Friday Forward by Robert Glazer

In this inspiring episode of *Mind Set in Stone Podcasts,* Dave and Poppy delve into *Friday Forward* by Robert Glazer, a collection of stories and insights designed to motivate and empower readers to live with purpose. 

They discuss Glazer’s lessons on leadership, resilience, and personal growth, highlighting the small but powerful actions that can drive significant change in our lives and work. Whether you’re looking for a fresh start, a boost of motivation, or ways to deepen your impact, this episode provides practical wisdom for fostering a positive mindset. 

Join us for a conversation that will leave you ready to finish the week strong and start the next even stronger!

Thank you for tuning in to this episode of Mind Set in Stone Podcasts. If you enjoyed our deep dive, be sure to subscribe and leave us a review! Share your thoughts with us on social media, and let us know which book you’d like us to explore next. Until next time, keep your mind set in stone and your curiosity open.

This has been a Big L Riz Media Podcast—where big ideas meet lasting impressions.

Transcript

Welcome to Mind Set in Stone Podcasts, where we dive deep into the most compelling books on the shelf. Join hosts Dave and Poppy as they uncover the stories, themes, and ideas that shape our understanding and inspire curiosity. Get ready to explore the big ideas that leave a lasting impact.

Let's get started.

Welcome to your deep dive. Today, we're really diving into capacity building, pushing your potential as far as it can go. And our guide for this is Robert Glazer's Friday Forward.

You've given us a really interesting mix to work with excerpts from the book itself, which lay out why this even matters. And then, bam, we jump into some really seriously inspiring stories.

It's a really clever approach. Actually, Glazer could have just given us like a dry how-to manual.

Yeah.

But by weaving in these real-life examples, it makes the whole thing so much more impactful.

Right, like we all know we should be pushing ourselves, but then you hear about some guy climbing Mount Everest with one lung wing, and suddenly your to-do list doesn't seem so bad.

A power of perspective. And speaking of, we will be getting to Sean Swarner and his incredible journey later on.

Can't wait. But first, let's unpack Glazer's framework a bit. The four capacities.

Now, this isn't like some universally accepted model. This is just how he organizes this whole idea of maximizing your potential, which I know I kind of like that.

Yeah, it feels more personal. You know, like an invitation to explore your own journey with this stuff rather than some strict set of rules.

Exactly. So, within this framework, we have spiritual, intellectual, physical and emotional capacities. We'll take a quick tour through each one.

That's good. Why don't we start with spiritual capacity? And right off the bat, it's important to say that this isn't just about religion.

Right. It's about something much deeper.

Exactly. Glazer's talking about knowing yourself at a much more fundamental level, like your core values, your purpose in life. It's about aligning your actions with what truly matters to you and creating that sense of inner harmony.

So, it's like you got to figure out what makes you tick and then make sure your life actually reflects that.

Precisely. Now, next up is intellectual capacity. And once again, this goes way beyond just being smart.

It's more about always looking to learn and grow right.

Yeah. It's about constantly upgrading how you think, always learning, planning strategically, and then actually having the discipline to execute those plans.

Like treating your brain like a muscle. You got to keep it working out.

Exactly. Now, moving over to physical capacity, Glazer emphasizes something really important here. It's not just about going to the gym five days a week.

There's got to be more to it than just exercise, right?

Absolutely. He really highlights the important role of sleep, stress management, and just your overall well-being in reaching your full potential.

Which is a good reminder that this whole hustle culture thing we've got going on, it can really backfire if you're not taking care of yourself.

You can't pour from an empty cup. And that leads us perfectly into the final capacity, emotional capacity. This one is huge.

Yeah, it kind of feels like this one underpins all the others in a way.

You could definitely make that argument. It's all about learning how to manage your reactions to challenges, building strong, healthy relationships, and developing your resilience in the face of setbacks.

So, it's less about who you are emotionally and more about what you do with those emotions. It's a skill set.

Exactly. And what's so fascinating is how Glazer shows that these capacities are all interconnected. You can't truly elevate one without impacting the others.

They all work together.

It's like a system then.

Yeah, you could say that. It's all about understanding that interplay between your spiritual, intellectual, physical and emotional capacities and how they all come together to contribute to a more fulfilling life.

Right. Like, yeah, crushing it at the gym is great. But if your emotional well-being is a wreck, it's not going to magically fix everything else.

Exactly. And that actually brings us to a fascinating study Glazer talks about in the book that links back to Holocaust rescuers. This is incredible research on how our values are shaped.

Oh, yeah. This study was wild. It wasn't just about parents punishing their kids for bad behavior, but it was about explaining the why behind the rules.

The rescuers' parents, they emphasize moral principles, like this fundamental respect for all human beings.

And those values stuck with them. Even when they were faced with unimaginable danger. It really shows the power of not just telling people what's right, but helping them to understand the deeper reasons, the moral core behind those values.

