Your World Within Podcast by Eddie Pinero - Become Unrecognizable in 2026 | New Years Motivation | Motivational and Inspirational Speeches

Episode Date: January 9, 2026

A collection of inspirational and motivational speeches meant to help you slow down, reflect, and get your head right before stepping into 2026. This is about clearing the noise, reconnecting with what matters, and reminding yourself who you want to be in the year ahead. No hype...just honest perspective, steady motivation, and the kind of mindset work that helps you move forward with clarity, confidence, and purpose.More from Eddie Pinero:Monday Motivation Newsletter: https://www.eddiepinero.com/newsletterYour World Within Podcast: https://yourworldwithin.libsyn.com/Stream these tracks on Spotify - https://spoti.fi/2BLf6pBInstagram - @your_world_within and @IamEddiePineroTikTok - your_world_withinFacebook - https://www.facebook.com/YourworldwithinTwitter - https://www.twitter.com/IamEddiePineroBusiness Inquiries - http://www.yourworldwithin.com/contact#liveinspired #yourworldwithin #motivation

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. Guys, 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, 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 of 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 person, Persian command to lay down their weapons, the Spartans respond, Milan-Labé, which means come and take them. It's the Spartan's 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, 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 a lot of my head. our personal lives. So many things. One example, being the difficult or adverse circumstances, our 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. Am I cog in a wheel, a line in a screen? ripped, powerless.

In which case, you should be reminded of Victor Frankel'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. 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 up. 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 could. That means you've stood up for something sometime in your life. The enemy's 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 Spartan said, come and take it.

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, but 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 complexities 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, 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 nows. 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. What's up guys, Eddie here. And before we jump into the next chapter, just a quick note. So, as many of you know, every single video that I've ever put on this channel has been created with the intent of building.

momentum in your life. If you want something physical to anchor that momentum, we've created the brand AGMS or always grateful, never satisfied for that exact reason. Athletic apparel that embodies the very ideas and concepts I talk about every day. Because you're watching on YouTube or Spotify, we've created a code for this exclusive community, YWW20. You can use that on the website, AGNS. Lifestyle. We're right under this video on YouTube, all the stuff is there in the shop. Again, code YWW20 gets you 20% off the entire store. It's a great way to support the channel and also elevate your journey. Let it be a reminder to keep showing up. Appreciate your time. Always grateful, never satisfied. On to the next.

90 seconds is too much. It just is. I can't do 90 seconds. And I can't do 90 seconds because my brain can't compute 90 seconds, but I can do 30 seconds. And I can do 30 seconds forever. As we navigate our day to day, you know, it's hard to see that because so often our day to day lacks clarity. So what can we do about it? Well, we can place ourselves in situations where we are reminded. One of them, I've talked about it.

for being the cold plunge, immersing yourself in cold water. Well, sure, there are health benefits, some of which are debated and disputed, but I certainly notice value in that department. But to me, that's not the biggest value at, not even close. To me, it's simply a daily reminder that I can do hard things, that it's who I am. We need to reestablish that consistently. Confidence is earned. And I know in my life I must earn it repeatedly. And when I'm immersed in the cold and shivering,

there's always a point in my mind, however brief, that I'm thinking I want out now. The other day, I was at this point, looked at my watch 90 seconds left. And that day, in that moment, it felt like an eternity, just too much. And those of you who are endurance athletes, for example, you know that when your body's operating at max capacity,

you're suffering, you're exhausted. 90 seconds is truly a lifetime. When you look at it like that, it's too much discomfort for a minute and a half. Your heart starts beating, your mind starts worrying, right? And so what do we do about it? We look at it a little differently. Because from a different angle, you can skip it. You can do 30.

seconds. The brain can grasp and digest 30 seconds. You can do anything for 30 seconds. Okay. So you start counting. All of a sudden 30 gone. Now what? Well, you just did 30. You see how quick that went. Do another 30. Okay. Done. Just like that. Now what? 30 more. But this is the last 30. You don't even feel anything on the last 30, right? Come on. Adrenaline's going. You can feel the finish line. This is free time. This is a gift. This is cruise control. And now, done. You didn't have to do 90 seconds.

You only had to do 3 by 30. And anyone's saying, come on, man, that's the same thing. Yeah, it's the same when you're not under duress. But it's a miracle when you are. So why is running life? Why is cold plunging life? Why is putting your body through stress or difficulty life? Because you remember that life is taking big, difficult, seemingly complex things and breaking them down into manageable tasks.

That is life. The pieces are always manageable. Now the monster we allow the pieces to become when we stack them up and give them an invisible face, that's not so manageable. That's self-sabotage. And so to arm yourself with the understanding that all big things must be broken down is to green light the extraordinary. On day one in 2014, a YouTube channel with zero subscribers growing to help over 100,

thousand people a day, that's a 90-second coal plunge. That's unfathomable, unthinkable, impossible. But one video, weekly, at least for nine years, that's a 30-second cold. It's very doable. Standing in front of the mirror, practicing storytelling, speaking, it's 30 seconds. reaching out to others to learn to get better 30 seconds in cold water. It's like you look back and you see that you endured that 90 second plunge simply by breaking it down. That's all growth is. That's all evolution is.

