Your World Within Podcast by Eddie Pinero - UNSHAKEABLE | Powerful Motivational Speeches Compilation

Episode Date: September 26, 2021

"Identify your problems, but give your power and energy to solutions" - Tony Robbins

It's when we most want to turn around that we must keep going. When all we see is darkness, that we must have faith in the light, it's when we feel most vulnerable, that we must become unshakable. See, there's a misconception that strength implies a total absence of weakness or doubt, that courage means never feeling fear or uncertainty. when in reality these things are human. They've been wired into us. As Ernest Becker has said,

we are simultaneously worms and gods. Worms in that, sure, we're animals. Flesh and bone unable to avoid death or misfortune or tragedy in life. But most importantly, gods, in that we have the divine ability to transcend these inevitable circumstances. to find hope in this seemingly hopeless, to see opportunity in life's obstacles and growth when we fall, to take the meaningless and give it meaning.

And one of the most important things I've learned is that when life knocks me down, pushes me to my limits, it's not some indication that I walked the wrong path. It's no referendum on who I am. No, it's a hand-extended offering the chance for me to be more than I've ever been. And in a world of delusion and distraction, it's a reminder that we have the capacity to turn life's hardship into a better tomorrow. The difference between fact or fiction, possible or impossible success or failure, is the decision to get up

when life knocks us down. This world, it's not easy. It tests us, challenges us. It makes us think we are but a cog in the wheel of life. It can be tough. But your weapon, your strength is knowing that you are tougher. And look, I know that adversity hurts, but I also know that you're capable.

You are strong enough to turn that struggle into something meaningful. Where most would turn back, you have it in you to take one step forward. Let the walls crash down. The skies open up and the ground shake. See, this is minor detail in your world. Transcend.

Transcend the average. The earthly constraints and the mental limitation. Remember who you are. why you started. Remember that when your surroundings attempt to pull you back down to Earth, you have no interest in the narratives they offer to you. You are unshakable. Life is the manifestation of stories.

Stories we tell ourselves about the world and our place within it. Rules that we've constructed and we respect we adhere to. They dictate the outcomes we get. They become our reality. Because to establish a parameter means at some point there's a line that we don't cross, right? And there are obvious lines that we point to and we say no thanks. For example, our values, right? I won't do X because, well, it will hurt someone I love?

Or legal parameters. I won't do Y because I know the repercussions, they're too much. It's not in my self-interest. And these are obvious, these are talked about, we're aware of these stopping points. But I want to talk about a different set of rules. The stories we're writing without realizing we're doing it. How we think we're running a sprint,

but I have no idea that there's heavy weight on our shoulders holding us down, and you can't take that weight off if you don't know it's there. And this all came to me a few months ago. I was in LA for the weekend, having lunch with some incredible entrepreneurs. They've done some amazing things. One of them sold a dating app for hundreds of millions of dollars.

Another one a health care company. Another one had a very successful food distributing business. And I'm sitting there kind of blown away. And my priority was to listen, not run my mouth or fabricate or impress, but to simply observe what creates this type of result. I was listening to Alex Mayer, who created Zeus, talk about his upbringing.

He came to the U.S. as an immigrant from Iran and worked his way up from nothing. It's not like these folks were given the world. They took it. And it took me about three minutes to find a commonality in their worldview. To me, it couldn't be more evident. It was impossible to miss. They don't look at life how I do, or at least how I did. See, the story I told revolved around my parameters.

Sure, I had moments of boldness. pushed myself, I worked hard, but I looked at life in terms of what it would allow. Here's how things are. Okay, how can I stretch that? But that's like repainting or adding onto a house that was already built, right? There's only so much flexibility, so much you can do with that. But these guys are going around the table talking like little kids on Christmas, right? Talking about life like it's a game.

Talking about opportunity, like it's an apple waiting to be picked from a tree right outside. There was no, what will the world allow? It was with a smile, anticipation, and self-believe, what can I make? And Alex, who I mentioned earlier, sold Zeus, created Menzerbox, and he loves beef, eats it all the time, right? And so it's become his next entrepreneurial venture, a healthy beef stick company. And every thought seems to revolve around that. How can he take something he loves and share it with the world? His imagination is now driving his thought process, which drives his action. Not parameters, not someone else's reality, but possibility. See, I left the table with this feeling I've never really had before. It's like someone tapped me

on the shoulder and reminded me of the freedom contained in every single step. Not flexibility, but freedom, like a weight had been lifted off of my shoulders. Who cares if you mess up? Who cares if you lose, who cares? That's part of this game we're playing. A game where reality isn't an obligation to be lived, it's an opportunity to be explored. It's not about what you don't have. It's being grateful for everything that brought you to right now.

