Your World Within Podcast by Eddie Pinero - START YOUR DAY RIGHT | Wake Up With A Positive Attitude - Morning Inspiration to Motivate Your Day

Episode Date: April 11, 2025

This episode is a collection of thoughts and reminders to begin your day with clarity and intention. Sometimes, a few simple words can shift your perspective, quiet the noise, and help you step forward with purpose.Take a breath. Press play. Let’s begin.More from Eddie Pinero:Monday Motivation Newsletter: https://www.eddiepinero.com/newsletterYour World Within Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/4EnAzuR4gnjEyGUYic70Qy?si=ggU8mhDZSkqClc1LBtlb0QStream these tracks on Spotify - https://spoti.fi/2BLf6pBInstagram - @your_world_within and @IamEddiePineroTikTok - your_world_withinFacebook - https://www.facebook.com/YourworldwithinTwitter - https://www.twitter.com/IamEddiePineroBusiness Inquiries - http://www.yourworldwithin.com/contact

What if things don't end up like they're supposed to? What if this work, this energy I've invested, doesn't pay off? What if I stay average? What if my story was never meant to be unique? What if I try and I fail? What if my friends stop calling? What if I let my family down? What if people don't like what I have to say?

What if my idea is a little too out there? if I'm pushing things too far too quickly? What if the worst possible scenario happens? What if I lose everything? What if success is for someone else? What if I'm meant to work, to pay bills, and to sleep? What if the starting role is just too much for me? What if I was a born follower?

What if I never find happiness? What if I don't choose the right path? What if I get lost? What if I can never be as good as the person standing next to me? What if a life of meaning will always be something I'll have to stare up at? Wishing, dreaming, or what if I just change the way I look at the world? What if today is just the beginning? What if I decide who I'm going to be and become it?

What if my actions can create a ripple effect that will transcend space and time? What if impossible isn't fact? What if it's opinion? And what if I don't buy it? What if this new world means that existence starts with me? What if I can be the one people look up to? What if my past got me here but has no one? effect on where I can go. What if every single day is a fresh start? What if I can be the one who defies

the odds? What if my dreams become the standard? What if my ideas change how people see reality? What if the term difficult is nothing more than a cop-out? What if my doubters ignite the flame that is my success? What if my fear of mediocrity overcome? my fear of the unknown. What if second place is no longer an option? What if I make the choice to live every second of my life like it's a miracle? And what if that's exactly what every second is? What if it's time to start living like it? To start thinking like it, to never sell myself short. What if nothing good happens until I believe it? What if I stop? wasting my time trying to convince others because I am the only one who must be convinced.

Many of life's failures are people who didn't realize how close they were to success when they gave up. Thomas Edison. A quote I go to when I've lost my why when my frustration over the lack of a particular result overshadows everything. I don't think we realize how transformative these moments are. When confronted by them, we're presented two options. Give up or emerge better than we were. It's not intuitive. It's not normal to think, I know this is hard, but hey, I'm one adjustment away from getting it right.

One move away from uncovering momentum. That's why in such moments, I rely on others to remind me, and it's why I remind you now to reiterate how small a push is required to simply get things moving. To remind you that you do want this. It does mean something to you. And you know what? the moments you'll look back on. With the tear in your eye,

a smile on your face, and you'll be grateful you push through. These moments, the darkest of nights, the lowest of lows, when we're lost, we're stuck, unsure, they are the ones that matter. So shake it off. See, the difference,

the reason so many people turn around is because they don't know the secret I'm about to tell you. The very same secret those before have passed on to me. You don't need to do anything but not stop. And if that seems too obvious or cliche, let me explain to you that it's in going that we're forced to find solutions. We're forced to become more. It's incredibly hard to stop an object in motion.

But the question is, can you move forward when you don't have the answers, when you're tired, when what you've been looking for is nowhere to be found? Can you imagine at that moment what the other side will be like? Looking back on your journey, knowing that where others stopped, you hung on, where the cost was too much for so many, you laid it all on the line, These are the decisions you have to make now. So don't listen to that voice rationalizing, begging you to take it down a notch or return to the normalcy of yesterday.

Let this message resonate. Hear me. Embrace the fact that you are always one move away from recapturing momentum, from finding yourself again. It's there. Everything you need is there. Have the patience to find it. the patience to do what you do best.

Find a way. Dear younger me, there's a lot that you don't know. A lot you're pretty sure you understand, but couldn't possibly wrap your hands around. Because the most important things in life, the things that you'll remember, they're the very things that seem like footnotes in your story. background noise hidden in plain view so younger me hear me out because time time goes by quickly

and we only get one opportunity to do this dance one chance to do this thing right younger me when you wake up be thankful for the shoes on your feet the house you live in the life you lead because if all you do you do you do you is focus on what you don't have or the next milestone. Happiness becomes a mirage. Younger me, the world as you know it isn't something that was destined to be. It's here because people know smarter than you have the courage to build it. Never be scared to challenge what is.

This place will be better because of it. And younger me, it will always be easier to play it safe, to stay comfortable, comfortable, but I want you to understand something. That's not where you'll find the good stuff. If you don't take chances, you'll spend your time wondering what could have been. Younger me, believe in your greatness. This world can be a tough place, and if you don't believe in yourself, no one will do it for you. No one will hand you the sky. Earn excellence every day. It's there, I promise. Younger me, don't get to distract you. by the small stuff, the little things,

that so easily consume our energy and emotions, don't lose sight of who you are and what means the most to you. Everything else washes away. Younger me, you didn't have all the answers, but somehow you were exactly what I needed you to be. You created a map. You showed that change can't happen

until one falls victim to life's image victim to life's imperfections. That risks aren't taken until you've experienced regret, that confidence isn't acquired if you don't learn to play the student. And most importantly, if you don't allow yourself to get lost, you will never discover who you truly are. 20 years from now, when we meet again, younger me, I know you'll do the same. I know you'll have given me everything I needed.

Nothing more and nothing less. Because time goes by quickly. And we only get one opportunity to do this dance, one chance to make this right. And I promise you, younger me, that it won't be wasted. Nothing in life is as important as you think it is while you are thinking about it. This was written by the author of Thinking Fast and Slow, Daniel Kahneman.

And what he's referring to is a cognitive bias, known as the focusing illusion. Pretty basic idea means that we elevate the importance of things that we think about while ignoring other aspects of our lives. By thinking about something, it suddenly matters more to us. And while it's easy to interpret this disconnect between our thoughts and reality is alarming, there's also an opportunity here to use this to our advantage, right, to further become the captain of your ship. I've heard my entire life, think positive thoughts. We all have. But there's value in understanding why that's true. Right. Otherwise, it just feels like a meaningless ritual. So Conneman talks about a study with college students,

where they were asked about their overall level of happiness. and then they were asked about their dating lives. And the answers they gave, there were really, you know, there was no correlation between the two answers. But when the order of the questions were switched, when the students were asked about their dating lives first, and then their overall happiness, the correlation between the two answers increased.

