Your World Within Podcast by Eddie Pinero - DON'T WASTE YOUR LIFE | Best Motivational Speeches | Wake Up Positive!

Episode Date: September 7, 2022

“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.” Mae West

What makes human beings different from birds, cats, dogs, and chimps is that we understand the finitude of life. We get it, how temporary, how fleeting it all is. But we do, however, as we get caught up in the trivialities of our day-to-day, need to be reminded of that fact. That there is no forever in this world. Because sometimes we wait like we can afford to wait. wait. And we drag our feet like there will be a next time. There are no next times.

For me, especially when it came to doing the things I knew I needed to do, but was worried about or nervous to begin. I had to adjust my mindset. I had to learn to see missed opportunities as tangible, as though they're real. And that's the hard part. It's easy to dismiss something that never happened. Oh, I didn't go. End of thought, end of story.

It's easy to rationalize that as insignificant. How could something you didn't do be important? But when you view what you need to do or where you want to go as an already existing path, then to not walk down that path is very real. It's a decision. The next question is, well, what if I'm not ready to walk down that path? I'd catch myself thinking that all the time. Well, here's the deal.

For the big things in life, we simply never feel ready. There is no fully prepared. There will never be a fully prepared because we learn as we go. How could we know all there is to know and understand all there is to understand when the path is the teacher? It's like expecting a seed to grow without ever having planted it. Life is about being in motion, letting the world shape you. It's less about being handed a map as it is about being the Lewis and Clark of your own story.

Understanding that what awaits is intimidating, it's unknown, sometimes terrifying. But simultaneously, the adventure. that thing in your heart and your soul that pulls at you that asks you to be a little bolder a little stronger asks you to unshackle yourself from the worry and begin your pursuit that is your frontier and sure some will simply watch that clock tick away they'll never set out on the journey they'll stay where they are citing the difficulty

maybe the irrationality of that which they don't know It's all crazy, right? They'll spend their days a little safer every step, a little more predictable, but they'll also never truly see the show. They won't understand how beautiful those views are and how the darkness of those valleys become our strength. Time should have been their reason to go, and instead it was the story that never came to be.

Like Jim Rohn has alluded to, you think, Going is expensive. Wait until you see the cost of not going, of not trying, of not walking down the path that will unlock your mind and change the way you see the world. You know what that is for you. Let's be honest, we all do. It's not about answers. It's about commitment to willfully embrace that which we do not understand.

We don't get how those pieces stack up. But it's about letting yourself be the strict. student and life the teacher. This, I believe, when our finite time is up on this rock rotating around the sun, will be what makes us smile, makes it all worth it. The memories we made, the adventure, the times we thought we were done but somehow kept moving, thought we'd lost, but somehow found away. That's our power. And if we're the authors of our own stories, the only thing truly unimaginable is the refusal to pick up a way. that pen and open the book. Don't deprive yourself of the opportunity to explore the depths of your imagination. Don't hide from your greatness. Don't let what could go wrong cheat you out

of all that can go right. As the saying goes, you only live once, but if you live it right, once is enough. So don't stay because of the clock. Go because of the clock. Live because of the clock. Its hands are pointing you to that place you most need. One of life's greatest lessons is that yesterday is only as powerful as we allow it to be. Yesterday is an idea, a story, a movie that started and ended. Now, it's quite possible that story or that ending is disappointing or it hurts to look back on. Perhaps a reminder of something that wasn't ideal, something you want to break away from.

So the question is, why do we give that old story power? Why do we relive it, create this self-inflicted wound? See, the past undoubtedly played a critical role. It brought you to where you are now. It in many ways shaped your worldview, constitutes your beliefs. It was the very road to this moment, and there's value in that. But imagine this scenario.

Imagine stepping into your car, turning the keys, and thinking to yourself that you can in this very moment, only drive down the roads you drove on yesterday. Only associate with the street signs you know, the places you've already gone. reality now is determined by what you've already done. So adjust and get used to it. You would say that's outrageous, right? Yesterday's path has nothing to do with where I'm going now. Just like a boat's wake trailing off behind it has nothing to do with where it's going next. The person holding the wheel controls that. We are saturated with freedom. There is so much opportunity and possibility and potential in front of us that we fail to see

because we can't stop thinking about that fictitious story we call yesterday. We confuse the path we took then for the one we need now, the wake from the steering wheel, what is and that story about what was. The gateway to change is unshackling ourselves from those imaginary monsters. And more often than not, the answer isn't in finding some solution. It's in cutting ties with those things that no longer serve us. Then we see the world as it truly is. Then we see the magic laid out before us.

