Your World Within Podcast by Eddie Pinero - The ONE THING People Learn Too Late In Life | Best Motivational Speeches

Episode Date: February 19, 2025

Life is a paradox—we are both limitless and fragile, creators of our own reality yet bound by time. As Abraham Maslow said, we are simultaneously gods and worms, capable of envisioning the infinite while existing in bodies that wither. This realization can be overwhelming, but it is also the key to understanding our power. We are not meant to simply exist; we are here to shape, to build, to create.Artists, dreamers, and visionaries have always been the ones to bridge the gap between what is and what could be. The challenge is to embrace both sides of our nature—to accept our limitations while daring to transcend them. Because in that space between what we know and what we imagine, the extraordinary happens.More from Eddie Pinero:Monday Motivation Newsletter: https://www.eddiepinero.com/newsletterYour World Within Podcast: https://yourworldwithin.libsyn.com/Stream these tracks on Spotify - https://spoti.fi/2BLf6pBInstagram - @your_world_within and @IamEddiePineroTikTok - your_world_withinFacebook - https://www.facebook.com/YourworldwithinTwitter - https://www.twitter.com/IamEddiePineroBusiness Inquiries - http://www.yourworldwithin.com/contact#liveinspired #yourworldwithin #motivation

We are simultaneously gods and worms. It's a quote from Abraham Maslow that I was originally introduced to when reading Ernest Becker's book, The Denial of Death. And it's one of these concepts that has completely flipped my worldview on its head. Because, to put it simply, this is something we all feel, this tension or this juxtaposition. But we don't even realize we're feeling it, the duality. We are finite beings with expiration dates entangled in this web of infinity.

We are ticking clocks, somehow dropped into a forever that's beyond our comprehension. We are spirit connected to a divine, blessed with a godlike ability to see the unseen, conceived via little projectors behind our eyes. We're taking in our surrounding, sure, but we are also projecting out that vision, real-life directors on the film set that is life. Oh, and by the way, doing this, beneath slowly decaying flesh, right,

a meat suit made of the same material as dogs and birds and worms, while our minds soar to the infinite, our bodies fade away, soon to be given back to the earth where our vessels will become nothing more than dirt for worms. And I've touched on this a few times over the years on this podcast, on YouTube, mainly because how could you not? But I've never known what to do with it, which I think is one of the points of Becker's book, that juxtaposition is all.

almost impossible, right? Those godlike creatures, neatly packaged in earthly material. No different from the animals running around the earth, we often pity and look at from afar, you know, admiring the, I guess, sheer cruelty of nature. Well, ready or not, here is a pivot. This is going to be fun. I've always felt that, you know, few were able to tackle life's greatest questions

like artists can, to explain the unexplainable, and particularly comedians, because they can sort of touch on this feeling, things we've always known at a gut level, but never been able to express. And one of my favorites is Beau Burnham. I think the man's a genius,

and basically he writes songs, a lot of them sarcastic, kind of poking fun, different aspects of everyday life. And one of his songs is called White Woman's Instagram. Now, that's the demo he's kind of picking on. But the metaphor is obviously for all of us, humanity as a whole. And that's evident as you go through the song.

Right away, it starts going into the trivial, sometimes vain, generic things that are posted online. For example, he talks about avocados and golden retrievers with flower crowns and quotes from Lord of the Rings incorrectly attributed to MLK. I mean, it's hilarious. In the chorus, he asks, you know, am I in heaven or is this a white woman's Instagram?

It's clever, it's funny, it's all the things. But then comes the bridge of the song. And it kind of smacks you in the face because it abruptly diverges into this deeply meaningful post, you know, a girl puts up a picture of her mom. And the write-up talks about her mom's passing and how much she misses her and how difficult it is to merely go through life every single day without her mom's presence and being on the front porch with her. And it's getting a little bit easier but mom, you'd be proud of the person I'm becoming.

Right? It's this beautiful tribute to someone who clearly means the world to this girl. And it's you can't help but feel broken open, right? Almost embarrassingly so because the beginning of the song is just so like intentionally dumb and trivial. And you're sucked into this little piece of reality that's like, whoa. And then he immediately pulls you back out and starts talking about posting goat cheese salad. And, you know, quote, incredibly derivative political street art. It's this roller coaster, right?