Finding the smallest piece possible in making it actionable. And then watching that transform, multiply, compound, over time. In one of my favorite books, Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand, this reminder comes through beautiful. Louis Amperini, an American prisoner of war in Japanese internment camps

during World War II. He basically experiences unimaginable hell in suffering. He watches his friends die, he's beaten, he's starved, comes close to death himself, and at the end, when he's rescued,

And I'm paraphrasing, but I remember this part incredibly vividly. He's asked if he could do that again, and he states he'd rather die. He's turning around and viewing it holistically like that is too much. It's unfathomable. That pain is bigger than one can even comprehend. But taking something like that, day by day, step by step, he did the unthinkable. He survived. In breaking the 90-second task down into 30-second pieces, he walked away,

in breaking the seemingly insurmountable down into the manageable, and looking at each individual step as a superpower, he emerged. You talk about perspective. His experience was as challenging as it gets. My cold plunge is laughable in comparison. But my mind doesn't know that. It's up to me to reinforce it. Building a business is nothing in comparison to Louise Zamperini, but my mind doesn't know that.

Healing my shoulder and getting stronger in the gym is nothing in comparison, but my mind does not know that. It's looking at the mountain and reminding myself, Eddie, you can't leap those. I've seen you jump, buddy. But the good news is, No mountains need be left here. We ascend this thing one rock at a time and mark my words, you conquer those manageable tasks day in and day out. You will find yourself.

So when you feel stuck or too small for the task at hand, remind yourself you're looking at a 90 second block here. Break that down. Ask yourself what your 30 is. Ask yourself what you can create that's manageable. It will create your momentum. That will shoot you into a trajectory. It will allow growth and position you someday to look back over your shoulder and go,

wow, I endured all that. A transformation too big to understand on day one. It's a beautiful thing watching all those little steps add up to create the extraordinary. It always gets worse first. I was recently at a mastermind where someone made this point, and as hard as I tried, I couldn't really poke holes in it. For the simple fact that everything new requires some vulnerability, some discomfort that was previously non-existent.

Or in other words, you have to endure turbulence prior to calm. So imagine a wavy line on a piece of paper or whiteboard where the top of each wave is slightly bigger than the one before it. So right before that new wave occurs, there is necessarily a low point or a trough, a point that's absolutely, without a doubt, lower than the top of the previous wave. And this, to me, summarizes the battle we fight, right? When you're comfortable, when you're at the top of the little wave you're currently riding,

it almost feels self-defeating to willingly jump off and land yourself at the bottom of some new, soon-to-be future wave. Every new mountain means starting at the bottom, a new base. Every acquisition means letting go of something we once knew and understood. The question is, are you willing to fight through? Are you willing to hang out in the trough at the bottom, right, wander that valley of despair? And that's, by the way, what we're talking about when we talk about, for example, Walt Disney being fired, being called unimaginative, and struggling to get the world to understand his Mickey Mouse cartoon.

That's what we're talking about with Steve and Was with Apple. That's what we're talking about with Lincoln and the constant political rejection before finding stability and success. These stories have become almost folklore. And all of them share the same characteristic that the main players willingly accepted the fact that it would get worse

before it got better. All of them were willing to make a trade. The bottom now for a chance at the top later. Not only is this pragmatic, but it also aids the mind throughout the process. It helps us understand and internalize what we're going through. You know, that initial instinct to think, why me, to shake our fists at the world and fall into the role of victim? That goes away when we know that, you know, we're enduring turbulence now for something better. When we know that this is merely the cost of admission.

You're not at the bottom of the wave because you have to be, or even because it's fun to hang out there. You're there because something greater is coming. And a human's desire to delay gratification is a superpower. We all know that. Things get worse before they get better. So remember next time you're out in the world, right? dealing with adversity. Technically, you don't have to be there. You could be hiding away, letting life slip by, but instead you've made the decision, the courageous decision to better yourself.

What you're enduring will ultimately become your strong point. And so don't villainize or demonize that, cherish it, hold on to that. Because we need to get beyond the notion of notion that discomfort is weakness. Discomfort is a decision, a bold decision that you should be proud of. Again, you could live your entire life running from the painful things, hiding from the discomfort of growth. But then you'd also be forfeiting that next wave. You'd be so hellbent on escaping the notion that it always gets worse first, that instead you never let your life get better to begin with. There is no body. or trough on earth more detrimental to the human soul than stagnation.

