Brian (0s):
Coming up on the Get Lean ean podcast
Naeem (3s):
And the first person we gotta influence is ourself. Cuz I can't influence you Brian, or my clients or somebody I wanna work enroll to work with me if I'm not influencing myself first, right? So it's also practicing cuz we're always telling ourselves stories every single day. And some of 'em are empowering stories, but also a lot of 'em are disempowering stories. So we gotta start kind of destroying some of those disempowering ones and rewriting 'em to like achieve the outcome we want. So for example, if I'm not hitting my business goals or making my sales goals or going to the gym, it's like, all right, I must be telling myself a story of doubt and fear and I gotta rewrite that story so I can influence myself first to like start going to the gym or start fasting or start making more sales calls.
Brian (50s):
Hello and welcome to the Get Lean E Clean podcast. I'm Brian Grn and I'm here to give you actionable tips to get your body back to what it once was, five, 10, even 15 years ago. Each week I'll give you an in-depth interview with a health expert from around the world to cut through the fluff and get you long-term sustainable results. This week I interviewed Peak performance coach Na Mamu. We discussed NA's experience of working with Anthony Robbins, along with how to perform your best on a daily basis, keys to an optimal routine, creating results for daily wins, and is one tip to become a productive machine. I really enjoyed my interview with naive tons of great tips, things that you can apply both in health and in life and in work.
Brian (1m 36s):
So really enjoyed it again, and hope you do too. Thanks so much for listening and enjoy the show. All right, welcome to the Get Lean ean podcast. My name is Brian Grin and special guest today is Naim Mau. Welcome to the show.
Naeem (1m 53s):
Absolutely, Brian, Thanks for having me on.
Brian (1m 56s):
Yeah. All the way from Puerto Rico, right?
Naeem (1m 59s):
I'm down in Rincon, Puerto Rico on the west side of the island. The, the surf, it's known for its world class surfing out here.
Brian (2m 7s):
Oh wow. Yeah, I'm definitely jealous. I've only done surfing once, wasn't so impressive. Definitely takes some time.
Naeem (2m 17s):
Yep. It's, it's a lot of fun. I'm still learning too, but I, I love being on the water and to me it's like yoga on the ocean so it adds a to two of the things I enjoy a lot, but it's adds another element to it for sure.
Brian (2m 29s):
Yeah, I mean once you try it and then you see other people do it, you're like, wow, that is impressive.
Naeem (2m 34s):
Yeah. Yeah it is.
Brian (2m 37s):
It's like you don't appreciate until you try it, right? 1 (2m 40s): Yep. That's so true. It definitely looks a lot easier than it is kind like golf. I know you're a golfer. Yeah, kinda like golf, right? It's like, Oh, I could do that, but it's like a lot harder than it looks.
Brian (2m 51s):
Yeah, no doubt about it. And I'm excited to have you on your performance mindset coach, speaker. And I guess before we get into all that, why don't you maybe explain to the listener a little bit about yourself and how you got into, you know, performance p performance and coaching and things like that. Yeah,
Naeem (3m 10s):
Totally. For sure. Yeah, it was kind of an organic process. Never really planned on being a, a performance coach in, in this type of field. I do love it though, it is kind of part of my nature cuz I was always an athlete, so I did always love the performance aspect of like just going after it and being your best and waking up early and hitting the gym and putting up my, my basketball shot. I played basketball in high school and college, so putting up my jumpers, kind of like that Kobe mamba mentality mindset. But the coaching side, aside from like the athletics realm kind of in the, the new coaching realm that a lot of people are, are getting more aware of in terms of like mindset and psychology and life coaching and whatever coaching I wanna call it, that happened more organic for me cuz I was working on Wall Street.
Naeem (3m 53s):
I, I, I graduated in 2008 from NYU and I studied economics and I went like, most of my friends are like, all right, let's go be a banker, work at a hedge fund or whatever it is, right? Like make a lot of money and be the traditional, traditional route of success. And I was doing it and I was like, ah, this isn't really what I wanna do for the rest of my life. I was like, I, I don't think, I don't see myself like sitting in a computer and, and to be successful in anything, you gotta work your butt off and, and put in a lot of effort so, and and enjoy what you do. So I was like, what do I really wanna do? And then I started reading books on mindset and personal growth and how to create your life, how you really want it, which was kind of a new concept to me. I never, I was always raised with a lot of shoulds.
Naeem (4m 34s):
I wasn't raised like saying, Hey, what do you wanna do? I was raised like actually wanting things as bad. So for me that was like a paradigm shift in my life to start being like, Hey, what do I want for myself and how do I actually wanna live my life? And then I hired a coach, I went to events and then I started my own company. I actually started a fitness business as well cuz that's kind of my true pa my, my first passion I would say in terms of like outside of basketball, I always loved working out and training. So I started a fitness company and I traveled around the world and that was because I hired a coach and I started reading books and eventually I went to a Tony Robbins event and Tony was just, I went to a lot of other speakers and events, but Tony just like the Michael Jordan of personal growth and mindset.
Naeem (5m 18s):
So I was like, damn, this guy's incredible. And I was like, I gotta, I gotta work for this guy. So then I applied for a job to work for him and then I was a speaker for four years. I was traveling around the country to like Chicago, la, Miami, Oklahoma, like all over the country, but not in like the fun parts like LA or like Chicago. I wasn't there, I was there too. But I like go out into like the suburbs, into like kind of places you'd never go like and meet people that are just kind of like living out in, in the middle of nowhere, which is really cool cuz to me it was like I got this great laboratory on humans and psychology and human behavior. So kind of like an anthropologist studies humans and societies was cool for me to like learn more about people and different values and beliefs, which is kind of my job, right, for working for Tony.
