Which Awareness Is The Most Important? (2321)

Hosts Kevin Palmieri and Alan Lazaros address a quiet reason progress stalls even when effort, discipline, and consistency are present. The issue is not work ethic. It is distorted awareness, subtle blind spots that shape decisions, perception, and results without being noticed.

Drawing from years of coaching and thousands of conversations, this discussion points to why most people reinforce the wrong strengths and overlook the one area quietly limiting growth. The focus is precision, not motivation. Clarity, not affirmation. Listen carefully. Then identify what you have been compensating for and correct it before the cost compounds.

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For more information, check out our website and socials using the links below. 👇

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Email:
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Show notes:
(2:05) The real question behind blind spots
(4:42) Why misjudging yourself distorts everything else
(9:20) The three awarenesses that determine outcomes
(13:09) Identifying the awareness holding you back
(16:38) Coaching principle: target the real constraint
(25:15) Why affirmation does not create growth
(32:49) 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.

Chapters

• 2:05 The real question behind blind spots
• 4:42 Why misjudging yourself distorts everything else
• 9:20 The three awarenesses that determine outcomes
• 12:25 Breaking goals into executable systems
• 13:09 Identifying the awareness holding you back
• 16:38 Coaching principle: target the real constraint
• 25:15 Why affirmation does not create growth
• 32:49 Outro

Transcript

Kevin Palmieri

(0:00) Sometimes when we do these episodes, an episode that's a follow-up of a previous episode, I've had time to think about what I said and oftentimes have changed my mind. (0:10) Not the case today.

Alan Lazaros

(0:11) I also haven't changed my mind. (0:13) This will be an excellent round two. (0:15) Stay tuned.

Kevin Palmieri

(0:16) Welcome to Next Level University. (0:19) I'm your host, Kevin Palmieri. (0:21) And I'm your co-host, Alan Lazarus.(0:24) At NLU, we believe in a heart-driven but no-BS approach to holistic self-improvement for dream chasers.

Alan Lazaros

(0:31) Our goal with every episode is to help you level up your life, love, health, and wealth.

Kevin Palmieri

(0:37) 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

(0:53) Self-improvement, in your pocket, every day, from anywhere, completely free. (0:59) Welcome to Next Level University.

Kevin Palmieri

(1:05) Next Level Nation. (1:06) Today for episode number 2,321, which awareness is the most important? (1:13) So essentially, we started yesterday's episode talking about blind spots.(1:19) And then it got to the point where we were essentially talking about self-awareness, others' awareness, world awareness. (1:26) And the conclusion or the lack of conclusion that led to today's episode was I think self-awareness is the most important. (1:35) That's our jumping off point.(1:37) With you so far? (1:39) I don't know if I have a great argument other than I think we got to this point yesterday. (1:46) What you needed the most is probably what you think is the most valuable.(1:50) And I know I was self-aware, maybe higher than average, but that was based on the fact that I was way less self-aware than I needed to be. (2:02) And I think you, let me adjust my camera here, what was the first awareness that you went searching for? (2:12) In life?

Alan Lazaros

(2:14) Yeah. (2:15) The world. (2:17) How the world worked.(2:18) Because it's what I needed to know to achieve my goals.

Kevin Palmieri

(2:21) Yeah. (2:23) When did you start to know that you needed more self-awareness? (2:27) You've always been super self-aware, but did you ever get to a point where you realized like that's the weakness?(2:33) Oh yeah, absolutely. (2:35) What was the?

Alan Lazaros

(2:40) Well, I told you about after my car accident at 26, I started calling people from my past and asking them questions. (2:48) What did you notice about me that I maybe never noticed about myself? (2:52) Those kinds of things.(2:53) Remember when you and I were at that event and you had to call someone and ask for tough feedback? (2:57) Yeah. (2:58) That was about blind spots.(2:59) Where were we? (3:00) I keep getting it wrong. (3:01) Was it Colorado or?

Kevin Palmieri

(3:02) Yeah, Colorado.

Alan Lazaros

(3:03) Yeah. (3:03) It was hot AF. (3:04) I keep saying Arizona.

Kevin Palmieri

(3:05) Yeah. (3:05) It was hot AF. (3:06) So it, I mean, it was like 110 degrees.(3:08) It was wild.

