Your World Within Podcast by Eddie Pinero - Reset, Restart, Refocus | Wake Up Positive Motivation

Episode Date: March 6, 2024

“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.” – Thomas A. Edison Check out the latest Eddie Pinero Podcast episode where he shares tips on staying focused and pursuing dreams despite life's challenges. Get inspired to stay resilient and motivated as Eddie offers practical advice for overcoming obstacles and maintaining perspective. Tune in for a dose of motivation that'll leave you ready to tackle anything! Newsletter: www.yourworldwithin.com/newsletter YouTube: www.youtube.com/yourworldwithin 

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A speck in a galaxy of stars. It's easy to look out and see the vastness of the world around you. and forget entirely about the strength that you possess. Forget entirely that the mind's capacity is as infinite as those same stars that surround you. I don't think it's that we definitively choose to sell ourselves short. I think we simply lose sight of the fact that we have a say in the matter to begin with. Our fears keep us wishing, our insecurities keep us hoping we stay standing still when we should be moving forward.

But truth be told, our pain comes from not doing, but wishing that we did. It's no coincidence that the more we fail, the more we realize life is a game that expands as we push. The power of making mistakes isn't the mistake itself, it's that when we get back up and brush ourselves off, our cognitive mapping of the world changes. We see that we can step out a little further. Our very definition of what's possible expands, and I believe that's what courage is. The willingness to step into that chaos of life, knowing that each time you find the strength to push forward, you are restructuring your reality. The resources are there, the tools are there, the opportunity is there, how crazy is the fact that we just need to convince ourselves

that more is worth it, that the difficulty of short-term vulnerability isn't an enemy. It's the very ticket required for admission to the show. And so I ask again, what are you afraid of? Falling? Because you will rise and you will rise stronger than you. ever were. Is it criticism? Because one, people are so focused on their own endeavors that they look up way less than we think they do, and two, other than the small group you surround yourself with, why would you care? Is it pride? Because building things of significance

requires starting on the ground floor and there's no shame but honor in breaking down to build up. And when I look at my life in terms of chapters, right, childhood, high school, college, 20s, 30s, the things that were my biggest concerns during each chapter are now laughable. And maybe, just maybe, if I saw that, I could have lived a little free or been a little bolder. What if we were to get ahead of that learning curve? What if we understood that life is beautiful and flexible and exciting? and what if we understood that now?

Instead of looking at this chapter, 15 years down the road, and chuckling to ourselves for not having the courage to have made the leap, taken the chance to have moved out into an unknown, we cannot physically see that which doesn't exist, which is why it's so important that we know we are the architects, that the fear pulsing through our veins is indicating that we are building, that we are choosing to step into a world that will give more if we find the courage to act. So as this giant rock you inhabit spins through the universe, a speck in a galaxy of star,

perhaps each little light up there exists not to remind you how small you are, but to remind you that those same elements exist within you. to show you that the fire of a million suns sits in your soul, beats in your chest, waits for your signal now. So what are you afraid of? Imagine with me a world where you stopped segmenting out the difficulty in your life as other than, where you stop seeing the turbulence as an obstacle to your journey. Imagine with me life as a symphony, where everything works together to create the whole, where the high notes, the low notes, the pauses, the rest, the tempo changes, all contribute

to the overall theme. None of it's unimportant or dismissable. How could it be? Without the low notes, the high notes don't mean anything. Without the rest, you don't get the satisfaction and the power of the moment that music reemerges. In fact, it was the contrast that created the magic to begin with. All of it is needed. Even when you don't understand why.

You don't know that this slow beginning, the breaks, the tempo changes, that it will all be the reason you are soon awed by the crescendo that awaits. And how could you? It's one flow. The journey points in one direction. You are in this for the ride. See, in our lives, the obstacles, the chaos, the confusion, they hurt. They're unsettling. So the inclination is to dismiss them, to push them away. This isn't what I need. This is void of value. So get rid of it, we tell ourselves. When in reality, those things are integral components to your soul. song. They are what culminate into your final piece. They're bringing you to that crescendo. It doesn't mean you have to love the challenging times. Of course not. But it does mean we should

understand that even though we can't see it unfolding before our very eyes, it's all playing a role. My hurt made me stronger. My struggle injected meaning into my life. It made this song richer, the sound sweeter. Today is what it is because yesterday was what it was. And I know when I'm face to face with something that my gut instinct deems to be detrimental, that two things can in fact be true at once. That I need to work to write the ship, to repoint the compass, but also understand that the storm wasn't void of significance.

