“E aí! Beleza?”
That’s how I greeted the flight attendant as I boarded my flight to Portugal with my brother Barrett.
She paused, then asked in Portuguese, “Are you Brazilian?”
I smiled and replied—in Brazilian Portuguese—“Nope, I’m American.”
She raised an eyebrow.
I added, “But I lived in Brazil for two years.”
“Ahhh,” she said, “that explains it. You sound Brazilian.”
Now, on the surface, that was a compliment.
But underneath?
It was a masterclass in leadership.
Here’s the Lesson: Your environment shapes your identity faster than you think.
With one sentence, she picked up that I wasn’t from Portugal.
Why?
Because Brazilians and Portuguese speak the same language, but they sound totally different.
Same words. Different cadence. Different energy. Different culture.
It’s just like how American English doesn’t sound like Scottish English.
(Side note: Brazilian sounds much prettier.)
I digress, but here’s the deeper insight:
Language, leadership, confidence—none of it comes from what you know.
It comes from what you absorb.
From whom you around.
From what you hear on repeat.
From what you see modeled every day.
When I lived in Brazil, I didn’t learn the language in a classroom.
I learned it in conversations. At dinner tables. On the street. Through repetition.
Repetition creates rhythm. Rhythm creates identity.
And that’s exactly how leadership works.
If you want to…
- Think bigger → hang out with visionaries
- Get stronger → train with the fit
- Lead deeper → surround yourself with leaders
- Build wealth → break bread with those who’ve built it
You will repeat your environment.
That’s the rule. And there are no exceptions.
Because like water shaping rock…
Your environment will shape you—whether you know it or not.
So your challenge is simple:
Audit your environment.
Then choose to upgrade it.
Because if you want next-level leadership…
You need a next-level circle.
Let’s get after it.
-Coach Bryce