Because right now is a perpetual launching pad. You know, growth is learning, and that afternoon I learned to take life way less seriously. to enjoy it, to let imagination drive every step, because the difference is some of us build because we don't want to lose, we don't want us to come to fear and not meeting our potential, right?

We fear being inadequate, falling short, we see obstacles. Some of us, we build to capture the beauty, the excitement. That makes the difference. And look, I'm not presenting you empirical data. I don't have all the answers, but I'm willing to bet that years from now, looking back, that simple understanding will have played a substantial role in whatever comes next.

The rules changed, and so did the path. Let's not become so focused on each footstep that we lose sight of where they're collectively taking us. What are you building? Why are you here? To play by someone else's rules, or to transform yourself and by doing? default the world around you.

See, reality is fluid. It's malleable, and the beauty is in that process of creating a ship leaving the harbor has infinite possibility. Unlimited potential, and that gives it its power. There's no right turn or wrong turn. The only way to lose is to stand still, to think that horizon in the distance is too far or not. far or not for you. See, a harbor is not a stopping point, it's a beginning. So take control over that world, push it, test it, see what it has to offer, throw your interests and your curiosities against the wall, see what sticks, see what ignites your soul,

test the universe because life it rewards the bold. Those courageous and enough to step outside their front door and not follow, but design. Those who know things are the way they are simply because others before them had the courage to make it so. Well, now it's your turn. You defeated the one in four hundred trillion odds stacked against your birth. You navigated through your low points. You've done enough to get to this very moment, this instant. instant for the mistakes that brought you here will become the wisdom that leads you

forward that takes you to places you never thought possible and where exactly that is is entirely up I often ask myself what differentiates those who wish for better outcomes and those who do something about it what separates the dreams dreaming from the progress and the wishing from the reality. Sure, life is complex. There are a lot of moving parts to understand. But I think this element is simple. Those who build things in life are willing to not only see a reality that hasn't yet materialized.

But they also understand that in a world of no, They have to be the yes. They have to believe in their ability to drive towards finish lines that no one else sees and see meaning cannot come to fruition without that discomfort. Or as Nietzsche put it, one must still have chaos in oneself

to be able to give birth to a dancing star, and that's just it. Most people see what is, most people see what is, what is most people conform they do not create. To change something means you have to be the metaphorical eagle amongst pigeons, flying above all that, everyone, everything else, superseding the limiting beliefs that shackle others to their one-dimensional realities. But most importantly, it means you can see.

You can see what no one else can. You have line of sight to what no one else understands. See, in this world, no one walks up to you on the street, puts their arm around you and says, hey, kid, that dream, follow that, because I can tell you're going to do big things. No one says, hey, that business idea, you're going to thrive next year, I know it.

That relationship, it's going to happen. That level of fitness, oh, I can see it already. Nope. People see what's right in front of them. And as it pertains to you and your world, your life, people are those pigeons. And so that leaves you with a choice. Do you accept that? Do you blend in, take the scraps you're allowed to consume, the crumbs laid out in front of you?

Or do you step back and acknowledge that this is going to be tough? This is going to hurt. It's going to push me further as a person that I've ever been pushed. But you know what I get in return? That view. I get to live above the clouds with those who don't wait in line. No, they become the main attraction. They transform what is into what will be

because the world, it has a way of ensuring that we really want what we see. say we do, greatness in any area of life is reserved for those willing to carry forward when most would turn back, to build a bridge to something greater. When most people point out that your bridge is not connected to anything, that it's a waste of time, it's trivial, useless, irrational, good, changing your life in the world around you has to be irrational, taking the status Quo and shaking it saying I'm going to alter this landscape is irrational but from irrationality comes the future so when you feel like the world is against you when you have an uphill battle to climb when there are a million reasons for you to

turn around understand that this is nothing more than an indicator that you are right where you need to be against the current bringing something new to life. See, if it were easy, it would already exist. But changing your life, that makes you an architect of the unseen. So build. On the days you want to build. On the days you don't build.

