Daily Motivations - 3 Hours for the NEXT 30 Years of your LIFE

Episode Date: March 26, 2025

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Sometimes success is merely hanging on when others would let go. Not doing anything spectacular or out of the ordinary. Not leaping a mile or jumping over a mountain. But simply carrying on. Thomas Edison has a famous quote that's really stuck with me over the years. He says, many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up. Right? close they were to success when they gave up.

Right? How close they were to the finish line when they turned their back and said it wasn't worth it. It's really an interesting thing to grasp. Success is seeing what others can't. It's believing when others don't. It's taking the abstract, those visions, those pictures in your head, the make believe, and finding the courage to make them real. Bring them to life.

It's this constantly evolving process and it grows a little bit every single day. Sometimes we feel that progress, we feel the momentum, we do something big and it's exciting. And sometimes the progress feels small. And there are times when we get knocked down and we don't see it at all. We feel like because we weren't validated it we lost. That we failed, that it wasn't enough. We forget that's part of the process, that progress is a journey. And it goes when you go, and it stops when you stop. Just like that famous Dalai Lama quote, right?

The only way to fail is to quit. Period. No one ever stops because they can't. They stop because they decide to. They stop because they see that huge mountain and they think that's impossible. They forget it's only made of little rocks. They stop because they get so disheartened by the distance of the finish line that they forget it only takes a collection of little steps to get there.

You don't have to leap the entire distance You know, I've been there. Hey, this is me speaking from experience. It took me years to figure it out And even now life is rapidly evolving. I've poured my heart into things that let's be honest. No one cared about I've invested in opportunities that fell apart right in front of me. And each time it felt like the end of the world. I've been lost. I've been unsure. I've gotten up after things didn't go as planned and it felt like a loser. I had to look myself in the mirror and pick myself back up off the floor. But there's one thing that I kept doing that I never thought twice about. And that's continuing on. Whether life lifted me up or it beat me down, my plan for tomorrow was always the same.

Get up and try again. Keep going. And as I sat down this morning with my pen and a piece of paper I thought what's the one thing I would want to be told if I started out again? What's the one thing that people need to hear most? And it's to simply keep going. Keep taking steps. Because one day the world will start to make sense. And you'll look around and you will be thankful for one thing. That when most would have stopped,

you didn't. When the world said no, you said yes. There is nothing so powerful as a soul that refuses to back down See persistence is not an important thing or an essential thing It's everything So live as to see not what can be lost but what will be gained Find that light in darkness, even if it's a flicker, even if it's a spark. See, every loss makes you a little tougher, and every instant of sadness uncovers something

beautiful. Every moment of fear teaches you to be a little braver every broken heart opens the door to a new connection Instead of doubting yourself feeling inadequate in life's darkest moments know that you need what you are going through You are uncovering the little victories hidden in plain view. So when the world feels like too much and your patience is thin, be stronger than that voice in your head, begging you to think small. Stand on every experience, the good and the bad. Let it elevate you to a beautiful tomorrow. Hey achievers, are you ready to take your mindset, motivation and success to the next level?

If you're serious about personal growth, mental clarity, and reaching peak performance, then you need to be part of the Daily Motivations Academy. This isn't just another community, it's a game changer for anyone looking to stay motivated, overcome obstacles, and achieve real results. Get expert guidance from top coaches in mindset, success, and personal development. Access exclusive insights and strategies to boost productivity, confidence, and overall well-being. Surround yourself with like-minded high achievers who push you to stay consistent and level up daily. Your mental health, focus, and success are too important to leave to chance.

Join Daily Motivations Academy today. No excuses, just results. Click the link in the show note and start your transformation now. If there's time, then there's time to turn things around. If there is a tomorrow, then there is hope today. The only have-to-be's in life are the ones we prop up and adhere to. And how interesting that oftentimes we don't even realize

we're the ones holding them up. There's a simple question that I like to ask as the sun comes up and the coffee brews. Am I living today like it's an obligation or something more? Is it an automatic continuation of the past or a methodical move towards a future that lights me up? And these aren't small distinctions, Right? I've lived both ways. I've felt what it's like to feel both. I remember going to work and joking around that a flat tire would be a real treat. That's not accountability.

That's not control. That's essentially living life as a jellyfish floating along with the tide. And while the lack of required output, innovation, and planning may have felt like a win in the moment, or a burden lifted off my shoulders at the time, deprived me of that which resides in the soul of every human being alive. Purpose. Personal agency. See, you can only go so far, so long, being the spectator of your own journey. You can only go so long looking out the window before you wonder

just what it'd be like to be behind the wheel. When we put our actions up against the question why, it astounds me how many things are done because it's what we've always done. We act like we're expected to act. Think like we're expected to think. See who we're expected to see. But expected by whom? Some of my greatest breakthroughs in life emerged after being asked why by people I look up to or respect.

Why have you accepted that? That's your income? Okay, great, but why? That's how you spend your day? I see. How come? And when one is tasked with looking at their own life through a magnifying glass, some hidden truths always emerge.

It shines a spotlight in the corner of the room, illuminating those shadows where one can, if they look hard enough, make out the wolf in sheep's clothing, that is the phrase, because that's how I've always done it. We get in life what we accept. We are what we allow ourselves to be. And if we don't ask ourselves which mountain is worth climbing, which ocean is worth crossing,

we simply float with the tide. We're at the mercy of the winds. We forfeit the mastery over our own lives that awaits if we're willing to take that wheel and navigate. So here are a few things to take with you. First is you are bound by nothing. The parameters you exist between are of your making. You can get in that car and drive. You can walk away and begin something new. You can entertain that vision that's been conveniently tucked away in the back of your mind.

Understand that to not go is fine, but it's a decision. And perhaps a decision you'll wish you made differently. And second, difficult today liberates you tomorrow. It's easier to observe. It's easier to say how you wish things were. After all, stepping out into the fast-paced chaotic world is tough. It's scary, it's unpredictable, but it's where you find yourself and the path that's calling your name. It's beyond the pins and needles emerging as one jumps into the cold water that they're able to find that evolution. If there's time, then there's

time to turn things around. If there is a tomorrow, then there is hope today. What's the difference between simple and easy? Well, simple is straightforward, uncomplicated. Easy, on the other hand, means achieved without great effort. The difference between those two words is subtle, but essential to understand. One deals with the complexity of an outcome. The other, your will and determination to achieve that outcome. Becoming who you most want to be is simple, but becoming who you most want to be is not easy. Just like walking is simple,

yet hiking up a mountain is not easy. The procedure didn't change, the context did. So let's talk about context. Let's talk about this cyclical nature of growth because it's not that most people can't. It's that most people won't. It's not that most people don't get how. It's that they don't have a strong enough why. The path is laid out before you. You just have to be willing to walk down it. Will you?

Step 1. Realize there's more out there. It's not that what you're doing now isn't amazing. It's just that yesterday's act of courage is now today's status quo. What was the spectacular is now the mundane. What was once the ceiling you had to jump to touch is now the floor you walk on. So at the very least, it prompts you to ask, well, what's next? Simple. Not easy.

Step two, the acquisition of courage. Yesterday's courage was a fight. It took a lot out of you, and it's ultimately what got you here. But it dropped you at the curb, it waved goodbye and went on its merry way, and here you are. You can stay here. A lot of people do. You can reminisce of the glory days, the old path, yesterday's triumphs. Or you can do that perpetually uncomfortable exercise of vulnerability. Stepping into tomorrow's unknown, reminding yourself that life's greatest rewards

have a hefty price tag, and that price is discomfort. But have already played this game, one might think. No, what you did was learn the rules. Now it's time to apply them to a new setting, and around goes the merry-go-round. It might seem like a replication from the horizontal but here's the secret you can't see the vertical. You have yet to look down and see your ascent, see what you're becoming. Just by staying on, holding tight, just by believing in yourself enough to begin again,

you are fanning those tiny flames of courage in your soul that wait to be spread like a wildfire. Simple, but not easy. Step 3, mistakes. Now, of course, it's not the mistakes themselves you fear. It's what you think those mistakes will mean. Ridicule, embarrassment, lack of direction or identity, losing what you have. But here's the catch.

When you realize the upside is greater than the downside, you liberate yourself. When you realize there's more to gain than to lose, your potential for greatness is born. How does one act on this? Mistakes. By making mistakes. By injecting yourself into the turbulence of progress. Our biology has not yet learned that the uncomfortable thing is the right thing. by injecting yourself into the turbulence of progress. Our biology has not yet learned that the uncomfortable thing is the right thing, and that's why you get resistance, that's why it hurts. And it's why few people will accomplish what you will.

When it comes to your climb, every day is opposite day. When they run out, you're running in. When they play safe, you play for the victory. To become who you might be, you must learn how to get there. Mistakes are your curriculum. Simple, but not easy. Step four, trust yourself. Okay, sure, no problem not easy. Step four, trust yourself. Okay, sure, no problem, easy.

Well, yeah, it's easy when you're getting what you want. But evolution takes time and there's nothing quite like giving and giving and giving and not getting. There's nothing quite like stepping up to the plate again and again and again and bringing no runners home. So how does one find the strength to continue walking up to the batter's box? Well, growth is exponential and those swings and misses matter. The infield singles matter. Everything matters.

Because it's all chiseling your future self out of stone. Nothing is dependent on the next at bat as much as all at bats in the aggregate. That's why success is so often considered to be sheer will. Dependent not on the home run but on the discipline, the self-belief to keep walking up to the plate. Repetition and adjustment. Repetition and adjustment. Repeat and refine, repeat, refine. Those are the materials from which all things are made.

Simple, but not easy. And then we have the finale, the ending step five. Celebrate and adjust. At some point you'll be able to look over your shoulder and notice something that perhaps you hadn't before. Space. Space between where you are and where you started. It's not sudden but gradual and undoubtedly with enough persistence it will emerge. These moments they are precious. They are times to acknowledge what you've accomplished,

the sacrifices you have made. They are life's way of reminding you what you are building and who you are becoming. It's a time of celebration. Every little win means something. Every small victory matters, so relish and then transform it normalize it recognize that that mountaintop is your foundation now your starting point has changed and so have you which means so have your expectations with an

increase in ability comes an upgrade to what's possible, what's expected and look at that. We have arrived at a new step one. Realize there is more. This is the process for capturing that which life has to offer. If you can fall in love with that, appreciate it, respect it, while simultaneously understanding it's not scary, it's dependent entirely on your ability to push forward. If you can understand that there is nothing you can't do. Nowhere you can't go. Simple,

yes, easy, no. But you're not in this for easy, you're in it for the journey, the growth, the adventure. You're in it because it's not easy. You'll see in time, as will the world, that this decision to endure was simply the best one you ever made. The other day I woke up with a plan. Three things I had to do. So I wrote them on my whiteboard. They were essentially my objectives for the day. But it ended up being one of those days where things didn't unfold the way I anticipated.

And for a variety of reasons, curveball after curveball, with some sloppy decision making sprinkled in there. Eventually morning became afternoon, afternoon became evening. I found myself exhausted and looking up at a whiteboard that was showing me I had accomplished none of the things listed. And I hate that feeling. Having clear objectives and not meeting them. Right? And so after dinner, I got a phone call and I found myself talking about how I fell short,

getting it all off my chest, letting it all out there. And I got that reassurance that I wanted without even realizing that I wanted it right the voice Said back to me Eddie this happens. It's not a big deal in the grand scheme of things No one's perfect you put a lot of pressure on yourself Tomorrow's a new day right that type of thing and it's like Okay, exhale time for bed And the next morning I was outside relaxing doing some thinking like, okay, exhale, time for bed. And the next morning, I was outside relaxing, doing some thinking and came to this point.

And you'll see how these dots connect here in a second. But essentially, I see life as a staircase, right? Where we thrust ourselves out into discomfort, into chaos. And then amidst the storm, we're forced to grow. We step into shoes we were once unable to fill. And what was once bigger than us is now normal. It's every day.

It's ordinary because we fought for it. We pushed ourselves through. That's evolution. But now, guess what? That old ceiling has become the floor. It's time to evolve. It's time for that next step in the staircase time to thrust ourselves back into the chaos of life so that we can again tame something bigger than us. Take the next intimidating thing and make it commonplace. And as I sat there outside thinking, I found myself to be at that next step, ready to leap out again into the tumultuous winds of life.

But this time it felt different. There's an intersection, and I talk about it often, of doing what adds value to the world and doing what makes you content personally. Okay, I think where those two things meet is peak living. That's where the magic happens. And I'm fortunate enough that these thoughts, Meat is peak living. That's where the magic happens. And I'm fortunate enough that these thoughts, speeches, episodes, videos, whatever you want to call them,

on some days, literally reach over 200,000 people. And that's not meant to be a humble brag or anything like that. It's just, to me, so incredible that I can't process it, right? I get emotional thinking about it. My dream is to add value to other people, provide that little lift that might help someone look at their own problems differently,

maybe see a path when before they were unable to. That's what it's all about. And then in addition to that, a parallel track on a personal level, feeling like I'm growing and evolving as well, constantly stepping up those stairs one by one, having the courage to continue fighting those unknowns and making sense of life's complexities.

