The Superhuman Framework: Beyond Happiness, A Holistic Approach to Peak Potential 🌟 #ElevateYourLife

Good morning, LinkedIn. Happy Thursday. And how lucky are we that we get to start off our Thursdays with George B. Thomas? How you doing, man?

Dude, I'm so excited to be here this morning. I'm excited too, because you said happy Thursday, but we're talking about happiness and how people can be happy and why Happy is a kind of foundational piece of what maybe we should be focusing on in our life. And dude, I'm, I'm just excited to actually even be doing this series. Like, I know we've done a couple so far. Hopefully people go back and watch them, but this is going to be a very interesting bank of around 11 to 12 videos that I think if people take the time to navigate the journey, could be very enlightening but also empowering to them, the teams that they work with and the organizations that they're part of. But yeah, I'm just, I'm good to be here, that's for sure.

Taking the time to make the journey. Yeah, that is really what this is about. There's not a lot of easy buttons here. The best we can do is say, like, make it easy for you to hit the let's get started button. So that's always interesting. There's an overwhelming amount of content out there about leveling up your life and getting happy. And it's hard to allow yourself when you're in the day to day and you got a job to do and you got other people to serve, you know, at home or at work. It's hard to give yourself that space sometimes. But that space is more important than, than ever before right now.

I think there's a couple things that I would say are true in the culture that we live in now. One, if you're not focused on self care, self education and self belief, it's rough out there if you're not focusing on those three things. Right. And the other thing is, and we were kind of talking about this in a totally different direction in the green room before we got started, but there's so much of everything. It's like, how do we know what to pay attention to if all sudden, Chris, I came to you and said, I'm just gonna start creating happiness content? Yeah. There's probably not a chance in heck that it would even be a thing. But there's this powerful piece of like consolidation. Right. And how do you consolidate something together that is more powerful when it's paired than when it was in its singular form? So if we just sat here and had a conversation on happiness. Okay, but what we're doing is we're having a conversation that is paired to nine other H elements that is curated and collected into the Superhuman framework. And therefore it's not like we're just trying to go after happiness content. We're like, we talked about last week holistically talking about the pieces that are going to actually impact from a three lens view. And so let me just start with this. If you, if this is the first episode of this that you're watching, I feel like we need to bring you up to speed because you've missed the last couple weeks where we talked about the framework in general, the superhuman framework. And last week we talked about the holistic aspect of the actual superhuman framework. So if you're like, okay, we're going to talk about happiness, but can you give me some context to the conversation quickly? The Superhuman framework, it's not just. And you kind of alluded to this like there's self help stuff out there, George, like, why a plethora? It's not just another self help blueprint. It's not just another business strategy. It's actually a way of living that helps individuals, teams and dare I say, organizations operate at their highest potential by again, focusing on the core 10 elements or principles that we put into the Superhuman framework. These principles like happiness that we're talking about today, health, humility, hunger, or hustle for, for growth. By the way, those are just a few because I wouldn't, I'm not going to list all of them. Like they come together to create a life or help you build a life that's more balanced, more purpose driven, and let's be honest, more fulfilling. And by a show of hands, if I could see you out there on the Internet, who wants a more fulfilling life? Who wants to live and do things in a purpose driven way? How many people are focused on, like, man, I just need balance, bro. Like, if I had balance, I'd be good to could, I guess everybody, right? And what I want everybody to understand is that I understand that that could sound like a lot and maybe it is a lot. But here's the deal. The Superhuman framework. And I was asked this in another conversation slash interview that I was doing with Liz Morehead. It's not about doing more, right? That's what I don't want people to see. The superhuman framework and the 10h elements and oh my God, I've got all this I got to do now. It's not about doing more. It's about doing what matters and doing it in a way that aligns with who you really are and who you really want to become from a human, from a team, from an organization. And honestly, it goes back to just the kind of general beyond your default methodology is. It's about breaking free from living life on autopilot, feeling like you're stuck the default settings and embracing more intentional, vibrant way of living, working and leading the humans that you're leading. And now you might be wondering, like, why the Superhuman framework? Like, first of all, why did we name it that? Well, that's because we decided to name it. But why actually lean into that? And my answer to the viewers, Chris, would be because I believe personally, and I think this is important to get out there. I personally believe you deserve more out of life, you deserve more out of relationships, and you deserve more out of your organization that you're either running or that you're part of. And let's be real, too many people, too many teams, even entire organizations are stuck again. We were talking kind of about this in the green room before this. Are stuck in the same old routines. Work, eat, sleep, repeat. Work, eat, sleep, repeat. Work, eat, sleep, repeat. Anyway, I'll stop there, but like, I just want people to know where this is coming from and the mindset of how you would use the framework and what the framework is. As we dive into this conversation around happiness.