The valley wasn't all for naught. It's gifted me new oceans to cross, new mountains to climb, and new perspective as I peer out over the view. So as you move through the dark, as you navigate the chaos of night, know that the light you're chasing is only meaningful because of the depths you are emerging from. Life beyond these shadows is not where the world begins. It's a continuation of an already beautiful journey you're on. It's your symphony in totality. See, the time will come when you'll look back and you'll be grateful for the so-called inconveniences

that surround you now. Your heart needs the contrast that this adversity creates. Your soul depends on the hardship to understand the magnificence of life. It's why now when it hurts, you must keep going. You have to keep going. You have to keep going. You have to let the notes materialize into the beautiful song it will become. The masterpiece it was meant to become. One of my favorite quotes is sometimes success is simply hanging on when others would be letting go.

The reason is that it reminds me how frequently the advantage is in not stopping. It's in consistency. It's in showing up. When I run particularly long distances, almost like clockwork I can break it down to feeling good at the beginning, usually a little rough stretch in the middle, and then somewhere on the second half, I catch a second wind or a second blast of energy. The question just becomes when? Will you hang in long enough to capture it? Because you don't know when it might be, where it will show up. You don't know when you'll find that nice rhythm again that makes a sport so enjoyable to me.

And when I say, you know, you can pull an infinite amount of life lessons from running, this is one of them. A depiction of trusting that the road ahead has everything you need to cross your finish line. Even when the short-term chaos is all you can see and feel, even when it's hard to look up and imagine. Right? Because it's easier said than done when you're tired and worn down to continue on, right? When you're in the trenches. There's an uncertainty to the road ahead, but each footstep is a way. a shot on target. Each step forward is saying, I'm worn down, but I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere. And life can present an almost eerily similar narrative, right, whether personally you're at a low point,

whether you've been working and working and working and haven't seen the result you're looking for, whether you're uncomfortable and starting to wonder whether this reward is really worth the high price tag. You need to remember that second. second wind, that second blast of energy, just enough momentum to ease your worry and recalibrate your journey, it's there. It's waiting. But you know the rules of life, it won't come to you, you must go to it. Through the storm into the night beyond the comforts of home, most sadly don't arrive.

because they couldn't, but because they ultimately let go. They looked too far down the road at the distance to be traveled and forgot that their only job was to hold on. Through the doubt, the pain, the worry, no miracle, just a willingness to fight each battle as it presented itself, to let time stack up, to let the distance over your shoulder accumulate. See, the thing about stopping is that you never know when that much-needed second wind will arrive. There's a saying that many of life's failures had no clue how close they were to success when they gave up, when they turned around. Now, I'm not suggesting the road will be perfect,

or that it won't come with its adversity, mistakes, and lessons. But what we always have control over is the ability, to push forward until we finally come face to face with that which we so desperately needed. It's there. I could say it a million times and it wouldn't be enough. The pieces exist. Will you hang in long enough to collect them? When the road is intimidating, will you hold on?

When you run into those moments of self-doubt, will you hold on? When you feel small, navigating the ups and downs of life, will you hold on? Because if the answer is yes, you'll find yourself crossing some finish lines that will blow your mind. You'll get from life that which most can only dream of. And again, not because of the miraculous, but because you knew that the second wind was coming, you knew it would be there for you so long as you kept moving forward. Holding on when most would be letting go. Ready to prioritize yourself in the new year?

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You won't want to miss out on these deals. Offer ends February 25th. Offers may vary. Restrictions apply. Visit safeway.com for more detail. Just imagine if we implemented into our lives, all those things we already knew would make us better. Imagine if we became masters, not just of knowing, but of transforming knowledge. into motion. A friend of mine, Tyler, will reach out every once in a while after listening to one of the episodes

and we'll just kind of riff back and forth on the content, chat about the overlaps, the differences, most importantly, how we can each in our own world be a little better, happier, and healthier. Tyler recently built and sold a tech company and is now transitioning into a new chapter of his life. And in essence, starting over, which is something I can in many ways relate to.