But so is life. And I think that's the message. It dawned on me the other day, you know, I have no idea if he meant to or not. But this song has been stuck in my, I can't stop thinking. about. It's been like three months that I've had this thing on in the car. It's a little bit weird, but there's something about it that just, it pulls me in. It's so intriguing to me. And the light bulb goes off. It is the perfect encapsulation of this balance of, you know, the tightrope we walk that Ernest Becker alluded to, where life is, or at least certainly can feel

so trivial and so dumb and generic and even meaningless. Like, we're going to die in 80 years. Who cares? But also, so beautiful and meaningful. Comprised of the blessings of being with those around us, the people that mean the most, the things that light us up, the chance to pursue purpose, the gift of being able to leave this place a little better than we found it.

And there is just nothing trivial about that or meaningless about that. Those things are a miracle. nothing and no one could convince me otherwise. And so what? I've settled on the acceptance of this truth. Power lies in embracing both sides. Accepting the roller coaster for what it is, leaning into the absurdity without losing sight of depth,

but then conversely embracing depth without drowning in it. Because yes, we are dirt for worms, And yes, we are God-like beings. Both are true. And if both are true, then every moment, no matter how big or small, has meaning. The avocado toast, the morning light, hitting your coffee cup just right,

a text from a friend that makes you smile. These things are not insignificant. They are, in fact, proof that we are here, that we exist. Proof that even in the face of impermanence, life is not only worth living, it's worth living fully. And at the same time, the grief, the loss, the deep yearning to make those around us proud, they're not a distraction from life.

They are life. They're why we show up. They're why we keep going. They're why we love. So what do we do with this paradox? Well, we live in it. We let it all in. We laugh at the ridiculousness and sometimes cry at the weight.

of it all. We take none of it too seriously while also understanding that all of it matters. And maybe, just maybe, that is what it means to truly live.

The words I am are a spotlight used to highlight the parts of you that you want to illuminate. Those two words are a portal through which massive transformation can occur.

I am strong, says the man in the mirror, as this newly crafted identity takes him by the hand and leads him to the gym to lift weights. I am talented, competent, relentless, says the woman over coffee, before walking into work and moving one step closer to that promotion she's been working for. One of my favorite ideas, people follow through on who they believe themselves to be, always.

But this power is a tool. And tools can be used for good or they can be used for bad. They can be used to build or they can be used to tear down. It's up to the person carrying out the task. The words, I am, right, those beautiful life. faltering words, they can also become a jail cell that surrounds the now and keeps it exactly as it is. And you know what I mean. I can't.

Sorry, I am not a morning person. I am unathletic. I am slow. I am not like those financially well-off people. They're different. I am simply not ready. Well, used that way, right? Those words, they're a sealed fate.

Because we only act in ways congruent with how we see ourselves. Again, who we believe ourselves to be. See, a lot of these things come to me, at least initially, in ways I like to describe as woo-woo, right? I'm a pretty practical person. So when someone says something like, you know, Eddie, law of attraction, you know, put pictures all over your bedroom. and, you know, it'll come true.

What you see, what you look at will materialize. That scoff, right? Looking at boats, unfortunately, doesn't drop you onto the deck of one. But then, when I let my little ego chill out a bit, and I thought through the idea practically, it's like, well, maybe there's something to this. Maybe looking at those things simply remind you that they're possible.

That boat, that mansion, the love of your life, that dream body, whatever it is. It's not some far-fetched narrative written for someone else. No, that's obtainable. That's for you. Maybe I can have that too.

And then maybe those results change the standard. They change the expectations I set for myself. And then, and this is the needle mover, because of that, I start acting in a way, congruent with those standards.

I bring it to life. Boots on the ground, doing the work, creating the change. It wasn't magic. It was just a shift in narrative. I think we all understand at a deep level, people tend not to acquire things

they don't believe are possible to acquire. That's why so much lack in our lives can be remedied by a mindset change. You don't step out your front door if you don't believe there's anything worthwhile out there. Which brings me back to those precious words, I, and they're precious, because they are a permission slip from you to you.

To be that person you most want to be, to create the change you most need to see. Being in and around the personal development space for so long, I've kind of seen a tug of war with the idea, fake it until you make it. A lot of people have different takes, different philosophies on it. Some people say, you know, do it, act like it. Why not?

