Your World Within Podcast by Eddie Pinero - This Will Bring Drastic Changes In Your Life | Powerful Motivational Speeches | Wake Up Positive

Episode Date: July 12, 2023

"There are no dead ends. There is always a way out. What you learn in one failure you utilize in your next success." - Henry Ford

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You can salvage the week, the month, the year, the years. All is not lost. It's never lost. The trap is looking back and using what happened to define what will happen. Using what's behind you to map what's in front of you. What brought this to mind? Well, personal note, this has happened before today was not a good one.

At least not until now. Not from a productivity standpoint. I just got back from Europe, a little jet lagged. I've never had more to do, but simultaneously done so little with my time. Which is frustrating. But I'm going to the gym in an hour, and that leaves me 60 minutes to salvage what could easily have been looked back upon as a lost day. See, something that I think is beautiful about life

is that you can get countless things wrong. You're afforded substantial room for error. And it's often, you know, you only need to get one thing right. Like take dating, right? Countless wrong relationships. You only need one to work out. Entrepreneurship, a ton of mistakes. Lots of swings and misses.

That's built into the process. but the one win can change everything. Or these stories, these ideas I share on social media, right? A lot of them totally miss. They resonate with me and sometimes me alone. But if one resonates with others, one gains traction, there's a lot of impact to be had there. And so I wanted to share this because it's a slightly different angle

to what I've talked about before. Of course, this has elements of, yeah, you don't feel like it, well, do it anyway. David Gockens would have an aneurysm hearing that I even contemplated not writing today. But here's the thing. It's very easy to group a period of time together and call it a loss. Eh, it didn't happen today, it might tomorrow, right? It's easy to look back on what you were and use it to build walls around yourself. To say it's what you are now.

when in reality there is still value to be squeezed out. Just because what existed before now was antithetical to everything you wanted it to be, well, that doesn't mean there's no win buried in there. It doesn't mean between 445 and 545 here today, I can't share something that's important to me that might help other people identify and dive into something that's important to them, right?

All is not lost if time remains. It's a message that, sure, it might be psychologically easier to walk away from the day because the first half wasn't good, but that's not the move. There contains somewhere in there the seed that will grow, or at least begin the process of growing what you need. Jim Quick, he recently said, some days all you have is 40%. And on those days, giving 40% is 100%. Maybe seeing that subconsciously saved my mind.

day to day. I don't know, but it's very easy to check out when the past was not what you wanted it to be instead of thinking, yeah, but one right move right now changes everything, changes the momentum, alters the personal identity. You're always one move, one decision away from reigniting momentum. A quote-unquote bad day can be completely mitigated with one incredible decision or action. So let's pull this up a level. Where does it bring us? It brings us to those moments we're sitting in bed wishing things were a little different, went a little differently, or looking in the mirror disappointed in the day. And instead of letting it define the story in totality, remembering that there's something there. Maybe just one thing.

One action, one decision, one move you can take to salvage what remains, there's some value you can find that will reposition your outlook on what has occurred. There is no loss here. Only the win that hasn't happened yet. I was in the car recently with my sister Ali, her girlfriend Alex, and her girlfriend's dad, Jeremy. We were on our way to dinner in Naples, Florida, simultaneously driving and kind of looking through different places to eat. And no one really knew the area well, right? So we get to the point where we're pretty sure we have a spot we want to go picked out. When Alex suddenly looks up her phone and says to her dad, you know, looks like the place we're going tonight is a little fancy.

And so for context, right, they're both from London. and their accents make this one million times better. And he hears her, he looks back over at her and says, well, we deserve fancy, don't we, darling? And I'm like, oh my God, you guys are a real-life movie and don't even know it. I thought it was just such a beautiful thing. Moments like that are everything.

Reminders to immerse ourselves in the moment, in what matters with the people that matter. This, of course, wasn't about the restaurant, but how evident it was that he was grateful to be there. I remember seeing a quote that said, if you can't find joy in a cup of coffee, you certainly won't find it in a yacht. So how's that for perspective? You know, it's the little things that hold the value, the ones that become the big things. And while our eyes are fixated on mountaintops, life is. about the climb. Or as it's put in another anecdote, we live not for the destination, but for the

journey. And see, this is a very timely topic for me. I woke up today, having hit the milestone, 500,000 subscribers on YouTube, which has honestly been a goal of mine since I started doing this in 2014. I woke up so excited, so happy, so grateful for every single view. For every person that stumbled upon my message and saw somewhere in my journey a little piece of their own. But as today's gone on, it's been interesting. I found myself more and more unsure how I feel. Because on one hand, it is representative of that exact thing. The journey, the ride.