Yeah. And this, there's a number of like, key points that like, first, you know, Nick from Fargo says sometimes invitation is greater than information. I think that was in response to like, there's a lot of good stuff out there, but how do you actually do it yourself? And then you said something like, this is a framework that helps you build. Right. This is not George building anything for you. And then that last part of, you know, helping you get out of the same routines. And like, it's almost like this digital separation. You know, there's. There's just such a promise of getting things done for you with. You gotta bring yourself into this journey. Like, nobody can do this stuff for you. You can use all the AI hacks, growth hacks, happiness hacks, there's books on all of it. But if you don't step in and apply it that 1%, it could be just 1%. If you don't do that part, none of the rest matters.

Yeah, Chris, it's interesting. My brain is going to this idea of like, this for sure is not a handout. What we're talking about, the framework that we built. It's a hand up. I quickly go to like teach a man or a woman how to Fish. The superhuman framework just shows you where the 10 dope fish fishing holes are. I don't want to give you the whole lake. I just want to show you where the 10 dope fishing holes are. The reason I think this is important too is because again, I'm not showing just the 10 fishing holes as like, oh, well, you're just somebody who comes out on the weekends. I'm showing like the professional fishermen, people that just do it for fun. I'm even like the people that judge the fishing tournament. Like, I'm even talking to that, right? Like, so this holistic thing of conversation around all this, because what I want people to understand when we're talking about this, teach a man or woman to fish, that it's a hand up that's going to be work. And you've got to actually like, take action if you're going to do these things. But what I want them to realize is, like, why it is important for them. We as humans, we. What's in it for me? Like, what do I get out of it? Like, you know, that kind of thing. And so I want people to understand, like, if you're an individual watching this and thinking, should I dive into the superhuman framework? Like, this means that you're designing a life where every decision that you're making is aligned with your purpose and your values. I would ask you right now, do you know what your purpose is and do you know what your values are? Because so many of us, me personally, lived a good half of my life and I'd be like, values? I. I don't know, because it was like, eat, drink, sleep, work. Eat, drink, sleep, work. I was stuck. I was in the rut. So for individuals, when you start to align with purpose and values, you're not just surviving, like many of us have lived life just surviving, but you're literally able to get into this mode of thriving. And trust me, when you get there, it is a completely different world. Like, it's almost like somebody took blinders off when I actually made this change for teams. I want you to think about the people that you work with or the teams that you're trying to build. When we talk about the superhuman framework and what this does with each of these elements, this is about creating a culture where people feel energized, recognized, connected. It ends up being like, what's in it for me? Like, you're leading in a way that allows collaboration and ultimately better results because of the relationships that are being built, because of the mindsets that are being, that are being Crafted because of the connection that is being made. And so if we take this up one layer higher for organizations, like if we're going to have you come out for a one day superhuman framework workshop, like, what's in it for us? It's about adopting the framework. It means building an environment, which by the way, when I think about environment, I think about experiences. And so many times we're focused on experiences, external and not experiences, internal, Internal. For the humans that actually decided to like, go on this journey with us. But we're building this environment where employees are not, by the way, we have engaged employees. That's table stakes. No shit. You pay them a paycheck to show up and be engaged. But not only engage, but they show up and they're genuinely happy, dare I say maybe even joyous to come to work. Do you look at your humans as a leader of an organization and go, these people are happy to be here or are they just clocking in and clocking out? So like, when you empower this thinking of happiness and health, growth and hustle and you prioritize impact of what you're doing for the individuals around you and yourself, going to be more productivity, there's going to be lower turnover. The culture that you're actually building is going to attract top talent. Which by the way, if you've tried to hire people in this post, holy crap, the world is ending environment that we live in. You need to be able to separate yourself as an organization to get top talent. Man, I hope people realize, like, we're on to something that is going to help the individual, help your teams and help your organization build something special 1h element at a time.

