What Percentage Of You Is Focused On Your Success? (2396)

Success asks for more than you think. In this episode, Kevin and Alan challenge a hard truth about growth. Wanting more does not mean you are doing what it takes to create more. They break down focus, discipline, and the difference between feeling committed and actually being committed. Real progress is not just about desire. It is built through honest self-assessment, stronger standards, and the ability to follow through when it would be easier not to.

If you want better results in personal development, productivity, and long-term success, this episode will sharpen the way you evaluate your habits, your discipline, and your consistency. Press play before your excuses get a promotion.

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Book Alan’s Business Breakthrough Session. Your first 30-minute coaching call is FREE. Learn how to prioritize success and let your quality of life become the byproduct. - https://calendly.com/alanlazaros/30-minute-breakthrough-session

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

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

Website: http://www.nextleveluniverse.com

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Email:
Kevin@nextleveluniverse.com
Alan@nextleveluniverse.com

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

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Show notes:
(2:06) Why success takes more than you think
(5:10) How capacity grows over time
(8:33) The illusion of full effort
(13:00) What your daily life really shows
(18:30) Keeping promises to yourself
(24:00) Why does skill still need repetition
(27:25) 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) I am still of the opinion that one of the hardest things is going to bed early. (0:05) Getting up early sucks, yeah, but I think going to bed early is one of the hardest things you can do, and it is what we are talking about today, because at the end of the day, you've already done all the things to move the needle, to make you feel successful. (0:17) I invested in this, I did this, I worked here, this is my 1% improvement, but there isn't a high enough percentage of you that is focused on success for you to just go to fucking bed and then do the same thing the next day.

Alan Lazaros

(0:28) Focus. (0:29) What you pay attention to determines where you invest your time, effort, and money, and the most important skill for success is focus. (0:38) What percentage of you is focused on your bigger, better, brighter future?

Kevin Palmieri

(0:45) Welcome to Next Level University. (0:48) I'm your host, Kevin Palmieri. (0:50) And I'm your co-host, Alan Lazarus.(0:52) At NLU, we believe in a heart-driven, but no-BS approach to holistic self-improvement for dreamchasers.

Alan Lazaros

(0:59) Our goal with every episode is to help you level up your life, love, health, and wealth.

Kevin Palmieri

(1:06) 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

(1:21) Self-improvement, in your pocket, every day, from anywhere, completely free. (1:28) Welcome to Next Level University.

