The Tim Ferriss Show #187: Jocko Willink on Discipline, Leadership, and Overcoming Doubt
Embrace Internal Doubt and Detach
- Internal doubt is a form of humility that drives preparation and prevents cutting corners.
- Detach emotionally from negative thoughts to see them clearly and maintain control over focus.
Losing Brothers in Combat
- The hardest experience for Jocko was losing his friends in combat.
- Such losses are soul crushing beyond anything else except family loss.
Influence Leadership Upwards
- Be the best in your role and build a reputation by following all rules, even inconsequential ones.
- Present vetted solutions humbly and pick battles wisely to influence leadership effectively.
"Don't count on motivation; count on discipline." - Jocko Willink Jocko Willink (@jockowillink) is one of the scariest human beings imaginable. He is a lean 230 pounds. He is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu expert who used to tap out 20 Navy SEALs per workout. He is a legend in the Special Operations world. His eyes look through you more than at you. Jocko spent 20 years in the US Navy and commanded SEAL Team 3's task unit Bruiser, the most highly decorated special operations unit in the Iraq War. Upon returning to the US, Jocko served as the officer in charge of training for all West Coast SEAL teams, designing and implementing some of the most challenging and realistic -- and perhaps psychotic -- combat training in the world (his words, not mine). After retiring from the Navy, he co-founded Echelon Front, a leadership and management consulting company and authored the number one New York Times bestseller Extreme Ownership: How US Navy SEALs Lead and Win. Jocko did his first interview ever with me (find it here), and it took the Internet by storm. Now he joins us for round two to answer the questions you've been asking. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! Show notes and links for this episode can be found at www.fourhourworkweek.com/podcast. This episode is brought to you by Headspace, the world's most popular meditation app (with more than 4,000,000 users). It's used in more than 150 countries, and many of my closest friends swear by it. Try Headspace's free Take10 program-- 10 minutes of guided meditation a day for 10 days. It's like a warm bath for your mind. Meditation doesn't need to be complicated or expensive, and it's had a huge impact on my life. Try Headspace for free for a few days and see what I mean. This podcast is also brought to you by Wealthfront. Wealthfront is a massively disruptive (in a good way) set-it-and-forget-it investing service led by technologists from places like Apple. It has exploded in popularity in the last two years and now has more than $2.5B under management. Why? Because you can get services previously limited to the ultra-wealthy and only pay pennies on the dollar for them, and it's all through smarter software instead of retail locations and bloated sales teams. Check out wealthfront.com/tim, take their risk assessment quiz, which only takes 2-5 minutes, and they'll show you -- for free -- exactly the portfolio they'd put you in. If you want to just take their advice and do it yourself, you can. Well worth a few minutes to explore: wealthfront.com/tim.
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