Tim Denning Profile picture
Jul 3, 2024 21 tweets 6 min read Read on X
Zach Pogrob's work will change your life forever.

His writing on obsession takes 100s of hours to read. I've gone through it so you don't have to.

19 ideas. 19 opportunities to become obsessed. Image
"It tastes sweeter when it takes 10 years."

• We're trained like monkeys to chase short-term rewards

• When you play in decades there's no competition

Decide to follow your obsession for 10 years. Image
"Creation cures anxiety"

• Most people spend their lives stuck in consumption

- They own nothing

- They build nothing

- After hours they just drown in comfort

The obsessed do the opposite.
"No one is more anxious than an ultra-ambitious person with nowhere to go."

• Ambition is bullsh*t if you don't use it

• When would now be a good time?

• Some people talk. Successful people do.

Just shut up and get to work.
"If you don't want a normal life, don't always expect to feel normal."

- Normality is a curse

- Normal people get paid the worst. They're oppressed and manipulated by news/politics

Get the hell out of the hell of normal.
"You should spend time where time disappears"

1. If you're watching the clock you're doing BS work

2. The best work doesn't feel like work

Change your perception of time.
"It's important to do things that remind you you're not normal."

• When people say "that's weird" it's a green flag

• Obsession isn't normal. It's the best choice.
"Never apologize for being weird in a world full of normal."

- Social media craves authenticity

- We're tired of having normal people say that success is BS & we should lower our standards

Mediocrity makes everything in the world worse.

We must win the war.
"Focus more on your 5-9 than your 9-5."

• 9-5 equals level 1. Starting a business equals level 2. Get the f*ck off level 1.

• The only way to have time is to start a 5-9 first. Build after hours

One day your 5-9 will out-earn your 9-5.
"How to feel alive: work on something that takes over your life."

1. Obsession is chaos. It's work-life imbalance.

2. The best way to feel dead is to drown in comfort. Later in life you'll get regrets.

Obsession is what you can't stop thinking about.
"While you make plans, someone else makes progress."

• Plans are overrated

• Plans are useless because entropy runs the world

Turn your 5 year plan into 30 days of action.

You'll create 5 years of progress in 1 month.
"Fear tells you to run from the exact place you're meant to go."

- Fear is a compass. If you don't know what to do then now you know.

- What you fear IS the opportunity

Fear = Untapped Potential
"Some people stop because it's hard. Some people start because it's hard."

If it's not hard it's a bullsh*t goal.

"Easy" and "hacks" are where potential goes to die.

If it were easy everyone would do it. Choose what few people will do.

That's how you get wealthy.
"You won't get wealthy day trading."

You won't get wealthy trading days."

1. Gambling is a scam
2. Crypto trading is a scam
3. A 9-5 until you retire then die is a scam

Wealth is created in the mind.

If you think like crap you do stupid crap.
"The best decisions aren't made.

They just happen. Don't trust a choice you have to 'think' about."

• Overthinking is often a sign you don't really want it. But you think you want it.

• Decisions attached to obsession feel effortless

Obsession automates decisions Image Credit: Zach Pogrob
"Delusional optimism is the only way out"

- If you're pessimistic you'll never be successful

- Obsessed people see the world better than it is and they're creating this brave new world. Image
“When you truly follow obsession, flow state never ends.”

• Forced flow states lead to bad work

• Real flow is a practice that feels effortless because you've chosen the right goal.

Every day in flow leads you to live in a higher state of consciousness (pure euphoria).
"Obsession turns average people into outliers."

"One year of obsession can save you a lifetime of regret."

Obsession is simple:

1. You put more effort into it than feels normal.

2. You set deadlines that end in today.

3. You love the process, not the outcome
"You're a hyper-conscious primate with 4000 thousand weeks to live. Stop overthinking it.

Stop scrolling for happiness. Start creating it."

• All you have is today. A near-miss with cancer taught me that. Cancer motivation is powerful.

Maybe you need to face death?
"When in doubt, do what makes for a better story"

Your life is a movie

Habits turn your life into a video game

If you want to attract opportunities you must start sharing your story on social media

The more rock bottoms, the better the story & the better the opportunities.
If you want to build something in public and write about it to attract people to it...

Then get my free email course: How to Start Writing on Social Media. timdenning.com/startonsocial-…

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More from @Tim_Denning

Jan 9
If you want an online business that reliably makes you $1M+ a year in 12 months, copy this:
Worst business idea:

Selling books, newsletters, or digital products.

It'll take forever to make any real money. And in a world of AI, selling info is plummeting in value.
Best path to $1M:

A high ticket offer.

Something that actually helps people solve a problem with help from you

• Mastermind
• Coaching
• Consulting
• Freelancing
• Fractional CTO
Read 13 tweets
Jan 6
If you want to get f*cking wealthy in 2026, do this:
1. Build a business instead of trying to get rich off investing (it's mostly gambling). The richest people on Earth own businesses. It's also a much faster path than traditional methods.

2. Take action faster. Wealth loves speed. Moving slowly is a death wish. Go from idea to execution in no more than 72 hours.
3. Upgrade your psychology around money. If you think like a poor person you'll act like one. See opportunities, not downsides. Be an optimist, not a pessimist. Believe anything is possible. Dare to believe you can be an outlier.

4. Leave your loser friends behind. The drunks. The ones watching endless sport. Now you have space for people who have the life you want. Proximity to wealth naturally creates wealth.
Read 12 tweets
Oct 13, 2025
I’ve been studying finance for 14 years.

I’ll tell you in 60 seconds:

Here are 13 ways people don't realize they're getting poorer:
1. Focusing on the downside of every opportunity

This is what pessimists do. Wealthy people focus on the upside and limit the downside. Even if the worst happens 99% of the time you'll be fine.
2. Thinking inflation is normal

Government tells you it's 2%. But inflation rate is different for everyone. Real inflation is above 10% which means most investments lose money.
Read 17 tweets
Oct 11, 2025
After helping 6000+ businesses nail social media…

Here's every marketing tip I’ve learned:
1. Be cringe AF and smile about it.

Cringe is good. It means you're doing what works. It's low ego.

People who can't be cringe never succeed because they get stuck in their heads.

Cringe = Popular
Popular = Works
2. Use ethical urgency & scarcity or make $0

Answer the question "why now?"

You can't serve everyone. And if you're always open, you clearly have no demand.

There's no need for countdown timers. But if you're too good to run launches...

You're too good to be a millionaire. Period.
Read 22 tweets
Oct 8, 2025
I’ve been studying finance for 14 years — and I’ll tell you in 2 minutes:

The solution to money problems is to make more money, not save money.

Here's how to do it:
1. Change your psychology you stubborn son of a b*tch

That's the single biggest differentiating factor. If you believe your limiting beliefs, nothing will work.
The average person has a scarcity mindset

• sees opportunities as scams
• protects what they have
• can't handle uncertainty
• takes zero risks

A wealthy person has an abundance mindset

• takes calculated risks
• chooses hard goals / loves challenges
• sees problems as opportunities to make money
• thinks of a business as a way to help people
Read 15 tweets
Oct 7, 2025
I just turned 39.

If you’re in your 30s, read this:
1. At 40, it's clear who took risks and who didn't. The ones who didn't are full of regrets & numb the pain with alcohol.
2. Your 30s are when it's time to leave the 9-5 daycare and build a business. Otherwise you'll be told what to do forever.
Read 36 tweets

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