20 Top Insights on Business & Growth (Part 2)

Welcome back to the Quick Brain Podcast. I am your host, Jim Quick, and I'm here as always to help you to learn quickly and build a better, brighter brain. This is part two of our special 400th episode release, where we will be discussing 40 of the most impactful, insightful things that we've uncovered around our own brain health. And we did previously 20, so make sure you listen to the previous episode. And in this one, we'll share the other 20, talking about your brain and. Business and personal growth. In case you missed part 1 again, where we discussed lessons around the brain and brain health, make sure you go and listen to the episode that we released previous to this. Again, I'm gonna share with you each episode here, and if you wanna listen to the actual episode that I am reviewing, then go to the show notes at jimkwik.com/notes. And I wanna remind you that this episode is not meant to treat or diagnose any kind of medical condition. Discuss that with your healthcare professional. Let's start with your business brain. Okay, number 21. Let's talk about communication. When we are having a real conversation, it is reflected in our bodies, and part of our body is our brain. It doesn't matter whether you are face-to-face in real life with your conversation partner or in a virtual setting like Zoom. Your breathing and your heart rates will eventually start to match. At the same time, our thoughts are also becoming more and more similar. Our neural activity is becoming more synchronized. This doesn't mean that we will start to agree with everything the other person is saying, but it will help us to understand each other better, and it will be easier for you to speak in a way that will make it easier for the other person to understand what you are saying. Here are some of Charles Duhigg's Super Communicator Insider Number 1, understand what kind of conversation you are having. Is it practical? Are we trying to solve something? Is it emotional, where we're only looking for empathy? Or is it social, where we discuss our social identities and how these relate to society? You need to have the same kind of conversation as the other person. Otherwise, you will never hear or truly understand each other. These are 3 habits super communicators have. Number 1, they ask about feelings, not facts. Number 2, they prove they are listening. And number 3, they show people that they want to connect by asking follow-up questions or laughing to show engagement. Before engaging in a conversation, ask yourself, what are the goals? For this conversation? And what do you think the other person's goals are for this conversation? And write down 3 topics that might come up. They will likely not come up, but it will give you more confidence and eliminate some of that anxiety around not knowing what answers to give. Number 22, decision-making. Let's talk about decision-making. To improve your decision-making abilities, a good place to start is knowing your values. Using a strictly Exactly. Using only monetary analysis while making a decision will mean you're not using your values for the decision, but blending in your values to the decision-making will give you a greater result and allow you to access more of your faith. My longtime friend David Meltzer shared his 4 value types and 4 decision-making hacks, if you will, with us on an episode for you to use As a framework. The 4 value types you should assess are personal values, experiential values, giving values, and receiving values. Our receiving values create the most interference in our decision-making because often people are scared to receive. They feel guilty, they don't feel worthy, and they think they shouldn't ask for what they want. The 4 decision-making hacks he proposed that you can use in your thought processes are— Number 1, gratitude. While making a decision, look for the positive and best outcomes. Number 2, forgiveness. While making a decision, forgive yourself for the lessons you haven't yet learned and know that you will make mistakes again. Number 3, accountability. Often people are already thinking about the excuses they could make if the decision doesn't work out and start thinking about blame or shame and justification. So be mindful Of these thoughts. And then finally, inspiration. While making your decision, rather than asking, will this decision make me inspired? Switch to, I'm inspired. I'm inspired all the time. What makes a decision good or bad is whether it is in line with your values. Because remember, for every decision you make, you could find thousands of people who would tell you it's a bad decision because their values are different than yours. If you're going to feel good about your decisions, You have to know your values. Number 23, let's talk about your productivity. 