Alan Lazaros

(3:10) So I can't tell if I know what my strong one was. (3:20) My strong one was the sciences and the economy and business. (3:25) I remember when I went into my master's in business program, I remember thinking this is a cakewalk compared to engineering.(3:31) Engineering, you have to learn so much about the way the world works, like material science. (3:39) You have to take chemistry. (3:40) You have to take all the sciences.(3:42) You have to be very, to be an engineer, you have to do very well in all the sciences and all the sciences might as well be how shit works. (3:50) Like that's what science is. (3:51) It's chemistry is the study of matter.(3:53) Physics is the study of the physical universe. (3:55) There's electromagnetism and there's mechanics and you just learn how everything works. (4:00) And then you get deeper into signal analysis, all this stuff.(4:03) And then you have a pretty good understanding of how the world works, like how technology works, how TVs work. (4:10) Like I talked about a 4k TV, it's 4,000 LEDs. (4:13) It's not actually 4,000, but you, 1080 pixels, pixels, a pixel is a little led light.(4:20) And there's a signal that goes to say which color you want. (4:24) And then there's a certain code for each color, that kind of thing. (4:26) You just learn how everything works.(4:31) Yeah. (4:31) How the internet works and all that.

Kevin Palmieri

(4:34) So my point is, how did you know that you didn't have self-awareness? (4:38) Like after the car accident, what was the, what was it?

Alan Lazaros

(4:42) What, how did it, how did it self-awareness was my lowest by far. (4:46) And I'll give you the reason why you say this all the time. (4:50) And you've said this to me.(4:51) You said, it's not that everyone else is small. (4:54) It's that shack is huge. (4:56) And that was a good way to put it where if I don't understand how unique I am, I can't assess, I assess everything else wrong.(5:08) So I'm not kidding. (5:09) This will be a good example. (5:12) I never considered myself that athletic.(5:15) I'm like fairly athletic, I guess. (5:18) And that's new. (5:18) Like even that's fairly new, but now I realized I grew up with some freak athletes that were the best in the state in some cases.(5:27) So I, and I grew up around a lot of people that were older than me and I would be beaten up by much older people. (5:33) So I think I realized like, Oh, I am actually kind of athletic, but I never thought I was. (5:39) Cause I was always up against older kids in my neighborhood, way older kids, dude.(5:44) I used to like, they would throw me the football and then just tackle me repeatedly. (5:48) And I was like, let's go, let's go. (5:51) And I got a bunch more of those stories.(5:52) But my point is, is if you don't assess yourself, right, you have to be off on other people because you don't know where you stand in the bell curve. (6:00) Like if I, if I think I'm not that smart and I'm actually the smartest, I'm going to reassess everyone wrong. (6:08) And again, that's just an example.(6:09) But I, I was so off on so many things on book club. (6:16) We were talking about pushups and a lot of people in book club couldn't do pushups. (6:21) And I was like, what?(6:23) I could never in my life. (6:24) Could I not drop and give you 20? (6:26) Never in my life.(6:27) Like even when I was probably six, not even. (6:31) And someone in the group said like in middle school and all that we did fitness tests. (6:38) And I, you know, and then I was like, yeah, I won it.(6:40) I remember winning it. (6:41) And you probably won it for your class in gym. (6:43) Right.(6:44) And I beat one of your good friends.

Kevin Palmieri

(6:46) Yeah. (6:46) Yeah. (6:47) I know.(6:47) He needed to be, he needed to be humbled. (6:50) So it felt nice.

Alan Lazaros

(6:54) And I'm sure that crush it spirits. (6:56) But at the end of the day, you are so wrong about others. (7:02) If you're wrong about self.(7:04) And I think so few people really know themselves. (7:10) And I'll give you a reason why. (7:13) When I was fitness modeling, I grew up a prepubescent loser.(7:17) So for me, it's very obvious in hindsight that a lot of the law of attraction was working in a way I didn't understand back then. (7:27) It's so obvious now looking back like, Oh, okay. (7:29) That person wanted to sleep with me that whatever.(7:31) And I was a fitness model. (7:32) So, but I went from like a loser, not sought after at all to a fitness model in a very short amount of time. (7:40) And so now I have clients and some of them are very attractive, whatever.(7:43) They have no clue that they're that, that attractive because no one wants to tell them. (7:48) No one comes up to them and says, Hey, by the way, you're gorgeous. (7:51) Like no one does that.

Kevin Palmieri

(7:52) Well, not in a respectful way for sure.