We need to be moving, marching forward, even when we don't know, right, into the unknown, into the night, fighting to get to the ceiling, then gladly allowing that ceiling to become our next floor. It always gets worse, and thank God. That's where we are made. condition. That's the buffer that separates mediocrity from greatness. That forces us to ask the important questions. Do I really want this? And if the answer is yes, let it get worse first. Let it be tough out of the gate. Grant yourself that gift of vulnerability. Because if you waves from now, you'll be on a different level, physically, spiritual, personal. A few waves from now,

the quote-unquote worst parts will be what stand between who you are and who you were. And that decision, the decision to step out and face them, will have been perhaps the best decision you've ever made. Find that spot where you're most scared to go and go there. And I promise you two things. One, that it will be painful,

at least to some extent. And two, most importantly, it will be worth it. It will burn down the old you so that the new you can rise. And I'm speaking from nothing but experience. Every word derived from the delta between how I used to live and how I live now. I'm referring to all the good that came from finding the courage to let my old self die, a recreation of sorts. And I'll tell you what happens. Your mind, your body,

at least initially start to panic. They say, wait, this is not you. Go back to how things were. You, you followed orders. You did what you were told. You were linked to predictability. Remember how great that felt. Many of the people in your life, they won't like it either.

For various reasons, perhaps it reminds them of their own limiting beliefs. Perhaps it shines a spotlight on the fact that most people in your life, Yeah, they want you to do well, just not better than they're doing. And so you'll get resentment and gossip and a very obvious tension. But just like your mind and bodies seek to hold you to the status quo, so does the world around you. What I'm asking you to do is to stretch beyond it. To reach for it anyway, to know, to see, to understand that there is chaos around you and embrace it, enter into it, right?

Because that is the second piece. The predictable, unavoidable friction that the unknown creates. We want to know. We want predictability. We want safety. But the truth is, everything of value,

everything meaningful in the world started with the process disconnected from a result. It's like, how can you be sure how things will end up? How can you be sure this will work out? How do you know for certain that the hero wins? You don't. And that's naturally scary, disconcerting, but you have to be okay, dancing to the music before it plays.

You have to place enough trust in yourself to let the... The wheels hit the road. You may be thinking, my God, that's a lot, man. That's heavy. Sleepless nights, the risk, the judgment. You want me to invite all that into my life? Just open the door and wave the chaos in? Yes.

Because as hard as it might be, nothing is as beautiful or as meaningful as becoming an individual capable of slaying dragons. Suffering is inevitable. And look, you can either let the suffering come to you and hold you down, or you can go to it. Face it head on. Be propelled by its turbulence. I was recently at a live podcast where a man named Akshay Nanavadi was being interviewed,

and he's taking 400 pounds, and he's pulling it across Antarctica. obviously an insanely challenging feat. And someone asked him about suffering. He says, you know, I'm paraphrasing, but I need suffering in my life because it's what brings me closer to God. It's in those moments where we immerse ourselves into an unknown, something way bigger than us,

way outside of our day-to-day lives, right? The normalcy of waking up and going through the motions that's where we transcend who we were. That's where we get to find answers to questions we otherwise never would have asked. We learn about the world and ourselves and how capable we are, how much we can do. We get to touch the infinite.

But the infinite does not come to us. We have to go to it. See, most people, they accept what is. They look around and see not tools, for building, but a reality already constructed. A rulebook of sorts. But imagine with me the freedom in knowing that life, this little experiment we were just dropped into,

has infinite potential, infinite space, infinite room for the assembly of dreams. There are infinite games to be played and paths to be walked, just because most people refuse to walk down them. Just because most people only ever know a fraction of themselves, just because most people never embark upon the adventures hidden in plain view, doesn't mean you should do the same. Everything in life has a price tag attached to it.

Everything. And I'm not here telling you what is or should be important in your life. You already know that. In your world, you're well aware. I'm just here to remind you that when you close your eyes and dream of a life lived on your terms, when you can see fragments of a world different than this one, and you're playing with the idea of reaching towards it, maybe even digging deep to find the courage,

I want you to know that price tag, the one so expensive you're tempted to move on, to deem it too much, that it's not only worth it, it's a bargain. that once you've fought through the change, move beyond the reliance on what your old friends and acquaintances think or thought, once you've redefined the standards in your life, you will find a contentment otherwise unreachable.

You'll have arrived at a state beautiful beyond comprehension. So if you're scared, good. Good. Be scared. To let your old self die is a terrifying proposition, right? After all, your old self is all you've ever known. But ask yourself this. Could it be that your old self fought and scrapped and fell and endured

so that your new self could emerge? Is it time to climb the ladder? See that next level. Feel the sun on your skin, wind on your skin, wind on your, face, air in your lungs, from the perspective of someone who's not a cog in the wheel of life, but someone making the most of the masterpiece they are in. Feel it. Let it scare you. Own it. Fear is the cost of admission, right? And when you see how incredible the show truly is, you'll understand fear was not this stop sign. It was an invitation.

Don't walk towards that which scares you run. It's not you against fear. Fear is an ally. It's you against ticking clocks. You against the sands of time. So take fear by the hand. Not tomorrow or next week, but today. Now, you can only exist within the walls you've placed around yourself.

So, question. Where have you placed them? Think of the concept. You can only hit targets that you aim for and expand it out. Because my point here is you can only exist in the plane that you have deemed to be real for you, that you have decided is reality.

