I’m 45. If I Was 20 Again, Here’s What I’d Do

Summary

Dan Martell, a successful entrepreneur at 45, reflects on what he would advise his 20-year-old self, offering 60 insightful lessons. From valuing time over distractions, emphasizing consistency over intensity, and viewing money as a tool rather than a goal, Dan provides a checklist for living a fulfilled life. He stresses the importance of making commitments to yourself, learning to say no, and focusing on long-term goals. The video is a treasure trove of wisdom, encouraging viewers to embrace opportunities, invest in personal growth, and lead with purpose.

Highlights

• Stop waiting for the perfect time; make the time perfect. ⏳
• Invest in tools that save you time, not just money. 💼
• Your self-esteem is tied to the commitments you keep to yourself. 🤝
• Success is built on a series of small, consistent actions. ⚡
• Regret from inaction is worse than failure from action. 🔥

Key Takeaways

• Embrace failure as feedback and move forward with lessons learned. 💪
• Invest in time-saving tools and focus on your priorities. ⏰
• Say yes to opportunities until you can afford to say no. 🙌
• Attract success by being clear on your goals and taking action. 🚀
• Your vibe attracts your tribe, so be authentic and positive. 😊

Overview

Dan Martell shares a 60-point manifesto directed at his younger self, highlighting the lessons he's learned on his journey to becoming a multi-millionaire. He emphasizes that waiting for the right time is a folly; instead, one should create the perfect moment. The distinction between buying distractions versus buying time is stark, encouraging investments in tools that save time, illustrating a forward-thinking mindset.

He delves deep into the importance of failing fast and learning from failures, asserting that most richness in life comes from consistent efforts and the courage to say yes when necessary, and no when it's smart. His analogy of life being in decade-spanning increments serves as a reminder that patience and focus are key to long-term success.

The holistic advice encompasses personal growth, financial strategies, and lifestyle choices. Martell's engaging insights assert that the quality of one's life mirrors the habits built consistently over time and the energy sent out into the world. His affirming tone—'Your vibe attracts your tribe'—is a testament to his belief in authenticity and positivity as magnets for success.

