Your World Within Podcast by Eddie Pinero - WORK FOR YOUR DREAM | Powerful Motivational Speeches For Success In Life

Episode Date: September 28, 2022

"If you give up on your dreams, what's left" - Jim Carrey

I had a friend recently told me consistency is more important than intensity. Interesting, I thought, right? Put it in my back pocket and moved on with my day. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized how valuable those words are, how necessary. I think because typically my brain associates the acquisition of more with an increase in intensity. It's like you want more, okay, find a way to be. to give more, to be better. That's the equation my brain was familiar with.

And while not necessarily wrong, what it can do is diminish the power of showing up. It neglects the compound effect. The reality is that consistency over time becomes intensity. A snowball rolling downhill doesn't just increase in size, it increases in speed. Intensity is second to consistency, because consistency creates intensity. Consistency is the material from which everything else is made. And we forget that.

Thinking about how much bigger, better, stronger we'd like to be, why can't I just leap a mile? Well, my friend, it turns out you don't have to. Miles are comprised. are comprised of single steps. I wanted my run yesterday to be about three-fourths intensity, decided the goal would be to land just under eight minutes per mile. 759 would put me in a good spot for my plan for the week.

But as happens, from time to time, the sun, the heat, my body weren't about it, right? And halfway through the run, I'm a little higher than I wanted to be, averaging about 801, 802 per mile, a little above my mark. And I thought to myself, you have to be better. You have to make a move right now. You have to find something in there. But did I? Did I have to find anything?

Because it turns out I was right on track and didn't see it. What I needed to do was simply hold the eight-minute pace, 801. Just hold it. That keeps me in the game. Then we kick it up at the home stretch. And the last sprint will be enough to get my cumulative average down to 759 per mile. No miracles here. Forget the intensity. All the world is asking of me is consistency. Show up, step by step, keep myself in the game.

It's amazing that when you're hurting the mind plays highlight reels of everything you lack, everything you're not doing, right? It's reaching. We get so uncomfortable or emotional. impatient that we think we need to perform magic tricks. And it's like, no, keep showing up. Keep yourself in line. The intensity is a derivative of the consistency, and it will make its presence known. So during those first seven miles, I showed up, I committed, and I held on, right?

Understanding the assignment, big picture. Thought only about consistency, staying calm, and then, as planned, picked it up at the last mile. Hit that goal. See, these little mental games are packed with value. They reinforce bigger picture truths. Show up, put in the work, find your rhythm, and hold. Don't stress yourself out looking at finish lines you have not yet crossed. Don't let the delta between where you are and where you want to be, intimidate you.

That's precisely the reason people quit and walk away. They get so caught up in where they are not that they forget little steps over time are what bring about change. They don't understand that the snowball is increasing in velocity as well as it rolls down the hill. That by staying focused, their output becomes the avalanche.

So when you have to, when you feel like the world is increased in size and its obstacles in number. Know that there is value in holding the 8, the 801, the 802. Know the power of simply getting on base, of getting up again and again and again, of putting yourself in position to succeed. Because your time to sprint will arrive.

And when it does, you'll be battle tested and prepared. But the sprint only matters because you see. stayed steady, stayed consistent throughout. Step, step, step. So remember when the rest of the world is talking about the shortcuts, the life hacks and the secret solutions that will change your reality, they're missing the mark. Because one brick at a time, one step at a time, one day at a time,

you're building something that can't be manufactured overnight. You're committing to the purpose. process and will ultimately experience that which can only be experienced by those who paid the price. Those who didn't panic or overanalyze, but put one foot in front of the other consistently. Every single day. Someday the things that you currently don't understand will make sense. Someday the big things you're dealing with won't seem so. big anymore. Someday the doubts you have about yourself will be revealed as false.

Someday you'll see that the things you worry about didn't matter at all. Someday you'll see that the road before you wasn't something you had to walk flawlessly, but rather something you had to trust and believe in. Someday you'll look in the mirror and see that you had it in you the entire time, that there was Nothing you needed or should have been hoping for. Yeah, someday. Someday that will all be true. But what about some days from the past?