Other people say, don't lie to yourself. Go earn that confidence. To which I say, they're both the same thing. The idea is not to deceive yourself. I'm going to paraphrase Tony Robbins again here. The idea is not to close your eyes. and say, there's no weeds in my garden, there's no weeds in my garden, open them and hope that the weeds are gone. It's about giving yourself a target to hit.

It's about wearing the shoes so that every step you take in them becomes a little more real to you. Let's face it, right? You live with a healthier lifestyle if you say, I'm a healthy person, than if you were to walk around saying I'm an unhealthy slob, but I'm trying. You will act out who you believe yourself to be. It is that simple. So we rig the game in our favor. Be very methodical with the words you place after I am. They are precious.

They are the gatekeepers. I am what? Yeah, but Eddie, I'm not in shape and I want to be. It doesn't make any sense to walk around saying, I am in shape. Okay. How about I am healthy? I am working every day to get stronger.

I am the type of person who finds a way. I am driven. I am focused. If you believe yourself to be those things, you've built a foundation more than strong enough to support the goal, to support you getting in shape. That's what this is about.

Creating a foundation for you to evolve. The relationship you have with your soul, It sets the precedent for everything in your life. So cherish it. To respect it. See the power contained in the words you utter about yourself. I am on the journey of a lifetime. I am happy.

I'm healthy. I'm talented. I'm kind. I am grateful. How about you? 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 duress.

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 conunders. 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. Okay, 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 belief. Mid-20s. I was unhappy, wanted more, but didn't really believe myself capable of obtaining more.

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 tangible or the tactical, right? Three ways to do X. Life hacked 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 know.

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. What is it that you carry around? The other day was walking into a breath work session. It's the third session I've been to and every time I go, it's this, you know, beautiful perspective shift, this necessary recalibration. So it was super excited about this one. My friend Lindsay Bell was putting it on and at some point during the session, she said

these words. Just because you care doesn't mean you need to carry it. And it might not have been the exact words, I'm paraphrasing, but want to make sure I give credit where credits do. And I'm laying there on my back, you know, focusing on breath and, you know, couldn't really think at the moment. But I said to myself, come back to this later, because it sounds profound, and I bet you'll be glad that you did. And I did come back to it later, and I'm very grateful that I did. See, one of the things that I took from the book, breath work session was calm. It was managing my day-to-day, dealing with adversity, trying to keep it all together as I say yes and step into more responsibility. All of that in my world, it becomes

tension. Even when I don't realize it, you know, I carry it in my shoulders, in my muscles, I get tension headaches, just carry it around physically. And so, you know, I carry it in my shoulders. And so, Perfect example. I was almost late getting to the session. My car is telling me that my backroot tire has 12 PSI. I'm putting air in it. It's deflating. I'm like, do I need to patch it?

You know, worst case scenario, am I getting any tires? Is it okay? Is it going to explode on the road? All these things, right? So I drive it almost flat to the place and I run in. And, you know, it's just one thing among many on my mind, right? Eight videos to make of a keynote speech in two days. at a conference, all these things are sort of playing back and forth in my brain, and I lay down,

I notice my body is literally pulsating. And I don't mean literally in the sense that's been, you know, hijacked recently. I mean literally, truly vibrating on the floor. And I'm just having a conversation with myself. It's like, you think there are obstacles and challenges out of, there, this right here is your adversary. This is something you need to solve for. It almost felt like I was losing the plot, right? It's like, this can't be the baseline I exist on, sometimes navigating, you know, higher and lower, but that being normal. Like that type of tension should not be normal.

Even though, you know, I have things going on despite the ambitions, despite the change, It's like you need to remind yourself that life is a game. And in the grand scheme of things, none of this. Like, zero percent of it matters. This is a little side quest to gain some perspective here. It's funny, when the small things start to feel like the big things, we're often too far in the weeds, right? We need to pull ourselves up and, you know,

see the garden again in its totality. And so just moving back to the breath, separating myself from everything, it was amazing. And as I took a walk later that night, Lindsay's saying, just because you care, doesn't mean you need to carry it,

became more and more profound. I think the missing link there, and what it helped me in a sense rediscover, is that everything comes back to trust. You know, you can care about not getting a flat in the middle of the road. And by the way, you should. You should care about your work on YouTube.

