“Choose not to be harmed—and you won’t feel harmed. Don’t feel harmed—and you haven’t been.”  -Marcus Aurelius

1: The year was 1966.  Rubin “Hurricane” Carter was a contender for the middleweight boxing title.  

Then, he experienced a bewildering fall.  At the height of his career, he was “wrongly accused of a horrific crime he did not commit: triple homicide. He went on trial, and a biased, bogus verdict followed: three life … continue reading

1: Don’t just stand there.  Do something.

Really?  Not always, Ryan Holiday writes in The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph.

Certain situations call for a different approach.

As in: Don’t just do something.  Stand there.

“Sometimes, staying put, going sideways, or moving backward is actually the best way to eliminate what blocks or impedes our path,” Ryan writes.

Yesterday, we looked … continue reading

1: George Washington, father of our country.  “Brave and bold general, towering over everything he surveyed, repelling the occupied and tyrannical British.”  

This image is the one most Americans hold of our First President, writes Ryan Holiday in The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph.

The reality is a bit less glorious but much more interesting.  

George “wasn’t a guerrilla, but he … continue reading

1: Is a well-crafted to-do list, executed daily, the secret to achieving our life’s purpose?

This week we’ve looked at the first two types of goals Steven Kotler outlines in his powerful book The Art of the Impossible: massively transformative and high, hard goals.  

Today, we turn to “clear goals,” the third and final type of goal.

Each type of goal corresponds to a different timescale. A massively transformative … continue reading

1: Yesterday, we discovered the mission statement for our lives.

Our Massively. Transformative. Purpose.

Now what?

High, hard goals.

“Big goals significantly outperform small goals, medium-sized goals, and vague goals,” says Psychologist Gary Latham, considered one of the godfathers of goal-setting theory along with Edwin Locke.  

High, hard goals are Gary and Edwin’s technical term for big goals. Which are the second type of goal Steven Kotler outlines in … continue reading

1: Yes, the research is clear: Goal-setting improves our performance.  

But there’s more to the story.

“Simple as the idea of goal setting might seem, there’s trouble in the particulars,” Steven Kotler writes in his brilliant book The Art of the Impossible. 

“What the research shows is that not every goal is the same, nor is every goal appropriate for every situation and—most important—the wrong goal in the wrong … continue reading

Getting better at getting better is what RiseWithDrew is all about.

Monday through Thursday, we explore ideas from authors, thought leaders, and exemplary organizations.  On Friday, I share something about myself or what we are working on at PCI.

1: This week we’ve been exploring Steven Kotler’s ideas around the importance of goal-setting to achieve high performance.  Steven quotes University of Toronto psychologist Gary Latham who says, “We found that if … continue reading

1: Lumberjacks.  

The researchers divided this ferociously independent group into teams. “Some teams were told to work smart and fast, but no pressure, do your best,” writes Steven Kotler in The Art of Impossible: A Peak Performance Primer.

“Others were given quotas. This much wood for a good week of work, this much wood for a great week,” he writes. “It’s important to note that there was zero financial … continue reading

Peak performance. That’s our goal.

To perform at the highest levels, we must tap into four cognitive abilities: motivation, learning, creativity, and, most importantly, flow, Steven Kotler tells us in The Art of Impossible: A Peak Performance Primer.

Yesterday, we looked at the importance of intrinsic drivers to maximize motivation. We engage in activities and behavior when intrinsically motivated because we find them interesting and internally satisfying. Intrinsic … continue reading

1: Author Steven Kotler wakes up every day at 4 am and starts writing.  

“Does this demand grit?” he asks in his book The Art of Impossible: A Peak Performance Primer.

“Occasionally,” he writes. “But mostly, grit takes care of itself because I have curiosity, passion, and purpose. When I wake up, I’m excited to see where the words will take me. Even on those crappy nights when I … continue reading