Week 38 of 2023 has arrived. They are repaving the street near my house.  In fact, the entire city seems to be choking on construction projects racing to beat the winter. Winter is coming!

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

Think about how magical the repaving of a street is... how much human cooperation it takes just to get hot asphalt!

I see the Facebook posts that denigrate modern roads compared to Ancient Roman roads with the punchline "... and then the engineers showed up..." It always galls me... The modern world is amazing, and we are lucky to be living in it. There are no "good old days". These are the good days.

I have received quite a few messages lately about the newsletter, specifically mentioning the content and the tone, and how much you enjoy/appreciate it.

I can't tell you how much fuel those messages give me. Thanks!

If you enjoy the newsletter, forward it to a friend!

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The 4K Weeks Brightsider-A Multicolor Extravaganza

The 4K Weeks Long View-A Different Horizon

Remarkable Weeks

Week #38 in the year 1986, Stephen King publishes It, his 22nd novel and the best-selling hard cover novel in the United States that year. He was 2034.14 weeks old. (39.01 yrs)

Week #38 in the year 2014, British actress Emma Watson delivers an address to a standing ovation at UN Headquarters in New York City, helping launch the UN Women campaign HeForShe, which calls for men to advocate for gender equality.  She was 1274.57 weeks old. (24.44yrs)

Week #38 in the year 2018, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes sets an NFL record of 10 touchdowns in the first two weeks of a season. Mahomes's career accolades through six seasons in the NFL have earned him widespread praise from sports journalists.  He is considered to be one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history (... and he is just really fun to watch!) He was 1200.00 weeks old.  (23.01 yrs)

Week #38 in the year 1968, Mickey Mantle hits his final career home run, #536.  He had an 18 year career in the MLB. Mantle played center fielder and first baseman for the New York Yankees for 18 seasons, from 1951 to 1968.  He was 1926.43 weeks old.  (36.94yrs)

This Week's Quote

"Nature takes away any faculty that is not used." -William Inge

I think about this often in this way...  there are only three positions for your personal progress "switch".

You can either be:

Getting Better

Static

Getting Worse

...and, you can't stay on "Static" for more than an instant...If you think you are stuck on "Static", you are actually getting worse.

I don't mean to make it sound stressful and fraught... but it is true.

An object in motion tends to stay in motion... headed in the same direction... unless acted on by an outside force.  You have to be the force that pushes yourself forward.

It doesn't have to be a huge lift... a small directional shift will do. "I think I can, I think I can, I think I can..."

Let nature take away your desire to be listless and numb, not your ability to be the best you can be... because you are a miracle. Show the rest of us what life is like when you live your life like the humble star of a Rock Opera.

What I am Consuming This Week

Austin Kleon, "Further Notes on Scenius", Essay.  My wife sent me this short article, and it is awesome.  I have been thinking about ego a lot lately... It has been a topic in a few of this week's bits of content, so the concept of "egosystem" vs "ecosystem" really spoke to me. I was thinking about the answer to the question "What do you think of yourself?" yesterday, and it struck me that the correct answer is some version of "I try not to think of myself that often."

Revisionist History, "Guns Part 3: A Shooting Lesson". ...Where Malcolm Gladwell, a card carrying liberal elite, shoots an AR-15, and takes the gun control advocate to task for not being intellectually honest.

Rich Roll Podcast: "Facebook Whistleblower Frances Haugen".  I guess I hadn't heard much about this... which is interesting... How do you feel about the algorithm, optimized for "engagement" choosing the flavor of your social media bubble?

Rich Roll Podcast: "Steven Bartlett, Mastering Business and Life". I had no idea who this guy was. I think it was the subtitle that got me..."Outside the box lessons on mindset, ambition, vulnerability..." I really enjoyed their conversation... so much so that I bought his book...

Diary of a CEO, The 33 Laws of Business and Life. Steven Bartlett I ordered this after I listened to the above podcast... I don't have much in common with Steven... He seems to turn everything he touches into gold!  But I am only on chapter two and already four or five solid gold nuggets. I hate the subtitle though... If any publishers are listening, can we please stop with the "50 laws, 13 rules", etc...!?

This Non-Alcoholic Beer from Go Brewing. Joe, the owner, is a 4K Weeks customer, and he sent me an email about the newsletter.  I noticed his email signature, clicked through to their site, and ordered some of their craft NA beer... It is delicious! 5 stars! (Not sponsored... I just liked it.)

These Insta Nuggets

• Bob Ross at his best...
• This Wild and Crazy Guy dropping truth bombs.
• Having trouble getting started on your most important work?

What I am Thinking About This Week

"I don’t know what’s going to happen in my future, but I do know I am alive this day and I’m deeply grateful for everything that happens for good and for bad.”

This quote is from the Tim Ferriss podcast with Arthur Brooks.  Time: 2:36:50.

I sent the episode to my Mastermind group and one of the guys said it is his favorite Tim Ferriss podcast ever.  High praise.

This is a statement that Arthur heard from a Pediatric Oncologist... tough work.  And he would tell parents of newly diagnosed children to begin the practice of saying this each morning when they wake up.

The truth is, everything is uncertain except for this instant, and I am deeply grateful for it. Who knows if this is even the good part of existence... maybe we are all just in the waiting room, or maybe this is heaven... it's hard to know. But, when looking back over 46 years of living, I have found meaning in nearly all the good and bad things that have happened to me.

It is so easy to get caught up in the micro-bummers of day to day life... but even spilled coffee, while not my prefered outcome, is still amazing!

I am going to print this out, put it above the sink, and start saying this to myself every morning. (edit: My Wife proofreads the emails before I schedule them... and she wrote it on a post it note and put it above my sink... I LOLed when I saw it last night, and then read it to myself this morning. She is the BEST! )

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

How do you drown a hipster? In the Mainstream!

Bonus sent in by Greg (thanks Greg!):

What did my brother say when I asked him to hand me the leaflet? Brochure!