That's why so many of you were on this journey with me and so as I looked up at that next step and it felt bigger than it ever had before, I knew the task needed to be bigger than it's ever been. Which would require of me one of the biggest changes I've ever made and that scared me to death. Knowing that in order for something to be born, something must die, something must be left behind. I've been stepping forward for years and thank God for that

but now it was time for a leap. And so back to that whiteboard I mentioned earlier. If you hang in with me long enough, I usually come full circle. Right, back to the list of goals I missed, the bad day, why am I so fixated on that? Well, it has nothing to do with the day itself. Everyone swings and misses from time to time. It has nothing to do with those three goals. Everyone falls short here and there. That's part of life. It's about the person I want to be as I endure those turbulent times. It's about the strength to handle my own chaos and battles differently.

Before you can lead others, you need to lead yourself. And that means being vulnerable. It means being honest. It means looking in the mirror and asking yourself the tough questions. It means being stronger than I've ever been. There will be times that require of me that I push forward without having to hear from my parents or girlfriend or buddies that everything's alright. The next step requires that I trust myself to be the guy in my own life. To have impact in the world, one must find strength within themselves where they didn't know it existed. This is a leveling up that I know is required for me to be more than I've ever been. Stronger, bolder, more confident when I'm most fearful.

There was a line I used to draw separating me and the people I look up to. And the moment for me was a message. I knew it was time for me to mentally remove that line. You'll never be more than you envision yourself to be. It was time to be my own answer. Promote myself to that next level. From the kid with the dream to the man that makes it happen, it's time. It's just simply time.

Even the ones I love, the ones closest to me, they can't provide that. It has to be internally derived from a place so deep that come hell or high water, it's happening. And telling people about my little misfortunes so that they can pat me on the head and tell me things are great, that's antithetical to what is required of me next. There is a level of courage and strength and excellence in all of us that lives at the bottom of this abyss that we must pull up with everything we have until it becomes intertwined with who we are and where we're headed. And as I sat there, I knew it to be true.

I couldn't help but feel that change was about to happen, and it would stem directly from how I see myself. It would be the product of who I knew myself to be. And so now, most importantly, I present this question to you. Are you at that next step? Are you looking at a chasm that must be crossed? Were all your little decisions, all the courage and discipline and strength that you utilized to get here,

that has positioned you for this moment, is it telling you something is next? Is it time to dig deeper and be more than you have ever in your life been? In my example, by the way, was not about holding in our problems or dismissing those around us. Asking for help when we need help is courage. The small circle we surround ourselves with is a direct reflection of who we are. No, for me, it was about being the type of person who trusts myself to weather those storms.

About moving with greater conviction. Graduating from going to be to is currently. That whiteboard, that phone call was the turning point and nothing more. And my example may fit your life like a glove. You may think, wow, that's exactly the lens I need right now. But maybe it's not.

Maybe your situation is a little different. Maybe the road you're on is newer, less traveled. Maybe it's the courage to take that first step, to play the student perfect. Because whatever it is, as you look up at that next step, what matters is that you know in your heart and soul that you have what it takes to become that person. It's not bigger than you, it is you. Someone once told me that the world will not believe it until you do. So believe.

Believe it like your dreams depend on it because as it turns out, they do. As it turns out, everything about your future is make believe until you breathe life into it. Look around you at your current reality. Remember that it is a product of what you've allowed and that at any time you can up the ante Climb the step reach a new level You have it within yourself to do that just give yourself

Permission to be that person and it will be scary It's going to hurt at times. But let's be that vulnerable. Let's show the world what we can create when we move into it as though it's ours, as though destiny isn't assigned, but written one beautiful act of courage at a time. Can life change in a day? Well, what if we made today a day of action, of being decisive, of promising ourselves

that our goal or objective is to make a single move, however small. What if today action is king? And we live by the notion that whether the result of our courage is good or bad, whether it's the result we hoped for, the one that we didn't, at least now we have something to work off of. And that means we've moved beyond where we started.

What if today we live by the notion that a vision can change our lives, but a vision without that small step is powerless. And today we take that small step. It's easy to forget how good progress feels. How incredible it is to know that we're moving towards something meaningful in our lives. Something that we chose, that we're moving towards something meaningful in our lives. Something that we chose, that we're building. We had the courage to break life down so that piece by piece we could build it back up. We are our happiest when we are progressing. We're designed to map out the unknown, unexplored territory to make it our own.

We're not just flesh and bone, but travelers with godlike capability of seeing that which is not yet there. And with an idea and courage, there's nothing we can't do. And that's why when we stop seeing infinite opportunity, when we pretend that settling is okay, the status quo is enough, we know deep down in our souls that something's missing, we need the next door to unlock. So today, let's find just one door that we can open.

To remind yourself of the shock wave that goes through your system when inspiration guides an idea and progress turns that idea into reality because momentum connects every aspect of life. Not hitting this news button can mean seeing the sunrise, which can mean you read three pages in a book you wouldn't have read, which could mean your day improves, which could mean you make a call that you've been meaning to make, which could mean a dozen wheels start turning, not because you did everything, but because you did one thing. Today can be the day that changes your life.

And you don't even need the miraculous to make that happen. You just need to push back against the normalcy of your everyday. Create little microcosms of chaos that you can tame, you can understand, make your own and then stack on top of each other. Today, treat that little voice of uneasiness or nervousness in your stomach as assurance that the path before you is the right one. Remember that almost all decisions are reversible, but that a decision at least puts you somewhere, right or wrong. It moves you along and shows you more of life, the things, the people, the places you've never seen before.

And the only bad decision is no decision. Some folks never move towards meeting, towards the things that they want in, well, their entire lifetime. Because they didn't realize it wasn't an earthquake they needed to shake the old world at its foundation. They needed to make one decision. One decision that might be wrong, but at the very least would reassure them that wrong decisions aren't fatal.

But at the very least would reassure them that wrong decisions aren't fatal. A decision allows you to remap a new reality and take another step and another and another. You can change your life today by picking your arena and simply stepping into it. You don't need to be the best or the greatest or the most innovative, no that's for another day. Today if you want to change your life, open the door and step in, you'll be amazed at what transpires. Why is this battle you versus you? With all the complexity, all the obstacles out there, why are you your greatest opponent? Well to put it simply, because all those obstacles and all that complexity still can't tell you no.

They can't say enough is enough. They can't look back at you and say let's just settle for what we have now. No only you can do that. The world may create the landscape. It may construct the terrain and those obstacles. But you are the sole decider on where along the way you stop. You decide how far you want to go and how much you are willing to endure. When it comes to your advancement or limitation you are in the driver's seat. I just picked up a copy of Will Smith's recent book and one of the ideas that stood out to

me was resilience. And this part in the book, it's actually kind of uncomfortable to get through but incredibly powerful. He's talking about his childhood and the polarity of his father's personality. A man who would do anything to provide for his family, he took pride in that and saw it as his primary responsibility. But simultaneously was their greatest source of pain. And he mentions his father hitting his mother from time to time.

In one particular example, struck his mother in the face so hard that it knocked her on the floor. And as she stood back up, she said something along the lines of, you can hit me, but you can't hurt me. And that was the first time Will understood as a child the difference between what the outside world inflicts upon us than how we choose to react to that occurrence. That understanding is power. And so why you are the author of your story. In the sense that every single thing dropped at your feet, every situation, every occurrence,

they come with an implicit question attached, a question that you and only you are responsible for answering. The question is, what does this mean? And how you respond to that question determines whether you go left or right at that metaphorical fork in the road. Does the occurrence detract from your ambitions or is it a multiplier? Does it confirm your doubts and insecurities or is it your reason to rise to the occasion? An opportunity to stretch, to evolve? to stretch, to evolve. That's a gift. That's an invite, not some sort of divine punishment. But the challenge is removing the layers until you arrive at the valley. And it's hard, but you get there by saying yes. You get there by choosing to see the value. And here's a quick example, my favorite thing about athletics, which was for me a ton of running, now I throw more interval training in there, but the same concepts

apply. It's a chance to remind myself that I don't negotiate with my weakness. I don't give myself an opportunity to rationalize with the voice that wants me to quit. That question, that fork in the road, I answered it. I charted its course before the workout started. Knowing this is going to be uncomfortable at times, but it's where I need to go. There will be no more thinking from here on out. And so today's workout for example switching deadlifts burpees to squats to core, you don't think. You see the next requirement, the next task, and you simply say, yes, you don't need your mind for this. In fact, you go before your mind even knows where it's

going because that dotted line has already been signed. And that was the breakthrough for me. When you separate what you have to do with the hurt associated with doing that thing, you free yourself. After all, what's there to hold you back if you can't talk yourself out of doing things? See, we tend to think our greatest adversity is the pain or the confusion or the unknown. But it's like, no, those are the byproducts of doing anything of significance. The adversary is the voice that begs you to slow down

because of those things. And if you can figure out in your own life how to create space between the two, how to separate the task and the discomfort often brought about by the two, how to separate the task and the discomfort often brought about by the task, there's nothing that will ever be able to slow you down. And look, I'm not saying that you walk around without ever utilizing the power of that brilliant mind you possess.

One's ability to think is everything. But what I am saying is there is a time to shut it off. There is a time in which to avoid overthinking, we simplify. Action-reaction. One more mile, okay, end of story. One minute of jump squats next, Roger that, period. It's taking the emotion out of the process, refusing to leave the door cracked for the inner dialogue that says,

hey, maybe you don't do this. Maybe you slow down. Are you sure you can handle what's next? No, all of that is tuned out. It's assignment, go. Next, go. Next, go. You know this is the right thing.

You did your thinking before grabbing the sword, shield, and stepping into the arena. Now guess what? It's instinct. It's doing what has to be done. And what has to be done hurts. And look, you didn't have to accept that. You didn't have to step in. You could have stayed home, but somewhere along the way you looked in the mirror and said the difficult path is the one with the value. And now here you are, face to face with hungry lions, clashing swords with your adversaries.

There's no turning back now. Now is when you parse out pain from the objective. The pain is now part of the audience. It's not with you or in you, it's watching from above as you do what you came here to do. So yes, those swords clash, but the eyes remain focused on what's ahead. And yes, those lions roar, but that's background noise.

When you simplify your world into objective and action, objective, action, objective, action, objective, action. There is time for nothing but forward progress. And sometimes that is all that is required of us. In the face of adversity, in the face of pain, self doubt, in the face of discomfort. Can you break your world down into nothing but one single step forward?

One more set, one more rep, one more session, one more attempt, just one more. No rocket science, no negotiation, there's nothing to figure out here. It's walking the path before you. It's the discipline to carry on. It's one more swing of the axe. Audience or no audience. Lions or no lions. You are bound to the universe at your feet.

And that simplified concentration is why you will succeed. The road to this moment wasn't an easy one. There were times where you thought you knew, but simply didn't. There were plans made that drastically differed from the ones fate had prepared. There were days that made you question yourself, your beliefs, that made you ask, what is my purpose? Look, to live is to have felt these things, asked these questions, to have seen firsthand the discrepancy between what we draw up and how life unfolds. And I think about this discrepancy often. The swings and misses, they hurt. You know, that quick shiver you feel down your spine

when thinking about the wrong turns made. The tugging at your heartstrings when reflecting back on things said, or perhaps worse, left unsaid. It's easy to get lost in that feedback loop, letting the past dictate the present, letting yesterday define today. But here's what I've come to see as the truth. To experience the things that make life beautiful,

we have to be vulnerable in a way we otherwise wouldn't. Open ourselves up to an unknown that, you know, we could have skipped altogether if we really wanted to. All that pain, all that hurt the past provided could very easily be the reason you shut down, the reason you play small. That hell you walk through could be your justification for never stepping out into the chaos of life again. That would at first glance appear to make sense, seem ideal even. But that pain could also be the reason you look around you and say, after all that, after experiencing everything life threw at me, I'm still here. And as I stand here now, I'm looking out at an array of possibility that is infinite.

I'm equipped with an understanding and a worldview that was once foreign to me. I'm armed with a perspective that has changed my life for the better. By stepping out into the often dangerous, brutal, unforgiving world, I have elevated myself. And that has made all the difference. And while it may feel intuitive to run from a reiteration of yesterday's pain, it's wisdom that urges us to instead use that pain as a multiplier. The key to something more.

Something miraculous. Not to cower because we once endured it, but to stand tall because we overcame it. And that's what we often miss. We can think back to the adversity, sure, but we're often unable to see how that adversity shaped us. Our own strength, it's never going to scream out at us. It's never going to let us know it's there. We have to take the time to acknowledge its presence. We have to peer over our shoulders to see how far we've traveled. We'll always have obstacles before us.

