Chasing Excellence

What does depression look like when nothing in your life is actually wrong?Ben shares his first real experience with depression — not born of circumstance, but of chemistry — and why it changed everything he thought he understood about mental health.In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Rich, Ben's physician and friend, to unpack the autoimmune response that attacked Ben's brain, the treatments that actually helped, and why the fitness buffer matters more than you'll ever know in the moment.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here🐾 Start your Free Trial of the ChaseTracker❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if every day you could see — in real time — whether you're drifting or chasing?In this solo episode, Patrick unpacks the rebuilt ChaseTracker app and the foundational framework behind it: drifting is the slow, often unseen move toward convenience, comfort, and conformity, while chasing is the daily decision to organize your time, energy, attention, and money toward what truly matters.Learn how six key areas of life and four time horizons — daily, weekly, monthly, and quarterly — give you a system to catch drift before it costs you months. Plus: why James Clear is right that you're not changing your habits as much as you're changing your identity.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here🐾 Start your Free Trial of the ChaseTracker❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if you could assess your mental fitness the same way you track your lifts, your miles, and your macros — with honest data, asked on a regular schedule?In this episode, Patrick hosts Chris Irwin to build a practical self-assessment tool rooted in the Five Mind Killers: a set of diagnostic questions mapped across each mind killer that, asked honestly every three to six months, reveal whether your mental fitness is trending in the right direction.You'll learn why the sickness-wellness-fitness continuum applies one-for-one to mental health, how the language "I have anxiety" is quietly keeping you stuck, and what twenty questions — grouped across Oblivion, Storytelling, Suppression, Fear, and Stagnation — can tell you about where you actually stand.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here🐾 Start your Free Trial of the ChaseTracker❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if the most important question in programming has nothing to do with the workout itself?In this episode, Ben breaks down how to design training that works — whether you're coaching a packed class or programming for a single athlete — and why the answer starts with one question most coaches never ask.Learn why compliance is the real metric, how logistical constraints shape every programming decision, and why the goal isn't a perfect workout — it's getting people excited to come back tomorrow.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hard things don't get easier when we pretend they aren't hard — they get easier when we stop wishing they were different.In this solo 5x5, Ben answers one listener question from each of the five factors: dealing with a chaotic home situation with a napping toddler, chasing a federal special agent fitness standard, eating clean on the road, deciding whether to have more kids in your 40s, and navigating a child's fear of the dark.Acceptance is not approval. When we stop spending energy wishing our circumstances were different, we free that energy for actual solutions. That's the thread running through all five questions — and the foundational move of the Awareness → Intention → Action cycle.🖐 We love your questions!👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

How much responsibility do we actually carry for where our teenagers end up — and how much is simply out of our hands?In this episode, we dig into a powerful listener question from David about parental influence, the six factors that shape teenagers, and the three things fathers can genuinely control: modeling, connection, and agency.We explore why control and influence are two very different tools, why unconditional love may be the single most important input a parent can offer, and why the real enemy isn't bad peers or broken environments — it's an ego that's never learned it's safe to struggle.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What do you do when the person who loves you most says something that makes you feel shame — even when they don't mean it that way?In this episode, we answer a question from Chase Club member Ashton, who's 31 weeks pregnant and navigating the emotional complexity of a husband who keeps checking in on her workouts.We explore the gap between what someone actually says and the story we tell ourselves about it, why seasons of life demand fundamentally different things from us, and how to communicate your real needs clearly and without judgment.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Twenty tactics. Five factors. One episode worth pulling back from the archives.In this replay, we walk through the four highest-leverage actions you can take in each of the five key areas of life — Move, Sleep, Eat, Think, and Connect — and unpack the why behind each one.Drift is the enemy of excellence, and this episode is one of the sharpest tools we've built to fight it. You'll leave with a concrete checklist of daily behaviors designed to close the gap between where you are and where you want to be.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if the thing overwhelming your kids isn't screens — it's a culture of too much?In this episode, Patrick sits down with Kim John Payne, author of Simplicity Parenting, to explore why children today are exhibiting what used to be considered trauma responses, and what parents can actually do about it.We explore the five causes of childhood overwhelm, why the antidote starts with the parents — not the kids — and how defining "enoughness" for yourself is the most powerful act of social activism a parent can make.