You should care about crushing the keynote at the conference. You should care about all those things. But you can also separate yourself from the outcome and trust that you, day by day, minute by minute, are doing everything that's required to bring that ideal outcome to life. You have to trust yourself, right? Do the thing without carrying... the pressure of doing the thing.

That's the goal. You can only control what you can control. And accomplishing this has been a lifelong journey, by the way. Like, sometimes I do great with it. Sometimes I temporarily lose sight of the big picture altogether, but I understand the value and the art of cutting away. And I would advocate everyone do the same. We don't have to carry the weight

of those things we're working towards. We don't have to carry the weight of the expectations or the hypotheticals. We don't have to carry the weight of others' opinions or those pieces of the past that we feel like we are tied to. All of that can go. If it matters, move towards it.

Trust your ability to navigate. Trust yourself to conquer anything that comes at you and let that be. Enough. It's been a great few days since that class because I feel like, you know, I was able to shake my life up like a snow glow. Rediscover that even with the chaos flying around,

there are only a few things worthy of my attention. There's only so much I can do. It's like the metaphorical hand of God reminding me, dude, everything is going to be fine. When you simplify a necessary component of carrying less, you force yourself to ask, hey, what really matters here? Right. And then, you know, you are able to chip away at those things.

And chipping away is your superpower. Like what else can you do other than ship away at the necessary things? Nothing. And by the way, you need nothing else. So why the extra clutter? Why the chaos? Why the noise? Find stillness in the simple fact that everything is going to be fine

and it's going to be fine because there's nothing you can't handle. There's nothing too big or complex for you. You might hear this and think, okay, that's obvious. That's simple. I will never cease to be amazed how it is the simple rules of life that when we let them slip away, the wheels come off the wax. It is the simple things we need to harness and keep by our side. Simple is the sun around which everything else revolves.

Don't carry the weight of what can't be altered. Instead, fall in love with the current moment. Be proud of the trust you have in yourself. Know that the pieces will fall where they're meant to. and they'll fall where they're meant to because rather than being chained to their outcome, you freed yourself. You focused instead on the brushstroke being painted in real time.

That is how a masterpiece comes to life. The freedom to care about the portrait without carrying the pressure contained in its materialism. Care, but don't carry. When I first started my podcast, and at that point it wasn't technically a podcast, it was only YouTube videos at the time. I would sit down, I would open my notes and start planning that particular video, and sometimes things would come to me. Sometimes they wouldn't. And when they did, you know, I would turn on the mic and I would go.

Oh, and when they didn't, I would shut down the computer and say, well, some other day then, right? Not today. And in theory, there's nothing wrong with this. I've always considered myself an artist, and while you can't force art, or can you? Because there is most definitely a shift that occurs when you look at this situation from a different angle. It's not about, quote, unquote, feeling it today. as much as it's about getting done, which you have to get done in tight windows.

Because sometimes that's all life gives you. A narrow window of opportunity to go or not go. To start or not start. To create or not create. There's an idea that's admittedly a tad cliche here, but it says you practice how you play. And I've spoken about this before. I think there's a ton of truth to it.

Because those big picture values, they're hard to flip on and flip off. Most likely, you either do them all the time or you don't. They're either indicative of who you are or they're not. If your house and car and closet are a disaster, probably accurate to say that your Google or Apple calendar, if you even have one, probably isn't pristine. It's most likely in disarray mirroring everything else in your life. I'm not saying it's impossible, but it's not likely.

Same thing with health. When I'm not eating healthy and trust me, I've gone through periods where I've just mailed that in, right? I give a little less on my workouts. Place a little less emphasis on my sleep. It snowballs, right? You get the idea. It's all related. And that's why I can honestly say, in my personal and,

in my work life, how I do one thing is generally how I do all things. And this brings me back full circle to those writing and recording sessions. If I can close my laptop and go, eh, not today, the muse, as Stephen Pressfield calls it, just isn't flowing through me. Maybe tomorrow. It's setting a precedent for everything. If you train your mind to create off-ramps, it will glad. gladly take them. Because oh, how our minds love off-wrabs. And this reality, it highlights the power of shutting down that possibility altogether, stopping it in its tracks, making it simple.

