^UPDATE

3 new videos in the past month:

Guest: Chris Olson / Pickleball Studio

Another fun and insightful episode with a guest with a world-class mind and personality, someone who was at the pinnacle of competitive speedcubing. And has now transitioned into becoming the most trusted paddle reviewer. Fortunate to call him a friend.

Link: https://youtu.be/-RTOLlkfw0k

Guest: Connor Derrickson / ThatPickleballTrainer

There aren’t a lot of highly skilled and experienced trainers in Pickleball, yet, that also have a high content output so I came across Connor pretty quickly. Having had a brief stint as a personal trainer / performance coach, I was immediately excited by the possibility of having him on as a guest. And I was right, he shared a ton of insightful tips and suggestions for training, recovery, and injuries.

Link: https://youtu.be/WHAPa_k3bTA

Review: K-Swiss Ultrashot 3 & McLaren collaboration

I enjoyed filming and editing this one. Trying out a new style and aesthetic, practicing photography, and learning more about shoes.

Link: https://youtu.be/IORyeg7tU_Q

LESSONS FROM TIM FERRISS

I just finished watching the Colin and Samir episode featuring guest Tim Ferriss. I’d consider Tim one of the first podcast hosts I listened to along with Joe Rogan. You might recognize him from The 4-Hour Workweek. Tim is known as someone who challenges old assumptions, intricately optimizes his lifestyle, and is very intentional with each aspect of his life along with his relationships.

Below are my key takeaways from their episode together:

• Regarding your value and presence in a space along with competition: Don’t be the best, be the only.

  • “How do you create new categories.”

  • “How can you be a category of one.”

  • “I don’t view any of these people as competitors.”

  • “As soon as you start thinking in competitive terms you’re going to make compromises and succumb to group-think and confirming to ways you may not recognize.“
    

• “In the beginning you have to buy your first clients”

  • he goes in hard early, not necessarily for the potential investment return from the company, but for the referral. He wants the strongest possible recommendation.

  • You may have to bend over backwards to make sponsors happy even if it makes little financial sense for you. Why? You need referrals and credibility.
    

• 1000 True Fans by Kevin Kelly

  • “I just want to feel like I’m contributing to a community of like minded people who I really like, doing something I respect myself for doing.”
    

• “If art imitates life, you have to have a life.”

  • really embrace the freedom of working wherever and whenever you want.

  • Don’t work all the time wherever you are.

  • Permission-less freedom.
    

• If then, then what.

  • if X happens, then what.

  • This is an effective method for thinking of the consequences of your decisions. To think of the next possible step or outcome.
    

• Choose a game you can play for the long term.

  • if you are doing something even slightly depleting over time, it’ll compound over time.
    

• Have impeccable credibility and reliability with your fans.

  • don’t do or say anything to destroy this.

  • Your credibility is a scarce resource that is not easily renewable.
    

• How Tim vets an ad partner:

1. Product or service first.

2. If he can’t personally vet it, he will make a social media post asking the community:

a. “Rate from 1-10” if it scores less than 8, it’s a no.

b. Pros and cons.”

3. Could I be a power user and super fan of this product or service? Yes or no? Would I recommend this to my friends who are incredibly cynical?

4. Are they easy to deal with? Are they problematic? Are they pushing back on IO (Insertion Order)? Are they chewing up a lot of time for my team? If they’re a pain in the ass, they’re gone.

1. At this point, organizations know “Tim is really expensive and really strict.”

Pricing

• he started at $60 (CPM) and hasn’t really changed.

  • His value = host read, product is tied to the host. Therefor, believes his conversions are greater.

  • “I aim for ultra premium” - there is always a market for the best

  • Where you get in trouble is when you negotiate your rate to appease advertisers who are bargain hunting

You can watch the full episode here: https://youtu.be/ROymrQKsxSM

As always, thanks for supporting me. Until next time.

brian.