MAKE THIS COMEBACK A PERSONAL APOLOGY TO YOURSELF - Best Motivational Speeches Compilation

you don't owe it to them you owe it to you to that 10-year-old version of you staring out at a world of infinite possibility you owe it to the person you can become inside your soul waiting for permission to emerge cuz who cares about the externalities what he'll say or she'll do this isn't about them this is about that feeling that arises from asking the world for more and then stepping out and answering the call see we talk a lot about life without actually experiencing it we're here we're breathing but life isn't something guaranteed to

materialize no life is the product of a deep breath in a head nod it's a willingness to take a step forward into that Adventure that awaits life is fighting for that which is Meaningful to you when it's hard when it hurts when you could look around and easily justify the comfort of the mediocrity that surrounds you life is asking for The Road Less Traveled and finding the courage to walk down it that's life and see many will attempt to tell you what's right to sit you down explain to you what's meaningful to point and show

you where you belong but this is your journey which means it's up to you to identify that North Star it's up to you to find the courage to carry forth into the night not because you owe it to them but because you owe it to you and in a world where people so easily Outsource personal agency where they Outsource strength Outsource heroism you owe it to you to become your own hero and in the process Embark upon The Greatest Story Ever Told [Music] [Music] quite some time has gone by since the last letter I wrote

to my younger self a few years actually and I think we're due because older me continues to learn to both enjoy and be humble hum led by life to experience Hells and endure goodbyes to win and to lose to acquire and to cut away the world is a maze of complexity to navigate and maybe we should start right there because look kid there are some fundamental ideas about life that you just have wrong there is no door that you walk through where you suddenly go from not understanding to finally having all the answers part of

growing up is realizing how little human beings know about anything and that's okay what you'll understand is it's not a reason to run it's a source of courage to draw from oh but adults are wise you might think no adults are just children with mortgages you'll learn that and and as we all become renters even that's changing right oh but him over there or her wait them they have it all figured out now they just walk with conviction into their individual unknowns that's all oh but there has to be some certainty we have to know

some things for sure you might think well certainly we do or at least we think we do but you have to understand 150 years ago science said bleeding someone out would cure them of their illness right our Pursuit Of Truth is crucial but it's a work in progress life is a work in progress you are a work in progress so what am I talking about why does this matter because I don't want you to think that you are ill prepared to venture further into your potential I don't want you to think that other people have

what you don't that you're not enough the world around you is chaos it's a mess it's it's Clay some people use it to build and create and shape the reality and others well others don't the kicker here is that nothing is built if you don't first give yourself permission to take the unknowns and and make something with them once you understand that there is no secret code that must be figured out you free yourself to explore and capture the essence of being alive again life is messy so go flail around wander go get lost who

cares you see what I'm saying you can watch from afar succumbing to the illusion that the world is some a meticulously constructed Orchestra where everything's playing in unison or you can dive in and make your own music dance to your own Melodies because there is no perfect there are people who stand still and people who pick up the pieces as they go next and very closely related younger me give yourself a chance try things no more things bigger things terrifying things you see those posters the people you have hung up on your wall they're not

of a different world they're people like you right but they decided along the way that they would try that they would step out of line break some rules push life and see how hard life pushed back younger me on my college essay I referenced one of my favorite quotes I attributed it to Mark Twain turns out wasn't even by him but hey life goes on right it said 20 years from now you'll be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than the ones you did do so throw off the bow line sail away from

the Safe Harbor catch the trade winds in your sales explore dream discover it's a beautiful quote and here's what I gather from it the biggest mistakes I've made over the course of my lifetime ended up being my greatest teachers leading me to something new to where I most needed to be [Music] I mean a lot of my mistakes are even funny stories right that I joke about With Buddies over a beer the vast majority of things you're worried about they either won't happen or they're reversible but what gets you younger me what truly hurts is

wishing you had the courage to apply to that thing that you instead let the deadline slip away or talk to that person you walked right by or audition or train or travel or follow your intuition your heart to some place new those are the things we tend to carry around the second you learn that not going is far scarier than stepping out into the unknown you'll possess a perspective that's incredibly valuable it will change your life and lastly this one's kind of hard to articulate but let me tell you it continues to research here it

is if your intuition is telling you something listen trust it if something feels wrong let it go if it feels like it's where you need to be you're being pulled in that direction explore move towards it when you know in 30 seconds that someone isn't a good person don't give them your time when something doesn't align with your goals or objectives don't feel bad walking away when something excites you trust that feeling this is all intuition and I've come to find that initial response to be more and more valuable what that feeling is telling you

