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This is the Jocko Underground podcast number 198, sitting here with Echo Charles. We have got some questions from you troopers out there in the field and we're going to provide some guidance, provide some answers possibly, and at a minimum, provide some courses of action that you can follow to get on the right path. That's what we're doing. Let's get into it.
B
All right, first question. I was supposed to be more than I am. I'm 27 now. At 17, I tested high, was good at science and writing. The people believed in me. I even recognized the significance of AI early, but failed to act on it. Even then I felt time was running out. Ten years later, I feel stuck. I've worked jobs that build care, that built character construction and long term grunt role at psych hospital, at a high at a psych hospital. But I still live with my parents, paycheck to paycheck. I help care for them, which I value. But I struggle with depression, distraction, obsession and media addiction. I have a plan. Mma, gym, cutting media, building businesses, reading. But I've always had a plan. After a decade of failed follow through, I've stopped believing in myself. I've collected unused habit trackers, abandoned routines and gear for pursuits that never stuck. I want to say I'll execute despite the lateness and doubt, but another voice says, I've been saying that for years since I'll say it one more time or still I'll say it one more time. What's wrong with my thinking though?
A
Okay, so you're in a rough spot that probably a lot of people have been in and there's a little bit of event horizon. You know what that is?
B
Yes, I do.
A
An event horizon is, it's an, it's a, it's a point or a line on a black hole where once you go past that line, you never get out. So at a certain point in life, I hate to say this, at a certain point in life, you go over the event horizon and you're just, that's what's, that's what's happening. You're going to go down that black hole. I'm going to say that at 27 years old, you're not even close to the event horizon. So we got that going for us. Now my assessment in this situation is it kind of sounds like you are lying to yourself in what could be a couple of different ways that you're lying to yourself. The first way of lying to yourself is that you say you want to do all these things, but you really Don't. It's kind of a lie. You actually are satisfied with the long term grunt roll at the psych hospital. You make enough money to get by, and that's kind of okay. And you don't really have any responsibility because you still live at home. So you don't really have any. I mean, you're not going to be homeless because you live at home. Whatever money you make, you can kind of just put towards whatever you want. And this is where you are, and this is where you're going to be. And you're. You're. The truth is you're okay with that. The truth is you're okay with that. And it's a lie to say you're lying to yourself when you say, you know, I'm supposed to be more than I am, right? Does that make sense? I know it's a little hard to follow what I'm saying, but so far, so good. Yeah, I'm supposed to be more than this. But really, you're actually pretty happy with what you, you know, with what you got. Like, you're. You, you have some test at school and you're, you're not ready for it, and you roll in there and you get an 82. And some girl, the smart girl in the class, like, oh, how'd you do on the test? You're like, oh, I got an 82. I wish I would have. I. I could have done better. I wish I would have done better. I can do better. But in reality, in your heart, in your soul, you're like, man, I'm glad I got an 82. So you're kind of. This could be the lie that you're telling yourself. Kind of like you would tell that girl, like, I could have done better. You know, I should have done better. When re like, your heart, you're like, man, I'm so thankful I got it at 82. So that could be you. That could be the lie you're telling you. And here's. Here's what. There's a little bit of evidence to that, right? Here's the evidence. The evidence is when you really want to do something, you do it when you really want to do something. When it's. When it's. When it's just boiling up inside of you. Then you wait, you can't. Never mind. Like, oh, I gotta get up in the morning. You can't sleep in the morning because you got stuff to do. So that's a little evidence that that could be the truth. Now. That could be the lie that you're saying, right? The other, another lie that you could be telling yourself is all these things that you're quote unquote dealing with, right? The distraction, the obsession, the media, media addiction. Let's, let's think about that. We're not gonna do what we want to do with our one shot at life because I want, I'm gonna spend four hours a day on, on the gram. That, that's what we're saying. That's a level of addiction, right? I, I'm going to throw away my dreams because I want to look at a screen obsession. Obsessed with what? Distraction? Distracted by what? Depression. Depressed about what? Your 27 year old healthy male human that lives in America. I'm assuming he lives in America, which means you can, which means you can do anything. And, and it's like an excuse. This is a weird, a weird concept. But the excuse is I fail to follow through. You see what I'm saying? Isn't it weird to say my excuse is I fail to follow through. My excuse is. Ah. Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, jocko. How's that new workout program going? You know, it was going good, but I always abandoned my routines. That's like. Isn't it weird to take something that you control and use it as an excuse?