The answer they gave about their overall happiness mirrored, however, they said their dating. lives were, at least to a much greater extent. Why? Well, because dating became the variable or the framework that they used to measure their overall happiness, even though perhaps they didn't know it, right? But by focusing on it, it became more relevant. It bled into other aspects of life, right? You get what you focus on. It's that simple. And the truth is, as I mentioned earlier, Nothing is as important as we think it is. Everything is magnified, kind of blown out of proportion in our minds.

So the question is, why not use that as an advantage? Why not let that become our strength, realizing that if simply thinking about something can change the trajectory of how we view the world, it can be transformative to simply minimize the bad thoughts and focus on good one. Have you ever thought about how delicate the line we walk between not caring enough and caring too much? For example, to feel like existence is pointless. Everything's bad. There's no reason to try.

That makes it hard to get off the couch, like lacking that purpose. But then on the entire other end of the spectrum, to feel like life is. is riding on every step, to feel like we're not allowed the flexibility or leeway to make mistakes. Life matters too much. That also severely limits how we live, just in a different way. And so I want to explore how do we find that middle ground? How do we find that picture in our heads that puts us right where we need to be? The idea that, of course, today is important.

Life is a beautiful opportunity to extract meaning from the world around you, to build something that matters. But it's also no checklist. It's no standardized test. No, it's more of a game. We shouldn't be walking around with the weight of the world on our shoulders because that doesn't help anyone. Let's face it, life is just not all that serious. As a good friend of mine, Steve always says to me, you know, we are sacks of meat on a rock floating through an infinite, ever-expanding universe, and nothing matters. I've heard him say that a million times, right? Let's go. Let's do it. Nothing matters. Let's make it happen.

And I'm 100% get it. It's a check against the idea that the world will collapse if we screw up. That if we drop the ball, it's over. Kind of pointing to the fact that the only way to truly lose in life is to look back and realize we were too scared to live. And so in that context, absolutely I'm on the nothing matters bandwagon. But here's the deal about this video or podcast episode, however you're consuming it. In a perfect world, it's a buffet, not a menu. It's an opportunity for you to think, to reflect, to pick and choose the pieces here that will help move you along. Because after all, you know, we're all walking different paths.

So how could one person present a one-size-fits-all solution to anything? No, the goal is to understand the framework by which we operate. To understand that the thoughts we think have a monumental impact on how we live. And so if you find yourself on the uninspired side of things, know that there's not a problem with you. You just haven't found a path that lights you up. You are perhaps focusing on the wrong things, right? Not leaving space for the right ones.

And if you find yourself constantly smothered by the weight of your own expectations, if every little step, decision, or movement matters too much, know that you are perhaps creating adversaries that don't exist. That you are right where you need to be, but you have to let yourself live, experience life. One of the most beautiful Victor Franco quotes I've ever heard. He says, ultimately, man should not ask what the meaning of life is, but rather he must recognize that it is he who is asked.

There is so much power packed into this idea. It's like when you look around and see the outside world backing you into a corner, dictating to you how things should be. Remember that you don't take orders from the external world. You create the external world when all you see is negative. When all you feel are reasons to turn back, when the good in life is hiding away, reach out and find the positive.

the one thing that can pick you up and carry you forward. And look, I'm not advocating that we live in this state of delusion. I'm not saying close your eyes, cover your ears, and pretend everything's great. I'm saying every day, every situation provides at least one thing you need to be closer to where you want to be. And it just so happens that we're not always inclined to see that one thing. That solution. It just so happens that we need to become aware to remind ourselves.

So this is your reminder to look for it. Your reminder to focus on the things that lift you up, that breathe life into you, not the things that keep you down. And so here's to finding that sweet spot, right, walking the line between Victor Frankel's, meaning, starts with you. And my old pal Steve's mantra, nothing matters, so go live your life. This is not a race. If you're not being graded on the outcome here, you're giving yourself permission to experience that jolt you get when you open your eyes as the sun comes up each morning, knowing that how you're about to spend your time will be a product of the game you designed. A game in which, yes, you'll feel lost from time to time.

You'll lose that North Star every so often. You'll question the journey you're on. But guess what? When you take responsibility for the circumstance, you also empower yourself to right the ship. You're at the wheel playing the game of life as it was meant to be played on your terms. If it does not serve you, let it go.

If it doesn't help you move beyond it. As Kahneman states, our thoughts grossly over-exaggerate that reality on the ground. So let that framework emphasize your passion, your strength and your dreams, not the inverse. What we focus on, we get. So believe in yourself with such conviction that those around you look on and wonder what gave you the right to see those things? What made you think it was okay to believe in that which you believe? You never got a permission slip in the mail? You never stumbled upon a permit that granted you access to the good things in life.

No, you just came to understand the game and how it's played. You came to see that we have options, the option to find the bad and the option to find the good. The choice to see why you can't and the choice to see why you will. That's what will separate you from both your past self and those looking on from afar. See, change is never a product of magic as people seem to think. No, most often it's taking on the challenge of seeing what is not yet there. Stepping into the arena with possibility, with the upside. So today, see it.

Focus on it, lock it in, and don't let go. With everything you have, all that's within you, don't let go. For everything tomorrow can be, for everything you have always been, don't let go. Our lives require failure. Like our lungs require oxygen. And when I find the world around me lacking in the resources that I need, it's because in so many ways I have forgotten to breathe. To step out my walls of comfort.

and breathe in lessons waiting to be taught by the greatest of teachers. Life. Life, the unpredictable and often unremarkable miracle. The book that reveals itself through experience that tells tales only in hindsight, our world is a book in which we choose our own ending, and so we must fail. Because failing means living and we were meant to live. We must fail because every failure is the mark of a poet, an artist, or an author bringing this story one step closer to its resolution.

Continually walking up to a blank wall and making a mark. A single trivial mark. A mark that's misunderstood at best, but likely, scoffed at, ridiculed. But each mark gives meaning to the one before it. These marks, they become chapters, become narrative shifts, become stories. Every failure you throw against this wall becomes part of a mural. It's an element of beauty before the work can even be deemed beautiful. Yet we continually misunderstand. When you hang your head and disappointment when you see only the smudge of paint you through against that wall you are

oblivious to the fact that you're making something meaningful so here is my challenge to you i dare you in the midst of the mona lisa you are creating to see it before it's done i dare you to be strong enough to fail not just once but over and over and And over and over again, I dare you to keep your eyes focused, locked in on what's in front of you. When everyone you know hides their failures, when they scream of every little wind for all the world to hear, I dare you to understand what they do not, to cherish your failures. To maintain trust in the unseen. And when all you want is to get there, I dare you to see your greatness before you arrive.

I dare you to look in the mirror and see the hero inside you right now. I dare you to do that. I dare you to take your struggle and see amidst the pain your purpose, your purpose that will lift you up when you've fallen and will carry you forward when you're lost. I dare you to see light when there appears only darkness, and when none presents itself, I dare you to light the spark, to be the answer you need. I dare you to stand up to the human tendency

to embrace security over adventure and predictability over growth. I dare you to walk into the darkness of night Knowing that today's unknown becomes tomorrow's foundation. And when it hurts, like truly hurts when you look around and can't remember why you began or what's pulling you forward, I dare you to close your eyes. And imagine looking back and thanking yourself for taking this path. Every low is a courageous step towards transformation. And if you've forgotten that,

I hope this reminds you why it all matters. I hope you remember why this mark, the one you're making right now, is part of the masterpiece you've been longing for. It's taking you exactly where you need to be. There has to come a time when it's now or never. Well, you look at your reflection and realize that the cost, of waiting is far more expensive than the cost of stepping out into the vast unknown. In every journey, that's when life effectively starts. But here's why this is so tricky.