matters don't turn your back on that now of course there's a line we have to walk or an element of pragmatism we have to hold on to sometimes when we're particularly upset it makes sense to let the emotion subside and allow rationality to enter but this is more about being aware of who you are and what you want right don't talk yourself out of what you know you want and into what you know you don't life gives Clues it's not always 4D chess sometimes it can be simple what's needed is right there but you have

to look around you have to listen and trust yourself and no one will ever know you better than you but if you tune yourself out then how can you have a shot at Living a meaningful life one on your own terms be impossible so younger me trust yourself beyond what anyone else tells you is best or most beneficial again those are answers only you know so listen to to you one of my favorite messages is that you are your own experiment that as we move forward into the haze of the unknown we understand that at

times we'll fall at times we'll see our plans uh disintegrate right in front of us but this is when we step back and really examine not a cause for alarm but a CH CH to celebrate celebrate because the world pushing back at you implies that you are moving forward and that is strength as the saying goes in the broken places the light shines through younger me promise me you won't be scared of breaking that you won't fear leaving the harbor because nothing out there is bigger than you or too much for you to handle or

navigate the funny thing is younger me that your journey is riant on you giving yourself permission to go to see to explore all that starts with you greenlighting your own adventure but remember what I'm telling you there is no rubric for life it's trial and error remember that if you don't give yourself a chance you simply watch the opportunity slip by and remember that you are the only one who knows what's best for you so trust that intuition the world will be whatever you choose to make it and my hope is that you realize you

are strong enough you're bold enough you're capable enough to make it whatever that might be so younger me go pave your path go Blaze your Trail and remember along the way as you navigate the ups and downs highs and lows remember to look up and enjoy the ride [Music] when I first started my podcast and at that point it wasn't technically a podcast it was uh only YouTube videos at the time I would sit down I would open my notes and start planning that particular video and sometimes things would come to me sometimes they wouldn't

and when they did you know I would turn on the mic and I would go and when they didn't I would shut down the computer and say uh well some other then right not today and in theory there's nothing wrong with this I've always considered myself an artist and while you can't force art or can you because there is most definitely a shift that occurs when you look at the situation from a different angle it's not about quote unquote feeling it today as much as it's about getting done done which you have to get done

in tight Windows because sometimes that's all life gives you a narrow window of opportunity to go or not go to start or not start to create or not create there's an idea that's uh admittedly a tad cliche here but it says you practice how you play and I've spoken about before I think there's a ton of truth to it CU those big picture values they're hard to flip on and flip off most likely you either do them all the time or you don't they're either indicative of who you are or they're not right if your

house and car and closet are a disaster probably accurate to say that your Google or Apple calendar if you even have one probably isn't pristine it's most likely in in in disarray mirroring everything else in your life I'm not saying it's impossible but it's not likely and same thing with health when I'm not eating healthy and trust me I've gone through periods where I've just mailed that in right I give a little less on my workouts place a little less emphasis on my sleep it's snowballs right you get the idea it's all related and that's

why I can honestly say in my personal and in my work life how I do one thing is generally how I do all things and this brings me back full circle to those writing and recording sessions if I can close my laptop and go eh not today the Muse as Steven pressfield calls it just isn't flowing through me maybe tomorrow it's setting a precedent for everything if you train your mind to create offramp it will gladly take them because oh how our minds love offs and this reality it highlights the power of shutting down that

possibility altogether stopping it in its tracks making it simple this is a window of opportunity to execute so execute and will it be the best thing you've ever done maybe not but maybe the reality is you condition your mind to show up for yourself there's a shift that occurs when one looks at the task in front of them and asks not can this be done today but rather it will be done how do I execute to the best of my ability not I hope I have it this morning but rather good ideas flow through me

so sit down and string a few of those ideas together the expectation that you will produce something valuable it has a way of ensuring you do exactly that my personal best for a half marathon was run with the flu and I could have closed that metaphorical laptop and said some other time I don't feel well but I reposition the question to how do I find a way to execute in this window of opportunity before me lo and behold it was the right move I've gone to events where I had a million other things happening in

my world right I wasn't particularly thrilled about going but I did because I committed met some people that changed my life right small window execute when there is a task before you and you have committed to it when leaving or turning around isn't even an option that is a superpower now obviously there's a line reaching that sunk cost fallacy I'm not advocating you continuously hit your head against the wall you know when Uh something's bad for you or you should be doing something different I'm talking about those things we know we should be doing right

