10 things I heard people say or do that let me know that they operate on a different level
Most of these are related to money and how some people are making gobs of it. Many people have vast reserves of bravery, inner strength and other next-level abilities.
1. “Oh, one of my companies does about 6,000 of these jobs a year”
When a neighbor offered to provide some free estimates for a complete home repair and renovation due to some water damage. The company he referred to was a SIDE HUSTLE compared to his main commercial roofing business. I could not comprehend the scale of either business.
2. How did you know that about the code? Oh I just memorize everything
The CTO where I work. Our sprawling code base is 20 years old and has millions of lines of code. He can tell you which line is running in a particular file. It is not easy to follow the code he writes from the perspective of a mortal...
3. The school ran out of money? I’ll buy it.
My daughter's school called the parents into a meeting to let them know that they were out of money in the middle of the year and needed about $5 million to stay open. Some of us started talking about car washes and bake sales. A guy in the back raised his hand and said he would buy it. He did. On the spot. The school never missed a day and 15 years later it is now worth many times what he paid for it.
4. "You weren't there, so how did you know it didn't happen?" (Noahs Ark)
I was having a casual discussion with my son's kindergarten teacher. She was a literal "earth is 6000 years old" creationist. Interesting perspective.
5. The guy aimlessly riding his rusty bike wearing a dirty white t-shirt…
looked like he was picking up cans. A neighbor told me he was worth about $100 million and owned a significant percentage of the orange groves in Florida.
6. “How long does it take to drive to Michigan for the races?” "Oh, I don’t know. The mechanics drive the karts to the races and we fly up later."
This was from a pediatrician who made a fortune trading stock options. He was sponsoring his teenage son in a quest to become an F1 race car driver. In addition to the professional racing simulator in the house, there was a full-time staff for the son's go kart racing "team." I looked him up: he made it to G3 but apparently not to F1 racing.
7. Forgiveness and internal strength. She still lives in the same house…
where her husband shot her 2 young kids and himself almost 20 years ago. I could not imagine that: she is quite religious so that helps. That is another level.
8. “So that's many you would build for $20 million, what about $40?”
I was working in a coffee shop and overheard this conversation where a young salesperson was pitching the construction of new neighborhoods. The guy with the money was wearing flip flops and a Hawaiian shirt and had terrible skin. I would not have been surprised to see him dumpster diving.
9. “Hey Dad, did you know that a McLaren can burn rubber at 60 miles an hour?”
The father of one of my son's friends has a collection of exotic cars that the son can occasionally drive. Another day they were able to take out a red 1979 Ferrari 308 and dressed up like Magnum PI. I have a 15-year-old Honda Accord that my son drives sometimes.
10. “Safety harnesses? They got in the way so we took them off.”
A handyman and family friend. He used to work 100 stories up on the skyscrapers in New York City and took off the harnesses. It worked for him: he is still here.
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