Idea
Celebrity-branded alcohol and on-brand fitness hotels
Sam argues celebrity alcohol is the best name-licensing play because a $50 bottle can be repurchased monthly (citing Conor McGregor's ~$100M Proper Twelve stake). He also pitches that an athlete like Lance Armstrong or Michael Phelps should launch on-brand fitness-focused hotels with branded pools and workout instruction.
“I think alcohol is the best one because you can charge $50 for a bottle of a certain type of alcohol., and there's a chance that someone will want to buy that many times a month. So I think alcohol is interesting.”
Steal thisWhen licensing a name, pick a high-price, high-repurchase product (alcohol) or a category that's genuinely on-brand for the person.
Take
Lose your mind to your craft: obsession over enjoyment
Shaan cites Conor McGregor's pre-fame line that to be great you must become obsessed and 'lose your mind' to your craft. He ties this to eating little — obsession puts you in a flow state where you forget to eat, sleep, or pay bills.
“He goes, he goes, I've lost my mind to this game. He goes, I think you must do that. I think you must become obsessed. You want to lose your mind to your craft. And I've seen that as like a common thing for a lot of people. And that actually relates to the ate very little. A lot of time you get so engrossed in what you're doing that you just forget to eat. You forget to go to the restroom. You forget what time it is.”
Story
Conor McGregor manifested it: from welfare plumber to Forbes #1
Shaan recounts Conor McGregor declaring he'd become a two-weight world champion and top the Forbes list while broke on welfare in Ireland as a failed plumber, then actually achieving all of it, as proof that self-confidence drives the work that beats the odds.
“It's because the guy had this ludicrous self-belief when he was literally on welfare, you know, as a, as a failed plumber in Ireland. And he was talking about how he's going to become, you know, the largest— you know, I'm going to become a two-weight world champion, the biggest sports star on Earth, number one on the Forbes list. And then guess what? This year where he landed number one on the Forbes list.”
Story
Conor McGregor called his whole rise alone in his bedroom
Shaan admires McGregor's drive: going from a plumber on welfare to the wealthiest fighter ever, having declared exactly what he'd do on video before he was even a pro — and then doing it all. Shaan accepts the trade of admiring the drive despite the bad behavior.
“And there's videos of him when he's alone in his bedroom, not even a professional yet. And he says, I'm going to be the greatest and here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to do X, Y, Z. And he did it all. I admire that, but I also think he does a bunch of scumbag shit and like, I'm okay with that trade, you know?”
Story
Khabib retired undefeated: 'What am I gonna do with money?'
Shaan recounts Khabib walking away at 29-0, turning down a 30-0 record and $10-20M fights against McGregor, Mayweather and St-Pierre. His response: even a billionaire only eats bread once a day. He won fame and fortune on his own terms while others copy McGregor's playbook.
“And he goes— I heard this interview— he just goes, um, what am I gonna do with money? He goes, 'Even like billionaire only eat bread one time a day. One bread a day.' I love you. That's hilarious. And I think, you know, there's something that is kind of amazing about this guy who lived his life in this way and got famous and got successful on his terms. There's so many people that are just copying the playbook.”
Take
McGregor's rule: how you feel is a choice, so choose to feel unstoppable
Shaan's favorite Conor McGregor quote and a long-time desktop wallpaper: on any given day you have to feel some type of way, so why not choose to feel great, unstoppable, and amazing instead of waiting for something good to happen.
“He says, you know, you have to feel some type of way. Like, on any given day, you got to feel some way. You're not just going to have no feelings, so you got to feel some type of way. Why not feel great? Why not feel unstoppable? Why not feel like, you know, why not feel amazing?”
Take
McGregor's rule: how you feel is a choice, so choose to feel unstoppable
Shaan's favorite Conor McGregor quote and a long-time desktop wallpaper: on any given day you have to feel some type of way, so why not choose to feel great, unstoppable, and amazing instead of waiting for something good to happen.
“He says, you know, you have to feel some type of way. Like, on any given day, you got to feel some way. You're not just going to have no feelings, so you got to feel some type of way. Why not feel great? Why not feel unstoppable? Why not feel like, you know, why not feel amazing?”