3 important steps in increasing your productivity at work are managing your communication, project management, and processes. This will help you to optimize, automate, and outsource. Here are some of the examples shared by Ari Meisel on how you can make your work and teams more productive. Number 1, assign specific tools for specific types of communication. For example, use email for external communication only, Slack for team communication, and Voxer for clients. Number 2, use either Trello or Airtable for better project management. Airtable is better for more complex record-keeping, and Trello is great because the ideas are on an assembly line and are given a sense of velocity and movement. And then automate your processes by using something like Zapier or IFTTT. These platforms have taken processes that used to require 24 steps and 3 human beings to now being Fully automated. If you want links to that episode, which has links to these resources, again, go to jimkwik.com/notes and we'll reference each of these episodes. All right, number 24, networking. Let's talk about networking. Before you approach anyone with a request or a want, make sure to create value or a give that is equal or larger than what you want. Ask the question, what's in it for them? Joe Polish is the founder of Genius Network, one of the highest-level groups in the world of entrepreneurs, and he is considered one of the most influential connectors in the world. We were glad to have him on the podcast and have him share some of his networking and marketing insights with us. One of them is put Tammy T-A-M-E-E. Into the right relationships and make sure you win over and influence the right people. And the same thing applies to giving out your TAME. TAME stands for— T is time, A attention, M money, E effort, and a second E energy. When it comes to learning, Joe believes in these 3 ways of doing things. Number 1, go out there and tumble in. Fail a bunch of times and succeed in a few. This is the hardest option. Number 2, learn from experiences of other people, the giants who have already done what you want to do and have demonstrated results. Learn what you need and teach it to other people. Joe considers this to be the most effective way of learning because you really get to go out and put yourself in other people's shoes and understand what they really need. Living life as a giver without an agenda does more than boost your social network. You'll sleep better at night, you'll feel better about yourself, and you'll get more authentic and real friends in your life, is his message. Number 25, let's talk about leadership. Simon Sinek has shared his wealth of knowledge with us across several episodes throughout the years, and he is one of the first people that comes to in my mind when it comes to leadership. In 2020, he shared with us 5 practices of good leadership that really resonated with me. Number 1, advance a just cause. Find a cause where you would be willing to sacrifice in order to advance it. A just cause is subjective and gives our work and lives meaning beyond what we sell and the money we make. We don't have to come up with a vision, but you do have to find a vision that you admire and believe in and you're willing to back up. Number 2, building trusted teams. In teams, we are remarkable. We can solve incredible problems and lift huge weights when we work together. Building trusting teams is about building an environment in which trust can thrive. This means an environment in which people feel safe to ask questions without fear or retribution, and confident that people around us will rush in to help us. Number 3, study your worthy rivals. Admitting that others have things they do better than us helps us to work on ourselves. Ask yourself, who are the other organizations or individuals that do a better job than you, and reflect on where you can improve. Next, existential flexibility. This practice is not an easy decision. It is about engaging in a profound strategic shift, and if needed, walking away from the strategy you have been using in order to advance your cause, even if you have made a large investment in terms of time or money. And then finally, courage to lead. Courage is not An internal fortitude. It's external. The parachute on your back gives you the courage to jump. What gives us courage is the people in our lives who believe in us and tell us not to give up. It could be your family, your colleagues, your friends, your team. Okay, number 26, time management. What I learned from Ed Mylett Is that the idea of a 24-hour day is actually outdated. And the way he looks at it is we should be redefining the span of our day by splitting it into 3. So his suggestion is, as an example, 6 AM to noon is the first day. Second day runs from noon to 6 PM. The third day runs from 6 PM to midnight. This gives you 21 days in a week instead of 7. By operating this way, you make your time more valuable, and this in turn changes your life and changes how you interact with people. Your time is now more valuable and precious because it becomes more scarce. He suggests you be a multiplier. Multipliers come into an environment and change the work ethic, the standards, and the quality of the work, which in turn starts to attract similar talent and changes how the existing people in the team operate. This in turn helps to use your time more wisely and effectively. Lastly, remember to take time to slow down, enjoy the quiet, and reflect. This will increase the quality of your overall time. Number 27: The power of listening. Now, all the episodes have been very special to me, but some just managed to be a little bit more special. And this one with Larry King definitely made the extra special list for me. We had a conversation about his unparalleled interviewing skills, but if you listen closely, it