This is a window of opportunity to execute. So execute. And will it be the best thing you've ever done? Maybe not. But maybe. The reality is, you condition your mind to show up for yourself. There's a shift that occurs when one looks at the task in front of them and asks,

not can this be done today, but rather it will be done, how do I execute to the best of my ability? Not I hope I have it this morning, but rather good ideas flow through me. So sit down and string a few of those ideas together. The expectation that you will produce something valuable, it has a way of ensuring you do exactly that. My personal best for a half marathon was run with the flu. I could have closed that metaphorical laptop and said some other time I don't feel well.

But I repositioned the question to, how do I find a way to execute in this window of opportunity before me? Lo and behold, it was the right move. I've gone to events where I had a million other things happening in my world, right? I wasn't particularly thrilled about going, but I did because I committed. I met some people that changed my life, right? Small window, execute. When there is a task before you and you have committed to it,

When leaving or turning around isn't even an option, that is a superpower. Now, obviously, there's a line reaching that sunk cost fallacy. I'm not advocating you continuously hit your head against the wall. You know, when something's bad for you, or you should be doing something different. I'm talking about those things we know we should be doing, right? The ones we're better off for, but life has presented friction in one form or another. It's very easy to identify that friction as an enemy, as a reason you can't. It's tempting to say, you'll wait until things are better, or easier, or perfect,

but life doesn't provide those situations. It gives windows to execute. So train your mind to identify and capitalize in those moments. Understanding that, well, technically, yeah, you could walk away. that option is no longer available to you some people do what they feel like they do what they want to and others do what must be done and it's the latter that creates meaningful sustainable progress in life

as far as i'm concerned it's the latter that brings about contentment you could have waited for a perfect moment. But instead you said yes, consistently sat down, and in the meantime chipped away at something more important, something real. And that real thing is exponential growth. Exponential growth waits for you to capitalize. It waits for you to commit.

It waits for you to sit down and execute. It doesn't wait though. for you to feel ready. Infinite means no bounds, which is, you know, kind of an abstract comment. Forever is difficult to grasp. But I want to explain to you why in my life it's prevalent in something I truly need right now

in terms of a deeper understanding. And I'd be willing to bet that in some capacity, a better relationship with the word forever or infinite would benefit your life as well. Let's drop into a very specific mental state. See if it rings a bell, you know, that feeling of depletion, that feeling of being stuck or feeling lost,

just total helplessness, you know, whether it's over a long period of time or sort of temporary helplessness. Whatever the context is, right? This feeling is a product of a scarcity narrative playing in your head. Finitude. Amidst a forest of abundance, it's like staring at a tree from one inch away. All you see is that single fragment of tree bark.

You don't see much. It looks pretty bleak. But then you take a step back and you go, okay, right? You see the shape of the tree. Go, I get it. Take another step back. maybe two or three feet back, and you start seeing how these trees come together.

You step back even further, you go, okay, I get it. All these trees comprise the forest. Maybe you continue to step back. You turn around, you see a totally different view, the landscape, the skyline, you see birds flying overhead. All that stuff that was always there, you just couldn't see it. Not from your vantage point, not that close to the tree. which is going to be for us, metaphorical for a problem or obstacle that we are immersed in or trying to overcome.

There's an idea that there's no situation that cannot be rectified, right? Or put in the positive, every situation can be resolved. There's no hole you can't climb out of. There is always more. There is always a solution. And this little tidbit, you know, it might not mean much when you're feeling good. You have momentum. You know, the stars feel like they're aligned for you.

But I'll tell you, it can be your saving grace when you are trudging through the valleys of life. The inevitable, difficult periods. For me, it's been everything, right? It's reminded me that there is a way. I just need to find it. It reminds me that I'm capable of solving and conquering even life's greatest tasks. I just need to move into the night with conviction. I need to remember how close I am to that tree, right,

and create some sort of separation there. Because look, sometimes life is complex. You know, sometimes it's nuanced and in detailed. And then sometimes the opposite is true. Sometimes it is very simple. And one example of that is that there is always a way and you are always capable

of finding that way, of arriving that solution. Understand that, and you'll see how abundant this dance through life really is. Truth is, personally, you know, sometimes the fear I experience, even about trivial things, just navigating life, it can hit hard.

I think it's a visceral reaction, like involuntary. It just, it happens. You know, podcast numbers dipping. Business deal falls through. Maybe a riff with a family member or friend, right? My brain walks right up to that metaphorical tree, stands there and says, hey, there's nothing you can do. This is it.