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Is the label "high performer" quietly holding you back from becoming one?In this episode, Patrick unpacks four lessons from the 21-day High Performance Challenge — and makes the case that high performance isn't a status reserved for athletes and CEOs. It's a set of actions anyone can adopt.From Tony Robbins' "musts vs. shoulds" to Kobe Bryant's marathon gym session, we connect high performance to the core belief that true excellence is something we pursue for others, not for ourselves.❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What does it actually take to connect — with your kids, your partner, your community, and the strangers you meet every day?In this episode, Ben answers five listener questions on the CONNECT factor, from parenting across different households to rebuilding friendships in your 40s and 50s.You'll learn why kids become what they repeatedly experience (not what you tell them), how to distinguish a values divergence from a seasonal slump, why adult friendships require intention and initiative, how to create hope and agency in a loved one without becoming the health police, and which questions actually open people up.🙋🏻‍♂️ Send us a Question👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if the problem isn't your program — it's how you're showing up for it?In this episode, Ben and Jamison break down 10 training hygiene habits that can transform your results, regardless of what you're training for, where you train, or what program you follow.From intentional intensity and the recovery-adaptation curve, to learning to breathe, filming yourself, and never negotiating mid-workout — these principles serve the Train factor in the Five Factors framework.The goal isn't to do more. It's to finally get what you came for.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if the guilt you're calling loyalty is the very thing keeping you stuck?In this episode, we answer a question from Chase Club member Mike about whether to switch gyms — and it turns out, it's not really about gyms at all.We unpack the difference between loyalty (a choice) and guilt (a feeling), explore the three pillars that make any community worth staying in, and give you a framework for knowing when it's time to move on — and how to do it with integrity.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if raising a child well means releasing your vision of who they're supposed to become — and learning instead to see who they actually are?Patrick is joined this week by Christina Watka, an installation artist whose entire practice is built around entering a space without a plan, noticing what's there, and letting the work lead.In this Raise episode, they explore how that same artistic openness transforms the way you parent: the role of noticing, the power of solitude, and what it means to receive your children instead of trying to shape them.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

High performance isn't a talent — it's a system.This week, we bring together three of our most foundational conversations to show you exactly what that system looks like in practice.From the two non-negotiables that underpin every kind of success, to the five specific characteristics we see in every high performer we've ever met, to the seven quiet habits that keep most people from closing the gap — this is the raw material behind our new 21-Day High Performance Challenge.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if high performance at work isn't a talent you either have or don't — but a system you can practice starting today?In this episode, Patrick introduces the 21-Day High Performance Challenge and walks through the five interdependent characteristics that, together, make up a practice for doing the right things at the highest level you're capable of.We connect this system to the Five Factors of health you already know — because drift, the quiet enemy of excellence, doesn't just happen to your body. It happens to your work, too. And these five characteristics are how you fight back.Whether you join inside the Chase Club, the ChaseTracker app, or with nothing but a notebook and three questions at the end of each day, this challenge is an invitation to close the gap between who you are and who you want to be at work.❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What does it look like to go from 500 pounds to a CrossFit coach - not out of inspiration, but because fear was the only thing in the room?In this episode, Jamison sits down with Athena Perez: affiliate owner, coach, and author of a two-part memoir about identity, worth, and what fitness spaces get dangerously wrong.We explore how compounding habits shape who we become long before we notice, why a 40-day fast became Athena's clearest window into emotional eating and genuine purpose, and why placing people on pedestals - in the gym or anywhere else - always costs you something.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Every parent who cares about health eventually hits this wall: your kids don't want to do what you know is good for them — and the more you push, the harder they pull away.In this episode, we tackle Chase Club member Brendan's question about getting his 16-year-old son and 13-year-old daughter to move consistently, despite shared custody.We dig into why the modeling you do today isn't for the teenager in front of you — it's for the 26-year-old they'll become. We explore the power of structured environments over parent-led training, how external rewards bridge to internal motivation, and why finding the right entry point matters more than finding the perfect program.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if becoming extraordinary isn't really about your own habits — it's about the habits you build that make everyone around you better?In this episode, we sit down with Jon Gordon, author of 33 books and 18 bestsellers, to explore seven habits that transform ordinary people into the kind of person others genuinely want to be around.We explore how the ratio of positive to negative interactions determines whether your relationships thrive, why shouting praise and whispering criticism builds deeper trust than you'd expect, and how the abundance mindset — giving freely, making the pie bigger, winning the person instead of the argument — creates energy that lifts everyone in your orbit.