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Every person chasing growth eventually runs into the same problem. 

You are working. You are trying. You are showing up. 

But things still feel heavy. 

Most people respond by adding more effort. They assume the answer is to grind harder, push longer, or force their way through. 

But effort without strategy often leads to burnout. 

This is where leverage comes in. 

Leverage is the ability to create more impact without creating more exhaustion. It is about applying your effort where it matters most. It is about using your strengths, your systems, your habits, and your relationships in a way that multiplies your results. 

Leverage is why a small change can lead to a breakthrough. It is why a mindset shift can turn struggle into momentum. It is how you can do less and achieve more. 

This week, we are exploring leverage in its truest form. The kind that shapes your mindset, moves through your body, strengthens your relationships, and fuels resilience. 

We will look at how leverage works in the brain. We will see how it shows up in movement and training. We will explore how it applies to work, life, and personal growth. 

Most of all, we will show you how to find your own leverage points, the small changes that create big change, and use them to build a life of sustainable success. 

What Is Leverage? 

Leverage is how you get more from what you already have. It is the process of using your skills, habits, resources, or relationships to create results that are bigger than your effort alone. 

In physics, leverage is simple. A lever allows a small force to lift a heavy object. In life, leverage works the same way. It helps you move further, faster, with less wasted energy. 

One of the clearest examples of leverage is the Pareto Principle — the 80/20 Rule. It suggests that 80% of your results often come from just 20% of your actions. The key is knowing which 20% to focus on. 

Leverage shows up everywhere: 

In your mindset — reframing setbacks as opportunities  

In your work — simplifying or automating what drains your time  

In your relationships — building trust that opens doors  

In your training — using strategy to drive adaptation, not just fatigue  

Not all leverage is positive. Healthy leverage creates growth, connection, and alignment. Negative leverage manipulates or controls, creating power imbalances that erode trust. 

At its best, leverage is clarity. It is the discipline of focusing on what moves the needle most, and letting that force compound over time. 

This is what Tiger Resilience teaches. Work smarter. Train with purpose. Build systems that serve your growth. And let leverage do what it does best, multiply progress beyond what effort alone can reach. 

Michael’s Perspective: The Double-Edge of Leverage 

When I hear the word leverage, my mind immediately goes two places. 

The first is relationships and business, where leverage often feels a little more nefarious. Like game theory in real time. Everyone trying to position themselves for advantage. Companies negotiating contracts. People maneuvering for control in conversations or power dynamics. It is calculated. Strategic. Sometimes useful. Sometimes ugly. 

But the second place, and probably the one that feels most natural to me, is the body. Movement. Training. This is where leverage isn’t a power play. It is physics. It is survival. It is our body’s ability to produce the most force with the least energy. That’s efficiency. That’s beautiful. 

When I think about leverage in life, especially personal growth, I don’t see it as sneaky or manipulative. I see it as maximizing strengths and minimizing weaknesses. And a lot of that comes down to self-awareness. Knowing what comes naturally to you. Knowing where you struggle. And then leaning hard into what gives you the best return for your energy. 

Sometimes that means aligning leverage directly with your values and goals. Other times, leverage shows up in less perfect ways, in seasons of life where maybe the thing you are good at isn’t exactly your passion, but it still serves a purpose. 

For me, running has been one of those obvious leverage points. I didn’t engage with it for most of my twenties. It wasn’t a priority. But once I came back to it, I realized it was a natural strength, and more importantly, something I genuinely love. That’s leverage at its best. Something you’re good at. Something you care about. Something that gives energy back. 

But where I feel leverage matters even more in my life right now is in content creation and building Tiger Resilience. 

This is where the real game begins, leveraging time, bandwidth, creativity, and energy to create things that actually help people. That educate. That inspire. That make somebody stop scrolling and think about how they can train, live, or lead a little better. 

It is not just about grinding harder. It is about setting up systems that allow me to show up consistently without burning out. It is about knowing when to push and when to rest. When to create for impact, not just for output. 

Leverage, to me, is not about shortcuts. 

It is about positioning. 

It is about taking what you’ve got, your story, your skills, your struggles, and using them as force multipliers for the life you want to build. 

That’s what I’m chasing every day. 

And honestly? That’s what we are all trying to figure out. 

After last year’s 10 mile race here, I didn’t walk away frustrated. I walked away aware. This version of me did the best he could with what he had, coming off injury, limited training, figuring things out. But I also knew if I wanted a different result, it wasn’t just about working harder. It was about finding better leverage. Training with intent. Playing to my strengths. Minimizing wasted effort. That’s been the goal ever since.