Chapters

• 00:00 - 00:30: Introduction The chapter consists of a 45-year-old millionaire offering advice to their younger self, emphasizing the importance of taking action rather than waiting for the perfect moment. The key pieces of advice shared include making decisions promptly, as waiting to act can delay progress, and prioritizing time-saving investments over distractions. Examples such as using delivery apps and services that save time, like meal prepping, are highlighted as ways to efficiently manage and utilize time.
• 00:30 - 01:30: Advice #1 to #5 The chapter discusses life advice structured in decades. It emphasizes developing skills, increasing wealth, and gaining wisdom in one's 20s, 30s, and 40s respectively. The narrator suggests focusing on building value in the first decade of life, monetizing that value in the second, and expanding into larger ambitions in the third. Additionally, it highlights the importance of treating others in business as you would like to be treated, warning against being overly frugal or judgmental in commercial interactions.
• 01:30 - 02:30: Advice #6 to #10 In this chapter, the focus is on the mindset and behavior that leads to success and personal growth. The first key advice (not numbered in the summary) discusses the importance of reciprocity in business and personal interactions, suggesting that being open to buying from others can lead to others being more willing to buy from you. Following this, Advice #5 encourages embracing failure as a learning opportunity, highlighting that winners are those who learn from their losses rather than avoiding failure altogether. Advice #6 equates self-esteem to the reputation you have with yourself, emphasizing the significance of consistently keeping commitments to oneself to build a positive self-image.
• 02:30 - 04:00: Advice #11 to #15 This chapter continues with advice number eleven to fifteen, emphasizing personal accountability and decision-making to enhance one's self-esteem and self-worth. The advice provides a clear framework for making decisions, suggesting that if something is not an absolute 'yes,' then it should be considered a 'no.' This is intended to reserve space for truly valuable opportunities. Additionally, it advises on saying 'yes' initially when one's resources are limited, until reaching a point where it's possible to afford saying 'no' to create room for better opportunities.
• 04:00 - 05:00: Advice #16 to #20 This chapter offers guidance on balancing opportunities and learning the importance of saying 'no' when necessary, emphasizing that not every opportunity will serve you well. Understanding how to attract your future and aligning your actions towards achieving your desired goals is highlighted. Moreover, the chapter stresses taking accountability for your outcomes by putting in the required effort, dismissing the notion of expecting ease in the journey to success.
• 05:00 - 06:00: Advice #21 to #25 The chapter explores various advice tips, focusing on the difference in mindset between successful and unsuccessful people. It emphasizes the importance of discussing ideas rather than gossiping about people, as well as being selective about whose advice or criticism to consider.
• 06:00 - 07:30: Advice #26 to #30 The importance of learning from those who have already achieved your goals is emphasized. Success in big tasks is determined by attention to small details, demonstrating that how you do anything reflects how you do everything. Maintaining a well-organized environment translates to a successful business and a cohesive team. The chapter advises focusing on perfecting small tasks to ensure larger objectives are met. Lastly, it stresses that life's quality hinges on the quality of one's habits and encourages identifying key habits to cultivate.
• 07:30 - 09:00: Advice #31 to #35 The chapter discusses the importance of daily practices for success. It highlights five key habits that can contribute to achieving one's goals.
• 09:00 - 10:30: Advice #36 to #40 The chapter discusses the importance of self-competition rather than comparing oneself with others. It emphasizes that you are only competing against your past self in the journey towards improvement.
• 10:30 - 12:30: Advice #41 to #45 The chapter provides advice on personal accountability and mental programming. It emphasizes that everyone has the same amount of time, and it's up to each person to allocate their time properly, holding themselves 100% accountable for it. Additionally, it discusses the power of positive reinforcement and repetition in shaping beliefs. By consistently telling oneself positive affirmations like 'Incredible' and 'Freaking amazing,' the mind starts to believe those statements, illustrating the importance of controlling self-talk to maintain focus and positivity.
• 12:30 - 14:30: Advice #46 to #50 The chapter begins with advice on improving one's life by adhering to a consistent sleep schedule. It emphasizes the importance of going to bed on time, suggesting that a significant portion of personal problems would be resolved by simply ensuring adequate rest. The recommendation includes setting an alarm for bedtime and honoring it to enable an early start to the day. Moreover, it addresses a common misconception about the lack of resources being a barrier to success. Instead, the chapter suggests that the real issue is a lack of resourcefulness and encourages re-evaluating one's perspective on what is needed to achieve goals.
• 14:30 - 16:30: Advice #51 to #55 This chapter provides insight into three critical pieces of advice for personal development and success. It starts by emphasizing the importance of resourcefulness, suggesting that successful people focus on solutions rather than limitations. The next piece of advice focuses on the value of solitude, encouraging individuals to become self-sufficient and content without reliance on others, which can lead to greater happiness. Finally, it advocates for hard work and dedication, suggesting that investing effort while others are at rest can lead to achieving one's dreams.
• 16:30 - 18:00: Advice #56 to #60 In this chapter, the advice focuses on self-improvement and personal boundaries. It encourages readers to wake up early and tackle difficult tasks to achieve a life of success and fulfillment, a path that most people only dream of. The author emphasizes the importance of teaching people how to treat you by immediately addressing any behavior you disagree with and not allowing people to take advantage of you. The chapter also discusses the concept of money, describing it as a tool rather than a goal, and likening it to an energy source that should be used to enhance one's life rather than being hoarded. Lastly, the advice suggests that always being available diminishes one's value, encouraging individuals to preserve their time and energy to increase their worth.
• 18:00 - 18:30: Conclusion The chapter emphasizes the importance of being visible yet elusive, suggesting that individuals should make themselves known but remain difficult to contact directly, thereby increasing their perceived value. It highlights the notion that one attracts what they inherently are, rather than what they merely desire. This is contrasted with the common belief that action leads to success, advocating instead for personal growth as a precursor to success. Additionally, the chapter discusses the power of silence and non-response, underscoring that being selective in communications can be a powerful statement.