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if your triggers aren't random — they're a map back to yourself? In this close-out episode, Patrick reflects on the 21-day trigger challenge with two reframes that change everything: the tug of war between wants and reality, and the difference between surface triggers (your mental dojo) and the serious ones rooted in your own history.Learn why the fastest road to context-independent peace of mind runs through accepting reality — not fighting it — and why turning the spotlight on your triggers is the first step to responding instead of reacting.👉🏼 Get the full 21-Day Trigger Challenge🐾 Start using the ChaseTracker app❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if the key to being capable at 75 isn't training harder — it's training more completely?In this episode, we introduce the Heavy, Fast, Far, and Free framework: a simple weekly approach to strength, power, endurance, and mobility that keeps every fitness bucket full.You'll learn why power declines 10x faster than strength (and why that matters for staying formidable at any age), why VO2 max has a 400% greater impact on all-cause mortality than smoking does, and what the minimum effective dose looks like for each pillar.If you want to be able to say yes to everything — forever — this episode shows you exactly how to train for it.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Coaches and mentors aren't essential — but they might be the best shortcut you'll ever find.In this episode, we answer Chase Club member David's question about whether coaches need coaches, and explore how Ben has built three very different mentorship relationships, each running on a different value exchange.You'll learn why reciprocity is the non-negotiable foundation of any real mentorship, and why curiosity, vulnerability, and patience are what you must bring as the mentee. Whether it's a paid business coach, a peer who trades expertise, or a friend who keeps you accountable — the best guidance always helps you see what you can't see from inside your own life.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if the reason you keep falling back on old habits isn't a lack of discipline — but a failure of persuasion?In this episode, we sit down with New York Times bestselling author Jay Heinrichs to explore how ancient rhetoric holds the secret to becoming the person your best self already believes you can be.You'll discover Aristotle's three-part framework for identity — craft, caring, and cause — and why shifting your self-talk from past-tense shame to future-tense action is the single most powerful lever for lasting change.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if you didn't need a prescription to fix your testosterone — and what if training through surgery was simpler than you thought?In this 5x5 episode, Ben answers five listener questions about training — covering HRT, surgery recovery, rucking, bite-sized movement for busy parents, and the essential home gym stack.🙋🏼 Ask a question 👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if the most powerful thing you can do for your kids' emotional health is regulate yourself first?In this episode of our Raise series, Patrick sits down with Jenna Cain — a pediatric physical therapist, Level 3 Enlifted coach, and mother of two — to explore why the nervous system of the adult in the room determines what's possible for the child in front of them.We dig into why asking questions beats giving answers, how language shapes identity, and the simple daily practices that build psychological and emotional immunity in kids long before the crisis hits.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ryan Rivard went from a homeless overdose survivor at 19 to summiting Mount Everest at 40 — and the most powerful thing he learned is that neither rock bottom nor the summit was the point.We explore how gratitude transforms daily life, why everyone is recovering from something, and why the person showing up at work needs to be the same one your family gets at home.Ryan walks us through the Dodek Method — a 12-dimensional operating system for aligned achievement that rewires how you move, think, connect, and execute, so success stops costing you yourself.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

As we age, the Five Factors don't disappear — they shift. And most people wait until something breaks before they start paying attention.Answering a Chase Club member’s question, we break down exactly how to adjust how we train, eat, sleep, think, and connect across each decade of life — and why the most dangerous thing isn't aging itself, it's the drift that comes with it.You'll walk away with a clear framework for fighting back against the declines that are real (and faster than you think), protecting the things that matter most, and using more intention at the exact stage of life when everyone around you is using less.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We're launching a 21-Day Trigger Challenge: a structured daily practice built around five pillars (trigger identification, recovery speed, response vs. reaction, regulation strategies, and self-compassion) designed to shorten the gap between stimulus and choice.Whether you join the Chase Club, use the ChaseTracker app, or rely on nothing but a notebook and three questions at the end of each day, this challenge is an invitation to start chasing our highest goal: context-independent peace of mind.❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What does it actually mean to be fit for life — not just for a competition, a season, or a phase?In this episode, Ben, Cole, and Jamison unpack six foundational principles for anyone who wants to build fitness that serves them today, tomorrow, and forever. You'll walk away with a clear framework for training with sustainable effort, building real-world capability, and stacking weeks and months into compounding progress.This is the Health pillar in its most practical form: fitness not as the goal, but as the foundation for everything that matters.