Why Your To-Do List is Toxic: A Wake-Up Call from Mister Productivity aka Mark Struczewski

Episode Transcript
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Dai Manuel (00:08):
Welcome back to the 2% Solution Podcast, where small
changes lead to big impacts.
I'm your host, diamond Well,and today we've got a powerhouse
guest who lives and breathesproductivity Mark Strucheski.
I practiced saying that lastname, by the way, don't ask me
to spell it, but he's also knownas Mr Productivity, and he's

(00:29):
not just any coach.
He's a force of nature when itcomes to helping executives
eliminate distractions,prioritize their tasks, while
also gaining daily clarity tolive their most productive lives
.
With over 1,280 podcastepisodes under his belt and a
mission to help 100 millionexecutives conquer Overwhelm by

(00:50):
2032, mark has seen and prettymuch done it all.
But here's the real talk.
Mark's journey from gettingfired in 2005 to becoming a
solopreneur is not justinspiring.
It's proof that it is possibleto thrive despite the noise and
distractions of modern life.
Today we're going to dive intothe strategies and mindset

(01:10):
shifts that can turn anyone intoa productivity machine and,
trust me, mark isn't afraid tomake some bold statements.
So buckle up, because you're infor an eye-opening conversation
.
Welcome back to the 2% SolutionPodcast.

(01:33):
I'm your host, simon Well, and,as you heard in the intro, I'm
super stoked because it's likefull circle of full circles when
you put two circles together,you got an infinity sign.
I don't know if that meansanything, but hey, we'll find
out after this conversation,because we have Mark here today
and I was on Mark's podcast.
My goodness, I think whatnumber was I, mark?

Mark Struczewski (01:52):
Oh, you know what?
Because you could probably editthis out if you want to.
Let me go back really quicklyto my Mark's looking.

Dai Manuel (02:04):
Let me give you a little highlight on Mark.
I know I said it in the intro,but I'm going to just repeat a
couple of things here.
His expertise is inproductivity coaching.
All right, his podcast iscalled Mr Productivity and,
trust me, he earned the title Mr.
I'd go as far to call him DrProductivity, but I know he's
already trademarked, mr.
Well, keep it with that.
But he's already trademarked,mr.
We'll keep it with that.

(02:25):
But he's just celebrating 1,280episodes in seven years since
its inception.
But he's got a mission to help100 million executives eliminate
distractions by 2032.
And, of course, today he's hereto share a bit of his journey,
but also some amazing hacks,with all of us, and I can tell
you, after almost 1,300conversations with people in
this space, he's got a fewlittle tidbits to add and so

(02:51):
we'll dive into it.
But I had the pleasure of beingon Mark's podcast and I for
those that can't see if I was tohold out how long my hair is
right now, it'd be about thislong ago, inches ago, mark.
What number was I?
Do you remember Mark?
What number was I?
Do you remember?

Episode 513, february 27th 2020.
Dude, that was right before thelockdown, when we had the
pre-interview call for the showand I saw you for the first time
in all those years, I said toyou.
I said you don't die.
Now I know when I shave my headevery morning.

(03:23):
Now I know where the hair goesright to your head.

Dai Manuel (03:27):
Hey, true enough, man.
And hey, listen, I'm going toenjoy my hair while I have it
still so it's, I said to my wifeas I'm going out longer.
I actually it's funny becausenow I just I can see the
thinness now much more prominent.
So I'm doing my best to enjoyit while I got it.
But listen, mark, mark, it's anhonor to have you here and to

(03:47):
talk a bit about productivitybut, more importantly, your
history.
I got to ask you this, wasn't?
I didn't think about asking.
If I'm gonna ask this anyways,what's the biggest thing you've
learned in 1300 episodes later?

a couple lessons.
Number one anyone can do it togive a little context, for in
spring of 2017.
I happened to see a GaryVaynerchuk short and he said
everyone needs to have a podcastbecause the future is voice and
audio.
And I remember thinking tomyself I used to be a radio DJ
because I started a podcast.

(04:21):
So I went to Google and typethose staple words how do we
start our podcast?
And I launched it July 7th 2017.
I can't believe it'll have theseventh birthday this July, and
so I tell people the lessonsI've learned is number one it is
your private radio station.
In other words, nobody has apodcast listening party.

(04:44):
So you are.
We are actually in people's earsand I respect that so much.
It just humbles me that thesepeople who are listening to your
show right now have given ustheir time, because time is such
a valuable commodity that whensomeone listens to your podcast
or watches your video, we havejust got to get the mad respect.

(05:06):
So I've learned that part.
I also learned that life isshort.
I'm 58.
I'll be 59 on June 21st.
I lost my mom to Alzheimer's in2022 and I lost my dad suddenly
in April 2023.
So I'm an orphan now.
And what I tell people is youget one life.
So instead of going on X ormeta or tick tock and spewing

(05:29):
hate, why don't you spreadkindness and love and positivity
?
Because you get one shot atthis thing life.
And you're in the health andwellness space more than I am,
because I believe healthy peopleare productive people, but
people who are positive tend tolive longer than the people are
always angry and who arecurmudgeons.
That's right.

Dai Manuel (05:49):
Oh my gosh and Mark, you're throwing down some goals
here and I love it.
It's landing.
I'm just like, yes, preach, butit comes through experience and
I can just imagine how it'salso just shifted your
perspective on this subject ofproductivity as well, because
it's not just your journey.
You've been sharing otherpeople's journey to what does it

(06:09):
mean to be productive?
What is productivity?
Because I think we all havedifferent ideas what it means,
but I thought, before we diveinto that because I I'd be doing
everyone in the service wedidn't at least talk about the
origin story.
I'm a big comic book fan too,by the way, so the origin
stories, origin stories, alwaysget me excited.
So if we go back to 2005, yougot fired, man, you got fired

(06:30):
from a career and but that waswhat some people would consider
a really well, a bummer of a day, a little bit, no, no bummer.
But I'm going to completelyturn things around and do
something I've always wanted todo, and we're now moving forward
beyond the 2017 to startingyour podcast.
That is quite the time now, man.

(06:51):
We're going on almost 20 years.
So what?
What is it that happened withthat career and how did it set
you in motion to be MrProductivity?

Here's the funny thing I've been asked that
a lot on podcasts, podcasts.
I don't ask my own self thatquestion but I've been thinking
about it a lot because, yes, itwas a pivotal point getting
fired in july 2005, but then,the more I thought about it, I
have to go back to my childhood.
I was born in 1965, so I wasraised in the late 60s and in

(07:22):
the 70s my parents were astickler, for chores had to be
done at a certain time a certainway, whether setting the table,
clearing the table.
I was raised before there'sdishwashers, and that would be
me the dishwasher, thenon-electric dishwasher, and so
I think I have to give my creditto my late parents because they
raised me.
We didn't know what MrProductivity was, or I was going
to grow up to be late parentsbecause they raised me, we

(07:44):
didn't know what Mr Productivitywas, or I was going to grow up
to be Mr Productivity, but myparents gave me the foundation,
but I didn't recognize thatuntil I was fired in July 2005.
And I remember talking to mywife and I'm like, okay, should
I give this solopreneurshipthing a go or go get another air
quotes, real job.
And we agreed, okay, let's tryit for two months.

(08:07):
Going on what?
18 years, 19 years, whatever itis now I, just when I was in
college and high school I didnot like to speak to empty rooms
.
Now I have a podcast, I'm onvideo all the time.
I'm a speaker.
I don't know what happened, butI remember that after I was
fired, I went into wedding andportrait photography.

