Episode
Feel Like a Failure? Learn How to Try Again When Life Isn’t Going Your Way | with Steve Kamb
- Podcast
- The Zack Arnold Podcast
- Published
- Jun 15, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 4982
- Processing state
not_requested- Canonical source
- https://zackarnold.com/podcast
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Summary
What if success isn’t about avoiding failure but instead learning how to try again when you do fail? In this episode, I talk with Steve Kamb , founder of Nerd Fitness and author of How to Try Again . Steve built a global fitness community of over 50,000 members and 20 coaches, gave a TEDx talk, and has worked with companies like Google and Facebook. But he’s also faced procrastination, perfectionism, and personal setbacks. We explore why constant optimization doesn’t always work, and how accepting failure and learning to restart might be the real key to lasting progress. Key Takeaways Stop trying to win for a moment and focus on staying afloat. Sometimes the most courageous move is not making progress but treading water long enough to see what tomorrow brings. Accept your reality with complete sincerity and compassion. Acceptance is not resignation or giving up. It is looking clearly at what is actually happening so you can decide what to do next. Recognize that change often feels more like caterpillar goo than a beautiful transformation. The messy middle is not evidence that you're failing. It is often evidence that real change is happening. Episode Highlights When everything crumbles all at once and you're forced to actually live the very advice you're writing about. Brett Archibald's unbelievable survival story and what it teaches about swimming in the wrong direction. Acceptance without resignation and how to face reality without losing hope. Why waiting for things to "get back to normal" may be the most dangerous habit of all. The concept of "yes, and" as a practical framework for navigating uncertainty. Caterpillar soup: the uncomfortable truth about what transformation actually looks like. Why Atomic Habits works for many people and what happens when consistency…