What Are The Tradeoffs You’re NOT Willing To Make? (2385)

What does success cost when you never stop to measure the trade-offs?

In today's episode, Kevin Palmieri and Alan Lazaros break down why real growth is not just about chasing more, but about knowing what you refuse to sacrifice along the way. They challenge the belief that progress is always worth the price and unpack how unclear standards can quietly lead to misalignment in your health, relationships, integrity, and long-term fulfillment.

If you want success that is clean, sustainable, and actually worth having, this episode will help you think harder about the choices shaping your future. Press play before ambition talks you into a deal your future self would never sign.

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Episode Reference:
The 5 Pillars Of Clarity (2382) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBXK8pYL1JQ

Learn more about:
Track the Work. Earn the Results. To know more about the "Next Level Fitness Accountability Group," reach out.

• Kevin: https://www.instagram.com/neverquitkid/
• Alan: https://www.instagram.com/alazaros88/

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

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Show notes:
(3:09) The main trade-off categories
(6:14) Every opportunity has a cost
(12:20) Growth changes what feels optimal
(22:05) Integrity is never worth trading
(24:46) The trade-offs that hurt most
(27:57) 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) You hear us talk all the time about the sacrifices that this journey might require from you and unfortunately, I think not enough people sit down and say, all right, what am I not willing to sacrifice? (0:12) What am I not willing to trade off? (0:13) Because if I did trade it off, even if I got the level of success that I desire, I would actually regret it.(0:18) I think that's a conversation that more of us need to have. (0:21) Every decision that you make has a pro and a con. (0:25) You need to be aware of both.(0:28) And that is what we're going to talk about today. (0:30) Welcome to Next Level University. (0:33) I'm your host, Kevin Palmieri.(0:35) And I'm your co-host, Alan Lazarus. (0:38) At NLU, we believe in a heart-driven, but no BS approach to holistic self-improvement for dream chasers. (0:44) Our goal with every episode is to help you level up your life, love, health, and wealth.(0:51) 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. (1:06) Self-improvement in your pocket, every day, from anywhere, completely free. (1:13) Welcome to Next Level University.(1:19) Next Level Nation, today for episode number 2,385. (1:24) What are the trade-offs you're not willing to make? (1:27) The reason I'm laughing is because Alan did the thing that he does at the beginning and it made me giggle.(1:32) It made me giggle. (1:33) What are you going to do? (1:34) There's nothing you can do.(1:35) Tell them what you're going to tell them, tell them, and then tell them what you told them. (1:38) And then tell them what you told them. (1:39) Shout out to Oprah's interview style.(1:42) All right, why are we doing this episode? (1:44) We were, what episode was it? (1:46) 2382, I believe.(1:48) Where we mentioned the five pillars of clarity. (1:52) One piece of clarity that we did not mention in there, we didn't go into, was what are you not willing to trade off? (2:00) That is something you need to know when you start the journey of success because there are a lot of off-ramps when it comes to this where you can get, you can get jeffed very quickly.(2:11) We had, again, I think we're on the higher end of this and we, things are okay. (2:18) They didn't go off the rails. (2:19) But we've had people in our lives that slowly inched us towards being out of alignment so slowly and over time that you wake up one day and you say, what the fuck am I doing here?(2:31) What is going on here? (2:32) This isn't where it started. (2:36) And I think if you and I didn't have what we say all the time, character over everything, right?(2:43) Character over everything, character over a thing. (2:44) I think it would have been really easy to fall into that and say, ah, fuck, I'll trade this in for, I could trade this in for a little extra money. (2:51) Like, I mean, everybody else is doing it.(2:53) Like, why would it matter? (2:54) So I think one of the things that you have to be hyper aware of is what are you not willing to trade off? (3:00) Because if you trade it off, you might end up regretting it.(3:04) So let's talk about the different types of trade-offs. (3:09) Okay. (3:09) One of them is integrity.(3:13) We'll put that as a category. (3:16) One of them is time. (3:19) Time and effort.(3:21) Call that resources. (3:22) Time, effort, and money. (3:24) Skin in the game.(3:25) Okay. (3:26) One of them is relationships. (3:29) Holy hell.(3:30) Right? (3:31) I mean, your dreams and goals are going to require you to make some tough choices there. (3:37) That was my hardest one, for sure.(3:40) The integrity one, I never traded at all. (3:42) Well, as little as humanly possible, right? (3:45) To your point.(3:48) The time and effort one, all of it. (3:52) Like, ridiculous amounts of it. (3:54) Not traded off, but like, was willing to put it in.(3:57) Like, there's no delusion in me that this is going to take 99% of my time and effort in life. (4:04) Right? (4:04) My life force.(4:05) And then the relationships one, I... (4:08) Damn. (4:10) I wish I had done it sooner.