was really a lesson on how to listen and why it is important to become a better listener. And here are some of Larry's wisdom That can be applied to interviewing, making smarter business decisions, or just becoming a better friend. Number 1, refrain from establishing an agenda. It's important to avoid being predisposed to liking, disliking, agreeing, or disagreeing with the person. Since Larry chose that position, he understood that what he needed to do was listen openly. Number 2, listening to the answer leads to a new question, and the best interviewers ask good questions. Short questions, especially the ones starting with why. If you feel like you are having difficulties connecting with the person opposite you, then try asking questions that aren't directly related to the topic you're discussing. Try finding questions where you can relate to them. This will help the person that you're talking to, help you become more comfortable, help them to open up more. And remember, passion, empathy, and curiosity are all necessary parts of successful listening and interviewing. If you are yourself, you can't make people like you or dislike you. There is a genius in the choice to be honest And more authentic. Number 28, let's talk about motivation and flow states. It's not possible to have a conversation about motivation without talking about flow. When psychologists use the term motivation, they mean 3 things usually: drive, grit, and goals. Drive refers to all your intrinsic motivators like passion, purpose, curiosity, autonomy, Mastery. Flow is what happens when you get all of your intrinsic motivators lined up. According to Steven Kotler in our episode, there is no way to stay in a flow state. It is a 4-stage cycle, and you have to move through all 4 stages to get back into flow. The cycle consists of struggle, release, flow, and recovery. And there are strategies and tactics for each phase. There is no set timeframe for each state, but in general, flow lasts about 90 minutes because our brain is built around these 90 to 110 minute cycles. Flow is a very neurobiologically and physiologically exhausting state. Even though it feels great, the recovery is extremely, very, very important. Here are 2 of Steven's suggestions on how to do that. Number one, if you want to lock in what you learn in flow, you need deep delta wave sleep. Number 2, you need an active recovery protocol. People usually reach for 2 of the most counterproductive recovery methods: watching TV and consuming alcohol. Some of the most beneficial examples include infrared saunas, Epsom salt baths, massage, stretching, yoga, and more. Number 29, let's talk about managing finances. Nicole Lapin suggests that we think about a financial diet in the same way we would think about a regular food diet. You cannot deprive yourself into wealth, so allow yourself small indulgences and come up with a spending plan the same way you would come up with an eating plan. This way you won't find yourself doing a crash diet. First, start by understanding the 3 E's. The first E, essentials. These are 70% of your income and include everything that you need to live— housing, food, transportation. The second E, endgame. This is approximately 15% of your income and represents your future self and planning. Things like retirement, savings. Mm-hmm. And then final E are your extras. These are approximately 15% of your income and allow you the freedom to indulge without going overboard. Once you have completed this division, identify your personal goals by separating them into 3 Fs. Family, finance, and fun. Then break down these goals into increments of 1, 3, 5, or 10 years to make it more manageable. Once you identify your life goals with the 3 F words, you can reverse engineer the plan for getting the money you need to serve the life you want. Maybe you will need the million dollars everyone thinks they need, but maybe you will need much less. Money is a language, so don't be intimidated by the conversation surrounding it and instead learn how to speak it. None of the ingredients contained in the Kwik Mind product are claimed to treat any disease or health condition. Consult your own physician before commencing a nootropic regimen to ensure that this product is appropriate for you. Do you struggle to stay focused or find that your mind wanders when you need to be sharp? Are you looking for an advantage or an edge that can eliminate sluggishness and elevate your cognitive performance? That's why after decades of research and development, I'm thrilled to bring you Kwik Mind. It's more than just a supplement. It's a key to unlocking your cognitive freedom on a day-to-day basis. Just imagine having the clarity of thought, sharp focus, better memory, and being calm under pressure. Every capsule of Kwik Mind is a blend of 5 pristine ingredients. Each backed by research and chosen for its ability to support specific cognitive functions. So are you ready to meet the sharpest version of yourself? It's just a click away. We have it all at kwikmind.com, kwikmind.com. Place your order for Kwik Mind today and join a community that's redefining what it means to live a life of mental abundance. Number 30. The topic of relationship building. In the words of our podcast guest Jordan Harbinger, we need to dig the well before we get thirsty. We don't think