I feel like the luckiest human alive with friends and family that have truly carried me through the valleys of life. And if anything, milestones like these honor them and the light they bring to the world. But on the other hand, a part of me couldn't help thinking, oh, okay, I guess one million is next. And trust me, I wish that wasn't true, but it is. I remember reading in the Almanac of Naval Ravikant, a passage where he said, essentially that the excitement of acquisition isn't in the thing we're acquiring, it's in the anticipation of it, the buildup. I believe you use the example of a Ferrari,

implying that waiting for it was the fun. That's the rush. Getting it is just kind of, okay, now I have a Ferrari. And that's what makes these benchmarks we create so interesting. They're everything and nothing simultaneously. Reminders that finish lines aren't of value

for their own sake. They're valuable, they remind you of the race you ran, the highs you cherished, and the lows you fought through. Life ebbs, and it flows, and I'm continuously fascinated by its duality, by the overlap we need to live in, how two things can be true at once and so often are. I can sit here today and tell you, I think in a lot of ways, societally, we've gotten a little soft, too soft. that we often fail to understand that the road to what we want

runs through the very landscape that will push us to be more than we've ever been. That we have to get comfortable being uncomfortable. Or that the beauty of being human is that we can make sacrifices now for that which we desire in the future.

All this, as far as I'm concerned, is absolutely unequivocally true. But there's also the existential question Yeah, but for what? If you're not living, cherishing the little things, finding the miraculous in something as small as a cup of coffee, then when, when, darling, will you let yourself deserve fancy? Now, I'm not going to claim I have all the answers. I do not. But if my time on this planet is a test case, well, here's what it showed me. when life is all about the destination,

the 500K milestones, the money, the growth, the status, the world becomes hollow, and man does it hollow out fast? Things mean less. And while sure, they're often a valuable direction to point the compass, they are not life. And on the contrary, when it's all play in no direction, all wandering and no learning, all chaos and no building,

that subsequent meaninglessness emerges again. It's in balancing the two. Life is incredible, but only to those who make a point to see it as so. And God is that easy not to do. It blows my mind how easy it is to miss the things that are most important. That's what this day has taught me. The finish lines and 500,000 milestones, though few You and far between are a celebration, but they do not point to themselves.

They point to the little things. They point to the people. They point to the times you were walking through hell and kept walking. They point to the sunrises, sunsets, and times you sat back and thought, wow, am I lucky? After all, there's a reason the view from the top points right back down. to the world below, shines a spotlight on the very ascent you just endured, as if highlighting what really matters, what life is really about.

And so today, by default, a new ship has left the port towards a new horizon. Compass aimed at, let's say, one million. Why not? But it's essential to remember that that is the north star that God. guide the journey, it is not everything. I challenge you to point your compass accordingly to whatever it is in your world that matters, that excites you, that lifts you up. And when you arrive, let it be not the goal in and of itself, but a celebration of the

joy. The happiness contained along the way, the fact that you did look around the and smile, did cherish those sunsets, sips of coffee, that you treated yourself to fancy, and that you paused every now and then, to say to yourself, thank you. One of my favorite anecdotes or mantras is work hard and silent, let success be your noise.

That idea in my mind is perfection. Let your growth, your evolution, and yes, ultimately your accolades do this speaking for you. This always hit home for me for two reasons. One, because things of value come with a hefty price tag. We know this. Excellence requires sacrifice. It is in many ways both a daunting and worthwhile pursuit. And two, well, because we often conflate flailing around with progress.

In fact, some of my favorite books, whether it be Deep Work by Cal Newport, Relentless by Tim Grover, The Obstacle is the Way by Ryan Holiday, part of what captivates me with these is the emphasis on what we are willing to do in silence, behind the scenes. That's where true meaning and value materializes. It's also where it's most difficult to commit and continue forward because in silence, there is no audience clapping for you. There is no validation. When you're building and reading and improving, when you're at the gym or on those calls, establishing that foundation, putting in the hours, it's easy to look around and have doubts.