But if we don't stop and assess, we won't see that the obstacles have gotten bigger. Not because life's gotten harder, but because our own evolution has permitted us to step into bigger arenas, it has equipped us to take on larger adversaries. A simple willingness to be vulnerable has become the flame that lit up your soul. So the question is, will you step out? Will you see that vulnerability not as a crack in the foundation or a chink in the armor, but as strength?

To love, it requires accepting a susceptibility to being hurt. To play the game requires an acceptance that you just might come up short. To bet on yourself means understanding that you might fall right on your face. To want more than you have now means acknowledging that you might be humbled along the way. This is what it means to live. Giving a piece of yourself in order to acquire that which means the most.

The torturous, often counterintuitive willingness to step out into the darkness of night when your heart races and your mind moves a million miles a minute. That's vulnerable. That is power. And it's an investment in a tomorrow that otherwise would not have been available to you. You are not your past. You are the wisdom derived from its lessons.

The courage removed from its trials. And the hurt, that hurt that was perhaps at one point the only thing you felt it's not your reason to shrink into yourself it's your reason to step back out to say to the universe I have the strength to again dance with the unknown. To risk the short-term discomforts that life often hands out like candy in exchange for the chance years from now to look at your reflection and say I got back up. I did the hard thing. I followed my heart. I wandered into that darkness to obtain the wondrous reality that is for a time concealed. I did that. So love again. Try again.

Build again. Believe again. See again. Feel again. Step out into the world again. This is who you are. Underneath the fear and insecurity, underneath all those reasons to not go, there lives the beginning of the miracle that is life.

And it won't be easy, the timing will never feel perfect, but the question will always exist. It will always exist within an arm's reach of where you stand. Can you be that vulnerable? Can you be that courageous? And not just when things are going well, but amidst the turmoil, the chaos, the self-doubt. When your memory only wants to play highlight reels of where things went wrong, where you swung and missed. Will you choose to see those moments not as the chains that confine you, but as the strength that elevates you?

Will you be vulnerable enough to give away some of you in order to expand and transform all of you? Music When our backs are against the wall, we're forced to become more. When the clock is ticking, we are tasked with finding answers that hide among us. It's in the darkness we find light and while lost we find ourselves. The paradox of life is that from our pain comes our purpose, our evolution and our greatness. I love thinking back to about 2014, making my way around Boston, having just quit my job, essentially purposeless, clinging to a YouTube channel and a podcast idea that I would name your world within. And why, why do I think back? Why does this mean everything to me?

Well, because at the time, I knew nothing. I understood nothing. Nothing about speaking or media, audio, video, nothing about running a business. But more importantly, I knew very little about life and what's truly required to progress in a world with infinite moving parts. I didn't know that my lack of understanding is what made everything feel overwhelming and complex and that it was up to me to simplify. I didn't know the extent to which I'd have to befriend failure. And that was the most eye-opening realization. Because when you gravitate towards a risk-free existence and you box yourself in as I had for so long, of course you don't get the upside, but you also don't fail as dramatically either.

Life was a simple game of cause and effect. Do work, get results, not much room for more than that. And so stepping outside that box in the way that I did, changed some rules. I learned some things. First, you can spend time on something. You can exhaust energy on something and get nothing in the short term for your efforts. And I mean nothing unless you count getting your pride stomped on. Unless you count your friends disappearing when you need them most, unless

you count self-doubt in a constant worry about not amounting to anything. I mean, these are very raw, very real human emotions. They tend to arise when we start something new, but in them is also the power. This is where the light bulb turns on and the path emerges. It's where I learn that we only get what we want when we endure what we don't. And what a foreign concept when you think about it, right? It's like, Eddie, take this mic, go stand in front of this audience and pour your heart out. Your knees are shaking, chest is pounding, but dude, trust me, it'll be good for you.

And funny enough, it was. It was because the fear in my stomach became the indicator that something new, something exciting, something more was around the corner. Like Pavlov's dog hearing that bell. Anytime the fear kicked in, I could feel myself getting closer to something meaningful, to a higher version of myself. The pain is an invite. The sheer terror, and let's face it, that's

what it feels like sometimes, it's an upgrade. Disguised is the monster that you think you should be running from. When it is, as I recently mentioned mentioned the adversary you should befriend. We have to change our relationship with discomfort because our initial understanding the one that comes stock in our minds is never sufficient to build anything of significance. Its default setting is to preserve the now, not expand it. And so just like those stock speakers that came in my 1999 Ford F-150 when I was in my early 20s, let's rip it out. Let's upgrade the quality of the sound we hear and the things we say

to ourselves. What an advantage it is to know that the hard things are what make us level up. To find that awareness. What a blessing that when life's difficulty startles and scatters the masses, you could be the one that remains standing tall seeking out the advantage amidst the commotion. Every little act of courage becomes more and more meaningful, powerful. But we must lose ourselves to find ourselves. We must embrace our fears if we are to become courageous. We must fail in order to succeed. And sure sometimes the price seems steep. But I promise, not going costs more. Wishing costs more.

If onlys cost more. So maybe for you it isn't a YouTube channel or a speaking career. Maybe it's something totally different. But it is something. And should you bring yourself to pursue that which your heart pulls you to pursue You'll have those moments of defeat Where you're mad at yourself for leaving the comfort and safety of your previous world You'll have times where you have no idea what to do where you feel alone or stuck or unsure

to do? Were you feel alone or stuck or unsure? The difference will be whether you see this as the invite you've been waiting for or the reason to turn around and settle for less. That's the question. How do you internalize all that emotion that will feel like it is consuming you. I couldn't believe how strong that temptation was to go back, nagging at me every day, just come off the edge, just be comfortable again. But as my old coach would say in college,

when we're doing wall sits or something, physically taxing, 15 seconds. You can do anything for 15 seconds. And isn't life just a culmination of 15 second windows? It's compartmentalizing the process. It's turning the difficult into the advantageous. You have the ability to not think like everyone else. You have it within you not think like everyone else. You have it within you to rewire your previous conceptions of the world,

to see darkness not as your reason to hide from conjured up monsters, but as your invitation to become the light. Remember that the best way to be more is to have the courage to put your back against the wall. And you won't want to in the moment. There will never be a perfect time. But committing to that vulnerability will release from within you the power, the strength, the greatness that has been for so long tucked away. By moving into the chaos you are simultaneously creating the calm you always dreamed of. You're realizing the possibility that just needed the door left a jar to make its way into your

world. Don't you dare reach for your pocket, I told myself. In fact, take that phone and go put it in another room. Shut your internet off, set your devices to do not disturb. And think. Please. Think. You are losing yourself to distraction. Or as Cal Newport puts it,

you know, we're in a world that demands more thought, more deep work than ever before, while we all simultaneously become more and more incapable of that focus. And to me, it feels like more than a chuckle at our outrageous screen time or a self-deprecating joke about how reliant we are on our phones, the dopamine hit. I think it's antithetical overall to what we need, to where we find our purpose, which is a dichotomy that's frustratingly true with so many things. That balance for me to have a digital business

that means so much to me that I'm so proud of, but also tiptoeing around that same digital world like it's a hungry lion capable of devouring me. That's a real feeling. It's water that's foundational for life, but in too large a quantity will kill. It's the Sun that while integral and responsible for this planet as we know it, also has no problem ending, you know, anything that's too openly exposed to its rays, to its heat. There's always a sweet spot between too much and not enough. That happy medium, that intersection is why we're all here. Because when I don't take time to deeply think, when I lose the big picture, I remain in a

cycle of routine. And sometimes that's great, right? Morning routine is great. I don't really have to think about it. I'm programmed. Things like driving a car, as Duhigg explains in The Power of Habit, your foot stepping on the gas. It's involuntary, and thank God for that.

But one must be able to step outside that loop and ask the big picture questions. We have to make time to at least roughly chart the course. And it'll change. Life will present its obstacles, but we'll have at least parsed out what matters and what doesn't. When life is all habit and reflex, when you've lost the ability to examine the self because one minute alone with your thoughts is agonizing, well you

won't be able to see past the surface of who you are and what you're capable of. I want to be clear here, this is not me complaining about perhaps the most prosperous society ever to exist. This is me saying, you know, there are some dangers that we way too easily overlook. That when you outsource your thinking, you outsource your future. And it's not hard to fall into that trap. I just referenced the book Deep Work a few minutes ago. I think it's one of the most important books someone can read in this day and age. You know, Cal Newport talking about separating ourselves from distraction. I remember the day I first listened to that book, I was sick. So I

wasn't on my usual run. I was walking and because of that I felt this urge to as the the book was playing to reach into my pocket and check for notifications. And it really was eye-opening. It's like we are scared to completely immerse ourselves in solitude. But solitude is where we uncover so much. Silence is where we hear what our souls have to say. It's where we understand who we are. My favorite Joseph Campbell quote, the cave you fear holds the treasure you seek. And man, I hate to say it, but I think being alone even for a short period of time is that monster

lurking in the cave. You know the one we're scared to confront even though it's what we need solitude is the demon we are consistently masking in a constant influx of media and small talk and DMs and emails. You know, that stuff has its value but it's not real in the sense that I find it disconnected from purpose. So here's something that I've been doing and you know, I would suggest that you give it a try. It's been certainly helpful in my life and start small even if it's 15

minutes but take a walk by yourself. No phone and it's challenging at first because you know you want to be consuming something even if it's you know educational valuable still right phone, solitude. Think about life. Think about who you are. Think about what you've always wanted and where your current reality aligns. Think about how much you have and how lucky you are.

Think about any or all of these things, but think. Let your mind go where amidst the push and pull of life you don't often let it wander. For example some thoughts from my walk today, some of it random sporadic noise, some of it more valuable than others, but all of it valuable because the process in its entirety is valuable. You know, I spent some time thinking about the week ahead, the things I'm excited about and how to prepare for them, and realized one of them I didn't want to do. I then had that debate with myself, well, do I not want to do it because it doesn't

align with my goals or because it makes me uncomfortable? Came to the conclusion that I think it's the latter, so it's staying in my schedule, but I'll reassess. I thought about Florida. I consistently think about how lucky I am to be down here after living in so many cold places. It's just such a beautiful environment and you know one that I don't take for granted.

I thought about a statement I just heard from a professional athlete after his surgery, talking about how hard it was on him, but that he would rise from the ashes and he would have the best year of his life. And, you know, my mind went to one of the most important rules of leadership, that it's not about you or your rise or fall, right?

To lead is to make it about the team, about the overall goal and how grateful I was to come across that video, to see that and really dissect it. You know, sometimes the best ways we learn is by seeing what not to do, right? And I'll take that with me. I'll take that understanding with me on my own journey. Last thing I remember, I thought about some of the books I've been

consuming. I've taken in an insane amount of books over the years, but I've practically stopped reading physical books, right? And now I consume mostly on Audible or other audiobook methods. It made me wonder whether the value is equivalent. How much that varies from person to person, maybe something to research later, right? That's all I remember as I sit here now. But the point is, you know, this is stuff that if I don't immerse myself in solitude and break through the barrier of boredom, I don't get to. You know, and maybe you go through a week where you don't find much but as the saying goes right one idea one concept one epiphany

can truly change the dynamic of your life. It could change everything. Right there are answers just beyond the realm of distraction we operate in. Some of them pertain to trivialities like the audiobooks and the cold fronts. Some of them pertain to your goals and your development, who you are, where you're going, and how you'll get there. As Newport says, to simply wait and be bored has become a novel experience in modern life. And while his emphasis and focus is primarily on work and creating an environment to be productive. I want to suggest that It's not only our work that needs saving but ourselves

We can't lose touch with what matters most we can't become so shallow in our thoughts and our actions that the beauty remains buried away There is something in you that's untapped, unfinished, raw talent or desire. There are pieces of you that need to be assembled and if left alone will wither away unremarkably, quietly and probably without your noticing. So my ask is that you think of this as more than you know me cheering on long walks. It's not about the walks right? It's about time alone with yourself and what that opens up for you. It's about recognizing the spaces we need to carve out from the outside

world, so that when we re-enter the outside world, we know who we are, we understand where we're headed. We don't go where the wind blows. We are able, as the saying goes, to adjust our sails to get to our destination. All you need is more time with you. There's a quote from Naval Ravacant. He says, the closer you are to the truth, the more silent you become inside. I found that interesting. I got an email recently from someone asking for my thoughts about their being overlooked for a promotion at their work. They say that they're dedicated, they work hard, they show up and execute.

So what does the act of being overlooked mean? Well, like so many things, it's contextual, but let's play with it. What does feedback ever really mean? It means what you decide it does. Here's how I see the act of being overlooked, as this person expresses. Let's look at it as an iceberg, that rejection as a floating block of ice in the Atlantic, and the top, the piece that's exposed and above water, the smaller piece. Is your chance to look around and self-reflect?

