Short podcast monologue (Optimize +1) in which Brian Johnson recounts Joe Disenas kettlebell (Leo) as an example of a physical symbol that encodes commitment. Brian decides to adopt his own symbol — a Spartan sweatband he names Leonidas — to remind himself to be "Spartan and Athenian strong," pursue virtue, and support his goal of helping 100 million people optimize their lives. The episode closes by asking listeners what they are committed to and what symbol they might choose to capture that commitment.
Chapters
Foreign. You're listening to Optimize with Brian Johnson. More wisdom in less time. Hi, this is Brian. Welcome back to another Optimize plus one. In our last plus one, we met Joe Disena's kettlebell named Leo. I laugh anytime I think about that. As you may recall, little Leonidas goes everywhere. But Joe goes traveling around the world. Mr. Leo gets checked in, heading to the office in the morning. Leo's going too. When we chatted the other day, he literally picked up his kettlebell to show me all day, every day. Joe and his 44 pound cast iron little Leo are BFFs. Now, as I was preparing for greatest year ever 2019, the class and the year, I was reflecting on that epic love story and thinking about the importance of having symbols to capture our most important intentions. For Joe, that kettlebell represents his commitment to obstacle immunity and to honoring the pledge he's made to help 100 million people optimize their lives via his Spartan races, which I find to be super inspiring. So I wondered, what symbol can I create for myself that will capture my commitment to stepping up and into the next best version of myself as a social entrepreneur and leader, doing my part to help 100 million people optimize their lives by combining the power of wisdom plus community plus virtue. Now, for about five seconds, I considered taking Joe's lead and carrying around my own 44 pound kettlebell. But A, that's crazy even by my standards and B, that's Joe's thing. So I scratched that idea and Simply placed my 44 pound kettlebell a few feet from my wall calendar. So I nearly trip over it every single time I capture a micro that's like me win on that calendar. Then it hit me. I'll wear the little Spartan sweatband you get when you do a Spartan race with the competitive folks. Yeah, that's it. Now, I used to keep it on the corner of my desk as a reminder, but I picked it up and I put it on. Obnoxiously obvious equals perfect. So I hereby formally introduce you to my own little Leo. You met my Suunto Spartan Ultra Watch not too long ago. Well, here's his pal. He prefers to go by his full name, Leonidas. Every time I glance down at him, he's a little dirty right now. I think of the ancient Spartan king and of my commitment to be Spartan and Athenian strong as I strive to cultivate my virtue and give the world all I've got. All of which leads us to today's plus one. How about you? What are you most committed to in this precious life of yours? And what symbol can you create to capture that commitment? Note if you're feeling particularly iconoclastically feisty, the more obnoxiously obvious for you and everyone around you, the better. We hope you enjoyed this episode of Optimize with Brian Johnson. To find out more, go to Optimize Me.