Our brains go, I did the work, where's the reward? I sacrificed, so where's the reward? the payout. It's not intuitive to understand that, hey, it's not visible yet. One of my favorite metaphors, the lily pad pond, in which there is a pond with lily pads doubling in size every day, and on day 30, the pond is completely covered with them. So what day was the pond half covered? And if we're thinking quickly, we might be inclined to say, well, half of 30 is 15, so it was half covered on day 15. But that's wrong because if they're doubling every day, that pond wasn't half covered

until day 29, and only a quarter covered on day 28. Meaning every day before then the change was so small that perhaps it wasn't even visible to the naked eye. So small that to onlookers, the prospect of it one day being covered might have seemed far-fetched. But what was at work was the necessary change to set the stage. To start what would ultimately become the exponential growth that is noticeable, impactful. Now, of course, lilypads are not human, but little thought experiment. Let's say they had been. I'd like to believe that talking about their growth, their plans, right, them screaming about how

great they are and what they will someday be would not have helped them grow faster. In fact, it might have potentially even distracted the necessary evolution. The growth was not them versus the world, it was them versus them. And that's the idea, right? It's okay to work on you, to make a deal, sign a contract with yourself that you are doing something now that only you understand, that won't be visible until until a later date. Let success be your noise. Because there's often zero correlation

between the loudest person and the one making the greatest impact. Let success be your noise because you can't fake competency. Let success be your noise because leaders don't need to proclaim they lead. And winners don't need to prove they've won. And virtuous people don't advertise their virtue. It's in the do.

doing, that's where we pay the price, the steep price. I've always said the last 10 years for me, the hardest part wasn't failing. It was not when things didn't go as planned. The hardest part was simply not knowing. It was the whisper that, hey, all this could be for naught, that I'm wasting my time, that the whole idea is a car without wheels, and that's what hurt. But if I could go back in time,

talk to my younger self, I would say, you know, all this, all of it, the ups, downs, highs, lows, it's making you who you need to be. And if something doesn't work or go as you planned it originally, relax, you learn, you adjust, and you move forward. That's how the doubling of lily pads, right, using the same metaphor, occurs. You're learning, you're growing, and that's a you thing. I talked a few weeks ago now about the day. difference between a fee and a fine, as discussed in the psychology of money by Morgan Hauser. The weight of not knowing it isn't a fine, it's not a penalty, it's the fee, it's the cost to get into the show, the ticket to something greater. But you have to walk through that

door. Again, it's a decision, it's personal, it's a commitment, it's nothing that screaming and seeking attention brings. You have to trust your Your self, believe in yourself, right? Your effort is doubling in size. It's compounding exponentially, and you don't need to convince others. You need to say consistent and build yourself up until the world has to notice. Trust the mission you're on. As long as you're, one, moving forward, and two, learning and adjusting, you are destined for something greater.

By committing, you have stacked the deck. By believing in yourself, you have rigged the game. It's about hearing and believing that voice that says, there's more in store for those who take it. And you are capable of that. That's the decision that will ultimately ring so loud. It will echo through time. Ready to prioritize yourself in the new year?

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Shop in store or online for items like Old Spice Deodorant, always ultra-thin pads, Gillette Fusion Razors and Refills, Old Spice Total Body Spray, Tampax Pearl, and Gillette Mach 3 Razors and Refills, and save up to $3. You won't want to miss out on these deals. Offer ends February 25th. Offers may vary. Restrictions apply. Visit Safeway.com for more detail. Do you ever wonder how much of you has materialized? Like if what F. Scott Fitzgerald says is true and our lives are defined by opportunity, even the ones we miss, then how much remains in the ether?

And I don't think it's about playing a game of what if. You know, that would be endless. It would be self-defeating. No one's perfect. I don't even really think it's about making a right turn instead of a left. Because as long as you're moving and moving with conviction. life ultimately brings you where you need to be. But more, my concern is the steps never brought to people.

My ideas on the hatch, my opportunities, I either knowingly or unknowingly left on the shelf. Because it didn't seem real enough. Like a Broadway play between my ears, that as a spectator I knew would end. After all, that's what stories do. How much of ourselves have we cast aside, as simply the things we don't say out loud.