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In the first of our new 5x5 series, Ben takes five listener questions on the THINK factor, covering growth mindset, the Fragmented → Focused → Flow framework, and the distillation process behind the CE frameworks we talk about all the time.You'll walk away with a clear process for building a growth mindset in others, a new approach to retaining what you read and listen to, and a reframe on why letting go is the highest-effort move you can make at home.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here🙋🏻‍♂️ Send us a Question❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if most of what your kids are learning about emotions isn't coming from what you say — it's coming from what they watch you do?In this first episode of our new Raise series, we explore Doug Earl Johnston's groundbreaking book Choosing Emotions — now the single most comprehensive reference on human emotions in the English language — and what it means to parent as someone who chooses their responses rather than defaulting to them.Doug walks us through why the average adult operates with a vocabulary of 8-12 emotions when hundreds exist, and how precision with language is the key to naming — and taming — the feelings that derail us. The key takeaway: the vocabulary we give our kids now is the vocabulary they'll reach for when life gets hard.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What happens when the coach you hired tells you to do the opposite of what you expected? We dig into a listener's real dilemma — her coach told her to take six days off from training — and explore why the hardest part of being coached isn't the programming, it's the trust. Discover why a great coach's perspective is the single most valuable thing you're paying for, and why curiosity beats judgment every time.We break down the two pillars every coaching relationship is built on — experimentation and trust — and why resisting your coach's advice might mean you're not ready to grow. Learn why six days off won't cost you your fitness, why your identity might be more wrapped up in training than you realize, and how one low-risk experiment could change everything.👉 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️ Free Newsletter & the Chase Club🏁 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if conquering fear has been the wrong goal all along?In this episode, Jim Murphy - author of Inner Excellence and The Best Possible Life - reveals that fear isn't the root problem: the root is self-centeredness, and fixing it changes everything. We explore the "affluenza virus," the three internal adversaries (the Critic, the Trickster, and the Monkey Mind), and why the ego's obsession with comparison quietly poisons everything it touches.Walk away with a practical ego check-in, a clearer understanding of what's actually driving your fear, and five daily paths to the presence that makes fearlessness possible. This is an episode for anyone who has chased success and still felt something missing - and anyone who wants to build a life that burns brighter the more they give it away.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What's really standing between you and the life you know is possible? In this deep-dive supercut, we unpack nine distractions that quietly pull us off course — from the supplement trap and toxic digital algorithms to the four idols, self-doubt, and comfort seeking. Discover why these distractions aren't random, and how recognizing them is the first step to breaking free.These nine distractions move from the outside in — starting with what we consume and who we surround ourselves with, then moving to the belief systems and psychological traps that keep us stuck, and finally to the existential fears that hold us back from a life on fire. Learn how to stop doing health, happiness, and purpose — and start actually being it.👉 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️ Free Newsletter & the Chase Club🏁 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if the most powerful thing you could do for your child's confidence takes less than five minutes a day? In this short episode, we revisit a conversation with mindset coach Mark England that sparked something big — the idea of a wins journal — and we explore how one simple question before bed can reshape the story your kids tell themselves about who they are.We dive into why most of us have a black belt in dismissing our own accomplishments and how that pattern gets passed down to our children. Learn how replacing "what went wrong today" with "what went right today" connects to the Awareness → Intention → Action framework, and hear a full reading of Patrick's new children's book What's a Win I Won Today? — written to give families a way into the conversations that actually matter.📗 Grab the book!❤️ Free Newsletter & the Chase Club🏁 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Are you unknowingly losing your edge — not in one dramatic moment, but through a thousand small, quiet compromises? In this episode, we diagnose the 10 forces of modern life that pull us toward what we call "the pool of dysfunction" — and, more importantly, we explore the countermeasures to swim against the current. Discover why drift is the true villain in the pursuit of health, happiness, and hearts on fire.From comfort everywhere and infinite digital distraction to food engineered for addiction and the erosion of awareness, we break down exactly where drift shows up and what to do about it. Learn how Thomas Aquinas's four idols and the concept of entropy frame the battle, why anything under zero compounds just as powerfully as anything above it, and how choosing useful discomfort is the first step back toward intention and action.👉 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️ Free Newsletter & the Chase Club🏁 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Most of us were raised with only two options for dealing with difficult emotions: act them out or stuff them down. In this conversation with Margaret Cullen, author of Quiet Strength, we explore a powerful third door — equanimity — and learn how to fully feel our emotions without being hijacked by them.Discover why equanimity isn't about dulling your feelings — it's about deepening them while staying free. We dig into practical cognitive hacks for breaking the cycle of reactivity, the 90-second rule that can transform how you respond to life's hardest moments, and how creating the right conditions can let calm arise naturally rather than being forced. Learn to widen your window of tolerance and connect with reality as it actually is.