Alan Lazaros

(4:12) I wish I had known.

Kevin Palmieri

(4:13) Health is a big one too. (4:14) I didn't trade that. (4:16) No, not you, but just in general.(4:18) I did a little bit after COVID and you and I. (4:21) Dad bought a university. (4:22) Yeah, but I'm not even saying that.(4:23) I'm saying like, you... (4:26) How do I say this without it sounding like pretentious towards you? (4:31) Sleep is...(4:31) You will not sacrifice sleep to the best of your ability, right? (4:36) That, I think that's a really good thing. (4:37) I am not good at that, but this is the problem, because that's in alignment with...(4:46) That's actually more optimal for the long-term trajectory. (4:52) So that's... (4:52) Okay, so health is one of them.(4:54) I think that's fair. (4:56) Integrity is one of them. (4:57) Relationships is one of them.(4:58) Time and effort. (4:58) Resources, we'll call it time, effort, and money. (5:00) Resources.(5:01) I kind of want five. (5:03) Is there another one? (5:05) You got to figure family, but that's relationships, right?(5:10) Well, health, wealth, and love. (5:11) What else do you trade for your dreams and goals? (5:14) There's no such thing as something for nothing.(5:15) That's for sure. (5:19) I think that, I mean, integrity sums up a lot of the misaligned shit. (5:23) Yeah.(5:23) I'll give this one other paths. (5:32) You, if you're all in on your path, you're saying no to all the others. (5:37) So all the other careers, all the other snowboarding and basketball for me, rapping and fucking off for you.(5:44) I'm kidding. (5:45) I'm sorry. (5:45) I just want to have fun.(5:46) I do. (5:47) Sometimes I want to just make funnies, even if they're not funny. (5:51) Making fun at other people's expense is not good.(5:54) It is okay. (5:55) What if it's at your expense, but you also think it's funny? (5:58) I do think it's funny.(5:59) Yeah. (6:00) If it's ever actually at your expense, call me up. (6:02) Oh, of course.(6:03) Yeah. (6:05) I mean, that's, that might be the hardest one is like mourning the loss of all the other things that you, I said this to somebody recently. (6:12) I don't remember when it was.(6:14) I said the more, what was it? (6:19) The more opportunity, the more successful I get, the more opportunity I get. (6:23) The more opportunity I get, the more I have to restrict myself from taking advantage of those opportunities essentially.(6:29) Like I'm, I can go play a really nice golf course. (6:32) Yeah. (6:33) Yeah.(6:33) Yeah. (6:33) Love it. (6:34) But I can still only do it once a week, twice a week, twice a week.(6:38) If I can do like a three o'clock Saturday and then a Sunday. (6:41) Well, okay. (6:42) Awesome.(6:43) Great example. (6:44) Tangible. (6:44) Love it.(6:45) He's going to tear me to shreds here. (6:47) Prepare. (6:47) Sit down.(6:48) Not necessarily. (6:52) I think when we are young and naive and I'm saying we, including me in this, we want to believe that we can play golf and that that's not a sacrifice. (7:06) Every time you play golf, that is time.(7:09) That's not with Taryn. (7:10) That's time. (7:11) That's not making your brain better.(7:13) I disagree with that. (7:15) I disagree with that. (7:16) Making your brain better, being in nature and all that.(7:19) Well, there's pros and cons. (7:20) That's all I'm saying. (7:20) Pros and cons.(7:21) Give me some pros. (7:23) Give me three. (7:23) Limit the top three pros of you golfing at a nice golf course.(7:28) Networking. (7:30) That's for the business. (7:31) You know who else golfs at nice golf courses?(7:33) People that are successful usually. (7:35) Okay. (7:36) That's one.(7:36) But exercise. (7:37) Yeah. (7:38) That's a big one.(7:39) And then dude, I had a moment where I was playing like dog shit and I was like, I love that. (7:43) This is great. (7:44) I have to like overcome the fact that I am currently terrible to work through the mental side of being shit at this because I'm on the second hole.(7:52) So if I'm, if I'm a dick for the rest of the day, this is going to be a terrible experience. (7:56) Like lock in and be better than you are. (7:59) So the mental, the mastery in, but just like the mental, it's the word I'm looking for.(8:07) Being able to have the stability to understand that you can do shitty and then you can do that emotional mastery. (8:12) Maybe. (8:13) Or mental fitness.(8:15) I would say it's, yeah, it's like mental fitness. (8:16) Performance. (8:17) It's performance.(8:18) Peak performance. (8:19) Love it. (8:20) Who was the guy?(8:22) Mark. (8:23) Is it Mark? (8:23) His name was Grant Parr.(8:25) No, no, no, no. (8:26) I do. (8:27) I do remember.