And this morning I got a voice note and said, man, imagine if we implemented wholeheartedly the things we knew to be true. Imagine if we could execute for ourselves with the same advice that's so obvious when looking out at the world, at others. And I thought, oh man, as someone who spent a decade thinking and philosophizing about this stuff, this is a very real and valuable question. Not only that, it sort of comes at a perfect time. And here's why. Those of you have been listening to the channel or podcasts for a long time, you know this,

for me, has been one great adventure, documentation of a journey. starting with the first video I ever released, Ode to Excellence, which was essentially me promising myself just to give this creator thing a try and I'd go back to what I knew to be safe, to videos like running in the rain, where I discuss my coming to understand the value

of identifying as a person who does the hard thing. To speeches like, make you proud, where all I'm really doing is during hard times assuring myself that things will be fine. To more recently, we're sure I'm finally seeing some of that growth and 10 years of effort compounding, but now grappling with brand new challenges. Since day one, I've been coaching myself

through the ups and the downs, but what are these stories? What do they provide for me, or for those who listen to them? Well, in a sense, they're the lessons learned. They paint a portrait of the ideal, They're merely information. Yes, life gives you more when you ask more of life. And yes, discomfort is often the cost of admission.

Yes, you can get through life's greatest storms if you take it one step at a time. And yes, the challenges we face evolve and the context changes, but we are equipped to confront and handle them. Guess what though? None of that information matters if we don't act on. If we're not using the past to recreate the present, those stories are my map. But even the best map in the world is meaningless unless it's being utilized. And Tyler's very simple and direct question was valuable to me in that it did two things. First, it made me think, Eddie, look back at your journey.

Look what you've overcome, right? In a number of ways, you've learned. You know what needs to now be done. And simultaneously prompted me to ask. And so, now, this very moment, what are you doing about it? I love the lesson. I think there's art in our struggle and beauty in the overcoming of our suffering. But if all those lessons, if the ideal remains stagnant like a caged bird, what's the point?

That wisdom must be set free, and that only happens with a targeted, deliberate effort. I felt this sense of excitement, invigoration, in asking myself, how can I highlight the doing? Where can those wheels hit the road faster? How can I delve further into those very epiphanies I love to explore? Something that I'm encountering now that's both fun and challenging is the transformation from, I mean, really being a solo creator, speaking, writing, producing in his studio, to seeing the process as a business owner,

to building a support structure and systematizing workflows. As a friend has said to me before, a little less Mickey Mouse in order to be a little more Walt Disney. And it's happening, but the truth is, right? You don't get where you're going the same way you arrived where you are. So how can the old lessons be turned into action now?

Knowing my world changes the second I decide to act is like having an unused arsenal at my disposal. Knowing my foot is barely touching the pedal is power. And we can all focus on that actualization of our knowledge. We can all ask, what's one thing I can do today that I need to? I know that I need to.

That perhaps I wouldn't have. If I didn't give myself a little push. I love the idea of that simple diagram, where you draw a line straight down a page, and on the left side you're listing your current obstacle, the things that are really bothering you, or the reasons you're stuck, and then on the right, one single thing you're going to do about it.

All it does is reinforce action, and action is everything. Because to Tyler's point, you know, I really know what needs to be done. We all really know what needs to be done. Not how things will end, or maybe what the finish line looks like, but we know now. We have a gut sense of what we need to do and where the opportunity lies. We're aware. We understand. So a world where we become masters of doing is a world where we transform beyond our wildest imagination.

And the things I talk about, they can ultimately in my life become everything or wither away into nothing. They can sit there as a supposed to, an ideal, and ultimately, I wish I did. All that depends on what I do with it and how I choose to act when I'm uncomfortable, moving into a new space.

The same can be said for anyone, listening to this, you're equipped with at least a starting point. You probably know what you don't like. You're probably aware of some things that must be eliminated or left behind. But knowing that is only as good as your first step. So are you willing to partake in the doing in taking the little pieces of wisdom and breathing life into them by walking out your front door? By looking in the mirror, entrusting in your ability to adapt, to change, to grow, in a world of complexity, let's simplify. We know what must be done, so let's focus on the doing. And on the journey, if we misstep or miss the mark, adjust and move again.