Alan Lazaros

(7:54) Yeah, exactly. (7:55) And the only people that do that are like the clowns that are delusional and hitting on them. (8:00) And even them, they usually make fun of them or whatever to try to, you know, that whole, uh, put bubble gum in your hair.(8:06) Cause I like you on the recess, just a bunch of emotionally immature children running around here. (8:11) But at the end of the day, I think it's very, no one comes up, no one came up to me my whole life. (8:15) I was like, wow, you're brilliant.(8:17) Like they just assume that I knew that maybe, or they just assume I'm not, I don't know.

Kevin Palmieri

(8:21) Maybe I, but, or they just said it behind your back.

Alan Lazaros

(8:25) Yeah, for sure. (8:26) And that's what happens is we, we get feedback. (8:30) People say accurate things about us behind our backs more than to our faces.(8:35) And so, and everybody's so insecure. (8:40) So it's like, that's been really alarming for me, particularly in my thirties. (8:47) Everyone is like way more insecure than I thought.(8:51) Everyone believes in themselves less than I thought. (8:54) Everyone has way smaller goals and dreams than I ever thought. (8:59) And everyone is way less dialed in than I ever could have imagined.(9:03) Like I, but again, it's not them. (9:09) It's, I just had goals my entire life and I reverse engineered everything. (9:13) So self-awareness, others awareness, the world, you have to know yourself, others in the world.(9:20) And it's like three, four KTVs and you, they all have to be in HD for you to win. (9:25) And you've got to figure out which one's all fucking staticky.

Kevin Palmieri

(9:28) I had a, I meant to send this to the group coaching group that we have, the internal one. (9:33) Somebody reached out to me and they said the drive to five like changed my life.

Alan Lazaros

(9:36) Nice.

Kevin Palmieri

(9:37) Like learning about the drive to five changed. (9:39) I, everything is different now. (9:41) And that's why I think self-awareness is so important that because that breakthrough might allow you to set a goal that now will force you to learn more about other people in the world.(9:56) If that's, that's what it was for me.

Alan Lazaros

(9:59) Yeah.

Kevin Palmieri

(9:59) And that's why I'm so, I'm obsessed with it.

Alan Lazaros

(10:05) And again, this might be in some ways kind of advocating for your point. (10:14) When we first started the hyperconscious podcast, it was all about the drive to five.

Kevin Palmieri

(10:21) And I didn't want to talk about external success at all. (10:24) I know I had no interest. (10:27) It was just like, I don't care.

Alan Lazaros

(10:31) The reason why I debated you on the last episode is because you super undervalue how much you've learned about the world, dude. (10:39) It's like, I don't think I do. (10:43) Think about the rooms you were in traveling, dude, back in the day, you didn't know how any of that worked.(10:49) Like you didn't know an income statement. (10:52) You didn't know what gross revenue versus net revenue was. (10:54) You didn't know fucking cash on hand.(10:56) You didn't know about debts and interest rates. (10:59) And again, I'm not trying to make you look bad. (11:01) I just, you didn't understand how stocks worked and how diversifying portfolios worked and how many countries there were.(11:08) And you didn't, you didn't really know how the world worked. (11:11) And so at the end of the day, I just think that back then you were so ignorant to how valuable that stuff is because you wanted to be successful. (11:23) You always did.(11:24) But brother, you were successful despite how little you knew about the world. (11:29) And I can send your resume out if anyone's curious, but like what you were missing was an understanding of how the world works outside of self. (11:41) And you actually already had the other pretty well.(11:45) Like you understood, and you and I over the last nine years have really driven to five in our understanding. (11:54) Like you were always more accurate in certain things when it comes to people and how they perceive the world and what they do and don't know, especially when it comes to the masses and the majority. (12:05) Like you already knew that pretty well in hindsight.(12:08) So it's just weird that you value so deeply the one that you already kind of had when the one that totally changed your life was obviously the fact that you learned how corporations worked and like, you didn't even know what GDP was, man.

Kevin Palmieri

(12:23) It wasn't, it wasn't what got me into this though. (12:26) It was the self-awareness that got me into all this. (12:29) And there's something, but I think that's why it's my favorite.(12:34) I think that's, I think it'll always be my favorite. (12:36) It'll, it's always my favorite thing to talk about. (12:39) Always.(12:39) Was this about favorites or is this about what's most important? (12:43) I think it's hard to not, I'm biased. (12:46) It's hard to not say that the internal is.

