Your World Within Podcast by Eddie Pinero - WITHOUT PAIN THERE WOULD BE NO GROWTH | Motivational Speech

Episode Date: May 6, 2024

"We're stronger in the places that we've been broken." - Ernest Hemingway In the episode, Eddie tells the story of running a "Broken Marathon" through the desert with some friends and how the lessons he learned along the way have helped shape his life since. Youtube: youtube.com/yourworldwithin

I'm going to share one of the most important lessons I've ever learned, along with the different sort of unconventional way that I've learned it. So bear with me for a second while I set the scene. Last week, I did for the second time what I refer to as a broken marathon. Let me explain what that is. It takes exactly 24 hours to complete. And what it is is at the top of every hour, for 24 straight hours, you run exactly 1.1 miles, which in totality adds up to a little bit more than the 26.2 miles standard for a marathon.

Here's why it's tricky, though. An actual marathon, like in the traditional sense, is challenging for obvious reasons. It's nonstop. It's incredibly tough on the body, the physical exertion, right? This, on the other hand, or what I'm referring to as the broken marathon, is difficult for an entirely different reason. Sure, it's difficult on the body, but it's the mental discomfort one endures trying to complete it that is truly the obstacle. Because, you know, for someone in relatively good shape to, you know, at noon, run 1.1 miles, come back,

rest until 1 p.m. At 1 p.m. run 1.1 miles, come back in a few minutes, rest until 2 p.m. At 2 p.m., run 1.1 miles, come back, rest until 3 p.m. You get the idea. Basically, that's not that bad, at least at the beginning, right? But here's what's tough. It's the little aches and pains you start having to navigate around

as your body gets tired. It's the darkness and cold from midnight until 5 a.m. It's the sleep deprivation. It's at times moments of boredom and loneliness. I think most significantly, in my mind, it's that feeling that you don't even need to be out there doing it. It's all self-inflicted, which I'll get to in a little bit here. So we started at noon on a Thursday with the intent to going to, you know,

roughly noon on Friday the next day, straight through. But we did a few things a little different. One, instead of going around the neighborhood, I got some very close friends, and we went into the middle of the desert, decided to do it under the stars. Second is instead of running the 1.1 miles, we all put on rucking backpacks

with 30 pounds in them and decided to ruck or walk with those 30-pound backpacks for the 1.1 mile stretches. So a little different, mixed it up. And what I'm going to do now is break the 24 hours down into three chapters, which should immediately show you the parallels to life, right? It's surprisingly apparent. Chapter 1, arriving.

So we find a spot, we park the cars, set up a canopy to create some shade, we grab our 30-pound backpacks, and we go. And we go, the first 1.1 mile lap or trip. It's easy, fun even, exciting. You know, we use the GPS on our watches to find the best 1.1 mile loop through the desert. Life was good. And I would say the first 10 laps or so fit that description.

It's like the brain can't even comprehend how something like this can be difficult. It's a walk in the park. We're getting back, putting our feet up between laps, snacking on some sunflower seeds, just smooth sailing. Then comes chapter two. Darkness.

And they say life can change quickly. I think few things epitomize that more blatantly than the feeling of that beautiful sunset turning into complete darkness. It was us and the moon. Midnight rolls around. 1 a.m. We have lawn chairs around the fire, people trying to get comfortable in their chairs,

taking power naps. Some folks are taping blisters on their feet, stretching, trying to loosen up. It's incredible to me how quickly the fun can leave the equation and unveil this sense of seriousness, right? It's like, oh, this is a thing now, you know? And I learned from the last time I did one of these that the hardest part was waking up five minutes before, you know, you have to do the next lap when your body wants to sleep. So I decided this time to take a different approach. No sleeping at all, just cold brew coffee drinks. You know, this is only 24 hours, tough it out.

Into the darkness, headlamps illuminating the five feet in front of us as we navigated the emptiness of the desert. could hear both the beautiful and eerie howling of the coyotes in the distance. A foot injury ended up taking out one of our buddies. Another one had his knees start acting up and threw on a few compression sleeves. You know, it would certainly be dramatic to call it hell, right? But it became very clear that this wasn't the cakewalk that the newbies thought it might be. It's very much a game of enduring, of turning the brain off and like a robot programmed to do one thing,

standing up when the alarm at the top of the hour sounded and moving one step at a time. See, in these moments I can tell you exactly why it's so hard to continue moving forward. Because it's not that you can't, right? It's not that the 30-pound rucksacks are the adversary. or even the darkness, the sleep deprivation. It's all those things combining, creating a little voice that whispers, you don't need to be here.