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Right?
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Like that is, that is a bizarro world thing to do. And it's a lie to say that, oh, I always abandoned my routines. That no one's forcing you, that you're choosing to abandon your routines. That's not. That's a lie. That you abandon routines. That, that's a lie. It might be true that you do it, but it's a lie that you have to continue to do it. It's a lie that you have to continue to follow that you have to continue to fail to follow through on things. That's a lie to say that's part of your personality. It's not part of your personality. It's what you choose to do. So that could be the lie. These are just like some little ways that you might be lying to yourself. It's because sort of, again, it's, it's like if I paint myself as a failure, that becomes the excuse. But then again, again, that is a choice. I never get anything. I never get any. I never get lucky. Nothing ever comes my way. These are all things you're, you're, you're manifesting those, not even manifesting. You're, you're imposing those on yourself. Here's another lie you might be caught in. You might be lying to yourself, telling yourself that in any way, shape or form any of these goals that you have are easy. Because nothing is easy. None of these things that you're talking about, whether it's mma, whether it's building a business, none of these things are not easy to do. You want to go out and get a house somewhere. You think it's easy to get a house? In order to get a house, you got to get a job. You got to excel at that job. You got to save money, you got to not squander money on stupid things like that is a hard thing to do. And by the way, each one of those steps is a hard thing to do. So it is not freaking easy to be more than I am. It's freaking hard. Now, one thing that caught my eye a little bit here is it seems like you were. Had a little bit of natural ability, right? This is one of the things they say about some SEAL candidates, some SEAL people, people in buds. One group of people that historically have problems are people that were really natural athletes. They were the captain of the football team. Again, there's. There's plenty of guys that make it that are this. But there are some guys that everything was easy for them. They were the fastest runner, they were the fastest swimmer, they were the fastest at so and so. They got the girls, they were kind of a winner. And when they lose for the first time, they get discombobulated and they fall down, they quit. So it sounds like you tested high. You were good at science, you were good at writing. People believed in you. They're like, oh, oh, man, you're going to be good to go. You're going to be so successful. Well, what they forgot to tell you is you're only going to be successful is if you work your ass off. You can't have the idea in your mind that stuff is going to come on a silver platter. Never mind a silver platter. It's not going to come on a ceramic plate. Never mind a ceramic plate. It's not going to come on a lunch tray. Never mind a lunch tray. It's not going to come in a brown paper bag. It's not going to be delivered to you, period. End of story. You got to go make it happen. You have to earn it. You have to fight for it. You have to scratch and you have to scrape and you have to grind. You know that, that, that term, you know, it's kind of a. A term in the, in the ether right now, right? The grind. Well, where's that come from? Sure, you could say It's a little trend. Oh, it's whatever. But it is a real thing. Like, you have to grind to make things happen. Grind. That means taking two hard objects and smashing them together. That's grinding. So these are some various ways that you may have been lying to yourself or in some similar way that I don't know. But there's something that you are. You're asking what's wrong with my thinking? I think what's wrong with your thinking is it lacks the truth of the situation. So what you have to do is you have to start telling yourself the truth. That's what you have to start doing. You have to be hard with the truth. You have to be hard with the truth on yourself. Now, here's the good news. Like I said, you're only 27 years old. You have not. You're not even close to the event horizon. You could start today and be a world beater in four. No, not four years. Six years. Six years. You could have, like. You might not be at the top of where you want to be, but you could be well underway. You know what I'm saying? 27 years old, bro. Can I trade places with you? You can have everything I have right now and I'll be 27. Can we do that? Can you send me an email and I'll swap places with you? I'll be 27. You can have my. Everything I have. You can't have my family, I guess, but you can have all the material things. You can have all the. All the credentials or whatever. You can have it all. And I'll be 27. Can we do that? Because I would take that in a heartbeat. So you're 27 years old. You can. You can. You can change the world possibly, but I know for a fact you can change your world. So that's what you have to do. You have to figure out what it is you want to do. You have to write those things down. You have to figure out what your strategic goals are, what you're trying to get to, and you got to write those things down. And then you've gotta figure out the little tactical daily disciplines that you can execute in order to make those things come true. Oh, Jocko's going on this thing again. Yes, I am. Cause