Your World Within Podcast by Eddie Pinero - DON'T UNDERESTIMATE THE SIMPLE THINGS - Best Motivational Speech Listen Every Day

Episode Date: July 3, 2024

"Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things." - Robert Brault Monday Motivation Newsletter: https://www.eddiepinero.com/newsletter Free Ebook: www.eddiepinero.com/ebook  YouTube: www.eddiepinero.com/youtube  In this episode, Eddie Pinero delves into the power of storytelling and how it shapes our lives. Reflecting on personal experiences, he emphasizes the importance of finding joy in simple moments and overcoming life's chaos. Feeling stuck? Eddie reminds us that contentment is always within reach and beauty awaits our discovery. Tune in to be inspired and reshape your story.

There's a row of sunflowers in my backyard right outside my parents' window. My mother planted them because they were her favorite flower, and we saw them all the time. In a little house off Lemon Avenue in Southern California, with a basketball hoop in the front and fruit trees in the back. Granted, time has a way of altering our memories, and I'm sure to take a lot of. And to some extent, my reminiscing has been dramatized. But I can't help when I look back at that period of time to feel anything but good. Like pure happiness, simplicity. Coming back from the pool, laying out in the sun with my brother and sister, or creating

forts out of lawn chairs while we launched peaches, plums and lemons at each other like complete idiots. you know, having life-altering conversations, critical discussions. Like who's the most important character in Star Wars? And, you know, that scene in Titanic. The side door of the garage I used to sneak in the slim, shady LP, I got caught. I don't know what it was.

But all of that was right. And when I think of that row of sunflowers, slowly swaying in the breeze beneath the California sun, my mind often wonders if that's gone forever. I don't want to entertain the thought, but I can't help but ask. You know, my pragmatic brain doesn't even know what it is. Somehow my soul does, though.

I probably post too frequently for most folks to listen to every episode. But if you've been following along, you've heard me refer to, you know, the last few months as certainly challenging mentally and physically. And this is not, you know, the world's smallest violin, poor me type moment. Everything's fine now and will be. But hey, you know, the thing about talking about where I am is that you'll get the good, the bad, and the ugly, right?

So I'm going to see if I can sum up this background context in about 45 seconds here. Recently, found myself doing too many unimportant things, swaying from the writing, speaking, and video creation that I love so much. I swung the pendulum all the way to the other end, and walked away from a lot of projects. Tore down my studio, spent about a month building a new one with various sets, colors, designs, just got it functional about a week ago. sat down, rolled up my sleeves, looked around, and felt deeply like I had absolutely nothing to say. Just tired. Tired and a little lost. And I think it came to a head the other day.

I cleared my schedule for two days to sit, to think, and to write. Which is a big deal for me now, right? Even with everything I cut away, I have clients and, you know, a production team to manage. a business to run, videos to make, working with sponsors, all these things, right? But I knew I had to do it. And so I did, and two days later, I kid you not, I had nothing worthwhile written down.

Some anecdotes, right? The kind of stuff you get when you search for inspirational quote on Google, but nothing that I felt moved the needle or was, you know, game-changing in any way. And that's when things felt the heaviest they felt in long. time. It's like, okay, dude, you just took an axe to your entire life to go all in on these videos if you better execute. Or, well, or what? A voice asked me. You know what the difference is between my brain and the brain of a golden retriever sitting on the couch, looking out the

window, thinking about nothing but food and that squirrel that he so desperately wants to chase? The difference is I think in stories, and so do you. And that is a beautiful thing, so long as you're telling the right ones. What a power that is. Life is a culmination of the stories you're telling. And when I've said this is therapy for me in the past, to sit here and share these thoughts, I'm not kidding. I start these videos with a question

and sometimes find my answer before I'm even halfway through. And the story I've been telling myself for the past few months is that, you know, life is hard. Life is chaos. So be better. Find a way to be better. Sometimes that is the cold heart truth. Sometimes it's what I need. But sometimes that's not the answer.

Sometimes I need to remember to plant sunflowers again. Sometimes I need to remember that contentment. in momentum, in fulfillment, is an outstretched hand away. You know, momentum doesn't have to be some crazy artistic breakthrough. Sometimes momentum can just be recapturing that feeling of laughing in your backyard on a beautiful day in Southern California. And maybe you've been there. Maybe you've felt lost or overwhelmed or stuck. Maybe you've been in the minutia so deep that you've forgotten what life is all about.