I’m 45. If I Was 20 Again, Here’s What I’d Do Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 Recording this today, I'm a 45-year-old multi-millionaire. But if I could go back and talk to my 20-year-old self and give them some advice, here are the 60 things I would share. Number one, stop waiting for the right time. Just make the time right. Most people, the most important thing they got to do is just make a decision. Stop waiting to get ready and just do it. Number two, broke people buy distractions. Rich people buy time. You have to start investing in things that are going to save you time. Think about wash and fold laundry or meal prepper or using the apps that bring stuff to you so you don't spend
• 00:30 - 01:00 your time running a bunch of errands. Number three, your 20s is when you get good. Your 30s is when you get rich and your 40s is when you get wise. I look at my life in 10year increments. The first 10 was to develop the skill to become valuable. The next 10 was to figure out how to make money with that skill. The last 10 was using that to create my empire. You have to dedicate yourself in decades to one focus. Number four, buy the way you want to be bought from. Most people are so cheap they get mad when
• 01:00 - 01:30 buyers are cheap with them, but they're the ones that put the energy out there. So, if you want people to easily buy from you, easily buy from other people. Number five, winners lose more than losers ever will. Most people are scared to fail, but that's only true if you don't get the feedback. If you take a shot on goal and you miss, but you learn how to take a better shot on goal, then that is actually a win. Don't be scared of failure. Embrace it. Number six, self-esteem is the reputation you have with yourself. If every time you make a commitment to yourself, you let yourself
• 01:30 - 02:00 down by not keeping that commitment, then you erode your self-esteem, your self-worth, and you'll never fight for what you think you deserve. Number seven, if it's not a hell yes, it's a hard no. My frame is very simple. I ask myself, if somebody asked me to do the thing they want me to do and it was today, would I say yes? If the answer is no, cuz I'm busy, then it's probably no. Even the good stuff is a no. Because if I don't say no, then I won't have the space to say yes to the great. Number eight, say yes until you can afford to say no. You say yes when you have a lot
• 02:00 - 02:30 of opportunities, but then if you're good, you get a lot more requests. Then you got to learn to say no when things no longer serve you. Number nine, the best way to predict the future is to attract it. Most people get confused cuz they think they got to create success. My philosophy is that I attract success. I pull my future into my present by being very clear on what I want to achieve and taking action. Number 10, you can't complain about the outcomes you didn't get from the work you didn't do. Stop expecting things to be easy.
• 02:30 - 03:00 They're not and they never will be. Because if you're not doing the work, then you can't get the outcome. Number 11, broke people talk about people. Rich people talk about ideas. Just listen to yourself when you're with your friends. Are you talking about other people or you're talking about possibility? Are you talking about ideas? Are you talking about creation? Or you're focusing on talking about the easiest thing to talk about, which is about other people that aren't even there. Number 12, don't take criticism from people you wouldn't take advice from. My philosophy is very simple. I only take advice or criticism
• 03:00 - 03:30 from people who are already where I want to be or have done the thing I want to do. Number 13. How you do anything is how you do everything. Most people discount the small things, but those small things lead into big things. If you take care of your environment, then the business will be taken care of. If you take care of your space, then your team will be taken care of. Focus on doing the small things right to get the big things to come to life. Number 14, the quality of your life is determined by the quality of your habits. So, you got to figure out what are the three to
• 03:30 - 04:00 five things that if you do every day will set you up for success. Number 15, the best revenge is massive success. When I was growing up, I was that kid that the other kids in my neighborhood weren't allowed to play with. Now, I earned that label, and trust me, I didn't always make the best decisions. But when I decided to turn my life around, I didn't focus on proving them wrong. I just focused on becoming undeniable. Number 16, winners focus on winning. Losers focus on winners. If you compare yourself to everybody else, then
• 04:00 - 04:30 you're always looking for why you're not good enough. And the truth is, you're only competing against one person, and that's you from the past. Number 17. Most people are too afraid of looking stupid to ever get good at anything. Think about all the people you see on social media. The reason they're good is because they decided to start. Even though in their head, trust me, cuz I'm one of them. I thought I have nothing to share. People are going to think I'm dumb. This is dumb. I still decide to do it because if you think everything makes you look dumb, you'll never try anything. Number 18. It's not about having time. It's about making time. The
• 04:30 - 05:00 truth is nobody creates time. Nobody has extra time. We all have the same amount of time. You either decide to allocate it properly or you don't. You're 100% accountable for that. Number 19. Your mind will believe what you repeatedly tell it. Anytime somebody asks me, "How you doing, Dan?" I always answer the same way. Incredible. Incredible. Freaking amazing. Awesome. Thanks for asking. Why? Because you will believe what you repeatedly say. So, I reprogram my mind using mantras like that and many others to keep myself focused on who I
• 05:00 - 05:30 want to become. Number 20. 80% of your problems would be solved if you just went to bed on time. It's kind of crazy, but this simple life lesson will change everything for you. Set an alarm for when you go to bed and just honor it. Get to sleep. Nothing exciting happens late at night when you can have an early start to your day. Number 21. The problem isn't lack of resources, it's lack of resourcefulness. Most people think, well, I don't have the money to start that or the friend group or the experience. The truth is, most people