Naeem (6m 7s):
It's to reach all the different types of people across as, as far and wide as possible and help them improve their lives. So that's my, that's my short story. And, and then I started and then I started my business. So then I left Tony and my ultimate goal was to have my own company and I, I worked for Tony cuz I wanted to learn cuz I know I heard from one of my mentors is like, if you wanna learn something, go go get earn while you learn, right? So get paid to, to learn, right? If I wanna learn from Richard Branson, I'd go work for be Richard Branson if I wanted be like an amazing entrepreneur or in the music business or whatever. He's doing so much stuff now. But, so for me I did that and then I started my company. Now I'm here in Puerto Rico doing that full time. So that, that's my short story.
Brian (6m 48s):
Yeah, thanks for that. And with, did you ever meet Tony Robbins?
Naeem (6m 53s):
Yeah, yeah. Time. I was like, cuz in the beginning it's like, is he legit? Is he like even gonna say hi to us? But then like he would come up and talk to us and we, we were kind of like, there was only six of us on our team and we were kind of like the Navy Seals cuz we'd be dumped in a, a city and go flank it and meet everybody and talk to everybody and sell everybody. And then Tony would give us little more attention cuz he actually did that himself when he first started his career for Jim Ron. He was a speaker and he would go sell Jim Ronan's events too. So we were kind of like doing the same thing for him. So he had a special place in his heart for us. So he would definitely come talk to us and chat with us and hang out with us.
Naeem (7m 35s):
And at the same time, Obviously's very busy. Every, everybody wants his attention, like presidents of the country and, and, and people like Bill Gates. So, but it was really cool to meet him the first time and many times after that for sure.
Brian (7m 47s):
He's a big guy too, right? Like 1 (7m 49s):
Yeah, he is really big. He's like big. I'm, I'm six four, but he's like six six and, but he's also really like his head. He's big head, he's big
Brian (7m 56s):
In individual. Yeah.
Naeem (7m 58s):
Yeah. And he is really why he's like a football player. He's like really? But he is also like rock solid muscle too. But yeah, he is definitely a big dude for sure.
Brian (8m 7s):
Yeah. That's awesome. Yeah, I've always been a fan. I, I've never gone to an event that is something that would be on my, you know, on a list to do, that's for sure. Really a lot. It's lot of fun. Yeah.
Naeem (8m 18s):
Yeah. Even aside from the fact that it's gonna like, it'll change or let anybody's life. Cuz again, everybody's got shit they wanna get better at and also just, we could always learn right? If we're honest with ourselves, but also it's just a cool thing. He's kinda like an icon, right? It's like seeing the Beatles before they stop playing on tour, like Michael Jackson or whoever it might be, right? So he's kind of, you've been doing it for 40 years now and like nonstop. It's pretty incredible his, his streak of performance.
Brian (8m 43s):
And what would you say, would you say you worked for him for four years or so? What would you say like maybe the top three things you learned from working with him?
Naeem (8m 54s):
Hmm, that's a great question. Now there's so many things, right? Right. So I'd say the first, the first I'd say, and again this is gonna sound cheesy and corny and cliche, but honestly it's like the most powerful thing for me. It's, it's really just coming from the heart and caring about people. Cuz like that's the best way to sell somebody. That's the best way to enroll somebody in your vision. That's the best way to serve your clients of course. And again, we all know this like intellectually, but it's like practicing it in your body and your nervous system. So it is something I conditioned and trained at and like I would go do a talk and I wouldn't sell anything. I'm like, damn, why am I not selling? So then he is like, Dude, you gotta like calm down a little bit and come from your heart and like stop like reading a script and like trying to sell people and really care about like who's in front of you and really touch their heart.
Naeem (9m 38s):
And then it's like once I got better at that and kind of like going through the veil a little bit, that was a huge shift for me. So I'd say that's number one. Like just really getting into
Brian (9m 48s):
That. Yeah. Come from the heart.
Naeem (9m 50s):
Yeah. And again, practicing it, not just, again, we all know that in our heads but it's, it's a discipline just like meditation or, or something like that, right? So just trying to get better at that every day. I'd say the second thing maybe would be, what's another one I would say really in everything is influence. That's another huge one, like influence. And most people think of like sales is like, I used to think sales is a negative thing too, but really, and it could be right? A lot of people sell people to like get and to like take and not give back, but real sales and I like the word influence instead but real influence is serving the other person. So like my outcome is to influence Brian to like achieve his goals or my girlfriend or my friends or my clients of course, right?
Naeem (10m 35s):
Like our job is to influence humans to like step up and to get outta their fears, right? Get outta their doubts and help them create more certainty in themselves to go out and do more of what they wanna do. So I'd say get really good at influence and, and the first person we gotta influence is ourself. Cuz I can't influence you Brian or my clients or somebody I wanna work enroll to work with me if I'm not influencing myself first, right? So it's also practicing cuz we're always telling ourselves stories every single day. And some of them are empowering stories, but also a lot of 'em are disempowering stories. So we gotta start kind of destroying some of those disempowering ones and rewriting them to like achieve the outcome we want. So for example, if I'm not hitting my business goals or making my sales calls or going to the gym, it's like, all right, I must be telling myself a story of doubt and fear and I gotta rewrite that story so I can influence myself first to like start going to the gym or start fasting or start making more sales calls.
Naeem (11m 33s):
So I'd say that's number two, like just getting better at influence.
Brian (11m 38s):
And what would you say the, this might be tough one, I don't know and it's maybe too broad, but what's the best way to influence other people? I know Go ahead. Go ahead. Yeah, go ahead. Cause I, I for example, like I coach, I coach health, I also coach golf cuz I, I coach at a local high school and you know, sometimes when you, you want something more than they want it for themselves and it's like how do you get that message across for to, to, so it doesn't feel like you're just like telling them to do it. You want them to actually take action and do it for themselves.