Well, maybe this can be your reminder that you're not as far off as you think. That you just need to reach out to stretch into the darkness and create that little spark. That will remind you how good things really are. Hopefully, I'll be old someday. You know, looking back on life, and I bet I won't remember the struggles or difficult times faced in this studio. But I will remember the sunflowers. I'll remember the times I closed my eyes and breathed life in. So whatever season of life you're navigating, don't forget, nothing is gone.

No beauty has been dissolved. It just waits for us to recreate it. I remember running one day. This was years ago now. I lived a little bit further south. I was jogging down the Hollywood Beach boardwalk. And that particular day happened to be a struggle. I think I just underestimated the heat and felt beat up on my way back.

But as I was passing all these people who were walking on the boardwalk, some going to the beach, some were going to get food, everyone was kind of doing their thing. I just remember thinking how funny it was that in that, you know, that one second glance that happens between two people as they pass one another, that no one I was passing knew how awful I felt. And they'd never know. it felt odd to me that so much hurt could be hidden in plain sight. Not that in a million years I'd want them to know or they needed to know,

but it's the idea that this bridge between their world and mine would never be crossed, that my little hell was the secret the Hollywood boardwalk would keep forever.

In a way, it's kind of crazy to think about. How someone can be going through their own struggle, and it's never apparent to passers by. Think about that. The vast majority of chaos on planet Earth, it goes unseen. Everyone's just kind of carrying around their own invisible burdens. That Hollywood boardwalk probably keeps more secrets than I can comprehend.

And, you know, I've talked about this before, how over time, one of my biggest mental shifts was detaching from this notion that everyone has it all figured out and I'm the one stumbling through. Everyone else jumps out of bed, you know, excited, screaming, let's go, world, let's do this, right? Well, I dealt with my unease and my concerns. And that's just wrong, right?

Yeah, there's certainly variability in everyone's problems. We're not all the same. But everyone, everyone is climbing their own mountain. Everyone has their own cross to bear. I remember a quote from Victor Frankel, he said, to draw an analogy, a man's suffering is similar to the behavior of a gas. If a certain quantity of gas is pumped into an empty chamber,

it will fill the chamber completely and evenly, no matter how big the chamber. Thus, suffering completely fills the human soul, and conscious mind, no matter whether the suffering is great or little. Therefore the size of human suffering is absolutely relative. Eye-opening message. Relative and felt by all. See, there's two things I take from this.

First, and probably the most obvious, I think it calls for us to be more compassionate to others, at least as much as we can. I've fallen short here plenty of times we all do, but it reminds us that it should be a North Star. And two, there's a pragmatic element here, signifying that very rarely is what goes on around us about us. Very rarely is it personal. You know, because often our first instinct is to assign intentionality

to things that happen around us. How could this happen to me? How could they do this to me? And in truth, it's just not about you. Again, the deepest, most complex aspects of human beings are invisible to everyone but the person they're happening to. Everyone is, to some extent, running down their own boardwalk on a hot summer day. So going back to that example, let's make up a scenario.

say I clumsily bumped into someone, ran too close to them. They could think, jerk, they could think get in your lane, they could think pay attention, have some respect, I'm walking here. But would that situation be the product of my disrespect? Or would it be the fact that I'm exhausted? That I'm hot, that I'm dehydrated and only counting steps in my head. Buildings could have been collapsing around me and I would have had no idea. I'm focused on making it through.

See, there's value in understanding this. So much value. The world is not working against you. It's comprised of 8 billion souls with different movies playing in their heads. And you can get more from it when you understand that. You can be more valuable when you understand that. You can give yourself more grace when you understand that.

People cannot see your pain and you can't see theirs. But it is a shackle being removed to take life's events less personally, less seriously even. As you create something beautiful in your own world, understand that there are no true adversaries. I remember reading in the Four Agreements a while back, and this is kind of a sloppy paraphrasing, but people don't do things because of you.

They do things because of themselves. And so as you run your race, as you make your way into the world, understand that everything around you is assigned value by you. And those passers by aren't for or against you. They are in the midst of various personal journeys trying to run their own races, as are you. Look, the sun is hot. That humidity can be suffocating.