Because we know there's nothing more tragic than doing nothing at all. I do something today that takes an axe to the tree of stagnation. Not everything, but one thing. When you are in motion, that world seems to conform, to rearrange around you. So here's to giving life the opportunity to make that happen. To giving yourself the opportunity to experience it. As Tyler stated, just imagine if we implemented wholeheartedly the things we knew to be true. Not kind of or sort of, but with the same or greater intensity and in many

cases intentionality it took to acquire the knowledge. What would that look like? Let's move now. Let's swing away. Let's uncover that world where your lessons translate to feet on the pavement and reality in the palm of your hand. You can become so fixated on winning or losing the game that you forget to ask yourself, am I playing the right one? Is this my game? Am I setting myself up to win in an arena of significance to me?

Because look, there are infinite games out there. And sometimes we find ourselves, caught up in a race, we have no business running. Meaning it doesn't really do anything for us. It's not where we want to be or should be. There's a saying by someone, and a few social media outlets actually restricted my post for suggesting it was Einstein.

So it might not be Mr. Einstein. But whoever said it, thank you, you're awesome. The saying goes, everyone is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing it's stupid. Now, there are a lot of us fish out there attempting to climb trees as we speak, wondering why we're not where we want to be. Perhaps seeing the results or lack thereof as an indication that we're insufficient, inadequate in some way. When, hey, that's not the case at all. It's that we haven't taken the time to identify our own personal intersection of what we love and what adds value to the world.

We haven't manufactured those fireworks. That's something that has to be explored, found. J.R.R. Tolkien, not all who wander are lost, right? And I think we innately fear this process of searching because it's unsettling to not know how things are going to play out. Trust me, I've been there, right? it's taxing to not have your packaged little elevator speech and a five-year vision when it seems like the whole world does. But to deprive yourself of this exploration is to potentially forfeit the very thing that you come to live for. Most of the time purpose doesn't fall into one's lap.

You have to have your eyes open. What's meaningful must be sought out. Now, I'm going to play a little devil's advocate here because our world is not black and white it sort of lives in this gray space right can you win at someone else's game sure there are a lot of people quote unquote succeeding in areas that are not ideal that they don't love that they're not their best in but how is success being defined i've talked extensively about my journey and all those games i used to play the targets i used to aim for and I know a lot of people who've come to similar epiphanies, right? But when you don't realize you can exit stage left and begin again, start something new, you simply continue this same song and dance, right?

It's not life that keeps us confined, it's ignorance that keeps us confined. We simply have to be taught that there's more. And I understand to find an arena where you can thrive in a purely historical context is a luxury. You are programmed to survive. You're not programmed to build an art studio because it's your passion, right? But there lies the battle. We are at a place in time where we have collectively cultivated abundance. The phone you're using to consume this content, that lives.

little thing can be a portal that transports your thoughts, your creation, your business to the masses. You have at your fingertips access to billions of people. You have reach that humans only 30 years ago all the way back to the beginning of mankind could only dream of. The means are there. In so many ways, it's about freeing yourself to pursue the opportunity that exists all around you because we self-limit. Alan Watts asked the ever-important question,

what would you do if money were no object? Now, in a practical world, why ask such a question? Simple, because removing those monetary constraints as you contemplate your answer, allows you to truly analyze what endeavors are meaningful to you. When something is meaningful, you want to do it. When you want to do it, you emerge, yourself in those little intricacies in those details that the average person simply doesn't

pay attention to making you so good at whatever that thing is that eventually not only can you be the best at it but you can monetize it and probably at a very high rate it's not money holding you back it's not time holding you back it's not the external world holding you back it's what you have been conditioned to believe that's holding you back. You are a genius at something. You are king or queen of your empire, victor within your arena. But to realize these things, you have to, one, understand it's a possibility, and two, refuse to stay stagnant. We have to stop conceding so much while simultaneously accepting so little. Life will never provide what you do not ask for. So why? Why be scared to ask? Life won't tell you you're a fish climbing a tree. You must tell you

that. Life won't expand your horizons and adjust your trajectory. You must initiate that change. To find your genius, you must be willing to leave what's insufficient. To capture what's meaningful, you must be willing to leave what is meaningless. Let's agree to alter the question, do I have genius level talent? Because you do. And you live in a society that also rewards those who realize it. The question we need to be willing to ask is are you willing to walk on shaky ground, to abandon, at least for a period of time, safety and the comfort of predictability,

in order to find that genius? Are you willing to nurture the greatness that already lives within you? because it was never a matter of ability. It's a matter of what you're willing to discover. Ready to prioritize yourself in the new year? Your skin is a great place to start. Dime Beauty, founded by a master aesthetician, is more than just a skincare company.