(08:28):
I thought that was going to beit.
That failed, but the one thingthat came out of it was my love
for speaking.
I don't know where it came from, it just came, and so I went to
a lady who was in her Biblestudy class and she was a
speaker.
I'm like, hey, I'm a speakerand go to Toastmasters, go to

(08:49):
the National SpeakersAssociation, and I got really
fired up and wired up about it.
But the one thing about it ismy photography business failed.
So what am I going to talkabout?
That's when I invested in myfirst coach and he saw something
in me that I never evenimagined and I didn't mean sorry

(09:09):
yes, sir, that was me sorry.

Dai Manuel (09:13):
Go ahead, I sneezed, sorry.
Oh okay, do I need to pause foryour editor?
No, I don't care, keep that.
That in guys.

Ron Reel, I was wondering why you did that.
I'm like, okay, is he dapping,who knows?
So I was having a call with mycoach and I was,
uncharacteristically, I identifyas Tigger and I was having an
Eeyore day and he goes what'sgoing on?
And I'm like I'm really excitedabout speaking but I don't know

(09:46):
what I should speak on.
He goes why don't you talkabout productivity?
And I remember saying to him,as clear as it was, like
yesterday, I'm like where didthat come from?
Why would you say that?
He goes.
I know a lot of people.
You are naturally gifted atbeing productive.
You should share that gift withthe world.

Dai Manuel (10:00):
And the rest, as they say, is history yeah, oh my
gosh, but okay, where did it gofrom there?
It's one thing to have awonderful, and I think this is a
beautiful thing.
That's why everybody needscoaches, even coaches and
coaches, right like it's, and wedon't need to dive into that.
But I'm sure it's going to comeup more as we start talking
about rituals and the importanceof rituals, and especially when

(10:23):
it comes to being productiveand getting stuff done right.
Had a little bit of a pausethere on the s, but you know
what I was going to say anyways,but mark like to have just that
one blink of a moment in aconversation and then to go and
now be 18 years deep in it.
There must've been something tothat.

(10:43):
When he brought that spark up,like that ignited more than just
an idea.
What was it about that Like?
How did it start?
Cause I can imagine it'smorphed into so many different
ways in in in almost two decades, but what did it look like at
the beginning?
Because I was thinking back.
It's like mid two thousands.
I'm like what was it really outback then?
I guess it was getting thingsdone, david allen, what else was

(11:06):
there?
I don't even know what the hellso was, even speaking to that
productivity side of things, I Iimagine you must have also
noticed there's a huge landscape.
That's just whatever you wantto paint, right remember I was
fired in 2005.

I didn't really find my way until about
2011.
That's when I hung my shingleoff.
But when he first told me aboutproductivity, the first thing
after I said, where'd they comefrom?
Self-doubt like who's going tolisten to me.
I mean, I'm just, who am I?
And I think everybody.
If they're honest, they getreally excited and then all of a

(11:41):
sudden, the devil goes who areyou?
Who are you to talk about thistopic?
Who are you kidding?
So I fought that for five, six,seven years.
Man, I didn't like time it howlong it took me, but it was a
long time.
And the more I talked tosolopreneurs and entrepreneurs,
a lot of them said oh yeah, Ideal with that.
Today, celine dion is stillfreaking paranoid to go out on

(12:05):
stage and look at how successfulhe is.
She is.
So if people go on, I'm not.
I don't suffer from that.
Yeah, you probably do, becauseit's.
You're a human being.
And if you go I've always beenin health and wellness.
I've always been in stocktrading.
I've always been a real estatenever had an issue.
I would say there's a word forit and that's like a liar,
because we're human.
We're human because you go inand start.

(12:27):
Things start going great andthen something bad happens, like
run row, and then you have topivot.
But I think that's what makeslife so interesting is, every
day is not the same.
I couldn't imagine working backin the 50s and 60s and all you
had to do all day for nine, tenhours just put rivets on a wheel
or a car.
So that would drive me crazy.

(12:48):
I like the variety of life.

Dai Manuel (12:51):
And I think that's the interesting part about
entrepreneurship.
I find those that are attractedto entrepreneurship are usually
, for the most part, quitecreative, like they strive for
creativity, but they find thatexpression through building
business and businesses andserving a client and also
solving a problem.
So what was the big problemthat you've noticed with this

(13:13):
term productivity.

What does it mean to?

Dai Manuel (13:14):
be productive.
Maybe we should start there andthen talk about the
misconceptions that you mustencounter or have encountered
that relates to productivity,and so if we could start there,
that might be a great place.

For me, productivity is doing the right
things at the right time.
A lot of people get the orderswrong.
Item number 10 needs to be done, but it doesn't need to be done
until items number one throughnine get done.
But we're like I like doingitem 10.
So I'm going to put that first,and then what you have is one
through nine get done, but we'relike blank doing item 10.
So I'm going to put that first,and then what you have is one
through nine get delayed.

(13:48):
And now your clients or yourboss is like, hey, where's that
project?
Oh, yeah, I'm working on thisproject, and they're like, oh,
wait, a minute, that's number 10.
So I think a lot of it comesdown to knowing when to do the
right things.
Now I teach something we canget into just a little bit later
.
I'm called the O'Day methodbecause it frees people up, and

(14:13):
so I want people to do.
Free people up to give you moretime to work within your genius
.
We all do stuff that we don'twant to do.
Everybody does stuff they don'twant to do.
It's part of life.
The thing is, you want toreduce that stuff so you can
work on the stuff you reallylove to do.

Dai Manuel (14:32):
I think it's so simple and concept right, but we
know we struggle with this andat least I'll admit it, I have
struggled with being productiveat periods of my life and your
way that the example you justpainted I was like, oh geez
smart.
Talking to me, it's likebecause it's true, there's other

(14:54):
things in the day to day,especially when it comes to
certain projects or campaigns,and there's steps that I really
love doing and then there'ssteps I don't love doing, and I
love that you mentioned thisidea of working in our genius
can you expand on that, becauseI think this is really important
when it comes to beingproductive, but also as
entrepreneurs.
I think we get stuck doing a lotof things we're not very good
at but we believe we should bedoing, and I'll tell you that

(15:18):
energy that gets sucked anddrained into that stuff doesn't
leave much left to do the thingsthat we actually like doing
well so please go ahead before Iaddress that I want to.

I want to tell an inside secret to the
listeners.
Please host, have guests on theshow for themselves.
Be honest.
It's like a coaching call fordie and then we just let the the
rest of the world listen.
Let's be honest, right?
That's why we have the guestswe do.

Dai Manuel (15:45):
It is man Totally.
Okay so I was stoked to haveyou on the show man.
I was like I know I'm good atgetting stuff done when I want
to, but there's just those timeswhere I'm like gosh.

I just don't want to do this right now.

Dai Manuel (16:01):
So I'll go do this thing because I really like
doing those things.
But then it's the coming backto do the other things that I
told myself I'll come back tothat, but then it's like huh,
forgot about that, huh.
So, mark, you're speaking to me, but I know that everyone
that's in the audience is alsolistening, just nodding their
head right now.