And if we think about that, just on a common sense basis, it's pretty apparent, right? people don't do things that stretch beyond their perceived identity. If I don't think I'm capable of accumulating wealth, for example, I'm simply not going to do the things or take the necessary steps required to accumulate wealth. Why would I?

If I don't think I can help or add value to others, I'm not going to do things in an attempt to help or add value to others. Using that example, that stuff would exist on the other side of those walls I've placed around myself. That's why deciding what those targets are is so important. Deciding what's real matters.

Because if you set the scope too small, if your reality is void of all possibility and imagination, even if you win, you've conceded too much. The premise you've been basing your entire existence and your decisions on is so limited

that you can win there and still lose overall, still leave everything on the table. And there's, you know, a ton of examples of this. You know, I commonly hear people refer to it with their work. I'm not crazy about what I'm doing, but how do I fix it? How do I learn to like this job? How do I exceed expectations in my role? How do I get a promotion so that I can bring in more income?

all valid questions, certainly valuable questions, if it's where you should be. And I can tell you, I remember asking those same questions to myself, and the conclusion I finally came to was, no, what you need exists on the other side of those walls. In this part of your life, it's critical that you move beyond those parameters. That's not what lights a fire in everyone, but it's what lit a fire in me.

I was asking the wrong questions, right? It was go over there and start your own business, start your own journey, start sharing the things you want to share. So what Alex Hermosso refers to is playing a different game altogether. And it's kind of a weird concept to grasp, you know, that you can win the game you're playing and still end up losing. you know, because you never thought to look for more. You never ventured to peer out over what was directly in front of you.

This is a matter of self-reflection at its finest. Because you'd never see those walls unless you really took the time to think about it, to be alone with yourself and ask those questions. It's the fun what-ifs. What ifs? What if I stopped doing those things I don't like and started doing what I love? What if I didn't accept this as what I have to do and instead took a different path altogether?

What if I was capable of playing a different game? And what we find is that we're capable of some pretty incredible transformations. We're capable of taking what matters out of a less than an ideal environment and recreating it somewhere that is ideal, that is conducive to our success in our growth and our evolution and our contentment. Instead of conceding so much and asking so few questions, why accept those limitations? So again, I ask, where have you built your walls and why?

And what if you push them back? Like lines in the sand meant to be redrawn? See, perhaps the income. coming in is a direct result of you feeling like, hey, that's just what I make. Perhaps your fitness level is the result of you thinking, that's just how I am. Perhaps your friends and the people you surround yourself with are a result of you saying, it's just who I know. But there comes a point when new targets must be set and new lines drawn.

At least if any type of evolution is going to you. You don't have to perpetually navigate the revenue streams, fitness levels, and friend groups you have now. You can play a different game. Again, it's not always asking, how do I live within these walls? Exist within these circumstances. Sometimes the question is, how do I step into a new arena entirely? 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 one, 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. 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. 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 I've 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 your way. 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 three, 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, 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, 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 bat 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 relished. in it 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 free. 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 Courage is designed to move

Which is why one bold action can completely transform your life It's why one step forward can create space for you to experience and obtain things you've never had before. I've been sharing with you quite a bit lately how I've essentially rediscovered Greg McCune's idea of essentialism. Redefining focus, cutting away access, refusing to operate at 65% on many things, right? And instead, focusing 100% on the thing that means the most to me, right? Going all in on the right thing. Might seem small. But I promise you, in our worlds, it's not.

And the other day, I was in the car talking about how, basically, when you go all in on that thing that feels right. Alignments the word I've used many times. But that thing that's right for you, when you give it the attention and time and energy deserves, the universe seems to hear you. It's like it gives you strength back. And obviously there's a pragmatic element to it, right?

It's like what you water is going to grow. You can only improve what you focus on. But that relationship between attention, effort, and life seeming to help pave away for you when you go all in, it's so strong that it makes me think there might be more to it than that. It blows my mind how quickly after realigning things happened that haven't happened in years. It's like you commit to something and life arms you. you for the journey. You lock in, and you are in your own way, provided wings.

And I'm explaining this to Jules, who's riding shotgun. She goes, I love when that happens. It's like courage creates vibration. One of those light bulb moments, right? Exactly the vibration of courage. Courage creates space for everything you need. Right, that courageous act. And by the way, everyone knows what that is in their own world.