In this era that we're in where like, you gotta see proof, gotta see results, you gotta see who, who it's worked for. Like, if we look back, you know, before digital, we didn't need any of that to understand that we're in a room and the vibe is not great.

Right.

And if we're expecting that to lead to productivity, like, no, you know how hard it is. And some people are better at this than others. The ones that show up every day and because they care, you know, how hard it is to delight someone else if you yourself are not happy and not having a good time. Right. And anytime you do it, it's disingenuous or it comes off as like you're just trying to get your job done. So whenever we're talking about deliver with delight or, you know, surprise and delight, and we're not looking at how we're putting our teams in a position not just with the tools, but with the mindsets and all this stuff. Like, none of this stuff is immeasurable. But everybody knows about the stories of two horses powering, like, more than twice their weight because they're working together. It's like, everybody knows this stuff, yet when we get in it again, we don't allow ourselves the space to, like, like, what's really going on here, what's really needed to handle this situation. We're all human beings. And that's where I've always loved how you just bring it back to that. If you can just get rid of all the results and expectations and the way you're supposed to do things, the way you're not supposed to do things and just say, look, we got human beings involved. Are we serving human beings?

Yeah. It's funny, Chris, because you bring that up. And behind the scenes, we're working on relaunching George B. Thomas.com because we've got Sidekick strategies, which is agency services. We've got beyond your default, which is the actual personal growth that we're doing. And so George B. Thomas needs to become the speaking emcee. The place where the books live once they're published, like, that has to have that narrative. And so we're. We went down to ground zero and we're like, what? What is the thing? And, Chris, across the board and for the last 12, maybe 25 years of my life, it's all about the humans. And so literally, when we're redoing George B. Thomas, it is under the framework of it's all about the humans. Why do we go speak? Why do we emcee? Why did we write the books? It's all about the humans. Why did we provide agency services about empowering, enabling the humans? Why do we do beyond your fault? Because we want to see humans be better humans. Like, so, like everything that we're running through with the superhuman framework, the mathematics of one, and anything that comes out of my mouth, it's all about the humans. Right? Like, let's. Come on, like. And if you're not living in that world, what world are you living in? And so let me dive down here a little bit to get us headed in the right direction because we. This literally is supposed to be the episode on happiness. And so I want to zero down, down in on happiness because I think it's one of the foundational principles. And not just because when I used to do a bunch of videos that I ended with be a happy, helpful, humble Human, but because it is a piece of that has been like one of the most energizing elements inside of my story and inside what I've seen, inside of others and inside of organizations. So it's a foundational piece. But there's a twist. What I have to get out is what people may think when they hear the word happiness. It's not about like I'm happy because I'm chasing monetary money or monumental highs in life or I'll be happy when everything's perfect. Like good luck with that because that's not going to happen. Like perfectionist falsality.

It could be why you're not happy. That could be why you're not happy right now.

Yeah. If one of those three things is like the success metric that you've been trying to measure your life by.

Well, I'll give you a frameworks for you this framework.

I'll give you a minute. But here's the thing. When I think about happiness, it's about cultivating a lasting state of well being that fuels every area of your life. And let me explain what I mean by that. When I think about happiness, I think about health and well being. When I think about happiness, I think about purpose and meaning. When I think about happiness, I think about work life balance. I think about gratitude and mindset. I think about community and connection. I think about happiness being the empowerment or the motivation of resilience and overcoming the adversities that are going to happen in our life. You see, the word happiness is tied to so many other topics, but we don't realize that what we're really saying. When I go, oh man, I need to find some work life balance. What you're really saying is, God, I wish I was happy. You see what I'm saying? Like that's when I talk about happiness in the framework. That's what I'm talking about. How it is tied to so many things that are so important that we talk about. But don't make that direct connection.

Yeah, let's just love this content so much because if we had like gone deep on the plan for this conversation, you know it's going to be about happiness. Okay, so maybe we intro a little bit, but five minutes in, you know, we're getting to happiness. It took us 20 minutes because there's a lot of other shit that you need to know and understand and agree to before you can even start. And part of that is understanding what like makes you happy. Is it all the things that everybody's been telling you. That was huge for Me this year, when I unlocked my creator mode and I cause it at the agency life, I was like, I'm just not going to get on board with going to get leads and trying to fill a funnel. And it just didn't connect with me. And I. I know I'm never going to do that. Elite life. No, like, and. But I didn't know exactly what my place was going to be once I started creating content. I was like, oh, this is what I need to be doing.

