Jocko Podcast - Standard Directive 012: Think Before You Open Your Pie Hole

Episode Date: October 17, 2023

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Think before you open your pie hole. This is a pretty common thing to hear in the SEAL teams and I know pie hole is not the gentlest of terms for your mouth. But believe me, there are much worse terms that get used. But there's a reason behind the hostility of that word because it's meant to leave a mark. It's meant to be a little bit hostile.

Why? Because someone is trying to tell you, when they tell you to shut your pie hole, they're trying to tell you something that they've likely already tried to tell you in a more polite manner. And that is think before you talk. Just think before you talk.

We probably all heard this before. Why is that? Why should we think before we talk? Well, it's the same reason you should think before you pull the trigger of a gun because once you pull the trigger and the bullet leaves, you can't take it back. You cannot take it back.

Doesn't work. The shot has been fired. When you open your mouth, the words have been said. So you should think before you open your pie hole and talk. But here's what I want to clarify for you. What should you actually think about? What should you actually think about before you open up your mouth and talk? Well, I would advise you to think about what it would sound like if someone else said what

you're about to say. And not from your perspective either, from other people's perspectives. Because your perspective doesn't really matter at this point because you think you're so smart that what you're about to say is an awesome revelation that you're going to bless the world with. That's why you're about to open your mouth. And unfortunately, there's a good chance. There's a really good chance that what you're about to say is not a revelation. And it's not something to bless the world with. Chances are what you're about to say, there's a decent chance it's a waste of breath and it's a waste of other people's time. So just think about that. Just think about that before you speak. It's a filter that you can use. It's a filter that you can use and everyone

will be better off if you use that filter, including you. Because in the long run, the less you talk, the more people listen. So go ahead and keep that pie hole shut.