Kevin Palmieri

(1:34) Next Level Nation, today for episode number, please hold, I keep jeffing it, it's 2396. (1:43) We're approaching 2400, which is why. (1:44) Nice.(1:45) 2396. (1:46) What percentage of you is focused on your success? (1:50) I believe one of the reasons success takes so long is in the beginning, you think you're giving it 100%, and maybe you are giving it 100% of what you have, but that 100% just isn't that much.(2:01) I think back to, and again, we joke about this a lot, but this seriously was my life. (2:06) Alan and I would record together, no, let me walk you through. (2:10) Let me walk you through a day in my life.(2:13) This is when I was an entrepreneur, and this is the way I made money, even though we weren't making any money. (2:19) Wontrepreneur. (2:19) Wontrepreneur.(2:20) Every day, 4.30, alarm goes off, I get up. (2:27) Go out into the living room, I lived with Matt at the time, go out into the living room, I journaled, I meditated, I did mobility, Matt would get up at like 5.30, I would take my pre-workout, we'd go to the gym at six. (2:39) Come back, I would make my micro-shake.(2:42) It had spinach, it had peanut butter, it had a bunch of stuff in it. (2:45) It was actually pretty good, all things considered. (2:48) Then I'd work for like an hour, and then I'd take a nap.(2:52) Then I would take a nap. (2:54) There was one time where the person I was dating, she would come over at like 11 o'clock in the morning, and we would hang out for a couple hours. (3:04) Then I would wake up, and or she would leave, and then I would work for like four hours, depending on what we were doing, and then Matt would come home from work and we would play Call of Duty.(3:15) That was like the average day. (3:19) Now, Alan and I went across the country to events, we traveled for podcasting. (3:24) When I went and met you at your house, there was 12, 13, 16 hour days.(3:28) This wasn't what I was doing all the time, but I thought I was working hard. (3:33) I thought the vast percentage of what I had to give was given to the goals and to the mission. (3:39) Maybe at the time it was, I was having panic attacks because I was so far out of my comfort zone, but- What's your truth now?(3:46) Dumb. (3:47) No, no, no, well, deeper. (3:52) More.(3:53) Man, it probably, it definitely wasn't as much as I thought it was, but I think it was enough to move the needle at the beginning. (4:04) You know, I don't know, I'm not really about starting something and maximizing it for most people, because if you've never done it before, starting it is maximizing. (4:13) You don't have anything to refer to.(4:14) You don't have anything to contrast it against. (4:15) I had never done this before, so I didn't really know what it took. (4:20) And we joke about this now, but I literally would have one coaching call and I would have to take a fucking nap because I was so overwhelmed and I was so nervous and I was so scared.(4:29) So- Isn't that wild? (4:31) What seems like child's play now was quite literally overwhelming at the beginning and you don't know that at the time because that's all you know. (4:39) And so I think this is an interesting conversation because I think that most people are led to believe that as you get more successful, you can have less percentage of focus on success.(4:52) And it is, I get an email from a client and it was like, I might have to wake up at four o'clock tomorrow to make sure this gets done before it needs to get done. (5:01) But yeah, no, it just runs by itself, right? (5:04) Like not really.(5:04) For me, there's always some intervention needed when it comes to success, for sure.

Alan Lazaros

(5:10) Recently I did this when I was on with a client, screen sharing on Zoom. (5:14) I've done this with a couple of clients actually. (5:17) I pulled up my calendar from the previous week.(5:20) This was last week, so the week before that. (5:23) And I said, this is the most productive and effective week I've ever had in my entire life. (5:29) And we're looking at it.(5:30) Boom. (5:31) Calendar, coaching sessions, trainings, podcasts. (5:38) I said, I'm going to go back six years.(5:43) So I think this was the end of March. (5:46) So I went back to the end of March, six years, 2020, March of 2020. (5:52) And it was mind blowing to see how much less dialed in I was back then.(5:58) I can only imagine. (5:59) It was so important to see. (6:05) I accomplish more in a week now than I did in an entire month back then.(6:15) And here's the thing. (6:17) And as nervous as I am to say this, this is the fucking truth. (6:24) I was the hardest working person that I had ever met at that point.(6:31) You, I was, remember I joke about closing the Panera and they're like, yo, you got to go. (6:36) And it's like, I would just, now everything's relative. (6:44) Are you maxing out?(6:47) I think the conversation we should have here, and you and I can discord about this. (6:53) Not only, okay, let's say, let's say me six years ago is 20% of me now in terms of coaching, training, podcasting, output, productive output. (7:05) We call it total productive output in peak performance tracking.(7:08) Boom. (7:09) That's the tracking that I use for my clients and the team. (7:13) Okay.(7:15) Me now, one fifth of me back then could imagine if we go back six years ago, how easy would that day be for you? (7:21) Oh, it would be so easy. (7:23) It'd be so easy.(7:24) It would be like the easiest day of all time. (7:29) Yeah, I wouldn't do anything. (7:31) I think this is a good metaphor.(7:33) Imagine if you and I ran every day, a mile a day, every day for these past nine years, how much better we would get at running would be mind blowing. (7:48) And I did a mile earlier, seven 57, nothing, uh, seven 51, whatever. (7:52) Not nothing crazy.(7:53) I've only done 31 days in a row, but already my easy pace is better than my old. (8:02) Already it's 31 days. (8:05) That's the thing that is mind bending.(8:07) That's why it's so good to go back because you thought, I thought I was so productive back then. (8:12) I had my flashcard. (8:13) I filled it out every day before we went to Google sheets, I, I was productive and so were you.(8:22) As a matter of fact, you were pretty much more productive than most of the people that you knew.