Alan Lazaros

(8:27) Damn.

Kevin Palmieri

(8:28) The one with the questions. (8:30) It was all about questions. (8:33) White hair.(8:35) Awesome, dude. (8:37) Mark. (8:38) He had the Kobe Bryant question of, I do not like, where am I negotiating myself?(8:43) Mark Champagne. (8:44) Yeah. (8:45) Loved that.(8:45) What questions you ask yourself? (8:47) Mark Champagne. (8:47) Because that's what thinking is.(8:48) It's asking and answering questions. (8:50) He has a podcast called, I think it's called behind the human. (8:52) Yeah.(8:52) That's the one. (8:53) Nice. (8:53) Awesome.(8:54) Anyways. (8:54) Loved that guest. (8:55) Loved that interview.(8:56) I love, he was all about mental fitness. (8:58) That was my point. (8:58) Awesome.(8:59) I always got to tie it back because what the F. (9:02) Okay. (9:03) Those are the three pros.(9:04) Three pros. (9:05) Awesome. (9:05) Okay.

Alan Lazaros

(9:05) What are the cons?

Kevin Palmieri

(9:07) It's expensive as shit. (9:08) Okay. (9:09) Nice.(9:09) For sure. (9:09) First of all, real quick, sorry to interrupt you. (9:11) Everybody out there watching or listening.(9:14) A lot of people I've learned through coaching, try to mitigate in their own mind, the cons as if they're not there. (9:23) Like, oh, it's not that expensive. (9:25) They're rationalizing.(9:26) No, no, no. (9:26) It is expensive. (9:27) And that money could go to a lot of other good things.(9:30) Don't kid yourself. (9:31) I'm not saying not to golf. (9:32) I'm saying, understand the implications of your choices.(9:35) Yeah. (9:36) It's expensive for sure. (9:37) Okay.(9:38) That is time that I'm not spending with Aaron. (9:40) Yup. (9:41) And that's it.(9:43) Time you're not spending growing the fucking business. (9:45) Yeah. (9:46) But it's so in this case.(9:47) Not even on Kevin's list. (9:48) No, no, because I wouldn't, I wouldn't be doing it anyway. (9:51) That's the difference.(9:53) Oh. (9:53) Is like on Sunday, I am R&R-ing. (9:55) It's just, where am I R&R-ing?(9:57) I see. (9:58) But that's the truth. (9:59) Okay.(9:59) You're not working on your brain or whatever. (10:01) It's not like Sundays are R&R. (10:07) So like, I'm not.(10:08) I learn a lot on Sundays. (10:09) I know, I know. (10:10) I know.(10:10) But our, like, yeah, Sundays are like, Hey, let's, let's chill so we can survive the next week. (10:18) No learning? (10:18) No what?(10:18) No learning? (10:19) I do my, I do my, my learning. (10:22) Yeah.(10:23) On the way. (10:24) I've had days, and again, I don't, yeah, I'll say it. (10:28) But like there are days on Sunday where all I do is like, I took that entire course in one day.(10:35) Your- $1,500 course. (10:36) One day. (10:37) Gone.(10:37) What would you rate it? (10:38) Scale of zero to 10. (10:39) Sorry.(10:39) My apologies. (10:40) In terms of other courses or what I'd hoped? (10:43) What I'd hoped, full.(10:45) Compared to what I'd hoped, four. (10:47) Compared to other people's courses, 10. (10:50) Compared to course, a course that I love of his, four.(10:55) Four. (10:56) Yeah. (10:57) Insane Productivity is the best course I've ever taken.(11:00) Hands down. (11:00) Would you buy this one again? (11:02) Knowing what you know?(11:03) Yeah. (11:04) That's how bad I think most courses are. (11:07) Oh yeah.(11:08) Dude, honestly, most courses are atrociously bad. (11:11) Yeah. (11:11) In my opinion.(11:12) All right. (11:13) Third con, I'm not working on the business. (11:15) I'm not being productive.(11:16) I'm not being productive. (11:17) Or you're not working on yourself. (11:19) I am because exercise.(11:21) Yeah, that's fair.

