Something wise

Earlier this year, a small-business owner wrote into Feedback Friday asking me to connect him with a guy I knew years ago who sold “money pills” — literally, supplements that change your “money genes” and make you richer.
​

(‘Cuz those are definitely a thing, and they can definitely be altered by pills that go for $3,000 a pop. Insane.)

​

It was a weird request, because the money-pills dealer in question — a scammy life coach named Carl — died a long time ago, as I mentioned when I told the story of how I met him.
​

Even weirder — the whole point of that story was that Carl was a complete and utter fraud.

​

And yet here was a guy who was apparently capable enough to run a small business, and sincerely interested in shelling out thousands of dollars for a pill that would enable him to make more money.
​

Now, I know this is an easy story to laugh at.
​

Anyone who would buy into this stuff has got to be questionable. In other words, vulnerable.

​

I mean, he didn’t even listen properly to the original story.

​

Or, if he did, he couldn’t pick up on the heavy dose of irony when I described Carl’s absurd techniques.

​

And I can’t even begin to imagine what kind of psychology and life experience would lead a person to believe that taking a supplement could increase their bank balance.
​

So I have compassion for folks like this.
​

What I have less compassion for — and what really struck me about this letter — is how many people out there are hungry for quick fixes to their problems.

​

Get-rich-quick schemes.

​

Life hacks.

​

Rapid mindset shifts.

​

​Phony “mentorship” circles.

​

Shortcuts to healing.

​

Or, you know, pills that rewrite your “money DNA.”
​

And look — I get it.
​

Improving yourself isn’t easy.
​

It takes discipline, courage, vulnerability, a willingness to make incremental progress over a long period of time, and a sh*t ton of work.

​

If I could press a button or take a pill or pay someone to fast-forward through the hard part and get to the promised land, I’d do it too.
​

But those shortcuts are a total fiction.
​

They’re designed to prey on the part of you — which exists in all of us — that wants to believe you can make real progress without putting in the work.

​

Anything that promises a rapid, life-changing shortcut to success is always suspect.
​

But what this attraction to shortcuts says about us — that’s still extremely useful to understand.

​

Because clever hacks and easy solutions always reveal the areas where we need to grow.

​

They reveal our avoidance.
​

They reveal our resistance.

​

They reveal our narcissism.

​

They reveal our desires.

​

They reveal our fear.
​

They reveal the things we want so badly, but won’t put in the work to achieve.

​

All of which are super important things to confront — far more important than the supposed results of these silver bullets.

​

So whenever you find yourself drawn to quick fixes, ask yourself what experience that product is helping you avoid.

​

I can almost guarantee you that it’s some combination of discomfort, adversity, responsibility, frustration and shame.
​

That’s the real product these hucksters are selling.

​

Not the results, but the fantasy.

​

Look for the feeling or process they say you can skip.

​

That’s where your work begins.
​

And if you’re interested in hearing how this idea played out in a listener’s life…

​

Just listen to episode #977, where we took that letter from that guy asking for the hookup on Carl’s money pills.

​

All jokes aside, his question spoke to a tendency in all of us to avoid the hard work necessary to achieve the things we want the most.
​

Even if you’d never shell out thousands of dollars for a bogus life coach’s BS supplements, you might notice a similar tendency in yourself to cramp around certain experiences — which is the first step to knowing what you actually need to do.

​

Have you found this principle to be true in your world? Struggling to make use of it?

​

Hit reply and tell me about it. I’m all ears!

​

On the show this past week

​1098: Sanctioned Spank Sparks Sibling Split | Feedback Friday​

​

​1099: Syria | Out of the Loop​

​

Support Our Sponsors

Want to share Wee Bit Wiser with family and friends? Visit jordanharbinger.com/news to explore all our posts.