When they understand build, and when they assume you've altogether lost your mind, build. Sure, it's not easy. but it's worth it. And when tomorrow comes, and it looks a lot different from today, when you've grown, evolved, transformed, and you look back and don't even recognize the person you once were,

that won't be because you listened to the chirping of the doubters and the naysayers. It won't be because when strangers told you to give up, you packed your bags and went home. No, it will be because you rose above all. They saw empty space and you saw a world undiscovered. They saw your head in the clouds while you built those castles in the air. You were always on a trajectory to something greater.

You didn't need to convince them. You needed to convince yourself. To unlock the shackles and take to the sky, leave everything that once held you down behind. This isn't about anyone else. about anyone else. It's about the conversation between you and the horizon that awaits. Reality is the existence of two entities. Those who create change and those who merely react to. And so I've wondered what separates the one from the many. What differentiates a fleeting moment from a chapter and a history book? See, I think we all come to a point where we look up and we look up and we

We see no top to the wall we seek to climb. We look down and see the water rising at our feet with every breath. We look to our left and see those who are where we want to be tomorrow. And we look to our right and see the trail of decisions we love to take back from yesterday. This is where most create their limiting narrative, where most succumb to the world around them, but most is not. Not all. And every soul eventually comes to find that it was shaped not by sunny days or easy roads, but by walking to the edge of the only world it's ever known and daring to risk the normalcy

to which it's accustomed. Because our appearance in the light is the manifestation of what we do in the shadows when we're alone fighting the little battles. Greatness isn't just a different level of results. It's a whole new set of rules. In the monumental task in front of you is the culmination of a battle that's already been fought thousands and thousands of times. It's been won or lost over and over again.

Every time you decide to stand apart instead of follow the crowd, decide to flourish instead of just survive, decide to lead instead of following. build instead of conform when you endure it's because you've decided that you are different not in that moment but every single day leading up to that point this is not a reinvention it's living out who you already chose to be so the wall is high you will climb because it's what you do so the water rises you will swim because it's who you are so the people to your left have succeeded, there is always room at the top, and you will claim yours.

So you failed in the past, good, because falling then means you endure now, and so you will. There's a quote attributed Heraclitus on the realities of soldiers in battle. He says, look, out of every 100 men, 10 shouldn't even be there. 80 are just targets. Nine are the real fighters and we are lucky to have them for they make the battle But the one one is a warrior And he will bring the others 80% of life is simply showing up

Because no matter what you do and this is such an interesting truth. It's like No matter how much you love what you do There are days where you just aren't in it You just mentally and maybe Maybe even physically you're just not there. And those are the days when it's most important to start. And the expectation doesn't need to be the world. The expectation doesn't need to be that it's something game-changing revolutionary,

but the expectation has to be that you are the kind of person that even when you don't want to, you sit yourself in front of that computer and you just start typing. And maybe nothing comes from it. Maybe something does. but you showed up. You know, when it was most difficult, you showed up. And the interesting thing is that sometimes that situation is exactly when the best stuff comes. You know, believe it or not, when we don't want to be there,

we're really using, you know, all the discipline we have left in our body to make it happen. Great things come from those moments. You know, it applies to every single thing we do, like all of these concepts. You know, we're all different. We're all, you know, in different worlds, with different narratives, different stories, different priorities. But, you know, that will always be a commonality. There are times when you don't want to do what you most need to do,

and the ability to, and actually, I'm going to backstep, like, it is an identity thing. It is seeing yourself as that. You know, the person that makes it happen. The person that, finds it within themselves to show up, to be there, to just do something to get the ball rolling. Let's look at this one simple singular concept. You can always be doing more than you're doing.

Whether you're sitting there or whether you are in a world of hurt, going through hell, there is a way to level up. There is a next level. There's something more. There is the next stair in the staircase. And sometimes we just simply need to be reminded that because the default is comfortable. Even when you push yourself,

you push yourself to a level you've never pushed before. Well, guess what? The ceiling becomes the floor. Your new normal, you adapt very quickly. And sometimes you need that whispering in your ear, hey, you're comfortable. You can do a little bit more. You can always do a little bit more.

There's no rule that says you can't be one second faster. There's no rule that says you can't push a little bit harder. And, you know, that message I keep in my back pocket. Because every time I draw from it, I improve. My life improves. And, you know, if you have aspirations, which I know everyone listening to this or watching this does, right? That's why we watch this content. That's why I create it.

that's why you guys do what you do. We want more. We know what we can get from life. We know that infinite pool of possibility to draw from. So why waste it? And the more you get that reminder, no matter what you're doing, hey, there's more in you. Period. That will never be a false statement.