Yeah.

Like, this is it. Like, how can I do more of this? And now every decision after that aligns with that.

Yep.

And it's like, how do I put myself in a place to be valuable and be happy while. While I do that?

Yeah. I love that. Chris. It's funny because you're. You're teleporting my brain back to a couple years ago, I was at a men's Bible study, and somebody asked this gentleman this question. What makes you happy? And there was the longest pause I've ever felt in my life. And this gentleman said, I don't know. To which I then said, that makes me sad, because if you don't know what makes you happy, you don't know what you love. And I want to throw this out there for people. I think it was last week we. We serendipitously dumped into the, like, foundational pieces of, like, purpose, passion, persistence, and love. Being, like, the foundational piece of the superhuman framework. When I think about personal happiness, it's building a life of love, knowing the things that you love, doing the things that you love, being with the people that you love. You see, when we talk about happiness on this personal level, we're talking about the kind of joy. I'll get back to that word in a minute.

By the way.

The kind of joy that comes from fulfilling experiences, that comes from meaningful relationships. It's not just about feeling good in the moment. Like, it's about consistently creating a life that you're genuinely excited to live. Genuinely excited to live. I have to ask you right now, as you're watching this, are you living a life that excites you? If the answer is no, and I hate to be the bearer of bad news, you're living the wrong life. How about you go live your life instead of somebody else's life? I mentioned the word joy. That was a little harsh. I apologize if that was harsh, but it's true. And sometimes the truth hurts, and the truth will set you free. But let's talk about the word joy. Too many of us are out here chasing happiness when we should be chasing joy. Joy is the deeper level of the surface conversation that most of us humans are having. Well, George, why is happiness in the framework? Because happiness will lead to joy. But most people are stuck. We have to start with surface level ideas to get them in the water to swim deeper. But if you're like, oh, I totally get this, well, then flip a switch. Today, quit focusing on happiness and focus on joy. By the way, there's a. There's another narrative that I run that is close to us. I quit chasing success and I started chasing significance, which, by the way, for me, Chris, unlocked the creator mindset. I'm going to create so much content and become so significant to people. I'm going to be the modern E.F. hutton. When I talk about HubSpot, people are going to listen, right? So like, so I want you to understand happiness is not just a nice to have like, it is crucial, critical. Add whatever word you connect with most emotionally. If you don't have it in your life, if you don't know it in your life, look through happiness, through swimming towards joy. You're going to build resilience. You're going to help maintain a positive and healthy mindset. You're gonna better equip yourself to handle whatever life throws your way. And trust me, it's gonna throw some stuff your way.

Yeah, the pursuit of happiness is there in us. We're like beings driven for that. And I'm just thinking all these things are passing through what's in my mind right now as I say that. Like, how many times have you heard, like, when we're kids or growing up, it's like, we're just happy, you know, all the time. We're loving life. Like, we don't have any of these adult infrastructures in our mind the way it should be or the way it's supposed to be or who we're trying to impress. So you're going to make that pursuit either way. And if it's to the places where it's not actually going to create happiness, you get there and you're like, okay, I need something else. I need more. The switch to flip is to decide that you need to, like, define or dig deep to figure out what that is for you. That's not going to change overnight. Right? You're not just going to say, all right, I'm using these ten 10H's and we're going to get this done, like, ready to go. So if you look at it that way, it'll definitely Be a huge mountain to climb and overwhelming and all that. So it's really just giving yourself permission to say, hey, I deserve to figure this out.

