Earn Your Wisdom

3 Thoughts

I.

I don’t know a single exceptional person who isn’t dangerously consistent.

II.

To create success, learn how to say yes. But to sustain your success, learn when to say no.

Every yes to someone else is a no to something of your own. And the higher you climb, the harder it gets. Because the opportunities get shinier. The asks get louder. But every yes steals time from what actually matters.

If you don’t protect your focus, no one else will.

III.

It's pretty insane how much you can get done when you make the deadline end of day rather than end of week.

2 Quotes

I.

American spiritual teacher Ram Dass on personal responsibility:

“I can do nothing for you but work on myself. You can do nothing for me but work on yourself.”

II.

Indian philosopher Osho on living a meaningful life:

“The real question is not whether life exists after death. The real questions is whether you are alive before death.”

1 Game-Changing Idea: The Parable of Chauffeur

Years ago, a well-known physicist was invited to give a lecture on his latest research. He traveled across the country giving the same talk dozens of times. His chauffeur, who drove him to every event, sat through each one.

One evening, on the way to yet another university, the chauffeur said jokingly:

“You know, I’ve heard your lecture so many times I could probably give it myself.”

The physicist smiled. “Is that so? Let’s try something fun. Tonight, I’ll wear your cap and sit in the back. You go on stage and give the lecture.”

The chauffeur laughed, but agreed.

That night, the chauffeur took the stage. He delivered the entire lecture word for word—perfectly. The audience applauded.

Then came the Q&A.

A professor in the crowd stood up and asked a complicated, technical question. One the chauffeur had no chance of understanding, let alone answering.

Without missing a beat, the chauffeur replied:

“I'm surprised someone at such a respected institution would ask a question so basic, I’ll let my chauffeur in the back answer it.”

We live in a world where it’s never been easier to sound smart.

You can read a few tweets, skim a blog post, listen to a podcast on 2x speed—and suddenly you’re talking like an expert.

You know the buzzwords. You’ve memorized the frameworks. You can give the talk.

But when you’re put on the spot—when something breaks, when someone pushes back, when the real questions start—surface-level knowledge falls apart fast.

Because you didn’t earn it. You borrowed it.

And that’s the difference.

Real knowledge comes from doing the thing. Making mistakes. Working through the boring parts. Thinking for yourself. It’s slow. Sometimes painful. But it sticks.

Everyone wants to sound credible. Few want to go through what it takes to be credible.

So the next time you feel pressure to weigh in, post, pitch, or pretend—ask yourself if you actually understand what you’re saying.

If not, don’t panic.

Just do the work until you do.

Because eventually, someone’s going to raise their hand in the crowd.
And you’ll want to be more than the chauffeur.

Until next week,
Jay “Chaffeur” Yang

Ps. The Prime Minister of Sweden

Pps. An incredible summary of my new book from my friend Ravi

Kind words for ‘You Can Just Do Things’

You can grab your copy here.

By the way, If that review from Coach Maley resonated with you, I think you’ll really enjoy his podcast too. It’s honest, thoughtful, and rooted in the same kind of perspective and encouragement he’s shared with so many students over the years.

Listen here.

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