Latest / The Uplift- with Luke Pollock / #29 - Solo Pod - 3 Mindset Shifts + Book Recommendations
Transcript
- Luke Pollock: it is stupid to claim that birds are better than frogs because they see farther or that frogs are better than birds because they see deeper. The world hero is both broad and deep. We need birds and frogs working together to explore it. Welcome back to the Uplift podcast. I'm Luke and I will be hosting the podcast today. It's a solo pod again and I'm gonna be sharing some thoughts I've been having this week. in relation to rehab and online business. I've been loving the Solar Podcast recently because that allows me to distill my thoughts that I've been having with clients, with content, and put them across in a nice long form way. And the feedback I get on them is pretty positive. So I'm going to keep making them while I keep enjoying them and while I keep on this journey. A question I've been asking myself a lot this week is what did I want to be when I grew up? Okay, it's what my grand always used to ask me. and what parents used to ask me and what everyone it was on the tip of everyone's tongue, when you are about to enter secondary school and they're starting to see your personality develop. And that's that's the question. I wonder what this human will be when they grow up. And the reason I've been asking myself this is 'cause I was asked to film a a day in the life video for Chump Rugby. Thought my life actually is quite unique now, you know. I spend a lot of time on my laptop in the day. And then I go and see some clients, and then I go to rugby, which is my other job. And that was never gonna be the answer when I was growing up. Probably because I didn't know it was a possibility. More than likely. I could have imagined this being a job when I was at school. and then also Just because it it didn't seem like it would fit the mold or it would be attractive. Yeah, I'd be a part-time rugby player and a part-time online physiotherapist. Like that isn't what you say as a child. You say you want to be one thing because that normally goes down well. And I've been playing around with that concept as I was filming the day in a life because I think I'm gonna make a video around that idea rather than just saying, this is what I did today. I ate this before training and then I went here. I just think that's quite boring content. So I've been playing around with making it a little bit more engaging and exciting for the audience and also portraying what I'm doing with the page and and the athletes that I'm trying to help, which are mostly rugby players. So I'm trying to keep them engaged. And I I wanted to record a podcast on the the idea of what you want to be when you grow up and the idea of of how that can change over time and how that's changed for me as well. It's a very hard question, I think, and I'm still not fully sure that this is what I want to do long term, but that's kind of okay. And there's a few books that I'll be quoting in this episode which should reaffirm the thought that that's okay. And a few books that I found really comforting to read at the time, which sort of flew in the face of everything that I was told and was guided towards, especially in school. And then I started thinking about. Why why am I here? Why am I in the place where I am right now? And it's probably because we go down a path quite early that we are told we should go down, even if not consciously, it's often subconscious. So you go into school, everyone does the same sports and the same subjects, and you start hearing what people are saying about you and to you. So For me in rugby it was my older brother saying to his friends, Luke's really good at rugby. That felt good at the time. I didn't really know why it felt good, but it felt good. it was also the coach saying, Well done, look, and give me a pat on the back after a game and me thinking, I'm actually quite good, I'm getting picked for the teams here. in school it was also, you know, less so or less of a standout student. So that wasn't reaffirmed I wasn't reaffirmed as much to keep studying and keep doing better in that field. In a different world, some of my friends, it was the opposite, right? So on the rugby pitch or on the football pitch, they weren't getting as much, well done, you're really good at this, and reaffirming beliefs. So they naturally drifted away from that. And it's an interesting thought experiment that if everyone was given the the same affirmation with every activity, no matter if they were good or bad at it, would the enjoyment levels increase and would their skill level increase over time? So for example, if we didn't have grades given in maths when we were younger and I wasn't told you're not that good at that subject, but I actually quite enjoyed it, but I just thought I wasn't that good at it, would the performance element allow me to enjoy it a little bit more? And then I would develop the skill and maybe I would become quite good at it because I'm enjoying it. Does that make sense? I'm saying does that make sense as if it's a person because I'm so