I remember years ago thinking someday I would venture out into the world. Someday I'd speak my mind. Someday I would start my own business. I would surround myself with people who believe. in what I believe. Someday I'd make a little more money, have a little more time to do what I love. Someday I'd have all that.

And as I look around, I realize it looks a lot like someday. But guess what? As we grow, so do our some days. It's a chase that never end. There's always something more. There's always something bigger. and better. And the problem is not the ambition.

The problem is forgetting that in so many ways, you've dreamt of being where you stand right now. You have arrived. You're not the same person that 10 years ago was throwing some days out into the universe. No, you have grown. You have learned. you have evolved.

Why does this matter? It matters. Because without acknowledging how far you've come, you cannot acquire the strength needed to go where you must go. When you don't feel good enough, it's often because you haven't looked over your shoulder and opened your eyes, the evidence is right there. It's hiding in plain sight.

There's proof that you've been there. That you faced demons and conquered them, endured your battles and overcame. You did that. And at one point not that long ago, you couldn't say that you had. You weren't yet that person, but things are different.

Now, what you have today, was once only that hopeful someday. It was a fleeting thought. It had no merit and no value, yet you brought it to life. Look what you've done. Understand how far you've come, how you ran when you could,

you walked when it was possible, you crawled when you had to, and continued on to arrive at a someday that is right now. You, my friend, are on, maker of things unseen, an architect of tomorrow's and some days. So don't you dare, don't you ever entertain the delusion that this gift suddenly stops now. Suddenly the burden is too much. The mountain is too tall. No, what you do is overcome. That is who you are. You've done it for you. You've done it for the ones you love, and in some cases the ones who didn't even understand,

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

No, I'm suggesting that you trust yourself to find them. To move forward into the haze that surrounds you, to make sense of the seemingly illogical, bring about reality from the make-believe. Someday, you will have what you're aiming for. But here's to never letting a today go by Without realizing that you are always living out a someday from your past You are always arriving and leaving simultaneously

The accomplished end the student Crossing a finish line and on the starting block With another race around the corner Another chance to stretch your legs and reach for the heavens If you ever forget that I ask that you find it within yourself to look over your shoulder, to remember what you once asked for, and to appreciate the journey that you have undertaken. You did that. Now onward you go, you have more some days to bring to life.

Today is not like any day I've lived before. And why should it be? In this very second, there are roads to be explored that I've never before walked down. There are actions to take that I've never before taken and ideas to bring to life that I've never before given the respect they deserve. That's saying, my golden rule, you are always one decision away from a totally different life. You are always one realization from pulling the lever, opening the door, finding the answer you've been walking by all your life. The problem is you don't see today as today.

You see it as a continuation of yesterday. The same movie with the same characters and same rules without even realizing you need to change the script. Emerson said, write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year. Why? Because it can be. Your job is to remember that things will continue on and on and on until we give them an end. We must manually close the book on yesterday's story and start anew because we can. We often don't realize, but we can. And that is why the morning, each new day is so precious. It's taking the mistakes and sometimes disappointments of yesterday and transforming them into today's lessons and the opportunity to begin again.

A new journey seen through a new lens, walked through a new pair of shoes, a new sense of self. So here is your reminder that the words were and are, they're very different. That's why each sunrise transcribes into the sky, the hopes and dreams of the you that you've always wanted to be. It's not a crazy formula or some secret code. It's simply untying your boat from the harbor that is yesterday and moving towards tomorrow's horizon. What are you willing to endure? Because to become something more is not to react to the world, but to create a new one. Yours.

As my dad explained to me when I was in grade school, it's taking initiative, seeing what isn't there, what's needed, and then making it happen. And while the setting certainly change, the situation is no longer about helping around the house so I could go to the concert with my friends. Right now, as we get older, our world seems to get bigger along with us. the stakes are higher. Now it's everything I see when I open the blinds and I look out that window. It's all there. And we can have as little or as much of that as we want. But what we receive will always be directly proportional to what we're willing to endure.