Kevin Palmieri

(8:27) I was definitely more productive than most people I knew for sure.

Alan Lazaros

(8:30) Isn't that mind blowing to think about?

Kevin Palmieri

(8:33) But it, I, geez, it's the hard part is it probably was a statistically high percentage of my focus, but not, it's just not as much in, in reflection as I thought. (8:49) I thought I was giving it a hundred percent. (8:50) I was not giving it a hundred percent.

Alan Lazaros

(8:52) Well, so this is it. (8:53) If 20% of me now, 20% of you now could do that day back then pretty easily. (9:01) What if he, what if 20% of you now, it's almost like, okay, the container gets bigger, that your potential gets bigger.(9:12) I always try to use the metaphor of a mat. (9:14) Imagine a computer that doesn't get worse every year. (9:16) It gets better every year.(9:18) That's your brain and body. (9:19) If you train it right and you sleep and hydrate and all that stuff. (9:22) So I remember in the beginning you would just, your brain would shut off and you just couldn't go anymore.(9:29) You'd have to go to bed. (9:29) Back when we used to travel together, you're like, ah, that's it. (9:32) That's the end.(9:33) And now that doesn't happen. (9:35) No. (9:36) Even when you get low sleep, it still doesn't happen.

Kevin Palmieri

(9:38) I notice, I notice the difference, but it's not like it used to be. (9:45) Yeah.

Alan Lazaros

(9:45) The brain and body is so adaptive. (9:47) It is wild. (9:47) It's fucking awesome.(9:49) I love how adaptive the brain and body are. (9:52) That's the thing.

Kevin Palmieri

(9:53) You don't notice it on the day-to-day, but over time it's drastic. (9:58) Contrast. (9:58) You need some level of contrast.(10:00) I was talking to somebody the other day and they were like, how did you not know? (10:04) I told this story about how, I don't remember what grade I was in, but I went to the eye doctors for the first time in a long period of time and they were like, Kevin must be really bad in school. (10:15) And my mom's like, no, he's good in school.(10:16) Like B's, A's, B's. (10:17) This is like middle school. (10:19) And they're like, oh, okay.(10:20) Must be terrible at sports. (10:21) No, he's like an all-star at everything he does. (10:23) They're like, oh, okay.(10:24) Interesting. (10:24) He's blind in one eye. (10:25) So we have no idea how that's even possible.(10:27) And then when we left, my mom's like, why didn't you tell me? (10:30) And I was like, because this is, I've always seen this way. (10:31) I don't know what you see.(10:33) I don't know what anybody else sees. (10:34) Like this is what I'm used to. (10:35) So I don't, I, why would I think there's a problem?(10:37) I didn't think, I didn't have any level of contrast. (10:40) Now when I wear glasses versus when I don't, there's contrast, but I'm so used to this. (10:44) This is like the way I lived for however many years that, that.(10:50) One of the interesting things about being an entrepreneur is you get to put the vast majority of your focus on your own success. (10:57) That when people say, I can't fucking stand this quote, everybody has the same 24 hours. (11:02) No, they don't.(11:03) That's dumb as shit. (11:04) I know. (11:05) Nope.(11:05) Whoa. (11:06) No, that's dumb. (11:07) This is good.(11:08) No, because if you lose eight hours to a job.

Alan Lazaros

(11:10) Everybody does have the same 24 hours. (11:12) I disagree.

Kevin Palmieri

(11:13) I disagree. (11:13) No, no, no.

Alan Lazaros

(11:14) Mathematically they do. (11:15) Yes, yes, yes. (11:16) But I want to hear this.(11:17) This is good. (11:18) Because that's a very common time management quote. (11:21) Yeah.(11:21) It's dumb.