This is silly. You're a 36-year-old dude walking through the desert for no reason. You have things to do tomorrow and the next day. You're putting the important things in jeopardy stop. Go sit by the fire. Go relax.

You don't need this nonsense. And that's why the dark is so dangerous. It tells you everything that is not conducive to your success. Darkness is a lobbyist for mediocrity. It's amazing to me. It's just... How rarely it is that we can't do things.

It's that we talk ourselves out of it. We rationalize. It's easier not to. Chapter 3, hope. Laps 19 to 24. The sun coming up, it's amazing how meaningful that is, in and of itself, the excitement, right? You made it through the hardest part, the dark hours. Haven't slept in a full day, but somehow that light helps you.

find within yourself another burst of life. You feel like if you can walk out of the other side of that, then the remainder's easy, nothing. Everyone's feet hurt a little more, right? Hamstrings were stiff. People aren't walking so much as they're limping around, right? Just the wear and tear. But your brain looks back and essentially knows you can navigate what remains.

Plus, you've come this far. Who waits until the sun comes up and, you know, quits then? That doesn't make sense. That's not a thing. And so you waltz on through chapter three, maybe on one leg, but you do. And then you're done. Just like that, right? This chaos you manufacture, this seemingly trivial, unnecessary trip with the guys suddenly makes sense.

Because you feel in your soul like you just did something most people would not. do. That ever elusive warmth that lights you up when you know you just personally evolved in the face of adversity. And so, you know, two days out looking back, what am I left with? Well, two things, two very important things. The first is that in our darkest moments, there will, period, always, There will be a voice whispering that you don't need to be doing what you're doing. It will be highlighting off-ramps, alternative plans, it will be making excuses for you, telling you that it doesn't matter. There are other ways, options, avenues to explore.

It will light that metaphorical fire and say, hey, it's warm over there. So just sit there. After all, this isn't a requirement. This isn't defining. But if you can find the strength to march straight through that moment, to carry yourself right into the heart of the night, you'll see that it mattered more than you could have ever believed because knowing you're the type of person who endures, who doesn't stop, when you take the ruck off and leave the desert, it becomes who you are.

Starting a business is a ruck through the desert. first month where it's hard to make ends meet where the customers aren't what they you thought they'd be or hoped they would very easy to say oh maybe this isn't that important maybe i'll just take the backpack off and sit by the fire right what do you do maintaining a healthy relationship is a ruck through the desert passing the class in school is a ruck through the desert that's the gift at that 24 hour stretch presented to me. Eddie, when it's darkest, what will you do? And second, having done two of these now, I can attest to how incredible it is to be around people on the same mission, to push and inspire

one another, to help keep the fire lit, share supplies, laugh from time to time about how random the whole thing is. But to keep that flame burning. When people around you grit their teeth and step into the darkness makes it a hell of a lot easier for you to do the same. So surround yourself with people who, when that alarm clock goes off at the top of the hour, suit up and start walking the path. Hemingway once wrote, the world breaks everyone down and afterward many are strong at the broken places. Well, I would encourage you to push beyond normalcy. just far enough to crack, far enough to let the light shine through.

We endure broken marathons because when we put ourselves back together, the reflection in the mirror towers over what once was. We let life break us down in order to construct what we otherwise could never have had. And so let this be your sign, your reminder, whatever you want to call it, when the voice voice whispers in your ear that it doesn't matter. Let this be a promise that it does. Let this remind you that you are strong enough to crack and let that light shine through. Most often, our greatest source of pain comes not from the moment, but what we suspect that moment will mean.

It's not the situation, but in how we perceive the situation. And this is an idea or a concept that I connect pretty directly with fitness or running, simply because that's where, to me, it's most apparent. It screams at me. So being that I run quite a bit, let's dive into that. Most days, when I'm out for a jog or I'm running it strictly for endurance, you know, cardio base, chance to get out there and breathe or reset thing. But then there are times when I say to myself, this run's going to be a little different.

It's going to be dedicated to seeing what I'm made of. I'm going all out, going to push. And what I find is I gradually increase my speed over the course of the eight-mile route is that my brain likes to focus on what's ahead. It becomes fixated on how much is to come, consistently warning me about the distance yet to be traveled and asking whether I have enough left in the tank to get there. It's most extreme in the last mile or so

when my body is most exhausted, when I'm pushing as hard as I possibly can. It's a straight shot. I'm looking up at the road ahead. My eyes are constantly reminding my brain that I'm not yet done, that there's more. and creating an association between more road and more hurt. In a way, creating a little cycle of panic that sometimes appears and hangs out as I'm simultaneously talking myself out of slowing down.