This is the end. You are stuck. You are lost. You are defeated. You are hopeless. You are all these things, and none of them are good. But what makes human being special is by understanding there is more, we empower ourselves to create more.

We empower ourselves to step five feet back, to see the forest, the view of the valley below. Don't settle in the finite. Dive into the infinity that surrounds you. You know, I think sometimes, you know, we become, so pulled in to a specific problem or situation, that it never even dawns on us to think, okay, you know, this is life, it happens,

but you don't have to stay where you start. You are not confined to where you are. Because if it's not pushing you forward, it can be altered, mitigated, transformed. It's not an if question. Your assent is a how. question. And one of my favorite ideas it states that

many of life's greatest accomplishments were carried out by folks too ignorant to understand the odds. When you feel stuck, it's not because you are it's because your human brain is in default mode. And it's like no problem.

Override. There's a way to turn every single predicament into a strength. As Jim Rohn has famously stated, it's not the mountaintop that holds the value, it's who you

become along the way to the mountain top. And that climb consists of a multitude of these seemingly dead ends. But in recognizing their inability to hold you back, you yourself grow. You arm

yourself with that knowledge. And to To sum up, you know, the entire message here in its entirety, it's that in a world of infinite possibility, there is a way, right? I challenge you to find it. The same challenge I look in the mirror and present to myself when I feel stuck or helpless or hopeless. I challenge you to look at your reality in a different light until the light bulb goes off.

And it's like, oh, this wasn't a sign. to me. I'm choosing this. I'm creating this. And as the architect of my own world, I can recreate the story in its entirety. You know, people just don't go around in life telling us that. It's not normal to hear,

hey, buddy, you have more control than you think you do. Hey, you're accepting some things that you don't need to accept. Hey, step back five more feet and build again from a different angle, right? Just like all the money in the world doesn't do much good, stacked up in a warehouse that's never touched or utilized, you know, all the opportunity doesn't matter if you can't see it.

If you're blinded by the tree, the downside, the limitation, none of that means anything. If your vantage point is one of confinement, infinity is always there. So step back, turn around, and walk directly into it. Use the resources to build reality, not as it is,

but as you want it to be, a world on your terms. It's impossible to know how the story ends. I don't think we're expected to, nor do we need to. But we do need to be willing to light up the 10 feet in front of us. We need to be willing to illuminate the now. It's how little nothings transition into those very meaningful some things. One illuminated piece of the puzzle at a time.

They say that complexity is the enemy of progress. Things seem too big, too far away. When all the world appears dark, we pause. We become crippled by how much we don't know. know we hide in the shadows of life's unknown, but I have, and hopefully will, until my final days, hold on to the idea that we have within us enough light, just enough light, to brighten up the path before us, directly in front of us. It's always been just enough to get through anything. When the world is dark, you can't see the hand in front of your face. It will always be

true that you possess the ability to cut through that darkness to highlight the next stepping stone. There's just enough light to collect the data and information sufficient to make one more logical decision. One more. To take one shaky and uncertain step, it's amazing what they become. over time. See, I've spent some time in that metaphorical darkness. I've also been in the light. I've believed, I've had all the answers and been brutally humbled by life. There have also been times where I bet on myself when the odds were small and emerged victorious, whether up, down, high or low, the saving grace was remembering that if I turned the light on, the headlamp initiating from my eyes, and projecting out into the world,

it would always provide enough for me to do perhaps the most important thing I'm capable of doing, moving forward. There's no skipping in life, no jumping races to arrive at any particular finish line. But there is always enough to carry on. This realization has been interesting to me. Our struggle when it emerges,

It's usually not derived from an inability to do the right thing. It's not like we're missing something. No, our struggle comes from thinking we need more than we do. It's frustration that our goals are so big and so far away and so out of reach. We lose sight of what we can control, blinded by a standard that no human can live up to. Stop beating yourself up for not being a God. No mere mortal ever leapt a mountain.

Everything is not the goal. One thing is the goal, and you are capable of one thing. Everyone is capable of one thing. One little action to initiate momentum and push you further into that unknown. But where? You might wonder, I need to know where, to which I say, breathe. because the wares make themselves known when you're in motion. As you move forward, the wrong destinations prompt you to learn and then self-correct.