That thing they should be doing or that thing they've wanted to do. Depending on the season of life, maybe it's going faster towards something. Maybe it's slowing down a pursuit that isn't quite right. Maybe it's less, maybe it's more. Maybe it's solitude. Maybe it's putting yourself in more social situations. right locking in on one thing or exploration and discovery it's different it changes but you know what that is because you think about it because your soul communicates with your mind whatever it is it's an arm's

length away the extended hand of courage doesn't mean the pursuit or task before you will be easier in all honesty it's probably the opposite You were voluntarily stepping out into the storm. But what courage does, despite the chaos or voluntary turbulence, courage gives you a chance. It puts you in the game and allows you to tell and show the world who you are. I sometimes laugh at the disconnect that once existed between my actions and who I wanted to be. big plans, big goals,

but I was only willing to take minimal risk. The world simply can't hear you from inside your house. It can't translate a dream into a reality or transform hope into tangible progress if it remains tucked away in the back of your mind. Not until you find the courage to set it free. To give it to the world, to start that ripple effect or vibrational.

that will lead you hand in hand into the unknown. When you own that for yourself, the lens through which you look at life adjusts alongside you. Everything is now in the context of how to create that storyline. The same things you once walked right by become props in the play of your life. The right people become wind at your back and the wrong ones fade back into yesterday. chapter. Life wants to push you forward. It wants to be an ally. So let it. Allow it to be the wind at your back. You have incredible thoughts, brilliant ideas. There are game-changing opportunities that need

you to breathe life into them. So here's a thought. I want you to wake up a few minutes earlier this week. If you're a coffee drinker, get yourself a nice cup, sit in a comfortable spot, and for those few moments, get out of your head and into your heart. Paint a picture of what lights you up, a could-be reality, and then choose one courageous act that will take you to that day, that will bring life to that vision. Not tomorrow or the next day, but today. right now, this very moment, and watch how that consciousness, that decision infiltrates all areas of your life. Watch how it acts as a brush painting, you know, seemingly a black and white landscape and puts color into it. It's the start of everything. The power you've always

had, the sound of strength, the heartbeat of your future self. It's the sunrise before a new day and the sunset that gives way to a sky full of stars. It is the vibration. From your fingertips to God's ears, from your soul to the world, it's where you were meant to go. So my friend, go there. Eight lessons to live by.

Number one, remind yourself to see those things we've taught us. ourselves not to see. The things that don't directly correlate to money or status or ascension up some social hierarchy, underneath those things are what keeps us alive. Keep our souls lit, our eyes open, our days meaningful. We don't think we need music to invigorate the soul. We don't think we need wind on our face or sand on our feet. We don't think we need to shut the world off so we can hear ourselves think. Now we fall into the trap of believing that beautiful is a luxury.

It's not. It's why we're here. And it's not about being anti-money or status or whatever your goals are. But it is about realizing that those things without beauty and art and nature and calm are empty. There are plain without wings, lungs without air. The things we have taught ourselves not to see are the things we need above all else. Number two, you are stronger than you think you are. You are made to endure, to pave a path, find a way, rise to the occasion.

And we know this when it's easy. but we forget when it's not. When the world feels stacked against us. When you're writing things, no one reads, saying things, no one hears, making things no one sees. When you know you have somewhere to go but aren't sure where that is,

no, you need to evolve into something but have no idea what this is when you need to know that you have everything you need. It's not about finding new pieces. It's about arranging the ones in your hand. Like smoke expands to fill any room, your potential can expand to conquer any obstacle you are stronger than you think you are. Number three, some things are beyond our control. But being ready for the opportunity when it comes

our way is very much in our control. And maybe it takes a day, a month, a year, long, You can't control that. You can't control the path of that firefly, but when it lights up and comes your way, you can have the jar ready and the lid off. You can be well read, well prepared, rehearsed to the point of confidence, reliance on repetition and not hope. No endeavor is a coin flip when you use a double-headed quarter. One of the most valuable questions I've learned to ask is. When and where in my life can I create those magic coins? Number four, we are at our best when we are moving towards something. Inaction has an opportunity cost that is more expensive than anyone wants to pay. Places I haven't gone, risks I haven't taken. They're the loss.

The dragon has the gold for a reason, and to avoid the former is to forfeit the latter. If we are not growing, we are dying. So as Emerson suggested, find a star to hitch your wagon to. And even when the world forces detours upon you, inserts roadblocks or temporarily covers that star up altogether, remember that it's still there. Shining as bright as it ever has, waiting for you to reorient yourself. Remember who you are and carry on. Number five, when it's your fault, you are in control. I used to hide behind the notion that bad grades were because of a bad teacher.

That missing the promotion was because of the boss. That an inability to influence was because the world didn't understand. And to whatever degree, these things may be true, we win when we dial them back to zero. If your bad grades are completely your fault, you'll better. prepare. If your lack of promotion falls entirely on your shoulders, you'll find ways to add more value. If your inability to influence is because you're missing the mark, you'll stop projecting yourself onto the world and start asking the world how you can serve. Before it can become an opportunity, it has to first become your responsibility. To grow, we have to plant roots,

where it hurts, where the eagle lives, where we have to first be humbled, then we can accelerate vertically. Number six, if it means something to you, there is value. It's not stupid. Just because they don't get it doesn't mean that they shouldn't. Just because it's not happening today doesn't mean it won't be tomorrow. Life is a lot like safe. six-year-olds playing soccer. Everyone chases the ball because that's what we're told.