Naeem (12m 13s):
Yep. That, that's a huge great question man. That's a great one And it's really what you just said, take action for themselves. So we gotta, a lot of times we influence people for our reasons, right? It's like, Hey Brian, you should go start fasting because you're gonna feel better, but you might not wanna start fasting because you wanna feel better, you might wanna start fasting cuz you're gonna get lean and like sexy and strong, right? So that's like an obvious simple example, but it's like we gotta influence people for their reasons. So we gotta get focused on, hey, what are Brian's top values? What are his top needs? What is his real vision? What does he really want? And then it's like, that'll get him to go take the action, right? So it's, it's really getting obsessed.
Naeem (12m 53s):
Same in business, right? A lot of times entrepreneurs they, they, they have a tough time to get things going cuz they start their business because they're trying to solve a problem for themselves, which is cool, but they're focused on like how it helps them but not the other human, right? So it's like getting obsessed with, hey, what's going on with this person and their psychology again, their values, their belief systems, their top human needs. And then when you know that, then it's like, oh cool, like this person might wanna fast cuz they wanna have more energy, but this other person might wanna fast cuz they wanna be sexier. This other person might wanna fast cuz their mom or dad had a health problem and they have a fear of having that same health problem. So we gotta understand what drives everybody and then that's how you influence humans to, to start taking more action.
Brian (13m 39s):
Yeah, that's great answer. And and yeah, it's like, it's so true because like if I coach someone in health, it's like you before anything else, you have to sort of figure out like why are, why are we doing this? Why are we talking? Why did you reach out and really dig into that first and foremost.
Naeem (13m 55s):
Yep. Absolutely man. Yeah, you nailed it.
Brian (13m 59s):
So I was just looking a little bit on your blog and one of the titles was, you know, how to perform your best every day. And like, I, I think this is probably it, they'll never be a perfect answer maybe or or there. It's always something that I feel like we're searching for and, and trying to optimize. Like for me, I, I'm, I've always been the type that I don't like to waste time but you know, sometimes you find yourself going down these rabbit holes, there's so many distractions, right? Like if you're, if you're at home entrepreneur just going down these rabbit holes and it, it could be just little things that take you that, whether it's work or just being on the internet. So I guess what are some of your tips to helping perform and get the most out of each day?
Brian (14m 42s):
You know, both in work and and sport or in life in general?
Naeem (14m 46s):
Yeah, sure. That's a great question. So I love, what was the fir you said something I wanted to bring, but I lost that thought. But anyway, so in terms of that, I would say kind of like what we were talking about before when you were on my podcast. I love your, you answered my questions great. Cuz there is no cookie cutter process to any of this stuff, right? It depends on each individual and their, and also their outcome. It's like, start from there. It's like what's your outcome? What do you really want? Like, cuz clarity is power. When you have a vision and you're specific on where you want to go, then you could like reverse engineer the game plan to hit that. Mm. But also in terms of performing your best every day, like most people that wanna start with strategy and strategy's cool. When I say strategy, I mean like, oh I should, I should start running in the morning or I should start like doing this breathwork or I should meditate and that's all great of course, right?
Naeem (15m 35s):
Like if you're not gonna, if you're not doing that, do it cuz you're gonna get momentum, right? Start doing something. But even deeper than that, the reason why a lot of times cuz we all know the information, there's all this information, there's this amazing podcast, you have an amazing podcast. Like there's YouTube, there's Tony ro, there's all these books and resources. But the reason people don't act on the information is cuz again, what's going on in their hood is not aligned with kind of what they really want and also the strategy to do it. So I would kind of go one level deeper where it's like, like we were talking about how do you influence the other person We got how do I, how do I perform my very best every day? I gotta again understand what's gonna influence me and what are my, what's my operating system kind of like a computer.
Naeem (16m 16s):
It's like what are my top values at this stage of my life? Cuz it evolves over time. Like maybe you're single, maybe you have a girlfriend, maybe you're married, maybe you have kids. And we go through these different stages. So obviously it's gonna shift a little bit and evolve over time. But in the moment you gotta be like, hey, what are my top values? Cuz that's more important than goals. People focus on goals so much, but like values are driving your goals. So it's like, hey, what's most important to me right now in my life? So I'd say start with that. Like kind of keep it simple to the answer to the question. Like how do you perform your best, What are your top values at this stage of your life? And I'd maybe say, Hey, what are your top three? Figure out what those top three are. And a simple way to ask that is what's most important to me in life?
Naeem (16m 58s):
And then whatever comes up, write that down. Maybe it's health. And then after that, what's most important to me after health then maybe people would say business or making money. And then after that, what's most mor after business and making money, maybe it's love and and being with my girlfriend or my boyfriend or my family. So then it's like boom, boom, boom. So then it's like from there that's how I'll figure out how I wanna allocate my time and my energy throughout my day. And also how I might wanna start my day. So if I start, if, if health is my top priority, it's like I'm gonna start my day probably maybe drinking a green juice or maybe working out or maybe doing maybe fasting like you talk about a lot or maybe the, the cold plunge like we talked about as well.
Naeem (17m 39s):
So I'd say kind of getting clear on your top values and then from there you'll kind of be able to break down kind of what the things you might wanna do to start your day and and also move throughout the day and the week.
Brian (17m 51s):
Yeah, no those are, thanks for sharing that. Those are great tips. And what, what would you say as far as starting the day, you talking about, we talk about morning rituals, what are the type of morning rituals that you like to do to start the day or that you, you you help with your clients with?