used to saying that to clients and people on phone calls and video calls. Still getting used the podcast where I don't need to say that. That makes complete sense to me. and that's how we become really good at things over time. That's how big people become prof professionals at stuff because they're reaffirmed, they like how it makes them feel when they're in front of other people, when they display their skill, or where they get told you're really good at this. And it's more that feeling than we chase after than the actual act of doing the thing itself. I think we begin to love the act of doing the thing. And that is something that develops later. But everything in life when you're ten, eleven, twelve is play, is new, is exciting. And we only hold on to a few things that normally and normally it's the ones we're good at and we double down on the things we're good at. And that's just a really interesting idea because after school you sort of stop learning new things. So you sort of s you sort of has said this is my bed, I'm gonna lie in it, and this is the the hand I've been dealt and I'm gonna just accept that. And I think this week I have been toying around with the idea that I don't have to just be this, it can be other things later in life. yes, I'm super grateful for where I am right now and I'm super happy right now, but just because I am a physio doesn't mean that I have to always be a physio. Just because I run an online platform doesn't mean that I have to always do this. Just because I went down this path. Doesn't mean I have to do this forever. Just because I'm not musical, I don't play a musical instrument, doesn't mean that that has to be the case forever. I can teach myself and yeah, I can learn how to do that later in life. There's a good quote, Paul Millard, who wrote The Pathless Path, says, We must let go of the life we have planned so to accept the one that is waiting for us. And I think that it sort of alludes to what I have for you guys today. Quite often we have a life planned out for ourselves, don't we? and it's the life that seems secure and safe. And it's what our parents and our school teachers have told us to do. Sometimes we have to let go of those plans that other people have for us to discover what we actually want to do and what we actually have planned for ourselves. This will all come back and relate to injury. and I'm getting there. Don't worry. So COVID 19 was my pattern interrupt. What I mean by a pattern interrupt is you go through life and you're going from one thing to the next. So from school into GCSEs, your GCSE's results sort of pick what you do for A level, your A levels sort of pick what you do at university, your university degree sort of picks what you do for a job. But COVID 19 was my pattern interrupt. Okay. So I was going through the rugby thing. Rugby was going decently well. I had a backup degree in mind. And then boom, COVID hits. And suddenly Nothing really matters because everything's on standstill and we can just go back into that childlike state 'cause we can explore things when we're bored, when there's no pressure on, when that pattern of life is interrupted. And that is where the gold is. And this is how it's going to relate to injury. Major injuries such as ACL injuries and and ones that keep us out for six weeks plus are massive pattern interrupt to our lives. So quite often people can't go back to the to work or to school or to university. They can't go and see their sports friends that they normally see. So they're stuck. It's a bit of a pattern interrupt. And I can think back to different times in my life where I've had these major pattern interrupts. The year I took off rugby when I was fifteen, major pattern interrupt. It's such a fun fundamental year for me. COVID 19, such a fundamental time for me. NHS pattern interrupt, such a fundamental time for me. My starting starting my job in the NHS, sorry, was just like a pattern interrupt to my university life, which was a big time for me, a big change. And these times are really, really valuable. It's quite often where you learn what you want out of life and what you don't want. So COVID 19 was huge for me because I started reading and I was naturally curious about the things I was reading in these books. quite often they were to do with business, finance, money, but other times sport and creativity. And I was just naturally picking up books and reading them. And then my mind was just getting open more and more open to different ideas and concepts. And I couldn't believe that I was still learning, even though I was finished school. And that was pretty cool to me. That and it was the first time I realized I can kinda do whatever I want because these guys are telling me these authors are telling me that I can. I read The Pathless Path when I was nineteen, I think. Which is I'm so grateful I did. And I would really recommend if anyone who hasn't read that book and is feeling a little bit stuck in their position that they read that book. And it it's not that you have to rip up the script and start again like he like Paul Millard