Kevin Palmieri

(11:22) It's, it's the people who have insane levels of self-belief that are like, oh, oh, you work eight hours. (11:29) That shouldn't be an excuse. (11:30) You could do, okay.(11:32) You have a nine to five. (11:33) Okay. (11:33) We'll work from six to nine and then work from five to nine every night.(11:36) It's like, no, I understand what you're saying, but that is statistically harder if somebody has to go to a job every day and they can't. (11:44) The vast majority, unfortunately, of their focus is going to go to something that is not their direct success maybe.

Alan Lazaros

(11:51) Yeah.

Kevin Palmieri

(11:52) Fair.

Alan Lazaros

(11:52) Yeah.

Kevin Palmieri

(11:53) But people don't nuance it usually.

Alan Lazaros

(11:54) Don't you think that's easier than being an entrepreneur though?

Kevin Palmieri

(12:01) Yes, if you've tested being an entrepreneur, because if not, it's most likely the hardest thing you've ever done. (12:07) Yeah, yeah, yeah. (12:08) Nice.(12:08) That's the fucked up part about all this is like, what are you comparing it to? (12:12) Are you comparing it to. (12:14) You remember when you said you thought you could do what I do?(12:17) I could for a day, I think. (12:20) I do.

Alan Lazaros

(12:21) I think I could do it for a day. (12:22) I think you could for a day too. (12:23) That's not what you said.

Kevin Palmieri

(12:27) I don't know. (12:28) I mean, yeah, maybe I'm a little off on it. (12:31) I'm a little off on it.(12:32) I don't know. (12:34) I think I could do it for a while maybe. (12:37) Am I also, that's the thing though is like.(12:39) What did I say to you? (12:40) I came at you. (12:41) I was like, dude.

Alan Lazaros

(12:42) Oh, you were, Alan was offended. (12:43) No, I was because I, in the past I wouldn't even have noticed, but I was like, brother. (12:50) Every second, dude.(12:52) Well that's the thing, right? (12:53) I don't know. (12:54) You don't know.(12:54) I don't know. (12:55) I say this to my clients and I mean this in the least creepy way possible. (12:59) I said, if I had a camera on you and I watched you go through your day, would I be alarmed or impressed?(13:05) And a lot of times they say, fucking alarmed. (13:08) And I say, okay, let's talk about it. (13:10) Let's talk about it.(13:11) What would I be alarmed by? (13:12) That's where we get to start. (13:14) So question for you, public humiliation, I'm kidding.(13:18) If I had a camera on you, what would I be alarmed by? (13:21) Or would I be impressed? (13:23) And again, it's not about whether or not you impress me.(13:25) That's not my point. (13:25) I mean, would everyone be impressed? (13:28) Like holy shit, this dude is dialed.

Kevin Palmieri

(13:32) I don't know. (13:34) It's I don't know. (13:35) The hard thing is like so much of my life is reactive.(13:38) So it seems like I'm almost not doing anything until something has to get done and then I do it really quickly. (13:43) So I don't know.