Alan Lazaros

(11:22) I know.

Kevin Palmieri

(11:22) I walked seven, seven, eight, 9,000 steps last time. (11:25) Nice. (11:27) Okay.(11:28) Fair. (11:28) So I think that's a, and I'm in nature. (11:30) Like I don't fucking ever go outside.(11:32) So like that's, it's, this is the thing. (11:34) Here's a good thing. (11:35) This is, this, that means it's probably a pretty good choice.(11:38) Well, I compare it to the fact that I used to spend $75 this every, not every Saturday, but however many pay-per-views there were, I would spend $70 on the pay-per-view and then I would get food for that. (11:50) That would be another, like I would spend a hundred bucks on a pay-per-view and then I'd stay up until fucking two o'clock in the morning. (11:55) Now it's free because of the way it's set up, but I stay, I don't really spend almost any time watching mixed martial arts.(12:02) So like this, I replaced a not good hobby with a far more aligned one, but there is, that's the thing. (12:10) There are still things, there are still downsides to it. (12:13) And will you still believe that at 45?(12:16) What? (12:17) That it's worth it? (12:19) Will you still believe it?(12:20) Well, cause here's the thing, right? (12:21) And I want to bring this to the point of this whole episode, but the point of this podcast is making intelligent decisions consistently over time and growing and being better. (12:30) Okay.(12:30) Next level. (12:31) To get to the next level, you got to sacrifice the current level. (12:33) Awesome.(12:33) All right. (12:35) Back when you were making the decision to buy UFC and get a bunch of food, you thought that that was optimal. (12:41) No.(12:42) Okay, good. (12:43) Okay, good. (12:44) All right.(12:44) But you just think it was as suboptimal as you think now. (12:48) This is what growth is. (12:49) I, same.(12:51) I mean, when I got blasted in college, I didn't think it was a good choice, but I didn't realize it was as bad as it was. (12:57) Right. (12:57) Okay.(12:57) And that's what growth is. (12:58) You're supposed to look back on your past and realize that everything you did was suboptimal compared to what you're doing now. (13:04) It takes a level of evolution and oftentimes separation from the thing, I think.(13:12) You know, when I kind of stopped watching mixed martial arts, there was like a six week break where there was like no fights. (13:20) And I just went on. (13:21) You said you didn't like that it was getting I didn't.

Alan Lazaros

(13:24) Yeah.