Now is not the time to pump the brakes. I've come too far and the finish line is so close. But it eventually dawned on me that while the adversity contained in this life, The last stretch of the run is difficult, it's the idea that more weights ahead. That's what hurts the most. It's not the body, but the internal voice that's creating the discomfort. In fact, I bet I could run for hours and hours and hours at this speed if it were a life or death situation. if I had to. It's not the task laid out before me.

It's my perception. And so this little line has helped me rethink and readjust my approach. Not just in situations like this, or when doing interval training or working out, but when trying to do everything else associated with my life. Grow my business, build a brand, nurture relationships. Push boundaries in any other aspect of what I do. Three words. Stay within yourself.

It goes to the idea that your job is so incredibly simple that it's almost insulted. Put one foot in front of the other. Sure, look up so you know where you're going. But you don't need to analyze or interpret or dissect. There's no gap between there and here, then and now. There is only this moment. And so step. Again and again and again.

When the brain starts thinking about how much is left to go, I've betrayed the mantra. Nothing external is allowed. Stay within yourself. You have a job to do, and you're capable, beyond capable of doing it. But the external must be kept out. The distraction must be kept at bay. And sometimes when you get it right, you hit this stride, this pace that is equivalent to flying,

a rhythm that's unparalleled. Stay within yourself. Step by step by step, the air making its way into your lungs and then exhaled back out into the world when you simplify life down in such a way. Seemingly large things are exposed for what they really are,

a mere commitment to do the little things consistently. It's funny to look back on all the places I've run over the years, and identify or match the geography with the lesson, the routes with the epiphanies, the maps forever entwined in my life, what they gave me and what it meant as I took it all forward into the world.

And here we are again, new chapter, new lesson. Then after the shoes come off, the rest of the day commences, this little stretch. This last mile plays the role of mentor. Eddie, simplification is everything, it says. The hard thing is not that hard because it's not that big, it's not that complex.

Your monsters are self-created. Your hurt isn't a spotlight on the now. It's pointed at the road ahead. It's asking what if things go wrong? things go wrong. It's asking how long can this be sustained? It's asking whether I have the strength to endure this. Every question breathes life into an adversary that has no business existing in my world. They're not helping me get to any finish line. In fact, they're that negative self-talk I try so hard to mitigate. Except here they are very, very, very,

good at disguising themselves as reality, as just facts of the case, but they are not. They don't belong anywhere near me or around me. Breathe and step. In fact, I need to deconstruct the world around me down into one word now. And what you find when you remove the emotion, the excess, is the simplicity of the task. basket hand. Maybe not easy, but simple and complexity is the enemy of progress. Right now may not be comfortable, but at least you're operating with clarity, and that is always enough to simply carry on, to move forward, to stay within yourself. And that's what this is all about, asking the question, where are you letting what's down the road get in the way of what you're doing now?

Where are you letting the pain of what's not yet here, the pain of roads not yet traveled, keep you from doing something that is 1,000% in your wheelhouse that you are capable of? See, in this example, it's to breathe and step. It's to, in a sense, turn the mind off and go into it. to autopilot, find the pace and hold the pace. But the question is, what is your last mile? What metaphorical race are you running? Have you identified, one, the finish line and two, what needs to happen right now to get there?

Forget about the gap right now. What is the simple solution? What is required of you in this moment? And perhaps most importantly, what needs to be pushed out and mitigated. It's often true that we stagnate not because we don't have the tools or ability, but because we're oversaturated with the wrong things, the wrong routines, the wrong thoughts. The best way to break through that self-imposed wall is to actually build walls that will prevent complexity from even attempting to rear its ugly head. What is your run, breathe cycle?

So stay within yourself because when you do, you see how strong you are. Stay within yourself because you are the author of your story. Stay within yourself because all you need is now to push forward. Stay within yourself because that is where the power lives. Stay within yourself because the only way to lose is to let the external in. Stay within yourself because at some point that road will have been traveled down.

The finish line will have been crossed. And it will have been precisely your ability to condense it all down into the simple, the ground under your feet that allowed you to use. get there. Life tried to pull you 1,000 different directions, tell you 1,000 different stories, but you pushed it all away, found that power within the moment, and stayed within yourself. What's the difference between simple and easy? Well, simple is straightforward, uncomplicated. Easy, on the other hand, means achieved without great effort. The difference between those two words is subtle, but essential to understand.