And speaking of aiming high, let's talk about BHAs, Big Hairy Audacious Goals, which I kind of love that acronym Glazer uses the Apollo 11 mission as like the ultimate example. And seriously, what better BHA is there than putting a man on the moon?

It's a phenomenal example of what we can achieve when we dare to dream big, and then back it up with pure commitment. And you got to keep in mind, they achieved this with technology that seems practically prehistoric by today's standards.

Right. Like my phone has more processing power than the Apollo computer. It really puts into perspective how many limitations are self-imposed.

Where there's a will, there's a way.

Exactly. And you know what else is crucial for those BHAs? Specificity.

Saying something vague like let's enhance our space capabilities, just wouldn't have been as powerful.

It wouldn't have captured the imagination, would it? But that specific goal, put a man on the moon, it just had this clarity, this ambition that really rallied people.

Absolutely. And a clearly defined and ambitious goal can be incredibly motivating. And not just for individuals, but for entire teams, even competitors.

Remember, even companies that were rivals in every other way. They put that all aside to contribute to the Apollo mission.

No, that is something you don't see every day. That's wild. It's like that shared goal.

It just transcended everything else. Okay, shifting gears now to something I think everyone can relate to. The constant battle of urgent versus important.

This is where Glazer brings in the Eisenhower Matrix.

Ah, yes, a classic, but still such a valuable tool. It really helps us to see the difference between what is truly important in the grand scheme of things and what just feels urgent in the moment.

Which, let's be real, is so easy to get caught up in. Our brains practically light up when we feel like we're putting out fires left and right.

It's true, we're hardwired that way. But as Glazer points out, if we're constantly just reacting to urgent, but ultimately less important tasks, we'll never have the time or the energy for the things that actually move us forward in meaningful ways. You end up just feeling kind of blah at the end of the day.

Like, yeah, I was busy. But did I actually do anything, anything that really matters?

100 percent. You were saying earlier how all four of those capacities are connected, right? Like, if you're always neglecting what's truly important because you're constantly just putting out fires, stuff that feels super urgent in the moment, it's going to throw things out of whack.

Exactly. And that actually reminds me of another story Glazer tells. It's about Anne Miracle, this venture capitalist, who actually started out as, get this, a world-class admin assistant.

I love this story. It really proves how important it is to just strive for excellence in everything you do. Even if it's not your dream job.

Not yet, anyway.

Exactly. You never know who's watching. And for Anne, her dedication to doing even the smallest tasks really well, it caught the eye of someone who ended up opening up a world of opportunity for her.

Right. She got on the radar of the Dean of Engineering at her university, who just happened to be friends with, wait for it, Lou Platt.

Lou Platt, like the Lou Platt, CEO of Hewlett-Packard Lou Platt.

The one and only. And that connection, that only happened because she was totally killing it as an admin assistant. That changed her whole career trajectory.

It's a perfect example of how excellence can open doors you didn't even know existed. Like Glazer is saying, even if no one's out there handing out gold stars for it, doing your absolute best, it's its own reward.

And that whole idea, that commitment to excellence, no matter what the task is, it actually ties into another concept. Glazer talks about clutch performance, that ability to just show up and perform at your peak seemingly without even trying.

What's so interesting is that Glazer, he doesn't think those moments, those in-the-zone moments are really about luck, or some kind of natural born talent.

He uses the example of Olympic athletes who, shockingly enough, don't just magically show up to the Olympics ready to win gold medals.

Right. It takes years, sometimes even decades, of dedicated practice discipline, pushing past your limits to be able to perform at that level. And it's not just athletes either.

This applies to anything, business, art, music, you name it.

It's like nailing that big presentation or getting through a really difficult conversation with someone and you handle it gracefully. Those moments, they don't just happen. Glazer would say that those moments are a result of all the work you've been putting in behind the scenes.

Yeah. It's a good reality check for us all. Because if you find that you're only really rising to the occasion, every now and then, it might be time to take a step back and look at how you're showing up the rest of the time in those moments when you think no one's watching.

It's about consistency and dedication.

Okay, listeners, buckle up because this next story, it's a really remarkable one. We're talking about Sean Swarner.

Sean's story is such a powerful testament to just the unbelievable resilience of the human spirit. This guy battled cancer, not once, but twice.

If that wasn't enough, he's also dealing with the challenge of having only one working lung.

Yet despite all of that, he climbed Mount Everest.

Mount Everest. I remember reading that and just being floored. It's like the ultimate example of pushing your physical capacity to the absolute limit.

But what really struck me was just his attitude.

He's not walking around like he's this extraordinary person. He genuinely believes that we all have that same capacity for resilience inside of us.

He's like a walking, talking reminder that even on our worst days, someone out there is showing us what's possible, that we have way more strengths than we realize.

