Video summary
The central theme of this discussion revolves around finding true happiness and creating momentum in life by focusing on what one can control rather than obsessing over uncontrollable outcomes. Drawing inspiration from Martin Luther's metaphor about planting an apple tree even if tomorrow brings chaos, the speaker argues that we must invest our energy into the process itself instead of fixating solely on goals or future results. Since no one can guarantee what happens next day, frustration often arises when individuals focus their attention on external factors they cannot influence, such as other people's reactions or opinions. This misplaced focus acts like a splinter in the mind, blinding us to the immediate wealth and joys available right now, such as fresh air, loved ones, and simple comforts that require no financial cost. To counteract this frustration, the speaker emphasizes gratitude not merely as an emotion but as an empowering practice rooted in acknowledging current realities rather than waiting for future glory. The core argument is presented through Steve Maraboli's insight: incredible change occurs when we take control of what we have power over instead of craving dominance over things beyond our reach. By shifting pride from the outcome to the pursuit, individuals can build self-esteem based on their actions and choices today. This mindset allows one to own their life as a direct reflection of their decisions, eliminating blame towards others and replacing worry with proactive questions about how to improve the present moment regardless of future uncertainties. A significant portion of the dialogue addresses the relationship between knowledge, humility, and personal power, citing Thomas Jefferson's reminder that knowing best means understanding just how little one actually knows. The speaker shares a surreal experience common among entrepreneurs: as they become more accomplished, they feel less certain rather than more confident, realizing there is always too much to learn. This perspective aligns with Naval Ravikant's assertion that while the means of learning are abundant, the genuine desire to learn is scarce and constitutes a superpower. Those who believe they already know everything tend to calcify their thoughts into brittle dogma, whereas those who embrace ignorance as a starting point remain hungry for growth and avoid self-satisfaction or premature celebration of past achievements. The practical application of this philosophy lies in treating learning itself as an endless quest where each new skill builds a brick by brick toward one's destination without ever becoming stagnant. The speaker warns against being tricked into thinking that who you are today is the limit of what you can become, insisting instead on a mandate that your future must always be bigger than your past. This requires maintaining a state of naivety and hunger for knowledge at all times, refusing to let thoughts harden into fixed beliefs. By falling in love with the idea that one knows nothing and staying committed to continuous improvement, individuals unlock boundless potential because their skills are constantly tested by real-world application rather than theoretical certainty. Ultimately, true power is derived from accepting limitations as a catalyst for growth, ensuring that the journey of learning remains dynamic and ever-expanding.
Read the full video transcript
As Martin Luther said,
"Even if I knew that tomorrow the world
would go to pieces,
I would still plant my apple tree."
Some things you build whether you can
control the outcome or not. Sometimes
it's the process that is the thing
that's meant to be enjoyed. It's the
process that you're meant to invest in.
And rather than always thinking about
the goal, the outcome, or what you're
going to get out of something, focus on
the something. Focus on the part of it
that you can control because you can't
always control the outcome. You can't
know what's going to happen tomorrow.
Tomorrow's not guaranteed to any of us.
And yet we all act. And yet we create
momentum in our lives when we're at our
best.
But we do that not because we can
control every aspect. We do that because
we accept that there are things that we
cannot control.
And as Steve Maraboli said, "Incredible
change happens in your life when you
decide to take control of what you do
have power over instead of craving
control over what you don't."
And that's where a lot of people get
lost. They focus not on what they have
in their hands. They focus instead on
the things that they can't control. It
irritates them. It frustrates them. It's
like a splinter in their mind. They
can't stop thinking about the things
that they don't have control over. And
they're blinded to the incredible wealth
that is around them of things that they
could enjoy right here, right now.
That's why gratitude is such an
empowering practice. To sit there and
not think of the glorious things may
await you in your future, but rather to
think about the things that you have
here in this moment. Oxygen in your
lungs, a simple breeze on your face, a
window in your house, someone that you
love, someone that loves you.