Alan Lazaros

(13:46) Um, remember when we crunched the time and it was 60 hours, I was like, oh shit. (13:52) One thing, and this is another episode, not right now, but I need to say it. (14:00) Everything is more than you might think.(14:07) Like running a mile a day, every day, honestly, not that fucking hard. (14:11) Running a 727 was awful. (14:15) It was awful.(14:17) And it's like, are you fucking kidding me, Alan? (14:20) Get it together, son. (14:22) This is fucking crazy.(14:23) It depends on the contrast. (14:25) But I think that's my point is it's so fucking easy to talk. (14:30) I always think of that person in the stands who's like Edelman fucking.(14:34) Oh, I know. (14:35) It's like, dude, there's a 270 pound dude coming at him full fucking speed, midair and a 90 mile per hour football thrown. (14:45) It's like you're like the least athletic person I've ever seen in my life.(14:49) And you're shouting at Edelman. (14:52) It's like he knows how to catch the ball. (14:54) Okay.(14:54) And I just, I feel like that's so arrogant. (14:59) It's so arrogant to like, I don't think people are very good at putting themselves in. (15:06) And I've been guilty of this as well.(15:09) Like I thought the marathon would be easier than it was. (15:11) My point is, this is it. (15:13) Measure it.(15:14) Go measure it. (15:15) Go try before you talk. (15:17) And I'm saying this to me and I said this to the whole NLU team on our last title.(15:20) Like I don't want to hear anyone talk until they try. (15:25) Like, obviously you have to still have a vision and that kind of thing. (15:29) I'm not saying this literally, but I don't want to talk until I've tried.(15:34) If you've not bench pressed 225 in a while, throw that weight on 225, give me five. (15:42) You're going to be like, fuck, most likely. (15:46) And I had a client, I know you're listening.(15:49) She's like, I don't know. (15:50) Your workouts don't seem that intense. (15:52) I said, listen, I know, I know, but you got to understand the video is just that one moment.(16:00) My entire workout is like that. (16:02) I said, have you ever done a workout where you don't take any breaks between sets? (16:07) And she's like, well, no, not really.(16:09) I've taken short break. (16:10) I said, just try it. (16:11) Just, just go try it for a full hour.(16:13) No breaks between sets. (16:15) And then come talk to me. (16:16) She's like, oh, and it's like, I know.

Kevin Palmieri

(16:20) Did you not simulate that? (16:24) No, it depends on what you compare. (16:25) One of the things that is all like, again, it doesn't piss me off, quote unquote, but it's always like, it's just an interesting turn of events.(16:33) Go on a podcast as a guest and they're like, you guys do a fucking episode every day. (16:37) That's crazy. (16:38) And I'll say, yeah, yeah, we do an episode every day.(16:40) And they'll say, you have guests? (16:41) And I'll say, no, we do solos. (16:43) How long?(16:45) Um, 15, 20, right? (16:47) Usually no less than 10. (16:48) They're like, oh, okay.(16:50) What do you mean? (16:50) Oh, okay. (16:51) What does that mean?(16:53) If you do one episode a week and you still miss, why, why, why, why are you saying that?

Alan Lazaros

(16:58) It's so strange to me. (16:59) I love when you get, I love when you get salty and fired up about podcasting. (17:04) No, no.(17:05) All right. (17:05) Salty is the wrong term.

Kevin Palmieri

(17:06) Fired up.

Alan Lazaros

(17:06) But it's like, what? (17:08) Why? (17:09) What?(17:09) Your warrior gets ignited. (17:11) Why does that lessen it? (17:13) I need to get their ego involved sometimes.(17:17) And I was on with a client yesterday. (17:18) And I did that and it's like, brother, I need to see if you, if you're not going to fight for it, like I'll, I'll say, oh, honestly, I, I don't think, I don't think that priority really matters to you. (17:28) I don't think you're going to do it.(17:29) And I can tell if he fights for it or not. (17:32) You're not going to do things you're not willing to fight for. (17:35) See, podcasting means something to you for sure.(17:37) So that's why that fires you up. (17:40) That's why with me, it fires me up when they're like, your workouts don't seem that hard. (17:43) It's like, yo, if you worked out with me, you would have a fucking ego death.

Kevin Palmieri

(17:47) And I don't need you. (17:48) I don't need, I don't need somebody to say, oh, it's in me. (17:50) I don't need that.(17:51) I don't need that. (17:52) I don't care. (17:52) I could give a shit less, but I also don't want, I don't want you can't go the other way though.(17:56) Exactly. (17:57) You can't go the other way and say like, if, if somebody said to you, oh, you've exercised for however many days that are, oh, you started over 30 minutes in the beginning. (18:03) Oh, that makes sense.(18:04) It's like, no, no. (18:04) Fuck you. (18:05) Fuck right.(18:06) That's dumb. (18:07) You go, then go do it. (18:08) You owe this.(18:09) How about this? (18:10) You can do it for five minutes a day to start. (18:12) Go ahead.(18:13) And then let's come back in 30 days and let's check in. (18:16) No, it's come back in four years. (18:17) Well, yeah, yeah.(18:18) But let's just start with, let's start with the 30 days.

