THE ED MYLETT SHOW – The Ultimate Hack to Get More Done in Less Time!

Episode Date: August 16, 2025
Host: Ed Mylett
Notable Guests: Rob Dyrdek, Robin Sharma, Dr. Taryn Marie Staskel, James Clear, Grant Cardone, Jesse Itzler

Overview

In this special episode, Ed Mylett pulls insights from decades of interviewing and observing elite performers across industries to unpack the ultimate "hack": transforming your relationship with time and productivity. He shares his unique strategies for maximizing output, shifting mindsets, and controlling your day, not letting the clock (or society's 24-hour day) dictate your potential. The episode features powerful conversations with top guests, each adding wisdom on presence, routine, building habits, and confronting mortality to maximize every precious hour.

Main Themes & Discussion Points

1. Elite Performers Experience Time Differently

(Ed Mylett, 02:00 - 06:00)

• The most successful people act with more urgency and treat their goals as much closer than the average person.
• Metaphor: Marathon vs. 100-Yard Dash
  • "If you and I started a marathon, we'd jog. But for a 100-yard dash, we'd sprint because the finish line is so much closer."
• It’s not just about vision, but "depth perception": high achievers believe their goals are within arm’s reach, and this belief speeds up their actions.

Quote:

"You should be in so much bigger a hurry than everybody around you; you almost have people telling you to slow down a little bit."
— Ed Mylett (06:12)

2. Controlling Your Morning: Dictate, Don’t React

(06:15 - 13:00)

• The first 30–60 minutes of your day set the tone—avoid reaching for your phone immediately.
• Don't surrender your most creative, peaceful time to external inputs like texts, emails, or social media.
• Establish a ritual: meditate, pray, stretch, or do gratitude exercises before allowing the outside world in.
• Over time, this practice rewires you to live intentionally, not reactively.

Quote:

"Either you're going to control your time, or your time's going to control you... When you wake up in the morning, the greatest thing you could do for yourself is not touch or look at this device for 30 minutes to an hour."
— Ed Mylett (09:12)

3. Bend Time: The Six-Hour Day “Mini-Day” Model

(13:00 - 21:30)

• Ed challenges the conventional 24-hour day, recommending a framework of three six-hour “mini-days”:
  • Day 1: 6 AM–12 PM
  • Day 2: 12 PM–6 PM
  • Day 3: 6 PM–Midnight
• Aim to accomplish a full day's work in each segment, tripling your productivity.
• This compounding approach leads to exponential growth over weeks, months, and years.
• Particularly crucial for entrepreneurs: the perception of "freedom" can turn into aimlessness unless time is structured.

Quote:

"Let the rest of the world think a day is 24 hours. My days are six hours long. I've just manipulated and changed time."
— Ed Mylett (20:02)

4. Relentless Performance Feedback: Measure Hourly

(21:30 - 26:30)

• Shorten your feedback loops: average performers reflect yearly, top performers do it daily, elite performers do it hourly.
• Ed uses a mental or even physical alarm to regularly ask:
  • Did I move closer to my goals in the past hour?
  • What adjustment do I need to make?
• This fosters continuous course correction and progress.

Quote:

"An hourly alarm clock goes off in your head. If you can get to that point—where you just begin to practice it—it will transform your life."
— Ed Mylett (25:11)

5. Use the Present as a Bridge to the Future

(26:30 - 28:45)

• Elite performers direct their energy toward the future but act decisively in the present; they do not dwell on the past.
• Time spent rehashing past victories or regrets is wasted and robs the present.

Quote:

"Your past does not equal your future. What will equal your future is what you do in the present."
— Ed Mylett (28:39)

Guest Highlights & Key Conversations

Rob Dyrdek: Quantifying Life & Optimizing Intention

(21:55 - 32:58)

• Rob discusses his goal to live 1 million hours (over 114 years) and how quantifying life brings urgency and clarity.
• He tracks how his hours are distributed between work, family, and even downtime, identifying where time "leaks" (e.g., time on the couch).
• Focus: Live with intention, optimize your system to keep your mind in a balanced, magnetic state—where answers come effortlessly.

Quote:

"I want to live with absolute intention and experience every moment with the vividness and richness and beauty of the human experience and life."
— Rob Dyrdek (26:16)

Robin Sharma: Protecting Presence & Deep Work

(35:26 - 47:13)

• Acknowledges even top performers can fall into old patterns (e.g., too much phone time).
• Presence is the true gift—create device-free zones and "zero device days" for deep connection with family and self.
• Champions the “Five Great Hours Rule”: work deeply for a few focused hours rather than grinding endlessly.
• Flow State: Achieved through stillness, solitude, and stepping away from digital distraction.
• Emotional residue: Every notification fragments focus; beware the cumulative impact.