And I get that it's easier said than done. Leaving a part of us behind hurts. Looking in the mirror and being vulnerable enough to say, I can be more than this. It's not easy, but it's possible. And everything starts with how we see ourselves. And when we remain captives to the past, everything about who we think ourselves to be is outdated.

We're neglecting one of our superpowers, the perpetual ability to restart. One of the most important conversations I've ever had was on this topic. It seemed trivial at the time, but I was having lunch with a friend. And we're talking, and I mentioned to her that I was full. And she goes, well, then why are you still eating? And I'm like, because I paid for it, right?

I wanted to get my money's worth. And she says in a very, you know, pragmatic way, just because you paid for it doesn't mean you need to eat it, right? It's a sunk cost. Why don't you move on? And the whole thing seems silly, right? It's like, yeah, if you're not hungry, don't eat. Move on.

But in the grand scheme of things, How many of us keep on consuming that which doesn't serve us? How many of us stay too long when we should be letting go? We let the path behind us dictate the one before us. See, there's a tendency to overvalue what we know, to feel so invested in how things are, even when we're not happy or it's not healthy, that we'll take the pain of now

over the potential for something greater. And that's precisely why the unknown is so terrifying. It's not concrete. It's a world unsettled. And man, do we hate being unsettled? But what we fail to realize is that every time we close our eyes, take a breath, and work up the courage

to step into that unknown, to leave yesterday behind us, Life gives us new pieces. It resets the stage. It provides new tools to build something incredible, something more ideal, more conducive to our goals, our hopes and our dreams. And the thought is, well, but what if things become worse than they are right now? What if I move forward and I find myself more confused, more lost? What if things are more chaotic?

And that may, for a moment, be true. But what we do is we adjust. We learn things we never knew. We see things through a lens that we never could, touch things that we never thought existed. It wasn't in staying, but in leaving, that we rediscovered who we were meant to be, that we allowed our truest selves to flourish,

and worst case scenario. Contrary to popular belief, it's not that the world ends. No, the worst case scenario should you find the courage to move forward is that you end up right back where you started. A little more confident, a little bolder, and better prepared to live this life

like you never had. All that's needed is for you to convince yourself that there is more. You just need to taste the fruit. Step into the sunlight, that's the difference between reality and the story in your head. Reality is that this world has for you everything you need to change to grow, explore, build a light that means something. It has the support structures and the resources for you to pull yourself back up every time you fall. To say, okay, that hurt, but now let's try a different angle. There is

undoubtedly what you need. And the question is never whether the X on that treasure map exists. Trust me, it's there. The question is whether you can pause that story in your head. The tales of a dark, mean, and scary world trying to hold you down. Pause the idea that you're nothing more than the you of yesterday. You're nothing more than how people knew you to be. He paused the idea that you're nothing without that job title or that relationship.

Pause the idea that you need him or her or them in your life. Every day you wake up, you are a blank canvas. Who cares about yesterday? What do you want to paint now? When you walk out your front door, where do you want to go now? Step outside that circle of familiarity. How artificial and in some cases ridiculous these boundaries are that we place around ourselves. Life is an invitation, not a set of requirements.

And when you free yourself of that, not only will you feel like someone new, not only will you experience life as it was meant to be experienced, but you'll see that this world will conform to your new definition. This world wants to support you. It wants to lift you up. Yeah, it may be challenging and strenuous. It may force you to work harder and be braver than you've ever been. But it is at the end of the day, your ally.

You just have to see your future self before it materializes when no one else gets it. So move on from all that does not serve you. Break away from the old rules, regulations, and guidelines. Maybe you exhausted time and energy into creating this reality. Maybe it feels like a monumental piece of your. identity maybe right now is the only security you have fine but my hope is that you can respect it and walk away see it as the sunken cost that it is just because you paid to get there doesn't mean you need to keep paying to make wrong

decisions just because it took your time doesn't mean it's entitled to keep stealing your time just because it's part of your identity now doesn't mean it must be tomorrow just because it creates security doesn't mean it's right jails and steel bars are also incredibly secure no today we are breaking free leaving the past in the past and setting our sights on the horizon today is the end of yesterday and the beginning of the rest of your life if you're lucky enough to be different Don't let go. I spend a lot of my time and energy

