John Jantsch on Self-Reliance: How to Build Resilience, Perseverance, and Perspective (Shortcast)

Beyond the To-Do List - Productivity for Work and Life

Erik Fisher

Business, Entrepreneurship, Self-improvement, Careers, Education

4.5 • 875 Ratings

🗓️ 10 July 2025

⏱️ 12 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this Shortcast edition, John Jantsch, author of The Self-Reliant Entrepreneur, draws wisdom from great American writers like Henry David Thoreau, Mark Twain, and William Wells Brown to explore three essential traits for thriving in life and business: perseverance, perspective, and resilience. Rather than chasing productivity hacks, John invites us to dig deeper—into reflection, discomfort, and slow growth.

In this Shortcast, we explore:

Perseverance Through Practice: Inspired by Thoreau, John explains why repeated effort—like walking a mountain trail—is not wasted energy but the very process that builds mastery and meaning.
The Danger of Indestructible Contentment: Borrowing from Twain, John challenges the idea of being too comfortable, encouraging us to embrace discomfort as a path to perspective and growth.
Redefining Resilience: With a reading from William Wells Brown, John reframes procrastination not as laziness, but as strategic patience born of experience—knowing when to act, and when to wait.
Growth Beyond Hustle: John reminds us that true self-reliance isn’t about grinding harder—it’s about trusting yourself, honoring the process, and staying open to what life is teaching you through repetition and challenge.

This episode is a refreshing reset—a deeper look at what it really takes to keep going, stay grounded, and lead with presence.

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Transcript

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1:04.6	list, a podcast about productivity. I'm your host, Eric Fisher, and this is a special
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1:23.4	productivity, mindfulness, leadership, personal growth, and after listening to this episode, click the link in the show notes, or go to blinkist.com
1:32.6	and start a free trial and then search for Beyond the To Do List to find the over 70 plus episodes
1:39.0	of Beyond the To Do List that are in there as shortcasts.
1:42.7	You're going to love them just like this episode.
1:49.3	Hello, I'm Eric Fisher, and welcome to the shortcast of Beyond the To-do list. In every episode,
	...

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