The path laid out before you is long. These are tough obstacles that you have to overcome, that we all have to overcome. And in time you will. But don't create additional adversaries that do not exist. Don't imprison yourself with stories that don't hold up. It's not all about you. And understanding that, as it turns out, can be what makes all the difference. Every step in the journey has taken you here.

Triumph, the defeat, yops and the downs. The times you went through hell because you knew at some point, at some time it would be the difference And now is that time. Someday is knocking at the door. People, they'll talk numbers. They'll speak in absolutes. They may even question your right to be here. Here is when most falter,

when the fearful run and the timid hide, but not you. In fact, it's from these very ashes of improbability, you will raise your flag. From their doubt, you will build your empire. Yes, you will be tested, but you've proven you'll find a way, and you will feel pressure, but you know you're made to rise to the occasion. See, that feeling in your chest, that life coursing through your veins, it's your body coming to terms with what your brain already knows.

You were put on this planet for right now. You sacrificed for now, fought for now. You bled for right now. This is no coin flip or testing of fate. It's a coming out party. One more the answer need not be constructed. See, you've already built it. brick by brick day by day, night by night.

It's not a time to rebuild. It's a time to be who you know you are. And if you can do that, if you can find the courage to do that, it will be more than enough. The most feared warrior knows that victory is not dependent on those looking at him across the battlefield. Their swords can't pierce. what you've built, their shields can't deflect the inevitable. This is your day. It's your time.

The will that lives within you. It's the preparation, the self-belief, and the heart. It's why you will arise. It's why normal does not apply to you. Because normal was a stepping stone along the way. Normal was the discipline to show up. It was the commitment to trust in the process. Normal was every second you wanted to take the easy road and didn't. And from those moments, from the normalcy of the day to day, from the very heart of the unspectacular, the extraordinary is born from this process you have emerged.

shizzled from stone and prepared for anything this world will put in front of you, you'll find a way. Look, I'm not asking you to become something new. I'm reminding you who you know you already are. Of course they don't understand your vision. Of course it means nothing to them. It's how the world works. People need to see results, not ideas. They need to see to believe.

In fact, everything you dream of believe in, it needs to be carved into existence. And the important thing worth noting here is that it's not personal. It's not a reflection of you or your talent or your potential. The differentiator in life will always be one's ability to turn ideas into things. You have that power within yourself. Literally to change the world as we know it, that's not a question.

It's not even far-fetched. You're capable. But we need to spend less time feeling like we're owed something for that exhausted energy. The world is a tough place. It rewards value. And sometimes it takes way longer than we like to see a return on that investment.

As James Clear mentions, you put an ice cube in a room at zero degrees and you gradually turn up the temperature. You won't see it even begin to transform until you hit the 32 degree mark. That's not when the work began. It's not indicative of everything, but that's when the effects of the work become visible. And getting to that point, it's one of life's greatest challenges. challenges. It's hard to give everything for something you can't collect when you go to bed at night. It's hard to be that patient. The only way to break through the noise to create something is to fully wholeheartedly believe in yourself. Believe in yourself to the extent that you can

detach from the criticism. Detach from the facade of perfect lives on social media and the expectations you're immersed in. This isn't a race. between you and the world. It's a battle of will between you and the voice that says there is no 32 degree mark. Removing that negativity, it's just as important as focusing on the positive. Dreams live at that intersection of belief and action.

And I've always wondered what people think they're gaining by shouting about how important they are, the things they're doing, or their plans. That does nothing. You need to know what you're doing. And that's all. Words mean nothing, ideas or empty, respect is earned by adding actual value, by making a difference. So reallocate that energy into the gift you are giving to the people around you.

That is a feat best accomplished with your mouth, close, and your eyes open. Every day, every action unnoticed, effort unseen, it stacks up to create. create something that will truly change the world. I see time escape. From this view, the sun is rising, perfect, just like the day before it. I see people coming and going, making their way into the world. I see the steam rising up from my coffee cup, disappearing into a sky much bigger than me. I see ticking clocks.

I hear Time's impatient song. An orchestra of chirping birds and crashing waves. I hear people comparing and contrasting as they make their way into the world. I hear the sound of my computer turning on. Each key, a tiny rocket ship, making my thoughts tangible and taking them, to galaxies undiscovered, I hear ticking clocks. I feel times tough love, the coolness of the breeze against my skin.

