17 Dec 2025 · 5 min
Brian Johnson explains how mediocrity comes from the Greek word meaning stuck in the middle of a mountain. He cites Todd Henry's Die Empty and argues that excellence, or arete, requires living with urgency and diligence to close the gap between your potential and what you actually do.
You're listening to Optimize with Brian Johnson. More wisdom in less time. Hi, this is Brian. Welcome back to another micro class. This one's on let's not be Mediocre. Inspired by Die Empty. Todd Henry, Philosopher's note. Great book. Mediocre. Did you know? I did not until reading this book that the Latin roots of the word mediocre are medias and ocarus medius. And ocarus medius means, as you'd guess, the middle acris means a rugged mountain. So to be mediocre is literally to be stuck in the middle sad face of a rugged mountain. That's mediocrity. Stuck in the middle of a rugged mountain. Didn't quite have what it took to get up here and plant your flag. Yes, exciting. So, interestingly, there are a ton of synonyms for mediocre. Ordinary, average, middling, uninspired, unexceptional, prosaic, pedestrian. Okay, my Apple dictionary goes off. It's got like a dozen more synonyms for mediocre. There's one and only one antonym to mediocre in my Apple dictionary. You know what that is? Excellent. That is the antonym to mediocrity. If we want to get out of being stuck in the middle of this mountain, this rugged mountain, and summit our potential, we need to commit to excellence. That's why if I had to summarize my entire philosophy in one word, it would be the Greek word for excellence, arete. Arete means basically to move from here to here, moment to moment to moment to moment. You have something you're capable of doing and being in any given moment. And if you are being here, sad face, you're going to feel anxiety, depression, ick. If there's a gap between what you're capable of being and what you're actually being, in this gap exists. Regret, anxiety, disillusionment, etc. We need to close the gap. We need to live with excellence. We need to live with arete. The phrase that Todd comes back to again and again in his book is urgency plus diligence. We need to show up and get done what needs to get done, moment to moment to moment. That's how we avoid being mediocre. Hope you enjoyed. How can you dial up your excellence a little bit more today and summit the peak of your potential? Look forward to sharing more soon. See ya. Hi, this is Brian. I hope you enjoyed that micro class. If so, I think you'll enjoy everything else we offer at BrianJohnson. Me. Two basic things. One, our free newsletter. It's called the Optimizer. Over 50,000 people start their day with it and they tell us it's pretty awesome and 2 our optimal living Membership Program this is where I put all my best stuff. 10 bucks a month for a ton of wisdom. Two primary things in there philosopher's notes plus optimal living 101 classes when you sign up, you'll get instant access to 250 philosopher's notes, which are basically six page PDFs and 20 minute MP3s where I capture my favorite big ideas from from great books. The PNTV episodes are kind of a mini version of all that goodness. You'll also get instant access to all my Optimal Living classes. This is where I take all the ideas we cover in the Philosopher's Notes and boil it down to the most practical stuff you can apply today. Classes include Confidence 101, Getting Stuff Done 101, Relationships 101, Habits 101, etc. You'll also get access to what we call micro classes that I think you'll love. We aim to astonish and we're blessed to have thousands of members telling us we're helping them change their lives and that this is the best 10 bucks they invest in themselves every month. Go to BrianJohnson ME membership to learn more. Thanks for your support and have an awesome day.