To ask why. Where are the places I could strengthen myself? The gaps I could close and the spaces I could occupy? You know disappointment, it causes us to self reflect and that can be a valuable thing. There are often tangible, quantifiable reasons we didn't hit the mark, and I think that top of the iceberg is our recognition that we have things to do, places to go, and what better a time than now to start moving in that direction. Now the part of the iceberg underneath the water supporting all that, there has to be

a foundation of self-belief, of self-trust. Not only a hardness, an understanding that you are not defined by rejection, but also a certainty that things will work out. That you might have to stumble, fall, even aimlessly wander for a set period of time. But when your focus is on a particular North Star and you are serious about it, committed to it, you'll find a way. And being overlooked in any capacity is not defining because right now is not an end. You decide where the end is. There just so happens to be a lot of space between that point and where you stand now. and where you stand now. The vast majority of an iceberg exists under the surface and that's valuable here because

I believe that the differentiator when it comes to success and failure is how one internalizes the process and their place within it. If you know you're going to succeed, if you are confident in yourself and who you are, then the little wins and losses along the way tend to mean less. Getting overlooked in any capacity is a nice little bit of feedback, but in the grand scheme of things, it doesn't hold the weight we tend to give it when we're less sure of ourselves and the process. So let's get back to the quote. The closer you are to the truth, the more silent you become inside. Well here, Naval is stating in one of his podcast episodes that the wiser someone

becomes the more quiet or stoic they become. Referring to the character that I allude to all the time in this podcast, the loudest person at the table, right? Always talking or seeking attention. Often this character is overcompensating for something. And that's what Naval is, in my opinion, properly stating. But I want to hijack the quote a little bit. Because I think this applies to our own mental chatter as well. When we are sure of ourselves and what we're doing, the internal dialogue is reduced. When we believe ourselves to be correct and in line with our values and our

vision, the mind tends to be calmer. And I can use this YouTube channel and podcast as an easy example. I have self-belief when it comes to my ability to do this. I've invested years and years and believe that over time it's become a strength of mine. So when that inevitable negative feedback or comment comes in, which happens, it's the internet, I take it for what it is. It's the tip of the iceberg. I assess whether there's any value to be extracted.

If there is, I put it in my back pocket. But the point is I then move on because underneath the surface, under that tip of the iceberg, there is such a substantial amount of self-belief and determination in the process that negativity, it means very little., doesn't define me. And that's the point that I aspire to cling to. And conversely, as counterintuitive as it seems, I think we should be the same way with positive feedback. Right? Like when nice things are said, it makes us feel good and we should be grateful, sure. But the idea is the same. Examine, pocket the feedback and move on because if we rely too extensively on good feedback for our self-worth

and our sense of identity, it's going to be hard to avoid doing the same thing when the other stuff comes in. It's about having a vision and trusting yourself. This is not you versus the world. This is you versus you. And we can't forget that. It's a person committed, determined, on fire in their purpose, collecting data along the way to something greater. And look, sometimes that data comes in the form

of being overlooked. It highlights ways you need to make yourself stronger and better. But sometimes it validates and recognizes your greatness, the value you're already adding to the world. Either way, you're moving forward because it's who you are. And as long as you tell yourself you're going to win, and those two feet underneath you haven't stopped moving,

you're putting yourself in position to capitalize on all the opportunity life has to provide. You are going to see the compounding of all those steps you took. The ones you took when it hurt and the ones you took when it didn't. When you were sure and when you weren't. When you had all the energy in the world and when you barely got yourself through. All those times they mean something and it's the ability and desire to move forward regardless that becomes the determining factor. If

you know that the mind can be at peace, life is happening for you not to you. The obstacles become much needed information and the victories further contribute to your momentum. It's all moving you closer to where you need to be. There's a saying by Steve Martin, he says be so good they can't ignore you. And that's not a point, it's a process, an evolution. It takes time, it takes patience, it takes self-belief. But trusting that mountaintop you're chasing also comes with a great sense of security that this epic adventure is yours and yours alone. It comes with discovery, growth, joy, sadness, and everything in between, but it is yours. And if you sign that dotted line, it

doesn't matter if you are overlooked in some capacity. No person or external event can take away what you know in your soul to be true. Sometimes the inspiration doesn't come to you. No, sometimes you have to go out and find it. When it hurts the most, when the deck seems stacked against you, when the road to travel seems to be longer than you can endure. These are the times we're tasked not with waiting but with creating. And those lows, they become highs because they force us to self-assess, to look around and say I don't want to feel this way anymore. I'm done tolerating X, accepting Y, associating with Z, and so a bridge must be created to something. And your question is simply what's that something going to look like?

look like. Here's what's interesting. Knowing what you don't want is off in the beginning. It breathes life into a first step. Maybe you look up and you have no idea what step 2,000 or 3,000 looks like and that's perfectly okay. You don't need to know exactly where you're headed, exactly what the top of the mountain will look like. What took me forever to figure out is knowing that here isn't right for you wherever here here is, is enough. Because it is the beginning. The engine that makes it all work. You don't owe explanations. Apologies aren't required of you. All you needed was that feeling in your stomach that more is out there and perhaps you've been depriving yourself of it for a tad too long. You just need to leave scarcity behind and train your eyes to find the abundance you exist within. The other day I saw a quick interview Tiger Woods was giving.

And I'm not really a big golf guy, but when the greats talk, I listen. And those who have been following him know that he's had kind of a rocky past, right? A very public, you know, family situation to injuries, surgeries, a recent car accident. And you can only want someone like that to rise from the ashes, right? I feel like everyone's rooting for him to rediscover the dominance he once possessed. And basically in this interview, the interviewer is asking him about day one of the Masters where Tiger played well enough to make the cut. You know, he survived day one and was about to continue the tournament into the weekend,

but it certainly wasn't the best golf he's ever played. And so upon reflecting on it, he says, and I'm paraphrasing, things aren't the way I'd like them to feel. But I've given myself a chance. And I love the way that sounded. Not just because it came from a man who's been metaphorically battling uphill for what feels like some time now, but because it's how we all re-emerge from our adversity. It doesn't matter what happened yesterday.

Your past, all of it, the ups and downs, the bumps and bruises, they've all brought you here. And if life is one giant tournament, you've made the cut. You get to play in your masters. Tomorrow is coming. And it brings with it the chance to right the ship. To discover the undiscovered. To find yourself again. By showing up today, you've given yourself a chance. And that is the most powerful thing one can possess.

A chance. I think too often we look at what we don't have. We spend our time focusing on the holes, the blank spaces, the gaps. Instead of looking at the opportunity we've created to pivot wherever we deem necessary, the flexibility is the asset, but only valuable when we recognize and utilize it. And yeah, that can feel like a tall order when we are not at our best.

When we're operating at a level that, let's say, is less than ideal. It's easy to see all the problems we're going through as supporting evidence that the world is bigger than us, that we are outmatched by life. But really, all these things that have come together to create our current state, they're nothing more than life providing you a chance, an opportunity to turn the page. I'm a tiger, you know, those lows, those setbacks, and perhaps even the personal anguish one would assume would accompany those things. They've given him the gift of now, and he recognizes that. Just like everything that has paved the way for you has done the same. It's created the conditions from which you can now grow, further evolve.

It's providing a little nudge towards those things we need to do, but maybe sometimes drag our feet a little too long. So when the world throws you curveballs, how about seeing the situation as a chance to hit off speed, to step up to the plate and make something of what we thought was misfortune. When one trades, it's happening to me, for it's happening for me, you're presented advantages that were previously unavailable. They weren't there. And not because they didn't exist.

They weren't there because they weren't recognized. Because perhaps you saw the very thing that could help you as the thing that would hurt you. But regardless, here you are. Sharpened by the mistakes you made and shaped by the lessons you learned, you are here. Not to relive the past, but to create a new reality, write a new chapter, walk a new path. You are here. And wherever next happens to be, let it unfold

because you chose it. Let it evolve because it's who you are. Leave the stands and make your way to the stage where sure the stakes are higher, but so is the upside. I often talk about the power of looking over our shoulders at those highs and lows from time to time. Not because they have power over us, but because they have made us Look at all you've endured. See all that you've overcome. And for what?

Well, to put it simply, for the gift currently at your fingertips. The chance to say years from now, get sure you lost yourself things became chaotic confusing convoluted maybe you were unsure maybe at times you even felt alone but those times the same times that could have kept you down instead reminded you what you were capable of becoming. You don't get the light at the end of the tunnel without walking through the darkness and so to remember that, that all this has unfolded to bring about something beautiful on the other side, well that just might be the perspective that you've needed, that you've left behind.

The world will only give you what you ask for and so right here, right now, instead of accepting a continuation of your past. How about demanding an evolution of yourself? That game of life awaits. And so for your sake and the world's, don't be afraid to play. She had a picture framed on the table that said, make today amazing. Place there to remind her just how much of life is a choice. How much we get to decide? It symbolizes that on our worst days life hands us lessons and on our best days the highs of existence

During our low points Currency and During our low points, currency. And during our high points, the chance to cash it all in. Yeah, make today amazing. Because today's are few and far between. Today's are not an inconvenience, nor an obligation. Today's are what it's all about. Today is the big show.

The answers we look for. The destinations we long for. Today is a place of dreams That is if you choose to leave room in your world for dreaming Today is the beginning of wherever next is for you a chance to see the new and normalize it to stretch to reach further out and pull impossible a little closer into your orbit.

You can do that. And while one often can't control what they are given, they can control what becomes of what they are given. Like architects and designers engineering what will be and what the malleable world around them will become. When one raises their standards, life seems to accommodate. Because believing it means acting the part, means making the changes, means the external world makes room, means your identity is reinforced and so the cycle goes, by making today amazing, you are making yourself more. Decisions are You are making yourself more. Decisions are the beginning of all things.

See, very rarely is the tool in and of itself the differentiator. It's the vision that pulls us through. And if you take something arbitrary, say a hammer, there's no way to, based upon its existence, determine what it will mean or what will become of it. A hammer can be an agent of chaos that can smash and shatter and destroy. It can be the thing used to tear down. Or, it can be the thing used to tear down. Or it can be what built. It can connect. It can alter and redefine so that something, when all is said and done, is brought into an existence that never was. It was never the tool. It was how the eyes viewed the tool. It was the vision that designated the roles that made today amazing. And the reason we all need this reminder, as far as I can tell, is because the difficult things just so happen to be the meaningful things.

Because we are fighting, not against some little rule or idea we picked up along the way. picked up along the way, we are fighting against our DNA, against thousands and thousands of years of evolution. Because the fear that kept our ancestors alert and alive now in a totally new world keeps us contained and our talents minimized. The approval of others that kept us safe and secure as we once traveled the landscape in small groups, hunting and gathering, well now it keeps us needlessly looking over our shoulders

and craving acceptance. The unknowns that kept us out of the dark cave with the predator living in its shadows now keeps us confined. Looking out at life's potential through self-made windows. We need to be reminded to make today amazing because those things are quite the adversaries. Because our default is to just let the ship sail. Our default is to simply survive.

After all, that is the standard and the rule by which living things abide. Make it another day. But I believe you are more than a living thing. The godlike ability to not just exist in a world but create new ones is a miracle, both a blessing and a responsibility. To drive towards a more fulfilled you, a happier you, a healthier you, a more complete you. But one must first become aware that around them exists the pieces required

to build something never before seen. The vehicle to those far off places that were once only dreams, thoughts, illusions. I've always believed that if it means something to you, it's not stupid. It warrants exploration. For even if the thought doesn't end up being all it was cracked up to be, even if it's not the destination,

but only a stop along the way, it still pushes you to the next thing, and the next thing, and the next thing. It still moves you forward in this beautiful game of life. So decide. Decide to make today amazing. Choose to make it better. Let the obstacles lift you up and the momentum carry you towards something meaningful. When others stop and find reasons to doubt themselves. How about you find this small wind buried, tucked away underneath it all. The little key that may do nothing more than get you through that next door. After all, sometimes that's what life's about.

Picking up your head when it's most difficult and finding the next door to walk through. And the magic is knowing you can always do that. Because there always exists both the doorway and the key, but we must be willing to find it that's the obvious thing about those doors the right ones will open but they require we find the strength to approach them they require that we seek out amazing and so with this in mind what is the next chapter like for you?

Are you currently enduring one of life's winters? Are you navigating those inevitable valleys of despair, in which the value is in finding that single ray of light amidst the storm? Looking within yourself for the courage to take one more step forward and another and another are you seeking out that spark that will reignite the fire in you because it's there so long as you choose to make today amazing.

Maybe you've climbed yourself out maybe you're looking for whatever's next the new evolution. Seeking to follow your heart and continue the beautiful progression that is life. Let the external world support that vision. Choose to see the detail not as trivial but as the answers. The tools that will lift you up and support what you are building, it's there. She had a picture framed on the table

that said, make today amazing. Place there to remind her how much of life is a choice. Because in a world of option, what a gift to choose the journey of a lifetime. What a ride that awaits so long as you decide to step in. There's a quote attributed to Lincoln. He says, be sure to put your feet in the right place, then stand firm. The other day I was listening to Dan Carlin's podcast called Hardcore History, which side note is an incredible podcast. Guy's a brilliant storyteller.