I feel people's uncertainty and their hope as they make their way into the world. I feel the paper between my fingers as I turn the page, converting stories to weapons, tucked to weapons, tucked away for a future battle, I feel ticking clocks. If life is war, time is a mercenary. Working for you when properly compensated or against you when neglected.

And the way I see it, there are two approaches to any predicament. Add your solution or subtract your problem. Univigorated soul has with us. Drawn, detached from all that does not empower, walked away from everyone's standards and expectations but their own. See, ticking clocks are individualized symphonies. They blend into the background and become the cadence to your triumphant march. When you have immersed yourself and that what you love, time is your heart beat. And when you have not, it's a subtle warning sign.

Whispering of roads untravelled and gifts unopened, singing reminders that you must realign that time can't be stockpiled or saved, it's loyal to no person. When you find yourself fighting to remember how precious the moment or beautiful the day, it's not a lack of time, but a lack of direction. You're fighting an enemy that would become an ally for the small price of passion and clarity. That's the North Star to be followed. Because beauty, beauty is seeing ticking clocks. Not as a dwindling resource, but as a flowing river.

And happiness is hearing ticking clocks. Not as a finite melody, but as the breeze that you are back as you float downstream. And perfection, perfection is feeling ticking clocks. Not as an obligation or imposition, but as a once in a lifetime jar. lifetime journey, a metronome for you to compose your masterpiece, give a pulse to that which hides away in your soul waiting to emerge. It is anything and everything seeking your direction

one second, one thought, one breath at a time. There's a realization that goes hand in hand with anything you could ever want. And it's that nothing in life is simply deserve. Success has never been about entitlement or what you feel is owed to you. It's about what you take. See, every cause has an effect. Every journey has its milestones and every victory has a beginning. And right now begins yours. Not in some blown-up, cinematic Hollywood sense.

But in a decision to separate from your past, your machine, mistakes and misconceptions, they are not what you are made of. The hardest thing to understand is that you are your future, the space between where you currently stand in your greatest dreams. In every step along the way is who you are. That's what defines you your pursuit. Your future rests on the decision to conquer right now. the world you need to be the change you so desperately want.

There are an infinite number of ways to succeed. Infinite. But there is only one way to fail. And that's standing still. Embrace life with open arms. It's giving you everything you need. It is your answer. The narrow existence right in front of you is not life.

Life is the opportunity outside your door. The pure ecstasy of moving. day in and day out towards your dreams, towards your ideal existence, that's what makes your highs higher than makes your lows feel like the cost of admission. It is a cheap price to pay for the ability to turn an average Tuesday into your wildest dreams. It's not a requirement. It's a gift.

You get to see how far you can go, how much you can achieve, and if you want it bad enough, You will step on your limits like they are a never-ending staircase. Your journey is infinite, and so is your potential. What you want is not behind. It is not who you used to be or what you used to do. It's your very next step. Be loved or be hated, but never simply tolerated. In life, you can live.

to chase opportunity where you can live to avoid failure. And there are two very different things. Rather than pursue, we often avoid, we avoid failure, we avoid criticism, we don't want to ruffle feathers or disrupt. No, we choose to simply exist. Never condemned, but never extraordinary, just tolerated. And it's an interesting dilemma, Because the best things exist on the extremes, life's fringes.

That's where you find your accolades, your accomplishments. That's what we celebrate. It's where you need to be. And you get there not by worrying about what everyone around you thinks, but by taking your strength, your unique self holding on and pressing the pedal to the floor going on. And yeah, that means suddenly, my friend, you are exposed. You are vulnerable, you are now out there.

It means those who don't have the courage to chase their dreams, they will find you threatening and they will let you know. But it also means that the shackles are off. The door is open, the light is green, and you can build from the ground up, you can build the life you want. The finish line has now become more visible than the prospect of falling along the way and you've granted

yourself permission to run through it. Sure, some will love you for these accomplishments, some will hate you for these accomplishments, but let me reiterate the word accomplishment. Because when you live to be invisible, it's a term that rarely presents itself, I promise. Life it rewards. It rewards you the bold. Those who are bold in their beliefs, bold in their actions, their dreams, and their pursuits. They are not for anyone but you. And years later, when you look in the mirror, you'll know that you gave every single thing you had to a life that meant something to you. Loved, yes. Hated, sure, but merely tolerated, no. So imagine with me that it's a fall morning

years from now. Right, the sun is shining through your window. You'd get out of bed, just like it's any other day. Except this particular day would be different. It would be your last day on earth. So you'd walk outside and begin reflecting on life from day one to where you are now. And in that moment, my question to you is, what would you value most looking back? I've always been intrigued by this question.