With four skin-conscious categories, skincare, beauty, body care, and fragrance, dime offers simple, spa-worthy products that will help you enter 2025 with, with confidence. Whether you're revitalizing your regimen with nourishing products or building one from scratch, Dime makes it easy. The work system, our all-in-one best-selling routine, includes a cleanser of your choice, toner, serums, and moisturizers, taking the guesswork out of skin care for your healthiest, happiest skin yet. Dime's commitment to clean ingredients and sustainable packaging

ensures every product is as gentle on your skin as it is on the planet. With thousands of glowing five-star reviews and a loyal community, the results speak to the results. for themselves. Revive your skin and give yourself the routine refresh you deserve by visiting dime beauty CO.com. That's dime beauty co.com. Your best skin awaits. Hey there, it's Ryan Sechrest for Safeway. Now through February 25th stock up on your favorite self-care items and save up to $3 shop in store or online for items like Old Spice Deodorant. Always ultra-thin pads. Gillette Fusion Razors and refills. Old Spice Total Body Spray. Tampax Pearl. And Gillette Mach 3 Razors and refill. and save up to $3.

You won't want to miss out on these deals. Offer ends February 25th. Offers may vary. Restrictions apply. Visit safeway.com for more detail. I recently heard someone say, it's not about doing your best. It's about doing what's required.

Are they different? Very. Here's my take. Doing your best has an emotional component attached to it. It's subjective. What exactly is your best? Well, it's a story that you tell yourself. A narrative, opening the door to limitation.

I've always found that when we put our backs against the wall and venture into scenarios where it's essential that we get something done, we somehow always find a way. When we leave no plan B for ourselves, we are required to make plan A. to make Plan A work. And so we do. It's a testament to both the resilience and power

contained in the human spirit, as well as the reality that we can astound ourselves when we're unwilling to take no for an answer. That it's not the resources that are the problem. It's usually our unwillingness to move forward into the dark, our hesitance to try, explore, test, build and rebuild. Actions that are surprisingly unrelated to one's best and have everything to do with accepting

nothing less than an identified outcome. One of the reasons I fell in love with the sport of running is because it reinforced this notion in my life. It became the template with which I could repeatedly amaze myself. I talk a lot about earning confidence and oh how I earned it. Step by step, mile by mile day by day, in the sun in the rain, in the desert, in the woods, through city streets, all over the country and the world, I came to understand the relationship between the turbulence of now and the satisfaction of later. It was on those days I'd push beyond my usual level of comfort. when that cloud of pain and agony would hover over me.

I couldn't even really point to where my body hurt. It just all seemed to come together into this one giant hell, and to learn that I could not only endure that, but grow in those moments. To see myself rise above any preconceived notion or understanding of best in order to defeat my demons, conquer the day's objective, It changes the way you see yourself in the world. Now, could onlookers be tempted to call these self-created goals arbitrary, even unnecessary?

Sure, and I get why they would, but I'd also completely disagree. Those days were a master class in doing what is necessary. realizing that when you shut your rational brain off and don't give your mind a chance to talk your body out of it, you can see just how powerful you are. You realize that story of your best is nothing more than a house built on sand. Life is not about that story you've told yourself.

It's not about your personal records and peak performances, what you think you can do or how far you think you might be able to go. It's about not stopping in the moments when it hurts. Doing what is required. A decision that compounds over time to create what was once impossible. One of my favorite quotes is by Admiral William McRaven, an absolute hero of mine. Funny enough, he says, if you want to change the world,

you must be your very best in your darkest moments. and what a beautiful idea to rise when life presents its periods of turbulence. And sure, it may be a matter of semantics, but in those moments of darkness, I think of your best, not in the traditional sense, not as a personal metric, but as a willingness to do what must be done, a removal of the spotlight from you altogether

and instead pointed directly at the road ahead, at the task at hand. When you choose to make the journey, not about what you can and cannot do, but instead make it about what must be done, the universe, as Paulo Coelho has so elegantly stated, conspires to make it happen. I think back to my journey and at so many periods my best wasn't good enough. I was so lost and so overwhelmed that the only thing I could do was not stop moving. That was my superpower, simply trudged through the fear of things falling apart, the nagging pride and hurting ego. And what I learned was that life is no different than all those miles I'd put in running. How I felt what my previous capabilities were, what I deemed my best to be.