Naeem (18m 6s):
Yeah, sure. So I love to, I love to meditate. Meditation's like for me that's been a, there's I'd say meditation and reading are probably the two most. And writing, it's so funny, I keep going now, but like meditation and reading are incredible. Like reading is a superpower. Like Elon Musk and Nav, I don't know if anybody follows Naval Racon, he's a really smart guy. He's a big guy in Silicon Valley. He's had a lot of startups, he's a little under the radar. But reading is a superpower. Meditation's great because it helps me and and studies show this too, your gray matter increases in your brain. So literally I kind of elevate above the noise. So there's so much going on during the day when you wake up you wanna start doing stuff. 1 (18m 48s): But for me it's like I kind of slow down. I get into my parasympathetic nervous system and I kind of relax a little bit and I elevate above the clouds and then I'm like kind of like kneeing the matrix with the bullets are flying at 'em instead of it like coming so fast, like blah, right, right. Like, oh cool, that thing I gotta do, I'll, I'll handle that and then boom I'll do that. And I kind of just kind of just slowly, easily comes together versus like when I'm in like my parasympathetic kind of reacting like it might feel good. Which is why a lot of people like to stay in that state cuz it feels good to like have that adrenaline rush. And I have a lot of successful clients they, they built their businesses in that state where they build a billion dollar company and they have the success and the business and the money, but they still want the love and the health and the wellness and the lifestyle and the balance, which they're missing, but their fuel is that.
Naeem (19m 38s):
So it's a little bit of a catch 22 there. But the cool thing is it's not either or, right? So I want a little bit of a tangent, I'll circle back though. So meditation for sure. I also say journaling and writing and gratitude. I like to write down things I'm grateful for. Gratitude is huge for me in the morning just to, again it's just gonna re-center me and be like, hey, like I'm so blessed to be alive and have all these things. I have to be on this podcast with you today. And then I also like to walk, just take a little walk and get in nature as soon as possible. I like, I listen to, what's his name? Huberman Huberman Labs. I forget his first name. He's great. And he says you want light, natural light as soon as possible first thing in the morning.
Naeem (20m 19s):
So for me it's easy. I just walk outside and the sun is shining. If it's around seven, I wake up a little earlier. But, so I like to walk outside and usually jump in the ocean as well. And then sometimes exercise paddle board or surf lift weights, yoga and and things like that.
Brian (20m 36s):
Love that. Yeah. Yeah. What time do you normally get up?
Naeem (20m 42s):
So ideally I hit, I try to hit five. It depends, sometimes it's a little bit of a challenge, right? Like if I have my girlfriends here now. So that's a little challenging with that, like with the bedtimes and getting up time. But ideally five and then, but sometimes also if work extends it, A, I usually try to cut off at like seven or even six. Ideally a hard stop. But I also have to be, I, I've learned another lesson to learn from Tony. If I wanna give a third one. It's flexibility, right? So you wanna be like committed but also sometimes you gotta be flexible, right? So I don't want my, my rules to get in my way. So sometimes if I work until 8, 9, 10, then I'll sleep a little longer, right?
Naeem (21m 25s):
Yeah. So, but to answer your question, ideally five. So I could do my routine until like six or well until like seven or eight. Cause I like to work out as well. Okay. And then I like to start working at like 8, 8, 9. 0 (21m 36s): Yeah. Cause you know, it's something for me, like we always talk about valuing sleep and yeah, it's like I, and we talked about when I was on your podcast, but like keeping sort of a routine as far as when you go to sleep and when you get up and you know, it gets so dark here in the winters, it's like, yeah, you know, like you could go to sleep at like nine, eight o'clock and then, you know, who knows, you know, you know gets dark later and later. But I just think like taking advantage of the mornings are so key. Yeah. And I'm, I'm curious. That was why I asked that because like for me, I fight to, I don't wanna get up too early because I wanna cherish my sleep, but then I also know I'm most productive in the morning.
Brian (22m 17s):
So it's like getting that balance.
Naeem (22m 20s):
Yeah. I feel you man on that. When I lived in New York, dude winter's getting up in the morning is like brutal. It's like cold and you just wanna so cozy in the bed and getting in the shower. So, and I, and I also agree with you on that. Like, I used to be like a drill sergeant about I have to get up but like if I didn't get enough sleep, I'm like, all I'm gonna sleep until seven cuz my body needs extra two hours of sleep if I, if I slept late. So, and, and again, like sleep, like we sat on the, on my podcast with you, sleep is the best biohack out there in my opinion.
Brian (22m 53s):
Yeah, yeah. And, and going for a walk in the morning, I think such a great habit to get into. You need to get a dog out there.
Naeem (23m 1s):
I know. I would love to get a dog. Get a dog, get a dog or two like you got,
Brian (23m 7s):
It'll change your life.
Naeem (23m 9s):
Yeah.
Brian (23m 10s):
How,
Naeem (23m 10s):
How, how is the, how have the dogs changed your life or how do you, how do they enhance your, your, your schedule and your performance? 0 (23m 18s):
Well, I mean, they're not here right now actually. They're at, they're at daycare for a half a day. So, but I mean, dogs I think first of all, foremost, it gives, it gets you out. It gets you outta the house. It really does. I mean, you know, I don't really understand the owners who just throw 'em in the backyard every, you know, and never take their dogs for walks. That's a different story. But I take 'em we're we average like three walks a day.
Naeem (23m 44s):
Wow. Rain.
Brian (23m 45s):
Yeah. Rainer shine through the snow, you know, you name it. So I just think, like you said, it gets you out in nature, gets you away from your devices. Like I don't let my, my wife's like, Oh you should have your phone on you. Like, I don't even take my phone with me. I mean,
Naeem (23m 60s):
Yeah,
Brian (24m 1s):
Normally I pretty much don't need it, but you never know. But either way, yeah, that, that's another thing I don't understand is why people take, go for a walk with their dogs and they're staring at their phone the whole time.