Even though it's a tough one, I like it because it's a simple reminder of what's important. It brings much-needed perspective. So what would that moment look like, your last day, when you get to look back on everything you've done, right? The legacy you've made. You most likely won't focus on how tough the climbs were. You probably won't remember the battles and the struggles. What you'll remember are the moments of victory, the times when you were able to do something. significant to contribute to the world, to help and be near those who mean the most to you.

What we learn as we get older, as we progress through life, is that failures dissolve. Right? They fade away. They provide us with the wisdom that we so desperately need, and then they disappear into the universe. It's the other piece that needs our attention. That quote we've heard a million times about regretting the things that we don't do more than the things we do, and how fear constantly gets in the way of our potential. So imagine, right, as you continue this walk outside, that you think about your dreams,

the things that fear kept you from becoming, because on your last day alive in the face of death, you'll probably realize that the worst possible scenario wasn't as scary as you thought. Study after study shows that the biggest regret of people with limited time left is living according to the expectations of others, not having lived a life that was true to themselves. We're fortunate enough to have that wisdom now. Why would we not act on it? Don't let yourself be the person who looks back and dreams about what if.

Do you dreaming in the present? We're all writing our stories, make you? yours a thriller, make it a bestseller, live now. Let that fear fade away because in a universe where your existence essentially equates to a drop of rain in a thunderstorm, what the hell is there to be afraid of? Be the type of person who finishes this walk outside with a smile, content with the journey, all the turns, the adventures, the small failures that shaped who you are the successes that lifted you up as the old saying goes everyone dies but few truly live there's a quote from henry david thoreau that i've learned to love over the years he says we are

constantly invited to be who we are meaning essentially there is always a hand you know reaching out to to invite us to leave the confinement um we've allowed to become from our lives, the pressure of the outside world, and attack a world that means the most to us, not obligatory, but for the opportunity. Because it's there, it's perpetually available, and that's what Henry David Thoreau means. And what's interesting is the second we lose sight of this,

our lives become consumed with things that really have no relevance to our goals or our objectives. In fact, the daily routine becomes the goal. It's the box that needs to be checked to feel accomplished. We do things because, well, isn't that what you're supposed to do? Adhere to rules and processes and guidelines. Almost like we forget why that routine matters. Like we forget the car has to go somewhere of relevance.

You don't just get in and drive it to drive it. That doesn't make sense. And a friend of mine recently showed me this book of insights from different photographers. It's called The Photographers Playbook, and it's life lessons that help that. one of them along the way and one that stood out to me specifically was Andrea Parleto and she talked about a concept called hibernation or cutting off temporarily leaving your day-to-day or your craft so that all the have-toes and the should-bees can dissipate and you can ask yourself the question that we

so quickly lose the question that should be the target that should be the foundation we build upon who do you want to be Because when all is said and done, and you're looking back, that's what will matter. That's what will dictate your happiness. Not that you were five for five on your checklist every day on your 20s, 30s, 40s, and on. Right? No, what does it look like when you yield that back? What does it look like under the surface?

What makes you, you? And sometimes we have to step back, go away, leave the day-to-day world we've created to see life from a life. different angle. Eliminate the steps, the requirements, the technicalities, and what are you left with? When you put your head on the pillow at night, what makes you smile? Ronnie Ware states in her book, regrets of the dying that not living a life true to oneself was one of the greatest regrets people experienced. Isn't it worthy of your time, your attention? Don't you owe it to yourself to make sure that your vision is defined and your actions support that.

See, anyone can move just to move and anyone can breathe just to breathe. With the ones who make the most of each step, each breath, they put themselves in position to live life differently, to accept the invitation to be who they truly are. To take their inspiration, their gifts, and their dreams. and never look back. Sometimes we need to understand the gravity of the situation that we are in. We need to know the reason. We need to capture the whys and why not.

But sometimes it's simpler than that. Sometimes it's just about giving. Sometimes it's so incredibly simple that nothing. that nothing else is necessary. See, here's the deal. There is more in you to give. And every once in a while, you have a decision to make. Not because you owe it to anyone or because you're supposed to.