That's where the attention is. That's what's flashy. But as an outside midfielder most of my life, I know that some of the most potent attack sequences manifest on the outside of the field and then are re-centered. To run up the sideline without the ball is to see what happens before it happens. The magic is created in the empty space. before it translates to the high traffic, high reward areas. And just because you're metaphorically running without the ball doesn't mean you're not in prime position to have monumental impact. You're not reacting.

You are creating. Don't forget that. Number seven, nothing is mandatory. Everything we do, we choose. Where we are, who we're with, how we spend our time. And it's easy to look around and think we are programming. to exist between specific parameters. We're not.

And often we don't see until life forces a change upon us how much flexibility we have in life. Now sure, change obviously brings with it as challenges. New questions, uncertainties, new places to map and people to meet that is Mark Manson says there is no problem-free life. No, the beauty of life is that we get to choose which problems we will spend our time solving. problems to solve are what make life meaningful. So if you're looking around and not seeing what you want to see, you're not stuck. You're simply solving the wrong problems. Perhaps it's time to find some new ones.

In number eight, tomorrow is not your answer. It's your problem. Tomorrow is your excuse to wait. To hold off to rationalize stagnation. stagnation. Tomorrow is the status quo. It's a fresh new coat of paint on a car that won't run or a new roof on a house with a cracked foundation. Tomorrow can only tell the story that has acted out today. That means without stepping into the limelight right now, in the immediate, in the present, there will be no story. Because stories aren't made tomorrow. They're made now.

So let's stop expecting the messenger to be the author. And let's take fate into our own hands, write our own headlines, during the only moment we'll ever have, the present one. So let the rest of the world dance around tomorrow. That's not where your mind should be. You should be working on the melody of today. George Eliot wrote, It's never too late to be who you might have been.

have been. See, you are a storyteller, a creator of narratives. In what you see, when you look in the mirror, are stories. Stories about your past. I am the type of person who does X, right? X being an accumulation of history, of things you've done, you used to do. And in theory, you know, there's truth to that. we are what we repeatedly do. But here's where it becomes a problem. When you confine yourself to that narrative, when you become stuck there, when you are unable to become something new

because you're telling yourself, that's not who I am, just because that was the narrative doesn't mean it always has to be. You can always pick up the pen and start writing a new chapter. I put on a green shirt last year, last month, every day last week. Therefore, I am someone who wears green shirts. Therefore, tomorrow, I must put on a green shirt.

It's who I am. Seems a tad ridiculous, right? Until you change the example a little bit. You know, I was called out recently for saying, I am a runner trying to put on weight. Building muscle in the past has been a challenge for me, right? Because I am a. runner. And I was. I was running seven to 10 miles a day. Well, now, in the present, the story's changed.

I've essentially stopped running, at least distance running. I'm focusing on the gym. And in a group setting with my trainer there, I recently said, it's been challenging for me to put on weight as a runner. He looks up and he says, ah, limiting belief. You're still identifying yourself as what you were. And he's dead on. 100% right. That's an old story. Right. I ran long distance for years. had a quote-unquote distance-running body type for years. So what? Therefore, I'll continue to have a distance-running body composition, right? It's the exact same thing as the hypothetical green shirt.

Just because you were that doesn't mean you have to be that. Just because that's what you did doesn't mean it's how you must identify. No, it's time to flip the script. And when you start unpacking this idea, you know, it gets crazy quickly. Like you realize how many areas in our lives we create these limiting beliefs. How much we adhere to or shackle ourselves, tie ourselves to old narratives. They're everywhere, right? I make $80,000 a year.

I'm looking for a new job that pays about $80,000 a year. It's like, why 80? It's just as arbitrary as 25, which is just as arbitrary as 175. Like, why can't you aspire to be more? Why don't you feel deserving of more? I'm not talking about snapping your fingers, right? There's no magic involved in this. It's very practical.

It's when you decide something is what you deserve or something is what you're going to be, my friends, that's what you will get. You know, you have to decide you are worthy. You have to improve your worth. You have to see yourself as something different before the world will ever adhere to that or give you something new.

You know what one of our greatest superpowers is? The reminder that we can change. That we don't have to concede or accept anything. If it isn't adding value in some way, it can be changed, transformed, mitigated. I think the issue is that sometimes we just forget that we are the ones telling this story. I was reminiscing recently about 2013, 2014, commuting to work from Boston to Worcester with a friend of mine

and you didn't particularly love the job, right? And so on the commute, we would, you know, joke around every day, you know, and I put joking in quotes because we were truly hoping for it, right? It's like, you know, wishing we'd get a flat tire or something would derail the commute. And, you know, as time goes on, hindsight's 2020, you look back and you realize just how, like, weak and pathetic that is. like hoping for external circumstances to guide you where you most want to go because, you know, I won't speak for him, but me personally, I couldn't manufacture the courage to change, right? Not for a long time, at least. Because here's the deal. No one was forcing