It was all noise. It was all irrelevant. What was required was that I move forward through the chaos and to something better. and so I did. And in your world, so can you. The stories we tell ourselves are so powerful and in many ways valuable in our journey through life. But there's one narrative that eliminates the necessity of so many others.

You can get to the top of whatever mountain you are seeking to climb so long as you do not stop. So long as you let go of the limitation, tied to your quote unquote best and instead do what is required to get there. You'll see how adaptable and transformative that best really is, how it's a lagging indicator. It will take time, but you're capable of being patient. And it will have its moments of chaos, but you are capable of weathering those storms.

It will present obstacles that leave you unclear, uncertain, sometimes unprepared, but you're capable of picking your head up and moving through that hate. What you know of yourself now is a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of what you're capable of doing. And how far that goes will be determined not by putting a stake in the ground and calling it your personal best. But as Emerson has said, by hitching your wagon to a star and pulling your and pulling yourself towards its light. A little bit of time. I was watching a masterclass by author Margaret Atwood.

It was on storytelling. And, you know, I knew going into it, it would be interesting. I'm not a particular fan of her work, at least from a content perspective. But look, we're talking about someone who's, you know, truly made a mark on the world. right? There's a lot to be learned from her, so I buckled in and listened to what she had to say. And unsurprisingly, there was a lot of wisdom there. And there was one idea in particular that really resonated with me.

Both as a writer, yeah, but also outside the quote-unquote creative space, which I'll get to in a second. The idea was centered around finding the moment to begin. a story's true starting point. And it was interesting. She said, you know, people think stories start on page one. But she'll pick up a book. And I don't remember if she was referencing new authors or maybe someone, a book just off the shelf at a bookstore.

But she'll be reading it and she'll think, ah, okay, so this story really begins on page 10. That's the starting point. I think she even referenced her own writing process, being a few chapters in and thinking, ah, this needs to be the starting point. Got to cut away the other stuff and move this up to page one.

And, you know, understanding that's obviously important for those looking to entertain and captivate an audience, you need to give the reader a reason to stick around. But I can also very easily draw a parallel from that to, you know, a bigger picture, our real world. All I could think about was, you know, what story are you telling yourself and where did it start or more importantly has it even started there's something both liberating and beautiful about the fact that all of us in the stories we are living

could at any moment recreate that metaphorical first page and i believe that with all my heart like we think oh page one started years ago this is how things are now this is where i exist in life But what about the idea that beginnings don't have to start on page one? What about the idea that you can cut away as much as necessary to create the right beginning? The story that feels right to you. We don't know anything to the words that were written leading up to now. We're not beholden to the chapters that came before. Robin Sharma talks about the idea of killing your darlings.

which is an old saying that refers to that very challenging task, writer's face, of cutting away the things that aren't absolutely essential to the story's main nerve. It's hard to do. We place value and importance on these things because they feel like a part of us. We feel like they're too significant to dismiss. But in reality, the act of letting go is ultimately a value add. because it ensures that what matters is what stays. It's the ability to understand that the story doesn't begin when thoughts become words.

It begins when there's alignment. When the story captivates, inspires. And in the one you're writing, the one that is your life, you can always make that moment right now. There's always a new novel that can be written with new objectives and characters and storylines. It's okay to chop anything that led to this moment. It's okay to create a beginning as you stand here today.

It's the idea of sunk costs that changed my life years ago. Just because you spent a long time making a mistake doesn't mean you need to continue making it. Just because you've been writing the story of your life for years doesn't mean the beginning is behind. You can start this novel here. You can begin this epic adventure now. And I think there's tremendous power in looking at life like that.