And as I was listening, there's a specific idea that I wanted to dive into, an idea that I believe if we make an effort to understand and fully commit to, is capable of changing our lives. But first, some quick context, right? So Dan starts off this episode called King of Kings, talking about the Battle of Thermopylae in the year 480 BC in ancient Greece. It's that famous story that a lot of us know where King Leonidas leads that small army, which includes 300 Spartans against this massive Persian military force that's invading.

And the quick version is essentially Xerxes, who's the king of the Persian Empire and in charge of that massive army, tells the much smaller Spartan force that if they lay down their weapons, if they submit to him and let the Persians pass, no harm will be inflicted upon them. They'll be free to go, go about their lives. And here's the famous line, in response to the Persian command to lay down their weapons, the Spartans respond, Milan lebe, which means come and take them. It's the Spartans way of saying look the only way we're laying these weapons down is if you rip them from our cold dead hands, right? with everything on the line,

the odds stacked against them, the ground beneath them basically shaking from the march of a far superior fighting force moving directly towards their location, they would not let go of their principles. They were fighting for something bigger than them. And I couldn't stop thinking about this idea long after I hit pause on the episode. I guess I was awestruck by the power of living life with that type of conviction.

Because I know in my soul that's a north star I should be gravitating towards. We all should. The strength to be unrelenting with regard to that which we care about. The aforementioned quote from Lincoln about finding the right place for our feet and then holding steady. With everything you have have all that you are holding firm. I just couldn't get that out of my head.

And then it came to me that that invading force represents so much in our personal lives. So many things. One example being the difficult or adverse circumstances are trying times when you're most likely to concede that perhaps you're no bigger than that world around you. Maybe life is a movie and I'm merely the audience. My job is to clap, laugh, gasp or cry on my cog in a wheel, a line in a script, powerless. In which case, you should be reminded of Viktor Frankl's famous observation that everything can be taken from a man but one thing, the

last of the human freedoms, to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way. In other words, the outside world may change, it may evolve, but it will never have power over how you choose to internalize and view what's happening. That's innately yours. So when the circumstances feel like they demand more than you can give, when they suggest you leave your interpretation of life behind, the correct response is, as the Spartans defiantly said, come and take it. That army could represent a pushback

against your values, the pillars of your individual foundation that you feel, amidst all the pressure, tempted to let go of After all it's easier to retreat than stand toe-to-toe with others It's easier to abandon than it is to defend At least in the short term But as Victor Hugo writes You have enemies good that means you've stood up for something sometime in your life.

The enemies, obviously not being the point, I'm a believer in the conservation of enemy approach to life. Allies just pragmatically get you a lot further, but here's the reality. Anyone who stands for something will undoubtedly create divide. They'll be criticized and condemned. And when one feels the pressure of that criticism, they must understand that it does not invalidate who they are or their worldview. That is yours you are the only one who can give up or relinquish that control So as the Spartans said come and take And then lastly my thoughts went to little things that make us who we are Those tiny pieces of ourselves that we little by little, one by one, over time give away. The concessions that fade into the background as we evolve to fit in

so that we don't stand out. As Emerson beautifully put it, to be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment. And so that attacking army just might be the universe attempting to mold you to it. Perhaps not all at once, but more like that frog placed in water and put on the stove with the heat increasing so slowly over time that he doesn't realize the heat will soon overtake him. Externalities do not dictate.

They are objects in need of meaning and you are the architect here. If it means something to you, it's worth holding on to during the difficult times and the easy time. When it's popular and when it's not, there is value within you specific to you, a value that must be nurtured in order to expand. Others can't and won't see that. The world around you may even with all its complexity seek to suppress it. But that flame is there. It's there and it's yours. And to anyone or anything looking to extinguish its light, come and take it. After all, what is a life if not one lived on your own terms?

The goal is not to simply exist, but to define the plane on which you'll evolve. To devise your own parameters. Be yourself as that world looks to make you something else. So here's to digging deep. something else. So here's to digging deep, to finding within yourself the courage to stand up to the great armies of chaos, conflict, adversity, and their perpetual conquest. To remember how strong you are, how much control you have as you navigate the unknowns and redefine the right now's. Don't let your strength be the thing you give away. Don't let your heart be what gets left behind. Don't let your thoughts become illusions of what

could have been if only you'd held on. And look, I'm not saying it's easy. In fact, I know that the meaningful road will necessarily be the one that requires the most of us. That makes us question who we are and where we're going. It will ask that when our minds race with doubt and our knees shake with fear, we find a way to stand regardless. To walk to our demons, look them square in the eye and proclaim that whatever it takes we are willing to give. That we will fight until there's nothing left, go until we can go no further and hold with conviction all that matters most.

So the next time light demands that you fall back or bow down, the next time chaos emerges in the distance and asks only that you lay down your arm, here's to being strong enough, certain enough, courageous enough to say one thing and one thing only, come and take them. You Around 2011, I hurt my left arm and had to get surgery. So for a while I was pretty limited as far as what I could do with my upper body. And that's really when I fell in love with running.

Started doing it almost every day. Sometimes those long runs outside clear my mind, sort of reset a little bit. And sometimes I'd mix it up, hop on the treadmill and do my favorite workout, which was a pyramid, right? Where you break 10 minutes into four segments. Four, three, two, and one, increasing in intensity with each segment,

and then you start over. And that's where this whole idea comes from. It's this treadmill workout that I wanna talk about, because there's a little ritual I picked up that I still implement to this day and it was simple. At the very end of my workout or my run I would always add 22 seconds. My lucky number twice, two and two. So for example if I told myself you know the workout is going to be you know three pyramids or 30 minutes I would

stop running at 30 minutes in 22 seconds. And if I told myself it was gonna be an hour, I'd stop at one hour in 22 seconds. Always tacking on that 22, and I don't really remember the first time I started doing it or even why, but like so many things, that 22 second period organically became a habit, sort of evolved to take on a life of its own and would come to symbolize for me a little challenge. The idea that the end is never really the end. And no matter how tired I was or how bad I wanted to stop, especially when you can see

that finish line in reach, I could always squeeze out a little more. But like there's always something extra to give. And you could certainly go down that 22 second rabbit hole, right? Just 22 more seconds. And then you finish that and you realize you can do just 22 more and just 22 more. It's like this never ending spotlight into how incredible we are as humans. That our stopping points almost always are constructed. Rarely is there not an extra 22 seconds or 22 somethings we can endure.

door. And not only that, I think there's a case to be made that our growth occurs in that final push. There's a ton of value, you know, hidden away in there. The stretching of the mind and body, the last rep that breaks down the muscle, the last few seconds of that run that force the lungs to work their hardest, exhausting that last bit of energy and focus, you know, studying for an exam. Maybe that's where you confirm your comprehension and understanding of the subject matter. It's like when we are pushing ourselves just

outside the limits we drew up, we are simultaneously expanding those limits. And so over the years, I've adopted that mentality. And I look at myself in the mirror now and I can see it, I'm not the same person I was a decade ago. Those little decisions to add on 22 seconds, they stack up and they stack up in a unique way. Because it's not necessarily about the time. It's not the same benefit that say an hour every morning at the gym would bring.

You know, obviously that would be incredibly valuable, but in a different way. I'm talking about mentally, an armor that we come to wear, an identity that gets materialized. It's how you see yourself and how you see the world. You understand how manufactured our parameters are. And I get it, we have to stop somewhere, sure. But it's an acknowledgement that those somewheres are fiction. They are arbitrary. You weren't made to exist within them, but to stretch them, to recreate them.

And that's an endeavor that is always uncomfortable. But as far as I can tell, always worth it. The strength to go a little bit further than initially intended or designed is what will place you in a league of your own. And that's where I wanted to start. By bringing attention to the idea that there's always an extra 22 seconds and you are always capable of obtaining it. That is yours.

Whether you choose to see it or not, it's an option. It's always an option. Which sort of connects us to my next thought. If I know that's who I am, someone that fights for that 22 seconds, if I know that's what I'm capable of and that's what lights me up What about those times in my life when I had no desire to reach for the extra 22 Because sitting here I can think of plenty I can think of times when there was dissonance between my identity and my actions I can think of times when there was dissonance between my identity and my actions. Here's a quick story.

This was a shift in my life and my understanding of reaching for that little bit more. When people ask me about my process, what I'm building or where I see myself in X number of years. I tell them I'm playing the long game, right? Like I'll sacrifice some short-term wins now to continue forward with a plan that I believe wholeheartedly will transform from linear to exponential, right? It's like Gary V's motto, you know, you're young, you have time. And impact is not about succeeding at 34, it's about flourishing at 45 and 55 and 65 and 75.

Like that's fun to me. That's the exciting game to play. And it's methodical. The challenge is, you know, as you're locked into this big picture plan, you have to pass a lot of shiny objects along the way. A lot of, hey, look at them over there. Maybe I should be doing that too. That worked for her. Will it work for me? Right? Sometimes you forget to trust yourself and stay the course. And so a few years ago, I felt this pressure to pivot, to adjust focus. I had been talking with some mentors of mine who were very successful in their individual fields and passions.

And I thought, hey, you know what? It's time for me to start focusing less on the craft and more on monetizing the craft, right? The dinero side of things, which is great and it's healthy, but here's the catch. As long as you're doing it in a way that aligns with who you are. And so a few months go by and I found myself living in this overly sized and priced condo on the beach

that I was going to use to impress clients. You know, making products that didn't excite me. Talking to people I didn't really want to be talking to. Living a life that was not my own. I'd lost myself. Right? My love is storytelling. It's capturing life's seemingly overlooked secrets. That's what I get excited about in the morning. That's the value I want to share with the world.

And look, money is important. It's necessary. It's freedom. But for me, it can't be about the money or I lose the drive. Right, and here's the point I'm making where it all comes together. What I've found is that when you're a stranger in your own body, there's almost no incentive to push for that little extra. It's like who cares about fighting for 22 seconds?

I'm so misaligned, I don't even to be here. Right? That is the red flag. That's the indicator that it's time to adjust. Because if I'm someone who wants more, who pursues and acquires more, and I don't feel the urge to do so, you know, it's time to change. And I broke the lease, put everything I had in a car, went on a little three month excursion, realigned. And if I'm not willing to suffer through that little extra to go above and beyond, it's not for me.

And so that's a big example, but it obviously manifests in smaller ways as well. Yes, you are someone who can and will chase down the beauty in life, who will transform that little extra into something meaningful, but you also have to position yourself and the world around you to make it possible. And when you don't feel that hunger inside, and this is the point you need to understand, it's not you, it's not broken hardware,

it's not that you innately lack drive or confidence, it's that you need to rearrange this scenario, you need to find alignment. Because I promise you, if you want something enough, you'll be willing to fight for it, to hurt for it, to break boundaries for it. But you must first make sure that you're pointed at something you want, something that moves you.

And here's the part where I remind you of all those things you've already overcome in your life. Of all the times you thought your tank was empty, but you found a way. All the times you were hurting but kept moving. All the times you were broken but put yourself back together. We are not told in school or at work how resilient we are. We're not told that we often stop thousands of 22 second periods short. We aren't told that we're living at a 30% capacity, operating at a fraction of our potential. We don't even realize the little miracles we've created along

the way. A strong purpose and a willingness to stretch yourself as you pursue it will change your life and that's not hyperbole, that is fact. If you want what you've never had then push yourself further than you've ever gone. And we're talking little stressors expanding one step at a time until you eventually look over your shoulder and see the miles you've traveled. Until you look at your reflection and see the evolution that has occurred. It was never just 22 seconds. It was a consistent and sustained shot at the walls you placed around yourself for the opportunity to see them crumble. Let's right out of the gate draw a line.

The most important line one can draw a line of demarcation separating who you were and who you are. A line between the past and the present and this line marks your return. No not to the days of old but to step one. Your chance to begin again. To rise above, to transcend yesterday's character and transform today's potential. See what we often fail to realize is that there are ideas deeply ingrained in our minds that rule over us, a sort of subconscious authority. It says yesterday you fell short, so today you are someone

who falls short. It says your objective was not reached in the past, so how about a new maybe easier one. It draws a nice little box, packs you on the head, and says how about we make a nice cozy home for ourselves in here and what this subconscious authority fears most is that you wake up that you become aware that you return not to the past but to the power tucked away under all the stories you somewhere along the way decided were real. The second you accept that yesterday is only as relevant as you decided to be, you unchain yourself. You become unshackled.

So return to that place of curiosity where you're not obligated to perform but gifted with the journey before you. And that could certainly be hard. It was hard for me to look back at my life and distinguish between what I've simply accepted and life's objective truths. I'd taken orders and been obedient for so long. I'd been listening to that subconscious authority for so many years that I had to in a way relearn what creativity meant for me. I had to learn not to feel guilty going on a jog in the middle of the day when the rest of the world was working.

