros 9:32

Understanding is valuable . Deeper understanding is valuable . Deeper understanding might be the most valuable . If you don't know how the plumbing system works , trust me , you cannot fix it when it breaks . I can't . I can now , but I learned from someone . The idea of understanding is so critical . If you understand heat , fuel , oxygen , that's how fire is created . Okay , now you can control the fire . The fire doesn't control you . Now you know how to put out a fire . You went to the fire academy . They taught you all about fire how it works , why it works that way , how to put it out . Okay , don't put that on . Definitely do this . That's awesome . Deeper understanding .

Alan Lazaros 10:06

That said , unless you can take action consistently with the small things , you'll never build momentum . And I am more convinced than ever , and I have some people that I've referred to . With emilia , we were on a walk not long ago and I said this verbatim . I said isn't it so frustrating how that person Thinks they're amazing , and , and they are amazing in their own right in certain regards , but Kevin would run circles around them . Dude , I've said that behind your back many times . Do you want to know what you have that they don't ? And these people , people I'm putting in quotes there are people who wouldn't respect you . You're a blue-collar looking dude , you don't have a master's degree , you didn't go to college , you don't have higher education . To them , tattoo , bodybuilder , right . They don't necessarily respect your meritocracy level things . Here's the thing I know some people that wouldn't respect you , kev , who you would run circles around forever . You're going to be way more successful than they are . Why ? Because you take action . You take so much action , so much action .

Alan Lazaros 11:10

I just reviewed 2024 and I went through all the things that we accomplished and the impact we had as a team . And it's nuts 52 PGU episodes , 365 NLU episodes , even just that . Those are the two podcasts Kevin produced in 2024 . Personally , you showed up for 365 plus 52 , 417 episodes , not including the 637 other shows that we went on . Right , so you did 417 episodes last year . That's more than an episode a day on average . That's the ability to consistently show up , even when you don't want to . I guarantee you . There's at least 100 episodes in there where you were like absolutely don't want to do this .

Kevin's journey: From dirt to clouds

Alan Lazaros 11:50

So that's clouds and dirt . What are you better at ? You're better at dirt . You need some clouds . You need to work on your life . You need a redesign . You need someone who thinks long-term , strategically . You need to get more intelligent , for lack of better phrase . You need to study more books , productivity , business success Awesome , but the dirt is there . You can get your hands dirty . For other people , it's the opposite . They're really good at the long-term strategic stuff . They've got ideas on ideas , on ideas , on ideas on ideas , and it becomes this mental masturbation , but they don't actually get to work and really make sure that they're putting in the reps .

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 12:24

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 12:47

The link to register will be in the show notes . I think one of the most common misconceptions when it comes to achieving something is you go from not achieving it to achieving it when there's its percentages . So when you're 90 of the way , it's not as surprising as when you get there . And I think that's really what I was talking to this person about today . It's I know what the , I know what the goals are five years but if you don't start , they don't happen . It doesn't work that way . In five years , yes , things will be different , but they're not going to be different enough to go from where you are today to the end goal .

Kevin Palmieri 13:22

It doesn't work that way Because , realistically , the end goal isn't even the end goal , it just looks like it . You're envisioning a result . You're not necessarily understanding and again , I'm not frustrated with this person , I love this person but you're not necessarily understanding all the things that must go into it for that to happen . And those are the things that happen day in and day out , day in and day out . And I've said this on other podcasts and I've said it here too , but I think it's a really good example . The day that we crossed a million dollars in the business and a million listens , I wasn't that excited , Not that I'm not grateful , not that it wasn't a dream come true . The day before I kind of knew it was going to happen . And the two days before that I knew it was going to happen that week .

Tethering big dreams to reality

Alan Lazaros 14:12

But the reason why you knew is because you measure daily . Well , yes , yes , that also tethers you down to reality . When emilia and I were having this conversation , we were talking about how some people are not tethered , and tethering sounds bad . It sounds like I'm trying to hold you back . No , I'm trying to get you to stay in reality . Clouds , if you're up in the clouds talking about how you're going to change the world , I'm all for that . I'm , mr clouds . Let's talk about changing the world , but you better come back and get your hands dirty real quick .

Kevin Palmieri 14:36

I remember one time Tara and I were going for a walk and again this . It sounds so dumb now , but this is what I thought at the time . I didn't have any other understanding . I had just gotten my first thousand dollar plus per month client and I remember telling Taryn I said I only need nine more of those . And then I have a six figure . Like my piece of the business is six figures and maybe you're thinking out there too , like yeah , I mean , that makes sense , I know it makes sense . The numbers make sense . It's not as easy as I thought it was gonna . I was ignorant at that point . I didn't understand what had . I didn't understand , I didn't know how this worked .

Alan Lazaros 15:19

Can you unpack what you didn't understand ? All I need is nine more .

Kevin Palmieri 15:24

All I need is nine more .

Alan Lazaros 15:25

And to sustain all the previous ones . No , just nine . Just give me nine . That's all I thought of . All I need is nine more , and that'll do it .

Kevin Palmieri 15:33

That's just one . The first quote , unquote . I think people call that high ticket . I don't really . It's whatever . The first . That first client was introduced to me through someone . I didn't know them , so I had somebody else's co-sign that we could actually help them , and we could . It was good .