What's caught me off guard so many times in my life, it's the many shapes that wading takes. See, waiting is not always sitting there and doing nothing, not at all. Sometimes waiting is just the bare minimum. It's moving forward so slightly and so slowly that you can essentially trick yourself into thinking that you're progressing. Into thinking you're making it happen. When, if you really stopped and looked, if you were honest with yourself, if you really took a second to review, to analyze, you'd see that you're leaving almost everything on the table.

You're not creating progress. You're dancing with the idea of progress. Sometimes waiting can mean just going fast enough to not have to look at the fear you're hiding behind. That's reality, right? I think it's a very normal thing, but I also think life is too short for normalcy. I think we can do better than normal.

And I believe with all my heart and soul that the world has for us the spectacular. Sitting there on the top shelf, waiting for those who can acquire the self-belief and the awareness to reach out and grab it. In how crazy a thought. To realize that we could have been sitting next to the very thing we've needed for days, months, years, but never taught ourselves to extend our hands and reach. When I look back the most important moments in my life, we're not tangible acquisition, and see the flashy things that try and capture our attention,

right, the money, the condos, even social media growth, business growth, whatever it is you're working towards. Those things are wonderful. They are benchmarks that hopefully align with your North Star. but they are not the difference makers. Not at all, right? They were the byproduct of what really mattered. They weren't the moments that moved the needle. My greatest moments were mental shifts, cognitive transformations. That's why I do this for a living. I see how much can change when we step back and look at life just a little differently. It was my realizing that I was

demanding too little of myself, that the world won't seek greatness in me until I see it in me. That shift that pushed me to demand more of myself. Seek bigger challenges, value my work to a greater extent, charge more for my services. And that mental shift is what made some of those externalities possible. It's realizing that if you want it, more is on the table, that yesterday doesn't define you, that it's never too late to begin again, that everything you need you have, right? These are the ideas that truly change lives.

They make the difference. And if we don't become aware of these things, we leave them in the rear view. We walk right by them. In other words, the most important moments of my life were when someone or something shook me and effectively said, Look around you.

If this is what you want, fine, enjoy. Right? But for your information, there is more out there. And if you step up just a little, if you do just a little more, if you pivot and come at this thing a little bit differently, you will further that reach. You'll create another ripple effect

that will transform your life. But we must stop and look around. A good friend of mine, and this is just the other day, right? We're having lunch, we're talking about marketing, and we always joke that marketing is just a part of the business that I don't particularly enjoy, right? Necessary, but not my favorite. And we're going through kind of different strategies, ideas,

and he presents one, and I say something like, eh, I don't need to do that. It seems a little over the top. over the top. And unfiltered, he goes, man, you're hurting your reach. Like, what good is that metaphorical restaurant that's not on anyone's radar? You're going to be the best pizza shop that no one knows about. And it just kind of hit me, right? It's like, man, I needed to see that differently. Maybe there's room to be a little more aggressive. Again, one example of many. and not every time is the idea or opportunity the right one or necessary one, right? But at least you stopped, at least you thought about it, at least you contrasted where you are

with the potential upside of doing something differently. That is where we leave opportunity on the table. You know, we most often, myself included, paint regret as this, the result of this blatant walking away from something. A deliberate declaration, sort of a, oh, no, I'm not doing that, no way. And sure, sometimes that's the case. Sometimes we're cognizant of our fear and decline to move forward, but I wonder how often our neglect or refusal is softer, more subtle. I wonder how much of our regret comes from simply not stopping and looking around, not letting in alternative points. of you that challenge us and force us to level up.

How much of our regret comes from simply not understanding how short life is and how quickly time passes us by. And if we don't create some abrupt change in our day to day, if we don't manufacture some momentum in our lives, even when it feels least ideal to do so, the ship we needed to be on will sail away without us. So think back to your hardest days. Even the ones that took you out, that brought you to your knees,

and realized that you survived every single one of them. You have, for years, been acquiring the armor, piece by piece, to move into something bigger. You've been learning. you've been evolving. But today, what about sitting down with yourself and having the discussion you don't want to have but need to have? What about asking if it's time to leap where you once stepped?

To run where you once walked? What about taking a good look around and asking why you're living in ways that don't serve you? why you're conceding so much of what matters. Again, the evolution you want and need is there. It's always there, and that's the key takeaway here. It will always exist. But the question is, will your commitment to stop,

to think, and to reach for it be there? Years from now, looking back, I think we'll find that our willingness to ask those, questions mattered more than we could have ever imagined that silence often implies the lack of adversity needed to evolve because the reality you want it doesn't come to you you must go to it and that means re-approaching today's normalcy and comfort seeing those things for what they are a continuation of the status quo nothing changes until you change so take a look

examine those pillars holding up your worldview. Not once, but over and over again. And if one, many, or all of them must be knocked down, then so be it. The point here is that you can build. The point here is that life happens on your terms, whether you realize it or not, that doing nothing is accepting what things are. It's a head nod and a thumbs up to reality as is. So again, ask yourself what you want out of life. And if you are missing that mark, tear down what must be torn down. It might be hard now. It might hurt now. It might be uncomfortable now. But when you're eventually standing upon an existence that aligns with who you are and what you want, you'll see how necessary it all was, how it was there the whole time.

And thank God you found it within yourself to reach out and take it. The miracle isn't that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start, John Bingham. We all share a commonality. the runner on the starting blocks, the one at work, the one studying, the one trying to create the best life possible for their family. See, we are all at a beginning looking up at an idea. Nothing given, nothing to adjust or react to no just an idea. And ideas when we are at the bottom looking up, they're deceptive in nature, their size, their weight, their breadth,

they like to present themselves as much more than they actually are. And so, to turn ideas into things one needs see themselves, not as some descendant of Mount Olympus tasked with lifting that 2,000-ton boulder before them, but as one armed with an understanding, the awareness that the 2,000-ton boulder before them can be broken down, piece by piece, that it is nothing more than a facade. And while it may stop most in their tracks, you are simply not most. Not because the world treats you differently, but because you see the world differently. By knowing you are bigger than the sum of its parts,

you have defanged this wolf, you have put yourself in position to do that which may the world tremble. That which causes even the most confident to doubt, you have put yourself in position to begin. See, there is a time to look at the top of the mountain, breaking through the clouds, powerful and majestic. And then there is a time to look at your feet. And right now is the ladder. You're not concerned with the big things. No, not right now. Your job is to to move forward into this haze, to not see but adapt, to not know but trust. Things will materialize, and you know that, but at the same time, you can't control the future. Your battle is right now, and it's with the space immediately in front of you.