There is more in you. And I'm really implementing that right now into the creative aspect of my life. went from one video every 10 days to one every day. And there's a growing pain and, you know, sometimes it's difficult. Sometimes it's, you know, it's tough to be able to create at that level. But the reward is through the roof. And, you know, the change, it occurs quickly. And I was talking to someone about it and he says, well, that'll be nothing when you're doing three a day.

And it's like, that's the way you need to look at the world. There's always more in you. and if you don't remind yourself of that, it just goes untapped. Right? Like, again, I could easily see a situation where I just put out one video a day or one video every 10 days for the rest of my life. I'd never know. I'd never know what that other door could unlock.

So whether it's running, whether it's work, whether it's at home, whether it's a relationship, whether it's something you're building, whether it's something you want to create, whether it's something you want to stop doing. You can always be doing it a little bit better, a little bit faster. And that's what this video is about, hope you remember that. I hope this is that whispering in your ear that you need, you know,

to remind yourself, hey, you know, I'm operating here at a fraction of what I could be doing. I'm tiptoeing right now. I could be sprinting. So I want to start with a story about cliff jumping with my friends, maybe four years ago. Now we flew into Las Vegas, spent some time in Vegas, and then we hit like national parks in Utah and then Arizona went all the way up the coast. When we were in Lake Tahoe at the very end, there was this spot to cliff jump. This really, really high peak.

And, you know, it's notorious and it was just like a scary thing. And I remember walking up, there were three of us. And two other people were there. It's like you have to hike up to it. It's kind of in the woods a little bit. One of my buddies walked up and, you know, we thought he was going to jump right off. And he stood there and he looked down. And he looked down for, I don't know how long, a while, you know, ultimately jumped.

As far as I knew, I wasn't afraid of stuff like that, right? So I walk out and I look over the edge and I could not bring myself to jump. Physically, I couldn't do it. rationally, I couldn't speak myself or talk myself into it. There was no more rationality going on. It was just I was frozen in fear. And I just remember sitting there and looking down. And, you know, people would come up and ask about it.

And they'd be like, you know, can I jump? And I'm like, go ahead, right? Like it almost got to the point where it was hurting my pride. And I still couldn't jump. And I just stood there. And I stood there, and I stood there. You know, I forget how long it took. I don't really know, and time was probably felt insane in that moment,

but eventually I did, and it was incredible, right? It was a forever long drop in just the adrenaline and the excitement, and you realize for a second, that type of thing, that's peak living, and there's more of that out there in the world, and all of a sudden you want to capture it and obtain it, And you realized what you had been missing. You know, and then my friend came up after me. He stood there for just as long too, right?

It's just a very weird thing and it's hard to explain. There are so many situations that are this peak in our life, this cliff, that we know we need to jump from. We know the other side is better or we suspect, but we can't bring ourselves to do it. And this all came from a quote I found from John Green, one of my favorite authors. In his book Paper Towns, it says, it is so hard to leave until you leave. And then it is the easiest goddamn thing in the world. And that's right on the money, right?

being on the edge of that cliff, it is terror, sheer terror. It is so hard to make that jump. And then you do, and it's like life opens up. And it's the same thing in this case, right? It's so hard to leave until you do. It's terrifying to uproot, to change, to go somewhere you don't know. But once you do, life opens up. It's incredible.

The other side is beautiful. And it's waiting for you. All of this is coming to a single point, a rule that I used to guide my decision making. And the rule is simple. If you are not content where you are, that is your reason to jump. Because on that cliff, rationality dissolves. The future is unknown, and it's scary. And how are you going to logically talk yourself into a scary unknown when you're at that point?