But because your mind wonders what it would be like to look back on this moment and ask yourself, What if? So you stretch. You give more. And maybe it's one extra set of push-ups. Maybe it's one more mile. Maybe it's one phone call, one more hour in the studio.

It is the little advantage. The one that you didn't have to do, and why would you? You could have easily walked out and left it on the floor just like everyone else does. But what if? What if you dipped your toe in the crazy? What if you left the rationality behind you with yesterday's standards? After all, greatness requires a little insanity,

actions out of the norm, the yes, when most would say no. Why? Because it hurts, more hurts, being proud hurts, greatness hurts. Oh, but the top, how good it feels. And see, this is the part where you think about one thing. Digging deeper, finding more. The part of you waiting to be uncaged.

It never reveals itself. It must be found, discovered, it must be brought. to life. See, that pain that you're feeling in the moment it goes away, the body, it recovers. They're not in this equation. It's just you and the victory that will live with you for the rest of your life, the conquering of this moment. Again, our world, it is simple. There is more on the table. Will you take it? Will you build something now? that will stay with you forever. Found a quote the other day.

It said time heals nothing unless you move along with it. And I thought, well, that makes perfect sense. You can't pursue a new reality, a new world, unless you can detach and depart from the current one. But that's in theory. And my question was, Is it the destination or the path that holds us back? Because in my experience, the greatest struggle in life, it isn't what to do, it's knowing how to do it.

How do we get there? We know we need to get back up. But how? How do we initiate a spark and create momentum and take that world of black and white and add color? Because those times of gray, when life seems to lose its purpose, we find ourselves simply existing and not living, that's when we need answers. And I guess this quote, it jumped out at me

because it prompted an equally important question, right? Which is, now what? And I started thinking a few years back, 2017. Probably the most difficult year of my life. It was void of, you know, many of that beautiful nuance, the uplifting moments that we like to remember when we look back. For me, it was, you know, essentially an ended relationship, was relocating away from family and friends, was having a few dollars in my bank account, everything I own in a trailer, and starting over. And what I'll never forget about that experience, you know, in totality, was that I saw it. colorless, bland, dark.

Essentially, the road ahead had lost that glimmer that it once had. See, I used to get so much joy in telling stories. But life had kicked me around so hard that I, at least for the moment, forgot the point. Like, what was my reason? And I knew, like I said, what I had to do. But I couldn't wrap my arms around the how. How do you get the train moving again? And then I got this email, right?

And I'm gonna paint a picture for you. New apartment, trash, there's stuff everywhere, suitcases open, I hadn't shaved in two weeks, I'm exhausted, couldn't sleep, sitting there, frustrated with my laptop. And the email is basically someone looking to create a documentary asking if they could stay with me for three days and create a film about always maintaining

discipline and living a productive life that I just erupted into laughter, right? I don't think Seinfeld could have written something more ironic. It was just, it made no sense. But it caused me to reflect, right? I obviously declined the video. It just wouldn't have felt right or accurate in that moment. But I started to think, how is there such a gap between the old me and who I was sitting on that bed?

Is this the new me? And if it's not, why have I allowed this imposter to stay so long? I've always said a life changes one decision away. A light switch away. Just reach out and find it. And when you're going through times like this, it's funny. Life has a way of doing its best to conceal the beauty. It's like it becomes this black in white painting and it stays that way.

It stays that way until you put color into it. One brush stroke at a time. Because life is intimidating when you see everything you're not. When the blank canvas feels like emptiness and not opportunity. But life doesn't require of you the whole picture. Masterpieces, they aren't made overnight. They're not instantaneous. They are a product of trust, of faith.

Not in the canvas or the brush, but in the artist. Through his eyes, he's capable of transatlantic. forming his experience into art, his misfortune into meaning. Victor Frankl uses the metaphor of a movie, each day being its own scene, where often they don't even come together until the very last act. Trust that. Believe that. But man, start painting. In the very next morning, like everyone, before it I woke up to a yellow beam of light making its way through a crack in the blinds painting the wall of an otherwise dimly lit room but this time I saw it this time I didn't close the blinds I opened my eyes and sometimes that alone is the little hinge that swings a big door a door that I walked through and I saw the green of the palm trees the beauty the simplicity and thought, how lucky am I to be where I am when I am.