It's with the thoughts attempting to deceive you. It's with the things the outside world will tell you, but forward motion is the antidote to all. of that. And so forward you must go. The beginning is always the hardest because our thoughts are a mightier foe than life's obstacles. Thoughts take on lives of their own. They become monsters, demons, dead ends, obstacles. On the other hand, just ask that we adjust. There is no obstacle that can't be addressed by stepping into it. And so while the temptation is to sit thinking, speculating about how challenging the road ahead. This is where you think less and move more.

Harness the world as it comes, because the truth is nothing is as big as it appears to be. Life is incredibly solvable. Every problem has a solution. Every bad chapter ends. Every setback is a chance to be more than you've ever been. But how would you know that? If you bowed down to the mountains in your head,

how would you know that if you never? began. So let today be the dotted line you sign with your future self. A promise to be aware that the mountaintop peers over you, but to not be distracted by its shadow. To take the climb one rock, one step, one second at a time. Let it be an acknowledgement that nothing light throws at you can't be broken down and conquered so long as you don't get in your own way. Gone are the days of being held captive behind steel bars of self-doubt and fear. That road ahead is not the problem. It never was. Refusing to give yourself permission to travel down, it was the problem. So without constraints, meet life head on.

the trials and tribulations emerge because they will, but know that you will rise to meet them. Let the unknown highlight all that you don't know. You can't see. Fine. The one thing you are sure of is that you will, one by one, transform the unseen into strength. And when those thoughts emerge, telling you that you've gone too far, that you're in over your head that this isn't meant for you, know them.

Not as truth, but as the only obstacle that can derail and distract. You don't have time for make-believe monsters. No, not today. So onward you go to map the unknown, to tame the untamed, to live your life the way it was meant to be lived. That morning, as I looked out the window, I could feel my increased. heart rate, a sense of both excitement and anxiety that you can only really understand if you've lived it. I was worried about what people might think, what I might lose, what life might have in

store for me, because that was all I knew to focus on. I'd programmed myself to do one thing, and when your one thing is worrying, it's inevitable that you see life. through a lens of scarcity. Your setting is on maintain, meaning you protect the little you have as opposed to seeking more. You play defense to keep the world out as opposed to the offense required

to bring the world in so that it may be reshaped. That morning, cold, wet, gray. I was numb. But deep down, completely oblivious to me, there was a little fire too small to recognize. A spark of courage in its infancy.

See, at that moment, if someone asked me, can you even be scared and courageous at the same time? I would have said those two words. Do not go together. We're talking night and day, fire and water black and white, but time's job is to reveal and it has shown that there is no courage without fear. There is no fire, no matter how bright or powerful, that doesn't by default bring about those mysterious shapes, dancing in the shadows.

If you want fire, great. But you must learn to dance with what hides in the periphery. You must learn to go where your impulse begs you not to. And so that morning, I went to dance with my demons. What if the one thing

holding you back in your life was you? And look, I know the world is a complex, multivariable, unfair, sometimes even cryptic place. I've never said anything to the contrary. But what humans do so well, sometimes for good and sometimes to our detriment, is see life through stories, ideas. Whether you know it or not, you are playing by a set of rules. now as you take this in you have defined a set of parameters and deemed them acceptable decided they are

what you deserve you've allowed for yourself a certain level of growth a certain amount of happiness a certain amount of time to do what you love a certain expectation around the role of work in your life a certain window of income you've identified as reasonable overall a certain certain feeling you get when you look in the mirror. And my objective is not to tell you that any of the above is good or bad. It's to remind you that they are all stories. Our current state is not etched in stone. It's clumsily drawn on a dry erase board. Clumsily, because how could we know everything? We learn along the way in a dry race board because there's never a moment in time in which you cannot begin again.

Think about that. Never. Good, bad, or in between, there is never a situation from which you can't emerge as something different, from which you can't choose to take a different path. Change the narrative around you, your relationships, your job, your goals,

But like the elephant tied to the chair with the rope, one must learn that it is not the chair holding them back, but their perception, their understanding of a supposed role in life. So as I drove away that morning, I wasn't leaving a physical place, but a mental constraint. turning my back on a manufactured idea about who I was and what life would allow. Not in a snap. No, not all at once, but an adventure that would begin pulling back the curtains one by one on all that I'd walked right by. See, the first step to getting more is understanding you've been accepting less. That is where,

new roads present themselves and it is that new road that I want for you. That understanding that so much will be given to those with the courage to ask. So as you stand now, examine what you've been asking of life, my hunch is that perhaps it's not enough. Perhaps there's more. Perhaps a new chapter is waiting to begin, and right now is when that first page gets turned. Joseph Campbell says that the cave you fear holds the treasure you seek. Why? Because to face the dancing shadows is to gain power over them. It shows our mind that reality is far less scary than our perception of reality, that no chain or lock or wall

can be more debilitating than the mental constraints we create by ourselves in our heads. It shows that the man guarding the door can just as easily be the one who unlocks it. And so what better a time than now to turn that key? To step out and confront what was once nothing more. than a vast emptiness. Jump into the cold water of opportunity that shocks us at first,

creates pins and needles and discomfort, but ultimately provides a chance to acclimate to and navigate a foreign world. You, you just need to jump and not a mountain, but a foot. enough to start earning that confidence, creating that self-trust, believing in yourself, so drive away. To the understanding that there is always another level if you want it. To the belief that nothing is outside the realm of possibility, those boundaries can be redrawn. To the idea that no one tells you who you are or what you're capable of, the world doesn't give orders, it reacts to who you decide to be.

To the awareness that possible victories always outweigh in magnitude to possible defeat. To the realization that who you were yesterday is in no way related to who you can be tomorrow. All chapters end, and you decide when that happens. Everything else belongs in the rear view. Success is knowing this. It's believing it, holding on when others would let go, be reassured by the incremental nature of what's ahead. Zero miracles.

Just the courage to begin. Just push the ball down the hill. Give life a chance to help you create momentum. No more thinking, word, procrastinating, just go. It's incredible how fast things change when we grant ourselves that freedom, when we see all of the world is open to us.

But will you open your mind to that opportunity? I've said this before, and I'll say it again, nothing is sure in life. But you are guaranteed to lose if you don't go. It's to let falsehoods and debilitating stories stories guide your way. So stop letting these narratives tell you who you are and create reality with your feet. Why? Because you can, because you were meant for more, and because more starts.

If these walls could talk, they would remind you of the things that you sometimes forget. Yeah, those elusive things you tend to walk right by. It's not that you've chosen to ignore them, it's that while people are complex. And we have a tendency to skip over some important things as we remain fixated on our problems, our perceived inadequacies, that finicky negativity bias. The one that states, if you went to a restaurant 100 times, had 99 incredible experiences, but something went wrong on the hundredth. Well, that restaurant would forever be known to you

as the place where things go wrong. We are wired not to see the good, but to identify and avoid the bad. And if these walls could talk, they would unveil to you the brilliance that exists slightly out of frame. They would suggest you look over your shoulder and take a peek at how far you've come

because my friend, you've come a long, long way. It's funny how slow progress moves. It's interesting how our lowest moments force us outside of ourselves. Push us to step into those shoes we didn't know we're sitting in the closet, unworn, waiting for the day we'd take, on that new role, waiting on you to see that who you were yesterday is not correlated to who

you can be today. And if these walls could talk, they'd fill you in on a very important statistic. They'd tell you that you've stood face to face with some of the biggest curveballs life can throw. You took on struggle and hardship that rocked you to your core. And as you stand here now, your success rate through all that comes in at, well, 100%. You are literally undefeated in your ability to move through adversity. And every time you did, whether you knew it or not, you walked into that closet and put on a new pair of shoes, you became something new.