Bernie’s Perspective: The Two Faces of Leverage 

Whenever people hear the word leverage, there’s often this immediate reaction — like it’s a dirty word. A tactic used to manipulate, to control, to push people into corners they can’t escape from. 

And truthfully? Sometimes it is. 

Leverage can absolutely be misused. I saw it firsthand just last week at the psychiatric hospital where I work. 

One of our senior directors was pressuring a clinician on my team — not because she wasn’t doing her job, not because she wasn’t performing — but because she refused to work beyond her scheduled hours in a salaried role. No lunch breaks. Eight hours in, eight hours out. Professional. Boundaried. Responsible. 

But in a corporate culture stuck in a 1980s grind mentality, that wasn’t enough. 

So this director used positional leverage — not to mentor, not to develop, but to control. To push her agenda. To imply: If you don’t do it, I’ll find someone who will. 

That’s the ugliest side of leverage. 

It doesn’t just wear people down — it erodes trust, culture, and the very fabric of what healthy leadership is supposed to look like. It reinforces the idea that effort alone isn't enough. That somehow, your boundaries, your life outside of work, and even your self-respect are negotiable. 

And unfortunately, that mindset isn't limited to corporations. It shows up in relationships, in friendships, even within ourselves. It shows up anytime we believe our worth is only measured by what we produce or how much we sacrifice. 

But leverage has another side too. 

Leverage can be empowering — when we use it to multiply our strengths instead of weaponizing our power. 

That’s exactly how I’ve been thinking about leverage these days, especially building Tiger Resilience with Michael. We’ve leaned heavily into technology — AI tools, systems, automations — not to replace the human element of what we do, but to free us up for it. To protect our most valuable resource: time. 

And let me be clear — time is the ultimate leverage. Once it’s gone, you don’t get it back. So the question becomes: How do you structure your life in a way that allows you to spend more of it on the things that matter? 

A friend introduced me to a platform called Sintra AI — a network of specialized agents for marketing, SEO, business management, and more. It’s allowed us to automate all the little tasks that drain energy, so we can spend more of our day on what matters most — serving people, creating meaningful content, building something real. 

But that kind of leverage isn’t just about technology. It’s about mindset. It’s about asking better questions: 

Where am I leaking energy? 

Where am I doing work that doesn’t need to be done by me? 

What systems or habits could free me up to operate at my best? 

Because leverage at its core is about alignment. It's about getting very clear on where you want to go — and setting yourself up to get there without destroying yourself in the process. 

And at the heart of it all? 

That’s leverage at its best. 

Not grinding harder. Not forcing outcomes. 

But setting yourself up — with tools, with boundaries, with clarity — so your effort moves further than it could on its own. 

Because life isn’t about working 80-hour weeks anymore. 

It’s about working intentionally. 

It’s about working with wisdom. 

And figuring out how to get 30 hours of value out of a 24-hour day. 

That’s still a work in progress for me. 

But that’s the game I want to play.

This Jeep has been my version of physical leverage for years. It gets me where I want to go — up steep trails, across rough terrain, through mud, snow, and whatever else nature throws at me. And yeah, maybe it’s not AI-powered or automated like some of the other tools I use in building Tiger Resilience — but out here, all I need is four tires, an open road, and some good old-fashioned horsepower

The Science of Leverage: What Happens in the Brain and Body 

Leverage is not just a strategy for life, it is built directly into how your brain and body operate. Small inputs often create large outputs because of how your system is designed to respond. 

🧠 The Brain on Leverage 

Your brain is wired for efficiency. 

A small thought can set off a massive chain reaction. Encountering a minor stressor, like a looming deadline or difficult conversation — triggers your amygdala, the part of the brain responsible for detecting threat. This activates your fight-or-flight response, flooding your body with stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol. 

Your heart rate rises. Muscles tighten. Focus narrows. 

This is leverage at work, one thought or signal producing a full-body response. 

But leverage works both ways. 

Engaging the prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain responsible for self-regulation, allows you to shift that response. Breaking a big goal into smaller steps calms the amygdala, keeps the brain feeling safe, and triggers dopamine, the brain’s reward chemical. 

Every small win encourages progress. Every small step helps rewire your brain through neuroplasticity. 

This is why consistent habits matter. They are leverage for long-term change. 

🩺 The Body on Leverage 

Your body is built on lever systems. 

Bones act as levers. Joints act as fulcrums. Proper positioning multiplies force and efficiency. 

For example, a bicep curl uses the elbow joint as a fulcrum. The longer the effort arm, the easier it is to lift the weight. This is why even small changes in posture or setup can drastically change how strong or efficient a movement feels. 

Leverage also happens at the muscular and neural level. 

Early strength gains when training often come not from building new muscle but from your nervous system learning to better recruit the muscle you already have. 