And the right ones inspire you to push further in their direction. Both valuable, right? The only way to lose is not go. The only way to lose is to say, because I don't have it all figured out, I'll remain right here. like a toddler refusing to put a puzzle together because he can't see the completed mural in each individual piece. The whole point is to put it together.

The fun is to put it together. The growth and the value isn't putting it together. And I get it. We want to know, right? Humans want to know. That's why evolving is hard. We have to be okay with not knowing. And that's what life is about

formulating your hypothesis and then letting the data derive from your progress alter your approach. That data is not gifted to you while you stand stagnant. So the question is, will you sign that dotted line? The one that says, when you can't see the mountaintop, what you will be left with is solely trust in yourself that you can bring it about. It's easy to say yes When the sky is blue And the birds are singing

But amidst the storms When your mind begins to whisper That perhaps it will never end When it begins to ask you If there was ever even a point After all, look around There's nothing but gray That is when you have to remember the rules of the game

That's when you have to remind yourself It's not about knowing, it's about trusting, about creating puzzle pieces, not finishing murals. Anyone can create just one puzzle piece. And then just one more, and just one more. Because yes, it's difficult, as is life. But you'll remember why, as you move into the storm and watch all those little pieces connect around you. You are always stronger than you think you are. So last month I was at a Genius Network meeting,

and I got to see up close and personal as Joe Polish interviewed Kimberly Shannon Murphy about her book, Glimmer. It's one of the most powerful conversations I've ever heard. Her book's an autobiography about Kimberly, who's a stunt woman, among other things now in Hollywood, rehashing the pain and abuse she endured as a child. And really, pain her whole family endured because of her grandfather,

who is not a good human, to say the least, whatever you're imagining in your mind, it's worse than that, right? I'll leave it there. And I watched for about an hour as she delved into the pain and how it bled into so much of her adult life. It was a suffering she spent seemingly her entire youth trying to escape, trying to free yourself from.

Again, front row, you can see the emotion in her face, her eyes as she's reliving it. You know, as a spectator, it was truly inspirational. Which brought me to this thought. What are the odds? What are the odds after, Everything she's endured. Everything.

That she was not devoured by the monster that is her past. Or even worse, a continuation of it. She instead found it within herself to be the antithesis of that evil. To say never again. No, not in my life. Not in my world, not for my family, not for my daughter. And once my mind went there, it was really all I could think, right, that this person, only a few feet away from me,

found the courage to not only rise above her pain, but to turn it into something beautiful. Now, I'm assuming there are a million different takeaways from her story, right? And I'm sure those who are victims themselves of childhood abuse, you know, will receive it in an even more powerful light. But for me, the message was a giant spotlight turned towards the internal. A reminder of just how strong we are and the power we have over the hand that we're dealt. Even when life feels helpless, hopeless and pointless,

that reminder that we always have fight in us. You know, I've been in situations where I've looked in the mirror and asked the question, you know, what the hell do I do next? You know, when you feel like you're suffocating. And sometimes it's simply the stories of others that remind us when we are drowning in darkness, that it may just be that we are the light, that somewhere, deep down in the depths of our soul, there exists a glimmer of hope.

Enough, just enough momentum to get you through one day onto another, onto another, until you rise from the ashes and find yourself recreated, re-made. You know, one of my favorite ideas is that the wake of the boat does not drive the boat. The wake is gone. It's history. Where you go next comes to.

down to whoever's holding the wheel. And you might hear that anecdote and think, OK. You know, surface level, I get it. But easier said than done. I can point in my life to so many times that just the understanding, just the realization that I'm not tied to yesterday, that I can break free of what was, that I'm not defined by it, that exact realization

encouraged me and pushed me to step out and find an evolved version of myself. Sometimes just understanding that a different reality exists is enough. And so, you know, after being lucky enough to hear Kimberly's message, you know, that's the idea that I want to pass on to you. You are not tied to what was.

You're strong enough to not only discontinue the patterns and the narratives of yesterday, but to grow beyond their shadow and gift the world, their inverse, their opposite. Not only can you find the solution, you can become the solution. When you look to your left and you look to your right and you think impossible, this is too much, it's too big, all of this is just beyond me, I need you to remember everything you need you have. Remember that inside you right now, even though you won't be able to see the whole picture or how every single piece fits together, that in this moment exists enough light to chart your course, even, as Kimberly would say, if it's just a glimmer.