Sometimes progress is so slow that it feels like pain and it looks like stagnation, but it is anything but. And if these walls could talk, they would remind you of that truth. They would beg you to see what you've become, who you are. If these walls could talk, they would remind you of life's ever-changing, transformative nature. All the times they witnessed you. upset about people and things coming and going as you tried to hold on to that which perhaps no longer served you wishing you could make permanent those things that were just meant to be transitory shooting stars across the sky of your life but something doesn't need to be forever to be meaningful

and thank god because nothing is forever and as we make our way into that vast unknown we have a choice we can live in the shadow of a particular moment in time, or we can cherish the value that those moments offered to us. They gave you just enough to take a new step forward, and sometimes a new step in that direction that's calling you is the difference between nothing and everything. So if these walls could talk, they would tell you to keep your head up

and be thankful for those shooting stars, in your life, for they made you who you are. And the path forward would be impossible without them. If these walls could talk, they would ask you about those times you came home, sat down in your room, and wondered how you could ever be enough. They'd call attention to that seemingly non-stop battle with imposter syndrome. They'd ask when you will feel like you've learned, seen, or travel. enough to gain some semblance of authority in your own life.

They'd wonder when you'll give yourself permission to be that. You've come so far, endured so much, you're not the same person you were a year ago. Now, if you could just stretch a little further, if you could just extend a little higher, if you could see all the new shoes you've worn, and the shirt. shooting stars you've collected along the way, you would know that you are designed to overcome. External pressures, obligations, criticism, none of it matters. This is between you and yourself. And if these walls could talk, they would ask you when you'll see what they see.

The brilliant, the magnitude of your potential. when will you be you? Marcus Aurelius wrote, Remember how long you've been putting this off. How many extensions the gods gave you and you didn't use them. There is a limit to the time assigned to you. And if you don't use it to free yourself, it will be gone and never return.

See, today is precious because it is the only one you get. each second unique in its own way, a measurement of opportunity represented by a single tick from the watch you're wearing. And if these walls could talk, they would tell you that they've seen people come and go, that you aren't the first and you most definitely won't be the last. And every single soul that stepped inside wished they'd found that courage a little sooner. wish they'd looked back a little earlier, wish they'd found the inspiration amidst the chaos and turbulence

of their day-to-day lives. And if these walls could talk, they'd hope that maybe this would be it for you, the next step in your evolution. And what's most incredible is that you get there not by becoming something you've not yet become. Now, in this moment,

It's about noticing who you already are. Instead of the one mistake or reason to shrink into yourself, how about shining a light on those 99 reasons to expand? When it hurts, know that it's hurt worse and you've persevered. When you experience loss, know that it's not about what's gone, but what you now have and will keep with you, And most importantly, know that you can always step into a new pair of shoes. You can always reinvent, recreate.

You are never defined by something that happened in the past. The wake of the boat does not drive the boat. And so with this in mind, chart your course to new horizons. Understand that the map you need has nothing to do with externality. but rather the solutions that already exist within you. So take a second and peer back over your shoulder. Look at that you in the past standing at the bank of a river, hoping, praying for help, a lift, for some technology to get you across,

knowing as you stand here now that you have traversed oceans. Look, the context changes, and yes, it will always change, but your ability to endure, it does only one thing it multiplies. You have everything you need because you couldn't have gotten to this point without accumulating the knowledge and expertise to take one step forward and miracles. They are merely the culmination of those courageous steps. And yes, when we are stuck, When we're at that coastline looking out at foreign horizons,

I get that the answers seem big, sometimes even bigger than we are. I get that the mind wanders right to the potential disasters, to the what-ifs and the worst case. But if these walls could talk, they would let you know that you've come this far, endured and accomplished all this. Not because you've left mountains, jumped ocean, but because when you were at your worst, you found it within yourself to carry on the exponential compounding of what has made you great and what will continue to make you great.

Look, if these walls could talk, they'd show you how the difficulties of years past have become stepping stone. So commonplace, so easily solvable, that they no longer even warrant your attention that by moving forward you have faced your obstacles, taken the value from them and made them obsolete. If these walls could talk, they'd remind you that you are not only ready, but made for everything that awaits. Someday, the things that you currently don't understand will make sense. Someday the big things you're dealing with won't seem to be. so big anymore. Someday the doubts you have about yourself will be revealed as false. Someday you'll see that the things you worry about didn't matter at all. Someday you'll see that

the road before you wasn't something you had to walk flawlessly, but rather something you had to trust and believe in. Someday you'll look in the mirror and see that you had it in you the entire time, that there was nothing you needed or should have been hoping for. Yes, someday. Someday that will all be true. But what about some days from the past? I remember years ago thinking someday I would venture out into the world. Someday I'd speak my mind.

Someday I would start my own business. I would surround myself with people who believed in what I believe. Someday I'd make a little more money, have a little more time to do what I love. Someday I'd have all that. And as I look around, I realize it looks a lot like someday. But guess what? As we grow, so do our some days. It's a chase that never ends.

there's always something more there's always something bigger and better and the problem is not the ambition the problem is forgetting that in so many ways you've dreamt of being where you stand right now you have arrived you're not the same person that 10 years ago

was throwing some days out into the universe No, you have grown. You have learned. You have evolved. Why does this matter? It matters. Because without acknowledging how far you've come, you cannot acquire the strength needed to go where you must go.

When you don't feel good enough, it's often because you haven't looked over your shoulder and opened your eyes. The evidence is right there. It's hiding in plain sight. There's proof that you've been there. That you faced demons and conquered them, endured your battles and overcame.

You did that. And at one point not that long ago, you couldn't say that you had. You weren't yet that person, but things are different. Now, what you have today was once only that hopeful someday. It was a fleeting thought. It had no merit and no value, yet you brought it to life.

Look what you've done. Understand how far you've come, how you ran when you could, you walked when it was possible, you crawled when you had to, and continued on to arrive, at a someday that is right now. You, my friend, are a maker of things unseen, an architect of tomorrow's and some days. So don't you dare.

Don't you ever entertain the delusion that this gift suddenly stops now. Suddenly the burden is too much. The mountain is too tall. No, what you do is overcome. That is who you are. You've done it for you. You've done it for the ones you love.

And in some cases, the ones who didn't even understand, but you kept going. Marching through the fires of hell to turn some days into right now. And I get that the road before you is uncertain. There's no way to know exactly how life will unfold. But that's besides the point. A bird can't predict every gust of wind it's going to encounter. its wings, takes off and adapts because it can, because it always has, because that's what it does. I'm not advocating that you should have all the answers.

No, I'm suggesting that you trust yourself to find them. To move forward into the haze that surrounds you, to make sense of the seemingly illogical, bring about reality from the make-believe. Someday, you will have what you're aiming for. But here's to never letting a today go by. Without realizing that you are always living out a someday from your past, you are always arriving and leaving simultaneously. The accomplished and the student, crossing a finish line and on the starting block with another race around the corner, another chance to stretch your legs and reach for the heavens.