So let's talk about the zone of genius.
Everybody has got something.
They're really good at that.
When they do it, it doesn'teven feel like work.
One of my favorite quotes isfrom Kathy Lee Gifford.
She says if you have a pulse,you have a purpose.
So if you're on this planet,you're listening to this podcast
.
There's a reason why, and Iteach something called the Oday

(16:38):
Framework, which all it standsfor is outsource, delegate,
automate and eliminate.
So what I encourage people todo over several days and I don't
like to give an exact number ofdays because everyone's
different you just carry alittle notebook with you and you
write down everything you do.
Now, you're not going to captureeverything, but try to capture
as much as you can.
Then what you do is you letthat list to the side After you

(16:59):
complete the list for about aday.
Then you gift yourself 90minutes.
Then you gift yourself 90minutes.
Then you go through that listfour times.
Not don't try to do a shortcut,it doesn't work.
You go through one line item,go okay, can this be outsourced?
Put an O next to it.
Then you go to the next one andthe third one, and so on.
Then you go back and do thedelegation Now delegation

(17:19):
outsource a kind of gray in yoursolopreneur it.
You know a gray area.
You do it for delegate.
Then you do it automated.
Now we live in 2024, you canautomate a ton of stuff and my
final letter is e, how much?
How many things are you andyour listeners doing that?
You're just doing them becauseyou've always done them and you

(17:39):
don't know why.
So once you identify all thesethings off your list, then what
you do is you actually outsource, delegate, automate, and then
you stop doing the eliminationstuff.
You're going to free up anywork from 30 to 50 on your
calendar.
Now this is where it getsreally important.
Do not fill other stuff thatcould be outsourced or delegated

(18:02):
, automated, eliminated on yourcalendar, because this extra
space is going to give youbreathing room to work in your
genius.
So I hate spreadsheets.
I can do really simplespreadsheets, but if I want a
complicated spreadsheet I'll sayhey, honey, not you die.
I want to be very clear to thelistener I would tell my wife,
with my business partner, canyou create a spreadsheet for me?

(18:23):
I hate spreadsheets, but thereare people who love them.
It's not my zone of genius, soI think people need to outsource
, delegate, automate, eliminatethe stuff that's not in their
zone of genius.
Maybe it needs to be done, butmaybe not by you and it frees
you up to do the stuff you getexcited about and stuff that
you're really good at.

Dai Manuel (18:44):
The great answer and also great strategy.
I love that O'Day method.
I'm a big fan of acronyms.
Thank you, because, again, mypleasure Productivity hack helps
us remember things.
And yes, now, mark, I knowyou've been working in this
space a long time, but let's behonest, sometimes to execute on

(19:04):
a new strategy requires changeand as entrepreneurs, I think we
get stuck especiallysolopreneurs, stuck in the
day-to-day, right In thetrenches, and it's really easy
to feel like we're strugglingwith the juggle right Struggle
with the juggle of life, butalso business and all the the
other little demands that areappalling us.
What are some words ofencouragement or advice that

(19:30):
maybe you've picked up over thelast couple of decades to help
people with this, to help withdealing with that overwhelm,
that stress, because again it'sjust oh gosh, another thing I
got to put on my plate and on mylist oh gosh, woe is me.
And I'm just curious because Ican only see this change
happening if we actually takethe time to create the space to
do exactly what you talked about.
But I guess it's overcomingthat first part right, that

(19:52):
first hurdle, and I'd love tohear your thoughts on that.

Yeah, one of my biggest productivity tips
this day and age is to takebreaks.
We are constantly on the go.
We're like the Tasmanian devilwe're just go, and the problem
is your body can only do so muchevery day.
Now, before we recorded thispodcast, I told you I came in

(20:17):
here.
I was sweating because I wentout and got 45 minutes of sun in
the Texas heat.
I didn't allow myself enoughtime to cool down.
I'm still sweating on the showtoday, but it's important that
you don't work all the time.
Even if you're in your zone ofgenius, even if you absolutely
love what you're doing, you needto take a break.
What I call micro breaks meansyou get away from your

(20:39):
technology.
You don't go from your MacBookto your iPhone.
You go outside and maybe youtake a walk around your block,
or maybe you go outside, takeyour shoes and socks off and let
your round or also known asearthling get some sun.
I think we need to take a breakwhenever we start beginning to
feel overwhelmed, and I alsothink we also need to move a lot

(21:02):
.
So one of the things I do, evenif I'm on a training call now.
I'm not going to do it now,although I have my standing desk
right now so I keep movingaround.
If I'm on a training call andI'm not on on screen, you'll see
me like walking back and forth,because we were not created to
sit behind our computers foreight, nine, 10, 12, 14 hours a
day.
We are created to move.

(21:22):
That's why we have two legs.
Okay, I always tell peopleJesus didn't take an Uber.
Okay, walked everywhere.
I'm afraid if we don't, if wekeep sitting behind our
computers and on our phones,that maybe someday evolution
will take away our legs Notgoing to happen.
But I'm just saying because weare not prioritizing our health.
I'm 58.
I plan on running on my 110thbirthday.

(21:48):
I can't do that if I don't takecare of myself.
So I tell people it soundscounterintuitive, but if you
want to be productive, take careof your health, which is right
up your alley.

Dai Manuel (21:57):
I'm happy you said that, gosh man, it's.
You know where I want to gowith this conversation, because,
of course, I want to bring thehealth in, because I also know
in 2017, that's where you made acommitment to start running yes
and I'm just really.
I wanted to know what was thatexperience like for you,
noticeably as someone that wasalready very productive and
already embracing certain habitsand rituals around being

(22:19):
productive because consistencyis a big, important part of
productive right, but how did itchange for you just your own
productivity, your own businessand your own day-to-day
personally and professionally,when you started to create that
daily habit of running?

I just I'd love to hear that but I first
started, yeah, I didn't know I'dbe running 2,453 days in a row,
as of today.

Dai Manuel (22:45):
Had no idea.

Mark Struczewsk (22:46):
Congratulations .
We had a hurricane here back in2017, hurricane Harvey, yeah
and for three days we couldn'tleave our house and I happened
to read an article onrunnersworldcom that said what I
learned from running one mile aday for 250 days in a row.
I'm like I could do that onemile and all of a sudden I got
10 days.
I'm like I could do that it'sone mile, and all of a sudden I
got 10 days.
I'm like, oh, this is.
I started feeling differentwhen I ran.

(23:07):
I'm like, because there'ssomething about you get the
blood flowing, you feel reallygreat.
And then 10 days became 100,became 1,000.
And now, if I can't run firstthing in the morning, this is
how obsessed I am with runningfirst thing in the morning.
With running first thing in themorning If it's thundering and
lightning outside, or when wehad a freak snowstorm in Houston
back in February of 21, whereit's 15 degrees outside

(23:30):
Fahrenheit, not Celsius everyday I ran in my house.
Even on the one day, we had nopower.
All day I actually carried aflashlight and ran, because
running first thing gets meready for the day.
I don't run later because itwakes me up.
You get that blood flowing, youpurge your body, the cortisol
makes a big difference.

(23:50):
I can't imagine not running.
And now my wife and I we'regoing to take a road trip in
August and I told her I'm like,okay, we're going to be in this
city on a road trip, okay, I gotto find, we got to find a hotel
where I can run around the parkand I'm not going to run at the
end of the day.
I run first thing in the morningand I make no excuses.
I ran the day my mother died.
I ran the day my father died.

(24:11):
Some people go.
That's disrespectful.
I'm like, all due respect,they're gone, so my parents
wouldn't mind.
So I just think that for me ithelps me be more productive
because it gives me energy.
Like I said earlier, healthypeople are productive people and
you need to take care ofyourself and if you're not
taking care of yourself now, I'msure Di would back me up on

(24:34):
this.
Start small, don't try to movethe world.
What is one small hack you cando today that's going to start
moving that needle towards youbeing more healthy?
Thank you, hence.