And that actually leads us to another concept that I think is so important, especially in the world we live in today, energy vampires. You know, the people who just suck the life out of you and leave you feeling totally depleted.

Oh, we all know a few, right.

Glazer makes a really important distinction between two types of energy vampires. First, you've got the temporary ones. These are the people who are maybe going through something difficult, and they might just need a little bit of extra support from us, which, hey, we all need that sometime.

Of course, we've all been there.

Right. But then, you've got the inherent energy vampires. The ones who, no matter what, always seem to bring you down.

And those are the people you've really got to set some boundaries with?

100%. Protecting your energy is so essential. You can't pour from an empty cup.

You need to make sure you're giving your energy to people and things that lift you up, not drain you dry.

It's like being really intentional about where you invest your energy, being mindful of who and what you're letting impact your emotional state.

Exactly. And speaking of things that can impact your emotional state, Glazer also digs into the concept of cognitive dissonance, which basically, it boils down to this. We often justify our choices, even our bad choices, to make ourselves feel better about them.

Tell me about it. It's like when you stick with something for way too long, just because you've already put in so much time and energy, even though you know deep down, it's not the right path for you anymore.

Exactly. Or like convincing yourself that something you bought was worth it, even though you know you totally blew your budget. We all do it.

It's a way to protect our egos, you know, and avoid that itchy feeling of regret.

So, is Glazer saying we shouldn't try to avoid that feeling of regret?

Not necessarily. It's more about being able to recognize when that feeling is being driven by cognitive dissonance. Because becoming aware of that tendency, that's what allows us to actually learn from our mistakes and then make better decisions moving forward.

It's all part of cultivating that growth mindset we were talking about earlier.

Like once you see it, you can't unsee it. You start to notice it everywhere.

Exactly. And that actually reminds me of another inspiring story from the book, Dr. Mary Claire King. Talk about a tough week.

She went through a divorce. Her house was robbed. And to top it all off, her own mother abandoned her.

And if I'm remembering right, didn't all of that happen within a few days?

All in one week. And yet, during that same awful week, she makes a major breakthrough in breast cancer research, the BRCA1 gene.

Wow. It's unbelievable. It really makes you wonder, what if she had given up?

How many lives would have been impacted?

It's a real testament to her resilience and the importance of having a strong support system. She had a mentor who really encouraged her to keep going, even when she felt like giving up.

It really shows how important mentors are.

Right. And having those good support systems, they can literally be the difference between giving up and changing the world.

No doubt about it. Sometimes all we need is that one person, someone who really believes in us, someone to remind us of our own strength when we've lost sight of it.

So true. Okay, last story. And this one's a good one.

It's about this kid, a claw machine. You know those things.

The ones that are basically designed for you to fail.

Exactly. So, Glazer's son is trying to win this little mini basketball, but he's all out of money. And this other kid, who's basically a claw machine master, he sees what's going on.

And what does he do? He uses his own money to win it for him.

Oh, that is so nice.

Right. And get this. When Glazer tries to pay the kid back, he's like, nope, tells Glazer to give the money to another kid instead.

Wow. Talk about a random act of kindness and those ripple effects it creates. Such a simple thing, but so powerful.

It's a good reminder that we all have the power to make a difference, you know? And it doesn't have to be some big grand gesture or donating a ton of money. It's about just being present, being aware of those little opportunities we have to spread a little kindness.

It's like that question Glazer asks his readers. He's like, what's your 50-cent act of kindness today? And it's such a good question because it makes you stop and think, like, what can I do?

It helps us to think small, to realize that even the tiniest gestures can have a big impact.

And it brings us right back to those four capacities we were talking about. It's like a full circle moment, that act of kindness. It's an expression of spiritual capacity, emotional capacity, all of it.

It's all connected. And that's what makes these stories, these ideas so powerful. It's not about mastering one specific thing.

It's about seeing how everything, all these different parts of ourselves work together.

Man, I feel like we just ran a marathon through Glazer's Friday Forward. So many great stories, so many things to think about.

It really highlights the power of storytelling, doesn't it? That's how we connect as humans, how we learn and grow.

100%.

And if there's just one thing, I want you to take away from all of this, it's that this journey, this journey of maximizing your potential, it's not about reaching some kind of finish line, it's about always striving to be the best and best version of yourself that you can be.

It's all about embracing that growth mindset, realizing that challenges, setbacks, those are all just opportunities, opportunities to learn and grow.

Love it. Okay, listeners, here's something for you to think about. Think back to a time when you really felt inspired.

What capacity was at play for you in that moment and how can you tap into that more in your everyday life?

We hope you're leaving with fresh insights and a spark of inspiration. Remember to subscribe, leave a review, and check back for more episodes as we dive into new worlds of thought, one book at a time. Until then, keep your mind set in stone and your curiosity open.

This has been a Big L Riz Media Podcast, where big ideas meet lasting impressions.