Yes. Like I said at the beginning, you deserve more out of your life. You deserve more out of your relationships. You deserve more out of your organization. This is a way that you can figure out what are the pieces that we need to focus on. Chris, again, you're, you're great at teleporting my brain to like different parts of my life when you're talking. Because there was a point in my life where I was like, oh man, I'm, I'm gonna be happy when I speak it inbound. I mean, if the day comes that I can step on stage and speak it inbound, woo, I'm gonna be happy. And then I spoke it inbound and I was like, now what? What makes me happy now that I've done that, now what? Right. And so we're really good at like forgetting that there's life beyond what we think will make us happy and two, three steps below. But we're also really good at like moving the thing like before we even reach the thing that we said, oh, I'll be happy if I make 60,000. And then it's like, oh, no, actually it's when I make 80. Ah, just kidding. 120. That's when I'll be happy. Like, what kind of game are we playing? But now that's individuals. Now I want to dive into. Holy mackerel, time flies when you're having fun. I want to dive into real quick because again, I want to make sure we're looking at these three lenses. Team happiness. Right? When I think about team happiness, the like line here would be team happiness is about fueling engagement and success. That's the mindset I want you to have. Because when it comes to teams and happiness, it is about finding satisfaction and fulfillment in the work itself and in the relationships that you're able to build in the work that you're doing. So building relationships and fulfillment. Happy professionals, by the way, they don't just perform better. And by the way, if you're a leader and you're like, I just want them to perform better, like, that is so short sighted. Like happy professionals paying them. Oh my God. Yeah. Happy professionals don't just perform better. They're more creative, they're more engaged, they're more motivated and they're actively fulfilled in helping to push the team forward in a direction that is good and positive for all team members. That's why Focusing on happiness in a team setting can be an absolute game changer. But you have to ask yourself the question, how do you bring more happiness to a team? Because now it's not just like influencing yourself. You gotta start influencing others, even if you're not the leader, by the way, because I'm a big believer that you can lead from the back pew. Anyway, totally different life that I just referenced, but starts by recognizing what parts of your job bring you joy. Chris, you mentioned content creation bring you joy. And then guess what? Simply doing more of that. Building strong relationships with your colleagues. People who feel connected to their teammates show up differently. I need you to pause and think about that guy or girl that you've worked with historically. And you're like, oh, they just showed up ready to kill it. We all have that person we can think of now. You might be that person to somebody else, right? Why are they showing up differently? Why are they fulfilled? Why are they joyous? Why does it seem like they're always working on the thing that they love? Most likely it's because they regularly check in on their career goals and make sure that their work is aligning with those goals. And I have to ask the people who are watching this, do you even pay attention to what your personal and professional goals are? And then reverse engineer your daily life to actually get you there based on the things that bring you joy? You see, when we can have a positive environment that is aligning with our purpose, the organizational purpose, the team's purpose and goals, we light a spark, we start a fire. And that spark or fire creates the energy that spreads across the entire team.

And that energy, it's just every conversation is different. Every internal engagement is different. Now. We're not always down here working through miscommunications and misunderstandings. And, like, so much of, like, what I talk about, especially with HubSpot, it's like we need to change the conversations that we're having, right? If we show up once a week for the management meeting and like, we haven't seen the results we're supposed to go over, or we talk about how the results are they right? How do we trust them? Instead, getting to this place where it's like, okay, all that stuff is good, now we're actually saying, okay, what does this mean? Like, what are we going to do about it? Do we need to invest more? Do we need to stop doing this? You know, we don't have to try and manufacture ways to call people out for doing a good job. Like, it just, you know, you just Start having these different conversations. And that's why it's super leader.

Yeah, it's.

We can't make this super tangible for you.

I love that.

It's just like human beings are going to human. And you got to support that.

Yeah, without a doubt. Without a. Chris, do we have time to look at the third lens before we do? Okay, good, Good. I just wanted to make sure, because I want to take it, like, up a notch or take it to the next level or whatever, like saying or analogy that you want to throw in there, that your brain will engage with this, the overarching concept or idea. When I think about organizational happiness, it's about creating a culture that people and I need you to pay attention to this part. Want to be part of, not get paid to be part of. Want to be part of. When I want to be part of something, I'll do it if I get paid or not. Is your organization creating a culture that people want to be part of? Because when a company gets happiness. Right. Trust me when I tell you that it is a win for everyone. Happy employees, like I said earlier, they're more engaged. I didn't say this, but. No, this is true. They are more loyal. You have a problem with turnover. You need loyalty. How do you get loyalty? Happy employees. Right. So, like, engaged, loyal, productive. And by the way, that's not just good for business. It creates a culture where people genuinely want to be there. And I would ask you again, who doesn't want that? Like, if you come to be, like, nah, I don't really want to work for an organization that, like, I just want to show up and be there. Like, no, no, nobody on the planet. Yes, we want to. Fundamentally, we want to belong. We want to be part of things that are special, and organizations have the power to ignore that or build upon that fundamental psychological philosophy that has been on the planet since the beginning to cultivate happiness. Go ahead, Chris.