Dai Manuel (24:43):
The 2% being more healthy.
Thank you.
Hence the 2% solution everybody.
30 minutes, that's it.
You take 30 minutes a day, 2%of your 24 hours.
It's amazing what you can do,even if you just prioritize a
little bit of movement withpurpose.
And what I mean by that isyou're moving your body with the
intention of giving yourselfsomething to improve your body.
Right, it's giving yourself alittle bit of strain, but not

(25:05):
pain, okay.
So there is a fine differencebetween those two things, and I
so thank you for sharing that,because I know I'm ever and
people have heard me say this,like I'm only ever one workout
away from feeling better than Iam before the workout.
And I can imagine for you.
It's that early morninginjection of activity.
It gets the blood flowing, getsthe oxygen to the brain.

(25:26):
You're right, it helps us withthat cortisol regulation as well
.
It's like there's so many boxesthat get ticked and yet you
would think that more peoplewould just be into this, but
it's not the case.

Why do you think that is?

Dai Manuel (25:39):
What do you think the reason is for that, Mark?

I used to think it was laziness, but now I
think it's a lack of priorities.
So I'm in bed by 8.30 everynight and I'm up between 4.30
and 5.
So I get up, I run the TimFerriss 30-30-30 protocol, which
is 30 grams of protein within30 minutes and then 30 minutes
of moderate exercise every day.
And when people tell me, oh, Ican't do this, I can't do that

(26:05):
because of that, all right, canwe stop with the excuse making
and excuse making?
Now I'm an empty nester.
I have my wife and my our twodogs, but if you have six kids,
you can create a morning routinethat's going to start your day
off right and healthy.
You may have to go to bed early, like when you put the kids to
bed.

(26:25):
Maybe when you put the kids tobed, you don't stay up for
another four hours.
Maybe you go to bed when theygo to bed, so you can get up
early.
I don't like people makingexcuses, because in any
situation there's a way that youcan figure out how it works for
you.
But I got to believe someonelike you.
Excuses are never going to makeyou healthy.
You have to figure out a waywhere you can be healthy.

(26:48):
Maybe you take a walk at workMaybe, like I got out, my wife
bought me a rebounder for ouranniversary and I got the
rebounder right behind our couch.
So when I'm watching myEuropean football or watching TV
, I'm bouncing for 15, 20minutes, and so don't make
excuses.
There is no way you're going tolive a long time and live
healthy if you're making excuses.
Am I not right?
You're really right.

Dai Manuel (27:08):
Very right, and people have heard me say if you
use an excuse more than once,it's now just really a habit.
Yep, stop 100%.

There you go.
What's interesting is you tellyour audience the same thing and
it may resonate with a couplepeople, because I said it.
It's like when people come onmy show, oh, totally and they
say the same thing I've beensaying, but they heard it from
someone else, so maybe someoneout there's going.
I've been hearing die say thisover and over again.
All right, mr productivity saidit.

Dai Manuel (27:39):
I guess I really have my attention now, and we're
not alone in these statements,mark, that's the one cool part
when you start to meet peoplethat are doing just living very
full lives that's the way I liketo put it and it's not just
sitting in front of the couch orconsuming a lot of content,
like we're out there doing stuffright, and we also have our

(27:59):
downtime Like I still like toNetflix and chill, don't get me
wrong Like I got my favoriteseries.
Our downtime, like I still liketo netflix and chill, don't get
me wrong like I got my favoriteseries.
I binge, like we all do that,and but it's learning how to
offset that with some healthierhabits as well.
But for you, I know, it'sreally important to bookend the
day.
You start the day a certain way,but you also end the day, and I
find that we don't talk aboutthe ending of a day, correct,

(28:22):
like we just often say, yeah,just go, just go to bed, go to
sleep, like we'll hear sometimes, sleep hygiene or sleep rituals
, blah, blah, blah.
But it doesn't get the sameamount of play that morning
rituals get, and so could youbriefly just talk a little bit
about morning ritual.
But, more importantly, I'd lovefor you to talk about the
ending of the day, because Iknow if you don't end up, it
doesn't set you up for startingthe next day.

(28:42):
Very well, I'd love to hearyour thoughts on this Cause.
I know you really speak to this.

I think a bedtime routine is way more
important than a morning routine, because if your bedtime
routine is a big poop emoji, themorning routine doesn't matter.
So let me tell people the waymy routine works.
And again, what I just justsaid.
You can take this, tweak it foryour particular situation, diane
, I don't want to hear anyexcuses, okay?

(29:10):
So I generally go screens offaround 7 30 and I go in my room
and I will journal in my printjournal and then I'll read a
book on my kindle until about 830 go 5.30, which is three hours
before bedtime.
I stop eating Now for thelongest time.
I never went without food.
When I was a kid I always hadthis fear that I couldn't sleep

(29:33):
unless I had a full stomach.
Then I educated myself andrealized if you go to bed full,
your body is not going to sleepbecause it's trying to digest
the food.
And when I learned that, whoa,so I cut my food off.
Three hours for bed, one hourfor bed, no more electronics.
Sometimes I cheat, I'll behonest with you.
Sometimes I cheat.
And then I go to bed and I keepour room nice and cold.

(29:55):
We keep it house about 65, 66degrees Fahrenheit and I got to
have air moving.
I've always had air moving.
So I've got a couple fans in myroom, a ceiling fan, another
fan.
I just got to have air moving.
I can't have it cool and justno air moving.
It just drives me crazy, and Igenerally sleep pretty good, and
first thing I do when I wake upI use the restroom and then I

(30:15):
shave my head every day and nowI know where my hair goes, yes.
And then what I do is I havewhat I've been doing right now
is because it's easier I havetwo muscle milks, which is 50
grams of protein.
Then I do a single pushup, onepushup.
It's a proper pushup, it's notone of these lazy ones, it's a
proper pushup.
And then I read a book calledBuilt to Move by Kelly and

(30:38):
Juliet Starlet.
It's called Built to Move.

Dai Manuel (30:42):
I just said that twice, but that way.
No, it's great.
Kelly and Julian are coming onthe podcast, so they'll be
excellent.

Yeah, I know them for a long time.

Dai Manuel (30:47):
It's funny they actually wrote the endorsement
for my book when I publishedeight years ago.

It's funny.

Dai Manuel (30:53):
Good people.

Good people.

Dai Manuel (30:54):
Yeah.

So one of the things in the book they talk
about that really resonated withme is squatting.
So people don't squat, and so I.
I read that I want to startsquatting.
So the first day I did it, mybrain, my body goes oh, that's
cool, no problem.
Second day, my body's likegoing whoa, we're gonna do this
every day now and in about two,three weeks my hip flexors are

(31:17):
going oh, my knees are going out.
But now I'm over 100 days.
I could could do a five,six-minute squat, and the
problem is because people are sosedentary, let's die.
If you don't squat, you havetrouble getting up.
Can you imagine you're down onthe floor for whatever reason
and your house catches on fireand you can't get up and now
you're going to be burned todeath?
So I believe it's important toknow how to squat and I can't

(31:42):
believe I could squat five, sixminutes no pain whatsoever.
But that first couple weightswas tough.
So after I do that, then Igotta wait for the first light
to come out, for it to be safeto run outside, and then I will
do two to three miles.
Come home, take a cold shower,then I'm out with my day it's a

(32:03):
great way to start the day.

Dai Manuel (32:05):
Yeah, I love it.
I think it's just beautiful,like it's.
And do you eat when, afteryou've done all the morning
ritual?
Do you have cause?
You talked about the musclemilk, the two for 50 grams, but
you actually eat another meallater on.
Or do you go until noon, or itdepends if I'm hungry or not.