To how long we push forward before results arrive. How long we can carry on with the sole comment with the sole company of our beliefs. It's about Bezos packaging and delivering his own books from a garage. Knowing it's not about today, it's about tomorrow if he can just hang on, if he can just endure, it's Tony Robbins with $20 in his bank account, knowing that has no reflection on him or what he's capable of, if he can just hang on, just keep pushing.

It's not that they have the ability to bring their dreams to life. a lot of people do. They had more, they had patience, they had the discipline, right, to remain calm and collected. That's nerve-wracking. That can be unsettling. They had the ability to be focused, to remove all the noise around them, the doubt that stops people before that desired payout is achieved. And one of my favorite ways to look at this concept of growth is a little anecdote about lily pads in a pond. And basically it's posed as a question, right? So the lily pads in this pond double in size every day. And by day 30, the pond is completely covered in lily pads. So then what day is it half covered? That's the question. A lot of people, you know, instinctually, they say, oh,

okay, day 30, half of 30 is 15. So on day 15, it was half covered. but that's wrong. They're doubling every day, which means the pond wasn't half covered until day 29, and only a quarter covered on day 28. And the reason that's important is because that means on day 1 through 27. Those lily pads were growing, they were working, they were moving, yet they occupied less than a quarter of that pond. All that work for a result that was barely visible.

clearly visible. And then at the very end, right, the payout becomes exponential. And that's what success is. That's what it means to pursue anything of significance. It's days, months, years of unrecognized work, of marching forward, covering ground when no one knows or cares or believes except you. That visualization is your sweet spot. But like, we all know, easier said than done, right? This is an incredibly challenging thing because we get impatient and our pride starts to hurt. We become tempted to jump to something different or easier.

We don't hang on long enough to hit day 28 or 29 or 30 when things really start to evolve. It's like James Clears metaphor and atomic habits, right? Where you have an ice cube sitting in a room and it's freezing and you start slowly shifting the temperature up. You don't see anything going on with the ice cube. Not until you hit that 32 degree mark. But there are things happening when it goes from 26 to 27 degrees.

In 27 to 28 and 28 to 29, those little molecules are moving and bouncing around. But then boom, suddenly it hits that mark and it changes rapidly right in front of you. That's why this single shift in perspective changes everything. It's not about right now. You're doing this for the exponential growth to come. You're believing. You're laying the groundwork. Until what I call the overnight success period.

When the world finally recognizes and goes, who is this? Wow, that was quick. They have no idea about day one through 27. They don't know about the effort and the mental gymnastics. They don't know how many times you had to talk yourself out of quitting or out of rationalizing a day off. They just don't know the road you took to get there. and that's fine.

In fact, that's the beauty of it all. You not only saw it first, but you brought something beautiful to life. By enduring turmoil, by navigating discomfort and chaos, you have become the maker of a new universe, your universe. Because you stood there because when others would have ran, turned back, you endured. For a second, imagine that feeling in your stomach. The nerves, the discomfort, maybe even the doubt as you walk up to do that one thing that

scares you, that stretches you just a little bit further than you're ready for. And as you move towards that sort of dark, unknown, the mysterious discomfort, what's on your mind. Are you starting to rationalize? Maybe you're asking yourself, hey, why did I do this to begin with? It seemed like a good idea at one point. It seemed bold and adventurous. But now it seems like the wheels have hit the road and the narrative is shifting in real time. So try and recreate that feeling for a second. Looking fear in the eyes. Capture. what it means, physically, mentally. For me, it was public speaking.

Half a decade ago, standing backstage, palms sweating, little voice in my head saying, hey Ed, a cubicle doesn't seem so bad right now, does it, genius? Maybe, you know, for you in this scenario, it's that big test that feels like the weight of the world is on your shoulders, everything's on the line. Maybe it's something like starting a conversation with a complete stranger,

or interview for a job you want. Starting line of a race, having the courage to speak your mind online. Maybe it's doing something your family doesn't quite get, or your friends won't understand, cutting ties with what's comfortable, a decision to be what you've always wanted to be. There's a million possibilities. There's a lot of fear that we dance with on a day-to-day basis.