did, but it it just gives you an idea of what is possible and that the path you're on right now might not have to be the path that you stay on just because someone's picked that for you. And I understand that this is a extremely luxurious position to be in. But I think that is the exact reason that you should do it. That if you're feeling these things, you should act on them because not everyone has the luxury to be sitting with a brand new iPhone and listening to podcasts on their commute home from their comfortable job. Not everyone has that luxury. And therefore, if they did, they would make the change that you want to make. Sometimes our comfort is the exact thing, keeping us where we need to be. That quote, we must let go of the life we've planned to accept the one that's waiting for us. Sometimes the life that's waiting for you and is on the other side of this pattern interrupt and that we need to go grab grab it. So yeah, after after COVID 19, I started reading. I knew I wanted to own business and That was the first time I'd realized that when I when I was in COVID and I started reading books and I was like, why am I so interested in in these books? Like these are completely fascinating to me and nothing felt that easy to learn in school. so yeah, that was a really, really cool time. And I look back and credit a lot of the things I'm using now, a lot of the skills I'm using now were back like five years ago, six years ago, from these books I've read. Like I've revisited the highlights for this podcast. From some of those books I read at that time, which is which is pretty crazy, to be honest. And this is just a natural indicator. These pattern interrupts will be a natural indicator of what you gravitate towards. So I think when you're going through a long-term injury, when you're struggling with the monotony of life and you get a pattern interrupt, pay attention to where you naturally gravitate towards. Aside from like the the na the easy dopamine wins of such as social media, scrolling on your phone, when you're bored, when you've had your fill of that and you can't take anymore, where do you naturally gravitate towards? Is it to books? Is it to playing an instrument? Is it to walking and talking with mates? What is it that you naturally gravitate towards? Our greatest strength is the exact opposite of narrow specialization. It is the ability to integrate broadly. And this is book from David Epstein called Range. And this book was so fundamental to me because I was very fixated on the idea that you could be good at one thing and be especially good at that one thing. And it came from a rugby background. Like you need to just be really good at rugby. And that is you. Like you're a rugby player. So when I read the book Range and it was actually saying, you know, some of the best athletes in the world, like Roger Federer, were really good at loads and loads and loads of different things when he was growing up. If you do nothing else, just go read the first few chapters of Range today. He describes the difference between Federer and Tiger Woods in the early days. And it's important to remember that 99% of people are Federa. They have natural instinct instincts in more than one thing. They're not told to pick up a golf club at the age of two, like Tiger Woods was. And that makes for a more rounded and better person. And it was the first time I had learned actually I can pull from these different areas of my life and sort of create whatever. whatever I want to and I don't have to be hyper specialized in one thing. It's instead I can have an ability to integrate things quite broadly. And that's a superpower. And I think that is ultimately what my job is now. I'm a physio, so that part of my life is ticked off, I suppose, for lack of a better term. But I'm also a rugby player. So I feel like I can serve other rugby players quite well because I understand what they go through. But Also really, really interested in self-help and reading books and and finance, and that's serving the business aspect quite well. And I'm also as an add-on to the self-help, I can really give my athletes some good advice about what to explore during this long-term injury. Like this podcast will go to a lot of my athletes who are out for long-term injury, struggling with the identity thing, struggling with maybe I've just I'm away from my sport, I don't really know what to do. Pick up something new, find where you naturally gravitate towards. Be careful not to be too careful, or you will unconsciously limit your exploration. It's another quote from Range by David Epstein. And he's actually quoting someone else, but he's saying, Be careful not to be too careful, or you will unconsciously limit your exploration. And I think that's such a good advice for someone going through school, someone going through university. And there's a path that you're meant to follow and you know that path. Be careful not to just follow that path blindly. Not saying you have to rip up the script completely. Sometimes the paths are for a reason, but just be careful that you're not being