Alan Lazaros 15:56

It's a transfer of trust .

Kevin Palmieri 15:57

A transfer of trust . I went above and beyond . I went to this person's house many times . They left me there with their dog . I was trying to figure out how to set up their podcast stuff . So I was just , I remember , walking into Alan's house and we were getting ready to record an episode and the client called me and I said dude , I gotta take this . This is our biggest client , I gotta take this . So so much attention went into it and again , it's a privilege to be able to serve somebody in that way . Sure , I'm not saying it's bad attention , but that for I don't know , every 25 messages you send to a potential client like that , two people answer like just , there's a lot more that has to go into it . But I was . This is the debt . This is also the downside .

Kevin Palmieri 16:42

I was riding so high on the emotions of the win that I assumed the next win would be as easy . Just like when you get kicked in the face and you're taking an l , you assume tomorrow is's gonna be an L too . And neither of those necessarily are true and definitely neither of those have to be true . And I just fell victim Right now . Alan and I were just talking about this . I said I'm due for an L . I'm due . I mean , I had a really good Q4 . I'm due to get kicked in the teeth . It's most likely going to happen Now . You might say , kev , you're manifesting that . I'm not trying to do that and I don't think that's what I'm doing .

Alan Lazaros 17:20

I think what I'm doing is You've been on this planet long enough to know .

Kevin Palmieri 17:23

I'm staying tethered . I don't want to just assume that because things have been going well , that's the goal . That's the goal because it's gonna happen and okay , well , maybe I'm , maybe I'm lucky it doesn't happen for the next six weeks . I just want to make sure I'm prepared for it , because it's very easy for me to go from feeling like a winner to feeling like a loser if I get kicked in the face a couple times . That's , that's just self-awareness . I'm very aware of that . I've taken enough L's over the last eight years to know that it can hurt me quickly and I have to be very on top of Kev . This isn't that big of a deal . In the grand scheme of things , it's not the end of the world , and the more you make it feel like the end of the world , the more it's going to feel like it is . So we have to make sure that we understand this is the short term . This doesn't have to be forever . It's not going to be forever . I think it's a very unique juggling act . I think it's a skill worth developing .

Alan Lazaros 18:18

So because I know we've got to go , unfortunately , short one today . Clouds and Dirt which one is your superpower ? Which one are you the best at ? For me , I'm better at clouds than I am at dirt , and I've had to work really hard to stay in the dirt , and what I mean by that is stay humble . So kev didn't believe in himself , so he wasn't thinking 5 , 10 , 15 , 20 , 30 , 40 , 50 years ahead so his dirt was easier , it came easier .

Alan Lazaros 18:47

It's not hard to think about the now when you don't believe in your ability to manifest the decade .

Alan Lazaros 18:54

When you do believe in your ability to manifest the decade , sometimes you can get lost in the decade and you forget about the now , and that's why you and I drove to five together , and you were really good at tethering me to reality , and every time I had a bold idea , you'd say , yeah , but it could snow or whatever Insert seemingly pessimistic thing , and now that I coach couples and I have been for the last four years there's almost always an overly optimistic partner and an overly pessimistic partner , and what happens is fortunately , this is the first time in my life where I've ever been the more pessimistic one , because Emilia will have , like these big ideas and I'll say , yeah , absolutely .

Which are you: Clouds or dirt?

Alan Lazaros 19:32

And what about this , though , whereas normally I was the far pie in the sky guy ? So , clouds and dirt , which one is your superpower , and what's the one that you need to work on ? For me ? I'm clouds , I need to work on dirt , and I need to stay humble , especially when I'm winning Kev you're dirt . You need to stay optimistic , especially when you're losing Listener . You're dirt , you need to stay optimistic , especially when you're losing Listener , which are you , and make sure you're focusing on the other one .

Kevin Palmieri 19:56

The other one doesn't need work .

Alan Lazaros 19:57

You're naturally doing that . I'm a natural strategist . I don't have to set aside time to strategize . I have to make sure we get this episode done . That's why we had an hour and a half to do this , but we were strategizing about 2024 , 2025 , earlier , so you don't need to schedule the one . That's automatic for me . The strategy is automatic , the clouds are automatic . I need to make sure I get the dirt done pie in the sky guy .

Kevin Palmieri 20:20

That could be another band name . I'm on a band name kick pie in the sky guy . That is something special . Next level nation . If you never want to miss an opportunity to get to the next level , make sure you are subscribed . On whatever platform you are watching or listening on , you get that little bing ding ring in the morning that says nlu just dropped an episode . Maybe that'll be the gentle kick in the butt . You need to get a little bit better that day

Outro

Kevin Palmieri 20:41

. As always , we love you , we appreciate you , grateful for each and every one of you , and at nlu we do not have fans , we have family . We will talk to you all tomorrow stay next level , next level nation family .

Kevin Palmieri 20:52

We will talk to you all tomorrow . Stay Next Level , next Level Nation .

Alan Lazaros 20:58

Thanks for joining us for another episode of Next Level University . We love connecting with the Next Level family . 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 21:08

Thank you again and we will talk to you tomorrow .