It's never too late for a new beginning. It's never wrong or impossible to, even at chapter 4, put your finger down on a new starting point and say, this is where it all begins. Where the new ideal takes shape. shape. We are all authors. And if authors have anything, it's control over the narrative. It's the ability to design a world that aligns with the one they imagine. The world reflects back at us what we currently are. Like a giant mirror projecting the movie

that's playing in our heads. We lay on the horn in traffic, not when we're at peace with ourselves, but when we're in to rest. We gravitate towards the negative, not when we're living in abundance, but when we're living in scarcity. We quit, retreat, contract, not when we're confident in the road ahead, but when we're doubtful, alarmed. In other words, we find out in the world what already lives within us. Life in many ways is not absolute, it's evidence. It's evidence that we'll use to justify the things we already believe. Wayne Dyer used to use the metaphor of an orange. It can be squeezed and squeezed and squeezed, but there will never be grapefruit juice pouring

out of an orange. No, grapefruit juice doesn't live there. You can only find on the outside what lives in the inside. You can only extract from the orange orange juice. Recently a good friend of mine said to me that they'd like to change their financial situation. To which my response was perfect. You most certainly can, right? Like anything, yeah, it'll take work and some planning and some restructuring, all that good stuff, but you most definitely can.

And his response was, sure, that's what all you motivational people say. Hey, smart guy. Now you're an example on a podcast episode. Congrats. Why? Because you want the people around you to realize how much is possible for themselves. It's not sorcery or witchcraft to believe something better is possible. In fact, if one doesn't believe it's possible, they're effectively cementing their feet to the ground, at least with regard to that particular pursuit. Let's face it, you don't begin journeys that are not possible. We don't allow ourselves. to do that. And so, to not believe in an outcome and somehow still wish for that outcome, well, that's essentially our orange metaphor. Can't squeeze financial freedom out of a mindset that only sees monetary constraint. Believing it's possible starts the journey. See, there's so much pragmatism in growth. You know, people talk a lot about the law of attraction, and yeah, I get it, right?

It sets targets. But the picture of, let's say, a dream house on your wall is not why you'll eventually have the dream house. The picture of the dream house on the wall reminds you. It helps you believe that you're someone capable of someday acquiring that house, obtaining that type of success. Which results in you, wait for it, doing things that help bring that to life. it is the doing but that doing must be connected to believe

mid-20s I was unhappy wanted more but didn't really believe myself capable of obtaining more right that was the issue back to the old orange expecting grapefruit juice can't get results in an area not conducive to their creation

right it wasn't until I said you know what maybe not definitely but maybe it could happen. Maybe I can take control here. The odds have to be greater than 0%, right? It's Jim Carrey and dumb and dumber, so you're saying there's a chance. Yeah, it's like starting out, that's all you need, a chance,

the door cracked. In the beginning, I just needed to convince myself something different was possible. The beginning of transformation and that internal change prompted how I interacted with the external world. You do things differently when you believe differently. Or if you want to phrase it another way, believing that you can bring something to life

doesn't guarantee that you actually do. But believing you can't guarantees that you won't. And why not stack the odds in your favor? I often juggle back and forth between the philosophical and the philosophical and the tangible or the tactical, right? Three ways to do X. Life hack to change Y. Yeah, of course. Life does in so many ways come down to the tactics, to the how, to the steps. But does that even matter if you don't believe in the pursuit? Does it matter what Google Maps says if you never step out your front door? You have to convince you. You have to create an

environment in your world where change isn't crazy, more isn't absurd. It might be challenging. But it's possible. And possible is enough. It is enough to begin. Enough to step out. Enough to see the trivialities as tools and the resistance as part of a beautiful game. Remember that the world is a mirror, reflecting back at us our worldview. We find what we look for, so give yourself permission to look for things that make life beautiful. Give yourself the gift of believing change is possible. The most important promises are the ones you make to yourself. Of all the people on planet Earth, it's most critical that you believe you. That when you commit, you show up.

When you make plans, you follow through. When you tell yourself you'll do something, you actually do it. Here's what's interesting. Being that this is, I believe the North Star, I'm consistently chasing down this standard, trying to be better and better and better at following through. I clearly think we all should, but keeping promises to yourself is different than keeping promises to others. When you let other people down, especially those close to you, you feel the social repercussions.

And for human beings, negative social repercussions are painful. We care greatly about our reputation. Don't want to let others down. Don't want to be known as the person who doesn't show up. And that's incentive enough to push us towards following through with others. But with yourself, where do the repercussions go? What are the consequences? You tell yourself, today is the day.

