3OT: Fulfilment, Testosterone, & Global Comparison

Hey friends,

Quote of the week:

"The truth will set you free, but it will make you miserable first” - Mike Tyson

3 Things:

1. I was talking with a friend yesterday about the key ingredients to feeling fulfilled. We agreed on 3 things: adopting responsibility of our own choosing (not placed upon us by someone else), feeling excited about what we’re working on (and that it could realistically succeed), and consistently putting in effort toward our goals. I’m not saying this is the same for everyone, but it always works for me.

   If I had to boil it down, it’d say: Adopt responsibility, Stay excited, Work hard.

    

2. New thing I’m trying:

   Eating a lot of hot sauce to try and increase my testosterone. This one is a shot in the dark, but there’s a few studies showing higher testosterone is correlated with liking spicier foods. Obviously this is correlation and not causation, but I’m wondering if it might work in reverse too, and because I’m crazy, I’m going to try it. Stay tuned for results.

    

3. There are many dangers of social media, but one that’s often overlooked is it forces you to compare yourself to the top 1% of the global population. 80 years ago, if you could bench 300 lbs, you’d be one of the most fit people in your town and everyone would come to you for advice. But in 2024, you have to compete with all the strong people from all around the world, and by comparison you feel weak and ugly. It’s very hard to be in the top 1% globally at anything, but much easier to be in the top 1% of your city or state. Don’t be too hard on yourself for failing to meet an unreasonably high standard, especially one that evolutionarily you wouldn’t have had to worry about.

   P.S. I’m not saying don’t try to break into the top 1% globally, but rather don’t get demoralized just because you’re not there yet. Many more people have given up because they thought they weren’t good enough, than have stopped too soon because they didn’t dream big enough.

    

Tweet I Enjoyed:

Cheers,

Ben