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How to Create an Interesting Life with Tynan

 

“Who is this dude without a last name?”

Tynan has been a friend for years with a very interesting story… but I never knew all the details.

Fortunately, I got him delirious on green tea to get him to share his wild life so far. A few of the highlights:

  • One of most famous pickup artists in the world — and a main character in the New York Times bestselling book The Game
  • Created and built two companies: SETT and CruiseSheet
  • Former professional gambler and poker player 💰💰💰

Hell, he even bought an entire ISLAND with nine of his friends.

With so many crazy experiences, it’s no wonder Stan Lee — the creator of Iron Man, Spider-Man, Thor, and more — gave Tynan his own superhero name: “Quintessential Man.”

To learn more about Tynan, and his tips on living your own interesting life, I flew to Las Vegas and talked to him on my podcast. During our conversation we discuss:

  • Lessons from being a professional pickup artist — including some of his insane experiences
  • Why you shouldn’t follow others
  • How to buy your own island
  • The “5% challenge” (and how it’s changed the way I spend my money)
  • What life is like as a professional gambler
  • Hacking airport lounges to get free food
  • How to stop wasting your time
  • Why you shouldn’t share your full name with people
  • And much more…
  1. Why You Shouldn’t Follow Others
  2. How to Stop Wasting Time
  3. Change Doesn’t Have to Be Permanent

1. Why You Shouldn’t Follow Others

I have a strong aversion to doing something everybody else is doing.

Are you living the life you think you should live?

Or are you living the life which makes you EXCITED to wake up? Aka the life you want to live?

You only get one shot at life. Don’t waste your time copying someone else because you think it’ll make you happy.

With a career as a professional gambler, pickup artist, bestselling author, and entrepreneur, I was inspired hearing from Tynan. He constantly strays off the conventional path to try new things.

When you try new things, you learn what works for you (and what makes you happy).

Tynan’s philosophy reminds me of Tim Ferriss’ approach to experimentation. He’s always trying to learn new life hacks, productivity habits, and unconventional health tricks (which lead to him discovering the Slow-Carb diet, for example).

If Tim or Tynan followed the rules and paths set out by everyone else they never would have had the same level of success.

This is especially true of business.

To build a successful business, don’t blindly copy what’s already out there. You have to build an advantage over your competitors:

  • Maybe you have a new take on an existing industry, like Airbnb with vacation rentals
  • You might simplify a process that saves people time, like Uber
  • You could make growing a business online easier and quicker, like we do at Sumo

It’s crazy how many competitors and copycats pop up once a new product has become successful. Truth is, the world doesn’t need 100 Twitter bots that all offer the same functionality.

Take a look at Product Hunt, search for a product sector, and you’ll find 99% of products with basically the same features and capabilities.

A copycat approach usually leads to either minimal success or complete failure.

To stand out, don’t blindly follow others.

Tynan has some great advice about not blindly following others

Click to Tweet

2. How to Stop Wasting Time

In life, I believe there’s a trifecta of things which affect our overall happiness:

  • Work
  • Health
  • Relationships

I’ve found the more I align my life with what I really want from these three pillars, the more satisfied and happier I feel.

For me this means:

  • Work: I optimize my work to spend more time doing what I truly love (marketing and creating content)
  • Health: I block out time in my calendar to hit the gym, so I feel more energized
  • Relationships: I focus my time with people who enhance my life. For example, to record this episode of Noah Kagan Presents, I flew out to Las Vegas to spend time with Tynan

There’s no rewind in life — you don’t get the time you waste back. Focus on doing more things you enjoy with people you learn from.

The idea of making the most of your time isn’t something new, but most people don’t truly own their time.

I’ve heard from THOUSANDS of readers who dream of about starting a business and being their own boss. But very few of my readers actually start their business.

Most people dream about being entrepreneurs… then freak themselves out by saying “I could never do that!” or “now’s not the time.”

Three years later, these people are still wasting away in an office they hate.

Stop wasting time doing something you hate. Think about what matters to you most in life and try to spend more time there.

 

BONUS: Get Tynan’s 3 most important life lessons in a printable PDF

 

3. Change Doesn’t Have to Be Permanent

Change can be daunting. But one thing people often forget is that change doesn’t have to be permanent.

For example: Choosing to go vegan forever is a huge decision.

But, choosing to eat vegan for a month to see what it’s like is a much simpler choice to make. If it doesn’t work out, no big deal. You can always go back to your normal eating.

Recently, I’ve been experimenting with changes to my lifestyle — including a new car and a new apartment. I call it my “Test Shit Out Strategy.”

Here’s a recent example of the “Test Shit Out” strategy in action from my own life:

I was thinking about buying a condo, so I reached out to the realtor and asked if I could rent it before buying (I ended up deciding not to buy the condo, because I didn’t enjoy renting it). If I hadn’t tested it out before buying, the condo could have become an expensive mistake.

Another experiment I’ve been trying recently is being less committed about plans I’m on the fence about.