Quote:

"You can change the world and live a world-class life, or you can play with your phone all day. You can't do both."
— Robin Sharma (39:02)

Dr. Taryn Marie Staskel: Productive Perseverance — Knowing When to Pivot

(50:15 – 53:07)

• Resilience isn't the same as grit. True productive perseverance is the “intelligent pursuit of a goal": knowing when to persist and when to pivot.
• Culture emphasizes grit, but adaptability wins in changing environments.

Quote:

"Productive perseverance is about the art and science of the intelligent pursuit of a goal...knowing when to persist, and when to pivot or quit."
— Dr. Taryn Marie Staskel (50:57)

James Clear: The Power of 1% Better—Habits & Identity

(56:11 - 69:46)

• Atomic Habits: Strive for 1% improvement daily; excellence is the compounding result of small, consistent changes.
• Habits shape identity—each small act is a vote for the type of person you wish to become.
• The Two-Minute Rule: Build habits you can start in two minutes or less to master showing up (before scaling up).

Quote:

"Every action you take is like a vote for the type of person you wish to become."
— James Clear (63:48)

Grant Cardone: Expand Time, Don’t Manage It

(70:43 - 76:20)

• Cardone doesn’t “manage” time—he creates it by maximizing every available moment, especially after setbacks.
• Writes his goals in the morning, at night, and especially when he’s lost or disappointed to focus on the future, not the past.
• Speed trumps size: In business and life, the fast outpace the slow.

Quote:

"You don’t manage time, you expand it. The 24 hours is made up. The 60-minute clock is made up. I create time."
— Grant Cardone (71:13)

Jesse Itzler: Life Resume & Urgency in Action

(77:19 – 95:14)

• Jesse makes a conscious effort to create memorable experiences (“Kevin’s Rule”: plan an adventurous experience every other month).
• Discusses mortality as a motivator: “How many Mondays do I have left?” and the value of acting before regrets accumulate.
• Builds two lists: Sunshine habits (daily wins) and electives (big experiences/goals), scheduling them intentionally, and offloading distractions (“the ocean”) to protect time and energy.
• On regrets: Focus on preventing, fixing, and moving past them through action.

Quote:

"There's no newness unless you create it. You're in routine. You have to intentionally do it."
— Jesse Itzler (79:53)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Ed Mylett:
  • "Either you're going to control your time or your time's going to control you." (09:12)
  • "Let the rest of the world think a day is 24 hours. My days are six hours long." (20:02)
• Rob Dyrdek:
  • "I want to experience a million hours on this earth." (23:06)
  • "You don't want to be so future-focused that you never feel the present." (26:43)
• Robin Sharma:
  • "Addiction, a distraction, is the death of your creative production." (37:23)
  • "You can play with your phone all day or you can change the world. You can't do both." (39:02)
• James Clear:
  • "When making plans, think big. When making progress, think small." (57:40)
  • "Every action you take is like a vote for the type of person you wish to become." (63:48)
• Grant Cardone:
  • "You don’t manage time, you expand it." (71:13)
  • "The fast eat the slow." (75:02)
• Jesse Itzler:
  • "There's no newness unless you create it...you have to intentionally do it." (79:53)
  • "Am I going to regret this in the future? I don’t want future regrets, and I want to fix the regrets I have." (85:13)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Elite Performers & Time Perception: 02:00–06:00
• Morning Ritual & Control: 06:15–13:00
• The Six-Hour Day Hack: 13:00–21:30
• Hourly Feedback Loops: 21:30–26:30
• Present vs. Past/Future Focus: 26:30–28:45
• Rob Dyrdek on Quantifying Life & Intention: 21:55–32:58
• Robin Sharma on Devices, Presence, and Deep Work: 35:26–47:13
• Dr. Taryn Marie Staskel on Productive Perseverance: 50:15–53:07
• James Clear on Habits & Identity: 56:11–69:46
• Grant Cardone on Creating vs. Managing Time: 70:43–76:20
• Jesse Itzler on Urgency, Life Resume, & Regret Prevention: 77:19–95:14

Conclusion: Action Steps & Integration

Ed Mylett and his distinguished guests issue a compelling call to action:

• Re-imagine your day: Try the "mini-day" system to triple your productivity.
• Control your mornings: Start without your phone—own your day's tone and tempo.
• Shorten feedback loops: Measure and adjust your performance at least daily, ideally hourly.
• Focus on trajectory, not position: Embrace small, consistent improvements over time.
• Create memorable experiences: Build a “life resume” by scheduling adventures and sunshine habits.
• Confront mortality: Let it fuel urgency; act to minimize future regret.

“I may never give you a bigger gift than the concept of six-hour days…I’m an example of what that productivity and compounding in your life can look like—more fun, more memories, more meetings, more encounters, more relationships, more experiences, more money, more achievement, more joy, more bliss…”
— Ed Mylett (20:45)

For deeper dives with each guest, see individual episode notes linked in The Ed Mylett Show feed.