this edition of the [no hustle] huddle went out on Mon 6th November 2023

While gathering research for Beyond The Pale, I interviewed Kamal Ravikant.

It was a pretty big deal for me as Kamal’s written some of my favorite books. I admire his mind, approach, outlook, and general aura … so as I sat down to ask him questions, nerves rumbled within.

And then, within the first few minutes, he stopped me in my tracks…

“That’s a broad question,” he said. “If you want a specific answer, you need to ask me a specific question.”

Hot damn. Flushed cheeks and a few stutters later, I settled down and found my groove. We both did, and a natural and wonderful conversation followed ?‍?

I often think of this call. I think about what he said about questions, and how he told me about the problem with BROAD ones — and how most of us ask nothing but broad questions, yet still hope to somehow find specific, meaningful answers.

This changed how I not only saw questions but my (indeed, most peoples’) relationship with growth, problem-solving, and the general rinse-and-repeat cycle of personal development … how we try something, falter, quit, try something new, and around and around for oh-so-long ?

That chat with Kamal acted as a tipping point for me ?

It didn’t give me any answers per se, but that’s the whole point.

Instead, it helped me appreciate the value of QUESTIONS.

And that’s a big deal, as we’ll soon see … but first ??

from the [no hustle] community

Minimalist Lifestyle Benefits: How To Achieve More with Less — Here’s a recent article that dives into three uber-important questions and explores why they’re so important to ask.

Minimalism For Mental Health — 3 Questions To Untether Your Mind — A video that expands beyond the article, delving deeper still into these questions.

3 actions to take this week

? bookmark this → Niklas Göke shares this great list of underappreciated books, including one of my faves from Kamal … a great collection that includes some I’ve read, but many I haven’t (excited to add a few of these to my list).

? watch this → Speaking of great books … here are five more, this time from avid reader Nat Eliason who has a wonderful way with words and a great approach to decoding books and distilling the insights you need from them.

? DO THIS → Question Your Motives — spend a few minutes thinking about what you currently pursue and critically analyze it. Are you pursuing what you want? If so, are you asking the right questions? OR are you hoping to find specific answers via broad questions you’ve picked up from others along the way?

this week’s featured book

Don’t Let Fear Have All The Fun by Monique Malcolm — A fine, hidden gem of a book from Monique that serendipitously helps you focus on the right questions so you can overcome fear, take the steps you need to, and regain control of your life.

?️ pass the mic

When I think about the books and minds behind them that have helped me ask “better” questions, Mark Manson rises to the top of the list.

What I love about Mark’s approach—not just through his books, but articles, videos, podcasts, et al—is that he guides you toward the questions YOU need to ask.

But not generic ones for everyone … Instead, he lays down thoughts in a thought-provoking way that forces you to think about how they relate to you, your life, and your current situation.

? drop the mic

We’re a society obsessed with answers. We crave them. Need them. Don’t feel fulfilled unless we have them. Spend our entire lives searching for them, which is why there’s such a huge market for self-development books ?

Most of them don’t work, not because the book is bad, but rather those reading them don’t know what they want to get out of them ?

They simply turn to all the books, courses, training, and experts in the hope they will one day stumble across “the” answer ⛔

This is what Kamal helped me see ?

I did the same thing, not just asking him broad questions in the hope of him delivering an amazing, specific, and meaningful answer … I did this with life in general, throwing broad questions out into the universe hoping to hit the jackpot.

How silly of me; how silly of us.

If you want a real answer, you first need to ask a real question. Yet the questions we need to ask aren’t always easy to find. They remain hidden under the surface, blocked by stress, responsibility, hustle culture, limited beliefs, fears, etc ?

To find them, you need to slow down and take your time ?‍?

Dive deep. Embrace the discomfort that searching for questions brings.

It’s gritty work. Searching for answers is fun. But questions… that’s hard.

Yet without the right questions, you’ll never uncover the right answers ❤️

Thanks for reading today … if you know someone who needs to see this, please forward the email and encourage them to subscribe ?

And YOU ? I’d love to hear from you and your thoughts on this whole Question vs Answer paradox … what have you taken away from today’s message?

How do you feel right now ?

Reply and share ?? thanks for being here, and thank you for being YOU.

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