exploring the power of perspective. How our reality is determined by how we interpret what's in front of us. How one person can look at one thing and see pain or a problem or a barrier and another person can look at that exact same thing and see opportunity

or a future win or a bridge to something better. And I think one of the best examples examples of this is how we perceive those qualities that make us unique. Those things that put us in a different category. Maybe we're a little hesitant to fully embrace because they're not common. And when it comes to that which separates us from everyone else, well I believe we have a decision to make. I'm going to go back to Robert Frost's fork in the road, right? He says two paths diverged in a wood.

I took the one lease traveled by and that made all the difference. On the surface, you could easily brush this off as trivial. It's like, oh, nice, that's cute. He took the path less traveled by. But what does that mean? As it turns out, it means a lot. It means instead of burying what makes him different, he made it his battle cry.

Instead of slipping under the radar and sneaking through, life like so many of us do, he signed the dotted line for the pain of being a beginner, the struggle of being uncertain, the discipline and sometimes torturous road that is turning a passion into excellent, trading peace of mind for the pursuit of meaning in life. Exploring what makes you unique, it takes courage. And in that message, he chooses courage, because it's not just that you're a lot. Taking that path means every step of the way your mind screams at you reminders that you're alone. It's not just fighting traffic patterns, it's fighting your DNA.

It's resisting that impulse to please sit down, shut up, and blend in. So is it a trivial decision? I'd say not really. Maybe even the most important decision you can make. Because I promise you it's not your commonality with those around you that will bring fulfillment, that will leave a mark on your life and the world that surrounds you. No, it's that thing that's unequivocally you. That's a little out there, that's somewhat strange, that you don't know why, but it's gravitational force pulls and pulls and pulls. A tug of war, where one side begs you to just relax, conforming.

do less, begs you to never be laughed at or criticized, to take the easy road. Then you have the other side, poking, prodding, asking you, hey, yeah, but what if? What if you sacrifice the comfort of right now? What if you explored? What if you took that which you love and you ran with it? What if you worked for a delayed payday?

What if for a moment in time? When people ask you what the plan is, you have to look back and say, you know what, I'm not quite sure what I'm building. building but I'll keep pivoting until it's so clear you can see it from the moon. Those are the paths that pull us apart. And every time I've lost my way, it's because I've doubted my unique path. And I mean that every time. It's when I become impatient with the journey or look around and see someone else winning in a different arena using different methods,

different strategies, see the latest trends and success formulas. Hey man, I want part of that, right? I'm human. I want to win. I want to succeed. But just like a little opening is enough to let in the outside water that sinks the boat. Well, a little bit of doubt is enough to derail your process. A process that you have to believe in, protect, nurture. A process that I've come to separate into two pieces. Number one, believing that the exploration of that thing that makes you unique, it's valuable. That your abilities mean something.

They're not inconsequential. They're not stupid or trivial or unnecessary. If it means something to you, it will most certainly mean something to others. And you bringing it to life not only helping it to life, not only help. It helps yourself, evolve, grow, flourish. It helps the world. You just have to believe that enough to bring it to life. That's number one.

Number two, trusting that as long as you don't stop in pursuit of your unique self, you can't lose. You can't lose. And I don't mean continuing to ram a square peg into a round hole. I mean growing, learning, experimenting, seeing what works. There's a saying that when you hit a dead end, it's not that the goal or the dream should be abandoned. It means the plan needs to be changed or adjusted. And as you get better and more experience and continually work to adjust your strategy and your plans, learn from your mistakes,

it becomes a matter of time. You increase the odds with every step forward. Being different is the most precious thing afforded to you. But to realize that miracle requires a combination of both the mythical and the practical, the imaginary, and the real. Dream that dream, visualize that growth, create a world out of those ideas that don't exist yet. But also understand that the conversion process from dream to reality, is a practical one. It requires repetition. Learning, losing, adjusting, and people don't like that.

It's much easier to blend in than spend years pushing through the agony of setting yourself apart. But it's worth it. And the evidence is so obvious, so plainly pointing to the fact that we only celebrate the outcasts, The crazy ones.

