Passion Struck with John R. Miles - Never Believe a Prediction That Doesn’t Ignite You w/ John R. Miles EP 35

Episode Date: June 11, 2021

One of my favorite TedX Talks featured Sean Stephenson, a former American author, therapist, and celebrated speaker. He inspired this episode on why you should never believe a prediction that doesn't ignite you. Thank you for listening to the Passion Struck podcast. In this powerful Momentum Friday Episode, John R. Miles discusses why predictions in our lives can be so destructive to us living a passion-driven life. New Interviews with the World's GREATEST high achievers will be posted every Tuesday with a Momentum Friday inspirational message! Never Believe a Prediction That Doesn't Ignite You Show Notes Sean Stephenson Quote and Inspiration Difference Between Ignite and Empower How Predictions Lead To Self-Limiting Beliefs The Prediction My English Teacher Made About Me 3 Important Lessons About Predictions We Are The Storyteller and Main Actor in Our Life You Are Who You Believe You Can Be We Are Living the Story We Create Everyone Is Rooting For You To Win Predictions Through The Light of PTSD Quotes From John R. Miles “Everyone is waiting for you to win, even those who don’t know you, but it all starts with you wanting yourself to win.” "If you are not fulfilled in what you are doing, there is no way that you are living to your full capability." "When you think about that story, and where you are in your life, and you're performing it day in and day out. Are you happy about where you are? Do you feel fulfilled? Are you living at your full capability? Are you living the life that you want to live?" "But I can tell you; I'm doing this today because I made a choice in my own life that I wasn't going to let the disabilities that impact me define who I am and the path I want to take in my own life." Sean Stephenson TedX Sean Stephenson TedX: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaRO5-V1uK0 ENGAGE WITH JOHN R. MILES * Subscribe to my channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/JohnRMiles * Leave a comment, 5-star rating (please!) * Support me: https://johnrmiles.com * Twitter: https://twitter.com/Milesjohnr * Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Johnrmiles.c0m​. * Medium: https://medium.com/@JohnRMiles​ * Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/john_r_miles   JOHN R. MILES * https://johnrmiles.com/my-story/ * Guides: https://johnrmiles.com/blog/ * Coaching: https://passionstruck.com/coaching/ * Speaking: https://johnrmiles.com/speaking-business-transformation/ * Gear: https://www.zazzle.com/store/passion_struck   PASSION STRUCK *Subscribe to Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-passion-struck-podcast/id1553279283 *Website: https://passionstruck.com/ *About: https://passionstruck.com/about-passionstruck-johnrmiles/ *Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/passion_struck_podcast *LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/passionstruck *Blog: https://passionstruck.com/blog/  

Hello visionaries, creators, innovators, entrepreneurs, and leaders of all types. Hi, my name is John Miles and I wanted to welcome you to this episode of the Passion Struck Podcast, where it is my job to interview high achievers from all walks of life and unlock their secrets and lessons to become a passion struck. The purpose of our show is to serve you, the listener. By giving you lessons, tools, and activities that you can use to achieve a passion-driven life. Now let the journey begin.

Welcome to Momentum Friday, an episode 35 of the Passion Start Podcast. One of my favorite TEDx talks was from Sean Stevenson, who was an American therapist, self-help author, and celebrated motivational speaker. And in that TEDx talk, which was viewed by over 4 million people, he said, these famous words, I can tell you I'm an expert and only one thing. And that's how to be me, and I do it well. And you see, Sean was special because for him being normal was anything but being normal. He was born with a very rare birth defect and ended up living his life at only two feet eight inches tall. But although he was short and stature, he was so motivational in his presence and in the

words that he spoke. But he often talks about how throughout his life, so many people would make predictions about what he could and could not accomplish because of these limitations. And that actually started out when he was born. The doctors, after a very traumatic birth, told his parents that he wouldn't even live 24 hours and boy did he prove them wrong.

John ended up living to the age of 40. And he credits much of that by learning how to say no and he learned how to do that by never giving in to predictions that didn't empower him. You see, he always thought he is not disabled. The only disability that he had was his refusal to adapt to whatever his disabilities might have been. And I got me thinking about today's episode about predictions that people make in our lives. And he talked about the fact that you don't want to listen to predictions that don't empower you. And today I'm going to talk about why you should never listen to predictions that don't ignite you. Because there is a difference between being empowered and igniting.

Empowering is the authority to be or do something where ignite for ignition is that spark, that fire, that emotion that takes you from wherever it is you are in your life and allows you to get that burning desire to accomplish more. And so sometimes as I look at this, I think it's even more important than those predictions impact that very spark that you actually need to live a purpose driven life. And that's what I'm going to talk to you about in today's episode. How many predictions are thrown at you your entire life? I know for me they started at a very young age and I'm sure they did for you too. If you predict someone's going to be an athlete, are they going to be a musician?