But in that moment, as your feet start moving in the very direction that will bring your ideas closer to your, your reality and you're hit with that same feeling, that wall that tells us something isn't quite right. That's what I want to discuss. Because it's hard to be met with this feeling and still move confidently in the same direction, right? There's cognitive dissonance there. How can something feel wrong and be right? Should there be disconnected? You know, it's funny, I really enjoy reading unquote. And particularly, Lewis Carroll has resonated with me over the years. You know, things he said in his works, they're witty, they're funny, but they're powerful. And one in particular stood out to me. It's why sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast. I just loved the concept, the idea of immersing yourself, you know, in the impossible, in the difficult, the thing that's not right in front of you. and sort of creating it as you go.

So I got through the looking glass and adventures of Alice in Wonderland. It was an interesting read. I'm not sure I'd recommend it for everyone, but there was certainly one thing that popped out of me that I found incredibly valuable. And it was in Alice's journey holistically, right? So just she goes into this rabbit hole

and the world is basically upside down. Nothing is as it was before she jumped. Nothing really makes sense. And what you see is her progression as a character, as she starts continually embracing the thing that feels abnormal, upside down and weird. But with each decision to move forward, she completely redefines this insane world that wasn't particularly warm and receptive to Alice to begin with. As she stands up to a queen running around ordering executions, she navigates a world with new rules. and guidelines, she transforms the boundaries that used to define reality, and what I think is valuable, is that there really wasn't this boom, transformative moment where everything

changes, she just keeps subtly saying yes, she keeps moving forward without knowing for sure how things will work out or unfold, as if she's supposed to. And she becomes so accustomed to suppressing that feeling of fear and uneasiness that it almost becomes comical. goes with it, it becomes the author of a new story, she becomes untouchable in this world. And my point here, and for those of you not a fan of Alice in Wonderland, I appreciate you hanging on, but where these dots connect is that it's actually a pretty simple idea. Life unfolds in a way that is unimaginable when we shift our thinking from, oh no, here comes

that feeling in my stomach again, my heart's pounding, my palms are sweating, so I've wandered too far. When you change that to here comes that feeling in my stomach, heart pounding, palm sweating, so here comes the beginning of something incredible, life ships. See, it's not running from that temporary feeling of fear and discomfort, but harnessing it. It's a weapon. It's a tool, right? It fuels the rocket ship headed to the moon. It's the water that that seed of opportunity is dependent upon. And sure, it feels new and unsettling, and yeah, it's uncomfortable, but so is, as we learn, everything good. And sure, you could turn back. You could avoid that manufactured conflict, confrontation altogether, but man, you have to be okay, never knowing what those peaks could have been.

You have to be content imagining a life of adventure and not living it, and to me, that's a much steeper price. Because that feeling of fear in your stomach, it's temporary. It goes away, but the feeling of knowing you walked away when life held out its hand and offered you more,

that doesn't go away. And see, I look at it like this. Two things change every time you say yes. Every time you acknowledge the organized chaos and move forward anyway, you move both your internal and external worlds one step forward. Internal because life is your identity.

And as has been said before, humans always follow through on who they believe they are. I've heard actors saying the most important decision they make is the shoes they put on. Because it lays the groundwork for how you feel. You just feel differently about yourself in clown shoes than you would in basketball shoes than you wouldn't dress shoes. You feel different about yourself in a suit

than you wouldn't sweatpants. And this doesn't mean go reassess your wardrobe, but highlights how malleable identity is. Yeah, we follow through on who we believe we are, but the powerful thing is who we believe we are is created every single day. Every time we use fear to propel us forward. Right? Your subconscious goes,

okay, that's who I am. Someone who does the uncomfortable thing. Someone who is okay with fear, that's me. Right? And that's the internal foundation that means everything. That's how identity is constructed. And if you stack that up with action every single day, you won't even be able to recognize yourself.

