Roosevelt's Strenuous Life
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Teddy Roosevelt developed a philosophy called "The Strenuous Life" that emphasized physical effort and embracing struggle as essential elements of a fulfilling life.
Core Elements of Roosevelt's Character
- Incredibly prolific and active person
- Wrote multiple books before age 30
- Wrote textbook on Spanish-American War at age 21
- Books became academic standards for decades
- Diverse interests and accomplishments
- Avid hunter
- Zoological work similar to Darwin
- Boxing enthusiast (even as President)
- Politician and President
The Strenuous Life Philosophy
- Daily physical exertion is essential
- Boxed/sparred every morning, even as President
- Believed in putting in consistent physical effort
- Embracing difficulty and pain
- Must be willing to get hurt sometimes
- Need to struggle to grow
- Without challenge, you can't feel fully human
- Balance between isolation and society
- Used isolation for healing (retreated to Badlands after family deaths)
- Recognized need to return to society
- Eventually returned to public life and politics
Key Principles for Living
- Community is essential
- Need regular contact with loved ones
- Peers and family are crucial
- Isolation only works temporarily
- Physical and mental challenge
- Regular physical exertion
- Willing to face difficulty
- Embrace struggle rather than avoid it
- Purpose beyond comfort
- Living for more than ease
- Contributing to society
- Building character through challenge
Sam Parr
Host of MFM and fitness influencer
Sam Parr is a serial entrepreneur and business media pioneer.
In 2016, he founded The Hustle, a business news media company that started in his kitchen with just $12 and grew to eight figures in revenue.
Sam led the charge in making newsletters popular when few believed in their potential.
After four successful years, he sold The Hustle to HubSpot, a publicly traded company. Now operating as HubSpot Media, The Hustle reaches 3 million readers daily, employs a team of nearly 100, and has been the launchpad for dozens of its staff to found their own media companies and newsletters.
Sam remains the host of the popular business podcast, My First Million, and continues to start and sell companies. He also co-founded Hampton, a highly vetted community for entrepreneurs, founders, and CEOs, and teaches people to write better through his platform, Copy That.