me a gunpoint to be there. I didn't have to do anything. It was as simple as the story I told myself was every day over and over again, this is what you're supposed to do. It doesn't matter if you like it or not. It doesn't matter if it lights you up. Doesn't matter if this is the best use of your skill set. This is what you do. That was the narrative playing in my head, right? And therefore, it's what I did. Changing that thought pattern was one of the most challenging things I've ever done, but it's unequivocally true that at any point I could have looked around and said, this isn't me. I'm going to start building a life that is. Eventually, I got there. It just took time. And to one of the reasons I'm so passionate about, you know, trying to give others that nudge

to empower people to, you know, make change in their lives, as opposed to looking around and hoping outside circumstances, you know, push you to where you need to be. It all comes back to that idea that we have way more control than we think we do. We just have to be aware of the lines we draw around ourselves. There are so many places where it's like, oh, we can't step over. there. Why? I just never have. This is what I do. This is what I've done in the past, so this is what the future must look like. It's all story. Everything is story and any story can be changed or rewritten. No chapter must be a continuation of the rules from the prior chapter. See, as George

Elliott states, it's never too late to be who you might have been. To walk away from the narratives in your brain that confine you. When you know something's out of alignment, that's something we feel in our bones, by the way. We know deep down that that's the truth. We just need to understand that what's happening now is not a life sentence. We're not confined to reality as it is. Again, your superpower is the ability to reinvent yourself. Just as acquisition is valuable and necessary, so is the ability to walk away.

And on top of that, the ability to walk away usually precedes one's ability to let the important things in. You're only stuck if you believe you are. You're only free if you believe you are. Therefore, what you believe is not some supplemental things sprinkled on top of reality as it exists. What you believe determines what reality means to begin with. 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. 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? Those of you 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, right? 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. 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 on red 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 it 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. That 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 of change. 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 it maybe even thought to yourself, there's no way forward here. You found a way to get up and create something new. A good plan, violently executed now, is better than a perfect plan executed next week.

That's from George Patton, General in the United States Army, integral to the Allies victory in World War II. So why? What makes this statement so powerful? Well, it rings true because we have to move beyond the idea that we can manufacture greatness with one swing of the bat,

one stroke of the pen, that if we wait for the right moment, perfection will come. The light will turn green. The stars will align and the path will emerge. I feel like I could scream this from every mountain top, and it wouldn't be enough. Life is not a perfection game. Life is an adjustment game. And I'll speak anecdotally here.

In my experience, looking over my shoulder, reflecting you know, those times that I'd clung to perfection, rationalizing my immobility by saying, hey, you're not ready, this isn't good enough. I'd only have to dig a few layers down to see that my not moving wasn't out of some loyalty to excellence. No, I was standing still because of fear, a fear of going, of starting, a fear of the unknown.

Perfection is the biggest con there is. scam. It says wait here, your perfect moment will arrive. Hang tight. The right time is coming. No, there are no perfect beginnings. There's merely the courage to move into something new or the regret that will ultimately come from wishing that you did. And sure, a part of it's almost counterintuitive. It's like, why isn't it beneficial to wait? Why would you want to take the leap before you're ready. Here's how I see it. One of the most important distinctions to understand is that between the thinker and the doer. The thinker who ponderes, who reflects, who studies and studies and studies thinking he or she can create for him or herself a perfect jump-off point, thinking

they can obtain for themselves all the necessary information, all the answers before they begin the journey. The truth is greatness is forged through repetition via wheels on the road, and yes, you are terrible at first, completely unsure at first. You get lost at first. But this becomes the knowledge that shapes the journey. When you go before you're ready, two important things happen. First, after falling down and feeling embarrassed and insecure, you get back up, you look around and you go, wow, okay, I'm still here. That sucked, sure, but it wasn't as bad as my brain told me it would be. Next, you learn from the exchange.

You can start doubling down on what works and eliminating what doesn't. And eventually, as you take this confidence and wisdom onto the next step, repeatedly the curve becomes exponential. In doing, you begin stacking bricks, creating a foundation. Those experiences that humbled you become what you lean on. They're what turn into the experience, the knowledge, the credibility. And see, thinking you can skip all that ugly stuff by waiting on the ledge for perfection to arrive in your hands, that will be your undoing. That's just as crazy as a sailboat waiting for the wind to stop. It's like, no, you need that friction, that resistance to reach your destination.

And no, we cannot control everything. Yes, there are powers beyond us. But if you go now, you learn to use and navigate them. The greatest gift we can give ourselves is permission to go. It's looking a year ahead and dreaming of the moment. We pause and say, wow, what a year. the twists and turns, the lessons, the highs, the lows, the peak moments all brought me here. And how different here is from back there.