Kevin Palmieri

(13:24) Toxic. (13:25) It's yes. (13:26) It's too toxic.(13:27) It's too political. (13:27) I don't, I'm not into it. (13:29) I am fucking, I just want to watch the fights.(13:32) That's it. (13:32) That's like, I've been watching mixed martial arts since I was 18 and now I don't even care. (13:40) So that's the thing is like, could the same thing and could the same thing happen with golf?(13:44) Yeah. (13:45) Yeah, of course. (13:46) Did you not think that would ever happen with mixed martial arts?(13:48) Never, never. (13:50) Yeah. (13:50) I think that that's important to note as well is, and this, this is my take on it.(13:56) I've done a lot of things that I thought would last longer than they did, but I never thought it would. (14:03) I was never certain 10 out of 10. (14:05) This is the point I want to make zero to 10.(14:07) It's not zero or one. (14:08) It's not good decision, bad decision. (14:10) Yeah.(14:11) It's not. (14:12) It's it's, is this more optimal than what I used to do? (14:15) And by the way, what does optimal even mean based on your goals?(14:17) We talked about your orienting for, okay. (14:20) In the frame of success, if you didn't have any fitness goals and you didn't have any business goals, networking and the steps now don't matter. (14:28) Gone.(14:28) Yeah. (14:28) Yeah. (14:29) Gone.(14:29) So, so pros and cons are predicated on construct. (14:32) I like constructive or destructive. (14:34) So what are the constructive things?(14:36) 10,000 steps or whatever, 8,000 steps, uh, constructive being in nature, being nature, networking and constructive is networking. (14:46) Great. (14:46) Okay.(14:46) Because of your goals, destructive costs you money. (14:49) Cost me money. (14:50) Um, what else is destructive?(14:52) Not with Taryn. (14:53) Not with Taryn. (14:53) Okay.(14:54) And I don't, what was the other one? (14:55) I said, I'm not working on me. (14:56) I'm not, I'm not learning.(14:59) I'm probably not learning super transferable skills to success. (15:02) Nice. (15:03) Okay.(15:04) Sure. (15:04) You could find them, but yeah, of course. (15:05) Of course.(15:06) Okay. (15:06) It's not the same as being at a business seminar or whatever. (15:08) Right.(15:09) Okay. (15:09) Or me in my kitchen, doing dishes, listening to a business enterprise building online course. (15:15) Okay.(15:16) Uh, everyone, that's the frame. (15:19) Whenever you do something, I hope that you have an assessment of like, what are the trade-offs? (15:26) Everything is a trade-off.(15:28) Every question I have a question for you. (15:29) Go ahead and answer this, please. (15:31) Honestly.(15:32) Are there any trade-offs that you have made that you didn't expect to make? (15:40) Yes. (15:42) Would you share some being with partners longer than I, but I mean like now, like at this stage, looking back?(15:53) No, no. (15:53) Like moving forward. (15:55) Like recently, like, is there a recent one where you're like, fuck, I didn't expect good when you say don't expect you.(16:04) It's like, oh shit. (16:05) I didn't realize I was paying that. (16:10) No, just like something that surprised you.(16:14) Like we get surprised.

Alan Lazaros

(16:15) Okay. (16:15) I got one. (16:15) Thanks.