I had to learn that my instinct wasn't to explore, but to stop short. I wasn't pushing limits or peering around corners. I wasn't testing the waters or seeking out the hidden opportunities life hides away. No, I was on autopilot. And life, it had called for my return. It's funny how when you reject your potential long enough the universe seems to tap you on the shoulder. It makes it more and more apparent every day that something greater is within an arm's reach, backs you into a corner until you have to address the dissonance between who you are

and who you've allowed yourself to be. Those orders you've been taking don't align with your best self. And so one must not only create but in a sense return to their greatness. To accept what they've been running from, you are what you choose to be and let's face it, it's very easy to choose to be less than we can be. There's a saying that your reality is not destined to be, it is rather what you've chosen to accept. You only get in your life what you allow. And the entirety of this message is about one thing, that light bulb moment, the epiphany, the instant of empowerment,

that this world can only give you what you ask for. And to not ask, to sit back and observe, makes you a spectator. Sitting up in the nosebleeds, watching the activity evolve on the court below, it relinquishes control to powers beyond you, and that's existing, it's not living. So ask. Ask life for the things that lift you up and elevate your existence.

The reason a book metaphor works so perfectly in my mind is because when one opens to a blank sheet, they can write about anything. There's no limitation to what can be placed on that paper. And sure, our proclivity may be to continue on the legacy of last novels, casts, and characters, but it's by no means required. In fact, with that pen in your hands, you can craft a new world entirely. New places, new things, new relationships and ideas, new obstacles to face and defeat. A blank page can be and mean anything, and so every sunrise, every door you walk through presents in the same sense a blank page. Realize that there's no obligation to perpetuate the past or

continue on in the same way you arrived. No, this day is yours. Take hold of that self you've hit away. Find the courage to unshackle yourself From how you were once seen by your friends or your teammates or your co-workers Level up and understand that you don't owe the world any type of explanation Remember you're not here to conform to obey to live a life of obedience No, you're here to poke, to prod, to explore, to follow the nagging curiosity, to embark upon the adventure that is life. When you understand that you are not your past,

when you see that the person you were has no control over the person you are in this moment, you are free. So with eyes wide, a beating heart, a head held high, step into that world. Because if you live with conviction, with absolute certainty that life may not always be easy or intuitive, but it's there for you.

When you see not yesterday's constraints, but tomorrow's hope, all roads lead to an evolved existence. It's not about perfect and it never was. It's about understanding that the past has given you everything you need to break away from its grasp It is provided the lessons it has knocked you back pushed you down and tested your resolve all for this moment This second the chance to return to the greatness that has been tucked away for too long. Again, no miracles, no rabbits out of hats, just you allowing your greatness to emerge from this step forward because you can, because you have that ability, because it's who you are.

So go show the world, but most importantly, show yourself. You will be amazed at what's possible for you. If you simply allow it to materialize, if you, amidst the darkness of days past, let yourself light up the night. You have to see it before they do. You have to believe it before they will. You have to be the architect of your plans and your goals because no one will build them for you.

And that's just it. In a world where victimhood is becoming currency and blame is becoming the norm, we have a choice. Create a temporary fleeting escape or create a life that matters. You know how much easier it is to project out at the world? To never have to look in the mirror and address the things you could be doing better. You know how much easier it is to hate him or her or them over there? To make up stories and scenarios about how much different life would be if it wasn't for A, B, and C holding you back?

I mean short term, it's like winning the lottery, right? You don't have to take any accountability. You don't have to have tough conversations with yourself. You don't have to reflect on the painful memories or decisions. No, you can put your feet up, sit back, point at the world and say, look what they made me do, if only. But here's what's not being said.

Every time you point your finger away from your own chest, Every time you project blame, you're letting yourself down. Why? Because we only grow when we take accountability. Yeah, accountability can be painful, uncomfortable. But in that discomfort exists the only bridge to a better tomorrow. That's it. Right? You go to the gym, you put your muscles through stress, you break them down so that they can be built back up stronger. Personal responsibility cannot be the muscle we refuse to build. There's too much at stake. It can't be the thing you avoid. Why? Because it's what injects meaning into our lives.

I'll never forget in the eighth grade, and I bet every single person in that class still to this day remembers. My teacher, Mr. Betancourt, walking up to the front of the classroom, he had his hands in a bowl shape and was holding it up to the ceiling, explaining to us that you can't go through life asking the world to give you its scraps. That if you sit and you wait and you hope and you blame, you will lose. That's the recipe for bitterness and resentment. Think of it like a fork in

the road, where our two options are vastly different. You go left at the fork and you enter a world of escapism, refusing to confront your problems, finding reasons you can't do that which you know you need to do, hating others, those who have built, grown, or created themselves. Or you go right at the fork. You learn to do the hard thing, to humble yourself, to take control of your life and your world. When things aren't the way you want them to be, you look around and you immediately ask, things outside of my control may have brought me here, but what can I do to fix

it? do to fix it. Those of you who have been listening to me for a while, you probably know my favorite articulation of this idea was explained by Will Smith. Basically he said, look, you can't control where you start and how true that is, right? Life's not fair. Some people are born into more resources and opportunity. Some people find themselves in social situations that aren't ideal, and that list can go on and on and on. Human beings are all different,

so there will always be discrepancy. But, and this is Will Smith's point, where you go from here will always be your responsibility. What happens next is all you. You choose whether to complain, shake your fist at the sky and blame the world around you or pick the pieces up and move forward. And like I said a minute ago, don't be fooled by the temptation to latch on

to that fleeting moment of relief, of running from accountability. The only way to win in the long run is to face your demons. It's that whole saying, when you're riding shotgun, you can dispute the route all you want, but ultimately, it's the driver who's in control. When will you take the wheel in your own life? Ensure the stakes become higher, right?

Now it's on you. now you can get lost now You're responsible for the maintenance now if you don't end up at the right place Or I don't know you're late to a destination. It's your fault But now You can also be the one overseeing the journey. Now it's yours and that's power. And as our world becomes more and more one of escapism, it's becoming more prevalent, easier to avoid or not fix something but tweet about it. How easy it is to not confront our problems but rather open Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and mindlessly scroll.

How easy it is to leave that message unread and go about our lives because that's easier than saying what needs to be said. Strength is being the one amidst all this escapism and avoidance to confront what must be confronted. Whether it's an interaction with someone else or that hard conversation with yourself, a personal change that must take place. Life is such a gift, it's such an opportunity. But we have to move through it with our eyes open. We have to see things that matter and gravitate towards truths that will shape us.

Like Mr. B said, over 20 years ago now, we can't ever fall into the mentality of holding our hands up to the sky and asking life to give us anything. We can't only point at ourselves when things go the way we want them to go. No, let's be about accountability, empowerment, understanding that if I don't like what's around me, the transformation starts now and it starts with me.

I wasn't perfect, I never will be, but I can learn, I can evolve, and most importantly, I have everything I need to make that happen. It's all awareness. The victimhood idea is a wolf in sheep's clothing, and I know that may seem harsh, maybe even lacking empathy, but dropping that narrative was truly the best thing I've done in my life and I know countless others who would say the same, you can't be both a perpetual victim and be in control. No, life is tough.

It knocks us down and at times it brings us to our knees. But this is a reminder that you cannot stay there. It's a reminder that those who contributed to the situation are now minor detail and background noise. It's a reminder that the path forward is about you. It's about you pushing all that aside and asking yourself what's required to move in the direction that I most want to go.

Because you are that powerful. You are strong enough to make that move. And there will be a point where you look around you and the circumstances have changed. The people are different, the environment is different, you're different. And you'll smile at yourself knowing it's not because of what the world provided. It's not because of what anyone gave you. It's not because of what people out there did or didn't do. No, it's because when you were at your lowest, when life was presenting curveball

after curveball, when you looked around and maybe even thought to yourself, there's no way forward here. You found a way to get up and create something new. If these walls could talk, they would remind you of the things that you sometimes forget. Yeah, those elusive things you tend to walk right by. It's not that you've chosen to ignore them, it's that well, people are complex. And we have a tendency to skip over some important things as we remain fixated on our problems, our perceived inadequacies, that finicky negativity bias. The one that states if you went to a restaurant 100 times, had 99 incredible experiences, but something went wrong on the 100th, well that restaurant would forever be known to you as the place where things go wrong.

We are wired not to see the good, but to identify and avoid the bad. And if these walls could talk, they would unveil to you the brilliance that exists slightly out of frame. They would suggest you look over your shoulder and take a peek at how far you've come because my friend you've come a long, long way. It's funny how slow progress moves. It's interesting how our lowest moments force us outside of ourselves. Push us to step into those shoes we didn't know were sitting in the closet, unworn,

waiting for the day we'd take on that new role, waiting on you to see that who you were yesterday is not correlated to who you can be today. And if these walls could talk, they'd fill you in on a very important statistic. They'd tell you that you've stood face to face with some of the biggest curveballs life can throw. You took on struggle and hardship that rocked you to your core, and as you stand here now, your success rate through all that comes in at well 100%. You are literally undefeated in your ability to move through adversity and every time you did, whether you knew it or not, you walked into that closet and put on a new pair of shoes.

You became something new. Sometimes progress is so slow that it feels like pain and it looks like stagnation, but it is anything but. And if these walls could talk, they would remind you of that truth. They would beg you to see what you've become, who you are. If these walls could talk, they would remind you of life's ever-changing, transformative nature. All the times they witnessed you upset about people and things coming and going. As you tried to hold on to that which perhaps no longer served, wishing you could make permanent those things that were just meant to be transitory.

Shooting stars across the sky of your life. But something doesn't need to be forever to be meaningful. And thank God, because nothing is forever. And as we make our way into that vast unknown, we have a choice. We can live in the shadow of a particular moment in time, or we can cherish the value that those moments offered to us. They gave you just enough to take a new step forward. And sometimes a new step in that direction that's calling you is the difference between nothing and everything.

So if these walls could talk, they would tell you to keep your head up and be thankful for those shooting stars in your life for they made you who you are and the path forward would be impossible without them. If these walls could talk they would ask you about those times you came home, sat down in your room, and wondered how you could ever be enough. They'd call attention to that seemingly non-stop battle with imposter syndrome. They'd ask when you will feel like you've learned, seen, or traveled enough to gain some semblance of authority in your own life.

They'd wonder when you'll give yourself permission to be that. You've come so far, endured so much, you're not the same person you were a year ago. Now, if you could just stretch a little further, if you could just stretch a little further, if you could just extend a little higher, if you could see all the new shoes you've worn and the shooting stars you've collected along the way, you would know that you are designed to overcome.

External pressures, obligations, criticism, none of it matters. This is between you and yourself. And if these walls could talk, they would ask you when you'll see what they see. The brilliance, the magnitude of your potential. When will you be you? Marcus Aurelius wrote, remember how long you've been putting this off, how many extensions the gods gave you and you didn't use them. There is a limit to the time assigned to you and if you don't use it to free yourself it will be gone and never return.

See, today is precious because it is the only one you get. Each second unique in its own way, a measurement of opportunity represented by a single tick from the watch you're wearing. And if these walls could talk, they would tell you that they've seen people come and go, that you aren't the first and you most definitely won't be the last. And every single soul that stepped inside wished they'd found that courage a little sooner. Wished they'd looked back a little earlier, wished they'd found the inspiration amidst the chaos and turbulence of their day-to-day lives.

And if these walls could talk, they'd hope that maybe this would be it for you, the next step in your evolution. And what's most incredible is that you get there not by becoming something you've not yet become. Now in this moment, it's about noticing who you already are. Instead of the one mistake or reason to shrink into yourself, how about shining a light on those 99 reasons to expand? When it hurts, know that it's hurt worse and you've persevered. When you experience loss, know that it's not about what's gone, but what you now have and

will keep with you forever. And most importantly, know that you can always step into a new pair of shoes. You can always reinvent, recreate, you are never defined by something that happened in the past. The wake of the boat does not drive the boat and so with this in mind chart your course to new horizons. Understand that the map you need has nothing to do with externalities, but rather the solutions that already exist within you. So take a second and peer back over your shoulder. Look at that you in the past standing at the bank of a river,

hoping, praying for help, a lift, for some technology to get you across. Knowing, as you stand here now, that you have traversed oceans. Look, the context changes, and yes, it will always change, but your ability to endure, it does only one thing, it multiplies. You have everything you need because you couldn't have gotten to this point without accumulating the knowledge and expertise to take one step forward. And miracles, they are merely the culmination of those courageous steps. And yes, when we are stuck, when we're at that coastline looking out at foreign horizons,

I get that the answers seem big, sometimes even bigger than we are. I get that the mind wanders right to the potential disasters, to the what-ifs and the worst case. But if these walls could talk, they would let you know that you've come this far, endured and accomplished all this. Not because you've left mountains or jumped oceans. But because when you were at your worst, you found it within yourself to carry on the exponential compounding of what has made you great and what will continue to make you great. Look, if these walls could talk, they'd show you how the difficulties of years past have become stepping stones. So commonplace, so easily solvable that they no

longer even warrant your attention. That by moving forward you have faced your obstacles, taken the value from them and made them obsolete. If these walls could talk, they'd remind you that you are not only ready, but made for everything that awaits. In a way, our eyes are liars. Not in what they portray, but in the implication of their portrayals. Our eyes highlight to us one thing, what surrounds us now. We receive a snapshot of the current moment. And what took me years to understand is that possibility and hope live far beyond what

surrounds us right now. And it's that pursuit of possibility that saved my life, immersing myself in the unseen. Perhaps we were given the now, not to subserviently accept it, but to transform it. I believe in our own way. We're all architects. Here's what I've found to be tricky though as I've spent time thinking about this. What I believe and I've come to recognize is that two things can be true at once. First, all will

technically ever have is the present. As Eckhart Tolle explains, depression is essentially being lost in the past, anxiety is being fixated on the future, and that a healthy life is learning to cherish the now. But second is the power and control of being able to point the now at something far beyond what our eyes convey. It's the magic of knowing that we spend our days navigating a world of limitation and restraint. And it's not that we wake up and think, you know, I'm gonna restrict myself today. I'm to not live up to my full potential.