Naeem (24m 12s):
My god. Yeah, it's, yeah,
Brian (24m 14s):
Just drives me nuts. But yeah, I mean dogs, I mean I don't, we don't have kids but you know, just the joy that they bring and they, you know, they put you first. It's just, they're, they're great. I think it's, I think if it's a great stepping stone, if you don't have kids, maybe you start with dogs and then work your way to kids maybe if that's something you want. But
Naeem (24m 32s):
I think so I think that's a good idea. I love dogs. They're, they're amazing and I love that idea of like, the fact that they get you out to go for a walk and just move your body and take a break from the screens. And I love that you don't go with your phone too. I think that's another great one. Just shutting off, like shutting off your phone or just not having your phone with you for a certain amount of time every day is probably a cool idea as well. I
Brian (24m 52s)
: Know I always said, I always said if, if I didn't, if I wasn't on social media for, for business, yeah I'd probably have like an old flip phone and just using
Naeem (24m 59s):
Right. They're actually, they're actually a phone that actually wanna get it. Or I was thinking about just shutting the data off my iPhone cuz I kind of like the idea of like literally just having a phone just for phone calls and texts for that reason, just for the utility of it. Right. But there, there is a phone, I think it's called, I think it's called the flip phone or something, but it's like, it's kind, it's like a new phone but it's made for that reason where it's just meant for phone calls and messages and that's it. No email, no none of the other stuff.
Brian (25m 28s):
Yeah. Oh yeah. It's funny you say that cuz I was actually looking up that I was like, is are they still making those phones anymore? Yeah.
Naeem (25m 35s):
But
Brian (25m 36s):
Right. Yeah. That's, that's cool. Anyways, off on a tangent, but what else would you say? Like, you know, we talk about morning routine. Everyone has, and, and, and I struggle with this a little bit. Like I'm old school, I'll write down like typically what I'll do is I'll write down what I wanna do the next day, the day night before. Yeah. I think that helps me. It almost like sets it subconsciously and then I notice I, I'm so much more apt to doing it the next day. If I don't write stuff down then I find I don't do it. So I'm curious, what kind of tips can you give people to be more productive for their days?
Naeem (26m 12s):
Yeah, I love what you just said. That's a great one, right? Writing the night before I do the same thing. I, I shut down, I block out like half an hour at the end of the day. One to review the day, be like pull out the wins. So I'd say that's one, one like pull out like three wins from the day cuz it's so easy, especially entrepreneurs and just people that are going for it. So easy to forget about the good stuff and just focused on next, next, next. Like I can just close the deal. What's next? I just made a million dollars. What's next? So like a lot of times we just forget how great our life is cuz that's kind of the trade off of achievement and success and high performers like a Kobe Bryant, like a Michael Jordan, like LeBron or whoever it is like a tiger Woods, right?
Naeem (26m 54s):
Versus you just wanna keep on going and you always notice what's missing and you don't notice what's already there. So I'd say that'd be one, like at the end of the day, just real quick, 1, 2, 3, what's one win? Even if it's a simple one, like today I just got my, I went to the dentist, I got my teeth cleaned. That's a, that's a win for me today. Doing this podcast with you is gonna be a win. So that's be another one. And then the cool thing is you realize damn, there's a lot of wins cuz I'm gonna have more than three for sure. But you train, I trained my, in the beginning I wasn't good at that, but now I'm like good at it. So like I trained my brain to notice it, right? Cause I think we said this on my, when you were on my podcast, you'll, you'll, you'll find things that reinforce your belief systems about what you're looking on, right?
Naeem (27m 35s):
So what you focus on, you'll see, right? If I think people are, if I think people are assholes or mean, I'll just note think of everybody as an asshole or mean even if they're smiling, even if they offer me something. Cuz I'll be like, oh Brian's trying to screw me over, he's offering me something. Right? Right, right. So it's, so it's like that piece. So definitely like three wins at the end of the day. I love what you said the night before, right after the three wins like hey what are three wins for tomorrow? Like three wins. Also simplifying. Cuz a lot of times we have like a huge todo list. Like if you can only do three things, kind of like Tim Ferris says in the four hour work week. I love that. It's like if you can only do, if you put in constraints, it's like hey, if you can only work for four hours tomorrow literally, or if you can only like do three things tomorrow or kind of like Warren Buffet, he has a great thing for investing but you could do it for anything.
Naeem (28m 21s):
Warren Buffet, he has this philosophy, the the 20 holes on a punch card philosophy. Cuz most investors they just make bad decisions cuz they make too many investment decisions. So he is like, if you could only make 20 investment decisions your entire lifetime, you'd think a lot more thoroughly and you'd be a lot more selective about the decisions you make about what you wanna invest in. So kind of the same idea, it's like if you only say, hey if I can do three things tomorrow, like what are those three things gonna be versus this, this, this, this, this. It's like what are those three things? So I love that you said that cuz and also Edison would do that Edison the night before cuz he knew, knew the subconscious mind works on that stuff while you're sleeping, which is what another reason why sleep is a superpower.
Naeem (29m 5s):
It's like overnight your brain is like where body's sleeping but our brain's still, it's lit, it's still going like in REM sleep and all that. So it's working on those problems you're trying to solve for the next day. So I would say that like what you said in terms of mapping out the next day and then I would say what also what you said on, on my podcast, having a nightly routine. Like you're the morning routine start, the nightly routine starts in the morning, right? I think you said something like that. So it's like, it's kind of like getting ready each time when my nightly routine comes, I'm getting ready for my morning and when my morning comes I'm already getting ready for my night. So it's already kind of mapping out what time we're gonna close down, shut the phone off, and so on and so forth. So I would say that, and then I'd say there's, in terms of like managing time, cuz you can't, time is time is emotion, right?
Naeem (29m 52s):
Most, it's kind of a weird concept but it is. If I ask people what's time? Time is emotion. And the reason I say that is have you ever been with somebody where it felt like five hours when it was only a minute you're like, I gotta get outta this room. Right? Yeah. But and also on the flip side too though has ever been a moment when you're with your dogs or your wife and it was like 10 hours the whole day and it felt like a minute it was like, man, that was like amazing. I wish it was longer. So, so that's where it's emotion, right? So the reason we feel overwhelmed and we have so much to do and I, I don't have enough time and I have, I'm so busy and it's really just we gotta manage our emotional state better and manage our emotions better cuz it's really what's the outcome we want to get.