the ones we're better off for but life has presented friction in one form or another it's very easy to identify that friction as an enemy as a reason you can't it's tempting to say you'll wait until things are better or easier or perfect but life doesn't provide those situations it gives Windows to [Music] execute so train your mind to identify and capitalize in those moments understanding that well technically yeah you could walk away that option is no longer available to you some people do what they feel like they do what they want to and others

do what must be done and it's the lad that creates meaningful sustainable progress in life as far as I'm concerned it's the ladder that brings about contentment you could have waited for a perfect moment but instead you said yes consistently sat down and in the meantime chipped away at something more important something real and that real thing is exponential growth exponential growth waits for you to capitalize it waits for you to commit it waits for you to sit down and execute it doesn't wait though for you to feel ready bernee Brown has said courage start

starts with showing up and letting ourselves be seen it's one of my favorite ideas because to me it's symbolic of a building process taking what would otherwise be blank space nothingness and stepping into it believing yourself enough to say there's a void here and I can fill it I'm strong enough to show myself to the world my ideas to the world my work to the world I have in br's words the courage to be seen 7 years ago in 2016 I wrote about uh my first experience with this Epiphany in a video called fittingly courage

I talk about my light bulb moment where I'm walking down the street and realize everything around me all of it was built by people with enough self-belief to think I can add value to the world I can in one form or another take a blank space and create within those parameters Something Beautiful something meaningful I not him or her I can be the reason things change for the better you that's a hard notion to grasp because it's overwhelming to put Faith or stock into ideas you're just writing yourself IOU notes right and it's particularly difficult

when things take time or don't go the way you want them to immediately you start to feel crazy and you know for a fact those around you can't see it or understand how could they this is a you thing right it exists in your head and your head only but that building to your left that song you're listening to the book you're reading that car you're driving these things exist because those who brought them to life survived the storm they believed and hung in long enough pushed beyond the self-doubt they escaped that maze that chews

up and spits out so many [Music] and a few weeks ago I was in Vegas for a podcast and uh doing some marketing for a new Venture it's with a friend and business partner we're on the balcony looking out over Vegas and we're both inspired in that moment because we're reminded how big the world is and how everything below us is a product of Courage right opportunity captured and acted upon by those who believed in themselves to do it and pointing down to different things right those offices were built by someone every light built by

someone every car going down the road built by someone emphasizing just that beautiful reality it's all possible but you have to initiate it and it's incredible how things come full circle 7 years ago the scary thing was putting my voice out there you know fast forward a a little bit same game just different Stakes it's like it will always be true if you want to increase your impact do not forget two things one it's possible for you and two it takes courage sure self-belief alone it won't get you through the finish line but without it

there is no race to begin with there is no starting point only dream dreams only wishing only hoping Courage says everything around me was brought to life by people with the strength to convert nothing into something and those people they are not gods they are no different or better or greater than you or I they see blank space and ask why not me why couldn't I leave a mark or make the change and that's just it you can be the one not some other guy not your neighbor not the folks on social media you but

you have to believe it and be willing to trudge through the storm you have to be willing as difficult as it might seem at first to be seen to step out of the darkness and into the light you have that courage within you so remind yourself that one it's there and two it's who you are and I promise you the world will change around you when I was younger posters of the Boston skyline were plastered all over the walls in my room something about the city it pulled me in it was a portal of sorts

encapsulating many of the things I loved right my favorite sports teams where I saw some of my first concerts was the place where anything and everything happened as a young kid it was representative of what life could be the possibility and I reference this now because my day today is obviously more complex than it was then my cognitive mapping of the world looks a lot different today than it did when I was 13 you know I've seen a lot of possibility become responsibility and in many ways that's just part of growing up maturing it's a

great thing but I also believe we are capable of walking and chewing gum at the same time I think we're capable of being present and dreaming simultaneously and when we let go of the latter we forfeit Something innately Beautiful about our time on this planet this thought was prompted by my looking around that house the other day and realizing there's absolutely nothing on the walls that resembles that world right you'd never know it was the same person there are no rock bands there's no fast cars or cityscapes not now and the point is not that

