Welcome back, friend

Success is relative. The 1950s were considered to be the most prosperous, successful era of modern times and that narrative has persisted but perception and reality are two very different things, and when it comes to measuring ‘success’ - this distinction matters. Allow me to explain, and why you, in 2024, should care about then.

In the 1950s, taking inflation into account, everything was, in fact, a lot worse. Adjusted for inflation in USA the median household earned $29,000 (compared to $70,000 in 2021). We have larger homes, we eat more, have better healthcare and education. The narrative and nostalgia however, paints the opposite picture. This begs an important question:

Why did people feel more successful then than we do now?

The answer can be hidden in a famous Charlie Munger quote. Warren Buffet’s business partner died right before his 100th birthday (I actually shared a post that went viral on Linkedin about his timeless wisdom here).

This goes a long way to explain the perception then, and now. In the 1950s, there was a drive to limit wage gaps. One of the results of this was relative wealth looked and felt the same. There was much less envy. Without envy, people could focus on themselves, what they had, not what they did not.

When it comes to success, we learn time and again:

Comparison is the thief of joy.

More successful, so why less joyful?

Moving forward to 2024, everyone’s life is better. Everyone broadly has more wealth, better healthcare, and with the internet the barrier to entry to win in the marketplace of ideas has never been cheaper. Sadly though, it has created much greater gaps. It’s not so much that the poor have less, it is that the rich have more than the middle classes and even being wealthy doesn’t feel like enough.

Feeling successful isn’t really about having more now than you did yesterday sadly. It is centred entirely around having more than those we might know or look up to. In some perverse way, our feeling of success now centres around needing to raise our own status above someone else’s. As Charlie Munger says, envy rules the world.

So, what can we do about it?

Every suggestion is easier said than done. It is the ego that demands not just high status but higher status than others. For the ego to feel validated, for ‘me’ to win, someone else has to lose, to have less than me. All we can do is recognise within ourselves when this perverse narrative is taking hold in our heads. No need to feel shame, society has been constructed around this reality, the only way to break free is to become more self aware when it is happening, and ask yourself why it matters.

As my favourite spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle says:

Once you have something, you’ll get over it pretty fast and move on to the next thing.

So, to really feel successful in 2024, we must do the same thing now as in the 1950s.

Stop wanting more, be happy with what we have.

It’s that simple.

It’s that hard.

Good luck!

The Science of Success (SOS) Toolkit:

One AI Prompt based on this week’s content, and one book recommendation, and one quote.

🤖 1 AI Prompt to help you be more successful:

Hi ChatGPT. I work in X industry, as a (insert job title). I want to make sure I stay ahead of the game, and continue to deliver value for my company/career. You are a company biographer and historian, aware of the cultural history in my industry and the various trends that have come before. Please tell me what might change, but also what is likely to stay the same, so I am ready for that too.

📖 Same As Ever, by Morgan Housel. The author of ‘The Psychology of Money’ (which is excellent btw), is back explaining how in a world where everything is changing, in fact, what really matters is to understand how much stays the same.

👄 ”People always ask me what will change in the next 10 years. Almost no one asks me what wont change, and I think that’s a much more interesting question” Jeff Bezos

To Your Success

Thanks for reading this week. If you joined last week, you’ll know I shared the question my performance coach asked: “What is one thing that if I changed about myself would help me grow as a person?” and to ask 5 people. Here were the answers I received:

1. My Mum: Stop being so sarcastic (soz mum, love you)
2. My best friend Rob: Listen more.
3. My colleague Will: Stop writing things in a rush, take time to explain context properly.
4. My coach: Being honest with myself about the things I really want to do (I’ve talked about starting this newsletter or building my personal brand for a long time without doing it, as an example)
5. My performance coach, Lara: Stop being ashamed of the things you want to do and leaning into your skills vs people pleasing by doing what others expect of you. (eerily similar)

Feels uncomfortable to admit these to my readers but - to be successful we need to identify our blind spots. These are clearly my areas to improve on. As I’ve now made them public, maybe you can help hold me accountable?

What were yours? Did you ask anyone?

I’d love to know!

Just hit reply to tell me.

Until next week

Dan ✌️

PS: Please share any feedback on this newsletter. Was it worth your time? Valuable insights?

What can I do to make it better, and more worth your time?

​

​​​