If you ever forget that, I ask that you find it within yourself to look over your shoulder, to remember what you once asked for, and to appreciate the journey that you have undertaken. You did that. Now onward you go, you have more some days to bring to life. I woke up, put my coffee on the desk, opened my laptop, stared at a blank screen, and a little button popped up in the top right corner. Check for updates. Nope. Ask me again later. Why? Why not now?

I don't know. I don't necessarily care about the improvements. I guess it's just inconvenient. It can wait. And that's kind of it. Let's face it, the laptop doesn't matter. The update in this scenario is not important. But bear with me, because I think what it stands for,

when you apply it to the big picture, does matter. Our proclivity to take less because less is convenient. Our predisposition to sell ourselves short because it's safer, to leave so much of ourselves on the shelf, because while things don't break when they're on the shelf. But you can't be both flawless and live your life. Because life comes with wear and tear. The value is the experience.

And a flawless existence is void of experience, of stories of adventure. There's a little parable about two seeds being planted. And one of them just wants to grow, wants to feel what the sun is like, wants to see how high she can get, experience the breeze, the cool air, and so she grew.

And sure, she dealt with hard days. She had her difficult times, but ultimately grew to live her best life. The other seed worried. Worried about leaving her home, the world that was the great, ground around her, worried about damaging her roots, worried about what could be waiting for her in the dark, about the sun being too hot and the breeze too strong, and ultimately stayed right

where she was, playing it safe until one morning a chicken came wandering by and ate the seed off the ground. And see, this spells out a few things. One, we can at any moment decide to step into that next level, evolve into that next chapter. But also, not doing so, comes with a cost, sometimes a hidden cost. There's a tendency to think that preserving the status quo, because it's safe, is valuable. But understand something, you are not a collector's item. You weren't made for preservation. you were made for growth,

to expand, to reach out towards the heavens, and feel that sun, that breeze, ensure upgrading means vulnerability. It means accepting that the unknown is bigger than you, but also contains within it everything you need. Whether it was people, things, money, resources, I used to think like that.

seat. How can I hold on to what I have? Contain, play small. I can't lose this. I've come too far. I've worked too hard. What if everything goes wrong? I can't upgrade now. Maybe later. Maybe someday when the time is right, when it won't hurt or require that I step outside of this little world I've created. But guess what? Growth always asks of us that we leave the comfort of now. It always offers us the world in exchange for the courage to see the unseen and trust ourselves to bring it to life. And when I realize this, I saw how the act of trying to perpetually maintain the status quo is debilitating. It's looking at life through a lens of scarcity. It's only when you start to grasp how abundant life is that you realize by simply step

into that person you are destined to be, you'll attract what matters. Some things will go, and you'll leave them behind, but those things no longer serve you. They played their part, they added their value, and are now merely stepping stones as you move to something greater, and that's just it. Sometimes living means wishing you did things differently, looking back and acknowledging that you need to be better.

Sometimes living means losing the wrong people in your life to make space for the right ones. Sometimes it means spending days, months, even years wandering down the wrong path so that you can get a glimpse so that you can realize what the right path looks like. Sometimes it means no reward, no validation until that compounding finally takes place.

Finally, you see just how powerful those small steps were and will always be. It means seeing yourself as the person you know you can be. Maybe not necessarily the one you are today, but betting on yourself when no one else would. There's an idea that people are neither good nor evil, but they have both within them. They choose through their day-to-day action, how they'll live, who they'll be.

And sure this is a tad oversimplified, but I think the duality is useful, right? Because in a different context, for everything that occurs in your life, you can find a reason to celebrate or a reason to grief. A reason to grow or a reason to hide. It all comes down to what one chooses to see, how they choose to look at the world. I'll never forget when Peterson talked about curtains, right, with tears or holes in them. Same world on the other side. But the opening that you choose to look through paints an entirely different picture, right,

contributes to an entirely different understanding. And look, I'm a pragmatist. I just am. I'd never ask people to close their eyes and pretend everything's perfect. To wander down the path before you, expecting everything to be easy. No, but what I am saying, is that the path before you is where you'll uncover the meaning in life, and meaning requires that we are from time to time uncomfortable.

To go where we most want to go, we must leave something behind. And the reality is that while it's scary, while it can be alarming and even painful, it is always worth it. That what's on the other side is what makes life worth living. I want you to know that you don't need to be walking into the same rooms, talking to the same people, doing the same things. No, not if you've outgrown that reality.

Not if you're ready for the next chapter. So let's make a pact to view life not as an obligation, but as an opportunity. Something challenging but beautiful, mysterious but plentiful. Let's view the challenges along the way, not as soon. something going wrong or some kind of alarm, but rather an indication that you are doing something right, that you're stepping into the controlled chaos of your day-to-day, finding the courage to meet new people, try new things, take risks, evolve. This is what life is about.

And if you can find it within yourself to see it that way, to be grateful for the discomfort that makes its way in and out of our lives. You'll know that you are evolving, reaching towards that sky. Because the danger, as far as I'm concerned, is never what happens along the way. It's what doesn't happen because we never let ourselves accept what the world had to offer. So on that note, I think today is the perfect to upgrade.

Hold the vision. but trust the process. An idea that should act as our North Star, as we make our way through life, it proposes believing in a goal, but at the same time understanding that its manifestation will be unpredictable. Challenging, it may not unfold the way we thought it would.

To me, though, the most challenging aspect of personal growth, of building the things that matter, creating realities we dream of. It's the mandatory dance we must do with time. The patience that's woven into the equation, it's the empty spaces that we tend to use for manufacturing doubt and disbelief

when life is given us nothing to react to. It's like we create monsters in our heads. And it's really an incredible thing, when you think about it, right? I look back on the past decade of my life in the hardest parts, and some were excruciating. They were pain derived from what I knew

I hadn't yet accomplished. It was a feeling like I wasn't moving fast enough. Like the winners in life had that over there and all I had was this over here. Completely nonsensical narrative, but one that certainly felt real. discomfort from the delta or the gap between what I wanted and what I had, a feeling that would randomly dip in and out of my conscious mind,

as I sort of chipped away at my goals day in and day out. And I started to wonder, how can I better position myself to grow, to maintain that ambition, but also to do it with less anxiety, right? As I stated a few seconds ago, hold that vision, but perhaps improve my trust and relationship with the process. My ability to immerse myself in various pursuits without dwelling on the fact that I hadn't yet arrived. Because look, I know this game. We all know this game. There's always going to be another

finish line to cross. That's a great thing, but can also, when we're not looking at it correctly, be to our detriment. There are always higher numbers to achieve. Again, incredible opportunity, but with the wrong perspective, dangerous. If you can't find a way to appreciate the now while you climb, you will be forever lost. There will always be a hole that's never filled. I think we need to be better about supporting ourselves along this journey. No one can be there for me like I can. And I think that's true for everyone. We need to be our greatest allies.