That's the internal transformation. Then there's the external transformation. Every time you push through fear, you level up. Not significantly. You aren't immediately transformed. In fact, sometimes you don't even notice. But the truth is, after you say yes, after you take that step,

you're fractionally further than a few minutes earlier. Your relative ceiling is now the floor and it's time to take another step. This is how you create distance over time. So when you hear the word fear, let's rewire that reaction. Let's change how we think about it. Because it's not a monster in the closet. It's not some demons staring you in the face. No, it's a ticket to something more, something to be embraced and coveted.

it's the next little step in your journey and why when most of the world bows down to that feeling of discomfort or instability and stays the same, you will have moved forward. Not in a single leap, but a step. A step that over time will become the reason that at some point when you look over your shoulder, you'll find a life, a world, a reality

that is unrecognizable in the context of the world. of where you began. It's why fear is not to be avoided or even tolerated, but sought out as the single variable that puts a pulse in your aspirations, gives hope to your dreams. The ideal life is not predicated on the avoidance of fear, but the ability to harness and capitalize on its power.

Show them who you are. As Emerson said, to be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment. It is nothing short of courage to walk into that dark cave that is your potential. To become a pioneer of uncharted worlds in search of who you might be. It is courage to leave what will be accepted for an idea that will certainly be misunderstood. At least initially, it means you're playing by new rules using new metrics. Not the rubric that's already been handed out. No anything but that.

And that is the fundamental difference between those who create and those who react, those who fight to discover who. they are and those who hide behind the mask of acceptance. It's courage. See, anyone can criticize. Anyone can condemn or tear down. But who's willing to run the gunlet? Who's willing to subject themselves to that hell? Who wants something better so bad that they trade comfort and the reassurance of now for a life to ultimately be proud of, to be excited when the sun comes through the window when they jump out of bed in the morning.

There are most definitely complexities in life, and we do our best to understand them, to navigate through them. But that question, that particular question in my mind will always be simple. Do you have the courage to show them, who you are to make that decision, not reflect back their wishes and their reality like a mirror, but create your own. Harness it. Carry it up the mountain like a torch through the night. See, what I've come to understand is that knowing simply is not enough. Understanding is not

enough. Replicating is not enough. What these things lack is you. And if I had to best represent this understanding, it would be like this. If you take a musician, a technically sound musician, she can play. A student of music. Well, he can understand and recite. An expert in the craft. Well, she can teach. But it's only someone who in their authentic self into these abilities that can touch the hearts of people around them, change their lives, fill minds with wonder and awe.

Because when you take a step back and really see what's going on, the songs that are sung, well, they're not sung because they are the most technical or most advanced because they followed the rules. No, we sing them because they meant something when we heard them. Their authors had the courage to move a step beyond understanding and into the vulnerability that is self-discovery.

That is creation. It is a microcosm of life. And in a world where comfort is not only pushed upon us, but it's the essence of what makes us human, saying no, well, it feels like running uphill. When you blend in, you can't be questioned. When you blend in, you rarely lose. When you blend in, there is no risk, but when you blend in, there is no you. There is no you. And I'm not suggesting you missed the mark or you lost the battle.

I'm suggesting that every once in a while, we need to be reminded that the journey has not even begun. That down the road you'll see those people around you. They weren't so much concerned about you as they were themselves. That everyone is scared, everyone is unsure, no one knows or has the answer. But man, to see that, to feel that and move forward anyway, to know that you're worthy of a tomorrow greater than today, that is a courage rarely understood. And Emerson gives us with that message everything we need.

The wisdom to know there's more and most importantly. The courage to show yourself and the world who you are. I woke up this morning to the songbird, singing her sweet melodies like only she knows how. Perched above the street, looking down at the people, the cars, but something else. somehow indifferent to all that below. Like her heart was fully immersed in her song. As I got out of bed, open the curtains, and let the early morning sun

make its way into my room. I reveled in the moment. It was both simple and perfect two things that often go hand in hand. As I made my way to the kitchen for that cup of coffee, I had a thought. That little songbird out there, she'll never understand how beautiful she is. She'll never know that she made my morning just a little brighter, or that she helped lift my spirits after a less than ideal yesterday.

No, she's just doing her. And in return, making a mark on a world that needs what she has to give. So what? Well, maybe there's something we can learn. something we can learn from the songbird as we go about making our way in the world. As far as I'm concerned, there have been two great challenges in my life, finding my song, and then finding the courage to sing it. Or perhaps put another way, discovering who you are and then holding on tight in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else.