Alan Lazaros

(18:20) Yeah. (18:21) Well, that I love the talk. (18:22) The walk is where the humble pie is.(18:25) Of course. (18:26) I want to share this story very briefly. (18:27) I know we got to go, but I think that this is, this is like a metaphor.(18:30) I don't want it to be talking about me. (18:32) I want everyone out there to think about this as the metaphor got on the treadmill today and I'm feeling good and I'm like, I'm going to make a promise to myself. (18:41) Simple.(18:42) 31 days in a row. (18:43) Miles for mindset. (18:44) Awesome.(18:45) I got the goat playlist going at Michael Jordan's in my ear. (18:47) Awesome. (18:48) Great.(18:48) Michael Phelps. (18:49) Great. (18:49) Serena Williams.(18:50) Awesome. (18:50) I'm like, let's, let's get it. (18:52) Let's get it today.(18:52) We're going to get it. (18:53) We're going to get it today. (18:54) I was like, I'm going to start this mile off at 7.5 and every 30 seconds, no matter what happens, no matter how hard it hurts, I'm going to go up by 0.1 every 30 seconds and I'm going to see if I can, uh, I thought I might break my, I crunched the math wrong. (19:10) I thought I might break seven 27, which is my 31 day PR, whatever. (19:14) Micro PR is what I call this. (19:16) My point is imagine every 30 seconds having to increase it when you're just dying and dying is an exaggeration, but there, there was definitely a level of suffering by choice suffering.(19:33) Like there was a part of me that was like, just don't, nobody will know, but you'll know nobody will even fucking know. (19:39) You're already faster than everyone in here. (19:41) Everyone's walking.(19:42) You're no one will even notice. (19:44) I'll fucking know Alan. (19:47) I'll fucking know.(19:49) Don't you dare under any circumstances, not keep this fucking promise you made to yourself. (19:55) You are going to die on this treadmill or you're going to keep that promise you pick. (20:00) There is not an option.(20:02) Now I understand that that sounds a little, a little nuts. (20:06) I'm telling you, I'm glad I did it. (20:08) And it was, I still hadn't hit my, I think it was seven 51 or something.(20:12) The point is it was awful. (20:14) It was so humbling and I got off and now it's time for 60 minutes, 55 minutes of push day. (20:25) I have to lift now and I'm dying already and now, and I'm sweating like a fat kid and I'm, I'm just ready to rock and I'm like, now I have to do 55 minutes and try to PR on bench press and there's something so humbling about that.(20:46) I think a lot of us get very arrogant, even people who don't, don't come off arrogant. (20:51) Some of us get very delusional very quickly. (20:54) I've seen it so many times.(20:56) It happens to me too. (21:00) We need humble pies so fucking bad because then we don't respect the craft. (21:07) Like when I say a seven 51 mile, if anyone's sitting there saying that's easy, I need you to go do it on a treadmill.(21:15) Just go do it. (21:16) And then tell me after that it's easy. (21:18) And I would love for you to hear that.(21:20) I know it doesn't sound like a big deal, but it's all relative. (21:25) I am a bodybuilder. (21:27) I've spent my time weight training and walking and, and occasional jogging and walk.(21:32) Like I've exercised four years straight and it's still challenging. (21:37) I think everything at the top of any game is like way harder than anyone can imagine if you're not doing it longterm. (21:46) Like what we do on this podcast, lights, camera, topic, go.(21:51) It is really impressive. (21:53) It's just not impressive to us. (21:56) Remember when we had the team on the podcast a while back, that was good for me because with all the love, I thought they were awful.(22:05) I thought they were terrible. (22:07) That's my truth. (22:08) And they were great for being beginners, but they were awful compared to us.(22:13) And that's my truth. (22:14) And I just want to speak truth here. (22:16) That's okay.(22:17) You're not podcasters. (22:19) You haven't done this 2400 times. (22:21) Now, if I've done 2400 days of a mile a day and I'm still barely getting a 751, there's problems.(22:27) We got problems. (22:28) And that's why everything's relative to your own benchmark. (22:31) And I think it's you versus you.(22:33) And I think that we underestimate the amount of pain and suffering necessary to achieve great things.