Will they get on this coveted team? Will they get this spot in the play? If you predict that they're going to be the valedictorian, if you predict they're going to be the anchor person in their class, if you predict they're going to go to college, if you predict they're going to be in nothing in their class. Do you predict they're going to go to college? Do you predict they're going to be in nothing in their life? And I find in life those predictions end up leading to self-limiting beliefs and it is those beliefs that hold us back from achieving our true capability. And just last week I covered a staggering 2019 survey that I just discovered from Gallup. And in this survey, they reached out to the 1 billion full-time workers across the entire planet. And I'm covering this again in today's episode,

because this statistic was so overwhelming to me that I thought I had to repeat it again today. Their survey found that only 15% of those 1 billion full-time workers are actually engaged in what they're doing. Said otherwise, 85% of them absolutely hate the job or career path that they're in. And there are many reasons for that. It could be the company they work for and their boss. It could be the atmosphere that they're in, but I believe there's something more to it.

Because if you are not fulfilled in what you're doing, there's no way that you're living your full capability. And sometimes I believe that all starts with the predictions that we've heard all throughout our life on what other people think we can or cannot achieve. And that is why I think it is so vital that we never listen to predictions that don't ignite that internal spark,

that hope, that dream, that aspiration of where we can take our life. And that's why I started this podcast out by saying that I believe that there's a difference between empowerment and that simple fact of ignition. Because without ignition, that empowerment will never come. You will never take those steps. You will never take those steps. You will never make the choice to do something different. And you will continue to live as being part of the 85% who aren't fulfilled in their life, which then leads to you likely not living

to your full capabilities. I think if we listen to these predictions too much, they can actually cause our demise. Maybe not in a physical standpoint, will they make us die, but I can guarantee you that inside, they will impact your mental fortitude, your happiness, and your eagerness to have the courage to actually go out and pursue something that you were meant to pursue.

And for me, looking back, I had an inflection point when I was in high school. When one of these predictions was thrown at me, at this point, by an esteemed teacher, who was beloved by much of the student population at York-Haffock High School. And I went to her because I was at point my junior year where I was thinking about where I should go to college, what I wanted to do with my life and I wanted an outside opinion and I will never forget what she told me. She looked at me and in very direct words told me that I was a failure and that my life would not amount anything great in it. And could you imagine being a junior in high school, going to a person that you trust and that others trusted and to have that

authority figure tell you something like that? And I can tell you at first, like probably most of you would have been, I was devastated, and then I went through outrage. Because I started to think more and more about what she said. It ignited a spark in me that has never died for this day in time. And that spark was that I was going to live my life in constant discomfort, because I was going to live my life in constant discomfort because I was going to choose the path less taken. And that is the one that I've chose

to pursue throughout my life. It started by making the choice of going to the Naval Academy instead of going to the University of Michigan. And from that point, it's led to choices when everyone has made predictions that I wouldn't be able to achieve those steps that I've wanted to along the way.

And it's led me here today, when people told me and predicted that passion struck would go nowhere. And I didn't listen to them, because to me, it was more important to like this part. And my passion is to see that people do not listen to apathy or indifference in their life. Similar to Sean Stevenson, that they're not listening to apathy or indifference in their life. Similar to Sean Stevenson,

but they're not listening to that inner voice that is telling them like it is for so many people throughout the world that they can't achieve their full capability. And so I wanted to use today's episode to give you three important lessons that I've learned in my own life that I hope you can learn from and use and apply

in your own. Did you know that Forbes Magazine recently cited that 70% of individuals who've been personal development masterminds and one-on-one coaching benefited from better work performance, increased communication skills, and overall better relationships. And we at PassionStruck are obsessed with self-development, coaching and mentorship. That is why we've created a free resource to help you unlock your hidden potential. Because people doing great things in business and life are just like you, only they've had a coach along the way. And we've got that cover too. Let us show

you the systems and frameworks that we teach, both minded individuals, to help them step under their sharp edges, execute on their passion journeys, and get predictable results, time and time again. Go to passionstruck.com slash coaching right now. And let's get igniting. The first important lesson is that we are both the storyteller and the performer in our own life. And as you think about your life, and the story that you want to tell, do you want to do that from a position of strength

or a position of weakness? Do you want a story where life through lemons and you didn't adapt? Or do you want to tell the story where you're the hero in it and life through you lemons and you didn't adapt. Or do you want to tell the story where you're the hero in it and life through whatever it did at you, but you were able to overcome it because you ended up achieving far more

than any predicted you could. And who's to say that anyone can predict your own story because you get to write it? Maybe you weren't born into the same zip code that I was. Maybe you weren't given the same same zip code that I was. Maybe you weren't given the same opportunities in your life that others have. But one thing I've learned and my Frank Chris Cassidy in our recent interview said it very well. When he was going through buds and becoming a seal, he realized in his own story that some had it much worse and some had it much

better. But it was up to him to decide which direction to do you want to take his life. And, similar to Chris, you too get to write your own story because you are the hero of it and you're the performer in your own life. And, how do you want to tell your story and how do you want to perceive yourself in this story is so important to you unlocking that action inside and that place that you can go in your life. The second important lesson is that we write the screenplay. You are who you believe you can be. If you were Sean Stevenson, you could have believed I'm only two feet eight inches, my life is doomed. Nothing good is going to become of it.