we'll ever be thirsty, so we reach out to the people only when we need something. Best to maintain relationships early on, well before we do need something. Here are his 4 tips that he shared with us. On how to maintain relationships and become unforgettable within your network. Number 1, text re-engagement. Scroll to the bottom of your texting app to find that person you saw 2 years ago and send them a message to stay in touch. At the end of your message, add no rush to reply and no need to reply if you're busy. Always sign with your name. Letting them know they don't have to reply is important because if we decide somebody has an agenda, Or if we're not sure what their agenda is, we're less likely to reply. Number 2, send a support message. If you see people online having a tough time, send them a personal message. Emotional support is not just valuable when someone wants to celebrate, and it's not just valuable coming from a family. When you're going through a tough time, emotional support is welcome from anyone. People remember you. for your authenticity in these times. Generating rapport. If you have the agenda of helping other people have a good time, it will be appreciated. For example, you can put yourself in a right-hand role to help the host, which prevents you from hiding and lets you meet everyone. An example, entertaining people while the host is opening wine or refreshing drinks. Becoming a better listener. Stop thinking about what you're gonna say next and just listen to what the person is telling you and follow that thread. Ask feeling-related questions as opposed to data point questions. People find us interesting when they feel good about the conversation, and if we can elicit interesting things from them, they'll find us interesting and unforgettable. All right, the last 10 I want to focus on Personal growth. Number 31 is building habits. We've done many episodes on habit building. Is feeling better in just 5 minutes realistic? According to Dr. Chatterjee, it is. And he explained his 5-minute framework to our audience last year. We often rush through our mornings, but Dr. Chatterjee urges us to remember how important those first few minutes of the morning really are and how they help us to set the tone for the rest of the day. Based on this, he created a 3M framework for one of his patients to help her maintain a better morning routine, which helped to relieve her stress levels and cure some of the symptoms that were manifesting physically from it. The first M stands for mindfulness. Choose some kind of activity that you enjoy. Maybe it's breathwork, maybe it's journaling, etc. That would help you to calm down your nervous system. The second M stands for movement. Do your mini workout while your coffee is brewing in the morning. It can be just 5 minutes of movement. It can be as simple as a few of your favorite yoga moves. The third M stands for mindset. Any activity that will boost your mindset. You can keep some personal growth books in your kitchen or in your living room in order to avoid procrastination and pick up a book while drinking your morning tea or morning coffee to do some reading or try doing some affirmations instead. Number 32, when is the best time to learn something new, to study, or to remember? You can do the right thing at the wrong time and not get the results you want. We had Dr. Michael Bruce on as one of our first guests to talk about 4 chronotypes These are time types and how to use yours to your advantage when it comes to learning. Lions are the early birds who wake up naturally between 5:00 and 5:30 and make up about 15% of the population. They are Type A personalities often who never deviate from their established order. Bears— bears make up about 50 to 55% of the population, and therefore the society is built around their schedule. They often go to bed around 10:00 p.m. and wake up around 6:00 6:30 or 7 AM. Wolves are the night owls, are— they're creative risk-takers. Wolves go to bed around midnight and wake up late. Most of them dislike the mornings. And finally, dolphins. Dolphins, according to Dr. Michael Breus, are the problem sleepers. They sleep unihemispherically. One half of the brain sleeps while the other half looks for predators. During each 24-hour cycle, your hormones start And stop at different hours depending on your chronotype. You can discover when the best time to do something is by matching your activities to when you need those hormones. To give you a general idea, most people release melatonin and experience a drop in their core body temperature between 1:00 PM and 3:00 PM. This, for example, is not a good time to read. The ideal time for reading Or doing deep work would be around 11:00 AM and 12:30 PM. Number 33, the topic of happiness, which we've done multiple episodes on. Happiness is one of the most sought-after states, and many see it as the ultimate destination for success. But what I've learned is that we should not be looking at happiness as a destination and rather treat it as a continuous journey through life. And while we've done many episodes on this, which we'll link in the show notes, according to Tal Ben-Shahar, happiness is a combination of 5 elements, which he explains through the wellness acronym SPIRE. S stands for spiritual, P stands for physical, I stands for intellectual, R