Kevin Palmieri

(22:38) No matter what, you'll always find a way to tie this to pain and suffering. (22:40) No matter what we, no matter what the fucking topic is. (22:42) This would be my analogy.(22:43) I don't use analogies anymore because I don't know. (22:45) I forgot. (22:46) I think of certain things like a checkpoint in a video game, except imagine where you didn't play the video game for five years and you think you're going to go back to the same checkpoint.(22:56) It's a different game. (22:57) It's completely different. (22:59) I went to the gym.(23:00) This was probably, this was a couple of months ago. (23:01) And there's a boxer there. (23:04) And it was like a slow day.(23:05) I don't know if he was doing training or whatever. (23:08) And I said, hey, do you mind popping the boxing room open? (23:10) I want to get some cardio in.(23:11) And he said, do you want me to hold pads for you? (23:13) You want me to hold mitts? (23:13) And I was like, I mean, if you want, I don't, sure.(23:15) I don't want you to, I don't want to inconvenience you. (23:18) He's like, God, no, I got nothing to do, man. (23:19) Let's do it.(23:20) I was fucking terrible. (23:22) It was so, it was like three minutes and I was dying at the end. (23:25) And, but it's so easy to go home and watch fights and be like, oh my God, how'd you get hit?(23:29) Like you should have countered that. (23:31) Uh, yeah, no, he knows. (23:32) He knows he should have countered.(23:33) He's a professional fighter. (23:35) You, what are you doing? (23:36) But you know, the last time I did that, I was in better shape.(23:40) Cardiovascularly. (23:41) I wasn't dieting. (23:42) I wasn't whatever, right?(23:44) Insert excuse and or circumstance here.

Alan Lazaros

(23:46) And on the other side of this coin, do we take our gifts for granted? (23:50) The fact that I can, unless you jump on a microphone easily and communicate effectively. (23:56) This is the other thing that's been grinding my gears.(23:58) I know we got to go people, people are not writing. (24:03) So I think reading, writing, and speaking are critical skills, absolutely critical skills. (24:11) And AI is doing that for people.(24:14) Most people are not writing their own emails. (24:16) They're not writing their own messages. (24:17) I mean, even in the dating game, all kinds of stuff.(24:21) Yo, I've been practicing effective communication deeply intentionally for 11 years. (24:27) And I think I blow at it. (24:30) You guys are fucked.(24:31) If you don't write your own emails, write your own emails. (24:36) Literally, you need to learn. (24:37) And you want to know why?(24:38) Because writing is a way to articulate your thoughts. (24:42) Writing makes you think better, talk better, speak better, train better, podcast better. (24:47) It's a critical skill.(24:48) You can't just stop doing everything just because AI does it. (24:52) And so at the end of the day, we'll go back to the point of this, which is start small and build and don't take it for granted. (25:00) Don't forget the 0.1. If you and I stopped podcasting for three years, we would not be able to just like this. (25:08) No, we were fresh. (25:09) We're ready. (25:10) And I think we take it for granted.