Alan Lazaros

(12:49) But what's most important is the TV that's staticky. (12:52) Like if we all have three TVs, one of them's the self, the other's the world, 360 degree, whatever.

Kevin Palmieri

(12:58) They all are. (13:00) No, they're not. (13:01) I think they all are for all of us.(13:04) They start out staticky for all of us, but that's what I'm saying. (13:08) You got, where are you? (13:09) Where do you start?

Alan Lazaros

(13:09) When you and I met the one that was static, he was the world for you. (13:15) You know what I mean?

Kevin Palmieri

(13:16) I remember. (13:19) Oh my goodness. (13:20) I found either a text thread or something.(13:23) And I was talking about how I was going to get my home inspection license and I was going to be at home inspector. (13:31) That was going to be my next career after my weatherization job. (13:33) Cause my buddy, cause Matt was doing real estate and it was just the next logical step.(13:38) I didn't have any idea how any of that worked for sure. (13:41) You know, appraise homes, home inspector gadget. (13:43) No, home inspector.(13:44) Like I would go in and say, Hey, you're, your attic's Jeffed. (13:47) You got a family of gremlins living up there. (13:51) So do with that information what you will.(13:54) I don't know. (13:54) I still think.

Alan Lazaros

(13:58) Do you agree with me? (13:59) It's whichever one's the static, the most staticky is the one holding people back.

Kevin Palmieri

(14:02) I do, but I have a firm belief that most people struggle with self-awareness more because I think there's no book on Kevin Palmieri. (14:16) There's no book that's never been written. (14:18) There's a book on economics.(14:19) There's a book on psychology. (14:22) There's never been a book on Jeff Palmieri.

Alan Lazaros

(14:27) I think the book on psychology is about Kevin Palmieri. (14:31) It's about human condition.

Kevin Palmieri

(14:33) You got to connect it. (14:34) And here's the other thing. (14:36) I think self-awareness is wildly personal.(14:40) I think everything is when you learn something, you don't know. (14:43) Like if, if you sit me down and you're like, dude, water freezes at 32 degrees. (14:48) You didn't know that.(14:49) And I like imagine I didn't know that. (14:51) Okay. (14:51) Of course I knew that.(14:53) Of course I knew that. (14:54) I knew that everybody knows that. (14:55) Of course, if I didn't know that, I'd feel really bad about myself, obviously.(15:00) But I think when you get hit with something, here's why this is why I, we say this all the time behind the scenes. (15:09) There are certain things you learn about yourself that you can't ever put back in the box. (15:14) Yes.(15:15) There are certain things about the world and there are certain things about other people, but I think the ones you learn about yourself are the most challenging and the most not important, but like they matter in a different way.

Alan Lazaros

(15:35) They matter emotionally to you. (15:36) That's what this is. (15:37) But even that dude, like the devastating truths of the world are also devastating.

Kevin Palmieri

(15:43) I concur for sure.

Alan Lazaros

(15:45) Devastating for sure. (15:47) Like sure. (15:49) I can't even with this.(15:51) It's one third, one third, one third. (15:53) And the answer is unique to the individual, which you're right. (15:57) It's predicated on self-awareness, but you think I'm telling you everyone or you, huh?(16:03) You think more people are like me or like you, you, and I think what you needed was to understand science and mathematics and business and finance. (16:13) Yeah. (16:13) Dude, take all that away.(16:15) You couldn't possibly be successful. (16:16) That's my truth, but I'd be Zen though. (16:19) You would not.(16:21) You'd be fucking miserable at a dead end job, not knowing why you're not succeeding. (16:28) Like the truth is you need all three and you need the one that you suck at most. (16:35) That, that is about blind spots.(16:38) Everyone I coach, it is my job to identify which TV is the most staticky and then start working on that. (16:47) I'm teaching someone sales right now, leadership, influence. (16:51) And this person, shout out to you brother, is brand new.(16:54) He doesn't know how to lead and it's going to change his whole freaking world. (16:59) And we had a jaw drop moment. (17:01) I told him, you know, I was going to drop this episode tomorrow.(17:04) I said, Kevin and I are recording after this. (17:05) But like I said, brother, I've been studying you for, since I met you. (17:10) And I just rattled off all his stats in front of him.(17:14) All of them list down to his height, how much he weighs, how much he earns, how much he wants to earn every job, where he lives, everything. (17:25) And he's like a little bit creepy. (17:27) I said, no, no, no.(17:27) I know. (17:28) But I'm your coach. (17:29) Like it's my job to know you better than you know yourself.(17:33) I, you're not, you don't hire a coach and be like, you know, I really think I need more self-awareness. (17:39) The coach is supposed to assess what you don't know. (17:43) And the coach is supposed to know more than you.(17:46) Well, that's a whole fucking can of worms. (17:48) We could go down for sure. (17:50) If I don't understand, if my TVs aren't clearer than yours, I cannot be your leader.(17:55) And that is the truth. (17:56) Unless it's in a very narrow area, in which case I can, my TV is clearer in fitness. (18:01) Okay.(18:01) We can do it. (18:02) Yeah. (18:02) But for me, it's like success comes down to self others in the world.(18:07) And I will, I have to learn all three of them for a living. (18:11) If I want to be the best leader that I could be. (18:13) And, and then obviously you need the right person who's humble and willing to hear it and has a reason to hear it.(18:20) And then you have to tie it to what they value. (18:22) So it's a whole, it's a whole thing. (18:24) It is a whole thing.

