Week 21 of 2024 has arrived. I am entitled to nothing. You are entitled to nothing.  None of this is yours. None of this is our birthright. You get NOTHING.  Nothing is fair.

I bet that sounds harsh.

But if you walk around with that as your operating system, you will be more pleasant to be around, and the world will be more wonderful for you. I don't understand where this entitlement comes from... I have it too...  maybe it's just a reaction to all the uncertainty of life... our way of trying to stick a flag in the ground and say "THIS IS MINE, I HAVE SOME CONTROL!!!" 

When my kids were younger and they would say "It's not fair!" I would remind them that they better hope things suddenly don't get "fair".  We would have a whole lot less if they did. That goes for you, too... If you are here, you are one of the lucky ones.

Time to walk over to your 4K Weeks poster and fill in another square.  Done?

The coaching and accountability group is full! If you are interested in being on the waitlist let me know with a reply to this email. It is going well, and I am learning a lot about what people need/want... and likely we will launch a "thing" before the end of the year!

Thanks for being here and reading. These emails help me "Sharpen The Saw" and hopefully help you to sharpen yours!

The 4K Weeks Brightsider... For the colorful among us.

The 4K Weeks Fade to Black - Memento Mori, Anyone?

The Original 4K Weeks... A Striking Visual of Your Life

Remarkable Weeks

Week  21 of 1919, A.E. Douglas achieved a significant milestone in archaeological dating by determining the chronological sequence of two archaeological sites through the analysis of ancient wood samples. He was 2,706.86 weeks old (51.91 yrs). 

Week  21 of 2000, Eminem dropped his third studio album, "The Marshall Mathers LP," breaking records as the fastest-selling studio album ever. The album's success earns Eminem the Grammy for Best Rap Album in 2001. He was 1,440.00 weeks old (27.61 yrs).

Week  21 of 2011, Oprah Winfrey, concludes her iconic twenty-five-year tenure hosting The Oprah Winfrey Show with her final episode. She was 2,990.71 weeks old (57.35 yrs).

This Week's Quote

Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore. -Andre Gide

It's terrifying. To let go of what you know to be "you" and tumble blindly, head over heels in to the darkness of what you could become.  It's terrifying because what if you don't find a new you to grasp on to?  What if you tumble and flail blindly in the dark forever?  What if you let go of what success you have had and you only find failure?  I don't have an answer to this "what if" fear. 

But.. I suppose I guess it depends on what failure is to you. Can you stomach the ridicule of the people on the shore as you sail off the end of the Earth? If you can, the adventure is likely worth it, because if adventure is the point, the only failure is staying on the known shore.  I am saying all this to myself... 

What I am Consuming This Week

There seemed to be an invisible thread to the stuff I randomly consumed this week... And that thread is near and dear to my heart... It's hard to articulate, and it applies to every aspect of life... Find something that you have a sustainable interest in, that you aren't as good at as you want to be. Work hard at getting better, peeling back a layer of the onion. Do that as long as there are layers of onion to be peeled back, your interest will ebb and flow, and often this won't be fun, it will be work, but it is noble, and the foundational basis for all greatness... this is the only healthy way to attempt to fill the hole at your core. Each one of these things talks about it from a different direction... but still.  Let me know if you feel the thread too.

• Philosophize This, #201 Resistance, Love, and the Importance of Failure. (Ziezek, Byung Chul Han)
• Philosophize This, #200 The Postmodern subject and "ideology without ideology" (Zizek, Byung Chul Han)
• Freakonomics Radio, #588 Confessions of a Black Conservative. Glen Loury.
• The Million Dollar Weekend, Noah Kagan 
• The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway.
• Freakonomics Radio, #587 Should Companies Be Owned by Their Workers? (new aspirational life goal unlocked... build a business and give it to the employees in a sweetheart deal)

Insta Nuggets:

• 100 shots a day is doable...
• Woahhhhh!
• I love Yuval

What I am Thinking About This Week

Sports and what they mean.

I am sculpting a portrait bust for a client... a female Olympian. For hours I have been staring at photos of her; striving, reaching down deep, both in triumph and defeat.

At the same time, I have been seeing a lot of talk about who is the greatest basketball player of all time... Everyone seems to have strong opinions.  I don't think it matters.

Think about the different levels of sport: men's, women's, pro, college, high school, t-ball. Why does anyone watch any sport below the highest level? 

Sport is about transcendence... if it was about the maximum talent and ability of the players, no one would watch high school sports... I mean seriously, the pros are better, why waste your time with these barely skilled adolescents.

Maximum skill isn't where the draw is in sport...And that's why all levels of sport can be thrilling to watch.  Female, male, young, old, skilled, unskilled.

When a person is set against adversity, where success is improbable, either as a team or an individual, and they rise to the occasion, it fills us up and makes us proud to be human... regardless of the skill level.

Sport is about the struggle, and how you react to it... Life is about the struggle and how you react to it. And no matter what happens, you always have the choice about how you react to it.  Always.

I guess the only difference is that in Sport you go to "practice" and the "games" are scheduled and in life you are always at "practice" whether you know it or not, and the "games" are unexpected and thrust upon you randomly... or not.

Have a great week!

Thanks for being a part of the journey with us! Please tell me if you liked/disliked the blog this week. Ask my wife... those are the only emails I like to get!

Spencer, Owner of 4KWeeks.com

Dad Joke O' The Week

Justice is a dish best served cold.

 If it were served warm, it would be just water.