No one is ever gonna wanna be with me. I'm never gonna have a wife, et cetera, et cetera. But he didn't believe that. He learned to want to be with me. I'm never going to have a wife, et cetera, et cetera. But he didn't believe that. He learned to adapt. He got married. He lived a very fulfilling life. And you can too. I remember one of the most impactful podcasts

that I've listened to was One With Hillary Swank, because I didn't realize the struggles that she had prior to her doing boys don't cry. And how she and her mom lived in a van for months and months before she got that breakout moment. And when she looks back and people ask her, who are you? She tells them, I am a storyteller. You know, you may think of me as an actor, a producer, a director, but more than anything, I tell my own story and through my act and producing I tell important stories of others.

And that's a great way for you to think about your own life. You are your own storyteller. And what story do you want to tell through your own screenplay? The third and probably most important lesson is that we are living that story that we create. When you think about that story and where you are in your life and you're performing it day in and day out. Are you happy about where you are?

Do you feel fulfilled? Are you living at your full capability? Are you living the life that you want to live, the purpose that you were put on this planet to achieve? And that's why I thank those predictions that people make and be so disastrous to our psyche and why we cannot listen to them because it detours us from igniting that story, the story of our life, the story that we get to live. You see, it's up to us to create it. We get the choice to direct our life.

We get the choice to make the best use of what makes each of us unique and it's that uniqueness that makes us who we are. And I'm going to end today's discussion with one final quote from Sean Stevenson. He says, you have to live what you believe. He believed when he was alive that everyone was rooting for you to win, even those who don't know you, but it all starts with you wanting yourself to win. And that is why you can never listen to predictions that don't ignite you.

And I wanted to end today's episode by talking about predictions in a little bit different light. Given that it's June and National Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder for PTSD Month, I'm gonna talk about predictions through the light of PTSD. Because oftentimes, I think people make predictions that cause intense trauma in our lives. Trauma, that causes us to have stuck points

that impact everything about us. From our emotions, the security, both within relationships and in our careers, there's stuck points that impact our happiness, there's stuck points that impact our ability to get out of our own way, because our minds live them to this trauma and listen to these predictions that others have given us

where that we have experienced. And I know this firsthand, because I've had my fair share and more of a trauma throughout my life. But as Sean Stevenson said, if you don't choose to adapt to that trauma, that disability, where do you think you're going to be? The same place that you are today.

And so one thing I have learned from my own counseling and going through much of it to get over my own trauma and my life is that it all starts by stop listening to the predictions. Start by igniting that spark that you're going to do something about it, or maybe if you aren't the person who's experienced PTSD and you know someone else who has, that you're going to help them or find them that help that they need. Because I can tell you, living with trauma, living in your mind with predictions or things that other people have said about you is such a place of being regret, remorse, and it doesn't have to be that way. And so I am reaching out to you to make the choice work hard, start stepping into the sharp edges that I talk about,

whether it's the predictions that you've perhaps listened to, the trauma that you've experienced in your life, seek out and get the help you need. Whether that's through a counselor, through a company like Passionstruck, through a close friend, or somewhere else, ignite that step in your life to make the choice of change. I know it's not easy to make some of these changes and that it seems easy for me to be talking to you. But I can tell you, I'm doing this today

because I made the choice in my own life that I wasn't going to let the disabilities that impact me. The fine who I am and the path I want to take in my own life and you came to me. If you want to talk to me personally about any of this, you can contact me on Instagram at John Armiles and I'd be happy to reach out and talk to you more about it. Thank you so much for joining us. The purpose of our show is to make Passion Go viral. And we do that by sharing with you the knowledge and skills that you need to unlock your hidden potential.

If you want to hear more, please subscribe to the Passion Start podcast on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, or wherever you listen to your podcast ad. And if you absolutely love this episode, we'd appreciate a five-star rating on iTunes and you sharing it with three of your most growth-minded friends so they can post it as well to their social accounts and help us grow our passion start community. If you'd like to learn more about the show and our mission, you can go to passionstruck.com where you can sign up for our newsletter, look at our tools, and also download the show notes for today's episode. Additionally, you can listen to us every Tuesday and Friday for even more inspiring content. And remember, make a choice, work hard,

and step into your sharp edges. Thank you again for joining us. you