Kevin Palmieri

(18:26) Book recommendations. (18:28) We don't ever do this live, but I have four credits just came through on audible. (18:33) I need four book recommendations.(18:36) Now, whether you're watching or listening, this is for me, it might not be at any level of value for you based on what I'm trying to learn, but I think it's good to be a fly on the wall of a conversation.

Alan Lazaros

(18:51) Okay. (18:52) There's a book called execution. (18:55) There's a, there's a author.(18:57) His name is R A M C H A R N. (19:00) And for anyone listening genuinely the most boring books you could ever write, like do not do not listen to these for any level of entertainment whatsoever. (19:10) This, these are, these are boring ass books.(19:14) Okay. (19:17) The other one would be know how. (19:19) And I think that that's fire.(19:21) I do. (19:22) I think it's good. (19:22) Same person.(19:23) Yeah. (19:24) Same person, execution and know how I'm going to, I don't have anything to write with. (19:27) And if I touch my laptop, actually, I think, uh, yeah, I can't recommend that one yet because I haven't finished it yet.(19:41) One that is probably really important would be thinking in systems by Dunella H Meadows. (19:54) One more. (19:55) What do you got for me?(19:56) Julian Edelman. (19:59) I honestly was thinking that because I think you'll resonate with him. (20:03) What's it called?

Kevin Palmieri

(20:05) Relentless. (20:06) He stole, he stole.

Alan Lazaros

(20:07) I think you'll resonate with him because he was smaller. (20:10) And always had a chip on his shoulder. (20:13) And I mean, again, it's very basic.

Kevin Palmieri

(20:16) Yeah, I'm sure.

Alan Lazaros

(20:18) But it's more for like the go to battle. (20:22) Yeah, exactly. (20:23) Relentless.(20:24) Yeah, exactly. (20:25) You also grew up watching him, you know, Patriots and all that.

Kevin Palmieri

(20:29) So even that, that's a really good example of like those books execution I'm guessing is like consistency in systems, probably know how, I don't know, thinking, know how it's the eight fundamental skills of executives.

Alan Lazaros

(20:44) Oh, okay. (20:45) You know, and what makes the difference, you know, a strong business leader and someone who's not thinking in systems is obviously about systems.

Kevin Palmieri

(20:52) All right. (20:55) We have a couple of minutes here. (20:57) How do we wrap this with a bow?(20:58) So there is some level of conclusion.

Alan Lazaros

(21:01) Well, one thing is if anyone wants book recommendations based on your goals, you could literally send me what's your most important goal for 2026. (21:09) And I could send you books that I recommend. (21:13) And honestly, with the internet, the way it is, I tell Kev, we are selling kale outside a candy store.(21:20) The books I just gave are straight kale, no dressing, just terrible.

Kevin Palmieri

(21:24) It's rough.

Alan Lazaros

(21:25) Yeah, it's rough.