At first it's infinite. We've yet to be taught to limit because limits aren't things, their ideas, and ideas must be adopted. That's why they say some of life's best things. We're done by people too ignorant to know they were impossible, too naive of the notion that they couldn't say them out loud. Then it's comparison, they have what I want. But it was meant for them and not me.

How delusional to think I could have it. How crazy to think that life has yet to be written. to be written and I am an author. My date is with normalcy in the box where I keep those things we don't say out loud and then we look around and we see highlight reels. We see awards and vacations and smiles, but we don't stop to think maybe they're just like me. Maybe they're people who struggle and question themselves and doubt the road ahead. No, it must be the past diverged. They took happiness and I took those things we don't say out loud and then there's everyday life when things don't go as planned. When the world presents curveballs and you haven't

learn to hit off speed so you feel small and you feel inadequate and ill-equipped and you could reach out but that's not cool, that's not right. That's something that you don't say out loud, but we keep it in, like all in and eventually it becomes the if-only's and I wish I had. It's the quiet envy gazing longingly towards those who just cared less, who realized maybe life's not as serious as we make it out to be, who turn thoughts to things not by burying but by embodying them. And maybe that's the trick to unlock the game. keeping your perceived reality from the possibility of a new one.

The one you could create, if only you promoted your fleeting thoughts to forward progress. See, dreams can fail to come to fruition in two places in your head and outside of it. But at least outside, it has a chance. At least outside, you can take the common, normal, everyday background

and make it the backdrop to your movie where you play a lead role. But it must be accepted. and acknowledged, not thought of or even whispered, but screened so that the details and the trivialities that exist now work for you. That's right, they are now yours. Not because you thought about it,

but because you reached out a hand and you took. You asked the world for something. And in life, it will always be true that you don't get what you do not ask for. So when you find yourself staring up a wall, wall comprised of self-defeating narratives and manufactured limits, be ignorant, be irrational, be the reason your dreams have a chance. And when you look around and you see more and wonder why you don't have it, know that you can, you're allowed to, if you sacrifice, you will, but you

must believe you are worthy of it. Not in the back of your head where you keep your locker combo in movie quotes, but in reality where words bounce off lips. And when you feel like life is treating you unfairly like they're happier or have it better, know that life is peaks and valleys, not just for you but for everyone. And how you internalize that and carry on makes the difference. And when you feel lost or stuck, you are not hopeless, but in progress. Being broken down so that you can be reconstructed, stronger, better. Victory is not in hiding those struggles, but accepting them as the difference as the reason you created the miraculous. Not because you had dreams, but because you said them out loud.

When you look at erosion, like say dunes on a beach, what you see is something giving itself away little by little. deteriorating. Sure, there will be events that expedite the process, but generally speaking, it's lost a little bit at a time, day by day, right in front of our eyes. Until the time comes when we realize that what we have is no longer recognizable, it's sort of redefined. And I think in a lot of ways we find ourselves in a similar situation. The concessions we allow every day slowly redefine who we are.

You know, and it doesn't seem like much, that's the thing. It never does. Quietly detaching from what you believe. Taking on an identity that doesn't quite align with who you are, doing things, places that causes something in your gut to protest, toning down the color in your life so that you blend in. These are not epic, monumental decisions. It's the drawn-out erosion of what makes you who you are. It's the chipping away of what makes you spectacular. See, the idea that now isn't permanent. So I'll just suck it up now. What's the big deal? I'll just suck it up now. What's the big deal? I'll just

just settle for now. Let me tell you, if that's your rationale, you're forgetting how easily tomorrow becomes never and now becomes forever. We operate under an illusion that things will become easier. That change will be less strenuous down the road. We'll make things right, get back on track, be happy then. But the harsh reality is that things don't get easier than they are. the present moment, it's quite the opposite.

And to disregard or ignore this is to let yourself wither away at the hands of procrastination. If you're planning to wait for that, get comfortable. And see, conceding day in and day out, it alters your understanding of who you are and what you're capable of.