I I need those things or even want them the point is without a doubt their existence symbolized a hope a sense of excitement their presence reinforc that there is something fun and invigorating out there they reminded me of the world's breath Beyond you know my going to school and soccer practice and I don't want to lose that I don't want anyone to lose that see our imaginations shouldn't be inversely proportional to our age taking down the poster shouldn't leave a void that's never filled again and I guess I wanted to pass that reminder along just

how much of life is unexplored simply because you've drawn parameters around yourself over the years and called it your day-to-day existence doesn't mean that's all there is and you used to know that right when you hung posters and played with your friends you used to know that we all [Music] did what makes life incredible is that we are always one decision away from recapturing that magic we've never gone too far to adjust a situation we aren't happy with we're never too old to explore that idea that we've had in the back of our minds we're

never too far in to change direction or Pick A New Path what you see around you isn't all there is that's what we need to remind ourselves in so many ways reality isn't a set of uh instructions we have to adhere to it's something we build and when you stop dreaming when you stop growing you also stop building when you stop building you you stop living maybe I don't hang those pictures on my wall anymore but now I have the ability to actually physically step out my front door and immerse myself into the upside of

life we all do if this world does anything it extends its hand and invites us to step further into it it asks us to remember that which has been tucked away in our imagination to bring it to life one step at a [Music] time when the Run got that difficult I would often count street lights why because at some point I realized that it wasn't so much the immediate moment that was painful as it was the idea that I had to continue on a fear of the unknown our minds are brilliant because they have the

power to gaze into the future to anticipate to predict predict and sometimes that prediction materializes in the form of stress and pain in the present a pain that let's face it is manufactured see the present moment may be uncomfortable but it's manageable it's always something we can harness and adapt ourselves to but make believe scenarios the imaginary monsters we let in well I don't know how well equipped we are to handle those so I've found Solus in simply keeping them out see counting street lights it brings me to the now I can always get to

the next street light in fact it's always visibly in front of me it's tangible it's real there is no space for tri tricks or scary stories when I count street light my mind's job is to focus on those tall metal fixtures and the body's job is to listen and move accordingly and while sure there is pain it is manageable when you look it directly in the eyes not with regard to what it can be but as it exists now in this moment we can always rise to be more than we once thought possible these street

lights simply remind us of that [Music] fact and so beyond this moment when the running shoes are off long after the Finish Line crossed it's imperative that the idea remains that yes life will be painful and life can hurt but it never gives you in one instant more than you can handle and sometimes it might seem so sometimes it might appear overwhelming but when we remind ourselves that we're simply borrowing pain from a future that has not yet arrived when we refocus on what is within our control we Empower ourselves our greatness expands and our

strength intensifies I because look there's a time and a place for everything and in our moments of duress when the world is weighing down on us I've found the answer to be thinking less and trusting more and the next footstep transforms into not the detail but the story in its entirety sure some times life is about planning and calculating and strategizing but sometimes life also calls us to put our heads down shut our minds off and find a way to move towards something greater it's step step light post step step light post demoting the discomfort

from the star of the movie or the main character to a subtle Observer sitting quietly in the background as you do what you were going to do anyway with or without it never forget how much control you have over the current moment and that our greatest pain is often masked in a fiction a delusion when we find ourselves stuck it's because of a future that has one not arrived and two is outside the scope of the task at hand it's not because of what's around the corner that we survive life's trying times it's because we

dig deep enough to get to that next light post that next day that next stop that next chapter look you will emerge Victorious not because of the future but the now because you realize your strength shut off the world and conquered your next step [Music] what is the complex but an accumulation of that which is simple what are big things if not just a multitude of little things there's comfort in the understanding that all we have in life all there is is Simplicity easy to understand pieces it's just that sometimes we stack them so high

that they start to take a new shape but like Greg mun references in his book essentialism the power isn't always in acquiring answers you already have them they're in front of you the power is in cutting away the things that don't need to be there removing all that stands between you and your ideal existence and I think that's one of life's great misunderstandings we don't need to find more we need to remove the excess until we're face to face with what matters and to adopt this principle it's it's nothing short of liberating chaos confusion disorder

they don't imply that you lack the right things they suggest you haven't stripped life of the wrong things you have not simplified 1,000 miles is intimidating when you look at it holistically it's a long journey but it's just a collection of steps and well shouldn't we find solace in the fact that anyone can take one step it's not a game of complexity it's a game of understanding what's in front of you and what's in front of you is always manageable so much of our stress stems from Forgetting what that journey is made of whether it's

a change in career Mastery of an art some kind of personal transformation the result we want when looking at it from the starting line it's too complex to understand too many pieces stacked up so let's break it down let's find the foundation what's really there what are the one two three things we need to do what is that golden question what matters if you lose sight of that then you will stumble through life I've learned this I've lived it the time I take to myself every day is invaluable to me because I ask myself those

