#54: How to Know a Person

Hey friends,

People matter.

I usually spend my time talking about exercise and nutrition. However, I believe that the quality of your relationships is actually the biggest variable in your general health and well-being.

I hope that this week gives you a quick reminder that you should prioritize being present and intentional with the people that matter to you.

Weekly Action Point

Find 10 minutes this week to give someone a call that you haven’t been in touch with recently.

We all have people that we wish we were better at staying in touch with.

So this week, call that old friend or family member (not text) and just have a conversation with them. Catch up, see how they are doing.

Bonus points if you make your phone call while out on a walk, then you can combine getting some steps in and nurturing your relationships at the same time.

People Matter

Most people don’t relate the quality of their relationships to their health and fitness.

When thinking about fitness, people usually think about which foods they should be eating or what workouts they should be doing.

They think about the weight on the scale, their appearance in the mirror, or the stubborn lower belly fat that won’t go away - I know I’m guilty of all of the above.

We often lose sight of the bigger goal of health and fitness: being able to live a fulfilling, happy life.

What’s the point of pursuing a fitness goal if not to enhance the quality of your life?

I believe that the quality of our relationships with friends, family, coworkers, and romantic partners is a huge factor in our overall happiness, health, and well-being.

The motivation for me to write this newsletter came from a book I recently finished reading called “How to Know a Person” by David Brooks.

It’s a great read, definitely recommend it.

In the book, he talks about our ability to know a person as being a skill that, like any other skill, can be practiced and improved.

We can be intentional about how we listen when other people are talking, or try to be deliberate about asking more meaningful questions.

We can practice putting ourselves in other people’s shoes in an attempt to better understand their point of view.

Without practicing your skills of knowing someone, you are likely to be on a path towards mediocre, surface-level relationships.

Mainly, the book made me think about a couple of questions:

Are you being intentional about the effort you put into your relationships with other people? Or do you operate on autopilot, taking your friends and family for granted?

There were loads of useful insights and takeaways from the book; however, I think it most importantly just served as a reminder to myself.

Simply bringing awareness and attention to how you show up for other people in your life will very likely improve the quality of your relationships.

And, what I’m getting at is that the quality of your relationships will improve your happiness and fulfillment that you are getting out of life.

People matter.

It doesn’t matter how jacked you are or how slim your waist is if you have weak, crumbling personal relationships.

Everyone wants to feel seen.

Are you making the people in your life feel seen?

Ben’s Best

Everyone needs a good burger bowl in their life because they are just always good. So here is a recipe for you to save if you don’t have one.

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Thanks guys, have an awesome week!

Ben