Naeem (30m 35s):
So this last tip in terms of being more productive, I'd say at the end of the day there's kind of a three step process to managing time, which is managing emotion and it's what's the result you want, what's the outcome? Also like what's the feeling you want? Cuz we're really what we're after is a feeling. So what's the feeling? So me with me on this podcast like oh cool my out, what's the result? I wanna make an amazing podcast with Brian so I could engage his audience. I could also share my audience but also at a deeper level. What's the feeling I want? I wanna feel fun and happy and joyful and connect with Brian and connect with all the people that listen to this and like have a great time and like share that that that play and that excitement that I have for my life and for what I do.
Naeem (31m 18s):
And then so that's kind of the results. Then the deeper part though is what's the purpose? Why? Because that's even more important. Why am I doing that? Why do I want that? Because that's the emotional charge and that's where it's like, oh cool, I wanna do it because I wanna build my brand, I wanna reach more people. I wanna have, I wanna be able to have a amazing life with my family. One day I wanna get maybe a dog or two one day and be able to travel and like have abundance and also inspire more people. So that's kind of anchoring in to the to why and you, you wanna do it. I know this seems cumbersome and like time intensive, but it's the opposite cuz when you do this you're gonna have more time, but if you don't you're gonna just keep kind of running on the hamster wheel like most people do.
Naeem (31m 59s):
So it's like anchoring in to the purpose and then it's the, the the action plan, then it's the to-do list. Then it's like, oh cool, I gotta make this phone call, I gotta write this post, I gotta do this podcast. Then it's the stuff you gotta do. But if you do those first two pieces first, you're also gonna realize sometimes you don't need to do a lot of the stuff you think you have to do or you're gonna get more creative on how you could do it better. It's like, oh maybe I could get somebody else to do it for me. Like is this the best use of my time? Right? So then you also get more resourceful as well. But it's really getting back into your emotions and your state. Cuz if you're in the right state, you can solve anything.
Naeem (32m 40s):
If you're in a shitty state, sorry for my language, but if you're in a crappy state, then you're not gonna be able to solve anything. You won't be able to add up two plus two. Right?
Brian (32m 50s):
Yeah, that's great. And maybe how, how, how can that apply to maybe someone that's, I don't know, they, they go on and off working out and they wanna just be more consistent at that. What do you, what what, how could they dial in and make, make it so that it becomes a routine and a habit?
Naeem (33m 7s):
Yeah, that's a great question. So if they're having trouble with it, I would start with that. I would literally every day until you dial it in your habit. And this is just basic habit building skills. If you read Atomic Habits by James Clear or Tiny Habits by BJ Fog, those are both great books on habits, but it's really just every day for 30 days at least. I guarantee if you do it for 30 days it's gonna hit. But if not, keep doing it. But like what's the result? So hey, I wanna get fit, I wanna get a six pack, I wanna lose weight, I wanna have more energy. What's the purpose? Like if they go deep on the purpose, that's gonna get 'em to go. Cause that's gonna anchored in, I wanna be a better dad for my kid. I wanna be able to be there for my kid when he gets married or she gets married.
Naeem (33m 49s):
I wanna be able to have more energy so I can have better sex with my partner. Like whatever the driving thing is for this human. It's like if they get deeper on that, cuz the only reason they're not doing it cuz they have more emotion, emotional reasons not to do it and they have more emotional reasons to do it. So they want to anchor, stack up more of those emotional reasons to do it versus the not to do it, if that makes sense. And also they wanna also, and you could also use the pain in your favor too. So if it's like, oh it's hard, it's, I don't have time to go to the gym, it's too annoying. People look at me. It's like, you wanna use the pain also cuz pain is a stronger motivator than pleasure cuz we're wired for survival.
Naeem (34m 28s):
So also you could use it on the flip side where it's like, hey, if I don't, and, and we're still in the, the pee part, right? What's the reason? But a reason could also be avoiding pain. So the reason is, hey, if I don't go to the gym, people are gonna laugh at me. And this is a good, you wanna use this in a good way not to like beat yourself up, right? But to motivate you or I won't be able to be there for my kid and when he gets married or she gets married or I won't be able to be healthy, wanna have grandkids and be able to hang out with my grandkids and like play with them. So that's where again, just the purpose part. You want to anchor in those emotions and then it's the actions, then it's like, oh cool, I'll go to the gym. But then if you go to the gym again, keep it light like we talked about.
Naeem (35m 9s):
It's like go for 10 minutes, go for a walk. Like you gotta, then it's also seeing the small things as wins, like we talked about capturing your wins. It's like, oh cool, I went for a five minute walk today. That's a win. Like yesterday, I didn't work out. Ideally I would like to, but I went for a walk for an hour. So like, all right, cool. That was my workout. That was a really awesome, still good exercise. I still moved a lot and that was my workout. Like it wasn't like my ideal like high intensity training or surfing or paddle boarding. But I'm like, hey, let's, success could only build on success. So if you stay in that success area, you're gonna keep on stacking. So that, that'd be my answer.
Brian (35m 47s):
You know, I, I like that you mentioned cuz like what what I do is, you know, I'll write what I need to do for the next day, but I'll never, not never, I've done it rarely where I reflect back and and look at the wins. And I think that's so important because I think for at least for myself, like I'm my toughest critic, so I never really like give myself Yeah. You know, I I just always been like that I feel like I never give myself credit for, for things or even, even if they're little things, right? Like you said, like you went to the dentist and, and you know, so, you know, even if it's a little thing. But, but yeah, I, I think that's so key is just giving yourself credit for those wins while also coming up what with things that you wanna do for the next day.
Brian (36m 28s):
But what I find true, and you mentioned it a little bit, is when the list is like, and I know they say sometimes I don't know what's your thoughts on are as far as prioritizing what is on your list and maybe like an ABC or sort of how that, you know, but like I find that if I, if I just write one or two things, like you mentioned even three things and just have it be that because then you'll get it done. But if you have like six things then you, you might not get any of it done. Do you know what I'm saying?