How far I've come. Knowing, by the way, that life was never asking me for perfection, but rather a willingness to start, to dive in, to adapt along the way. I know a lot of people with businesses that exist in their minds, but not in reality. A lot of people in shape when they close their eyes, but not when they look in the mirror. A lot of people living their best lives when talking about the future, but not when they pull up to work on a Monday morning. We shorten the gap between our ideal existence and the present moment by going, by stepping now. Even when we can't imagine how the process will unfold. Because let me tell you.

you, life will bend and twist in ways you can't even fathom. It'll take you places that ignite your soul, show you things you never dreamt of seeing, but you have to put yourself in position to receive that from life. The world wants to help people who help themselves. So give yourself the gift of progress, of momentum. If a dream is only worth the action one is willing to take to bring it to life, let that action start now. Move beyond the illusion of perfection and towards the opportunity to take the imperfect every single day and transform it into greatness. Every time your mind says you're not ready, let that be your invitation to step forward. life may not be a race, but that doesn't mean time will politely wait for you. We must say goodbye to perfection.

As we evolve, as we grow. I can guarantee you it won't. That was at the Heat Celtics game with my brother a few days ago. And the Celtics at the moment are the best team in basketball, which is fun being that we're from Boston originally. and right now the team has a handful of really good players. But one of them, Jason Tatum, has essentially separated himself as one of the most dominant players in the game. He's a superstar. And as we watched him play from the stands, we were talking about a narrative that I don't hear mentioned a lot.

And maybe it is in basketball circles, but I don't hear much out and about. I think it's incredible. It's the fact that Boston's general manager at the time, Danny Ainge saw value in Tatum way before everybody else. Now, don't get me wrong, he was always elite. But the Celtics GM saw superstar potential in Tatum to a much greater extent than everyone else. In fact, in the 2017 draft, the Celtics had the first overall pick.

And, you know, for those unfamiliar, it's usually pretty obvious how the first handful of picks are going to go. The players are all ranked before the draft, and the team with the first pick is going to select the first best player, obviously. The team with the second pick is going to select the second best player. And while it was sort of known that Tatum was the agreed-upon third best player in the draft, that the Celtics didn't want number one and two, even though the scouts and draft boards and, you know, the talking heads all around the country saw them as better. Right?

So here's Danny Aange with that coveted, number one overall pick, which in basketball is so valuable. And he's like, I don't care. I want the guy who's projected number three. So he trades down. He gives Philly his number one pick, basically saying, hey, if the guy I want is going to go third anyway, might as well trade away the first pick and get a little extra value. And still get Tatum at number three.

And that's exactly what they did. And here we are. Watching him as one of the best players. the game. And by the way, the guy who went first overall is relatively underperformed, given where he was picked. The guy who went number two overall, same. It's been up and down, constant injury issues. And I look back at how that played out. And I just think like the pressure, the weight of having this coveted pick and being like, no, I don't want it. Right? The guy that I want is number three, right? Being so confident that you see value where others don't.

It's hard to do that with conviction. You know, so I look at this and sure he made some mistakes, as all GMs do, you can't predict the future. It's a numbers game, right? But the ability to spot value, particularly in places others seem to disregard, is what I see as the difference between excellence and mediocrity. Life is always trying to give us the equivalent of a draft board, right, in some capacities. Like, here's what's normal. Here's what's projected. Number one, two, and three options are the quote-unquote best options.

For the most part, sure, it's a decent guideline, but it's not enough. It's not enough. I think we need to train ourselves to be asking, yeah, but where is the move that manifests into that game-changing difference? Where in my life is the move that pushes me over the top, the action that sets me apart? As staying on the basketball theme, one of the most inspired, comparing things I'd ever heard was Kobe in an interview.

Talking about the extra value he'd capitalize on throughout the day, being the difference in his career, saying, look, if I get up two hours before everyone else and I get a workout in, not once in a while, but every day, that's the difference. Why? Well, in a week, it's nothing. In a month, it's not much. In six months, it creates a gap. In a year, that's quite the advantage.

In five years, you're not even on the same level. In a decade, he is now untouchable to his competition. Yeah, it's just the morning. Everyone has the morning, but Kobe sought and recognized it as opportunity as his value. The consensus out there in the world is that the morning is when you ease into your day. It doesn't put what you're doing at 6 a.m. high

on that metaphorical draft board. No, who cares? Well, to Kobe, ah, perfect. There's the value that I can spot, that I can utilize, that most people will not even think about. And in totality, I believe that to be the truth, right? Like, you can do fine, simply anticipating and living in and around the value as identified by the majority, by following their blueprint.

but to separate, to move from adequate to excellence, you need to find those places where you can squeeze more out of life. You need to dive deeper into what's around you than, ah, that's what's expected, or that's what everyone else is doing. That's what's perceived as valuable. Be your own GM, right? Question the way of things. Not just out in the world, but in your home.

in your day to day? Where are the moves that can take you from a, I don't know, a six inefficiency to an eight? What ways can you be unconventional? Flip the script to unveil the value you've been walking by for months, years, maybe even your whole life without realizing. There are always pieces around us to be great. And not just get by or survive, but thrive. There are the necessary ingredients to our right in life.

left always to astound ourselves. We just have to arrange them in a way that allows us to maximize their value. It's a constant moving of parts, trying again and again, but not settling for a ranking system to life as prescribed by the outside world. There's more if you're willing to find it.