I try to go.
My wife and I do.
We flip lunch and dinner so Ilike my heavy meal at lunch
instead of late, late in the dayand it's worked out pretty good
.
So if we're gonna have steak,we'll be cooking steak out in
the grill.
People go after lunch.
I'm like, yeah, I don't like tohave a heavy meal late in the
day.
It doesn't sit well with me,but sometimes I'll have some
cashews or like strawberries arein season now, or some apples,

(32:47):
something like that.
So I'm trying to eat more wholefoods and it's like told my
wife, a whole cookie is notwhole food, right, and she's
like, no, that's not a wholefood.
A whole gallon of ice cream isnot whole food, but I do have.
I do fall by the wayside, likeI like my Klondike ice cream
bars, but I'm trying to eatbetter.
Like I had McDonald's for lunchtoday but I only had nuggets

(33:08):
and fries.
But I'm not perfect and I'msure you will not tell us that
hey, I always eat perfect allthe time.
But I think it's okay if youhave it once in a while, but
when you're saying every once ina while is every time you eat,
that's not every once in a while.
But when you're saying everyonce in a while is every time
you eat, that's not every oncein a while.
And so for me, I try not tosnack, but if I'm going to snack
, I try to eat something likecashews or something like that.

(33:30):
I'm really big on organic foodsbecause I had a friend of mine
who's a doctor and she developedsome medical issue and then she
got a whole bunch of tests andfound out that she had a toxic
buildup in her and then, once hestarted eating organic, she
started feeling better.
So I go out and I make sure mydeodorant is not toxic and all

(33:51):
those things people don't thinkabout.
Again, small hinges smallhinges shut big doors.
And if you want to startgetting healthy, number one,
keep listening to Dye's podcast.
And number two, keep listeningto Dye's podcast.
And number two, educateyourself.
Like I'm reading Dr PeterAtiyah's book.

Dai Manuel (34:10):
Outlook.
I'm reading it again, but it'simportant to educate yourself.

You can't just rely on Dye, as awesome as he
is.
You've got to educate yourself.
And it's your health.
And I remember, before myfather passed away, I'd go visit
him.
He was in Florida and I'm inTexas and he had all these pills
he's taken.
I'm like dad, what's up withall these pills?
He goes oh doctor told me Ishould take it.
I'm like dad, it's yourresponsibility because it's your

(34:34):
health, it's your life, and Icould never get him to
understand that he has a rightto say hey, why am I taking this
?
And I said you don't get theanswer.
You understand, ask again andagain.
So, even though you have adoctor, even though you have
died, it's still yourresponsibility to go.
You know what I'm going tofigure out.

(34:55):
Should I be eating all thisstuff?
What should I eat?
What's?

Dai Manuel (34:57):
something.

I should start eating or something.
But again it goes back toexcuses.
Stop making excuses for why youdon't feel good, you can't
sleep, you can't get up in themorning, you have no energy, you
can't walk upstairs.
If you've got to go up oneflight of stairs, don't take the
elevator, take the stairs.
This is how lazy we're gettingpeople.
I've known there'll be.
I remember it was someplace andit was like one flight of

(35:19):
stairs, the stairs.
And I start walking the stairsand they go.
What are you doing?
Taking the stairs?
The elevator is right here.
I'm like it's one flight.

Dai Manuel (35:31):
What are you doing?
It's one flight, but it's smallthings, right?
It's those small things that wejust, unless we intentionally
choose to do the small thingswe'll constantly I let people
off the hook a little bit, andwhat I mean by that is I'm not
the only one that says this, butit is in our dna, isn't it?
Mark like we're, we have beenengineered to be as lazy as

(35:53):
possible get as much done withas little energy expanded as
possible.
That is really this in the room,it's in our dna, it quite
literally is, and yet we'retrying to work and live beyond
that and especially this ideaabout being productive.
It's not a matter of trying todo more, but we are trying to
produce more, but maybe do it ina much smarter, more effective

(36:15):
and efficient way, and that'swhy I love your O'Dea method,
because that really highlightsthat in a great way.
And I guess what I'm thinkinghere, mark, is that we've talked
about a number of things thatrelates to this idea of being
more productive.
What are the misconceptions thatyou've seen working in this
space for 20 years?
Because I got to say there's alot of people that do speak to

(36:39):
this idea about being productive, but being and feeling
productive are very different.
I gotta say there's days whereI'm like, oh, wow, I feel really
like I did a lot, got a lot ofthings done, but I might have
done a lot of things that reallyweren't important.
You know what I mean, because Ilike the dopamine hit I get

(37:00):
when I check that off my listright, like I'm like, oh yeah,
another thing off my list, great, great.
But Like I'm like oh yeah,another thing off my list, great
, great.
But meanwhile I'm like therewas two things that I really
needed to get done today and Ididn't.
And then I got this feeling ofguilt and shame and like, oh
gosh, the more I'll do it, themore I'll do it.
And then I'm like God.
I hear people say tomorrow allthe time, and pretty soon I'm
going to poke my hand in mypocket and I'll pull them out

(37:22):
and all I got are these emptyyesterdays.
Anyways, what are your thoughts?
How can you save me and sorry,I meant the audience that needs
help with this how?

are you going to help them?
First of all, I would tellpeople there's no one answer for
everyone.
So one of the joys I love aboutbeing a productivity coach is
everyone's different, which Ithink makes my job really
exciting for me.
Anyways, what I encouragepeople we talked about it
several times on the show whatis one thing you can do today If

(37:53):
you are able to walk outside?
If you can unless I know, youlive up in Canada, right?
Sometimes it gets cold up there, but the coldest I ever
grounded, by the way 27 degreesfahrenheit.
People thought I was crazy.
I did.
I did some uh stories on this.
I went on my bare feet, Icovered them up with blankets, I
was wearing on my winter coatand stuff like that, because it

(38:15):
does get chilly sometimes inhouston.
But no excuses, I do groundevery day.
So take care of your health.
If you do not have the energy,you are not going to be
productive.
Okay.
And if you pull an all-nighter,you know what that's going to
do your energy next day.
You know what that's going todo with your productivity the
next day.

(38:35):
You've got to prioritize yourhealth, and I'm not telling you
to do what some of my clients do, though.
I'm going to go get some booksfrom Amazon and I'm going to
read it and I'm going to listento the podcast.
No, you need to.
We gave you enough on the showtoday.
We gave you enough on the showtoday that you can pick one
thing, one thing and start doingit I don't want you to think

(38:57):
about.
Oh, let me write down the ideas, let me relisten to podcasts.
That's called procrastination.
You need to start doing if youwant to live to age a hundred.
You got to start today.
I don't care if you're 20, 40,60, 80, it doesn't matter.
I know people and you probablyknow as well Di people who are
in their eighties, who arehealthier than people in their
thirties.

(39:17):
Oh, absolutely yeah, and I findthat very sad, me too.

Dai Manuel (39:22):
I really do.
It's amazing, but some of thestats that are out there right
now just based on where thingsare trending.
The funny thing is the fitnessindustry, the health industry,
the health food industry they'venever been as profitable or as
large volume wise, and yet, asthose are growing, we have more
healthy options, more healthychoices, more healthy mentorship

(39:43):
and coaching and some moreresources.
And yet obesity, yep and a lotof the chronic ailments that are
attached with that condition ofunhealth are all on the rise as
well.

It's just like what the hell?

Dai Manuel (39:55):
is going on here, right, and, but it is.
It's frustrating.
I mean being a healthprofessional and 30 years
thinking that gosh, I'm tryingto make you know a dent in this
issue.
And there's days where I justfeel like gosh, what's the point
?
Like really, and I'm just beinghonest.
There's those mornings I wakeup where I'm like do I have the
energy to keep doing this, keepsaying the same damn message,

(40:16):
where I don't feel like it'sreally making a difference.