Naeem (36m 56s):
Yep, No, for sure. Yeah. You nailed it. Yeah, exactly. That's why just minimize it. And the other thing too, when you have a long list, cuz I do have long list of things to do, right? But then it's chunk, you gotta chunk it. And I don't know if, if people have heard about chunking, but chunk is basically like batching, Tim Ferriss talked about this too in his book, right? Batching things that are similar, right? So a lot of those things, there's only so many areas of your life, right? So a lot of 'em are probably business related, a lot of 'em are probably health related. A lot of 'em are probably like kind of family stuff maybe, or like kind of like home stuff, like laundry and bills or maybe like admin stuff for your business. So like when you batch it then it's like, oh cool, like I got like one chunk of stuff here, one there and like one here.
Naeem (37m 37s):
So then it's still kind of like three again and then again then you can get a little more intelligent, resourceful on how you wanna attack it. But if you start in the weeds on it, then you're kind of screwed. Cuz then you're kind of, we have only so much energy in bandwidth. But the cool thing is if we allocated the right way and we come at it from the right angle, it's like, I'm sure you've heard that quote or people for the quote where it's like it takes just as much energy to build like a million dollar bus as it does to make like a hundred million dollar business. So it's like you wanna channel your energy and use it the right way where it's like, I'm not gonna use my energy when I first wake up to like pay my bills. I'm gonna use that for the things that are gonna give me the most ROI on the energy in the morning. Cuz it dissipates over time.
Naeem (38m 18s):
Right?
Brian (38m 19s):
Yeah. It's interesting, you, me mentioned that I'm, I'm still trying to dial in the mornings a little bit. Like for example, we're doing this podcast from 11 to noon, which you know, works out well for me cuz I have some flexibility in the middle of the day. But I've done some podcasts where I do 'em in the evening and for one the dog, the dogs are for sure done, they're quiet so don't have to worry about them. And I'm thinking about doing that more often because you know that first like you gotta really treasure that morning time and do what's you do best or what's, you know, at least for me, what's, yeah, what, what's most important. And not to say that podcasting isn't important, but you know, podcasting is a fun, great thing that, you know, you have one yourself that I'm sure you enjoy and you get to meet new people.
Brian (39m 4s):
But like, it's not like you need to have this, it's not a huge brain task or this, you know, it's, it's probably not gonna have a huge direct impact on, on maybe the dollars that are being brought in by your business. And so, you know, I I'm thinking more and more with recordings, maybe pushing them a little bit later when I don't, when it's like less of a brain. Yeah, yeah. So yeah, so less of a brain that's that's yeah.
Naeem (39m 26s):
That, that's huge. I love that. Yeah. So like when would you do it? Maybe when would you do it? Like in the afternoon or like at, in the evening or
Brian (39m 32s):
I'm almost thinking, pushing my recordings to the evenings. Cause for one then don't have to worry about my dogs. Yeah, they're, they're well behaved, don't get me wrong. But, but they're excited. It's in the morning, they're ready to go. Right. Like even after the walk they might lay down for like a half hour and or an hour and then they're like, okay, what's next? So, and also two in the morning, you know, you really gotta cherish those mornings cuz what I find is when those mornings get away from you, it's like those wins that we talk about, they're not as, there's not as frequent, I should say when when you're, at least for me, when my mornings get away, the, because you know, like you only have so much brain power I guess or discipline.
Brian (40m 13s)
: Yeah. And then the afternoons come and then it's like, okay,
Naeem (40m 16s):
Yeah, no, it's so true. Absolutely man. I agree. Yeah. Yeah. One other cool thing real quick is there's this time management matrix, right? So if people wanna draw, like literally like, what's it called? Like a graph like in seventh grade algebra, right? Like a vertical y axis, X axis or, and then in the top left. So on the left side is important and then on the top it's like urgent, right? So top left is important and urgent and the bottom left is not important and urgent. And then on the right side it's not at the top right, It's not urgent and important. And then the bottom right, it's not important and not urgent. So like the bottom right is like most people are kind of like in the bottom right, not important and not urgent.
Brian (40m 59s):
And they're doing those first
Naeem (41m 1s):
And they're doing that or they're doing usually the urgent and not important stuff. And that's like, that's kinda like, again just like fires that come up and they kind of just go there and they're kind of at, they're at cause. So we wanna go, the ideal quadrant is to be not urgent and important. That's like ideal cuz we're not kind of reacting and we're like focused on our vision and perspective and we have more balance. And then before that maybe we'll be an urgent and important where it's like this is important stuff. Like I gotta close this deal like with to Tony Robbins and I'm doing an event with him and that's urgent and it's important, right? Cuz that's gonna like massively like impact my business cause it's great partnership and it's like there's a deadline, right?
Naeem (41m 46s):
So that's a helpful thing. Sometimes I use that, I use that little matrix where it's like, oh cool, like what quadrant is this in right now? And you're not always gonna do it. Perfect. So even in the beginning it's like, but just the awareness to start, it's like, oh yeah, like I'm doing this thing even though I'm doing it. Like it's not urgent, it's urgent right now, but it's not important and I'm doing it. I'm having the awareness and I'm actually doing it and I can start to slowly improve that behavior. 0 (42m 10s):
I love that. Yeah, I think that's so important because I just noticed, like with me, like there's so many different things, like you said, like whether it's with, with the, with the house and then with with work and with with home life and like trying to find that balance and doing the things that are most important and urgent and most important, right? Yeah. Right off the bat and then getting into the other things later on in the day. Yep,
Naeem (42m 35s):
Yep. Absolutely. Yeah, you nailed it.
Brian (42m 38s):
Awesome. Out time is flying. Let me ask you this, a few more questions and then we'll, we'll close it up. But what are your, what are your top books? I know you, you, you mentioned books and that you, you know, you'd love to read and do you normally read in the morning or in the evening?