One deals with the complexity of an outcome. The other, your will and determination to achieve that outcome. Becoming who you most want to be is simple. But becoming who you most want to be is not easy. Just like walking is simple, yet hiking up a mountain is not easy. The procedure didn't change the context did. So let's talk about context. Let's talk about this cyclical nature of growth, because it's not that most people can't.

It's that most people won't. It's not that most people don't get how. It's that they don't have a strong enough why. The path is laid out before you. You just have to be willing to walk down it. Will you? Step one, realize there's more out there. It's not that what you're doing now isn't amazing.

It's just that yesterday's act of courage is now today's status quo. What was the spectacular is now the mundane. What was once the ceiling you had to jump to touch is now the full. floor you walk on, so at the very least, it prompts you to ask, well, what's next? Simple. Not easy. Step two, the acquisition of courage. Yesterday's courage was a fight.

It took a lot out of you, and it's ultimately what got you here. But it dropped you at the curb. It waved goodbye and went on its merry way, and here you are. You can stay here. A lot of people do. You can reminisce of the glory days, the old path, yesterday's triumphs. Or you can do that perpetually uncomfortable exercise of vulnerability. Stepping into tomorrow's unknown, reminding yourself that life's greatest rewards have a hefty price tag, and that price is discomfort.

But I've already played this game, one might think. No, what you did was learn the rules. Now it's time to apply them to a new, setting and around goes the merry-go-round. It might seem like a replication from the horizontal, but here's the secret. You can't see the vertical. You have yet to look down and see your ascent, see what you're becoming. Just by staying on, holding tight, just by believing in yourself enough to begin again, you are fanning those tiny flames of courage in your soul that wait to be spread like a wildfire. Simple, but not easy. Step three, mistakes. Now, of course, it's not the

mistakes themselves, you fear. It's what you think those mistakes will mean. Ridicule, embarrassment, lack of direction, or identity losing what you have, but here's the catch. When you realize the upside is greater than the downside, you liberate yourself. When you realize there's more to gain than to lose, your potential for greatness is born. How does one act on this? Mistakes. By making mistakes. By injecting yourself into the turbulence of progress.

Our biology has not yet learned that the uncomfortable thing is the right thing. And that's why you get resistance. That's why it hurts. And it's why few people will accomplish what you will. When it comes to your climb, every day is opposite day. When they run out, you're running in. When they play safe, you play for the victory. To become who you might be, you must learn how to get there.

Mistakes are your curriculum. Simple, but not easy. Step four, trust yourself. Okay, sure, no problem. Easy. Well, yeah, it's easy when you're getting what you want. want. But evolution takes time and there's nothing quite like giving and giving and giving and not getting. There's nothing quite like stepping up to the plate again and again and again and bringing no runners home. So how does one find the strength to continue walking up to the batters

box? Well growth is exponential and those swings and misses matter. The infield singles matter. Everything matters because it's all chiseling your future self out of stone nothing is dependent on the next at bat as much as all at bats in the aggregate that's why success is so often considered to be sheer will dependent not on the home run but on the discipline the self-belief to keep walking up to the plate repetition and adjustment repetition and adjustment repeat and refine repeat refine those are the materials from which all things are made simple but not easy.

And then we have the finale. The ending step five. Celebrate and adjust. At some point you'll be able to look over your shoulder and notice something that perhaps you hadn't before. Space. Space between where you are and where you started. It's not sudden, but gradual. And undoubtedly, with enough persistence, it will emerge.

These moments, they are precious. They are times to acknowledge what you've accomplished, the sacrifices you have made. They are life's way of reminding you what you are building and who you are becoming. It's a time of celebration. Every little win means something. Every small victory matters so relish in it. And then transform it. Normalize it.

Recognize that that mountaintop is your foundation now. Your starting point has changed and so have you, which means so have your expectations. With an increase in ability comes an upgrade to what's possible, what's expected. And look at that. We have arrived at a new step one. Realize there is more. This is the process for capturing that which life has to offer. If you can fall in love with that, appreciate it, respect it.

While simultaneously understanding it's not scary, it's dependent entirely on your ability to push forward. If you can understand that, there is nothing you can't do. Nowhere you can't go. Simple, yes, easy, no. But you're not in this for easy. You're in it for the journey, the growth, the adventure. You're in it because it's not easy. You'll see in time, as will the world.

that this decision to endure was simply the best one you ever made.