Yeah, no, you're right.
I, you know, I had a clientonce who was a CPA and her life
changed as a result of mycoaching.
And so her friends would say,oh my gosh, you're so productive
, you have so much more energy,you have a light now.
And how did you do that?
I went to this guy, mrProductivity, and they're all

(40:40):
excited about it, until she toldthem that she paid me and
they're like, oh, oh.
And then, of course, this isthe way her mind was she'd go
wait a minute, wait, stop.
I know that you go out to dinnerand movie every friday and
saturday.
I know you go to starbucksevery day in the way to work and

(41:02):
you don't have money to get thetraining I got to be more
productive.
So it comes back to I think it.
Remember I said it wasn'tlaziness, it's priorities.
People.
They look at you and look at Iwant that.
Oh, I no, I don't want to.
I'm going to go to Domino's orI'm going to McDonald's, because
it's not important to them,it's not important to them until

(41:23):
it becomes not important tothem, until it becomes a
priority for you.
Like I didn't take care of myhealth until my mom was
diagnosed with Alzheimer's in2018.
She lost her battle in 2022.
I didn't take care of my healthas much.
I'm going to live forever.
I'm a guy, I'm active, but thatjolted me.
I'm like whoa.
It caused me to stop and gohold on a second.

(41:45):
Maybe I should be living life alittle bit differently.
And I actually talked to herdoctor and I made some health
decisions.
Don't let that happen to you.
Listener.
Make changes now.
The good news is you can go outand ground on your bare feet.
You don't need a prescription,don't need to go see your doctor
.
Just don't stand on a fire antmound.
If you're in the South, like weare, don't go out in thunder

(42:05):
and lightning.
But there's simple things youcan do.
Oh, it's raining outside, walkaround your house, walk around
your apartment.
Don't I just excuses, drive mecrazy.
I know excuses drive you crazyor not.
When people say, oh, it's coldout, walk in your house.
Put.
There's things you can do.
People have been going outsidewhen it's cold for years.
Why do you think you'redifferent?

Dai Manuel (42:25):
You're right and it's that voice of reason and I
do know that also, you're veryactive on social and you share
your own experiences, the thingsthat you do, and I think that's
a wonderful way to mentorpeople.
Right, it's okay, you don'thave to do what I say.
Why don't you just do what I do?
Just try it.
And that's the wonderful thingabout this show is that I really

(42:45):
try to instill that invitationto try to do the things that
these amazing experts likeyourself are sharing.
And the funny thing is, successclearly has consistent friends
bedfellows, as I would say,because I had Dave Albin on not
too long ago.
I think Dave's been.
Has Dave been on your show,dave Albin?

(43:06):
If he hasn't, I got tointroduce you to Mark Cause you
guys can get it off.
He's 70 years old.
The last 30 years he's beenrunning all the firewalk events
for Tony Robbins, but also allthe other global events and like
NASA, google and he basicallybrings the full fire production
team and then to host them,takes them through that
experience and but he has amorning ritual.

(43:27):
He's done for 20 some odd years.

Wow.

Dai Manuel (43:30):
And four of the things that you shared are the
exact four of his five thingsthat he does Grounding and the
one thing that he does that he'svery religious about is breath
work.
He does a breath work ritual aswell in the morning, but other
than that it was identical toyour morning ritual.

And I thought breathing's overrated.

Dai Manuel (43:48):
I'm like hey, listen , I'm 47.
I think I'm an expert atbreathing by now.
Come on, let's be honest.
No, I'm being a littlefacetious, but there is
something to that.
And proper breath techniquethere's something to it, but
that's another episode entirely.
But I was bringing this upbecause he also mentions the
3-2-1 method, which is what youreferred to.

(44:09):
At the end of the day, threehours before bed, no food.
Two hours before bed, no drink.
One hour before bed,electronics.
And so this three, two, one isalso something that he's been
living by.
And to hear you say it again,I'm like okay, maybe I should
look into this.
Like I I not only share this,because I've been contemplating
myself, but now, hearing it fromyou as well, I'm like you know
what?
I should really try that,because that's the one thing

(44:30):
I've not been consistent with.
I do eat right up to before bedusing like a smoothie and stuff
, and I do know that my sleeppatterns are not consistent
because of such and anyways.
I just want to say thank you forthe reminder today.

And I got to ask you about your coaching?

Dai Manuel (44:46):
Okay, Cause I imagine like in 20 years you've
had some pretty interestingstories on coaching.
What's been the mostinteresting person that you've
had to work with and how didyour coaching support them?

The most interesting the way you phrased
that, because the mostinteresting question I had the
most, I'm sorry, the mostinteresting client I ever had.
We.
He started with me before covidand then worked through me the
beginning of covid and we wentfrom productivity to covid and
what we should do to protectourselves.

(45:17):
And I'm telling my wife I'mlike why are we talking about
COVID?
I'm a productivity guy and whenhe said he didn't want to re-up
, I'm like hopefully this is apodcast, but it was so weird
because I'm like we were nottalking about how we can be
productive during COVID.
We're talking about should weleave the windows open?

(45:37):
Should we get vaccinated?
I'm like this is the what arewe doing right now?
And that was the strangest thingI always never, no one's ever
asked that question the way youasked it before.
But it was very weird.
But my favorite client I havetwo favorite clients.
One was the lady I told youabout before.
Like CPA completely changedyour life.
The other one is my cousin, whoactually is a full pay client.

(46:01):
See, I believe that if youbelieve what you do, if you're
really good what you do, youshouldn't give a discount to
your family.
If they respect you, theyshouldn't go.
You know what?
Die Coach me for free.
No, my cousin gave me hiscredit card and I charged him
full fee.
He didn't even ask for adiscount.
So when I go to someone else Idon't say, hey, can you send me

(46:21):
your book?
Now, you did send me your bookas a courtesy for being on my
show, but I didn't ask for it.
It was completely optional andI think if you make it a gift,
it's one thing, but too manypeople are wanting discounts.
They want a shortcut.
Remember the old day method.
Someone's going to hear that onthis show and they're going to
go through.
I'm not going to go through afour.

(46:41):
They're going to go to thefirst thing and go.
Okay, is this an O, a, d and Aand E?
I can tell you it doesn't work.
You need to go through it fourtimes.
It's just like the point.
I didn't understand this.
A'm a loser.

(47:02):
That's not the point of it.
The point is it's that, yes,there's things I can do outside
my comfort zone to do it.
I didn't understand that.
I'm like I'm scared of fire.
That's not the point.
And I think a lot of people,when it comes down to it,
they're making excuses and itcomes down to lack of priorities
.
They really don't want to gethealthy, they really don't want

(47:23):
to be productive.
Now, I've had we've all hadgood clients.
We've all had clients that say,hey, can you just stay on
Because I love you so much?
But those are I don't want togive you a long-winded answer
Too late but those are I don'twant to give you a long-winded
answer too late but those areclients that really brought me
to my, came to my mind.

Dai Manuel (47:42):
I love hearing those stories, though, because I am
of the same mind.
I do know that we tend to paybetter attention to the things
that we pay for.
We just tend to treat it moreseriously, and as someone that
gives away a lot of free stuff,I know that it's interesting,
but those that pay tend to getbetter results.

