excellence, actually

What do success and failure have in common? They can both trap you. Success can lead to complacency or a plateau, and failure can render you so discouraged or apathetic that you don't feel ready to try again. That's not a fun place to be! So today we're discussing how you can build and keep momentum, no matter the reason you might get stuck. Drawing on wisdom that ranges from NBA star Steph Curry to the ancient Buddhist priest Takuan Sōhō, we about talk momentum killers (and how to avoid them), the importance of knowing how to both "go where the water's fast" and stop one rep short, and the rule that will help prevent you from wallowing in failure or basking in success for too long.
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How do you have fun while working really hard? For many elite athletes, figuring out how to balance joy and suffering is the key to a long and successful career. Today, we explore how they do it — and how you can, too. We dig into the psychology of "beautiful suffering," explain why joy is connected to agency, the important difference between authoritarian and authoritative coaching, and the steps you can take to shift from extrinsic to intrinsic motivation, which is the ultimate competitive advantage.
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Today, for our monthly round-up, each of us shares a reflection from February: Brad explains what his chaotic book launch taught him about achievement, fulfillment, responding not reacting, and putting into practice other lessons we discuss regularly; Steve discusses using A.I. to help him do his work, and whether it can ever produce something truly great; and Clay shares a tool that has helped him keep things moving on big projects even when the roadmap isn't super clear. It's a new format with the same great insights.
Get a free LMNT drink mix pack with any purchase: drinkLMNT.com/Clay
Click here for an AI-generated transcript
- Subscribe to The Growth Equation newsletter
- Join The Growth Equation Academy
- If you are enjoying "excellence, actually," do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Olympics are the ultimate laboratory for human performance. So today we're diving into some our favorite moments from the 2026 edition—and the lessons we can take from them. Between the bizarre "penis-gate" ski jumping scandal, Lindsey Vonn's downhill ski, and Ilia "Quad God" Malinin's ice skating performance, there are tough questions to tackle: When does dedication cross into dangerous territory? How does an athlete handle Olympic pressure — or recover from failure on the world stage? And what can we all learn for our own pursuit from these elite athletes?
Get a free LMNT drink mix pack with any purchase: drinkLMNT.com/Clay
Click here for an AI-generated transcript
- Subscribe to The Growth Equation newsletter
- Join The Growth Equation Academy
- If you are enjoying "excellence, actually," do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We're going to go ahead and say that today's episode is more densely packed with wisdom than any episode we've ever released. We are joined by Great Britain's Olympic ice dancer Lilah Fear (@thelilahjoshow), who, along with her partner Lewis Gibson, is currently competing in the Olympic games. You don't need to know anything about the sport to appreciate just how dialed-in Lilah's mental fitness is; nor do you need to be an elite athlete (or any kind of athlete) to find use in the strategies she talks about today: how she manages pre-performance nerves, takes feedback, turns every setback into a challenge, stays present, gets back to work after victory or defeat, and so much more. It's a masterclass on (unsurprisingly) Olympic-level resilience delivered straight to you from one of the world's best.

Connect with Lilah on Instagram: @thelilahjoshow

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If you are enjoying "excellence, actually," do us a huge favor: text your favorite episode to three people so they can enjoy it, too. Thanks!
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