Our actions reinforce our beliefs. Imagine a straight, line, a simple straight line drawn on a piece of paper, right? You're in the middle. And on one end is who you are, in your heart, in your soul, and on the other end is everything you're not. Every time you sacrifice your principle, your beliefs, every time you say, that's not me, but fine, that's not where I want to be, but okay, it's only temporary. You take a little step toward what you're not. And another step, and another step. And one day you look the mirror and you have no clue who's looking back at you because you've conceded one

small decision at a time you've given away your sense of purpose sure the situation is difficult but the best things in life are the things that are not easy you have to fight for those things you have to stand up in the face of struggle adversity the narrative that others want to write for you We stay within guidelines because we think the outside is scary. No, what's inside is scary. What's outside is what you need. And when you stop banking on the anticipated miracles of tomorrow

and manage the reality of today, you succeed. It's life's greatest test. Are you brave enough to be you? Are you strong enough to fight? fight back when you're tempted to hide, to blend in. Every time you summon the courage to stay true to yourself, it gets easier. The difficulty lessens, you become free of the mental chains you've placed around your ankles.

There are certain things in life worthy of compromise. But your identity, your journey, what makes you feel alive, that is sacred ground, that is worth defending until your last breath. No one can take that because it's yours. And when you look back on your life and the amazing people in it, a life lived fully will always supersede marching through your days, wearing a mask, and following someone else's agenda. It's your life. It's your gift. Normality is a paved road. It's comfortable to walk. It's comfortable to walk, but no flowers grow. Vincent Van Gogh. What is normality? Well, according to the dictionary, normal is the usual average or typical state or condition. Common. Normal is also a decision.

There's a quote by Robin Sharma, and I've looked to this for years, it states, If you want what the 5% have, you need to be willing to do what only the 5% are willing to do. What they obtain is not, definitionally speaking, normal. It's uncommon. And what they do to arrive at that outcome is also uncommon. They play by a different set of rules, and in doing so, end up with an entirely different outcome than most. To put it simply, we arrive at normal when our effort level is normal. You put in normal hours or give average effort at work.

Most likely your results, career progress, compensation will be normal. You pay moderate attention to your fitness, your health. Well, your level of physical fitness will be normal. You dedicate typical levels of effort to your relationships, your relationships will be normal. Not terrible, but not remarkable. I'm sure you get the idea here, the pattern. Generally, over time, what we get starts to reflect what we gave.

And here's where the self-assessment comes in, the awareness. You have to ask yourself in pursuit of something greater whether your actions are aligning with your goals and objectives. There's nothing so futile. is telling yourself you're going to achieve miraculous larger than life outcomes and then putting in average typical normal effort. If normal goes in, normal comes out. And as I was thinking about this recently, as it pertains to my life,

I had a little epiphany. So fitness is a big area of focus for me. I run or do some type of strength training six days a week. as far as I can tell, that level of effort is beyond normal. I go above and beyond in that area of my life. But even though I'm aligned on my mission to be the 5% there, I realized there was a gap. I realized my diet was very normal, completely unextorinary.

It's just easy to convince yourself to eat whatever you want after a really long run, right? Why not pizza? After all, it's the normal thing to do. But I had to remind myself that what I wanted in that area of my life, holistically, is not normal. Therefore, the inputs cannot be normal. It was time to start standing up to those things that are very easy to say yes to, to rationalize. And that's the idea here.

I pick my 5% categories where I truly want to excel and make sure there's nothing normal about their development. You want top-tier results, you have to give top-tier effort. Make the sacrifices, map out the path. I've come to see this differently over the years. It's not an indictment against you as a person for choosing normal. But know that it is indicative of a choice. And the output eventually comes to a line.

with the input. All the actions or lack thereof stack up to resemble something. It's up to you to decide what that is. And so the next question, perhaps somewhat of an obvious one, is when it comes to the things that matter most to you, why stay confined to normal? It's the above and beyond, the peak experiences, the times we overcame, fought and won, took the risk and came out on top. That's when we are at our best. That's when we get the most from life. So is normal the end of the world? No. It's just that abnormal is the beginning of one. The world, it needs you. But it needs, It needs the real you. Not the one with the mask looking to blend in,

nor the one making all those concessions to avoid being left out. No, the real you. With your flaws and your insufficiencies, your strengths and your gifts, your hopes and your dreams, it needs the you that so often hides away. often hides away underneath that blanket of caution and skepticism. The you that's coupled with vulnerability.

More easily ignored than brought to life with conviction, but that's the you this world needs. When I was younger, I seemed to separate life into two categories. Me and one and everyone else and the other. And guess which of the two categories? I assumed had it all figured out. In my mind, I was the one, the only one who didn't know. The one who was winging it, stumbling my way through each and every day.

