Find Your Awesome with Emil Ekvardt

“I had become very good at the game. But at the same time, extremely bad at everything else that makes up a happy life.”

- Emil Ekvardt

When Emil was 25 years old he had made over €1,000,000 pursuing his passion, playing online poker. He had more financial success than most people he knew. Still, life outside of poker didn’t feel very joyful. He had given all his attention to mastering the game, and zero focus on developing any other life skills that creates a happy life. Today he works with the charity, Great.com, as a business developer and podcast host. The rest of his time he spends figuring out how to live a healthier and more exciting life, so he can inspire others to find their own answers.

“A good place to find people that are passionate about something is to go to any place where people go to voluntarily to spend their free time.”

- Emil Ekvardt

Emil, like all of us, is a student of Earth School and his curiosity and eagerness to learn shine through in this conversation. In fact, he asks me almost as many questions as I ask him as we start out. But we quickly turn to discussing how he walled off his emotions to be a better poker player, but then how he learned how to pull the walls down to become a better human. 

“I didn’t celebrate when I was winning because that would make me more sad when I lost.”

- Emil Ekvardt 

“I feel like there is more magic in my life when I choose that perspective. I can either choose to look at as if nothing is magic or if everything is magic.”

- Emil Ekvardt

 

Find Emil online at:
http://www.whatsmissing.com

He’s on YouTube on his channel, What’s Missing:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHzJI5iFzlZgEK2fPfKS58g

You can also find him on Instagram at:
https://www.instagram.com/emil.ekvardt/

Music:
bensound.com