I'm starting, beginning, trying something new. and then you don't. There's no phone call with someone on the other end saying, hey, where were you? Hey, you promised. Hey, you owed me this. No, when we break promises to ourselves,

it seems like the situation, after maybe a second or two of disappointment, just floats away into the ether. It feels as though there is no substantial cost. But I actually think those broken promises stick around. I think we wear them. We feel them. We see them when we look in the mirror.

And sure, maybe there isn't that friend or family member staring us down with disappointment in their eyes. But how we see ourselves changes. Every broken promise to yourself reinforces the idea that not having high standards is okay. Every time we let ourselves down, it supports a narrative that being let down is normal, par for the course.

If you don't show up for you, it begs the question, why should others show up for you? Why should others follow through? When you wouldn't even do it for yourself. I've always believed that so many facets of life start internally and are projected out. How you see yourself, treat yourself is the sun around which all that other stuff revolves, right? Like the world will notice and act accordingly.

It will conform to the standards you create for you. So let's work on those standards. Let's make it so there's skin in the game. So that when we break promises to ourselves, say, ah, not today, or, this is good enough for now. that we understand the magnitude of those decisions because they're not insignificant. They're crucial. And sometimes we have to highlight the consequences of what we don't do.

Sometimes we have to make ourselves truly feel the opportunities we let slip away, as though we did actually hold them in the palms of our hands. There is a price to love. letting yourself down and perhaps there's power in quantifying it. There's an idea that, you know, life isn't really you versus anyone or anything else. It's you versus you. And just like you would never let a stranger talk down to you or tear you apart, why would it be okay for you to talk that way to yourself?

Right? Like if a friend says he's going to meet you for coffee at 7 a.m. every morning and never shows up, up, in what world would you keep driving there, sitting down, waiting, brushing it off, and, you know, rinse, repeat? Of course not. You'd look around and go, this is crazy, I don't deserve this, I'm better than this. Your defenses would kick in, you'd make adjustments. And just as you shouldn't tolerate it from someone else, shouldn't tolerate it from yourself, because you're better than that.

There's a game of one, identifying what's important, two, creating small steps that move you in that direction, and three, following through on those steps. That's the formula. Being there for yourself when you fall. Hey, get back up, right? Falling is an indicator of progress, courage, and strength. Being there for yourself when you don't want to. Hey, I know you're tired. I know this doesn't seem fun right now,

but you committed and think about how good it's going to feel when you're done. Being there for yourself when you know there's more in you, but that voice in your head is tempting you to pack it all in or call it a day. Hey, it doesn't matter what that voice in your head says. is no negotiating you already made up your mind see there's power and simplicity find a target aim shoot and although life is turbulent there are certainly highs and lows we are at our best when we decide what's important initiate the journey and show up when i set the alarm clock it can't be about rationalizing sleep. That beeping can't be about X many hours. No, it merely signifies a

promise. It cries out, hey, remember what you said right before you closed your eyes last night? Well, time to bring that to life. So sure, that means be careful of the promises you make to yourself. Don't take them lightly. But once they are etched into the universe, they must be law. And I'm not talking about failure to adapt or try things. I'm not talking about being stubborn. I'm talking about the initial follow-through that precedes all that. Will we do what we said we would do? And I'm not emphasizing, you know, making this the standard because life should be some perpetual boot camp, but rather because discipline is freedom. Because when we go to bed at night knowing we set goals and

meet them, we see ourselves as winners. People follow through on who they believe themselves to be. It's an endless feedback loop. You see yourself as a winner. You carry yourself as a winner. You carry yourself as a winner and other people see it. They treat you as such and around and around it goes. So when you feel like skipping or procrastinating or quitting on yourself, remember that it's not just that immediate moment at stake. It's not a little thing. It's one brushstroke on the mural that is your current reality. It becomes you.

And again, you wouldn't let other people talk down to you. So stop doing it to yourself. You wouldn't allow being stood up by others. So stop doing that to yourself. Become the king or queen of your own empire. over yourself like it all matters because it does. To keep the promises you make to yourself is playing off as. It's essentially building a bridge to the outside world so that you may go shape it, as opposed to merely putting up your hands and living at life's mercy.

Never forget how much control you have, how powerful you are, and that you don't need to convince others, you need to convince yourself. During the highs, the lows, the ups and the downs, the sun and the rain, you need to be there for you.