4173: [Part 2] Seven Steps to Learn and Master Anything As Quickly As Possible by James Altucher on Growth Mindset

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[00:00:55] [SPEAKER_00] This is Optimal Living Daily. Seven Steps to Learn and Master Anything as Quickly as Possible, Part 2 by James Altucher of jamesaltucher.com. And I'm Justin Malik. Welcome to OLD, where I read articles to you with permission from the authors, but today being a continuation from yesterday. So I'd recommend listening to yesterday's episode first. But if you're all caught up, let's get right to Part 2 and continue optimizing your life.

[00:01:28] [SPEAKER_00] 7 Steps to Learn and Master Anything as Quickly as Possible, Part 2 by James Altucher of jamesaltucher.com. Number 4. Failure. Anything worth learning, you're going to suck. You're going to suck badly. The first day you play chess, you might love it, you might be talented, you might be confident, but you are a disaster compared to anyone with experience who has studied the game.

[00:01:54] [SPEAKER_00] The same goes for business, for investing, for writing, for acting, for art, for creativity, for everything worth learning. And failure is painful. Nobody wants to lose money in poker or in investing. Nobody wants to spend months or years writing a book nobody reads. But if you love something and you want to get to your peak potential, your heart is going to break when you inevitably fail.

[00:02:21] [SPEAKER_00] And you will fail big and horrible, and it'll be like your brain and heart are torn in half. But that's the good news. Because now, you're qualified to study the failure. You can go to a plus in your equals and look at where you went wrong. You can't learn as much from succeeding because it's harder to pinpoint where mistakes are and it means you're not taking enough chances.

[00:02:44] [SPEAKER_00] Ray Dalio, the largest hedge fund manager ever, told me on my podcast, pain plus reflection equals progress. Pain is a must. With stand-up comedy, I always say yes to a challenge. Do comedy on a subway car? Yes. Yes. Do comedy on a Monday night in a blizzard with the entire audience from Norway? Yes. Go on stage with 102 fever and my voice completely shot? Yes. Then videotape.

[00:03:14] [SPEAKER_00] Then go over quarter second by quarter second. I was speaking to one of the best comedians in the world a few weeks ago. He told me he still videotapes and studies every single time he's gone on stage. Every year, every month, he's better than the month before. With business, it's difficult because a business can take years, but try to have many failures. Challenge yourself on deadlines.

[00:03:40] [SPEAKER_00] Challenge yourself on customer acquisition, on customer service, on micro-execution of products, and on and on. Figure out the ways that you can fail. Do them. Study them. Repeat. Number five, energy. This should be the first item because it's the most important. Without energy, you can't learn. If you don't sleep enough, you'll be too tired and you won't learn. If you're in a bad relationship, your brain will be distracted and you won't learn.

[00:04:09] [SPEAKER_00] If you don't exercise your creativity, you won't be able to combine ideas and learn from ideas. If you're too anxious, you'll spend too much mental energy worrying about the future instead of learning in the present. When I went broke for the fourth or fifth time, I finally had to take a look back and say, what was I doing right every time I made money? And what was I doing wrong? It all boiled down to physical health. Eat, move, and sleep.

[00:04:38] [SPEAKER_00] Emotional health. Eliminate all of the toxic people in your life. Creative health. Write down 10 ideas a day. The ideas can be about anything. In spiritual health, learn how to deal with anxiety and regret. Release control over the things you have no control over. Just these four things gave me so much energy, it probably took another 1,000 to 2,000 hours out of the 10,000 hours. Number six, the 1% rule.

[00:05:08] [SPEAKER_00] Try to improve 1% a day at whatever it is you're trying to learn. It seems like a small number, just 1%, but 1% a day compounded is 3,800% per year. That's 37 times better than where you started in just one year. I had a friend who I always played chess with. He played chess all day, every day. But he never read a book on chess or studied with anyone. He just played the same moves and made the same mistakes game after game.

[00:05:36] [SPEAKER_00] I asked him why he didn't take the basic steps to improve. All you have to do is take basic steps each day to improve as small as 1%. He said, ah, I just like to play, which is fine. But he never got better. Chess is more enjoyable, everything is much more enjoyable, when you get better and when you learn and can appreciate the subtleties and the nuances. Everything is an art form.

[00:06:02] [SPEAKER_00] The greatest artists have a vocabulary of hundreds of thousands of patterns in their chosen field. Speaking that vocabulary is pleasurable because you can enjoy the art form more, you can succeed more easily, you get acclimation for your success, you make friends with others who are also successful because you speak their language, but it requires everyday learning new words in your art form. Studying how Warren Buffett invests, or how Bobby Fischer plays the King's Indian,

[00:06:30] [SPEAKER_00] or how Richard Pryor brought his authentic voice into his comedy, or how Richard Branson can build and manage 400 businesses, or challenging yourself to fail a little bit each day to expand your comfort zone. 1% a day equals 3,800% a year. And number seven, do it. You can't get better at chess just by reading about it. You have to play. Then you have to play in high-stress situations like a tournament.

[00:07:00] [SPEAKER_00] You can't get to be the best at business just by reading about Richard Branson. You have to start a business, or work for a startup, or even work for a big business and notice there are small successes and failures. You can't get to be great at comedy by watching videos. You have to go on stage every day. Every day. You just listened to part two of the post titled,

[00:07:26] [SPEAKER_00] Seven Steps to Learn and Master Anything as Quickly as Possible, by James Altucher of jamesaltucher.com. And I'll be right back with my commentary.

[00:07:36] [SPEAKER_01] Thinking about refreshing the carpet in your home? Now's the time to do it. For a limited time at The Home Depot, get 10% off installed carpet projects on trusted brands like LifeProof, LifeProof with PetProof Technology, Home Decorators Collection, and Traffic Master. Plus, with installation starting at just 49 cents per square foot, upgrading your space is more affordable than ever at The Home Depot. Offer valid September 24th, 2026 through October 4th, 2026. Exclusions apply. For licenses, see homedepot.com slash license numbers.

[00:08:08] [SPEAKER_02] Pink Panther is here. Coach and Spotify are teaming up to bring music and style together, and they want you to be part of it. Grab your friends and head to the Tabby Tour, hitting cities around the country with live performances from special artists, exclusive experiences, and personalized products. And discover custom playlists on Spotify, built just for you based on who you are and how you listen. Live your story with Coach.

[00:08:30] [SPEAKER_03] Learn more at coach.com.

[00:08:34] [SPEAKER_00] Thank you again to James. Something he mentioned yesterday actually was a tip that he said is responsible for like 40% of that quote-unquote 10,000 hours that we need to master something. He said, find people who love what you love and spend as much time talking about this shared area as you can. And I couldn't agree more. Mentors are good. Books are good.

[00:08:59] [SPEAKER_00] But finding someone at the same level as you or close to the same level who is learning along with you and really excited, that takes learning to the next level in my experience. And I think it makes it so much more fun. Going it alone requires a lot of internal motivation. Finding resources on your own can get overwhelming. But having a friend that's just as passionate about it as you are and can sort of talk about it forever with you,

[00:09:27] [SPEAKER_00] I can really supercharge that learning curve. You'll likely discover something on your own and then they will too on their own. And when you share that together and have someone explain it in person, it just feels easier and smoother than reading about it yourself. At least that's the case for me. So I particularly like that tip. But some other great ones as well in this article worth looking into. And with that, have a great day. Keep learning and mastering those skills.

[00:09:54] [SPEAKER_00] And I'll see you tomorrow where your optimal life awaits.