How to Turn Failure into Success
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“You will fall. And when you fall, the winner always gets up, and the loser stays down.”
-Arnold Schwarzenegger
In this episode, we discuss another frequently requested question from listeners. I’ve gathered some of the best advice about coping with frustrations and roadblocks, and — ultimately — learning how to turn failure into success.
These conversations are extremely valuable because they show you there is more than one way to achieve your goals. After more than 200 conversations with the world’s top performers, you start to spot certain patterns. These are the shared habits, hacks, philosophies, and tools that are the common threads of success, happiness, health, and wealth. Behind each success story is usually a lesson on how to overcome failure. Aside from my own take on the topic, this episode includes conversations with:
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Malcolm Gladwell
Bryan Johnson
A.J. Jacobs
Shep Gordon
Enjoy!
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Want to hear another episode of featuring multiple guests and their best tips? In this episode, we explore the best morning routines with Jocko Willink, Seth Godin, Jamie Foxx, and Scott Adams (stream below or right-click here to download):
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QUESTION(S) OF THE DAY: What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.
Scroll below for links and show notes…
Selected Links from the Episode
Connect with Arnold Schwarzenegger:
Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube
Connect with Malcolm Gladwell:
Website | Revisionist History | Twitter | Facebook
Connect with Bryan Johnson:
Connect with A.J. Jacobs:
Website | Twice Removed | Twitter | Facebook
Connect with Shep Gordon:
Fear-Setting: The Most Valuable Exercise I Do Every Month
The Tim Ferriss Experiment
SWOT analysis
Fear{less} is Here!
Dissecting the Success of Malcolm Gladwell
David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants by Malcolm Gladwell
What the Dog Saw: And Other Adventures by Malcolm Gladwell
Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell
Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell
The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell
Lapsang Souchong black tea
The Rags to Riches Philosopher: Bryan Johnson’s Path to $800 Million
Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely
Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
Dan Ariely’s TED talk,
The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz
A.J. Jacobs: Self-Experimenter Extraordinaire
The Know-It-All: One Man’s Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World by A.J. Jacobs
The Year of Living Biblically: One Man’s Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible by A.J. Jacobs
Drop Dead Healthy: One Man’s Humble Quest for Bodily Perfection by A.J. Jacobs
My Life as an Experiment: One Man’s Humble Quest to Improve Himself by Living as a Woman, Becoming George Washington, Telling No Lies, and Other Radical Tests by A.J. Jacobs
My Life as a TV Sitcom by A.J. Jacobs
A.J. Jacobs posing nude for Esquire
Shep Gordon — The King Maker on His Best PR Stunts, Hugest Failures, and Practical Philosophies
Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon (a film by Mike Meyers)
They Call Me Supermensch: A Backstage Pass to The Amazing Worlds Of Film, Food, and Rock ‘N’ Roll by Shep Gordon
Anne Murray performing Snowbird on television in 1973
Inside John Lennon, Keith Moon and Alice Cooper’s Legendary Hollywood Drinking Club by Barry Nicolson, NME (featuring the famous Anne Murray photo)
Tim Ferriss Interviews Arnold Schwarzenegger on Psychological Warfare (And Much More)
Arnold Schwarzenegger Part 2! Bodybuilding, Investing, and Online Battles
Show Notes
I share one of my own failures that I turned into a learning experience. [06:17]
Malcolm Gladwell on a failure that helped set him up for later success. [14:02]
Malcolm Gladwell’s morning routine and writing process. [17:08]
How Malcolm winds down from a day of work. [20:56]
Malcolm’s flaws that have turned into strengths. [22:36]
Malcolm on giving and receiving advice. [25:08]
How Bryan Johnson went from broke and unemployable to record sales in an oversaturated industry. [25:49]
Bryan’s worst decisions and fatal mistakes in real estate. [30:27]
Bryan on analyzing his own irrational behavior. [31:16]
How Bryan deals with feeling overwhelmed. [33:22]
One of A.J. Jacobs’ favorite failures. [35:56]
A.J.’s most embarrassing failure. [38:51]
Shep Gordon on a rookie management mistake he sees most often. [41:10]
Why did it take nearly a decade for Shep to agree to let Mike Meyers make a documentary about him? And why did a book follow? [47:06]
How did Shep prepare girl-next-door Anne Murray for stardom with the help of some Hollywood Vampires? [55:40]
Arnold Schwarzenegger on the biggest sacrifice he has made while climbing the ladder of success. [57:54]
Arnold on learning from failures. [1:00:24]
What does Arnold know today that could have helped him in his twenties? [1:03:07]
People Mentioned
Seneca
Dan Ariely
Daniel Kahneman
Ben Horowitz
Donald Sutherland
Paget Brewster
Mary-Louise Parker
Alice Cooper
Bette Davis
Raquel Welch
Groucho Marx
Jimi Hendrix
Sylvester Stallone
Luther Vandross
Lily Meola
The Dalai Lama
Mike Myers
Rick Rubin
Roy Choi
Anthony Bourdain
Anne Murray
John Lennon
Harry Nilsson
Micky Dolenz
Yoko Ono
Maria Shriver
Michael Jordan
Ted Williams
Reg Park