Naeem (42m 52s):
For sure. Yeah. It's a great, I love that. I love the the books questions. So I normally read, It's funny though cuz I actually never really liked reading. I didn't, and I kind of trained myself to read, cuz I, I read that in when I was reading about personal growth. It's like that same quote like leaders or readers, right? So then I started reading and one cool thing that people could take on if they don't like to read is, again, this is from Naval Ravikant. And if people dunno who that is, I would definitely check him out. He's a really smart guy, but he says, Read what you love until you love what you read. So a lot of times we read things cuz we think we should read it or it's like, I should read this book because somebody said to, or it's like important but business stuff.
Naeem (43m 34s):
But if you love reading like about animals or surfing or the ocean or like water or like whatever it is, like read that stuff like, or fiction, like whatever it is. Like go read those books. You just wanna build the habit of reading, right? And then if you want, then one, then you'll start the habit, but then by default you're gonna start to get interested in other things. Cuz when you read books, that's the other thing. People are like, what should I read? Like if you read one book, you're gonna start, they're go, they're gonna talk about other books in it and you're gonna have like a whole appendix of other books that that book referenced as well. So like you'll get like more breadcrumbs to follow as well. But to answer a question directly, some books that I loved, I'd say in terms of like,
Brian (44m 16s):
I know you have a big, you have a big list. I'm looking at your right now, so Yeah, yeah, yeah. Maybe give a just a couple, like your top two.
Naeem (44m 23s):
Yeah. So in terms, I'd say my top two, so personal growth, the one that really kind of got me started was the Success Principles by Jack Canfield. And that I love that cause it's not like a groundbreaking thing, but it's, I just love fundamentals and like principles. So he is like, Hey, here's a hundred principles that I, and he's a, he's a old school self-help guy, but he is, he is a great guy. He's one of the, there's a lot of like, just like any field, there's people that are like not so great in people that are more legit. So he's legit for sure, and I like him a lot. But he basically came up with a hundred principles of like how to start making your life more successful. And one of them is reading, which is actually where I got that idea from him. And then I'd say in terms of like, if people wanna get better at habits, I definitely say maybe here's a really cool book.
Naeem (45m 10s):
I, I love The Art of Learning by Josh Wakin.
Brian (45m 15s):
Okay.
Naeem (45m 15s):
He's a really smart guy. Like he was a chess master then he, he just, Oh cool. Like learning, Learning is like a process and you could learn like nobody taught us how to learn, like learn how to learn how to learn and like there's a process to learning. So like, he talks about like this whole art of learning. So we started with chess, then you use that in Brazilian jujitsu, then you use that in Tai Chi and like in building businesses too. So that's a really cool book as well. If I, if I had to give two of them.
Brian (45m 43s):
Awesome. Yeah, you have a long list. I definitely would recommend anyone listening to check out your website. Yeah. And it's simply your name, which I'll put in in in the show notes. Name my mood, right? Yep. Okay.
Naeem (45m 60s):
You nailed it.
Brian (46m 0s)
: I challenged myself again. Awesome. Well this, this, I'm glad we did a sort of a podcast swap, so I'm glad we did because I think all this personal development and, and just growth mindset is so important no matter what field you're in or if you're looking to get your health back or you're looking to grow a business, I've always been something I've been interested in. So I really do appreciate you coming on and I'll we'll end with, with one question and I, I asked most of my guesses. If you were gonna give any advice to someone that maybe was just, maybe they're starting out in, in, in, in building sort of this growth mindset and productivity, what one tip would you give them to, to, you know, get the ball rolling and get things going as far as productivity?
Naeem (46m 48s):
Sure. Yeah. So I'd say, well, yeah, so I'd say repetition's, the mother of skill. So repetition and praises the, and praises the father of skill. So like it's really just consistency. Like when I first started on my success journey, it's like I remember that quote Aristotle and I still say every day to this day he says, we are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then is not an act but a habit. So like literally everything is, everything is a habit. Like people, like I was talking to like not a habit, like everything is a habit. Like our thoughts are habits. Like everything is a habit and a lot of times they're invisible habits. It's patterns, they're invisible. So like our belief systems are habits, like the way we wake up the way 90% of our behavior is pretty much the same every day.
Naeem (47m 35s):
So we wanna just get better. If you wanna make more money, build a business, get a better body, you gotta start building those patterns of success versus, and destroy some of those patterns of failure, which is again, habits. So it's like there's invisible habits that aren't there right now. So you wanna get better at building those invisible habits. And that's why I say repetition though, cuz again, it's just consistency and repetition. Just like Bruce Lee says, I don't fear the man that knows 20,000 kicks. I fear the man that knows that does one kick 20,000 times. Yeah. So like master one thing at a time and you're, you're gonna see things take off.
Brian (48m 12s):
I love that. Yeah. Yeah, I love that. Well thank you again for coming on. Glad we could do this and I'll put all, Is that the best place to sort of check everything you got going out your, your personal website?
Naeem (48m 24s):
Yeah, check out the website name mau.com. I love that. We did, I love that you were on my podcast of people that want to come here, Brian, on my podcast, it's Peak Performance Humans. Yeah, that's on the website. Or maybe we could put it in link below, but I would say that, yeah, then across social, it's just my name on YouTube, Twitter, Instagram and all that.
Brian (48m 43s):
Awesome. Yeah, definitely check out your podcast as well and we'll put a link in there for there. So thank you so much for coming on and sharing all the knowledge.
Naeem (48m 52s):
Absolutely, Brian, it was a lot, a lot of fun. I appreciate you having me on.
Brian (48m 58s)
: Thanks for listening to the Get Lean E Clean podcast. I understand there are millions of other podcasts out there and you've chosen to listen to mine and I appreciate that. Check out the show notes@briangrn.com for everything that was mentioned in this episode. Feel free to subscribe to the podcast and share it with a friend or family member that's looking to get their body back to what it once was. Thanks again and have a great day.
