Wisdom Unleashed

An update on our wisdom-keeping competition PLUS access to 1000 thoughtfully curated wisdom-eliciting questions

“Once you get the grand mirror reflecting back, you’ll start seeing parts of humanity that you missed.”

— Brian Roemmele

In collaboration with the peerless Brian Roemmele, we recently held a competition aimed at helping you unearth and preserve the wisdom of yourself and your loved ones.

Here’s an update on the competition, including a showcase of some of our favorite entries and details on how to access Brian’s 1000 wisdom-eliciting questions.

Why Wisdom-Keeping?

The competition was inspired by a vision Brian shared during his recent visit to the show.

Brian highlighted society’s drift away from wisdom, suggesting that we often overlook the inherent wisdom within us and ignore the hard-earned insights of our elders. He argued, and we agreed, that we each have more wisdom within us than we can possibly imagine.

But how can we unlock it?

Brian’s solution is simple. Enable individuals to record answers (either their own or their loved ones’) to thoughtful, reflective questions on a secure, offline device. This process, akin to gazing into a mirror that reveals the depths of your soul, offers a cathartic experience, granting access to rich insights and novel perspectives.

We loved this idea so much that we immediately announced our plan to giveaway 100 wisdom-recording devices and access to Brian’s wisdom-eliciting questions to help bring to light the wisdom that resides in every corner of our society.

Competition Update

To win a device, all we asked was for participants to answer the question:

“What is the wisest thing you’ve ever learned from a friend or loved one?”

The responses were remarkable—a heartfelt thank you to everyone who contributed. Not only have you shared beautiful snippets of wisdom from your life, but you’ve also proved once more the undeniable truth - our followers are an extremely wise bunch!

We’ve shared some of our favorite entries at the end of this piece.

We have already started shipping the wisdom-keeping devices. Many of our winners will have already received theirs; others can expect theirs to arrive over the coming days and weeks.

Brian’s Questions

Owning the device is just the beginning. The true power of this exercise lies in the questions.

Brian’s got you covered. His meticulously curated, crowd-sourced "wisdom-eliciting" questions are now publicly available and can be found right here. For those who didn't secure a device, Brian also helpfully provides links to ones you can buy.

Even if you don’t have a device or don’t have time to record your answers right away, we strongly recommend reading and reflecting on the questions. They are incredibly profound and have the potential to spark meaningful introspection.

Your Wisdom

As promised, we’ll end with a selection of some of our favorite entries:

• Ramp Capital Guy: "The wisest thing anyone has ever said to me came from one of my college professors who said: The best way to predict the future is to create it."

• Cam: “Never give up because of how weak you feel. You don’t know how strong you appear to others and the example you set."

• Samyak: “Every function has its own failure mode. Desirable behavior, taken to extremes, may spell disaster.”

• Garrett: “Don't create more problems when solving current issues.”

• Vince: “once a task has just begun never leave it until it’s done. Be the labor great or small; do it well or not at all”

• The Frugal Banker: "Your emotions and feelings are NEVER wrong or bad. It's what you do with those emotions and feelings that matters."

• Ken Allgood: "It doesn't matter how much money you make, or how well your name is known. All that matters is this: Did you leave this place better off than it was when you walked in?"

• Paul Craven: “Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts.”

• Anna Kogan Nasser: "There is an optimal time for everything. Don’t waste it when the signal is given."

• Tanya: “Start each day with an attitude of service, with family, work, or society. Ask yourself 'is what I am doing helping anyone or making their life better?”

We're thankful to everyone who joined this competition. Time to start capturing some wisdom!