No, it's that we go on autopilot. We observe this slideshow, our eyes play for us day in and day out, and exist within those parameters. That seems perfectly reasonable. Our eyes show us a wall and our brain says, OK, this is where we stop. The end. And what I want to highlight is that world just beyond what our eyes show.

A world that pushes things a little bit. A world in which we ask, okay, but what if I gave a little more? Or why can't I be like those people in my life I look up to? Why shouldn't I change the circumstances that weigh on my mind? Why have I accepted these things that make me unhappy day in and day out? Just because it's the image or I show you right now doesn't mean it's where you stop. But we have to learn to look for more. When I was pretty young, like right about the time home PCs were gaining prominence,

my parents got this gateway computer that came with a Star Wars game demo. And you kind of, you have this character, you wander around the spaceship and you know, I played it and I played it and I played it and after a while, explored all there was to explore. Right? Or so I thought. I assumed that maxed the thing out because it was a demo. It wasn't the full game. So my assumption was that it wouldn't let me do too much until I went out and bought the real version. Then one day my friend from up the street came over and I'm showing him the game.

And somewhere he notices a little button that opens up this door and come to find out there was actually a lot of real estate left to explore, a lot of game available. It led to a tunnel that led somewhere else that led somewhere else. And sure, I felt like a clown for not realizing that I was needlessly wandering in circles, but at the same time was excited about this new world.

There's something about that concept, the secret door, the bookcase that can be moved to unveil a passageway to something greater, to the value locked away and invisible to the untrained eye. One of the most important things for us to understand is how many of these doors exist in our lives. That if we choose to recognize and identify something more, something that excites us and invigorates us, we can usually draw a line to it. We can start little by little heading that way. Because within the current moment,

slideshow we see all around us, exist the little passageways, the side streets, the tunnels connecting to something more. That of course those gates won't open up if you've not constructed a destination in your mind worth traveling to. Again, not because you're insufficient or inadequate or wrong, but because our default is to live life on demo mode. We have to manufacture more. Build a higher platform and then climb

up to it using ropes and ladders that we already walk by every day without thinking twice. Our world, our right now, is a toolbox waiting for us to construct a more meaningful, peaceful, happy tomorrow. And so again, I present the question, where are these hidden opportunities or gateways in your life? Where can you find the advantage, just dressed up as the mundane? Is it in a book? Is it a conversation? Is it applying to that thing you've been hesitant to pursue because you're scared of what might await?

Is it understanding the power of 10 minutes a day? And how starting small opens doors that we can't even comprehend? Is it a little boldness? Is it looking in the mirror and realizing you're still shackling yourself to who you were yesterday? Is it understanding that someone or something in your life isn't conducive to your well-being? Is it an hour in the morning to think? An hour at night to breathe? Is it changing a self-limiting relationship with time or money or resources? What walls can you knock down so that you might open up a world that's meant for you? A world that's malleable and without limitation. Your eyes they don't

tell the story of how things can be or what they mean. They show you the infinite tools at your disposal to build, to create, to design. To never accept a now that wasn't chosen with intentionality. That where there exists pain, there also exists a door to lessen and transform that pain. Your journey, it never ends where you are, it ends where you choose to stop. It ends where you plant a stake in the ground and accept the world around you. So if no one has told you recently, let me remind you how powerful you are. Let me reiterate what you are capable of.

And that perhaps your reality requires of you some customization. Perhaps the courage to step outside the routine and the obligation and as the architect you are build something beautiful, meaningful, something incredible to stand on. To recognize the distinction between what is and what can be. The second one understands that they are walking by the very solutions they need. That to remain in a state of discontent is simply an indifference to the resources around them. Remember this. What you see, your eyes don't provide an end state, but a path to the next chapter. A chisel to little by little evolve. As someone recently reminded me, Mark Twain's quote,

Logic will get you from point A to point B, but imagination will take you everywhere. Why? Because so much exists beyond the parameters of everyday life. It's about mapping new paths with new points and new rules. Because some exist and some live. Some comply and some create. Some see what is around them, and some ask, what can I build with what is around me? So build. Towers that touch the sky, bridges that connect the Earth. Build like this is a game, and the only way to lose

is to stop yourself from experiencing all it has to offer. Build like there's a world far beyond your front door. Because if you do that's exactly where you'll find yourself. Sometimes the most important things we do in our lives are the product of sheer will, of taking little nothings that surround us and making something out of them. In other words, the greatest opportunities, often the ones we need most, they simply aren't obvious, they're hidden. hidden, hidden behind what looks like difficulty, what appears to be hopelessness. The reason I place so much value on a single step forward when we're overwhelmed or at a low point is because a single step means you're in the game. You're giving yourself a chance to find and obtain

those little hidden away pieces that can't be found when we stand still and dwell on a situation. Mobility is empowerment and when we move forward only with what we have we're continuously only with what we have, we're continuously reminded that what we have is enough. We have the tools, the resources, and the ability. We just have to somehow remind ourselves that with those tools we are capable of building, of creating the incredible. So quick story about what I believe is the best song

ever written, certainly one of them. And it's a little bit older now, but in 1998, a band called the Goo Goo Dolls released a song called Iris and that song changed my life. It was the first album I bought, it introduced me to music, I listened to it probably thousands of times and even 24 years later it gives me chills listening to it. And so I wanted to find out a little more about the song and I came across an interview from Johnny Resnick who is the frontman and songwriter for the band. And in this interview, the interviewer is asking Johnny about the song, basic questions,

how it came out, how he wrote it and stuff like that. And there's a few points that I think are amazing. I want to share them with you. First is the state he was in prior to writing the song. He just came out of a divorce, personal life sort of in shambles, coming off of a bad record deal where the label from his previous album had done what record labels are notorious for and ended up keeping the vast majority of the revenue. He had writer's block, you know, just fell down and it left his home to stay at a hotel in Los Angeles. Bottom line is it's not a dream scenario by any stretch of the imagination and then gets a call from his manager about potentially writing a song for the City of Angels soundtrack.

And he says he went and sort of auditioned with what he had, which was two lines of a song and a guitar with two broken strings. It was evidently good enough. He gets a nod from the label and starts writing. And the verses, according to Johnny in the interview, they align perfectly with the movie, right? It's an angel willing to give up anything, even his immortality to be human so he could be with this girl, right? And it's this deep dive into, you know, what it is to love someone so much you give up everything for them. And then, and this is the icing on the cake for me, that's when I realized that I wanted

to write about this. The interviewer says essentially, okay, Johnny, the verse is aligned with the movie, but the chorus, this revolutionary, big, beautiful, powerful powerful chorus it seems to take a left turn like can you explain that to us what were you thinking and he just kind of pauses blankly for a second and I'm thinking no don't you dare say what I know you're about to say and sure enough he does he basically shrugs and goes I don't know the words just kind of worked and you know I'm paraphrasing that's not a direct quote but that's the idea you know one of the deepest most powerful

beautiful songs I've ever heard is patchwork right even the song title he says was named after a country singer on the cover of a magazine laying next to him, Iris. That's patchwork. It's pieces put together. Right? And then as I thought about it for a minute, it's like, of course it is. How perfect, how absolutely perfect the whole thing is an assembly and construction, a metaphor

for the human spirit. Conceived when its author was down and out, right, taking L after L, called to present an idea, didn't have some crazy budget or equipment to pitch this song, nope. Move forward only with what he had in the moment. And that was enough. Then the song, a beautiful depiction of, you know, the movie's theme combined with elements of real life, his personal situation, what he goes through, maybe even components that mean nothing other than an ability to encapsulate a feeling or an emotion. Words that allowed him to put a bow on all these little pieces himself and

get it out the door. And millions and millions of people listened to that song and were changed by it. Not because of what it meant to Johnny, but because it gave them a chance to take it and fit their own worlds and struggles into those same lines. It became a vehicle to inspire others to push forward, to find things in themselves they didn't know were there. This has become one of my favorite metaphors for finding the hero buried deep within yourself. Changing your life, changing your world, changing the world around you, the lives of others

can truly be, and in fact often is the result of just moving forward with what you have realizing that even when the mountain seems too tall to climb, there is a way we just require that mental shift. Listen to this question, right? Because I used to ask myself all the time, is this possible? Can this be done? Well, then that becomes the question that I focused on. And everything that occurred around me became evidence that would either support or invalidate

that possibility. The second I came up against an inevitable barrier I'd think ah maybe this is telling me the answer is no. Right? Life will always be evidence for or against the questions that you choose to ask. Which is why it's so important that you're asking the right questions. Because the second you change that question to, look I know this can be done but how will I do it? You start looking at life as a puzzle that must be solved. That same obstacle that was once interpreted as a stop sign is now merely an indicator that the path

exists just perhaps somewhere else. You've extended the pursuit, you've given yourself permission to keep looking and it's because of these self-created expeditions that we find more in ourselves. You know things won't always go perfectly but when you look at those imperfections through the right lens, you see that this isn't about you. It's about that particular door being locked. All you have to do is believe in yourself enough to move to the next one, to continue knocking until you find a door that opens, until you find that bridge to whatever comes next.

And that's why I love that story about Iris, why I wanted to share it today. It's crafted during times far from ideal, with resources far from abundant, with words far from perfect or related or self-explanatory. But you end up on the other side with this masterpiece. This song that certainly changed my life and definitely impacted many others. And it's like we have to realize when we're sitting on the edge of the bed, you know, maybe it's not divorce or writer's block, but whatever it is holding you back, that's not the end.

It's your reason to keep going, to begin again. You don't have to know how things will be, but you do have to know how they won't be. They won't be like this because you won't let them stay this way. won't be like this because you won't let them stay this way. And maybe it's not two written lines and a broken guitar. Maybe it's moving forward when your strength is not at a 10 out of 10. When you don't really have that spark or you're longing for some resources, some finances, wondering where they'll come

from. But pushing forward one little step at a time until things start making sense. And maybe it's not a combining and restructuring of song lyrics, using your personal experiences to fill the gaps on the paper before you. But it's trusting that your own story will ultimately tell itself if you don't put the pen down. That the heroes will rise, the villains will fall, and the adventure will continue on. After all, that's what life is.

One giant adventure testing us, pushing us, and transforming us when we're at our lows. While reminding us during the good times, Why we're lucky to have been gifted that same adversity We once looked at with contempt. Why we're lucky that, When everything's made to be broken, As the lyrics suggest, We get to make something imperfectly beautiful

With the pieces. Recently, I was thinking about something a friend of mine named Tom told me a few years back. He owns a company in Oklahoma City and was telling me about how someone he'd hired essentially stole from him. And the first question that came to my mind as he was telling the story was, okay, what are you going to do about it? And I asked him the question and he was kind of quiet for a second and then asked in his southern accent, Eddie, if a snake bites you, are you going to chase it into the woods to get your revenge?

Are you going to get the medical attention required to save yourself? Basically you're going to focus on the past or on what to do from here forward. Right? Basically he cut ties with the person but had moved on. Was already thinking about next steps that were best for him, his family, and his business. And I can tell you since hearing that, it's become an incredibly valuable idea in my life. Especially as you realize that there will never be a shortage of problems. You do what you can to avoid them. You try to steer clear when possible, but adversity will always be a factor.

It's about knowing that and stepping into it regardless. It's just, it and stepping into it regardless. It's just, it's something that's always intertwined in our development. And I find value in asking myself, is this action I'm about to take conducive to my growth and my happiness? Or am I just chasing snakes? Does this just feel good in the short term because I'm angry or I've been wronged or something along those lines?

Especially since most harm inflicted on others derive from incompetence, not malice. And I truly believe that. I think very frequently we attribute sinister motives to others when 99% of the time it's sheer stupidity. It's imperfect humans trying to navigate an often complex world. We make mistakes. Now I'm not suggesting you don't stand up for yourself when you've been wronged or slighted.