So I brought this question up, as I tend to do, with a few of my friends, right, with different perspectives. They look at the world a little differently. And basically ask, you know, how can we get out of our own ways? Is there a lane to both be tenacious in our pursuit of evolution to continue doing the things that excite and challenge us while also being a little easier on ourselves? trusting that dance we do with time as the process unfold. And so I present this question to one of my friends sitting across me at the table and he thinks about it.

He says, Eddie, well, that's what's got you where you are. That feeling like there's always more. It's the reason for the success you've had and the success you'll have in the future. It's what will push you. It's why you will succeed. People that accomplish things are never satisfied. Jordan was never satisfied. He was never happy. And in that context, greatness and happiness are not compatible.

And, you know, I took it in. I certainly appreciated the perspective, right? In many ways, I think he's right. Sort of reminded me of the idea behind Tim Grover's book, Relentless, that it's an obsession that must take place. It doesn't leave room for much else, right? Incredibly valuable to understand, if anything, just to see, just to grasp what it means to achieve in a world of obstacles. But truthfully, I wasn't entirely satisfied. How can we better visualize the process

so that we're more powerful allies to ourselves? That's what I wanted to understand. And a short time later, I'm at the kitchen table, kind of going over some analytics for social media, like YouTube channel, podcast, stuff like that. And my father, who happened to fly in from Boston, He's at the kitchen table with me. We're having some coffee.

And I made a comment about the trajectory of the numbers. You know, I forget that particular week. Maybe it was higher or lower than expected. I don't really remember. But he made this comment about the patience that I've had with the channel over the years. Just an offhand remark. You know, he said the numbers are like the SMP 500, right? The stock market.

There are days when it drops. There are days when it rises. but over the long haul, it steadily pointed up and it continues to point up. And I found that so interesting. You know, I harp on the small things a lot on this channel, the little breakthroughs that paved the way for larger transformation, ideas that change the way we look at things, which ultimately change the way we act,

which change the results we get, and this happened to be one of them. You know, it hit me just right. what is perhaps the most important piece in the famous book, The Intelligent Investor? What is the idea that made Buffett a billionaire? It's that you invest in things you believe in and you remove the emotion. You hold the dips, right?

When the stock market takes a hit and everyone's panicking and acting emotionally and selling, you don't sell. You buy more. Right? When the world emotionally rushes out, you rush in. And when the world emotionally rush in, you step out. Well, in life, there will be days when your metaphorical stock drops. At least you feel like it does.

Right? Those YouTube numbers, perhaps numbers in the old bank account, maybe fitness goals fall flat. Maybe you're just not seeing a return on investment. But we are never defined by the events of the day. Even the worst of days, they're merely. a small part of a much larger pattern, and the truth is, sometimes success is so small, you can't see it. Of course, you're going to be anxious if you think every day should be comprised solely of mountaintops and finish lines, if you're always looking, comparing, contrasting.

But sometimes success is 0.0001% better. Sometimes success looks like the S&P 500 taking a hit, dropping for a day, a week, or a month. Sometimes growth doesn't look like what we want growth to look like. But just like intelligent investors, you are putting your money in the belief that at a certain point down the road, the value will be higher then than it is now. And this idea has been everything to me, particularly on the days when it feels like things are going backwards over periods of time where I feel like I've been standing. standing still where the voice in my head is presenting all kinds of scenarios that I could have

been better or done more and maybe so. But these times are nothing more than data points. They are steps along the way. And knowing this, it essentially frees me from the delusion that growth is always visible, that I can always look around and see visible triumph. It allows me to march towards my goals and my dreams having a renewed relationship with each step. There's a saying that we need to keep our head in the clouds and our feet on the ground. Life is a continual juggling of extremes,

and I think this gets it right. Our strength is in the ability to take those steps, each one a message to the universe that we are stronger than we were yesterday. But what makes our journeys truly divine is that they aren't comprised of or built with those steps like a house of cards, where one wrong move or some delay

will cause the whole thing to fall to come crashing down. No, what makes the journey divine is the infinite number of paths that can bring about its materialization. There are no wrong paths. Some arrive sooner, Some arrive later, some mid-jurney, causes to realize that the compass wasn't even pointed in the right destination, right? They change what it means to arrive.

But the point is, every step is required, every step is a miracle, but the power is not contained solely in one step. But rather, what we choose to make of all the steps combined, the dips, the lows, and the losses only have significance, if we give them significance. Otherwise, there are just a few stops along the way to something beautiful. So why exhaust energy on data points that haven't arrived yet, on destinations in the future? Destinations that we trust ourselves to figure out anyway.

Our emphasis should be on the present moment, on gratitude for the fact that we get to wake up and choose the pursuits that we're, we've chosen. In some days, those pursuits will feel like the miracles that they are. We'll see the finish lines, the mountaintops. We'll feel triumphant. And some days, those victories will be hidden in plain view, but they are there nonetheless. As we make our way into the great unknown that is life, piecing each second, each minute, each hour together to become the path leading us where we need to be most.

I was running over the weekend. Middle of the day, right under that smoldering South Florida sun. I was doing about a 3.7 mile stretch, which is one of six or seven legs I was doing for the ultramarathon that day, against the clock, fighting the heat, starting to really suffer, which is the perfect environment for the thoughts that we don't want to let it. It's where we engineer compromise, create excuses.

And I've been running all morning. So as I got more and more tired, my mind inevitably started looking for a way out, rationalizing, slowing down. I think everyone's been there, right, in one way or another. And after wrestling with this for about a mile, came to a realization. I'm doing too much. Not physically, but mentally. Building cognitive enemies, creating complexity. See, when you're uncomfortable, when you're in pain, things become incredibly convoluted.

They seem chaotic. Lack of clarity, at least for me, it creates anxiety. But that lightball moment was, you know, during that leg running to Key West at 12 p.m. with miles to go and questions unanswered, that there's nothing. complex about the situation. No mystery to resolve or riddle to figure out. In fact, on paper, this is one of the easiest things I have ever done. Why? Well, because all I have to do is not stop. That's it. Do nothing. Keep this pace, one foot in front of the other. That's my only task. No rabbits out of hats. I don't need to create the unthinkable. No, there in that moment, all I have

to do was not stop. And that meant really that the heat didn't matter, that the distance didn't matter, that the world didn't matter. Those are details far too complex for me right now. In that moment, they're way above my pay grade. I'd boiled the objective down into the simplest of tasks, embarking upon the easiest thing I'd ever done, simply moving. And I started thinking about the things that accomplished my life that I'm proud of, being knocked down, getting back up, fighting for what I believed in, creating, searching for answers, and now here, I'm really going to entertain the thought that I can't simply move forward? I'm going to be upset that this pace doesn't feel like lying in a bed of feathers? No, I like simple. I love simple. Simple equals

clarity, equals progress, equals happiness. Who cares what's around the corner? Because knowing that won't mitigate the next 10 steps I have to take. And eventually it's exactly what I did. I started counting my steps in groups of 10 because that was really all that mattered. And like all things, you know, before you know it, you look up and the storm has passed. And I got to the end where my teammates waited with water and cold towels. And I got there without abandoning my one mission. Not by an act of heroism, but by thousands of little acts that will remain unseen forever, that will disappear into the universe.

