OPTIMIZE with Brian Johnson | More Wisdom in Less Time

In one of our very first Notes, we took a quick look at Brendan Brazier’s The Thrive Diet. I read the book when it came out nearly a dozen years ago. Loved it. Then Brendan and I met at an event, became friends, etc.

Today is, of course, October 2nd, 2019. Let’s hop in a time machine. Destination: 150 years ago: 1869. Cars don’t exist yet. Neither do phones. (Let alone a smartphone.) So… Imagine me sending this to you via telegram as we appreciate all the marvels of modern life.

In our last couple +1s, we’ve been hanging out in our guts. (Good times!) Surprisingly, that’s where we discovered 90% (!) of our serotonin and 70-80% (!!) of our immune systems. Crazy, eh?

In our last +1, we went on a little hide-and-seek adventure in search of our serotonin. Where’d we find it?

Serotonin. At this stage, most of us have at least a vague sense that serotonin is one of the primary neurotransmitters that makes us feel all warm and fuzzy and happy. 

In our last couple +1s, we’ve had some fun hanging out with Nietzsche and Joseph Campbell, loving up our fates and all of life’s wonderful wrecks that have shaped our lives and revealed our hidden strength.

In our last couple +1s, we’ve been having fun hanging out with our glymph and adding some elbow grease to the ol’ brain washing process by eating our last meal earlier in the day. (You test it yet?)

In our last +1, we got our brain-washing glymph on. Specifically, we started paying more attention to our glymphatic system by eating our last meal earlier. How much earlier? Well, the research says: At least FOUR (!!) hours before bedtime if we want to give our brains the best chance at getting the ol’ glymph a chance to do a deep clean.

Dr. Steven Gundry is Tony Robbins’ doctor. He’s a former world-class heart surgeon. These days he focuses on longevity. His new book is called The Longevity Paradox. Sub-title: “How to Die Young at a Ripe Old Age.” 

In our last +1, we chatted about my Gordion knot and the Orison Swett Marden wisdom that most obstacles melt away when we make up our minds to boldly walk through them.

This morning I’ve been working on a Gordian Knot in our business. I won’t bore you with the details but seven years ago I raised $2 million to finance the creation of a business that no longer exists. 

In our last +1, we talked about going deep to serve profoundly.  Immediately after finishing that +1, I went downstairs to hang out with the family.  But… Before I stepped out of the office to check in for some Deep Love time, I actually grabbed my new collection of Daily Stoic coins so Emerson and I could complete one of our new rituals.

This morning I was doing my normal thing. In the process, I came up with a little insight I’m excited to share. 

The other day Grandma and Grandpa visited to hang out with the E’s. We had a nice time. As we were walking to give them a tour of the ol’ studio, they told me about a public service announcement commercial produced by the Auto Club that they appreciated. Of course, we haven’t had a TV at the Johnson house for well over a decade, but it sounded great so I went online and found it on YouTube. 

Not too long ago, we talked about How to Make a Pearl. As you may recall, an irritant gets inside an oyster’s shell. The oyster creates something called "nacre” that coats the irritant. Repeat THOUSANDS and THOUSANDS and THOUSANDS of times. Over an extended period of time.