stands for relational, E stands for emotional. We should treat stress as an opportunity rather than see it as something that will deteriorate us. Post-traumatic stress can actually be a source of growth. However, it's not realized for many people because they simply cannot see the opportunity for growth there. Some of the conditions you can put in place to ensure gaining benefit from post-traumatic events are by working on finding a sense of purpose, being more mindful in everyday life, physical exercise, and expressing gratitude for the things you already have. Number 34, the topic of love. The quality of our relationships is the number one indicator of the quality of our life altogether, so it's important to understand and learn about where love comes from and how it forms. Here are the 4 stages Of learning how to love according to Jay Shetty. Step 1, he talked about in this episode, learning how to love yourself will show you what kind of love you want and help you to set standards for what you deserve. Step 2, learning how to love others will help you practice how to love someone else in a relationship. Step 3, learning to heal from love will help you to heal the wounds that you might have experienced from past relationships and make sure that your heart remains open and soft. Step 4, learning how to experience love through everything and everyone will teach you how to love on a bigger scale than just the idea of finding the one and the only in the world. that is meant for you. A healthy relationship is a safe space where you can grow and learn about each other together. Number 35, the topic of children and mental strength. Dr. Daniel Amen is one of the most beloved guests we have had on our show, and in his most recent episode, we discuss how to raise mentally strong kids from the very beginning. If children grow up with mental strength and believe that they have agency, they won't just believe every single thing that pops into their mind, which will result in better mood and better relationships. They will be able to distinguish and eliminate those automatic negative thoughts, those ANTs, more easily. The single most important thing that parents can do, according to Dr. Amen, to make sure they set up their children's well-being for life is to create a bond with them. And this doesn't mean doing everything for them, but rather spending time with them and giving them your attention in a very distracted society. Love can sometimes also mean that you set boundaries and show that their actions carry consequences. Another simple yet powerful way to connect with your child is being a good listener. We've talked about this before. Parents can sometimes talk way too much, give orders, or talk over them. The more attached children feel, the less anxious they will feel. Number 36, gratitude and journaling. Your morning is one of the most important times of your day to set the overall mood for what's to come. So we had the founders of the 5-Minute Journal, Alex and Mimi Ikon, On the podcast to tell us how journaling about gratitude has changed their lives and why it is important. There's magic in writing things down instead of just typing it into your phone or listening to them in your mind. When you write it down, it goes into your subconscious and becomes an anchor in your mind to guide your focus throughout the day. Every morning and every evening, you have access to a different Brainwave state. You're in a twilight zone, if you will, so to say, which means that working on yourself at these times will help you to reprogram your mind and build better habits more easily. Here are 3 morning journaling prompts they recommend. List 3 things you are grateful for. List 3 things in response to the question, what would make today great? And then list your daily affirmation, one line reaffirming to yourself who you are and who you want to become. And then here are their 3 evening reflection journaling prompts: What are 3 amazing things that happened today? How could you have made today better? What is no longer serving you? What are you letting go of? Try being grateful for things before before you even have them in your life, because whatever you keep putting into your mind will more likely manifest. Number 37, the topic of self-worth. Jamie Kern Lima taught us in her episode that when you understand that your self-worth is your ceiling in every area of your life, the change will start to happen. If underneath everything we don't believe we are worthy of it, we will never achieve it. Self-worth issues usually show up, according to her, in 3 ways on different levels. Number 1, feeling stuck. You might have a great idea, but if it isn't coming to fruition— or you might have a, a 6-figure business but you can't take it into 7 figures— you go for the thing but then sabotage yourself. For example, you write the manuscript But aren't sending it to publishers. Or maybe you never feel fulfilled. It doesn't matter how much you have achieved, you will never feel enough. A big part of self-worth is showing up authentically. A lot of us dim our lights to fit in and show up every day inauthentically to who we actually are. According to Jamie Kern Lima, 40% of men and 50% of women identify themselves as people pleasers. Every time we show up in this world inauthentically, we are telling ourselves