Yeah, 100%.
I'll give you an exampleRecently, about two weeks ago,
tony Robbins did a live event.
His events are not an hour,they're six hours long, and it
was a free event.
It's called Unshakable Businessand his pitch was, of course he
pitches something.
It was $ thousand dollarmembership for a year.
I called my cousin the sameperson that full paid me, who

(48:24):
has a full-time job, and I saidhey, cause I think you should
sign up for this.
He didn't even go to the salespage, but he went to the sales
page and bought it because hetrusts me.
So the more you do stuff,people are like okay, mark and
die die, don't compromise.
I can take what they say,because they're putting their,
they're putting their moneywhere their mouth is.
They pay for coaching.
I pay for coaching.

(48:44):
It's really important, see ifit's.
If you said, yeah, you shouldgo get a coach, but I don't have
a coach, so I'm like wait, whydon't you have a coach?
And so it matters, it matters,and again, it's the little
things that matter.

Dai Manuel (48:58):
Said, said, oh my gosh, there's so many questions
I want to ask you and I, youknow, I and I'm like, look at
the time too, and I'm like, okay, I know I'm pushing it.
But I wanted to talk brieflyabout diet, cause I know that
you're a big fan of Tim Ferrissand the slow carb Right and I
was wondering, in your, youropinion, as it relates to you

(49:19):
and obviously other people thatyou've supported with some of
these nutritional changes, haveyou found that this has been one
of the best programs just togive people sort of some
consistent energy food wisebecause I do slow carb, I think,
is a great way to eat if youcan sustain it.
Right, maintain it, and I knowthat's where people it's like
everything, everything, right,yeah, it's consistency, and lack

(49:40):
thereof will usually affect ourresults or lack of results.
Can you just speak to what yourexperience was like with the
slow carb diet?

I was on the slow carb diet for four months
and then I came off it because Iwas getting great results.
Nothing wrong with it.
I still do the 30, 30, 30protocol in the morning, but
then if I want an ice creamsandwich during the day, it's
not a cheat day, because whatwas working for me is the slow
carb was Sunday through Friday.
If you're not familiar with theslow carb diet, it means you
eat low carb six days and youlike gorge yourself on the

(50:10):
seventh day.
I didn't like gorging myself onthe seventh day.
I'd have cream puffs forbreakfast and I'd have ice cream
sandwiches and jelly bean and Ididn't like it.
So what I do is I decided tosprinkle it through.
So I'm more of a modified slowcarb diet.
I try to eat a lot of low carb.
Like he says, don't eat nuts onthe slow carb diet because you
can't have just a handful.
I do measure all my food.

(50:40):
I use an app called chronometer, so I recommend people when
you're going to go on a diet, itshould not be about losing the
poundage.
It should be about I'm going tofeel healthier, because a lot
of people go.
It's April, may.
Let me get my bikini body orwhatever a speedo body and then
in August you start eating likecrap again because you're like,
ah, who cares?
Until next summer.
And what that does to your bodyis insane.
I listened to Outlive and thenwent out and bought the hard

(51:00):
copy.
I'm going through it slowly.
I'm like, oh my gosh, this iscrazy.
I think people need to educatethemselves.
So I do the slow carb diet.
I'll tell you one thing thatcame out of the slow carb diet.
It's amazing when I did it thefirst time a number of years ago
.
He's really big on black beans.
I First time a number of yearsago, hated he's really big on
black beans.

Dai Manuel (51:18):
Hated black beans.

Now, last night for dinner I had chicken
with black beans, organic blackbeans and organic grape tomatoes
and my wife goes oh, that lookspretty good and I'm like I
can't believe.
I like black beans, but that'swhat came out of it because I
guess black beans are supposedto be really good for weight
loss or a lot of protein andfiber and stuff like that, but I
never liked them.
So I have kidney beans, blackbean.
I can't say this Cannon Lennybean.

(51:42):
I always had trouble sayingthat, but I love beans now.
I never liked them and peoplego cause.
The first time I did the slowcarb diet I had a problem with
flatulence and then I didn'tread the part in his book that
said he buy canned.
We were buying the dry ones andthen soaking them.
He says no, if you buy thecanned beans you won't have

(52:03):
issues.
So I never have.
I don't have problem with flatsince now because I guess when
you buy them canned and they'resoaked in water it does
something to the bean.

Dai Manuel (52:11):
you'd probably know that better than I would yeah,
I'm not sure the, the reasoning,but there's some, yeah, like
oil or something like that getsreleased.
I forget what it is, butthere's some digestive enzyme or
something like that.
I don't know per se, but I doknow that when I was doing more
of a paleo diet, that obviouslylegumes there's some legumes

(52:32):
that are okay and then some thatwouldn't be, but that's also
because of some of the, the,even how some vegetables have a
certain oil cover over it andsome of those could be affecting
inflammation in the body andstuff.
now we're really nerding out,but I like the idea of the slow
car because it well, it justteaches people how to be more
present to the energy that foodhas on their body and I think

(52:53):
that's the relationship piece,it's understanding that, oh yeah
, when I eat like this, not only30 minutes, 60 minutes, oh man,
even two hours later, I stillfeel good.
I don't feel like I need tohave another sugary treat or a
double with like here in Canadawe've got the double right At
Tim Hortons, so it's two treats,two sugars.
And, like you say to Canada,people are like, oh, double,

(53:14):
double, they know it's two, it'stwo sugars, and it's like throw
a little coffee or donut on theside there and you got your
little meal made in heaven.
But it's funny, but it is partof that culture, right?
And I think it's those culturalshifts that sometimes the
hardest changes to make.
I don't want to take all yourtime, but I know I'm going to
have you back again for seasontwo and I'm already thinking

(53:37):
about about a hundred things I'dlike to ask you, but I think
we'd be remiss if we didn't atleast share with the audience
some of your best or mostactionable tips or tricks,
whether there's tools or hacks,or what would be your top three
productivity hacks.

Number one take care of your health.
Remember what I said severaltimes in the episode healthy
people are productive people.
Number two searching for theperfect app.
Air quotes here.
Perfect app is a form ofprocrastination.
Start with the app that camewith your device.
I see people wasting time orthey DM me.

(54:15):
What app do you use for this?
Like, use what you got first ofall.
And third is work on yourattitude.
Be a Winnie the Pooh, be apiglet.
Be you.
Don't have to be a tiger likeme, but be positive.
Positive people are productivepeople.

(54:35):
And I would give you a fourthone Always tell your time where
to go instead of wondering where.
Productive people.
And I would give you a fourthone Always tell your time where
to go instead of wondering whereit went.
What do I mean by that?
Don't wing it on your day.
Have a plan.
What do I want to do tomorrow?
Oh, I want to do this and this,because if you have a plan and
you do the plan, yourproductivity is going to shoot
through the roof.
And the fifth thing I'll giveyou a fifth one Extend yourself,

(54:57):
grace.
We're all going to shootthrough the roof.
And the fifth thing?
I'll give you a fifth one.
Okay, extend yourself, grace.
We're all going to have thosebad days.
When the train goes off thetracks, just say you know what?
It's okay, tomorrow's anotherday, and extend yourself, grace.
A lot of people put holes inwalls and scream and get mad.
That's not being productive.

Dai Manuel (55:18):
So extend yourself, grace man, great advice and
everyone these insights.
They're only good if youactually take action with them.
Otherwise it's just a whole lotof Mark and I have been pushing
air this whole hour and we likethe thing that you're going to
take at least one of thesetidbits and apply it.
That's all.
It takes Just a long one andsee how it goes.