Kevin Palmieri

(16:15) I got one. (16:16) I cannot fucking believe how much harder it is to naturally build muscle in my thirties than my twenties. (16:23) That is like been unexpected.(16:25) I didn't expect it to be easy, but what the fuck? (16:27) No, it's yeah. (16:28) It's harder than I thought.(16:28) Oh my goodness. (16:29) Like this is crazy. (16:31) Like for those of you in your twenties, don't fuck this up.(16:34) Like, Holy shit. (16:35) Now's the time. (16:37) I've exercised every day for four years and I'm not doing light workouts.(16:40) This is not like easy peasy lemon squeezy over here. (16:43) I don't know why I said that, but it, that was, it's never like, oh, I had no idea it was going to be harder in my thirties. (16:50) It's not like that.(16:51) It's just the, what the, this isn't even the same sport. (16:56) Right? (16:56) So, um, and I'm not willing to do steroids, which again, I decided in advance, I'm not willing to go there.(17:02) So no TRT, no steroids, nothing. (17:05) I'm all natural. (17:08) Homegrown organic is the joke I make.(17:09) But I think that that's important too, is it's, it's, I'm always aware of the pros and cons of the decisions I make to the best of my ability, but there's definitely tweaks later on where it's like, oh, that took way longer than I thought. (17:24) Or, oh, that took, that was way easier than I thought. (17:26) It's usually because I'm optimistic.(17:28) It usually took longer than I thought. (17:31) Like you and I's big goal, the $90,000 day, like that took longer than I thought. (17:35) It came quicker than you thought.(17:38) Nah, I don't know about that. (17:40) Was it on in line with what you thought? (17:41) I feel like, I mean, when you said, when you thought it was going to happen, I was, there's no fucking chance.(17:47) There's no, not, it's no, I had to go for it. (17:49) I know. (17:50) I know.(17:50) So even that is like, did you actually think it was going to happen? (17:52) Or did you just know the likelihood was higher if you did? (17:55) Yeah, that's meta.(17:56) That's a whole different conversation. (17:57) Meta thinking. (17:58) And here's the paradox is if I didn't go for the, would it have happened when it did?(18:03) Yeah. (18:04) Right. (18:04) So, but, but to answer your question very succinctly, it has been way harder in my thirties to be a freak athlete than I ever thought in my twenties.(18:17) It's always funny to me when people are like, ah, 36, you must be feeling it. (18:20) It's like, I feel great. (18:22) I feel better than I think maybe I ever have.(18:24) Depending on the day. (18:25) Like sometimes I get the weird, I can't turn my neck because I slept wrong, but that's not because I'm 36. (18:31) I mean, that's been happening for a long time.(18:33) But yeah, I feel like really good. (18:35) Same. (18:36) I feel really good.(18:36) But that's also because you've dialed a lot of things in. (18:39) Well, and your decisions are so much better now. (18:41) It's because I've done a lot of bad, I've done it badly in the past.(18:45) Like I, the whole, I would trade off sleep for, I still am less than ever, less than ever. (18:52) But Thursdays for me, I went to bed at probably 11 o'clock on Thursday. (18:56) I got up, sorry, 11 o'clock on Wednesday.(18:59) I got up at 4am on Thursday. (19:01) I went to the gym and then I worked like a 16 hour day. (19:04) What's my goal?(19:05) Yeah. (19:05) What's your sleep goal? (19:08) Yeah.(19:08) Eight hours, eight hours, eight hours is the goal. (19:11) Yeah. (19:11) So nine in bed for eight hours of sleep.(19:14) Or are you talking eight and a half for seven hours of sleep? (19:16) I'm talking like eight and a half for eight. (19:19) You can get eight and a half for eight.(19:21) All my data shows I need nine to get eight. (19:24) I need 10 to get nine. (19:26) I'm not saying the data shows anything indicative of what I'm trying to accomplish.(19:32) I'm just saying that is what I'm aiming for. (19:33) So you're just have a goal without measuring it? (19:35) But I am measuring it, but like for me, I have an issue.(19:40) Dude, I am not really willing to trade off a 6am wake up. (19:45) I don't want, I don't, I can't. (19:47) It's like a sickness, I'm telling you.(19:49) I don't want to sleep past six. (19:50) Do you think there's a version of you in the future that might? (19:54) Ah, man.(19:55) If, if and when we have a team that runs like everything, which is not real.

Alan Lazaros

(20:01) So never.

Kevin Palmieri

(20:02) Yeah, that's not real. (20:03) And again, shout out, like, yeah, I'm convinced we have the best fucking team in the business.

Alan Lazaros

(20:07) Yeah, yeah, yeah. (20:08) That was not a dig at the team.

Kevin Palmieri

(20:09) No, no, shout out to each and every one of you. (20:13) The reason I want to build a self-managing company. (20:15) It's like, take that with a grain of salt.(20:17) The reason I, the reason I get up is because I want to be able to go to the gym and then make sure I'm available for whatever has to get done. (20:25) Like today I woke up at 630. (20:27) I know I woke up at six and if I didn't wake up at six, something very important would not have gotten done the way it needed to get done.(20:34) This is predicated on you not being able to shift other things, but that's not the point of the episode. (20:39) Let's keep going.

Alan Lazaros

(20:39) No, no, no.

Kevin Palmieri

(20:40) There's a time. (20:41) This is, this is time bound. (20:42) Time investment.(20:43) No, no. (20:44) Time bound. (20:45) Something had to happen by a certain time.(20:46) If I didn't get up at six, I would not have had enough time to make it happen by the time it had to happen. (20:50) Well, at some point we'll reassess your existence. (20:54) Okay.(20:54) Sure. (20:55) So, and, or you'll get up early for the rest of your life, you know? (20:58) I like that second one better.(20:59) We'll see. (20:59) Yeah. (21:00) If I do, I like the second one better.(21:02) I don't feel lazy when I sleep in. (21:05) Again, I'm still getting. (21:06) Any of that can shift, right?

