End Of Year Review: 2021's Lessons, Hacks & Fails
Chris Williamson (host), Yusef (Propane Fitness) (guest), Jonny (Propane Fitness) (guest), Narrator, Narrator, Narrator
In this episode of Modern Wisdom, featuring Chris Williamson and Yusef (Propane Fitness), End Of Year Review: 2021's Lessons, Hacks & Fails explores year-End Reflections: Cutting Noise, Choosing Tradeoffs, Living Deliberately The episode is a loose, comedic year-end review where Chris Williamson and the Propane Fitness guys (Yusef and Jonny) reflect on their biggest lessons, wins, and fails from 2021. They move from light Christmas banter into deeper themes: simplifying life and work, deliberately choosing what to fail at, and recognizing that more effort and more hacks don’t always equal better results.
Year-End Reflections: Cutting Noise, Choosing Tradeoffs, Living Deliberately
The episode is a loose, comedic year-end review where Chris Williamson and the Propane Fitness guys (Yusef and Jonny) reflect on their biggest lessons, wins, and fails from 2021. They move from light Christmas banter into deeper themes: simplifying life and work, deliberately choosing what to fail at, and recognizing that more effort and more hacks don’t always equal better results.
A central thread is moving from a maximalist, ‘do everything’ self‑improvement mindset toward essentialism and subtraction: testing which habits actually matter by temporarily removing them, and ruthlessly cutting non‑essentials in business, training, and life. They also discuss hedonic adaptation around money and milestones, the emptiness of chasing bigger numbers, and the value of focusing on small daily wins instead.
Other major themes include understanding moral tribalism (especially around COVID and vaccines), the inevitability of new problems at every level of success, and the importance of designing environments and lifestyles that naturally encourage desired habits (like less screen time) rather than relying on willpower. The episode closes with a few practical ‘life hacks’ and a look ahead to future podcast guests.
Key Takeaways
Use ‘negative pilots’ to discover which habits actually matter.
Instead of blindly adding more routines, deliberately stop one practice (e. ...
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Choose in advance what you are willing to fail at this year.
You can’t make simultaneous PBs in business, fitness, relationships, and finance. ...
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The ultimate productivity system is ruthless subtraction, not more hacks.
Clarify a small number of ‘North Star’ goals (e. ...
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Stop obsessing over optimization if you’re not doing basic volume.
People often chase perfect carb timing, meditation gadgets, or hyper‑efficient workouts while skipping sessions or half‑heartedly practicing. ...
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Accept that milestones won’t make you feel fundamentally different.
Whether it’s revenue goals, subscriber counts, or lifting PRs, the emotional payoff is brief and then normality returns. ...
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Reduce the ‘anxiety cost’ of uncompleted tasks by doing them early.
The longer you delay simple tasks (buying a gift, paying a fine, writing an email), the more mental bandwidth you waste ruminating on them. ...
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Design a life that naturally creates the habits you want.
Instead of relying solely on willpower (turning off notifications, grayscale screens), change your environment and activities so you simply prefer the behavior—e. ...
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Notable Quotes
“You cannot overestimate the unimportance of practically everything.”
— Chris Williamson (quoting John Maxwell)
“The ultimate productivity system is to get really clear about what you want and then to ruthlessly cull everything else.”
— Chris Williamson
“Pick one thing to deliberately stop doing for a while… It’s like an elimination diet, but for your daily productivity system.”
— Jonny
“It doesn’t get easier, you just get better.”
— Yusef
“The outcomes that you’re going to get in life are going to come along for the ride anyway. Fearing about whether or not you’re going to get them is a pointless exercise that just annihilates your enjoyment in the moment.”
— Chris Williamson
Questions Answered in This Episode
Which current habit in my daily or weekly routine am I least convinced about, and what would happen if I stopped it for a month?
The episode is a loose, comedic year-end review where Chris Williamson and the Propane Fitness guys (Yusef and Jonny) reflect on their biggest lessons, wins, and fails from 2021. ...
Get the full analysis with uListen AI
If I had to choose right now, what are the one or two areas of life I’m willing to let decline slightly this year so I can truly focus on a core priority?
A central thread is moving from a maximalist, ‘do everything’ self‑improvement mindset toward essentialism and subtraction: testing which habits actually matter by temporarily removing them, and ruthlessly cutting non‑essentials in business, training, and life. ...
Get the full analysis with uListen AI
Where am I obsessing over optimization (apps, timing, equipment) while neglecting simple consistency and volume in the fundamentals?
Other major themes include understanding moral tribalism (especially around COVID and vaccines), the inevitability of new problems at every level of success, and the importance of designing environments and lifestyles that naturally encourage desired habits (like less screen time) rather than relying on willpower. ...
Get the full analysis with uListen AI
What long‑running, low‑effort task is generating a high ‘anxiety cost’ in my life, and how quickly could I eliminate it by just doing it?
Get the full analysis with uListen AI
How much of my worldview—especially on emotionally charged topics like COVID, politics, or health—is shaped by my moral tribe rather than by direct evidence?
Get the full analysis with uListen AI
Transcript Preview
If you could go back 10 years ago, or 15 years ago, and give yourself two pieces of advice, it would be, "Buy Bitcoin and do 531 with progressive overload-"
(laughs)
... "as your training program for the next 12 years." You'd be massive and rich.
The challenge is, what's the 45-year-old version of you, what's that piece of advice for now?
Do 531, probably.
Probably the same thing, yeah. Probably just do the, uh-
Buy Bitcoin, buy Bitcoin and (laughs) do 531.
(laughs)
Fuck. Fuck. (laughs)
(laughs)
How was Christmas? Did you do anything interesting?
So, I just did... This was my first Christmas not in a hospital, which was nice. So, just spent some family time. I did all the, the Christmas man things.
Mm-hmm.
Cranberry sauce, turkey, wrapping p- paper, all of it. Carved the turkey, did the special, say grace to Santa at the beginning.
(laughs)
That's right, isn't it?
Is this what, is this what someone who's Muslim thinks that White people do?
Muslim impression, though. (laughs)
This is what White people do at Christmas. They pray to the turkey, and then you have the star which is Hasbulla, and he sits on the top of the tree.
(laughs)
(laughs)
And you have to say grace to Hasbulla- Tinder's box.
... and then everybody does bad dance moves, uh, and invades a country, and then you're allowed to eat, yeah, and then you... No, that's you, that's your people.
(laughs)
The ding-a-ding-a-ding-a-ding-a-ding-a-ding-a-ding. That's, that's what you, you guys do.
Is this your first experience of a Christmas celebration? Or have you had more than this?
I think one of, yeah. First-
But it's one, it's one of everybody's though, isn't it? True. I think it was the highest Santa rating of all the Christmases that I've had. Like it was- The best Santa. ... really full, full beans, yeah. Sprouts. Full trap Santa.
None of the food... The food items do not have anything to do with Santa. I need you to get... You need to separate-
Separate the two in their mind.
... these two things out. Hasbulla, santa and the food items are-
I'd love to know where Hasbulla's come from.
(laughs) Three...
I like it.
They're three separate...
The food is a bit rubbish as well. Like, Christmas cake, no... If it was nice, it would be available for sale the rest of the year.
No, that's ridic... You can't say that. You could... Like, like for example-
Well-
... Easter eggs. Easter eggs are nice, but they're not for sale for the rest of the year. Creme eggs are nice.
So, Easter eggs are nice-
Creme eggs are available all year round.
... but that's because they're just a different shape of...
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