In other words, in the past if someone asked me to hang out next week I’d usually say “yes.”

But now, I’ll think about it, and if I’m not sure I’ll be honest: “I’m not sure right now, but how about you text me a day before and I can let you know?”

This gives me more spontaneity in life, and allows me to try a bunch of different things without committing. The lesson here is to approach change openly. Just because you want to try something doesn’t mean you have to do it forever.

Break down potentially large changes into smaller chunks that give you chance to see how it affects your life. For example:

  • Don’t go vegan right away, try it for a week or a month to see how you get on
  • Don’t purchase your dream car until you’ve rented it for a while
  • Airbnb a place in a new city for a month before you commit to moving full-time

Take a full listen to the podcast for even more Tynan knowledge bombs.

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23 responses to “How to Create an Interesting Life with Tynan”

Ria
February 9, 2019 at 5:16 pm

I’m late to this… but it’s pretty awesome!

Kamlesh
November 15, 2018 at 4:01 am

Awesome tks a lot.

Holly Tesmer
August 30, 2018 at 10:13 am

Nicely done

alex
May 19, 2018 at 1:56 am

Tynan’s amazon books’ page
https://www.amazon.com/Tynan/e/B003R9HVLW

I though it was missing from the show notes 🙂

Fernando Ziemer
May 12, 2018 at 10:23 pm

One of the most inspiring episodes! Thank you Noah and Tynan!

Patrick
August 12, 2017 at 3:38 am

Easily one of my favorite episodes so far. Very interesting guy.

Patrick
August 12, 2017 at 3:43 am

P.S. I’ve been checking the private island website on and off for about 12 years now as well.

Bee
June 28, 2017 at 5:51 pm

Had NO idea there are pick up groups!

Sam
May 23, 2017 at 6:21 pm

Awesome interview, found it very interesting, keep up the great work.

Rob
May 22, 2017 at 2:11 pm

Reminds me of this quote: If you want to understand the entrepreneur, study the juvenile delinquent. The delinquent is saying with his actions, “This sucks. I’m going to do my own thing.” – Yvon Chouinard

Ron P
May 22, 2017 at 10:01 am

What a great interview dude! More please 🙂
cheers!!!
ron:)

BT
May 21, 2017 at 9:05 am

So disappointed, I’m listening thinking wow a butt spa must be like a facial for your butt and was thinking that’s a great idea, I’ll take one of those, then it turns out butt spa is just a fancy word for bum gun 🙁

Jonathan
May 20, 2017 at 11:28 pm

Wow, right off the bat it starts off with some fascinating stories. Good stuff. Thanks for sharing, Tynan & Noah.

John Sonmez
May 19, 2017 at 2:49 pm

Nice! Two of my favorite people. You guys both rock. Great interview. Was totally stoked when I saw this!

david
May 18, 2017 at 2:01 pm

This was an amazing podcast. Tynan’s a great podcast guest. Would love to hear more like this

Paul
May 18, 2017 at 1:18 pm

Awesome interview Noah, I first heard about Tynan … over 10 years ago I think. After a marriage that changed me for the worst. I went going through that insecure period, I must learn these dating skills that apparently I’d lost somewhere along the way. After spending money on books and videos I realized, what am I doing? 30 yrs ago I was dating, amazing, ok, some of them were crazy but beautiful women. What AM I DOING trying to learn this? It’s about living the life you want to live and having a great social network. Great to hear from Tynan, social skills is where it’s at. Once again, thanks for the awesome interview.

Cyrus
May 18, 2017 at 1:12 pm

I’ve been following Tynan’s blog for at least 5 years. It was good to hear him actually speak about all the things he’s been doing. You were able to pry a lot of the little details that I always wondered about, but haven’t seen him reveal in his blog. Great work! Possibly my favorite episode.

Matt "Producer Matt"
May 18, 2017 at 11:12 am

That’s some solid advice. I’m in the process of making big changes in my life, however I don’t have the luxury of testing first. But, I am also building a new business in radio online (Sumo Radio), and with that I’m taking 14yrs of knowledge and stills in the industry, and doing something new online with a new business model, and approach. I always feel I can do more and better, which is what drives me to experiment and take the project to the next level.

Kirk
May 16, 2017 at 10:33 pm

Great conversation! Thanks, guys.

Ryan
May 16, 2017 at 2:03 pm

Wow what an awesome podcast! I’ll definitely be sharing these ideas with friends… and saving up to buy an island with them!!

Robert
May 16, 2017 at 1:31 pm

Just a fantastic, mind-opening interview. Thank you!

David Francis
May 16, 2017 at 12:38 pm

Hi Noah, You’ve really hit a sweet spot with the last few episodes. The last couple were both people I was already a shameless fanboy of, but I wasn’t aware of Tynan before today. GREAT episode! Any plans to release audio versions of the clips with Ryan Holiday that appeared online last week?

Kieran
May 16, 2017 at 10:25 am

Really dug this interview – insightful guy. Keep up the great content/podcasts !

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