Alan Lazaros

(21:07) Yeah.

Kevin Palmieri

(21:08) You think you're in that 1% of people who actually can run a five hours? (21:10) No, I'm not. (21:11) I am no.(21:11) Emilia's in the 1% of people that actually can multitask. (21:14) I'm convinced of it. (21:15) Because I can multitask.(21:17) I'm multitasking right now. (21:18) I'm on Oura Ring and I'm listening to you. (21:19) You said Emilia is in the 1% of people that can multitask.(21:21) Well, you're doing one cognitive behavior and one physical behavior. (21:25) It doesn't mean you can actually multitask. (21:26) You might be.(21:27) It's possible statistically. (21:29) I don't think it's true. (21:30) Although you are pretty comfortable in chaos compared to me.(21:32) Anyway, back to the point of the episode. (21:34) 72 sleep score last night. (21:35) Strong work.(21:36) Time in bed, nine hours and 18 minutes. (21:38) Total sleep, seven hours and 49 minutes. (21:40) But I slept at a hotel.(21:41) It's excellent though. (21:42) I would say that that's green. (21:44) But here's the thing, that would be yellow for her.(21:47) That's what I'm saying. (21:48) So it depends on your standards, right? (21:50) It depends on the trade-offs.(21:53) So back to this, the categories were all the other opportunities.

Alan Lazaros

(21:58) We do have to wrap.

Kevin Palmieri

(21:59) Okay. (22:00) Can we just do this? (22:02) All right.(22:05) Integrity. (22:05) Don't trade that one for anything. (22:08) No, that's terrible idea.(22:10) Okay. (22:11) Terrible idea. (22:11) You're, you're no, no, no, no.(22:15) That's the invisible one. (22:16) Yeah. (22:16) That's the one that, and by the way, that has messed me up.(22:20) Like I have met a lot of my heroes. (22:23) I'm talking rich, famous people. (22:28) That was the saddest part of this journey for me is realizing how many of them traded in their integrity to get where they want to get.(22:37) And I told Kev, I don't know how long ago this was, but I said, this is the only way to do it without doing that. (22:44) Because unfortunately a lot of people at the top of the game, quote unquote, definitely have some body count in their trail. (22:54) Not literally, probably sometimes literally, but you know what I'm saying?(22:58) So skeletons in their closet. (23:00) We'll use that way more than I thought. (23:03) But I also didn't know how integrity based I was.(23:06) I didn't, and I don't want to come off and like virtue claim here, but I really didn't know how much other people were willing to trade that. (23:15) I didn't either. (23:16) Right.(23:17) No, I knew some people because you hear stories of like maybe certain industries or whatever. (23:23) But I was like, there's no way it's like success and like personal development. (23:27) Like they, everybody there is like rude.(23:29) Not even a little bit. (23:31) Being good to people. (23:32) Hasn't that been atrocious?(23:34) I thought the same thing too. (23:35) I thought the personal development industry, the self-improvement industry, the self-help industry, I thought that was going to be different. (23:42) I was super naive.(23:43) There's just as many snakes, if not more. (23:46) I like it. (23:47) I do now because I'm on the right side of it.(23:50) But dude, for when I was naive, that got us hurt. (23:52) For sure. (23:53) That got us.(23:54) Yeah.

Alan Lazaros

(23:54) Yeah.

Kevin Palmieri

(23:55) I mean, don't be naive in a pit of snakes. (23:58) You're going to get eaten for sure. (23:59) Well, don't be naive anywhere because there's snakes about.(24:02) Yeah, there really are. (24:03) The grass is longer than it's ever been, unfortunately. (24:06) Yeah.(24:06) Be as strong as you can be and don't be naive, but that doesn't mean you have to hurt others, right? (24:11) You can be strong and choose not to hurt others. (24:14) Okay.(24:15) Integrity, resources, time, effort, money, relationships. (24:21) That was the hardest one for me. (24:22) What was the hardest one for you?(24:23) Let's do all the integrity, relationships, time, effort, money, other crafts, other paths. (24:29) And then what was the other one? (24:34) Do you remember what the other one was?(24:36) No. (24:41) Health, wealth, love was my start.