• 05:30 - 06:00 that have won in life, they're just more resourceful. They don't make a list of things that tell them they can't do something. They get good at finding the resources needed to solve the problems. Number 22, learn to be alone without being lonely. One of the most powerful skills and processes I've learned is become the person who needs nothing from anybody. If I can be happy with nothing, then I'm going to be ecstatic with a lot. Number 23, work while they sleep so you can live like they dream. Most people would rather sleep in and snooze on their life, but you're different.
• 06:00 - 06:30 You're going to get up early every day, do the hard things, and live a life that 99% of people only dream of. Number 24, you teach people how to treat you. If somebody does something that I don't agree with, I say it right away. I don't accept people stepping all over me. Number 25, money is a tool, not the goal. I think of money like a battery. It's an energy source. And we want to use money as a tool to improve our life. You don't want to hoard it. Number 26. If you're always available, you're not valuable. You should be the kind of
• 06:30 - 07:00 person that puts themselves out there so everybody knows who you are. You should be easy to find but hard to get a hold of. That's what makes you valuable. Number 27. You don't attract what you want. You attract what you are. Most people think they got to do more to be successful. I would argue you have to be more. It's not do then become. It's actually become then do. Number 28. No response is a response and a powerful one. You don't have to reply to every email that comes to you. You don't have to answer every phone call and you don't have to reply to every text. Don't feel
• 07:00 - 07:30 like you need to explain yourself to everyone. Number 29. You either get better or you get bitter. I remember going to my high school reunion and every time I'd meet somebody, they would say stuff like, "Hey, remember back in the day we did this or that?" And I'm just like, "What have you been up to lately?" Cuz it sounds like you've been just living the same life and honestly regressing. Don't be that old guy saying, "Back in my day, I used to bench 225. Where you at today?" Number 30. Time is the most expensive thing you have. So don't waste it scrolling on
• 07:30 - 08:00 social media or talking to people that take your energy. Focus your time on things that matter most to you, like your family, your health, your goals. Push your life forward. Number 31. Wealth is built with patience and loss with ignorance. The people that have created real wealth, sustainable wealth, they got rich and they still got it. It's because they've kept being curious. They wonder what's going on around them. They don't pretend like they know it all. Don't get cocky as you build your empire. Number 32. The secret to success is consistency, not intensity. I'm not
• 08:00 - 08:30 impressed with somebody that can get up and go to the gym for 14 days in a row. I am impressed with somebody can be consistent over 6 months. Number 33. You're only as strong as your weakest habit. Having a bunch of vices, habits, decisions that you're not proud of, like eating too much, drinking too much, being addicted to your phone. It's kind of like going on a hike with a backpack full of rocks. You can do it. It's just going to be way harder and it'll definitely slow you down in a big way. Number 34. Regret will hurt more than
• 08:30 - 09:00 failure ever will. I call this regret minimization. When I fast forward to my last day, my last breath, I don't want to be laying on my deathbed with a bunch of regrets. So every day I minimize my regrets by taking action today. I don't wait. I don't push off. I don't get in the mood. I don't wait for my feelings to feel good. I just do. Number 35. Never argue with someone who is committed to misunderstanding you. Truth is, most people aren't going to get you, and it's not your responsibility to have to explain it. It's okay leaving people
• 09:00 - 09:30 in the reality that they find themselves with. You want to learn to pick your fights because you don't want to be in a fight with somebody who doesn't want to see you win. Number 36. If you're always the smartest person in the room, you're in the wrong room. It feels good to be the top dog, the smartest person in the room, the person that has all the answers. Problem is, the way to be successful is you got to get comfortable being the smallest person in the room. Number 37. Don't let temporary people create permanent wounds. Friends come into your life for either a reason, a season, or a lifetime. If you know the
• 09:30 - 10:00 difference, you decide to let those people stay in the past. Number 38. Distractions destroy more dreams than lack of resources ever will. Most people don't lack opportunity. They lack focus. Number 39. If you've never contradicted yourself, you're not growing fast enough. What that means is that if you're truly on a growth journey in your reading, in your investing, you're going to develop new points of view, which means that your new beliefs are different than the old ones. So, if you keep believing the same thing you used to believe, then are you really growing fast enough? The key in all this is to
• 10:00 - 10:30 be confident about what you believe. That's why I say often wrong, never in doubt. Number 40, get obsessed with the process, not the outcome. Fall in love with the art and the betterment and the person you're becoming as you pursue the goal, not the actual goal itself. If you disconnect from the need of achieving something to be happy, instead be happy in the process of achieving, that's a life of fulfillment. Number 41. Winners make adjustments, losers make excuses. If you want to win, you're going to have