All those other people, though, they not only had plans, they had the right plans. They knew the right details. But I didn't. And so in my head, me being right required I necessary. I necessarily look to them. I follow their lead. Since there exists an established, correct path,

that must be where I steer the ship. But then some time passes. You grow older, maybe pick up a little wisdom along the way, and you realize that no one really knows what they're doing. There are very few objectively correct roads. that must be traveled. Life is not a paint by number, it's a blank canvas. And understanding this changed the image in my head,

from one of me knocking on the door of a party everyone else was at, to visualizing almost 8 billion individual souls running around, trying to figure things out in the limited stretch of time they have here on planet Earth. I realized I had at times felt small only because of the gravity I attributed to people who were just trying to figure it out themselves. And the point, certainly not to diminish anyone else's journey, it was to give myself permission to embark upon my own. It's just hard to do that when you view everyone else as one collective, all-knowing entity, as opposed to 8 billion people just like you. you with thoughts, fears, hopes, and plans. The question is not what is the right thing to do here. The question is, when will you allow yourself to venture out into the world and find what the

right thing means for you? That's what's required. And the world will be better for you having found it, because after all, no one sees life like you do. No one has life like you do. No one has the background or worldview. The universe has conspired to put you as you are here now. Almost an impossible occurrence in and of itself. How easy that is to forget. We were born on the summit, yet the inclination for some reason is to keep our eyes closed. No, open them. Take it all in. Allow the view to propel you forward. The world needs you. It needs you with your mistakes that have helped you evolve into the person you could never have been without them. It needs you with your worries and your fears.

Conquering them will be pivotal in your evolution. It needs you with your flaws and blemishes. How else would life convince you that the things that make you different are the same things that make you strong? It doesn't matter how many people tell you or try to explain you explain to you the magnitude of what's at your feet. Life does not begin until you allow yourself to start living. Until you realize that yesterday does not define you. And the categories in which you've placed yourself, they're transitory. The past is not the reason you can or can't begin again. It's not who you are forever. No, it's the advantage you now possess as you

move forward should you choose to move forward it's in realizing you are bound by nothing that you free yourself and for the one wondering why does it matter what I think why should I start or try or risk anything why should I pick up the brush and start painting on that canvas before me well because that step is where it all begins the meaning the purpose it's all predicated upon our willingness to pick that brush up and start painting. You ask what's the point? The point is everything. One detail at a time, we dismantle our previously held notions about what life is supposed

to be and finally start living one that matters. No one's masterpiece will look like yours. No one's depiction of life will follow the same parameters you've etched onto that canvas. In fact, there are people that will be changed forever because you chose to live your life fully. There are lives of those around you that will be transformed because you picked up the brush. There are stories that will now end in triumph because you found the courage to start, to see light in yourself. You being fulfilled and the world being better off, they're not two different things.

When you live a life true to yourself, when you let go of the half-toes and step into the get-toes, the world experiences the luxury of the beauty that comes next. When you fill your cup up first, you're able to then replenish those around you. That's not nothing. So who are you? Beneath the characterizations, beneath the roles you've taken on, beneath what you feel you're supposed to be. All that. Who are you and will you give life to that person?

Will you be that courageous? After all, that's what life is. It's not a game of right and wrong so much as it's a game of courage. The ones willing to take the leap end up worlds away from where they began. So my ask of you is that you begin tearing down those walls created in your head. The ones that accumulated over days and months and years, the ones that box you in or keep you out that suggest you are anything other than that one in 400 trillion miracle. Ready to embark upon the right of a lifetime. And sure, it means shedding the comfort of obscurity, the safety of projection.

Looking yourself in the mirror and saying, I am worth it. And there's more out there means without question you are taking off the training wheels, dancing with vulnerability. But it also means when that time comes and you look back on how you lived your days, you can say I truly, you can say that the world needed me. And I had the courage to heed. Sometimes the inspiration doesn't come to you. No, sometimes you have to go out.

and find it. When it hurts the most, when the deck seems stacked against you, when the road to travel seems to be longer than you can endure. These are the times we're tasked, not with waiting, but with creating. And those lows, they become highs because they force us to self-assess to look around and say, I don't want to feel this way anymore. I'm done tolerating X, accepting Y, associating with Z, and so a bridge must be created to something.