Alan Lazaros

(24:44) It was health. (24:45) It was health.

Kevin Palmieri

(24:46) Yeah. (24:46) Which one was the hardest for you? (24:49) And for the listeners, which one was the hardest for you?(24:51) I think they compound. (24:52) I think they compound because if yours is time, then health might take a hit. (25:00) Like that was the thing for me is I wanted to do so many things that I would just sleep less.(25:04) That was my issue. (25:06) That was like the hardest one. (25:07) So you traded in health?(25:08) I traded in health. (25:10) Yeah, for sure. (25:11) I still trade in health more than I should probably less than ever, but still more than I should.(25:17) That is the duality of it. (25:19) I traded relationships and any friends who are upset with me from my past, I would own that to their face. (25:27) At this stage, I would say fair.(25:30) Like you can be upset with me. (25:32) I completely understand. (25:33) Some of you can fuck right off because you were terrible to me.(25:37) So what the hell? (25:38) You're entitled pricks. (25:39) But for some of you that I love dearly, you're absolutely right.(25:44) I traded our relationship in for achieving goals and dreams that I do believe are what's best for myself, others in the world. (25:53) And I will not run from that fact. (25:56) It's important.(25:58) It is important. (25:59) And I think a lot of people at the top of industries like Michael Jordan or something like that, certain people want to believe that they didn't do that. (26:08) And I've reached a point in my thirties where I was like, yeah, I did.(26:12) I consciously chose to not invest in certain relationships so that I can invest more into this mission. (26:19) And I take responsibility for them being upset about that. (26:23) It's deep.(26:24) It's deep. (26:25) All right. (26:25) All right.(26:26) If you're out there and you do not want to sacrifice your health, you understand the importance of health and fitness and getting after it every day and all that happy jazz, we have the next level fitness accountability group. (26:35) I was literally on my treadmill in the living room and I did a video and said, I would not be doing this cardio. (26:41) I did an hour of cardio.(26:42) I didn't want to do it. (26:43) I would not be doing this if I wasn't in the accountability group. (26:46) And if I wasn't leading the accountability group, that is the same for all of us.(26:49) You will do more for others. (26:50) Most likely than you will do for yourself, reach out to Alan and or I, and we will let you in. (26:55) Yeah.(26:55) It's been a huge uptick in motivation for me as well. (26:59) We are more accountable when we are accountable to people we care about. (27:03) You might not care what everyone thinks, but you're going to care about what the people you care about think.(27:07) And that can be of tremendous value. (27:10) The fitness group has 59 or some odd next levelers in there. (27:16) Next level warriors is what I started calling them because someone just reached out in the group and said they hit their goal early and they just have to maintain it now.(27:24) So people are crushing it in there. (27:27) Absolutely crushing it. (27:28) I don't care if you're perfect.(27:30) That ain't what this is about. (27:31) We care that you're consistent and accountable and responsible and that you keep the promises to yourself and to us every day. (27:37) It's going to help you.(27:38) And yes, you will feel bad in there if you're not exercising. (27:42) That's the point. (27:44) Everyone's getting after it.(27:46) Use that tribal influence to your advantage so that you can be bigger, better, and brighter in your future. (27:53) Tribal influence, that could be a good band name. (27:55) I will hang on to that for later.(27:57) Thank you so much. (27:57) As always, we love you. (27:58) We appreciate you.(27:59) Grateful for each and every one of you. (28:00) 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. (28:07) Keep leveling up to reach your full potential.(28:09) Next level nation. (28:11) Thanks for joining us for another episode of Next Level University. (28:15) We love connecting with next level family.(28:17) We mean it when we say family. (28:19) If you ever need anything, please reach out to us directly. (28:23) Everything you need to get a hold of us is in the show notes.(28:26) Thank you again, and we will talk to you tomorrow.