You can't. It doesn't make sense. And I think that's why so many of us are scared to make that jump. And we ultimately turn back and we concede and go, okay, I'll just stick with what I have. This isn't great, but it is what it is. I can't bring myself to make that jump. We're all there at some point. I've been there. I've been there with speaking big, big,

cliff for me when I first started. Ultimately jumped and put me on a trajectory that changed my life, right? Same thing with making videos. Same thing with my first client. Like all these things, they're terrifying. And in the moment, you can't logically speak through them. So you just have to go. And it's like, well, how do you logically, you don't? You just go. Because if the present, here's the rule, the present is not making you content. Go. Jump. right never forget that the path the the future is is comprised of a trillion paths and you can bend them and shape them and remake them and sometimes it won't work sometimes it'll you know blow up in your face but again you're still presented with an opportunity to adjust and remake and bend and re-approach

and continue forward right the only way to lose is to stay on that cliff for the rest of your life And so if you needed some type of rationality, if you needed some type of reason, I'm hoping that maybe I can give that to you today. If you are not content where you are, jump. Because somewhere along the way, you'll figure it out. Every time I've jumped, it's changed my life for the better. Maybe not immediately, but ultimately. And as I say, that's what life's all about. Hey, I hope you got something from this podcast.

If you did, please subscribe, rate review. Helps me get it out to the world. And guys, I appreciate that. And I will catch you tomorrow. When it matters most. When the odds are against me, when precedent says no, there I will be. When the right path happens to be the lonely path. And victory is.

separated by a drop 1 million feet deep or a cliff 2 million feet high, there I will be. When they expect failure, anticipate, defeat, celebrate each setback, there I will be. Standing tall and ready. When there appears no way in, when my demons push me out, when my senses advocate, treat and the path forward is cloaked in doubt, there I will be standing tall and ready. When I feel alone in my pursuit of tomorrow or tempted by the comfort of yesterday, when pride whispers of their relentless criticism and my legs cry out in exhaustion, there I will be standing tall and ready.

When hell rains down, when faith lets up, when my reason for beginning is replaced by a million, little reminders of all that can go wrong, there I will be standing tall and ready. When the sky looks like a ceiling, when the floor feels like home, when every light dims and every fear illuminates, when eyes roll and doors lock,

when the sun submits, the clouds emerge, gravity flexes and my knees tremble, there I will be. Never will I back down. Never will I cower or settle for the present when our future is limitless. I will get back up until I've made my point, won my battle, secured my fight. The world is simple. Moving forward is not without its tests or lessons, but as long as I continue on, I evolve. With each step, I win. There's no running away or white flag or surrendering to the man in the mirror.

The only conqueror capable of bringing me down. No, nothing will tell me what I can be. I will always be there. Standing tall and ready, not because it's their will, but because each day is mine and not theirs. Look, I'm tired, I'm worn, but I'm here. and I'm ready for anything that waits ahead. When you find the courage, you walk out your front door and realize darkness is not a permanent state, but the absence of light. And you have within your soul, fire, sufficient to set the world ablaze.

You don't make what you need, you are what you need. A piece of the infinite, descendant of stars proof of the impossible. When you find the courage, you alter the very story being etched into the sands of time. An undertaking that makes one's knees shake and hands tremble, a decision that costs the ability to avoid discomfort. When you find the courage, living is at the expense of that which must now die. And to turn the door handle in front of you means closing the one from which you came. Courage is deciding that watching life through a window is no longer sufficient. That what you have is not a product of the way things should be, but how you've allowed them to unfold.

See, a choice is not a thing. A choice is an action. A deliberate decision to see life differently. To see your circumstances differently, to see your outcomes differently, to see your trials and tribulations differently. What you don't know is a gift, willing to reveal itself and lift you up should you find the courage. This world has seen empires rise and fall.

It's brought in the new, cleansed itself of the old, and chapter by chapter the present becomes the past, culminating into the laws by which we operate. All of them stand upon a foundation of courage, conscious decisions for more, to change things, to be better, do better, to advance the rate in which better is obtained. In a world of noise, clutter, if you remember one thing, remember this, you have nothing to lose. How could you when we operate in an arena that simply waits for us to inject meaning into it. Just like the chapter before you, your last page will ultimately turn. But what do you want those words to say?

What stories do you want told? How much meaning do you want to pour into the words that will forever emanate off the lips of those that come after you? Because the day you're experiencing, the thoughts dancing around in your head, the air, roaring through your lungs, they are zero obligation and 100% opportunity, a thing of beauty. That is why we must find the courage to step out. To see what we can pull from the universe, it's not greedy or selfish or irresponsible,

it's why you were put on this planet. To make the most of your ride, to create magic. So leave the excuses. thinking through a lens of scarcity and find the courage to redraw reality's parameters. Push them further and further back until nothing is out of the realm of possibility, until you've realized the control you've had from day one as you watch life through a window and wonder what it could bring you. Find the courage to answer that question and never look back.

