Brian Johnson gave a 90-minute talk to top naval aviation commanders in San Diego. He told Rear Admiral Dave Pollard, "you think you're at an eight, but you're really at a two," a line the admiral used to push himself harder. The point: everyone has way more potential than they think.
Hi, this is Brian. Welcome back to another heroic one. Last month I had the sacred honor to serve a hundred of the top naval aviation commanders and many of their spouses at their base in San Diego. My friend Rear Admiral Dave Pollard invited me out to give a 90 minute heroic presentation on how to forge antifragile confidence and get the most out of the heroic app. Now, there are a lot of things I could share from the trip, but today I want to focus on one thing Dave said. His introduction. Let's get straight to work. So after the standard overview of what I've done and who I am, Dave told the commanding officers and their spouses about what I said to him after we spent four hours together. I can remember it vividly. Dave picked me up outside the base in Norfolk. We headed on to that base. He gave me a tour of the aircraft carrier he was commanding at the time, the USS George H.W. bush, which he was also commanding when we sent it out in support of Ukraine. Now, as part of the tour, I learned more about George H.W. bush, the heroic man and his dedication to freedom and to America from his service in World War II through his presidency. Then Dave drove me back to the hotel because he's an incredibly thoughtful guy. Then I don't remember how long we spent parked outside the lobby, but it was at least an hour. And he told the group that he remembers me telling him that. And I quote him quoting me, you think you're at an eight, but you're really at a two. Then he playfully said that his immediate silent response in his head was them's fighting words. He laughed, I laughed, everyone laughed. Then he said that it was true. He used that as fuel to go next, next, next level in his personal development since we enjoyed that time together and that's today's plus one. I don't care who you are, you have more untapped potential. You think you're at an 8, but you're really at a 2. And know this, that's not a criticism, that's a celebration of your infinite potential. Here's to turning up the heat and going all in all day, every day, especially today.
