A short '+1' podcast episode by Brian Johnson (Optimize) focused on Step 3 of building personal agency: Move. Brian summarizes and quotes Paul Knapper and Anthony Rao, who argue that movement plus adequate nutrition and rest are foundational to physical balance, cognitive function, motivation, attention, and the ability to delay gratification. The episode closes with a prompt asking listeners to identify one small consistent action and a guided breath exercise to demonstrate immediate agency.
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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 couple ones, we've had fun. At least I have. Briefly chatting about the first two steps Paul Knapper and Anthony Rao encourage us to take in pursuit of of cultivating our agency such that life's challenges are just nutritious treats fueling our Hero's journeys. Step 1 Control stimuli Step 2 Selectively associate Today we're going to talk about Step 3, Move. Here's how Paul and Anthony put it. Focusing on movement and on the nutrition and rest necessary to keep you active and in balance and increases mental and physical strength and stamina, essential building blocks to all body and mind functions. Want a strong sense of personal power? Well, as we discuss all the time, you better energize. Let's hear it a little more from their perspective. They tell us, quote we all know what it feels like to sit around like a slug all day, not getting outdoors and moving about. But when we get some real movement in, it is a kind of agency in itself. It primes our minds and our senses to fully engage in the world. They continue by saying, when we say move, we really mean this. Pay attention to your body so that you can provide it with what it requires to be healthy and in balance. Because when your body is out of balance, your mind is out of balance. To achieve this, engage in physical movements in multiple ways, rest adequately, exerc and eat nutritious food. Your agency depends on it. Without physical health and balance in your life, everything else will wobble and decline. Flexibility, strength and stamina are the most obvious things that begin to deteriorate when you're physically out of balance. But likewise, your motivation, your ability to pay attention and your ability to delay gratification are adversely affected. Most important to realize, they say, with unhealthy amounts of movement, rest, nutrition, your psychological state, your thinking skills and ability to manage your emotions deteriorates and along with it, your personal agency. That's today's plus one. What's the one thing you know you could be doing that could most benefit your life if you did it consistently starting today? Got it now forget it. What's one tiny little thing you could do right now that that would be a fun way to demonstrate some mastery and build your agency? Let's do it together. Mine I'm going to take a nice, calming deep breath in through my nose, down into my belly, then pause for a moment before smiling and exhaling back out through my nose, slightly longer than my inhale as I relax my body and get ready to give the world some more of what I've got. Let's do this. We hope you enjoyed this episode of Optimize with Brian Johnson. To find out more, go to Optimize Me.