Kevin Palmieri

(25:12) We don't mean to, but we do. (25:13) I think you probably take it for granted more than I do. (25:15) How dare you?(25:16) The gifts you know are gifts are not the gifts you take for granted. (25:21) I didn't do this for me. (25:22) I think you are naturally way better at this than I was.(25:25) For me, this is all developed. (25:28) We were talking earlier and it was like, you asked, why don't you think that person's going to make it? (25:33) Because they shouldn't do what I've done to get here.(25:36) There's no way. (25:36) What are the odds they just choose to do this? (25:39) Do an episode on giftedness?

Alan Lazaros

(25:42) Yeah, for sure. (25:43) Because I think you'd have a good take on it too, because you never felt gifted. (25:47) I do not feel gifted.

Kevin Palmieri

(25:48) I know a lot of people that are gifted that have no clue. (25:51) I feel gifted in certain bodybuilding strength realms, but gifted. (25:55) We'll do it tomorrow.(25:56) We want to do that tomorrow. (25:57) I do want to do that tomorrow. (25:59) All right.(25:59) That's what we're going to do. (26:00) All right. (26:00) Which means not tomorrow.(26:02) And this episode we record after this one.

Alan Lazaros

(26:05) Yeah. (26:06) So it's not going to be the next episode, but the one after that.

Kevin Palmieri

(26:09) No, it's going to be the next episode. (26:12) No, no, it's for tomorrow. (26:13) Yeah, yeah.(26:13) But let's scan that.

Alan Lazaros

(26:14) No, no, no, no. (26:16) I want to do the priorities.

Kevin Palmieri

(26:17) I want to strike while the iron's hot though.

Alan Lazaros

(26:18) But micro and macro priorities. (26:20) Yeah. (26:20) We can save that for the next day.

Kevin Palmieri

(26:22) How dare you? (26:23) Come on. (26:23) Okay.(26:24) You cool with that? (26:26) Yeah. (26:27) As long as we do it.(26:28) We're going to do it. (26:29) All right. (26:30) Yeah, done.(26:31) I'm going to mark it. (26:32) It's already on the thing. (26:33) So I just got to pivot.(26:34) We just got to pivot. (26:34) All right, cool. (26:35) If you're out there right now and you want more of your focus to be on success, one of the best ways in the world to do that is to have somebody who is constantly checking in with you and you are checking in with them.(26:45) One of the reasons I stay as focused as I do on my goals is because Alan is coaching me and obviously we're tied together at the business and all that, but I've been coaching with Alan for nine years now and it has helped me stay focused. (26:56) He didn't know I was hanging out, smoking weed all the time, playing call of duty. (27:00) He didn't know I hit it.(27:01) I hit it from him. (27:02) He wouldn't, he wouldn't have let me do it. (27:04) He wouldn't have said yes.(27:05) If you really do want what you say you want, you should probably get your shit together.

Alan Lazaros

(27:09) I would have definitely asked you to step up politely, respectfully, and then eventually I would have been like, what the?

Kevin Palmieri

(27:15) Luckily, we worked through that. (27:16) We got through that.

Alan Lazaros

(27:17) Now we're here. (27:17) We did.

Kevin Palmieri

(27:18) So yeah, if you're looking for a coach, reach out to Alan. (27:20) If you're looking for a group of awesome humans who are also focused on getting to the next level, join the Facebook group. (27:25) We'll have the link in the show notes.(27:26) As always, we love you. (27:27) We appreciate you. (27:28) Grateful for each and every one of you.(27:29) And if you are as focused, committed to getting to the next level as you say you are, make sure you tune in tomorrow because we will be here every single day to help you get there.

Alan Lazaros

(27:36) Keep leveling up every day to reach your full potential. (27:39) Thanks, Civil Nation.

Kevin Palmieri

(27:40) Thanks for joining us for another episode of Next Level University. (27:44) We love connecting with the Next Level family.

Alan Lazaros

(27:47) We mean it when we say family. (27:49) If you ever need anything, please reach out to us directly. (27:53) Everything you need to get ahold of us is in the show notes.

Kevin Palmieri

(27:56) Thank you again, and we will talk to you tomorrow.