I saw a blue sky, a miracle in its own right, that's not confined to story or narrative, and well, maybe I'm not either. The white of the sidewalk leading me to wherever I choose to go next, the red of my running shoes hitting the pavement, the gold of the sun bouncing off the buildings, the black of a cup of warm coffee as I choose. soak in the day and the teal chandelier that hangs over the horizon as the same sun that started

it all retreats after a hard day's work see you have everything you need and life is not always perfect but it is always what you make it how things are it's not how they should be your need to be but how you've allowed them to be. And most importantly, black and white does not describe reality so much as it describes what's not there. What's missing from reality, and my hope is to never conform

to that sketch or outline that masquerades as truth, but to see beyond it. To find the strength, the courage, the self-belief, to pick up the brush and live life in color. So you're stepping onto a rocket ship, leaving planet Earth, and you have one message to give to the world before you take off.

What is it? For me, it's an easy one. It's that life is not as serious as we make it out to be. It's the most important thing I've learned. And perhaps the simplicity. see if that message might make people a little uneasy or take them by surprise, right? How exactly is it helpful? Well, I'll explain, right?

Waking up every day is not an obligation or requirement. It's not another test or make or break audition to impress those around you. It's a gift. It's a challenge. It's something to be explored. If the odds of being alive, living, breathing, or one in 400 trillion, you've won. You have, as you sit or stand right now, already done the miraculous.

So why not cash in? Why not live, push boundaries? To live scared. To play safe or do nothing with your life is like winning the lottery and keeping that bag full of cash under your bed for the rest of your life because you're scared of what could happen to it. It defeats the purpose entirely. And I'm not exaggerating.

This mentality has changed my life. If I lose, who cares? If people laugh, who cares? But I have to swallow my pride and be broke for a few years, who cares? If I'm the unsure one, the one who doesn't know what the immediate future looks like? Fine, who cares? I'll take the upside. I'll take the fun, the hard work, and the adventure.

I talk about this all the time. I'll never forget. Walking into this bar with my friends six years ago now, I just left my job. And I remember I'm talking to this girl at the bar, story time here. And she asks me what I do for a living, because of course she does. And I tell her I just left my job. I got this really cool idea for a YouTube channel.

I think it's going to be incredible. And I'll never forget how fast that convos shut down. Right, blink, and she'd walked away. And I thought, you know what, this is perfect. I'm going to remember this probably for the rest of my life. Why? Because it's a symbol. It's a sign that the...

The immediate is what stops us from the best things down the road. Leaving my job, as hard as that maybe one or two year stretch was, was the best thing I've ever done. I am living exponentially better than I was before I had the courage to make that move. See, if life is about not screwing up, then yes. I'm still in that cubicle getting yelled at for including too much color in my PowerPoint presentations, but that's not what life is. is opportunity, not hiding so that you don't lose. No, it's about making something where you are

with what you have. And my friends, there is so much out there. There is a win on the other side of every door you walk through, even when it's hard to see. Right now, this is a perfect time to be talking about this. A little crazy coronavirus has people being quarantined, everyone freaking out. Guys, take a step back and find the opportunity. I just read the other day. Shakespeare wrote King Lair when he was being quarantined because of the plague. There is always a winner. Use the time, find solutions.

Maybe you've always wanted to start a business. Great, take a small step, create the business page on Facebook, do something small, get the ball rolling. See, when life is a game, you're finding ways to win. Why do all these entrepreneurs talk about the hardship they've encountered before they found success? because they knew that losses wouldn't define them. But in life, just like in a game, you win and you lose. But what happens is through repetition, you get better and better, and the winds start accumulating, becoming more substantial and consistent.

See, most decisions, and let's say worst case scenario, you take the leap and things implode. Let's just be dramatic for a second. Everything goes wrong. Loss, loss, loss, loss. The reality is 99% of your. decisions, the reversible. If you don't get the intended result, you can backpedal and adjust. You know what's irreversible though? Inaction. You know what you can't improve upon?