👉 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️ Free Newsletter & the Chase Club🏁 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if the secret to lasting fulfillment isn't adding more to your life, but letting go of your attachment to the things you're chasing? In this conversation with NOBULL co-founder Marcus Wilson, we explore the reverse bucket list — a powerful framework for breaking free from the endless cycle of wanting more so you can actually enjoy what you already have.Inspired by Arthur Brooks and Simon Sinek, we dig into why checking off every goal on your list can still leave you feeling empty, and how true satisfaction comes from wanting less — not having more. Discover how to raise expectations for yourself while releasing expectations for the world around you, stay present instead of performing your life for others, and build the warrior mindset that keeps you calm and connected no matter what comes your way.👉 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️ Free Newsletter & the Chase Club🏁 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Can technology finally fix our nutrition struggles — or is it just adding more noise? We dive into why calorie trackers, wearables, and AI-powered diet tools consistently miss the mark, and discover the surprisingly simple, old-school method that actually gives you accurate, personalized results without any of them.In two powerful conversations with EC Synkowski, we explore why the friction of weighing and measuring your food isn't a bug — it's the feature that builds real awareness and lasting change. Learn why the path to dietary freedom runs straight through the inconvenience most of us are trying to avoid, and how your own weight trend is a more reliable guide than any app or algorithm.👉 Get the full Listener's Guide here📕 Grab What's a Win I Won Today?❤️ Free Newsletter & the Chase Club🏁 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if the biggest barrier to your fitness isn't a lack of willpower — it's a set of hidden biases working against you? In this conversation with sports medicine physician Jordan Metzl, we uncover the science of motivation and why people who rarely miss a workout aren't more disciplined — they've just learned to lower their cost to act. Discover the knowledge-belief-emotion framework that transforms "I should" into "I'm doing this" and finally into "I'm crushing this."We explore why laziness is a myth, how curiosity is the most underrated motivational tool, and why science shows that roughly 60% of your health is determined not by your genes — but by the choices you make every day. Whether you're a coach trying to keep clients coming back or someone looking to reignite your own fire, this episode is your blueprint for building motivation that sustains itself.👉 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️ Free Newsletter & the Chase Club🏁 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ever wonder why your perfectly planned 15-step morning routine keeps falling apart, or why that expert advice feels like it's missing the mark? In this episode, we explore seven powerful universal laws — from Gall's Law to Hanlon's Razor — that reveal the hidden patterns shaping our decisions, our confidence, and our capacity to grow.We break down why simplicity always beats complexity, how your greatest strengths can quietly become blind spots, and why the happiest people aren't surrounded by better humans — they just make more generous interpretations. Through the lens of awareness, intention, and action, discover how recognizing these laws can lower unnecessary stress and help you show up with more clarity in every area of your life.👉 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️ Free Newsletter & the Chase Club🏁 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Are you ready to stop making excuses and start taking ownership of your life? We explore 10 hard truths that separate those chasing excellence from those stuck in blame—uncovering why we complain, defend our egos, and chase things that will never make us happy.We unpack the frameworks that reshape how you approach your relationships, priorities, and growth: learning to focus on changing yourself instead of others, recognizing the stories you tell yourself that aren't true, getting honest about what you truly value, and understanding why defensiveness kills progress. These principles guide you toward living with clarity, calm, and alignment with your highest potential—the core work of living a meaningful life.👉 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️ Free Newsletter & the Chase Club🏁 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What drives the most successful people to their greatest achievements—and sometimes their darkest moments?Alongside writer and philosopher Rebecca Goldstein, we explore the mattering instinct - the fundamental human need to justify why we deserve attention in our own eyes - and discover how identifying your mattering project transforms this universal longing into a meaningful life path.We unpack why this one psychological force is responsible for both our greatest accomplishments and our most destructive ideologies.We uncover the mattering map’s four core strategies—heroic strivers who pursue excellence, socializers who find meaning through connection, competitors driven by zero-sum thinking, and transcendents grounded in spiritual purpose—and learn how recognizing which strategy aligns with your temperament reveals where you’ve been chasing unfulfilling projects. 