that's what you have to do. That's what you have to do. You can't lay in bed and wish for things to come your way. Cause they're not going to. You have to get out and you have to go and make things happen. That's what you have to do, you have to execute those things day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year. This is the way you move forward. And if you don't do that, you will be 37 in the same situation, 47 in the same situation, 57 in the same situation. And if the lie you're telling yourself is that you want all the success and that's that you really don't want that, then okay, man, be. Take care of your parents. I know you take care of your parents. That's cool. You can be 37. You can continue to work that job. You can take care of your parents. You live at home. You have no responsibilities. If that's. If that's the truth, then do that. It's okay. It's okay. I don't. I don't. I don't look down on that. I truly do not look down at that at all. If that's what you want to do, then embrace it and be like, you know what? I live at home, but I take care of my parents. I make a decent salary. I don't really have to worry about bills. You know, this is what I'm gonna do. I'm taking. There's nothing wrong with that. But don't lie to yourself and say you want to do this other stuff when you're not willing to get out of bed. So that is a little excerpt of what we are doing on the Jocko Underground podcast. So if you want to continue to listen, go to Jocko underground.com and subscribe. And we're doing this. We're doing this to mitigate our reliance on external platforms so we are not subject to their control. And we are doing this so that we can support the Jocko podcast, which will remain as is free for all as long as we can keep it that way. But we are doing this so we don't have to be under the control of sponsors. And we're doing it so we can give you more control, more interaction, more direct connections, better communications with us. And to do that, we're building a website right now where we'll be able to utilize to strengthen this legion of troopers that are in the game with us. So thank you. It's Jocko underground dot com. It costs $8.18 a month. And if you can't afford to support us, we can still support you. Just email assistance@jocko underground.com and we'll get you taken care of. Until then, we will see you mobilized Underground.
Jocko Podcast: Underground #198 — A Message For You If You Think You Should Be More Than You Currently Are
Date: January 26, 2026
Host: Jocko Willink
Co-host: Echo Charles
In this focused Q&A episode, Jocko Willink addresses a listener's candid admission of feeling stuck in life—struggling with unrealized potential, recurring failure to follow through on plans, and wrestling with self-imposed limitations and doubt. The conversation dives deeply into themes of personal truth, discipline, the lies we tell ourselves, and the reality of hard work versus expectation. With characteristic directness and empathy, Jocko unpacks what holds people back and offers a practical roadmap for moving forward.
"At 27 years old, you’re not even close to the event horizon. So we got that going for us." (Jocko, 01:48)
"You say you want to do all these things, but you really don’t. The truth is you’re okay with that." (Jocko, ~02:00–03:43)
"When you really want to do something, you do it… you can’t sleep in the morning because you got stuff to do." (Jocko, 04:10)
"Isn’t it weird to take something that you control and use it as an excuse?" (Jocko, 06:30)
"It’s a lie that you have to continue to do it… It’s what you choose to do." (Jocko, 06:40)
"When they lose for the first time, they get discombobulated and they fall down, they quit." (Jocko, 08:24)
"What they forgot to tell you is... you’re only going to be successful if you work your ass off." (Jocko, 09:14)
"None of these things… are easy to do. You think it’s easy to get a house? In order to get a house, you got to get a job… That is a hard thing to do." (Jocko, 09:46)
"You have to figure out what your strategic goals are… then you gotta figure out the little tactical daily disciplines that you can execute in order to make those things come true." (Jocko, 11:55)
"You have to execute those things day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year. This is the way you move forward." (Jocko, 12:15)
"If the lie you’re telling yourself is that you want all the success … and you really don’t want that, then OK, man… There’s nothing wrong with that. But don’t lie to yourself and say you want to do this other stuff when you’re not willing to get out of bed." (Jocko, 13:40)
On the Truth of Change:
"What’s wrong with your thinking is—it lacks the truth of the situation. So what you have to do is start telling yourself the truth." (Jocko, 10:40)
Harsh Self-Reflection:
"It’s a lie to say that’s part of your personality. It’s not part of your personality. It’s what you choose to do." (Jocko, 06:45)
On Wishing for Youth:
"You’re 27 years old, bro. Can I trade places with you? … I would take that in a heartbeat." (Jocko, 11:10)
The discussion is blunt, rooted in military straight-talk and laced with empathy. Jocko does not berate, but pushes for self-accountability. His tone remains encouraging yet uncompromising—emphasizing hard truths as the only foundation for change.
Anyone feeling stuck or underachieving will find resonances in Jocko’s arguments. The message is clear:
For further focused advice and direct engagement, Jocko encourages listeners to join Jocko Underground at jockounderground.com.