KB11 - The Friday 4 - Bodybuilding Your Brain

Welcome to a brand new structure to my Knowledge Bomb Newsletter

I’ve decided to make a few changes to it as I want to go deeper with the knowledge bombs but make it much easier to read and ponder.

Before we get into it, I want to say a huge thank you to our newsletter sponsor this week.

Today's issue is sponsored by Day One

Daily journaling is important for everyone, and over the last five years, it’s been something that I sucked at!

I tried every app and paper journal under the sun until I stumbled on Day One.

Day One has everything you need to get started with journaling, and the thing that has been a game changer for me is the custom prompt templates you can add so you know what to write about each day.

To download the app for free, Click Here

#1 - You don’t need to “Go all the way” to be happy and successful

I recently read a poem by the late Charles Bukowski, and this is the first line…

“If you’re going to try, go all the way. Otherwise, don’t even start. This could mean losing girlfriends, wives, relatives and maybe even your mind.”

I had this exact mentality 7 years ago, back in 2016. I was “going all the way”, and by the end of the year, I almost lost my wife and mind.

This way of thinking is cute in your 20s, but it’s a recipe for disaster in your 30s and 40s!

If you want to truly be successful, you need to define what success and happiness mean to you.

Then make a commitment to doing those things.

Things that make me happy and successful

• My Family
• My Content and Social Media
• Having a Profitable Business
• My Health and Fitness
• My Freedom

My commitment to these things

• Spend quality time with my Family (Weekends, Evenings, Holidays)
• Show up every day and make people better with your content
• Create the best products and deliver them to my clients and customers
• 4 sessions a week minimum (Choose from Gym, Running, Jiu Jitsu)
• Make sure you’re measuring and managing all the above, as it’s these that gives you freedom

Get a notepad and pen out and do the same for your life.

Write down the things that are important to you and your commitments to make them a reality.

#2 - Bodybuilding Your Brain

If you were to summarise how to “body build”, it’s a pretty simple concept…

Place increasing amounts of resistance on your body parts and increase that resistance over time.

Spend as much time on rest and recovery if you want to progress and stay injury free.

The exact same concept can be applied to your brain too.

• Place adequate amounts of resistance over time (Problem Solving, Facing Your Fears, Doing Uncomfortable Things)
• Increase that resistance over time (Bigger Problems, Finding more fears, Increasing your levels of discomfort)
• Rest and Recover (7+ hours of sleep, plenty of days off and lots of holidays)

Always remember that Stress + Rest Equals growth in everything you do.

#3 - The Compounding effect of compliments

We live in a world where people are focused on themselves and what they can take from the world, not give to it.

The simple act of complimenting others is the ultimate “cheat code” to not only benefit your life but the lives of others around you.

I want you to think about the last time you got a genuine compliment from a random stranger and try to remember how it made you feel.

Pretty awesome right?

The thing about complimenting others is it also makes the person giving the compliment feel good too!

Positive emotions experienced in others create a ripple effect, and that person is more likely to be kind and giving to other people they meet that day too.

Hence, the compounding effect of compliments.

Research at Case Western Reserve University has shown that engaging in acts of random kindness one day a week can reliably increase your well-being and that spending money on someone else makes you happier for longer than spending money on yourself.

It doesn’t need to be a lot of money either; simply buying someone a coffee or paying for a stranger's parking can be the ultimate mood booster!

#4 - Doing Something New For 30 Days

Ever feel like your life is on autopilot?

Doing the same things day in, day out, every single day?

Routine is important, but too much routine and certainty can lead to unhappiness and boredom.

The solution is to commit to a little “novelty” challenge of doing something new every day for 30 days and notice the difference it makes to your health and happiness.

Psychology Today says that

“A sense of novelty activates the dopamine system directly. As a result, it enhances mood, positive outlook, motivation, and goal setting.

A positive sense of novelty has also been shown to increase creativity in dealing with stress, lower perceived stress and anxiety, and lessen depression.”

Below I’ve listed a few things you can do daily in your novelty challenge….

• Change your workout - Do something completely different with your exercise regime (CrossFit, yoga, Zumba, jiu-jitsu, swimming, skipping) and commit to it for 30 days straight. This might make you realise how stuck in your ways you are with your exercise routine and may unlock some surprising insights into how it makes you feel

• Talk to a stranger - Every day for 30 days straight, you’ll spark a conversation with a stranger. This challenge, if you’re up for doing it, could change the game in your confidence and communication.

• Learn a new trick or skill - Every day for 30 days, you’ll master a new skill. It could be juggling, solving the Rubix cube, shuffling cards or mastering how to make your favourite cocktail. Of these, if you spent 15 mins a day for 30 days straight doing this, you'll be able to master that skill and show it off as your new party trick to others.

TL:DR

👉 You don’t need to “Go all the way” to be happy and successful. Define what success and happiness mean to you. Then commit to doing those things.

👉 Bodybuilding your brain. To build a strong mind, place adequate stress and resistance on it and increase this over time. Don’t forget to rest and recover to avoid any injuries

👉 The Compounding effect of compliments - set aside one day a week for random acts of kindness. Buying things for others makes you happier for longer than buying things for yourself.

👉 Do Something New for 30 Days - Commit to trying something new every day for 30 days straight. This increased novelty in your life is a great mood booster and can spark a new wave of creativity.

I hope you enjoyed this new format of the newsletter and the knowledge bombs!

See you again next week for another four!

Jay Alderton