Week 8, the final module.  What a ride!  It’s been intense, challenging, and educational and as with all my learning experiences, there are gems and nuggets to carry forward. (If you haven’t read the rest of this series, start here – Zero To Dangerous series, Week 1)

 This week we circled back to Week 4, putting our spotlight on the “Minimally Viable-Massively Transformative Purpose” (MV-MTP) which can also be thought of as our “North Star.” As we shone the spotlight on our MTP/North Star, the purpose was to get clearer on our “Motivation and Goals” and to be able to set about “Unlocking Pristine Clarity.”

Before getting into the Week 8 material I’d like to share with you a challenge that I’ve dealt with from Week 1 that I was finally able to resolve this week. That challenge was what “minimally viable” meant.  For whatever reason, I simply could not wrap my head around it. There are some things I can grasp quickly and some just take me a little time; the “minimally viable” concept was one of those “little time” moments.

I’ve come to realize that “minimally viable” is meant to be a jumping off point when crafting our MTP/North Star, articulated yet unfinished and like any star will move around the heavens as I continually iterate on it. A starting point if you like that can either confirm I’m on the right track or a reminder to help me refocus when doubts arise or things go sideways.

Enough said.  Let’s get into the module! In this world of Peak Performance, motivation is what gets us into the game and motivation can be broken down into three disciplines: drive, grit and goals.

In our case today we focused on goals; both from a Macroscopic level (MTP) and on a Microscopic level (Clear, Daily Goals). Over my time in the course and reading Steven Kotlers books (more on them in another blog), I have come to understand why in the past, when I set goals but didn’t achieve them, I just moved on.  I never dissected why those goals weren’t achieved. 

During these past eight weeks it’s become clear to me why that happened.

In my setting those goals there was never a deep understanding or clarity on “WHY” I was setting them thus when they weren’t achieved I just moved on. I didn’t have a clear stake in the outcome.

You see, the greater majority of the goals I was setting were based primarily on extrinsic motivators, money, fame, prestige etc. (mostly money) I had never conceived of an MTP (life time/why am I here, what do I want to do with my life purpose goal). 

Certainly no pristine clarity, in fact until this moment in time there has never been a North Star in my life. The success accomplished over the past two decades has been done completely out of necessity. If you want to call necessity my North Star you may well be right. 

Over these weeks I’ve come to better understand the need of an MTP, its purpose and more specifically my “why.” Now as I’m setting about crafting my MV-MTP (it’s definitely in the minimally viable stage) I’m curious to see what I’m capable of accomplishing armed with this knowledge to guide me.

Now you may ask, why at seventy five does any of this matter so much to me? Simple answer – it just does! But really, here’s why! 

A foundational part of my MTP revolves around “Peak Performance Aging,” a phrase/concept/life style that I have been unwittingly and unknowingly living for the past twenty-five plus years.

It wasn’t until I read Steven Kotlers book “GNAR Country” in the spring of 2023 I came across this phrase. Upon seeing it and grabbing hold of it I then read three of his other books and enrolled in Zero To Dangerous (ZTD) to find out all that I could about it. 

Until I read GNAR Country I was simply doing what needed to be done to create a life that could sustain me, protect my family and keep me out of homeless shelters.

Trust me when I say that over the years I have been acutely aware that my life’s trajectory was, shall we say out of the ordinary. That what I was doing or interested in doing was not typical but it was either “give up or get up!” That was my motivation that became my goal every day; to get up and do what needed to be done. No MTP no North Star just do what needed to be done to create a better day than the previous one.

Some scientific information that you might find interesting – science has shown that our brains absorbs millions of bits of information every second but it simply can’t handle the influx so it is constantly shifting and sorting the critical from the casual, discarding the casual and focusing on the critical. 

What is critical?

As Steven Kotler says “Shit that scares us and stuff we want;” they are the two big filters that shape our reality. 

Having goals helps the brain find the thing we want at an unconscious level and when we know where we’re going we get a huge boost in motivation. 

This fact is something that I can attest to; I was definitely scared when I declared bankruptcy in ’96 at the age of 48 and I desperately wanted to rebuild my life; I knew where I wanted to go, just had no idea how. 

WOW! As I was writing these words I had a moment of clarity/insight, an epiphany if you like. For all these years my North Star has been my home and family. Funny, it really is as is said – so much of our lives are invisible to us.

After eight weeks I can honestly say that I have barely scratched the surface and there is a life time’s worth of work in front of me, a lifetime in which to continue growing, developing and learning as I explore my limitless potential.

I love quotes so here are three to leave you with:

“He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how!” – Nietzsche

“Find something you would die for and live for it!” – Steven Kotler and Peter Diamandis.

“Do you want to know who you are? Don’t ask, act! Action will delineate and define you!” – Thomas Jefferson.

You can find out more about me at 

Home – Lorne Davidson

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See you again soon.!