👉 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️ Free Newsletter & the Chase Club🏁 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Can you stay relentlessly disciplined without becoming the person nobody wants to be around?Alongside the WWE’s Ivy Nile (aka Emily Andzulis), we explore how true discipline becomes a source of motivation for those around you, and how choosing to do hard things every single day compounds into a life of genuine satisfaction.We unpack the framework of non-negotiables with extreme flexibility - rigid standards that allow for grace and adaptation and talk about how to build sustainable habits that transfer directly to real-world performance, why moving your body matters more than how hard you move it, and how the fitness journey teaches you to show up for yourself in ways that ultimately serve every other area of your life.👉 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️ Free Newsletter & the Chase Club🏁 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if everything modern culture tells us about fulfillment is wrong? In this compilation episode, we explore the two foundational lies that drive much of our dissatisfaction and drift: the belief that chasing fame, wealth, and power will make us happy, and the belief that if we're comfortable, we're somehow doing it wrong. Discover how these lies shape the decisions we make, the ladders we climb, and the regrets we carry into our final days.We unpack the four idols that distract us from what actually matters, why deliberately choosing discomfort builds the capacity for everything else, and what the dying wish they had known sooner. Learn how to recognize when you're being pulled toward the wrong things, how to build a life around what truly fulfills you, and why thinking about death isn't morbid - it's the tool that helps you live fully right now.👉 Get the full Listener's Guide here🤓 Read The Two Lies Everyone Believes❤️ Free Newsletter & the Chase Club🏁 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Where do you feel most alive, and with whom? In this conversation with Daniel Coyle, author of Flourish, we explore why the most powerful experiences of our lives aren't about individual achievement—they're about shared, joyful, meaningful growth. Discover how to shift from chasing success alone to building the communities that make us feel deeply connected, fully present, and truly ourselves.We break down the two attention systems that shape how you experience the world, why awakening cues can transform ordinary moments into meaningful connections, and how saying yes to "yellow doors"—those unexpected opportunities you'd normally pass by—can lead to the richest relationships of your life. Learn how to become what Daniel calls an "athlete gardener," intentionally cultivating the conditions where you and the people around you can flourish together.👉 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️ Free Newsletter & the Chase ClubSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Are you an asset to the people around you, or are you unknowingly becoming a burden? In this conversation with Chris Irwin and Mark England, we explore the surplus value mindset—the difference between those who add more than they take and those who don't. Discover how to become the person everyone wants on their team, in their family, and in their community.We break down the simple question that transforms how you show up: in this situation, am I an asset or a burden? Learn how physical and mental fitness both come down to your capacity to respond, why breathing is the baseline skill for leadership and contribution, and how self-awareness is the first step toward creating real value in the world.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club🏁 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if you could train your body to stay calm under pressure the same way Navy SEALs do? In this conversation with Level 3 Wim Hof Method instructor Brandon Powell, we explore the three-pillar system of breath work, cold exposure, and mindset training that elite athletes and military operators use to control their stress response and perform when it matters most.You'll discover how cold exposure triggers a 500% dopamine boost, why five breaths can shift you from panic to calm, and the science-backed protocols you can start today with nothing more than a cold shower and your breath. This is about building resilience from the inside out—training your nervous system to become your competitive advantage rather than your limitation.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if the aches, stiffness, and limitations you've been accepting as "just part of getting older" aren't inevitable at all?In this conversation with Scott Hogan, author of Built from Broken, we explore the five root causes of feeling physically broken — from posture and movement patterns to tendinopathy and muscle imbalances — and the one mindset shift that changes everything: refusing to accept pain as your new normal.You'll learn why load training is the only way to actually heal connective tissue, why quarterly PT visits should be as routine as dental checkups, and how being your own mechanic means taking proactive ownership of your body's longevity.This isn't about surviving the next decade — it's about building a body that's capable, resilient, and ready for whatever life throws at you. If you've been training around pain instead of through it, this episode will show you a better way forward.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Why do the best athletes train less intensely than you might think — and still get better results?In this episode, Ben, Cole, and Jamison break down the seven training principles that separate elite performance from burnout: warming up like you mean it, lifting with intention instead of ego, and understanding that pacing is the actual secret to getting fitter.You'll discover why training at 60% effort builds more capacity than going all-out every session, why rest days aren't optional, and how discipline beats intensity every single time.These aren't hacks — they're the fundamentals that create sustainable, lifelong strength. If you're training hard but not seeing results, this episode will change how you show up in the gym tomorrow.👉🏼 Get the full Listener's Guide here❤️‍🔥 Free Newsletter & the Chase Club👋 New to Chasing Excellence? Start here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.