Kevin Palmieri

(21:25) So just a little salt on there. (21:28) Oh, dude, honestly, I'm going to tell you two things. (21:32) This may change the way you look at me.(21:34) I put, when I'm dieting, I put mustard on salad. (21:38) That's one thing. (21:39) And then I also put mustard on pasta at one point.(21:44) I don't know why, like you're having the pasta, just throw a little light sauce on there. (21:47) But yeah, I threw, I ate pasta with mustard for some reason. (21:52) Mustard, low cal, 10 cal.(21:54) Well, yeah, but I mean, how much is tomato sauce? (21:57) You get a thin tomato sauce. (22:00) It's a tomato, you know?

Alan Lazaros

(22:05) So probably not going to be that high calorie. (22:07) Yeah. (22:08) I'm not going to do that.(22:10) But thank you so much.

Kevin Palmieri

(22:11) I'm not suggesting anyone does. (22:11) For that. (22:12) Yep.

Alan Lazaros

(22:13) Cheat codes. (22:14) What were we talking about? (22:15) Blind spots.

Kevin Palmieri

(22:16) Blind spots, kale. (22:17) You were talking about kale outside of a candy store.

Alan Lazaros

(22:18) Oh yeah. (22:19) Kale outside a candy store. (22:21) All right.(22:21) This is what I would say. (22:27) If content is designed to make you feel good, it is most likely not that useful. (22:35) That is like a fundamental principle.(22:38) If you read the 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth by John C. (22:42) Maxwell, the book is all about reaching your full potential. (22:48) And I talk about this all the time.(22:51) Every chapter you should be like, damn it. (22:54) Damn. (22:55) I am not doing that enough.(22:58) Those are the books that are valuable when they're kind of a kick in the ass of, I am so, I'm leaving so much opportunity on the table. (23:08) I'm going to fuck you up real quick.

Kevin Palmieri

(23:09) Yeah. (23:09) I'm going to fuck you up real quick. (23:11) This is something I don't know if we've ever parsed out.(23:13) Okay. (23:14) There's a very thin line between that and then villainizing the person telling you to do it. (23:21) And I think again, going back to self-belief, I think that's a big piece of it.(23:24) But I'm telling you, you jump into a book that makes you feel too bad too quick. (23:29) You're going to say, fuck this guy. (23:31) And you're going to be, you're going to moonwalk right out of there.

Alan Lazaros

(23:34) Why?

Kevin Palmieri

(23:36) Obviously the, it's not the book's fault. (23:38) It's personal responsibility. (23:41) Yeah.(23:41) But I think it's like, I don't know. (23:43) I'm sure I have a million examples. (23:47) I'm sure I've probably consumed content back in the day from somebody who was just way ahead of me and it seemed unattainable.(23:54) And rather than admitting that I didn't know how to do it, I just villainized them. (23:58) I'm sure of that for sure. (24:00) Yeah.(24:00) I don't, I don't think I ever have. (24:02) I can't imagine. (24:04) I know I haven't.(24:04) But I just want to throw that out there because I do think it's one of those things that like, Oh, if you're having a bad day, just imagine it could always be worse. (24:12) I think that works really well for some people. (24:13) I think for other people, it's like, that doesn't do anything constructive for me.(24:18) I think that's another example. (24:20) If you only want your shortcomings to be highlighted to the degree that you actually believe you can do something about it. (24:27) Right.

Alan Lazaros

(24:28) Yeah. (24:29) Well, then you start with a book like mindset by Carol Dweck and you, you develop a growth mindset. (24:34) And when you have a growth mindset and you, you get further in this journey, any book that highlights where you're sucking is super useful.(24:46) Like I do believe the world is overly affirming and overly validating. (24:54) Last piece, all the people that I coach 25 right now, very grateful. (25:01) Shout out to many of you.(25:02) I know you listen to me. (25:05) When I am, if I am really trying to help them be successful in health, wealth, and love, I have to pinpoint the bottlenecks. (25:15) They, they are not, not successful because they don't believe they need to believe more than what they already believe.(25:21) Almost never. (25:23) I imagine I was coaching you, Kevin, and you were like, yeah, I, I believe in hard work and discipline and brute force. (25:30) And I'm the Ram.(25:31) So I just, I can start anything, but I don't know how to scale. (25:35) I was like, yeah, just do fucking more of that worst idea ever. (25:38) You're already doing that.(25:40) I would have to say, Kev, like you need to learn how to scale. (25:44) That's like necessary for you to be successful. (25:46) If you want to achieve your dreams, me reaffirming what you already believe is a terrible idea.(25:54) Because the reason you're not where you want to be yet is because you think inaccurately about yourself. (26:00) Others are the world. (26:01) It's the blind spots.(26:02) It's it's the gold is buried where you least want to dig. (26:04) And I think that's one of the reasons why our podcast does very well, but it doesn't go viral because this is not going to ever make anyone feel good. (26:13) That's not the goal.(26:14) The goal of the podcast is not to affirm everyone all the time. (26:17) And you know, in a world where it's just overly affirming, we talk about chat GPT and AI being so overly affirming. (26:25) It's, it's, it's wildly detrimental.(26:27) Like the last thing we need is to be overly affirmed all the time. (26:31) The truth is none of you are smart enough. (26:33) None of you are capable enough.(26:35) Like you all have to get better to achieve your dreams. (26:38) You have to, you're smart enough on a soul level. (26:41) You're smart enough to be where you are now.(26:43) But for the next level, none of us are good enough for the next level yet. (26:46) We have to crawl through the mud to get to the higher ground, including Kevin and I.