As Emerson said, is the greatest accomplishment. It will always be a challenge to bring our thoughts to life, because, well, people tend to only see what's placed right in front of them. It's just not realistic to place tomorrow at someone's feet, but here's the magic. I don't think that songbird cares about being realistic. See, over time, we've done quite the dance, reality and I. like a tug of war on where to lean and where to pull. What's worth my time? What's not? When to stay and when to go.

It's a gray area that I've had to work through, and I know others have as well, trying something new, taking a risk, sharing their art with the world, going down a path with a high probability of failure. You know, when maybe we think we've found our song, And we're singing and we're singing. But no one seems to hear. That's when the status quo has never looked so tempting, so ideal. When settling for the easy path has never seemed so appealing.

No, never as appealing is when our songs seem to get lost in the ether. We know how hard it is to give a piece of ourselves to the world, and it seems odd not to get something back. But you know, I think this is when you must sing with all your heart and soul, just like that songbird, indifferent to life below the branches of its tree. Well, so should you be to the factors existing outside the realm of what's best for you. It's not easy to uncover what makes you feel alive, and when you find that, live it, own it, sing it at the time. of your lungs because it may seem like it's falling on deaf ears. But you just might be someone else's songbird, oblivious, like my feathered friend outside to the beauty you are creating by just being you.

By sharing what means the most to you with the world that, whether you realize it or not, needs to hear your soul. So Songbird, sing. Yeah, for you. but also for the world. Life is delicate, defined as easily broken or damaged, fragile. There's nothing around you that's forever. There's no permanence in our world, and sometimes this is a difficult thing to grasp.

Certainly, it's why we long for patterns of consistency where we can find them. We do everything we can to manufacture some semblance of predictability for as long as we can. Doing our best to repress the idea that everything we know is as temporary as a setting son. I had a family member rushed to the ER a few days ago. And thank God she's completely fine. She's back home. She's doing her thing. But I can't stop thinking about the call.

How it shook me to my core, how my walls of certainty and predictability were breached. It was this unsettling reminder that life as we know it isn't guaranteed, that things we love, they're not untouchable. I had to look my helplessness in the face for the first time in a while and realize, well, just how little of the world is mine to control. Which brings me back to a conversation I had when I was younger. I talk about my grandfather often in my work, primarily because of a few impactful conversations that we had. And it's interesting to me how relevant they continue to be.

I remember a handful of times we talk from childhood. And it's like I piece them together retroactively. Things make sense as I get older and kind of figure out what it all means. One of my last conversations with him, we went to this little diner. called Leos along the Cape Cod Canal. And he said to me, there are things now that seem impossible. But as you grow and you get older, they make sense. Even the most challenging things become manageable.

And I get mad at myself for not understanding the context at the time, or putting two and two together. But basically, he was diagnosed with the brain tumor and he knew what that meant, right? And was basically giving me a heads up like, kiddo, this is going to be tough. But hang in there. That was one of the first times I've dealt with loss of that magnitude. And when you're young, so many things seem stable.

They seem certain. You don't yet get the fluidity of life. That stream is moving. And no matter what, it's going to continue to move. Sometimes that means it takes you places and presents realities that, overtake the map that you created for the world, what you understood, what you hoped for. That little understanding of what life means. And I guess I wanted to pick up the baton from that conversation and pass it on to you with maybe a more comprehensive viewpoint.

Because I think contained in those words is a message so powerful, so important, that we really can't afford to miss it. It's like, yes, life is unpredictable. And yes, life can hurt and humble us and knock down what we thought was certain it can challenge what we believed and shake our foundations. It can make us feel small in a universe that stretches beyond comprehension. But at the very center of all of that, we are equipped with something that can't. be broken. The only thing that can't be ripped away. The sun around which everything else revolves, your ability to endure, your strength to carry on, to take one step forward, whether it feels

like you're entrenched in the depths of hell, or swinging from the stars in the sky, your resilience, your ability to not only handle life around you, but rise from the ashes of its turbulence and its misfortune, that will never leave you if you don't let it. Victor Frankel has said, everything can be taken from a man, but one thing, the last of the human freedoms, to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances,

to choose one's own way. See, life might be more than weak in control or comprehend. But amidst the might and power of its ocean, our determination is unsinkable. And believe me, there are times when you hear this and think, well, okay, that doesn't affect me. I'm good. I'm doing my thing, right?