too careful. Otherwise you will limit your exploration. You will limit what's possible for yourself. And yeah, I know it's maybe a little bit woo-woo to to some of you, but these concepts have really changed the way I think. And revisiting them the this week have been really nice because I was just recording that day in the life, the other day and I was like, This is so rubbish. I don't wanna do this, I don't wanna be like everyone else saying I do this thing, then this thing. And then I thought actually I am unique and I am different and I've had different life experiences and then the book Range came to mind and then I started rereading the highlights of range and now I'm here recording this podcast, which is something when I was in school, I actually did say I wanted to do podcasts when I was like seven, sixteen, seventeen in school, which is pretty crazy. But It was never a career option, right? And it's still not a career for me, but it's not out of the possi realms of possibility. You know, I I'm fully believed one day it could be if I wanted it to be, if I so desire that for myself. 'cause you can make things happen. You just have to expand the time horizon, put time and effort into it, improve the skill and and don't limit your learning to skill. Don't limit your career to what people told you you were good at. You can be good at multiple different things and you just need to explore those with a A childlike state. Wonder is a state of being open to the world, its beauty and potential and possibilities. So allow yourself to fall into a state of wonder. And that's what COVID-19 was for me. It was a pattern interrupt to my life. Look out for those pattern interrupts. When you look back at them, the injury, the breakup, the the COVID-19, the pandemic, the long period on unemployment. you fall into a state of wonder. I wonder what this would be like. I wonder what that would be like. And that that what is wonder? It's a state of being open to the world, its beauty and its potential and its possibilities. And that's a beautiful state to be in. Don't try and take yourself out of wonder when you're in those places. The phrase like, I'll come back to Earth is the worst phrase possible. Wonder. Allow yourself to drift off. See where you naturally end up. This is a really good indicator of where you will naturally gravitate towards and where your skills might align best. And you can keep evolving your skills, like I mentioned at the start. You don't have to stick at being good at good at maths or good at physics, or I'm really good with numbers, so this is why I did this, or I'm really good at talking to people, so that's why I'm a therapist. You don't have to, you can change these things later in life. Two books for you: The Pathless Path by Paul Millard and Range by David Epstein. Really, really helpful books. I think, in a world which preaches hyper specialization, range is so powerful. we don't have to be specialized. We're not designed to be specialized. We can be be good and enjoy multiple different things. And it's not even that we have to make money off all these things. Sometimes I can be really guilty of that. Like, I'm enjoying this. How can I monetize it? But you don't have to. Some things can just be enjoyable for this state of being enjoyable. So get off your phones, stop scrolling, stop being Stop following the path that you you think you have to. Read a book. It will just change how you think about things. And if you are injured and you're struggling with this period of injury and being away, I really hope this has helped you. consider that you're more than just an athlete. You're more than just your sport. And this is a really, really nice pattern interrupt for your life. And you will look back in this time and be so thankful for the pattern interrupt. You'll be thankful that you finally got your head above water and you see. You see them where you've been the whole time and you see actually, can I dive a bit deeper into this thing? Can I look, can I dive deeper into my sport by looking elsewhere? Learning from other people, learning from other industries, and that will help me get better in my sport. be the Roger Federer, don't be the Tiger Woods. Thank you for listening. I'll catch you on the next one. This is a a slower episode, some of my thoughts from the week. If you enjoyed it, please let me know. Message me at LookPolk online. If you're a friend or family, message me on WhatsApp and let me know how you find it. These episodes are the ones I enjoy most, to be honest. I will go back to interviewing people. But you know, it's kind of it's kind of my business. So I just I can just deciding to do whatever I want, which is which is pretty nice also. I understand that the the interviews are probably the wise thing to do 'cause they bring more traction to the podcast itself, but ultimately this podcast is for me and my my close listeners and close friends. So if that's if you're one of them, thank you. And drop the drop the podcast a follow, leave it five stars and have a really, really nice day and a good week. Thanks.