We sit around campfires, listen to lectures, watch movies and documentaries about the people that had every reason to doubt themselves but kept moving forward. About the people who could have swept their unique abilities under the rug, but instead use them as their foundation for everything. Not being distracted by what's popular or how anyone else lives or operates.

not seeking to be anyone but themselves, knowing that that is enough, knowing it's the seed to something precious. The only question is will you provide the right conditions and nourishment for that little seed to grow? Will you do what so few people have the courage to do? Let their authentic selves shine through. Let who they are emerge. Emerson has a quote. He says to be yourself in a world that's constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment. He goes on to say my life should be unique. It should be an alms, a battle, a conquest, a medicine. And see, perpetual happiness is a fool's errand. Now life is full of trials and tribulations and ups and downs.

But fulfillment comes from that quest for meaning, for more, for building something, for creating your unique self, a process, a pursuit that must be chiseled from stone. It's never given or provided. It has to be found. Take it. And as Emerson beautifully implies, now is the time. The question is, what are you going to make with this once in a lifetime of? What will you make of the possibilities that only you know, only you understand, that only you can bring to life? Never doubt yourself or your gifts or the things that set you apart.

You don't need everyone else to believe in them. You just need to convince yourself. Everything else, it falls right into place. As long as I've been alive, there's existed a battle between what I want in the moment and what I need. And it transforms, it takes different shapes, but its impact is always felt. And so the question remains in spite of the option to concede the temporary way out. Are we willing to endure the now? for a beautiful forever.

Commit to that delayed gratification. Hold off just a little longer, do a little more. See, every time I hold the line, every time I refuse to give in, the victory tends to be just a little sweeter. So what is this force keeping us from greatness, this invisible, unquantifiable adversary, telling us to stop, to submit,

to just accept things as they are. Well, as Stephen Pressfield states in his book, The War of Art, this is resistance. The ego in disguise, it's the desire to stay the same, pushing us away from the very action necessary to obtain what we truly want, not in the moment but in our souls. Our true reason for being,

after all progress is happiness. So we follow this train of thought. The next logical question must be, well, can we control this enemy? This resistance? As it turns out, not only is the answer yes, but one's ability to do just that makes all the difference. We can harness that demon that lobbies so hard for the status quo. We can learn to laugh every time it throws a fit when we attempt to change ourselves, our situation, our environment. It can be told no.

In fact, Pressfield states that people who live free lives have learned to master themselves. People that can't master themselves will find someone else to rule over them. Whether it be excuses, critics, or other outside constraints. See, the key, the answer couldn't be simpler. It's not easy, but it's simple. Show up. And as a writer, I really resonated with this, this line. The hardest part isn't writing.

It's sitting down to write. It's arriving. And now life can flow through you. You're able to be that messenger that carries the divine so that it can be shared with the world distributed to the masses. But you must first say no to that voice proclaiming that it's not important. that it doesn't matter. You must tear down the idea that you're not good enough. Walk up and sit in that metaphorical seat, whatever it is for you.

Begin speaking, writing, painting, analyzing, constructing, devising, but you must sit down and begin. That is the essence of the war of art. The war that is you versus you, that resistance. But claiming that your next move is too little to matter. That the same is the best. But you have to see beyond what's in front of you. It's why the author is so adamant about not giving in saying if you cave in today, you're twice as likely to cave in tomorrow.

It's like talking to a telemarketer. You cave, you give an inch, and it's over. See those little decisions, the ones we're so inclined to overlook, the ones we say, eh, we'll come back tomorrow. insignificant that's essentially making a hole right through the center of a dam eventually the entire thing is coming down but the good news those same little decisions are within your grasp you can own them master them and ultimately master yourself start by simply showing up when you don't want to because this is war and this war the one fought every day is

is what will ultimately hand you the keys to the kingdom. What if I told you that you already know what must be done? You just need to put yourself in position to do it. You need to unlearn the rules that crippled you, the ideas that can find you. We are in constant pursuit. of the thing that will magically write all our wrongs, the answer that will give us something we've never had. No, everything you need you have now.

You just need to allow it to flourish. Declutter. Simplify. Remove all that unnecessary stuff. And walk your path. Einstein once said everyone is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.

And what's great about this is the idea that who we are is not found. It's acknowledged. It's accepted. And I think in our world, there are so many fish as Einstein says, trying to climb trees, that it creates a sense of learned helplessness. We are judging ourselves using the wrong metrics, equipped with the skills, the characteristics, and the abilities to win in our own arenas,

but playing in someone else's. How loyal are you to your own instincts? Do you do what you know is right? or what you feel obligated to pursue. When was the last time you listened to you? In Tim Grover's Relentless, he introduces a brilliant metaphor. He says, a lion doesn't have to be taught to be a lion. It just is.