Kevin Palmieri

(26:51) That's why we're not there. (26:53) I say that on podcasts all the time. (26:54) Like I don't feel like I deserve to be any more successful than I am saying there's zero part of me.(26:59) It's like, Whoa, why aren't I more? (27:02) But for most of my life, it was that, I mean, we could do an entire series on that for sure. (27:07) My takeaway for this would be, man, I would just reiterate what we've been talking about.(27:15) Whatever TV is the shittiest for lack of phrasing. (27:18) That's the one we go to work on. (27:19) And when that one becomes your new strength, you go to the weakness and you're always, I mean, that's target the constraint as Alan would say, you're, that's what you're doing forever.(27:28) And it never ends. (27:30) It never ends and it gets better. (27:33) It's fun to fix the problems when you understand when I fix this, there's a breakthrough on the other side to some degree, not always a obvious breakthrough, but reaching a new level is awesome.(27:45) It is.

Alan Lazaros

(27:46) Yeah. (27:47) We don't talk about that enough probably, but I've talked about the minutes and moments when you do reach a new level and you know it, it's like, Oh yeah. (27:56) Yes.(27:57) Like we have reached a new level and you and I talk about that behind the scenes. (28:01) We probably should do an episode on that. (28:03) But when you do know, you know, that, you know, that, you know, that, you know, that you're at a new level now, like permanently internally or externally or both.(28:11) It's like, Oh yeah, it's, it made it all worth it. (28:16) And those moments are fucking 5%, not 95%. (28:20) No, no, it's, but they are worth it.(28:22) When you get there, it's like there, you know? (28:24) All right. (28:25) Like, hell yeah.(28:26) I can't wait for the next one because God damn. (28:29) Right. (28:29) Another two years.(28:30) Yeah. (28:31) Two years. (28:31) How often do you get them?

Kevin Palmieri

(28:32) I get them more than that. (28:35) Um, I've been getting a lot recently. (28:39) Nice.(28:39) Yeah. (28:40) I've been getting a lot recently, but very quickly after I get just plummeted with bricks, like almost immediate. (28:47) Honestly, I think that's one of the reasons, again, you can't say this and be humble.(28:51) I think that's one of the reasons I try to stay super humble is because I know this isn't going to last I in, but for so much of my life, I literally had this moment today. (29:01) I was thinking about something. (29:02) I was like, wow, that's going really well right now.(29:05) And my next immediate thought was a couple of weeks, probably something's going to happen. (29:10) So you got to prepare for that now. (29:12) Yeah.(29:13) Yeah. (29:13) That's beneficial. (29:14) All right.(29:14) If you need someone to help you become more aware of yourself, of others, or the world, Alan Lazarus, I cannot recommend him highly enough. (29:22) Uh, he has been my coach for the last night coming up on nine years, which is absolutely insane.

Alan Lazaros

(29:28) Would you recommend that even if we weren't in business together?

Kevin Palmieri

(29:31) That people work with you? (29:33) Yeah. (29:34) No, of course I would.(29:36) Of course. (29:37) All right. (29:37) You got to say that again.(29:39) I definitely, of course, of course. (29:40) Yes, of course. (29:41) Of course.(29:42) That's funny.

Alan Lazaros

(29:42) I knew you'd say yes, but I also thought you'd say no as a joke.

Kevin Palmieri

(29:45) I wouldn't recommend anybody else. (29:47) Yeah. (29:47) I appreciate it.(29:48) I remember. (29:49) Uh, and it's not just because we're business partners, like long before when Alan and I were split and like whatever money I earned, I kept and whatever.