This process includes: 

• Activating more motor units  
• Increasing firing speed  
• Improving coordination and efficiency  

Over time, physical adaptation happens through strategic stress, placing demands on the body just beyond its current capacity and allowing it to rebuild stronger. 

Even outside the gym, leverage lives in small daily choices: 

• Using proper form to prevent injury  
• Practicing breathwork to calm the nervous system  
• Choosing high-quality nutrition to support energy, recovery, and performance  

Understanding these leverage points allows you to work with your biology instead of against it. 

📊 By The Numbers: The Impact of Leverage 

The research is clear. Knowing how to use leverage, in work, training, relationships, and mindset, consistently produces better outcomes. 

In Performance & Productivity 

• 80% of results often come from 20% of efforts — The Pareto Principle shows up in business, health, relationships, and habits alike
• People who focus on their strengths every day are 7.8% more productive at work (Gallup)   
• Companies that leverage employee strengths see 8% to 18% higher performance compared to those that do not (Gallup)   

In Relationships & Influence 

• Relationships with balanced power dynamics report greater happiness, satisfaction, and lower conflict (marriage.com)   
• Strong social connections — a key form of relational leverage — increase survival rates by 50% (Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health)   

In Physical Adaptation & Training 

• New exercisers can increase strength by up to 50% in just a few weeks — mostly from neural adaptations, not muscle growth (setgraph.app)   
• HIIT training improves endurance markers like VO2 max by 15% to 20% in just 8 weeks (journals.lww.com)   
• Proper technique and biomechanics improve movement efficiency by as much as 25%, reducing energy waste and injury risk (visiblebody.com)   

In Life & Success Patterns 

• Leveraging habits and systems improves goal achievement rates by 2 to 3 times compared to willpower alone (behavioralscientist.org)   
• Leaders who effectively delegate and automate report 33% higher productivity (Harvard Business Review) 

The Tiger Resilience Lens: Leverage vs Influence

Leverage and influence often get confused, but they operate very differently. One is about using resources to create results. The other is about using connection to shape behavior. 

Knowing which to use — and when — is one of the most important skills in life, business, and relationships. 

Both show up in real life all the time. Influence can lead to leverage, like a social media creator using their audience to spread a message. Leverage can increase influence, like someone in a leadership role having more say over decisions. 

In practice, the most successful people use both. They build influence through empathy and trust. They build leverage through strategy and systems. 

Influence opens the door. Leverage keeps it open without burning you out. 

Mastering both is how you create lasting growth, and move from effort alone to real impact. 

💪 Michael’s Training Corner: Leverage in exercise = Adaptation 

Part 1: How Training Leverages Adaptation 

Every time we step into the gym or out on a run, we are trying to do one thing — create adaptation. 

Training without adaptation is just exercise. Training with adaptation is transformation. 

The science behind it is simple: 

• Early strength gains are neural, not muscular. Your brain learns how to recruit more motor units, fire them faster, and coordinate movement better.  
• Biomechanics are real-world leverage. Bones act as levers. Joints act as fulcrums. Positioning and technique change how much force you can produce without extra effort.  
• Progressive overload is how you leverage stress. You do not need to crush yourself every session. You need small, consistent increases in load, reps, range of motion, or intent. That is what drives long-term growth.  

Training is leverage in motion. The smartest athletes do not just work hard. They work precisely. 

Part 2: Using Leverage in Your Own Training 

Here is how you apply leverage every day: 

• Refine your technique — good form lets your nervous system learn faster
• Train movement patterns consistently — practice builds efficiency  
• Use progressive overload — small weekly increases matter more than random PRs  
• Prioritize recovery — sleep, nutrition, stress management allow for better adaptation  
• Know when to push and when to pull back — leverage is not max effort all the time  

Adaptation rewards patience. Leverage rewards strategy. 

Your best results will always come from stacking small, smart wins over time. 

✍️Journal Exercise: Finding Your Leverage Points 

Leverage starts with awareness. Most people are working harder than they need to because they have never stopped to look at where their real leverage already exists. 

Use these prompts to explore where you can create more results with less wasted effort — in your mindset, relationships, habits, or training. 

Step 1: Identify What Feels Heavy

• What area of your life currently feels harder than it should?
• Is it work, relationships, personal growth, training, or daily habits?  

Step 2: Find Existing Resources 

• What strengths, habits, or resources do you already have that you might be underutilizing?  
• What systems, tools, or relationships could help lighten that load?  

Step 3: Look for Small Wins 

• What is one small change or action that could make a big difference over time?  
• How can you break a big challenge into smaller, manageable steps?