Just like I did sitting at that table over eggs and bacon that morning. and man, I hope that's the case, and I hope it stays that way. But life has a way of keeping us on our toes. It never lets us stray too far from the realization that to be human is in some way or another to suffer. It's inescapable, and that's not to scare you, it's to remind you that, one, storms will come, and two, regardless of how heavy the rain falls

or how loud the thunder roars, it will pass, and you are strong enough to hang on until it does. That as you grow and as you evolve, you become more and more capable of seeing the inevitable, not as the world's personal vendetta against you, but is your time to dig deep and find within yourself the strength and the courage that was there all along.

And that's what that morning was. A message that, look, what's coming will hurt, but you can handle it. And not only that, every time life brings you to your knees, you get back up stronger. That doesn't mean it's easy. But the point is not that it's supposed to be easy. It's that you're capable of handling a world that is not easy.

You're capable of navigating a reality that is not simple, a sea that is not smooth sailing. You're equipped to handle the complex. And sometimes that little reminder is the greatest gift one can receive. There's so much I can't control, but my God, there's so much I can. The reality you have mapped out, the day-to-day, the things you've come to know and rely on, as much as we wish they weren't, they are delicate. Withering away with time susceptible to the intricacies,

the trials and tribulations of life. But your heart, your soul, your world within, that is untouchable. It's the divine, the sacred, it's strength limitless, it's breath endless. So remember, even in the darkest of times, you are the very light you long for. And as long as you believe that, there will always be a path. George Eliot has said, it's never too late to be what you might have been. And this is a message that I 100% stand behind.

I will always believe that to be true. Why? Because you always have the now to start moving in that direction. And a skeptic or someone playing devil's advocate could say, yeah, well, not me, right? The timeline for me has expired. Or I missed the age requirement.

Maybe life circumstances have made plan A, impossible. It is quite literally too late. Okay. But here's what I believe we frequently misunderstand in this department. I think we misidentify what it is we really want. And sure, that sounds presumptuous for me to sit here and imply that maybe you miss the mark, right? How would I ever know what you want? Well, hear me out. Because I think too often we confuse the vehicle for the destination. That thing we thought we wanted, in actuality, wasn't really what mattered to us. We wanted where it would bring us.

We wanted how it would make us feel. We wanted what we'd become when we engaged in that thing. That thing was simply the ride to the destination, not the destination itself. And that's incredible news. Because vehicles are interchanges. It's always possible to find a new route or new ride to this show. And this is why self-reflection is so important, because it's easy to get so caught up in the vehicle that we forget where we're going.

For example, I get a ton of inquiries about keynote speaking, and that's fantastic. I think it's really cool that people want to do that and see me as someone to help guide them. But when I hear that question, I can't help it. My first thought is always, okay, but why keynote speaking? And it's not personal. Why should always be the first question we ask? Is that truly the destination? Do you feel in your soul you have a story to tell?

Do you get a high from the audience interaction? Is it how you feel you can best serve the community? Like, what is it for you? Or maybe it was more of an arbitrary decision? decision, where what you're looking for is, you know, generating impact, adding value to others. Maybe it's some type of financial incentive. All these things are valid and they could all come from speaking. My point here is not to tell you what you should or shouldn't be pursuing as your goal. My point is that we need to understand why. Because when we get to the core of what we

really want, the best path to get there often looks way different than we thought it might. I use this example often, but perfectly relevant. There was a point in time where I used to think songwriting was it for me, right? My heart, my plan. Until I realized pretty quickly that I could live without it, and that surprised me. I wasn't quite sure what to make of that, but that would What really made me sad to let go of was the storytelling piece, the expression, observing and philosophizing about life. And that when I took that emotive storytelling, I could bend it and reshape it a million different ways.