(55:40):
That just the prioritizing thehealth.
My invitation to people juststart walking every morning for
30 minutes.
Yeah, do that in the earliestsunrise, those early rays.
30 minutes.
Put an audio book or listen toone of 1300 episodes of Mark's
podcast feed your head somethingpositive, Do something positive
for your body, but also it'samazing Get outside and collect

(56:01):
some of that vitamin D.
Simple Simple doesn't meanyou've got to take action, Mark,
so listen before we go today.
I'd love to know what are youworking on right now?
That's got you super pumped andexcited.

Right now.
What I'm excited about, besidesmy podcast's seventh birthday,
is I'm really.
I have recently pivoted fromcollecting followers,
subscribers, views, comments,likes on social media.
I want people to get on thephone call with me, and so I got
this great thing.
So if you go toMrproductivitycom, at the very

(56:38):
top of my page, you can enteryour name and email address,
click the button that says grabfree training.
I've got like a five minutevideo there which is going to
give you tons of value, and thenin the first email you get when
you join my list, you're goingto get a link to get a 45 minute
call with me, absolutely free.
Here's why I do that.
I used to do 15 minutes and thenI had a coaching call with

(56:59):
someone and they go you're notgoing to get serious people on a
15 minute call and you're notgoing to get.
The people are going to wasteyour time in a 45 minute call
because they're going to knowyou're going to talk about your
coaching there.
But I want to get on the phonebecause I have this mission.
I have this joy of helpingpeople and, yeah, I can help you
through the Mr Productivitypodcast and through the email

(57:20):
newsletter and through socialmedia and through this podcast
with you, dye.
But if you really want to takeit to the next level, sign up
for my email newsletter, get onthe call with me.
You can unsubscribe from thelist after what you want, but I
want to get talk to you ifyou're serious about becoming
more productive.
Now.
We're not going to talk aboutCOVID on the call.
Okay, I'm not a doctor.
I'm not.
That's not what I do.
I'm not going to talk aboutwho's going to win the elections

(57:42):
.
That's not what I do.
I'm a productivity guy.
So if you're serious,mrproductivitycom, sign up for
my email list, watch thetraining, get on a free call
with me.
It's my gift to you.

Dai Manuel (57:54):
Mark, thank you.
That's such a generous gift butalso everyone in the show notes
.
You just click on that littlebutton wherever you're listening
to this expand that.
It's right there.
I click the link and go checkout mark's page.
But also more than a site.
He's got tons of resources.
Like it's ridiculous how muchresources you put out there.
Mark, I gotta commend you.
The content you put out is topnotch, but it all adds value, it

(58:16):
makes a difference, and sothank you Cause I know that is a
lot to constantly put that out.
Like I look at you and I'mreminded of Seth Godin.
Like I know he writes everysingle day, he publishes Right,
and it's been like that for likeever, but it's a sign of and

(58:37):
it's a great reminder of justthe power of being consistent.

He said I saw a quote from Seth Godin once
that he says if I died, youwouldn't know it for seven years
, because he has so much contentscheduled.
That's crazy, Isn't that crazy?

Dai Manuel (58:50):
to think about that.
It is, and now, with the waythat they make these new AI bots
, they could probably push allof his content he's ever created
into one of those bots and Ithink we'd have Seth Gordon
forever, but also just hisunique way.
I thought he died, I don't know.
There's some hologram overthere talking yeah, either way,

(59:13):
listen.
Thank you for being here today,mark.
And congratulations again onseven years.
I know it's coming up.
It's going to be here quick,but also almost 1300 episodes in
Wow, just so you know.
It's super inspiring for me,someone that's now on the other
side of the mic, people like you, but just to see what you've

(59:34):
built and what you've done, butalso the consistency with you
show up and passionateconsistency and I just yeah,
it's just amazing, mark.
Anyways, I'm excited for thenext 1300 episodes, but we'll
have you on the show beforeanother seven years to inspire.
Oh my goodness, but thanks forbeing on the show.
I always give my guests lastword If there's anybody that's

(59:55):
on the fence or thinking yeah,okay, all this stuff sounded
great.
Morning routines, routines yeah, prioritize my health, okay.
I just don't know where tostart.
What would be your words ofrecommendation?
Or you don't even have toanswer that.
Whatever you want to leave theshow with today, the final words
are yours.

Mark Struczewski (01:00:15):
You get one life.
Gary Vaynerchuk said you'regoing to die.
We're all going to die at somepoint.
And how long do you want to beon this planet?
I don't care how old you are 20, 40, 60, 80.
I don't care.
You have to make a decisionright now that you're going to
start taking your health andyour productivity seriously,

(01:00:36):
because nothing matters if youdon't make the decision, if you
just go through the motions, itdoesn't matter.
You have to make a decision.
So what I challenge people to doif you are serious, then I want
you to create a video forsocial media.
I want you to put it on TikTok,I want you to put it on Meta, I
want you to put it on Snapchat.
I want you to put it on X.
I want you to put on x.

(01:00:58):
I want to put on youtube.
Say I am going to take myhealth seriously, I'm going to
start taking my productivityseriously, because when you do
that now, it's not staining yourhead now, it's out in the world
.
Now other people are like heyjoan, hey jimmy, didn't you
create a video three months ago?
Said you're going to take yourhealth seriously?
How's that going?
You're like.
It's called socialaccountability.

Dai Manuel (01:01:19):
I highly recommend oh great, oh man, I, I like that
, I like that challenge.
Or oh no, invitation.
It's much nicer, a littlesofter, but I love that.
So, everyone listen, I'm gonnatell you right now if you take
mark up on that, you do thatvideo and you tag him and I will
send you a copy of my book.
Whoa, right there, all right, Ibetter cap that First 20 people

(01:01:43):
.
First 20 people.
They do one of those videos.
You tag Mark and I'm sendingyou a signed copy of my book.
So there you go, people.
There's an invitation.
Take action.
What Mark shared with us.
Say take action on what Markshared with us today.
Get over to his site, check outthe free resources, get on his
newsletter and gosh, hey, ifyou're feeling into what we
talked about today, he's justoffered up a free call.
I would highly say takeadvantage of that.

(01:02:07):
Again, mark, thanks for beinghere today.
Absolute pleasure, as always.
Excited to have you back nextseason, but keep putting up the
good fight, because it's amazingto watch you win.
Thank you, dai, I reallyappreciate it.
See, I told you what an amazingconversation today.

(01:02:28):
Now, if you're like me, you'reprobably rethinking your entire
approach to productivity afterhearing Mark's insights From his
unique ODA method to histhoughts on why most of us are
prioritizing the wrong things,mark has definitely given us a
lot to chew on Now.
Remember productivity isn'tjust about getting more done.
It's about getting the rightthings done at the right time.

(01:02:50):
If you're ready to take yourproductivity to the next level,
don't miss out on the incredibleresources Mark has shared today
.
Head over to mrproductivitycom.
I've also linked it in the shownotes, along with all of other
Mark's amazing social channels.
And, believe me, when you goand you start following the
stuff he's throwing down, you'llalways feel inspired, motivated
, but also leave feelingeducated and empowered to start

(01:03:12):
influencing changes in your ownlife.
Sign up for his free training,take advantage of the 45-minute
call with him it's a gamechanger and don't forget to
check out Mark's podcast, whereyou can dive even deeper into
the world of productivity, withover 1,280 episodes of Pure Gold
.
Now, before we go, let me leavewith this.
Take just one of Mark's tipsfrom today and apply it today.

(01:03:36):
Small changes can lead to bigresults, but only if you take
action.
Thanks for joining us on the 2%Solution this week and until
next time, keep striving to bejust 2% better every day because
you're worth it and you'reawesome and I can't wait to see
you next time.

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