Of course you should. But the magic is in not personalizing the situation. Possessing the emotional IQ to understand, hey look, it's not about me, but whether I can salvage the situation from here. And that depends solely on how I choose to look at it. Emerson wrote, people do not seem to realize that their opinion of the world is also a confession of their character. And what a powerful point. The flexibility and the leeway available to us when it comes to making sense of the

world speaks to not how the world is but how the onlooker thinks and interprets. Depersonalizing the situation is one of the greatest superpowers at our disposal. When you're angry and accusatory, you will, as Tom put it, end up chasing snakes. You'll end up breaking things that will need to be rebuilt and uttering words you'll wish you'd never spoken. But the five seconds required to pause to collect yourself and realize that you're in control is everything. The ability to see the person, the situation, or the world not as an adversary stacked against you, but as an inevitable challenge that must be managed. So how will you choose to manage it?

How will you choose to arrange the pieces? And by the way, I'm fully aware a constant theme for my speeches and podcasts and videos is the act of pointing not out at the world but in at ourselves. My responsibility, my fault, my problem to deal with. I understand just how heavy that is. How hard that can be. Especially when deflecting blame often feels like it would be a tremendous weight off of our shoulders, when revenge feels like the easy intuitive move.

But again it's short term relief to truly grow, to find the calm and happiness and meaning we long for. It's the internal relationship with ourselves that matters most. It's the ability to say, I may not have created this, or even, you know, I may have made the mistakes that brought this to life, but I can't fix it until I look at both the situation and my own reflection and proclaim it's mine now. Let the past be the past. Now it's me and the present and as far as I'm concerned the present and opportunity they are always one in the same so long as we choose to see it that

way. It's not what you look at, it's what you see over and over and over again. Is it happening to you or for you? Is it a problem or an opportunity? A setback or a chance to reset? an opportunity, a setback, or a chance to reset. I want to bring to light a story, one that I've told before, but it's so perfectly representative of the conversation. You know, Jim Rohn talking about two brothers in an abusive household, alcoholic father, terrible childhood. You know, they grow up and both of the sons have families of their own.

One is the exact same as his father. He's abusive and he's angry. And the other one is a great father. He's kind, he's loving, he's supportive. And when asked why, the abusive brother replies, look at my childhood, right? How could you blame me for this? The other brother when asked responds, look at my childhood, right? How could I let myself treat my family the same way?

And in a way, one spent his life chasing snakes, bitter, resentful. The other one asked, well that was terrible, but what can I do to right the wrong? One personalized it, the other used it as a lever or stepping stone. And this is of course a simplification, but I believe every struggle we face in our lives at its core contains some element of this choice. From the little things to the big things, where do I go from here? It's mine now and I can choose whether to make it better or worse. Chase the snake into the woods or march forward to find the value and right the ship. and right the ship. Remember that when it's hardest, when you least want to. Remember that the present contains every single thing you need to begin a journey to recovery, to

growth, to contentment and meaning. You on your end though, need to be willing to slow down the moment. Need to be willing to collect yourself and give yourself permission to take that necessary and appropriate step. A A life well lived is a dance between having the strength to walk away and having the courage to go all in. It's juggling the idea that absolutely nothing matters and the idea that every second is a blessing beyond which I'm capable of even explaining or articulating. Nothing matters, so live without limits or constraints, like you're on a once in a lifetime

journey. But everything matters. So know that every second along the way is perfect. A building block. A microcosm of the universe resting in the palm of your hand. And I think about this push-pull from time to time. I play with the idea that nothing matters when I need courage, when I need to convince myself to be a little bolder, reinforce the understanding that there is no pressure here. Life can only give what I'm willing to carve out. And as that clock ticks away in the background, what do I have to lose? As Mark Twain put it, it's the things we don't do that we come to regret.

And then on the other side, when I need a little discipline, I play with the idea that the little things are everything. After all, two things can be true at once, and the details matter a lot. For me, getting up two hours earlier does make a difference. That pushing a little harder will add up. The little things become everything. And painting that portrait that had been tucked away in my imagination, well that's done one very real, very tangible brush stroke at a time.

It's participating in that dance between nothing and everything, the real and the imaginary. But for the time being, let's leave those very important little things and focus on the divine big things. Those nothing a friend that says to me all the time, nothing matters. And not in a nihilistic, you know, throw your hands up and stay inside until the end of time type way. But in a way that poses the question,

why wouldn't you risk it all? Nothing matters. Why wouldn't you risk seeing how far you could push, how long you could run, how much you could become? Because maybe, just maybe, this whole thing isn't as serious as we'd like to think it is. And instead of feeling confined and scared, what if you felt alive, blessed to even be here? And I think realizing that we build these imaginary boxes around ourselves and live within them is a huge step. That awareness that we spend so much time reaching out for things that will save us when in reality we simply need to set ourselves free. We

need to open the gates, build bridges to the infinite opportunity that surrounds us. And when I think about this a feeling that still comes to mind, feeling I had after 2k tests in college. Those of you that have been on the rowing machines I'm sure you get it, but if not picture a feeling similar to an all-out sprint for roughly six or seven minutes, depending on when you cross the line. And when it was over, after I finished picking myself up, I would just sit in the hallway, cherish the feeling of being done. Right. After pushing my body to its maximum,

I'd appreciate the nothingness, the same nothingness that I'd never pay attention to at all otherwise. But in that moment, it was everything. What a gift. As you regain your composure, as your heart rate comes back down to earth, to just be still. I still love that feeling after physical exertion, the reminder to just be thankful for a moment of serenity, a reminder that life can and will inflict upon us these periods of absolute

chaos, of turbulence. And often they're very necessary, they harden us, they shape us, but they also remind us to appreciate their absence. Same thing goes, and a lot of you, I'm sure we'll be able to relate to this, for something like a headache or a migraine. You know, when they come and go in my life, it's like the second a brutal headache dissipates, that nothingness is the greatest gift I could ever imagine. The absence of pain, infinitely more valuable than any tangible acquisition. And I think in those moments we get a glimpse of the world in its purest, simplest form where all the nuance and detail we worry about doesn't matter much, because look at what we have.

Look how much surrounds us when we position ourselves to notice when we simply pay attention. Tolstoy said, If then I were asked for the most important advice I could give, that which I considered to be the most useful to the men of our century, I should simply say, in the name of God, stop a moment. Cease your work. Look around you. An incredible reminder to never forget where we are or what we were given. To remember that by breathing in the air around us we have in a sense already won. And I love this because for a brief moment in time it swings that pendulum to the nothing matters side of life. When you're living a miracle, why sweat the small stuff?

And I can ask myself, why do I get so worked up? It's no big deal. Why not take the risk? What's the worst case that I fail and have to backtrack as a now more informed and knowledgeable person? Why not stand in the face of my fears? The upside is consistently enticing, it consistently rewards. Look around and see what life has provided, how dare we waste it.

And with that said, I'd also be remiss not to include this little caveat. You know, I'm careful with the words, I'd also be remiss not to include this little caveat. I'm careful with the words, nothing matters. Because even though in the context I've been using it for years, it's a positive, empowering thing, it's my reminder to push boundaries, I can also see how it begs the question, well, if nothing matters, why should I care? And so let's reframe. Because it's not that nothing matters, it's that nothing outside the scope of your worldview matters. It's the acquisition of freedom, addition by the subtraction of all those externalities we let hold us back.

Because you know as well as I do, it's not really the externalities that shackle you. It's your thoughts about them. So open the gate to your mind. Let the detrimental out and keep the necessary and the ideal in. Nothing matters if it doesn't align with your values and your destination. I know I say in every video, speech, podcast episode that we are the authors of our own stories. And it's because we craft our nothings and our everythings.

It's because your universe, the one behind your eyes, it needs a maker every morning. And if you allow it, each sunrise can be your Genesis, your own beautiful creation story. You have your hand on the dial. And so amidst this world of infinite beauty and opportunity, look around you, soak it all in, ask yourself what does freedom look like, feel like? Because you were put here to pursue that. And outside of those parameters, I believe that nothing matters. So why not live like it? Dream like it? Use the little thing in front of you to build the big things that have not yet arrived. Walk away when it's misaligned and go all in when you know in your soul it's right. There is everything to gain and

nothing to lose. I woke up, put my coffee on the desk, opened my laptop, stared at a blank screen, and a little button popped up in the top right corner. Check for updates. Nope. Ask me again later. Why? Why not now?

I don't know. I don't necessarily care about the improvements. I guess it's just inconvenient. It can wait. And that's kind of it. Let's face it, the laptop doesn't matter. The update in this scenario is not important. But bear with me, because I think what it stands for, when you apply it to the big picture,

does matter. Our proclivity to take less because less is convenient. Our predisposition to sell ourselves short because it's safer to leave so much of ourselves on the shelf because well things don't break when they're on the shelf. But you can't be both flawless and live your life. Because life comes with wear and tear. The value is the experience. And a flawless existence is void of experience, of stories, of adventure. There's a little parable about two seeds being planted, and one of them just wants to grow, wants to feel what the sun is like, wants to see how high she can get, experience the breeze, the cool air, and so she grew.

And sure, she dealt with hard days. She had her difficult times, but ultimately grew to live her best life. The other seed worried. Worried about leaving her home, the world that was the ground around her, Worried about damaging her roots, worried about what could be waiting for her in the dark, About the sun being too hot and the breeze too strong, And ultimately stayed right where she was, playing it safe until one morning a chicken came wandering by and ate the seed off the ground.

And see this spells out a few things. One we can at any moment decide to step into that next level evolve into that next chapter. But also, not doing so comes with a cost. Sometimes a hidden cost. There's a tendency to think that preserving the status quo because it's safe is valuable. But understand something you are not a collector's item. You weren't made for preservation. You were made for growth.

To expand. To reach out towards the heavens and feel that sun, that breeze. And sure, upgrading means vulnerability. It means accepting that the unknown is bigger than you. But also contains within it everything you need. everything you need. Whether it was people, things, money, resources, I used to think like that seed. How can I hold on to what I have? Contain, place small, I can't lose this,

I've come too far, I've worked too hard. What if everything goes wrong? I can't upgrade now. Maybe later. Maybe someday when the time is right. When it won't hurt or require that I step outside of this little world I've created. But guess what? Growth always asks of us that we leave the comfort of now.

It always offers us the world in exchange for the courage to see the unseen and trust ourselves to bring it to life. And when I realized this, I saw how the act of trying to perpetually maintain the status quo is debilitating. It's looking at life through a lens of scarcity. It's only when you start to grasp how abundant life is that you realize by simply stepping into that person you are destined to be, you'll attract what matters. Some things will go, and you'll leave them behind. But those things no longer serve you.

They played their part, they added their value, and are now merely stepping stones as you move to something greater, and that's just it. As you move to something greater and that's just it Sometimes living means wishing you did things differently looking back and acknowledging that you need to be better Sometimes living means losing the wrong people in your life to make space for the right ones Sometimes it means spending days, months, even years wandering down the wrong path so that you can get a glimpse, so that you can realize what the right path looks like.

Sometimes it means no reward, no validation until that compounding finally takes place. Finally, you see just how powerful those small steps were and will always be. It means seeing yourself as the person you know you can be. Maybe not necessarily the one you are today, but betting on yourself when no one else would. There's an idea that people are neither good nor evil but they have both within them. They choose through their day-to-day action how they'll live, who they'll be, and sure this is a tad oversimplified but I think the duality is

useful, right? Because in a different context for everything that occurs in your life, you can find a reason to celebrate or a reason to grieve, a reason to grow or a reason to hide. It all comes down to what one chooses to see, how they choose to look at the world. I'll never forget when Peterson talked about curtains, right? With tears or holes in them, same world on the other side. But the opening that you choose to look through paints an entirely different picture, right, contributes to an entirely different understanding. And look, I'm a pragmatist, I just am.

I'd never ask people to close their eyes and pretend everything's perfect. To wander down the path before you, expecting everything to be easy. No, but what I am saying is that the path before you is where you'll uncover the meaning in life, and meaning requires that we are, from time to time, uncomfortable. To go where we most want to go,

we must leave something behind and the reality is that while it's scary while it can be alarming and even painful it is always worth it. That what's on the other side is what makes life worth living. I want you to know that you don't need to be walking into the same rooms talking to to be walking into the same rooms talking to the same people doing the same things. No, not if you've outgrown that reality. Not if you're ready for the next chapter. So let's make a pact to view life not as an obligation but as an opportunity. Something

challenging but beautiful, mysterious but plentiful. Let's view the challenges along the way not as something going wrong or some kind of alarm, but rather an indication that you are doing something right. That you're stepping into the controlled chaos of your day-to-day. Finding the courage to meet new people, try new things, take risks, evolve. This is what life is about. And if you can find it within yourself to see it that way, to be grateful for the discomfort that makes its way in and out of our lives. You'll know that you are evolving,

reaching towards that sky. Because the danger, as far as I'm concerned, is never what happens along the way. It's what doesn't happen, because we never let ourselves accept what the world had to offer. And so on that note, I think today is the perfect day to upgrade.