I once heard a metaphor that our existence is like standing behind a curtain with tears or holes, and reality becomes which holes we decide to look through when we're peering out at the world on the other side. What do we want to see? And this message, well, it's for whoever out there feels like giving up or folding their hand. Whoever's been waiting for things to change,

but only sees the clock moving forward. This is a reminder that the very thing you need is on the other side of that curtain. And you don't need to change who you are. You just need to position yourself to see it. Because it's there and you're ready. When life hurts, we might have every reason to be in pain,

to feel lost or confused, but I always find it to be a beautiful reminder that we also have every reason to seek out from that pain, something we've never been before. Why is it that our greatest accomplishments come when our backs are to the wall? Our greatest acquisitions after losing something dear to us? Why is it that we find ourselves in our way only after being lost?

I've never heard someone say, thank God I never changed or left or tried something new. No, it's thank God the adversity forced upon me, the courage to evolve into something more. Pain is to our potential what water is to a seed. It's the beginning of everything unshackling, opening the gate, and making us realize we were sitting on the answers. That adversity doesn't stop you, it makes you stronger. That the down times lift you up. That when you lose yourself, you find a part of you that can now become the bridge to your future. See, I understand that things are difficult and challenging.

I understand they're not easy, and I'm not asking you to pretend it's not happening or ignore it or close your eyes. I'm asking you to find amidst all of this, that one thing, one thing that will get you to tomorrow. I'm asking you to find the courage to say, yes, this hurts. Yes, I'm stretched thinner than I've ever been, but I'm still going to find a way. I'm still going to make it happen. Because at the end of the day, you won't remember what hurt or what stood in your way. But you'll remember what you did about it. You'll remember how you arranged those pieces.

How when your instincts said run, you stopped and built something you'll never forget. This moment is a collage of your past. The steps that brought you here, the things that shaped you, It's a story comprised of what you choose to remember. And so I ask which memories get your attention. Where do you choose to shine that potentially life-changing spotlight? What are you looking back on? Do you remember those times you felt lost?

Those times life was turned upside down when you went into panic mode, When you were perfectly mapped out reality was shaken at its foundation. Yet you got up and found steady ground, didn't you? Do you remember that? Do you remember when the things you thought were forever turned out to be as fleeting as a setting sun? When you realized a life well lived would mean figuring out the vast majority of it on your own, relying on your courage and your strength. Yet you pushed into the dark of night and lit a path, didn't you?

Do you remember that? Do you remember the hard hits? The blatant losses, the gut-punching defeats, when you looked in the mirror and thought, this reflection, it's just not who it needs to be. This burden is too much to carry. Yet you got yourself together. You found faith in your own. reflection and you not only carried that burden but you made something of it didn't you you remember that

what do you choose to remember and I'm not talking imagine or create or bring to life no which truths are you letting in how quickly we forget who we are how pleading the recollection of our strength. See, if you take a single step back and examine, you'll see a breathtaking sample size of the demons already defeated. The mountains already climbed, the dragons already slayed, and you stand here now, afraid and unsure, as if you haven't already fought through the depths of hell, as if you haven't already proven to yourself that you've been there, as if this moment is new to you. You have what you need. And that's not the law of attraction or conjecture or hopeful thinking. It's remembering what you know in your soul to be true. You are made for this road

laid out before you. One of life's greatest lessons is that yesterday is only as powerful. as we allow it to be. Yesterday is an idea, a story, a movie that started and ended. Now, it's quite possible that story or that ending is disappointing or it hurts to look back on. Perhaps a reminder of something that wasn't ideal, something you want to break away from. So the question is, why do we give that old story power? Why do we relive it, create this self-inflicted wound? See, the past undoubtedly played a critical role.

It brought you to where you are now. It, in many ways, shaped your worldview, constitutes your beliefs. It was the very road to this moment, and there's value in that. But imagine this scenario. Imagine stepping into your car, turning the keys, and thinking to yourself that you can in this very moment only drive down the roads you drove on yesterday. Only associate with the street signs you know,

the places you've already gone. Your reality now is determined by what you've already done. So adjust and get used to it. You would say that's outrageous, right? Yesterday's path has nothing to do with where I'm going now. Just like a boat's wake, trailing off behind it, has nothing to do with where it's going next. The person holding the wheel controls that. We are saturated with freedom.