Nothing that costs money, nothing that
was the pot of gold at the end of a
glorious rainbow.
It's not even about becoming something
extraordinary and waiting for the
results of that.
It's simply understanding that the one
thing you can control are your actions
today, the choices that you make, what
you get to do, how you think about
yourself, the beliefs you choose to
bring into your life, those things you
control.
And when you understand the power in
acknowledging that control and taking
control and using it,
that's when your life is going to begin
to change. But first, you have to
divorce yourself from being obsessively
interested only in an outcome.
If instead you build your self-esteem,
you build your pride on pursuit,
you build your pride on allowing
yourself to care about something so
deeply that even though tomorrow is not
guaranteed that you're going to plant
your apple tree today, that you're going
to love that process because it is the
thing you can control. You can control
how you show up. You can control how you
play. You cannot control how other
people react. You cannot control what
they think about you.
But you can control what you think about
yourself. You can earn credibility with
yourself. You can control what you do.
And when you take full ownership of that
and realize that your life is an exact
reflection of your choices, of the
things that you could control and what
you did with them,
then everything begins to change. You're
not looking to blame somebody else.
You're not even worried about anybody
else.
You're just asking one simple question.
What can I do right now, regardless of
tomorrow,
to improve my life
today?
Focus there,
and you'll enjoy every day of your life.
As Thomas Jefferson said,
"He who knows best knows just how little
he knows."
And this has been one of the most
surreal things about my experiences as
an entrepreneur is that the better I get
at it, the more that I do, the more I
feel lost, the more I feel like there's
too much for me to possibly know and
understand and in that
is my power. That's literally the source
of my power because I understand that my
journey is one of learning. I understand
that as Naval Ravikant said, "The
genuine love for reading itself, when
cultivated, is a superpower. The means
of learning are abundant. It's the
desire to learn that's scarce."
But if you have that desire, if you
cultivate that desire to learn, if you
accept that you're in this big world
that is far too big for you to
understand every piece of it, but in
recognizing that you don't understand it
all and putting yourself on this quest
to learn obsessively, to get better, to
fall in love with the actual process of
gaining knowledge, if you stay hungry
for that at all times and you don't
calcify your thoughts into dogma, but
rather stay fresh, stay naive, stay
hungry and foolish to really learn and
grow,
then you actually obtain power. And this
is the part I want people to understand.
Look past the words and hear what I'm
really saying. As you take on the
knowledge, as you're learning one thing
after another after another, those
skills have practical application and it
is that practical application born of
understanding how little you really know
that allows you to become far more
powerful than the people that think
they know. Because when they think they
know, they stop growing. When they think
they know, they calcify. When they think
they know, their thoughts get brittle
like bone and break.
But when you think you know nothing,
when you think you have to learn
everything, when you're really just
trying to figure out if something works,
if it gets you the result, then those
skills become real. They become tested
by what you're doing. They are boundless
because you're always trying to find
that next thing. You're never
self-satisfied. You're never
self-congratulatory.
You're simply asking, "Where do I want
to go? What skills do I need to acquire
to get there? And knowing that each one
of those that you get, brick by brick by
brick, builds a real path to where you
want to go.
So, fall in love with the idea
that you know nothing. Fall in love with
the idea that learning is a superpower.
Fall in love with that hunger. Want that
want to get better every day. Never
Never be tricked by the desire to be
self-satisfied. Never be tricked by the
desire to be great today. Never fool
yourself into thinking who you are today
is who you can become. I don't care how
far you've come. I don't care how many
accomplishments are in your rearview
mirror. If you fall prey to that, your
past will always be bigger than your
future. And there is one mandate that I
make of myself and anyone else that
wants to be around me. Your future must
always be bigger than your past.
And the only way for that to be true
is to love
how little you really know.
And to love
how much you can learn
if you just keep going.