For the first in-person episode of Identity Work, Adam is joined by his friend and podcast superfan Griffin Davis. Stephen is absent, so Griffin receives the full Adam Beasley Experience: one microphone, two coffee mugs, and whiskey in the home office.

Griffin recently left The Home Depot, just two months after earning a promotion, to co-found Novora Communities with his best friend. He shares how he evaluated the risk and why he believes the opportunity is worth the leap.

The conversation then turns to a question at the center of Griffin’s new season: Do high achievers have to work long hours? Drawing from Four Thousand Weeks, Adam and Griffin discuss the efficiency trap, accepting that we are finite, and the parts of life we give up whenever we choose to work more.

Along the way, Griffin explains Novora's mission to improve renters’ financial literacy, predicts what the national debt means for the next decade, and joins Adam in questioning whether AI companies can defend trillion-dollar valuations.

Takeaways

• Every career decision reveals what you value. Griffin left a promotion, stability, and strong career prospects because entrepreneurship, meaningful impact, and working with his best friend mattered more in this season.
• You can take a risk without ignoring the downside. Griffin and his wife reviewed their expenses, calculated their runway, and named the worst-case scenario: if the business fails, he gets another job.
• Efficiency does not empty the to-do list. Completing more tasks often creates more emails, responsibilities, and expectations. Everything will never be finished.
• Your calendar should reflect your actual values. Long hours may be worthwhile during a particular season, but they should serve something you deliberately chose instead of comparison, pressure, or the desire to appear successful.

Chapters

• 00:00 - The First In-Person Identity Work Episode
• 02:21 - Who Is Griffin Davis Outside of Work?
• 06:02 - Comcast, The Home Depot, and Career Decisions
• 13:10 - Leaving a Promotion to Become an Entrepreneur
• 16:39 - Building a Business with Your Best Friend
• 18:05 - Novora's Mission and Business Model
• 21:39 - Do High Achievers Have to Work Long Hours?
• 23:34 - Four Thousand Weeks and the Efficiency Trap
• 25:52 - The Infinite Versions of Ourselves
• 28:10 - Retroactive Shame vs. Present-Day Choice
• 32:18 - Do Your Actions Reflect What You Value?
• 34:35 - Comparison, Success, and Celebrating Your Friends
• 37:05 - Griffin’s Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs
• 39:34 - Trend Spotter: America’s $40 Trillion Debt
• 44:17 - AI, Cheaper Models, and Trillion-Dollar Valuations
• 50:20 - Delve Deck: Griffin’s Elementary School Glory
• 51:11 - Is Meaning Found or Created?

Listener Reflection

If you added 15 more hours of work to your week, what would you gain, what would you lose, and would that trade reflect what you actually value right now?