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

Then we see the magic laid out before us. And I get that it's easier said than done. Leaving a part of us behind hurts. Looking in the mirror and being vulnerable enough to say, I can be more than this. It's not easy. But it's possible. And everything starts with how we see ourselves.

And when we remain captives to the past, everything about who we think ourselves to be is outdated. We're neglecting one of our superpowers, the perpetual ability to restart. One of the most important conversations I've ever had was on this topic. It seemed trivial at the time, but I was having lunch with a friend. And we're talking, and I mentioned to her that I was full. And she goes, well, then why are you still eating?

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

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

world unsettled and man do we hate being unsettled but what we fail to realize is that every time we close our eyes take a breath and work up the courage to step into that unknown to leave yesterday behind us life gives us new pieces it resets the stage it provides new tools to build something incredible something more ideal, more conducive to our goals, our hopes, and our dreams. And the thought is, well, but what if things become worse than they are right now? What if I move forward and I find myself more confused, more lost? What if things are more chaotic? And that may, for a moment, be true.

But what we do is we adjust. We learn things we never knew. We see things through a lens that we never could, touch things that we never thought existed. It wasn't in staying, but in leaving, that we rediscovered who we were meant to be, that we allowed our truest selves to flourish in worst-case scenario. Contrary to popular belief, it's not the world ends.

No, the worst-case scenario, should you find the courage to move forward, is that you end up right back where you start. a little more confident, a little bolder, and better prepared to live this life like you never had. All that's needed is for you to convince yourself that there is more. You just need to taste the fruit, step into the sunlight, that's the difference between reality and the story in your head. Reality is that this world has for you everything you need to change, to grow, accept,

build a light that means something, it has the support structures and the resources for you to pull yourself back up every time you fall. To say, okay, that hurt, but now let's try a different angle. There is undoubtedly what you need. And the question is never whether the X on that treasure map exists. Trust me, it's there. The question is whether you can pause that. story in your head. The tales of a dark, mean, and scary world trying to hold you down. Pause the

idea that you're nothing more than the you of yesterday. You're nothing more than how people knew you to be. Pause the idea that you're nothing without that job title or that relationship. Pause the idea that you need him or her or them in your life. Every day you wake up, you are a blank canvas. Who can't cares about yesterday, what do you want to paint now? When you walk out your front door, where do you want to go now? Step outside that circle of familiarity. See how artificial and in some cases ridiculous these boundaries are that we place around ourselves. Life is an invitation, not a set of requirements.

And when you free yourself of that, not only will you feel like someone new, not Not only will you experience life as it was meant to be experienced, but you'll see that this world will conform to your new definition. This world wants to support you. It wants to lift you up, and yeah, it may be challenging and strenuous, it may force you to work harder and be braver than you've ever been, but it is at the end of the day your ally. You just have to see your future self before it materializes when no one else gets it.

So move on from all that does not serve you. Break away from the old rules, regulations, and guidelines. Maybe you exhausted time and energy into creating this reality. Maybe it feels like a monumental piece of your identity. Maybe right now is the only security you have. Fine. But my hope is that you can respect it and walk away. See it as the sunken cost that it is.

Just because you paid to get there doesn't mean you need to keep paying to make wrong decisions. Just because it took your time doesn't mean it's entitled to keep stealing your time. Just because it's part of your identity now doesn't mean it must be tomorrow. Just because it creates security doesn't mean it's right. Jails and steel bars are also incredibly secure. No, today we are breaking free, leaving the past in the past and setting our sights on the horizon. Today is the end of yesterday and the beginning of the rest of your life.

There have been times in my life when I'd been down. I've been out. I've been afraid. I've looked up at the road ahead and been completely unsure. And I can say firsthand when you're going through a situation like this, that it essentially consumed you, right? It's all you see, it's all you think about, to the point where the good stuff, the opportunity all around you, it becomes transparent.

You see right through it. It's the negative, it's misfortune for a period of time that becomes your narrative, becomes the story. What if this is forever? What if I'm not as good as, I want to be or as they are. What if things don't work out?

Never mind the fact that you've been here before and you've battled back. Never mind how far you've come. No, that takes a backseat to the discomfort that we feel right now and that's the irrationality of the human mind. We forget. We forget that the lows create the highs. that temporary isn't forever that you can't stand with any type of authority if you've never before fallen.