I'm glad you just said that. Because it is the choice of the business. This is one of the few things as a leader that you are in 100% control over the environment that you create at the business.

Yes.

I cannot overstate that enough, because the other 80% of stuff that you're worried about, pipeline, demand generation, lead generation, you don't have any control over most of those outcomes. You can move them in the right direction, customer experience, even to get to those places. You control just a few things. And the environment you create for people to work in, to serve all that stuff is one of those things.

Yeah.

If you're not doing it. That's on you and no one else.

Well, and here's the thing, though, Chris, I'll play the devil's advocate for a second because, and I love the word that you used, control. You're in control of that. And I fully understand, as a human who tries to have empathy, realize that there's probably somebody out there going, then why do I feel so out of control? Why do I feel like I don't know what buttons to push, what levers to pull to move the needle? That, yes, I agree with you, I should be in control of, but I feel like I'm lost in the wilderness. Right? So for that human, what I would say, that leader that I believe you're a great leader, you just are trying to get to the right spot, but you're finding it difficult to cultivate happiness at an organizational level. Where I like to start is encouraging work, life balance. I literally have a hashtag in our organization, Family first. Somebody can slack me and be like, this is happening. Hashtag, family first. See you when you get back. You can also do, like, flexible schedules. I don't care necessarily when you work, as long as you get the work done. Now if you don't get the work done, then things will change and I will care when you work. But like, flexible schedules, wellness programs, like, hey, do you need help with, like, yoga or therapy? Or do you give apps to people for, like, meditation or. What I'm trying to say is the more I tend to focus on the employees and the humans that help us in the ways that they help us, the more they actually end up focusing on me and the business and helping the business. But my focus isn't to, like, I want to get more out of them. It's like, no, I just want to help the humans and build reciprocity and build trust. And by the way, I'm not talking about my consumers right now. I'm talking about the humans who have decided to pick up their tools and their weapons and go on this life journey with me to create great experiences and create great things. Like, but along the way, like, I also make sure that we recognize and reward these folks, like, whether it be a monetary contribution, whether it be mentioning them in Slack, but consistently trying to find a way to recognize them. Heck, just yesterday we are working on a project where we're doing a bunch of, like, archiving and unpublishing pages because we're doing some SEO cleanup for a client. And I was so focused on, like, website pages, website pages, website pages. Jorge from my team goes, dude, this is great. What about landing pages? And I said, you know what? The client didn't bring up landing pages, but let me slack them and find out now. I could have slacked this. Hey, client, I was wondering if you wanted to do landing pages as well. This is not the slack I sent because this was an opportunity for me to recognize and reward in an emotional way a good idea that came from another human. And so I said, hey, Lient, Jorge had a great question. We're doing this on website pages. Would you like us to do landing pages afterwards? So I gave Jorge the recognition of the great idea. I recognized and elevated the human. And by the way, I know that that will pay back in spades because he feels good. I didn't need to feel good. There's no reason for me to feel good. It wasn't my idea. So why would I, as a leader, take and run. You have to make sure that your people have these opportunities to be recognized. And therefore, because they're recognized, also have these opportunities to do meaningful work and to see. See a path where they see growth. Will I always be stuck in this position? No, because George recognizes me. George talks to me about the future. George shows the vision of where we're potentially heading and what that might mean for me. Because I can see the vision. I feel like I have purpose. And when employees find purpose in what they do, like it's a whole different ball game. You end up with a culture that's positive and majorly focused on driving. Long term life is not a short term game, ladies and gentlemen. Long term success. All right, Chris. I'll shut up. We're way over time.

Yeah. Yeah. So much that we're going to get to in future episodes. It's about the humans, folks. That's the difference from the place you were and the place you are now. Humans inside the business have different expectations. Humans outside the business, simplify it. Figure out what those expectations are. Serve them. Find those opportunities, and let's grow. Have a great day, everybody.