that who we really are is not worthy enough. As Jamie said, remember, you're not crazy. You're just first. You might be the only one in your circle having big ideas or going to therapy, but this doesn't make you crazy. It just means that you are expressing your true authentic self. Number 38. The art of arguing. According to Drs. Julie and John Gottman, the key to the right kind of arguing lies in the first 3 minutes of a conflict conversation. Within these 3 minutes, you can not only predict how the rest of the conversation will go with, according to them, 96% accuracy, but also predict how the rest of your relationship will go 6 years down the line. If you start off your argument with heavy criticism, you're making sure that your partner will not listen to you. The successful couples, however, do something different. They describe themselves in a certain way by starting with, I feel, and then explaining the emotion in this particular situation. They then finish the argument with a positive need, explaining what their partner can do for them To help resolve the situation? How can they shine for you? This way of bringing up a problem eliminates all criticism and defensiveness. Finally, they revealed that contempt not only harms our relationships, but it also destroys our immune system. The number of times a listener hears contempt in the space of 15 minutes can determine how many infectious illnesses they will have in the coming 4 years, according to them. Number 39, the topic of fear. What I learned from Tim Larkin is that fear is a gift, and you have to look at it that way. It can be an amazing motivator and an opportunity to learn if you wish to see it as such. Fear can be a great learning tool and point out to you What you do not know. If something is bothering you to the point where you are fearful, engage with your fear and learn about the subject rather than running away from it. The subject might remain scary to you, but you will know how to deal with it and how it works. Embrace your instincts. You need to pay attention to the nonverbal training that human evolution has blessed us with. You have thousands of years of nonverbal cues in your bodies, but in this age, we have learned to ignore them in order to avoid judging others socially. According to Tim Larkin, in this age, we have learned to ignore them in order to avoid judging others socially. Remember, it's okay to be embarrassed. If the worst thing that happens to you is overreacting and leaving a situation, This is always better than you ignoring 2 nonverbal cues and potentially getting attacked. And finally, number 40, the topic of creating a peer group. I had a fascinating conversation with John Levy, who hosts dinner parties where people are actually not allowed to network in traditional sense, but are rather focused on creating deeper, more meaningful connections Over cooking dinner together. You don't discuss who you are, and you can't give out your last name until after you have cooked together in a group during the meal. If you can create a culture where you bring other interesting people together, they will go out of their way to participate. Here are some of John's keys to success when it comes to creating deep connections and building a positive peer group you want to be in. Number 1, people don't connect over networking. They connect over joint interests, activities, and culture. Number 2, you are far more likely to value what you help to create. Number 3, be vulnerable and honest and allow others to do the same. Number 4, be open. Be open with the people you're communicating with. Number 5, don't assume people will be inaccessible or unapproachable. Number 6, make sure the event or activity you invite people to is interesting and novel. So when you meet someone new, it's a novel experience. The brain loves novelty. Besides rest and nutrition, novelty is key component to neuroplasticity. And there you have it, Kwik Brains. We've just completed an incredible journey through 20 more game-changing insights from our 400-episode adventure. Obviously, there's a lot more. A lot of people start from the very beginning. They subscribe, they go through lesson 1 and learn the principles of speed reading and learning faster and memory enhancement. Remember, Whether you're fine-tuning your leadership skills or growing as a person, every small step you take is a leap towards becoming the best version of yourself. These insights aren't just information. Use them as tools for transformation. As we wrap up this special 2-part celebration, I want to extend my deepest gratitude on behalf of our team to each and every one of you. Your dedication to learning, to growing, It inspires us and has been the driving force behind these 400 episodes. You empower people around you. You inspire me, our team. You challenge us and you remind us on a daily why we're on this journey together to reveal and realize our fullest potential. And I believe, again, there's a version of yourself that's patiently waiting. The goal is we show up every single day We keep learning, we work hard, we're kind, and amazing things happen until we're introduced to that greater version of ourself. And, and we go through the process and love ourselves in the moment. This is your brain coach, Jim Kwik. Until next time, be limitless. Limitless.