Step 4: Reflect on Influence vs. Leverage 

• In your current challenges, do you need more influence (communication, connection) or more leverage (tools, systems)?  
• Where are you relying only on effort instead of strategy?

Step 5: Build a Plan 

• What is one thing you will start leveraging this week to create progress without burning out?  

🛠️ Want more structure to explore your strengths, self-awareness, and growth? 

The Awaken the Tiger, Rise Like the Phoenix journal includes weekly prompts, self-esteem check-ins, and tools to track your progress over time. 

📘 Grab your copy on Amazon: 

https://www.amazon.com/Awaken-Tiger-Phoenix-build-Esteem/dp/B0DBRWTGS9 

Final Thoughts: Working Smarter, Living Stronger

Leverage is not about shortcuts. It is about clarity. It is about stepping back from the grind long enough to ask a better question, where is my effort actually going? Where am I working harder than I need to? And what small change could make everything else easier? 

Because growth does not just belong to the people who push the hardest. It belongs to the people who position themselves best. 

This is exactly where the Five Pillars of Tiger Resilience come alive: 

Purpose helps you identify where your energy matters most, so you stop wasting effort in the wrong direction.  

Planning helps you set up systems, habits, and routines that create momentum with less friction.  

Practice turns strategy into skill, teaching you how to apply leverage consistently in your daily life.  

Perseverance keeps you committed to the process when results take time or when change feels slow.  

Providence invites you to trust that small, intentional steps create lasting transformation when guided by wisdom and integrity.  

Leverage is not about doing less. 

It is about doing what matters most, with clarity, with patience, and with power. 

Stay resilient, 

Bernie and Michael 

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📚 References 

Gallup. (2016). State of the American workplace. Gallup Press. Retrieved from https://www.gallup.com/workplace/257578/state-american-workplace-report-2017.aspx    

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. (2010). Social relationships and mortality risk: A meta-analytic review. Retrieved from https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/press-releases/social-relationships-and-mortality-risk/    

McKinsey & Company. (2010). A new way to measure word-of-mouth marketing. Retrieved from https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/marketing-and-sales/our-insights/a-new-way-to-measure-word-of-mouth-marketing    

Naval Ravikant. (n.d.). How to Get Rich (without getting lucky). Retrieved from https://nav.al/rich    

Naval Ravikant. (2023). Naval Ravikant: How to Get Rich (without getting lucky) | Modern Wisdom Podcast. [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qHkcs3kG44    

Naval Ravikant. (n.d.). Leverage. Retrieved from https://nav.al/leverage    

Naval Ravikant. (n.d.). Specific Knowledge. Retrieved from https://nav.al/specific-knowledge    

Naval Ravikant. (n.d.). Permissionless Leverage. Retrieved from https://nav.al/permissionless-leverage    

Naval Ravikant. (n.d.). Labor, Capital, Code, Media. Retrieved from https://nav.al/leverage    

Visible Body. (n.d.). Levers in the Human Body. Retrieved from https://www.visiblebody.com/learn/skeletal/levers    

SetGraph. (n.d.). Neural Adaptations to Strength Training. Retrieved from https://setgraph.app/blog/neural-adaptations-to-strength-training    

Behavioral Scientist. (2018). Why Habits Are the Key to Willpower. Retrieved from https://behavioralscientist.org/why-habits-are-the-key-to-willpower/    

Harvard Business Review. (2014). Why Managers Waste Time and Energy. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2014/06/why-managers-waste-time-and-energy    

Friday.app. (n.d.). The 80/20 Rule: The Pareto Principle. Retrieved from https://friday.app/p/pareto-principle    

Marriage.com. (n.d.). Power Imbalance in Relationships. Retrieved from https://www.marriage.com/advice/relationship/power-imbalance-in-relationships/    

LWW Journals. (n.d.). High-Intensity Interval Training Improves VO2 Max. Retrieved from https://journals.lww.com/acsm-essr/fulltext/2013/01000/high_intensity_interval_training_improves_vo2_max.5.aspx 

National Research Council. (1997). Enhancing Organizational Performance. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/5128 National Academies Press 

Salas, E., Cooke, N. J., & Rosen, M. A. (2008). On teams, teamwork, and team performance: Discoveries and developments. Human Factors, 50(3), 540–547. https://doi.org/10.1518/001872008X288457    

Stanton, J. D., Sebesta, A. J., & Dunlosky, J. (2021). To what extent do study habits relate to performance?. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 20(1), ar5. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.20-07-0149 PMC   

Cao, X., Guo, X., Vogel, D., & Zhang, X. (2016). Exploring the influence of social media on employee work performance. Internet Research, 26(2), 529–545. https://doi.org/10.1108/IntR-11-2014-0299 ResearchGate