It hunts, runs, roams, explores, lives life, the only way it knows. knows how. Now if you capture a lion, bring it to the zoo or put it in a cage, who will carry itself differently, will lie down, move around lazily, sluggishly navigate its little space. To passers by, they'd never know what that lion really is. They'd never know what it looks like in its element. But despite all this, it is still in fact a lion. It maintains that killer instinct. His characteristics haven't disappeared, and if it were released from the cage, it would go right back to doing what lions do, being what lions are meant to be. It just has to ditch the cage. And the point is, perhaps so do you.

There's a little light in your soul that waits day and night to explode into something meaningful. Where your nature meets your environment. Where the, I shouldn't do this, the odds are impossible, the I'm not good enough, I can't lose what I have now, where all that fades away, where it's left behind you. And you're finally free to reign over your own territory, your own life, your own empire. See, we constantly feel like our glasses are empty, like we're missing pieces in need of something. Just one more thing. That will be our answer.

That's all we need. And I can say with confidence, it's not a... about what you need. It's about what you no longer need. It's about mitigating the noise so what matters can shine through. Removing those people in your life that drag you down or add no value. It's about getting rid of the things that make your world unnecessarily complex. Removing the need for immediate validation, success, and accolades. And instead, embrace the the little hinges in your life that, as W. Clement Stone said, will ultimately swing the biggest doors. We all have the lock, the key, and the map right there amidst the trivialities of our

day to day. And we walk right by them, look right at them, we pick them up and put them down. But have we learned to truly see them? Everything starts with that awareness. And my life did not change until I recognized that. Until I began asking myself questions I'd never asked before. Big picture questions. Obvious questions. But just because it's obvious doesn't mean it's always intuitive, right? What do I want out of life?

What is important to me? What's something I love doing that I can dedicate myself to? That I can commit to being great at long term that I'm so immersed in that when the inevitable down times arrive, the losses, when the doubt and insecurity creeps in, I can keep moving forward because I'm so in love with the process that I don't let the little things like that define me. As Jordan Peterson famously puts it, choose your sacrifice. The life of meaning isn't easy, but there's nothing more fulfilling. Because when you embark on, Upon that journey, it allows for the evolution of the self.

We can become something more. As Nietzsche says, those who have a why to live can bear almost any how. We equip ourselves for anything the universe can throw at us. We position ourselves to evolve. Victor Frankel says man's main concern is not to gain pleasure or to avoid pain, but rather to see meaning in his life. To align yourself with and pursue that which is your reason for living, that's how we transcend the day-to-day life we've come to know.

When we breathe in possibility, dance with the infinite. And of course, there's something of this magnitude. It consists of ups and downs. It's not the easy road. But it's the one worth taking. Our metaphorical lion doesn't succeed every time he's prowling for food but he doesn't roll over and die

he doesn't recede or quit being a lion he gets up tomorrow and does it again because it's who the lion is and while life doesn't unfold until you find that same thing for yourself and people say well I don't know that's the problem I have no idea. That's not the problem. That's the essence of life. That's the beauty. You're here to explore

and find that for yourself. But the power is knowing you're not looking for something or someone to save you. You're looking for an environment in which you can best be you. You're looking for the right terrain to share your gift with the world. If you have what you need, then you're not looking for the product. You're looking for the delivery mechanism, the vehicle to nurture and transport your value to a world that desperately needs it. You're looking to build yourself up and in the process amaze yourself. Look, what you're capable of is beyond comprehension. It's limitless, almost unfathomable. But it is, as Ryan Holiday says, a confidence that must be earned so start. Now.

Earn it. Let yourself succeed. Your intuition knows what feels right and what doesn't. But the seed must first be planted. So make today about setting yourself up for success. Turning off the idea that you're one piece away from completion, one minute away from starting, that you're almost ready. No, you are ready now.

You have what you need now. You know what's necessary now. You just have to be your own ally. Put yourself in position to be yourself. Let your value shine, double down on what matters to you. Look, it's not a game of acquisition, it's a game of courage. Do you have the courage to be who you are? To follow that potential, that possibility into the great unknown.