Steps you've never taken. You can't be propelled by dreams that are hanging out in your head. Living scared is looking at yourself in the mirror and saying, I hope nothing goes wrong today. Living fully is looking in the mirror and saying, I'm going to make something significant to I'm going to take risks, I'm going to find solutions, I'm going to propel myself forward. So that as I make my way onto this rocket ship would be my message Stop playing to avoid losing and start playing to win life is not serious. It's not a standardized test It's a blank page waiting for a story And stories are written by the bold the risk takers the ones who stop wishing and go out and make things

happen, wrong actions can be corrected, improved upon, but life through a lens of scarcity is a sealed faith. So how about living like this is the only life you have? Like each day is a metaphorical currency that you can't take with you to your grave. It must be spent. It must be cherished and utilize fully. So here's to not only dreaming, but finding the courage to delugeesionage to delusage to delve headfirst into a journey so great that no stone is left unturned. No day is without the magic of your creation. Because if life is serious, it is a serious opportunity to live fully. And nothing less.

We're often inclined to view what we see reflecting back at us as an inherent truth. as something that was destined to be. But what looks back is not fate, nor is it forever. It's the sum of the steps that you've taken. There is solace in the thought that real and make-believe are separated only by the imagination, that being stuck is a decision and nothing more. Today is not a conclusion. continuation of yesterday. It's the beginning of tomorrow's masterpiece. And you are not confined

but in power because the gate is always unlocked and the sky is always calling. See, the world expands and it contracts with your view of it. If you could just see what you have, if you could just know what you are, the dead ends and failed narratives would fall silent. You are the solution to any problem in your life, capable of picking up yesterday's pieces and rearranging a very different reflection for tomorrow, one that is unstoppable, not a slave to the past, but a light to the future. Comfort and familiarity. In a world where unknown doesn't necessarily mean good or bad. It's an interesting association.

Yeah, that possibility of losing what you have is always real. You know, being mortal, being susceptible to misfortune, we want to protect what's ours. But that's where I diverge. Because what's mine isn't just in my home or garage. It's out there. It's in the universe. It's held captive by what's around every single corner. What's mine is hidden behind tomorrow,

and the day after that, and the day after that. See, walking the same path, doing the same things, expecting the same results. Yeah, it's fine, but it's just so limiting. If you don't allow yourself to get lost, then you have to be okay knowing that a part of you will never be found. And that's something I can't live with. Life is so much bigger than your front door.

It's more than a yearly review, a commute, a test, a routine. It's the places you've never been, the people you've never met, the dreams that you haven't sought out. Then why is getting lost so important? It's important because you temporarily leave everything you know behind. And for a few short minutes, your subconscious understands that life exists beyond the hamster wheel. One of the greatest truths out there is that you are not confined by anything other than your own mind. So why not free it? Why not step outside the glass cube, rewrite your story, your narrative?

Allow yourself to take that left that brings you to an unknown destination. And while, you know, for a while you'll be concerned, you'll worry, you'll think about failure. At the end of the day, you will grow, you will learn, and most importantly, you will find your way home. And every time you do, that front door feels just a little bit different. The world around you takes on a slightly new shape. Your front door is no longer an object keeping you in. It's a gateway that opens up for you at your discretion. It connects you to the outside world.

It gives you the tools to create the life that you want. Not the life you should have or the one you're supposed to have, but the one you can have. Right? So step outside. Get lost. You owe it to your life. This word in your vocabulary.

Because while it's a symbol for hope, it can just as easily be the reason that your dreams remain little images in your head. Tomorrow diminishes the significance of the air that you're breathing right now. It tells you that someday you can begin your journey and that you can just wait and make yourself comfortable until then. It's a mask itself as an escape. For those held down by fear, those resistant to change, it encouraged you to be content where you are, stating that you have your whole life to get where you want to be.

And for some, tomorrow lasts forever. It evolves into regret, into immobility, into an excuse to never really do what you were meant to do. Tomorrow can be worse than failing, because often it implies that there was never a beginning. There was just a vision, just an idea being put off for a better time that never came. There will never be a moment in your life, more precious than the one you're living in. Your heart beating in your chest, the air in your lungs, the blood in your veins. They're giving you an opportunity to make a moment.

change, to become who you want to become, to live, to inspire, to achieve. Because who really knows how many tomorrow's you'll get? And the last thing you want is to look back on your life thousands of days from now and wish you had the courage to do what you wanted to do. To wish that you understood how fast tomorrow's come and go. And that all you will ever have is the present moment. Every journey starts with a step. That courageous act of moving forward, not knowing what tomorrow will bring,

only knowing that you'll be further along then than you are now. That you'll be stronger, wiser, smarter, because you didn't wait for tomorrow, you didn't wait for anything. And that is the difference between I am And I wish I was. It is the difference between dreaming and truly living.