Alan Lazaros

(29:59) We got a little spreadsheet of it. (30:00) Yeah. (30:00) It wasn't much.

Kevin Palmieri

(30:02) But if there was ever a client, like I sent Alan clients and literally said to the person, I just, honestly, I'm doing you a disservice. (30:07) Like, I feel like you're better. (30:08) You're way better off with him than I am, uh, than, than with me.(30:12) So I, yeah, I can't speak highly enough on that. (30:14) I appreciate it, man. (30:15) Of course, brother.(30:16) And if you want like a subpar, okay, podcast coach, I'm your guy. (30:20) I can help you with your podcast for sure.

Alan Lazaros

(30:24) I really wish that you wouldn't put your dad. (30:27) I really wish you wouldn't put yourself down, brother. (30:29) I will say this too.(30:30) I know we got to go, but I've been in the podcast space now, nine years. (30:36) We met a lot of podcasters. (30:38) There's not a lot of people on this freaking planet who have done more episodes or know more about podcasting.(30:44) And I can say that for sure. (30:47) I'd still go toe to toe with you if we played podcast Jeopardy, but yeah, I think I'd beat you though.

Kevin Palmieri

(30:54) Cause some of the technical stuff, what about the macro? (30:57) Yeah.

Alan Lazaros

(30:58) Hey, audio technica for 40, 40, 40, 40. (31:01) Yeah, no, that's an inside joke, but no, I do mean it. (31:06) I have been surprised at how little, a lot of podcasts hosts know.(31:10) And some of these other podcast production companies, quote unquote, I'm, I don't know if I can call them companies. (31:16) It's been hard for me to see people to get taken advantage of. (31:18) So, um, just be careful if you want to start a podcast, don't get hoodwinked.(31:23) Don't get it right. (31:25) Yeah. (31:25) It's very easy to get hoodwinked.

Kevin Palmieri

(31:26) Yeah. (31:27) The other thing that I'll say too is we are not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but I do think the team is really good at admitting when they mess up. (31:37) And I think there's something to that.(31:39) Like, I don't, I used to think like, oh yeah, we're going to, we're going to be perfect and nothing's ever going to go wrong. (31:45) And then that's not real. (31:47) That's not real.(31:48) So that's another piece too, is we're real humans learning as we go, just like every other human is.

Alan Lazaros

(31:53) Shout out to the team, whoever's editing this, shout out to you. (31:56) Shout out to the production team. (31:57) Whenever we reach a new level, I want to make sure it's everybody that's celebrated because we're doing it, man.(32:03) 23 people, 23, not 24, 23.

Kevin Palmieri

(32:06) It's, it's been, it's been three weeks. (32:09) We're three weeks into January. (32:11) It has been brutal thus far.(32:12) So I appreciate everybody for the, I mean, it has been a sprint. (32:16) We came out of the gate hot and it feels like it's been several months already. (32:20) So, and I know the team is feeling that.(32:22) So we appreciate you so, so, so very much. (32:24) All right, cool. (32:24) Until next time.(32:26) Oh no, I did, I almost did my podcast growth university one. (32:28) Have you ever heard an outro for podcast growth university? (32:30) I don't think so.(32:31) Do you want to do one? (32:31) Until next time, keep on crushing it, keep on podcasting and I will talk to you all next time. (32:36) Nice.(32:37) Not bad.

Alan Lazaros

(32:38) For me, it's as always, never, ever, ever lose momentum. (32:41) Talk to you next time. (32:42) That's business growth university.(32:44) Both of which the links will be in the show notes. (32:47) Cool.

Kevin Palmieri

(32:48) All right. (32:49) As always, we love you. (32:50) We appreciate you.(32:51) Grateful for each and every one of you. (32:52) And if you are as committed as you say you are to getting to the next level, make sure you tune in tomorrow because we will be here every single day to help you get there. (33:00) Keep leveling up to reach your full potential.(33:03) Thanks for joining us for another episode of next level university. (33:08) We love connecting with the next level family.

Alan Lazaros

(33:11) We mean it when we say family. (33:13) If you ever need anything, please reach out to us directly. (33:16) Everything you need to get ahold of us is in the show notes.(33:20) Thank you again.

Kevin Palmieri

(33:21) And we will talk to you tomorrow.