Forget "Too Cool to Care" — Aim to be Great

There’s growing pushback against a “too cool to care” attitude—and thank goodness. People are tired of cynicism and apathy. We’re hungry for depth, for meaning, for people who try.

Consider Gen Z’s reaction to Timothee Chalamet’s Screen Actors Guild award ​speech​, in which Chalamet said, “I know the classiest thing would be to downplay the effort that went into this role and how much this means to me, but the truth is this was five-and-a-half years of my life, I poured everything I had into playing [Bob Dylan]...I’m really in pursuit of greatness; I know people don’t usually talk like that, but I want to be one of the greats, I’m inspired by the greats.”

Chalamet wasn’t mocked. People didn’t throw sarcasm his way. Rather, the speech trended on the internet for over a week—young people from all over applauding him with some version of this is what it's all about.

The same thing happened last year when Shohei Ohtani may have had the greatest baseball season in MLB history. One of Brad’s most popular New York Times pieces was an ode to Ohtani’s greatness, and how it can be used as inspiration for all of us. And it’s still happening every time the Indiana Fever play, thanks to the continued success of Caitlin Clark.

It’s great that greatness is back in vogue, that people are being inspired by excellence. In a world that is increasingly chaotic and increasingly automated (all at the same time), real, deeply felt human excellence is a balm for the soul.

Unfortunately, there is no shortage of grifters and influencers capitalizing on the trend. As so often happens, the pendulum swings from one extreme (cynicism and not caring being fashionable) to another (performative nonsense and empty hustle culture).

But there’s a big difference between hustle-culture greatness and true greatness, between performative excellence and the real thing. It’s worth taking a minute or two to clear the air.

True greatness is not about chest-thumping or optimizing every second of your day. It's not about perfection, or who has the most extensive morning routine, either. And it's definitely not the curated grind culture that so many influencers are selling.

True greatness is something quieter and far more powerful. It's a heartfelt dedication to a craft, person, or cause. It's a consistent and attentive practice. It's giving a damn.

Some people think excellence is reserved for Olympians. Others imagine it's about winning at all costs. But those definitions are too narrow and miss the broader point. Yes, the pursuit of excellence often yields incredible feats. But it's the pursuit that holds the value, and the pursuit is available to all of us.

Excellence is a philosophy of life, a set of attitudes that can be applied to anything you care about:

• Commitment and consistency.

• Hard work and rest.

• Caring and vulnerability.

• Learning and growth.

• Intensity and joy.

• Focus and attentiveness.

• Resilience and gumption.

• Respect for one's craft.

• Respect for oneself.

Excellence can live in the baker perfecting a recipe. A parent juggling work and family. The artist refining their skills. The leader setting the tone for her organization. The high-school or college athlete trying to get a little bit better than they were before. The person winning an Olympic gold medal or the person running their first marathon. It’s less about what you do and more about how you do it.

Excellence combines mastery and mattering.

Mastery means building skill and making progress in projects you care about. Mattering means knowing your effort counts, that it has significance. Even if no one else sees it, you know. Psychological​ ​research​​ has found that when people experience mastery and​ ​mattering​​, they report higher life satisfaction, purpose, and fulfillment. At a moment in history when it feels like ​mastery and mattering are being crowded out​, we need to protect them at all costs.

Anyone who cares about what they do and pursues it with integrity and intention can aspire toward excellence, can reap the benefits of mastery and mattering.

Yes, objective results and performances matter. But the real reward with excellence is how you shape yourself by showing up and giving your all. What you work on—and the way in which you work on it—also works on you.

“I was engaged in furniture making as a creative process, the practice of which would help me to forge a good life… For the past decade, I had been imagining that my goal was to make furniture that expressed certain values. Now I saw that what I had really wanted all along was to cultivate these same qualities within myself,"​ ​writes​​ the furniture maker Peter Korn.

Mediocrity is overrated. So are delusion and despair.

Find things that light you up and give them your all. The world doesn't need more people who are going through the motions. The world needs more people who are fully alive, who give a damn and care deeply about what they do and how they do it.

Pursue greatness. Aspire toward your own version of excellence. But don’t be fooled by the fake or shallow versions. Be about the real thing. At the Growth Equation, we’re committed to these ideals, and we’re here to help you on your path.

-- Brad and Steve