I simply carried on a mission that I hold dear. My favorite quote, an old coach of mine used to always remind us, sometimes success is simply hanging on when others are letting go, that's it, that's all, that's everything. Because we're so inclined to overlook that simple truth because we think big results require monumental action. And when you're exhausted, when the miles ahead feel like a huge task,

we dig deep for huge solutions. But the answers are not huge. They're minuscule. They're little things that make big things. And when I think back to my youth, my childhood, the times I'd given up or been discouraged, it was always because I didn't immediately cross the finish line or hit the home run right away.

I didn't get the immediate answer. But I can look back now and just think, if I realized that a walk or a single every day takes you to the moon, that it's not about the miraculous, It's about simply carrying on, which becomes the miraculous. We can't let ourselves be lured in by the guise of immediate triumph or false expectations. No, let's remember that anyone, anyone can simply move forward. Anyone can take one more step, and that's all that's required of you.

That's all you can do. Breathe, compose yourself, take that very next step, because if you can do that, the big picture things, they materialize. You start crossing finish lines, balls start leaving the park. Little victories accumulate and evolve. Life changes. Do not miss what matters. Don't overlook the simplest of things because that's what ultimately carries us home.

So much of life comes down to control. Understanding what we cannot control while simultaneously capitalizing and making the most of the things that we can. A constant awareness that's critical to our evolution. Epictetus wrote, We must be at once cautious and courageous. Courageous

in what does not depend upon choice and cautious in what does. And this idea has been shared many, many times, in many ways over the centuries. Another of which a lot of folks have heard is the serenity prayer, right? God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

But regardless of how it's said and who it's said to, the point is the same. There are things we cannot control that we must find a way to stop exerting ourselves, stop exhausting our energy on. They are, as the saying goes, what they are. These obstacles are immovable. And rather than continue to push and push and push with all our strength and energy, our time is best suited, learning to effective,

navigate them. And then there exists those things that are in our control. I believe it was the power of now by Eckhart Tolle. He said, and I'm paraphrasing, if something cannot be changed, stop thinking about it, right? The future represents anxiety. It's worrying about things that haven't happened yet. The past is essentially depression. It's worrying about things that that already happened. We can't do anything about the past or the future. All we have is now. And if it can be changed, then act now

and bringing about a desired result. Take that first step. Create some semblance of momentum, no matter how small. But to worry about what is behind you or in front of you is actually insanity. I remember loving the simplicity and pointedness of that message. Accept it, eliminate it, or adjust yourself to it.

Sometimes it helps when I think about things in metaphors, and I tend to do it often. This morning I was drinking coconut water, right? Of all things. And I was thinking, man, it'd be nice. You know those little pieces of coconut that float around in there? It would be great if they were not in there, right? So I have this idea, just grab a strainer,

pour it through the strainer into the glass. I'm leaning over the counter, watching the pieces of coconut collect in the strainer, and I'm just thinking, sort of zoning out. Like, imagine if those were my problems, just being separated out of my life, just like that, how nice it would be, captured in a little net,

and then, you know, discarded, thrown away. But, you know, it didn't take me long to realize a couple things. One, such an idea would never happen. Life will always have some obstacle to place before us. That's what life does. After all, the word is predicated upon the avoidance of death. It's a struggle and a necessary one. Which leads me to the realization number two, we want hardship. You know, purpose and meaning. They're derived from our willingness to overcome adversity and transform because of A life without struggle is a car without wheels And sure you might avoid the fender benders

But you're not leaving the garage So that's a thumbs down So I thought, okay, well what if I slightly adjust that thinking? What if it's a subset of problems that I can remove? That's when it kind of hit me, the opportunity at hand, right? Not the so-called problems But my thoughts about them there are the real difference maker here, the negative storytelling that can be removed,

pushed through the strain. Again, not novel or groundbreaking. Like I said a few minutes ago, this idea has been around for thousands of years, but sometimes things land perfectly, right moment, right time. And I knew what I needed to do was remove the worries and concerns pertaining to the events that I could not change. yet I exhaust my energy dancing around and around with my thoughts about them. You cannot change the future.

You can change right now, which ultimately becomes the future. And there's a difference. I had to, you know, pull that back in. See, I think most of our problems are derived from anger or emotional attachment to the immovable, the unchangeable. One of my favorite sayings is you can't change the direct. of the wind, but you can always adjust your sails. And see, when you remove the self-tormenting you have going on about your past, things you wish you did or didn't do,

when you remove the concern that the future won't be exactly what you want it to be, which tends to be where I lean of the two, you're left with one thing. The present, right? Clarity. You have officially empowered yourself because the things you allocate, your energy to can be changed, can be made better or adjusted. And that's really what it's all about.

You can't change the fact that someone you loved or cared about let you down. But when you dwell on it, you're now giving up the present as well. You're preventing yourself from doing what is required of you now to make your life better. You can't control the fact that your companies are. reducing its size and your department is being eliminated. Can't control the fact that 8% get accepted to whatever you're applying to. Can't control the fact that you will be criticized for doing the unpopular thing, the thing that you believe to be right. And I say these things, not to be a downer. I actually don't think there's anything sad about this. To the contrary.

Now that you've accepted these truths, accepted this as reality. Now you can move toward what's best for you. No more dwelling on the unchangeable. No more fighting unwinnable wars. No, it's time to go put yourself in position to conquer whatever mountain is next. By straining out the things that cannot be changed, you are left only with what can.

You can't change your company's personnel reduction, but you can find something else, better out there, you can set the stage for a new journey. You can't increase the acceptance rate, but you can increase your value. Go above and beyond. Put yourself in position to succeed. And if you don't, they're lost. Continue learning, continue growing, continue moving forward.

You can't stop the world's criticism. But you can learn to toughen up emotionally, learn to trust your intuition and decision-making, Surround yourself with people you trust who lift you up. See, when you stop wasting time and energy on the wrong things, you get the right things. Like Greg McEwen says in essentialism, it's now but we can acquire. But often what we cut away, removing the things that weigh us down, that we're dragging along with us everywhere we go, they don't need to be there. I say to myself often that I have everything.

I need. It's there. Some of it's materialized. Some of it exists as a seed that I need to identify and water and nurture, but it's all right here, which means the problem will never be that I'm incapable. It will never be that I'm not good enough. No, when I'm in the wrong, it's because I've forgotten to see it. I've either become consumed with the wrong things or lost faith in myself to do the right thing. And knowing this has been a gift. It's been tremendous. It's helped me even during the darkest moments to reacquire what matters most. Sometimes it takes hours, sometimes days, even weeks or longer, but I get there. Eventually I arrive and so can you. You have the ability to parse out why you feel the way you do. To categorize the thoughts in your head. Can I change

No, okay, gone. And with all that's left, begins the journey, the good stuff. The adversity and the problems that will make you who you are. And don't misunderstand me. I'm not saying it will be easy, but I'm saying it will be worth it. And that's critical to understand. Your world is there to maneuver and adjust to reshape. But its transformation depends on a laser-like focus on that which is malleable.

That's saying, do what you can, where you are with what you have. It will lead you to exactly where you need to be. Even if you don't trust the road before you, trust yourself to walk down it.