Episode 10 – Dan Da Vinci: The Subtle Art of Hard Work
Today on the show we’ve got Daniel DaVinci.
Besides having a really cool name, Dan is an inspiring guy who’s gone through some incredible changes in his life.
I met him a few years back when we were part of the same social circle of running friends. I was told that he used to be overweight – but I had a hard time imagining it – because he was so lean and trim.
He was a much better runner than me, so it was hard to believe he had only started running the previous year.
A few months ago, I saw him again after a few years and even though he still runs marathons, he didn’t look like a trim runner anymore – he packed on a ton of muscle and looks big and strong.
All these transformations are just a sample… Dan has been working hard at changing his life since he was a teenager.
He grew up in pretty extreme poverty, and yet without a formal secondary education has created a successful career for himself as an IT consultant.
So Dan’s a hard worker. I know that’s a cliché that gets tossed around, but he’s is the real deal. I always wanted to hear Dan’s backstory and how he personally thinks about projects, self growth and challenges in life. Since Dan is a pretty private person, I only knew a bit – and I collected quite a bit from reading his answers to people’s questions he left on the popular Q&A site quora.com.
Either way, in this episode we chat about:
- The moment that changed his life and sent him on a fitness journey
- How he quit smoking, went for his first run and eventually ran his first marathon
- The incredible influence the people you surround yourself with have on your life
- Why he doesn’t like telling people what his goals are
- How he grew up in a shed with no plumbing or floor, and learned the lessons of hard work from working on a farm
- How – step by step – he managed to create a successful career for himself as an IT consultant without ever getting a formal university education
- Why he decided to run 12 marathon one year
- His two hacks to avoid running procrastination – the 60 second rule and “zombie mode”
Dan accepts no excuses from himself, and listening to his story was a great inspirational kick up the ass for me.
Enjoy this talk with Dan Da Vinci!
Connect with Daniel
Resources
Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
Letters from A Stoic by Seneca
The Obstacle is The Way by Ryan Holiday
48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene
Choose yourself by James Altucher
Total Recall by Arnold Schwarzenegger
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