• 10:30 - 11:00 to tweak things. You're going to have to learn from whatever happened and move forward. The people that try and never try ever again is because they make excuses for themselves. It's never their fault and they don't learn anything. Don't fall into the trap of explaining yourself out of winning. Number 42. If you want an extraordinary life, stop making ordinary choices. The whole point of being extra is that you're doing things that other people wouldn't do. If everybody around you is saying that's a good decision, you might want to be concerned because for you to be extraordinary, you need to be extra.
• 11:00 - 11:30 Number 43. If you hang around with five winners, you'll be the sixth. Most people are the byproducts of the people they spend the most time with. If you do not make a decision to find those other five people and work your way into that friend group, then you're just going to make it hard on yourself. Number 44. The best investment you'll ever make is in yourself. If you can invest money in becoming better so you can increase the money you make when you do work, that's the best return you'll ever get. Stop investing in stocks initially and start
• 11:30 - 12:00 investing in you. Number 45, you don't get paid for time, you get paid for value. If you could take a million dollars and turn it into 10 million in 30 minutes, you would get paid a lot of money, millions of dollars for that magic trick. It's not the amount of time you work, it's the value you create in that time. So focus on increasing your value and disconnect your earning from your hour. Number 46. If you chase two rabbits, you'll catch none. Sequencing equals success. If you want to be successful, you need to know what's the
• 12:00 - 12:30 one thing, the one domino that if you go allin will help you get that result. You have to pick one focus and go allin. Number 47. Success is never owned. It's rented. Every day you have to pay rent. You got to pay your dues. You got to show up. You got to be consistent. You got to put a smile on and you got to do that over long periods of time. Rent is due every day. You need to stay consistent. Number 48. Money follows momentum, not perfection. Money loves movement. Money loves speed. Money loves
• 12:30 - 13:00 decisiveness. The key is you have to move fast and fix things as you're building. Number 49. If your goals don't scare you, they're too small. I used to think I was thinking big and then I moved to San Francisco and it went from being a millionaire to being a billionaire. Because if you showed up to a coffee shop talking about your million-dollar ideas, people would literally stop talking to you and walk the other way. You have to dream bigger, but even more important, execute harder. Number 50. Confidence isn't thinking you're better than others. It's knowing
• 13:00 - 13:30 you don't have to compare. Confidence isn't a lack of being humble. It's the certainty that you know you do the things you say that you're going to do because of who you are. That's why you have to learn to run your own race. Number 51. If you can't lead yourself, don't expect others to follow you. Just like in a plane, before you help anybody else, you have to put your mask on. And too often, people are ready to give everybody else advice on what's going wrong in their life, but they don't want to look in a mirror and ask themselves, "Am I being honest about what's going on in my life?" Number 52, good is the freaking enemy of great. See, most
• 13:30 - 14:00 people that achieve a little bit of success, they stop. Now, all of a sudden, they've got something to lose. They forgot why they started in the first place. They climbed that mountain of success and set up shop halfway through because things are now good. There's nothing to run away from. There's no pain to avoid. The challenge is is all great people never settled. And that's what a mediocre life comes from. If you want to live a great life, never settle. Number 53. You're not overthinking. You're underexecuting. All your self-doubt comes from a lack of
• 14:00 - 14:30 doing. Just get up and move forward towards your goals. It will erase all self-doubt. Number 54. If you want better answers, ask better questions. The better the question, the better the life. And what's crazy is your questions will dictate your future. Number 55. If you hate Mondays, you're doing life wrong. You have to design a life where you get excited to get out of bed. It's the people, it's the projects, it's the energy, it's you. At the end of the day, what you put out is what you get back.
• 14:30 - 15:00 So, find work that lights you up. Number 56. Your vibe attracts your tribe. It's so crazy, but your energy, how you feel, attracts other people that also vibe and feel that way. So, what you need to do is just put out your vibe. If you're a happy person, smile. Somebody ask you how you're doing, say freaking amazing. If you love to work out, tell everybody about your last workout. Like, be the person who expresses themselves so that other people that resonate with that will lean in. They'll talk to you. Number 57, you receive what you desire for others. If you want to get in the
• 15:00 - 15:30 best shape of your life, desire that for other people. If you want to be rich, help other people get rich. If you want to be happy, help other people be happy. It's so interesting that what you want for other people is what you'll get back in return. Number 58. Your life is the byproduct of your most dominant thoughts, feelings, and actions. If you're not happy with where you're at, then ask yourself, "What am I thinking about? How am I feeling about my situation? And what am I doing about it?" If you look at those three things, you can change your whole life by just
• 15:30 - 16:00 that focus. Number 59. Weak people chase pleasure. Strong people chase purpose. If you want to live a life of fulfillment, you have to do hard things. You have to continue to expand and to grow. If you keep looking for the easiest path, then you'll never live a life of purpose. Number 60, you don't need more information. You need more execution. Some people are addicted to shelf. The truth is, you already know what you need to do. Now, it's time to just go do it. So, those are the 60 things I would share with my 20-year-old
• 16:00 - 16:30 self. If you want to learn the best businesses you can start in 2025, click the video and I'll see you on the other