That I actually loved the freedom of being able to express myself or make a point without being totally bound by rhyme scheme and rhythms. I found that point where I could help others in their difficult times, maybe see things from a new angle by helping them to look at the world differently, right? The vehicle in a way was almost expendable. And that was a giant epiphany for me. You know, songwriting was not what I wanted. It was bringing me closer to what I truly wanted. That helps me reshape my plans, my approach, my strategy. And hey, maybe you're different. Maybe you are right on the money. Maybe you've thought this through and things couldn't be clear.

But hey, people tend to speak from their experiences and, you know, that awareness to me was no small accomplishment. Getting there and understanding that, right? If that 1,000-foot view does anything, it exposes how multidimensional the playing field is. And how our proclivity is always to box ourselves in. Smaller, smaller, smaller, often leading us to walk by and miss quite a bit. It's also true that understanding what the destination is, making a point to really comprehend that, doesn't mean you have to scrap what you're doing.

It could simply lead to that light bulb moment. So now you go, oh, there are additional ways I can arrive at that destination. Maybe I've been so focused on a particular element of the journey, so tied to a particular vehicle that I've been limiting myself. It expands your options. In the book Decisive by Chip and Dan Heath, they talk about how one of the biggest problems we have in decision making is unintentionally narrowing the scope. That we have numerous additional avenues available to us.

But we don't see them because we become so fixated on a few choices. I think of that point often, you know, challenging myself as to why I'm doing what I'm doing, especially when activities are time intensive. You know, they're need to. to be a happy medium, obviously. If you challenge every single thing you do, you'll be walking around in circles all day, but the ability, the power to drill down the question,

what is it I'm really looking to obtain here, is such a tremendous advantage. If you can get a true handle on that and you're willing to expand your mind, open your eyes, think about the big picture. Reduce the attachment to that dreaded phrase, The way I've always done it, you get to live in a world of endless options. You see that your path is simply that, one path of many.

In the business world, you hear stories about people all the time that were unable to separate the goal from the medium. Couldn't look outside the parameters they'd created for themselves, the blockbusters of the world. You know, when it should have been hold the vision but adjust the process. and readjust over and over again. Our tendency is to hold onto that process so tightly that it becomes a weight around our ankles. When it comes to relationships, right? People stay in toxic relationships all the time

because that's the person. This is the group I hang out with. This is my network. Well, what are you looking to get out of a relationship or group or network? Because no, it certainly shouldn't be betrayal or chronic stress. or limiting beliefs being imposed upon you.

So if that's the case, detach and find a different way, a different person, or a different group. Again, you're confusing the vehicle with the destination. Another example, college, right? Which for some people makes perfect sense for others. It doesn't. I loved in Matthew McConaughey's book, Green Lights, when he realized he wanted to be an actor. And to make his parents proud, to do it was traditionally right, He went to acting school.

Until he realized his most valuable experience was everything he was doing outside of school. But that the classroom was one vehicle of many to his ultimate destination was ultimately expendable. He had that foresight. Someone once told me when I went to get my first car that the buyer is in control because they have the greatest strength, a superpower, the ability, if it does not serve you, to walk away, to change course. You can always do that. So when you feel stuck or stagnant, try asking yourself, is this a vehicle problem or a destination problem? What is it that I want more than anything else?

And what is it this journey is bringing me that gets me there? That gets me excited in the morning that inspires me to my core. Because I find that when you can detach the goal from the method, it often exposes some valuable information that helps you reestablish momentum. Maybe it's taking resources from one place and adding it to another. Maybe it's a slightly adjusted approach. Maybe it's cutting a few small things away.

Maybe it's a pivot. Maybe a total revamp. Who knows? But the idea is it's never too late to get where you most want to go. Because when you identify the destination, when you realize what the finish line is, there are always numerous roads

that lead you there. We just have to make sure we don't get so caught up in a particular path or exhaust so much energy trying to jam that square peg into the round hole that we miss the infinite number of wide open doors

waiting for us to notice their existence and walk.