And your question is simply what's that something going to look like? Here's what's interesting. Knowing what you don't want is often the beginning. It breathes life into a... first step. Maybe you look up and you have no idea what step 2,000 or 3,000 looks like, and that's perfectly okay. You don't need to know exactly where you're headed, exactly what the top of the mountain will look like. What took me forever to figure out is knowing that here isn't right for you, wherever here is, is enough. Because it is the beginning. The engine that

makes it all work, you don't owe explanations, apologies aren't required of you. All you needed was that feeling in your stomach that more is out there and perhaps you've been depriving yourself of it for a tad too long. You just need to leave scarcity behind and train your eyes to find the abundance you exist with him. The other day I saw a quick interview Tiger Woods was giving. And I'm not really a big golf guy, but when the greats talk, I listen. And those who have been following him know that he's had kind of a rocky past, right? A very public, you know, family situation to injuries, surgeries, he's a recent car accident.

And you can only want someone like that to rise from the ashes, right? I feel like everyone's rooting for him to rediscover the dominance he once possessed. And basically in this interview, the interviewer's asking him about day one of the masters, where Tiger played well enough to make the cut. You know, he survived day one and was about to continue the tournament into the weekend, but it certainly wasn't the best. golf he's ever played. And so upon reflecting on it, he says, and I'm paraphrasing, things aren't the way I'd like them to feel. But I've given myself a chance. And I love the way that sounded.

Right? Not just because it came from a man who's been metaphorically battling uphill for what feels like sometime now, but because it's how we all reemerged from our adversity. It doesn't matter what happened yesterday. Your past, all of it, the ups and downs, the bumps and bruises, they've all brought you here. And if life is one giant tournament, you've made the cut. You get to play in your masters. Tomorrow is coming. And it brings with it the chance to write the ship, to discover the undiscovered to find yourself again. By showing up today, you've given yourself a chance, and that is the most powerful thing one can possess a chance. I think too often we look at what we don't have. We spend our time focusing on the holes, the blank spaces, the gaps. Instead of

looking at the opportunity we've created to pivot wherever we deem necessary. The flexibility is the asset, but only valuable when we recognize and utilize it. And yeah, that can feel like a tall order when we are not at our best, when we're operating at a level that, let's say, is less than ideal. It's easy to see all the problems we're going through. as supporting evidence that the world is bigger than us, that we are outmatched by life. But really, all these things that have come together to create our current state,

there are nothing more than life providing you a chance, an opportunity to turn the page. I'm a tiger, you know, those lows, those setbacks, and perhaps even the personal, anguish, one would assume, would accompany those things. They've given him the gift of now. And he recognizes that. Just like everything that has paved the way for you has done the same.

It's created the conditions from which you can now grow, further evolve. It's providing a little nudge towards those things we need to do, but maybe sometimes drag our feet a little too long. So when the world throws you curveball, how about seeing this situation as a chance to hit off speed, to step up to the plate and make something of what we thought was misfortune? When one trades, it's happening to me, for it's happening for me, you're presented advantages that were previously unavailable. They weren't there.

and not because they didn't exist. They weren't there because they weren't recognized. Because perhaps you saw the very thing that could help you as the thing that would hurt you. But regardless, here you are. Sharpened by the mistakes you made and shaped by the lessons you learned, you are here. Not to relive the past, but to create a new reality,

write a new chapter, walk a new path, you are here. And wherever next happens to be, let it unfold because you chose it. Let it evolve because it's who you are. Leave the stands and make your way to the stage where sure the stakes are higher, but so is the upside. I often talk about the power of looking over our shoulders at those highs and lows from time to time. Not because they have power over us, but because they have made us powerful. Look at all you've endured. See all that you've overcome.

And for what? Well, to put it simply for the gift currently at you. your fingertips. The chance to say years from now, get sure, you lost yourself. Things became chaotic, confusing,

convoluted. Maybe you were unsure. Maybe at times you even felt alone. But those times, the same times that could have kept you down, instead reminded you what you were capable

of becoming. You don't get the light at the end of the tunnel without walking through the darkness. And so to remember that, that all this has unfolded to bring about something beautiful on the other side,

well, that just might be the perspective that you've needed, that you've left behind. The world will only give you what you ask for. And so right here, right now, instead of accepting a continuation of your past. How about demanding an evolution of yourself? That game of life awaits.

And so for your sake and the world, don't be afraid to play.