Accomplishing anything is never just walking up and reaching a goal. It's about getting back up over and over again. Taking the bad breaks in stride and seeing the losses for what they are necessary. What if I told you that the difficult times weren't just manageable, they were what you needed? Those moments when you felt helpless were a bridge to something better, a demonstration of just how capable you are and how strong you can be. Feeling lost, feeling defeated, sure, it's unsettling. But it's also a reminder that you are exactly where you need to be.

In one form or another, you're strong. struggle becomes your answer. Life isn't always calm seas and sunny skies, but if you let it, it will teach you to weather any storm to come out on top. Never lose sight of the opportunity, it's there. Hiding behind the struggle immersed in the ups and downs, and when you know that you will not let yourself stay down, that you'll get up. Struggle becomes a building block, not a weight around the ankles. With each stumble, you become taller.

With each misstep, you step forward. The problem will never be tough times. It will be refusing to find that next level for fear of their materialization. Regret is a choice. And for those who refuse to stay down, it will be a choice. It will be a choice that they'll never know. When it came knocking, did you hear it? When it was in front of you, did you see it?

Or did you look right through it? Completely oblivious to what you had. See, opportunity is a subtle creature, a mystery to the universe. Misinterpreted as this obvious treasure calling out to you when in actuality it's the map. It's the road. It's the courage to move forward. Opportunity's not the moon, the sun, or the stars.

It's the staircase that takes you higher. The pieces that come together to comprise your universe. And when that sun comes up, the light sets your eyes open. You wake up and breathe your first breath. Understand that you are breathing in opportunity. It's not what you look at, it's what you see, and befitting of the message, it's easy to push this away as insignificant or fluff. But let me ask you this. How does one person turn adversity into the very reason they succeed and another turn that same adversity into a ball and chain?

Why do some run toward chaos and others retreat? How can one person transform a loss now into a win later and another person view that same defeat as the end? Well, the answer's simple, really. Did you seek out the opportunity or did you not? That is the question. And when you strip life down of its complexities, the patterns become apparent.

The people who win never ask if. If it's possible, if it can happen. No, they begin with the premise that it sure can. The question is how? How can I make this a reality? How can I turn the world around me, the events taking place? Whether challenging, strenuous, reassuring, or anything in between? How can I position them to lift me up?

That is the opportunity. And without that realization, they're never. will be your pot of gold. Right? It begins in your head and is projected out. They say fake it till you make it. Well, I'll tell you there's something to that. Because if you never put a dream or a goal or a plan into existence,

no matter how small, it simply fails to exist. You have to see your city on the hill when it's just rocks. It's not a waste. It's not stupid. It's not irrational because you know what it can be. They don't, but you do and that's opportunity. Their wasteland is your future empire. Their free time is your launch pad. Their hopelessness is your reassurance. They see blank space and you see infinity waiting to be unpacked and expanded. Look, there will be a...

day when they'll wonder how you did it, how you made what you have a reality, well, you saw it. You simply saw what could be. And when you see opportunity, your mind, your body, and your life conform. So throw away the ifs and start asking how. In your world, there are no problems. Opportunities. In your world, there is no end. only new beginning. Be loved or be hated but never simply tolerated. In life you can live

to chase opportunity or you can live to avoid failure and there are two very different things rather than pursue we often avoid we avoid failure we avoid criticism we don't want to ruffle feathers or disrupt no we choose to simply exist, never condemned, but never extraordinary, just tolerated. And it's an interesting dilemma, because the best things exist on the extremes, life's fringes. That's where you find your accolades, your accomplishments, that's what we celebrate, it's where you need to be. And you get there not by worrying about what everyone around you, things, but by taking your strength, your unique self holding on and pressing the pedal to the floor going all in.

And yeah, that means suddenly, my friend, you are exposed. You are vulnerable, you are now out there. It means those who don't have the courage to chase their dreams, they will find you threatening and they will let you know. But it also means that the shackles are off. The door is open, the light is green, and you can build from the ground up, you can build the life you want. The finish line has now become more visible than the prospect of falling along the way, and you've granted yourself permission to run through it. Sure, some will love you for these accomplishments, some will hate you for these accomplishments,

but let me reiterate the word accomplishment. Because when you live to be invisible, it's a term that rarely presents itself, I promise. Life, it rewards the bold. Those who are bold in their beliefs, bold in their actions, their dreams, and their pursuits. They are not for anyone, but you. And years later, when you look in the mirror, you'll know that you gave every single thing you had to a life that meant something. nothing to you. Loved, yes, hated sure, but merely tolerated, no.