two questions what matters and what are the simple steps I need to take right what can I remove was talking about this during an interview this week you know my personal growth and one of the most important aspects has been the understanding and the zeroing in on what's important I used to take uh so much pride in composing the background music to these speeches end to end right I used to love to be able to say I did it all that was so I thought the great differentiator but ultimately I learned to take a step

back and ask what matters here what do you care about it's the storytelling that I love it's the impact and let's be real no one cares who wrote the background music it's holistically how does the peace make you feel right in this understanding allowed me to cut away license the music save two days a week acquire Clarity and realize my goal is not to be Mozart my journey is to be one of the great communicators storytellers of our time and if a day goes by where I'm not taking a little step towards that it's the

wrong move small example in the grand scheme of things but right on point it's the power in understanding what matters that makes a difference that allows you to grow evolve and I'm confident that this not only applies to long-term Pursuits but also our challenging times the dark moments the periods of uncertainty and discontent same concept where do you want to be and how do you get there what's the simple thing you can do to close close that Gap because you are never helpless you can always do something and my friends those little something ultimately evolve

into everything and when we put our phone away Step Beyond the noise spend time with ourselves we can see how much of life is running in place stacking and stacking pieces that aren't even part of the Masterpiece we're trying to assemble if you want answers start with the understanding that they're buried under mountains of things you don't need so cut away cut away the people and places and things that convolute your story cut away the exhaustion of time that provides no value in return cut away the thoughts that make life more complex than your journey

from where you are to where you'd like to [Music] be as you stand right now you have everything you need and there's nothing greater than that nothing more powerful than that understanding so why not step outside the complexity that you've manufactured that you're living in into a world of clarity Simplicity and capture what [Music] matters stop apologizing stop apologizing for who you are what you believe and how you see the world stop apologizing for your failures they lift you up they push you to be more stop apologizing for being different unusual or unique there's just

saying that if you are lucky enough to be different don't ever change Embrace that hold it stop apologizing for taking a path Less Traveled for breaking away from the pack it's not an insufficiency it doesn't mean you couldn't go their way it means you have the courage to be yourself in a world trying to make you someone else stop apologizing for words that don't align with someone else's ideology or World viw your job is is to appease or conform just to grab hold of what lights a fire in you and use it to brighten the

world around you stop apologizing for your dreams it's okay to not be content where you are it's okay to want to grow to become more The Roots planting them to the ground they are not yours and why waste the opportunity Beyond be on the horizon of your current existence see Having the courage of your convictions is like unlocking your mind realizing that yeah you have the key and you've had it all along no one else gets to set your parameters they don't get to tell you what's right or what to believe the people around you

are not moral Arbiters they're not Protectors of truth remember that remember that no one knows better than you what's best for you that's why there's power in intuition in following your beliefs your strengths in doing what makes you happy relentlessly pursuing what makes you feel alive the thing about dreams ideas potential they're always meaningless until they're not see everything is crazy until it exists so prect hacked it don't bow down to to pressures of now simply because you have not yet built tomorrow you will if you want it you will some messages they are incredibly

simple and this my friends is one of those you have everything you need to become who you want to be right now as you listen to this in real time you don't need approval or permission or acceptance you don't need to belong or be told it's normal you simply need to start to know that you will pick yourself up when you fall and keep going not apologize but continue placing One Foot In Front of the other not look externally for a will to carry on that only exists within you see the second you begin rewriting

the rules changing the game you put yourself in position to to emerge Victorious there are a handful of recorded lectures online by Jim ran who has definitely become one of my favorite thinkers over the years and I found this little nugget the other day that I wanted to share he says there are four emotions that will change your life disgust decision desire and resolve and I want to talk about the first one because I found the story to be incredibly powerful uh and also relatable right in various aspects of Life over the years so he

he frames it by talking about about uh a Girl Scout walking up to his front door to try and sell him some Girl Scout cookies when he's 25 years old and uh he's broke doesn't have any money at the time and tells her what I assume to be a white lie as to why he can't buy the cookies at that particular time right so he tells her that he can't she walks away he says after he closes the door and goes back inside he felt something that completely changed his life disgust an overwhelming feeling that

he simply didn't want to live like that anymore he didn't want to lie he didn't want to be broke and I'm quoting him he says uh the day you can say I've had it may not be the day it ends but the day it begins and that feeling which of course on the surface seems like a terrible thing right no one wants to feel disgust with their circumstance uh but it's ultimately one of the most powerful indicators life can present to us there has always been and I assume will continue to be that point in

many uh different facets of my life where I say enough is enough I just never thought to categorize it and label it like he did but that's what it is you know getting to a point where you look around and realize you've conceeded too much you've strayed too far beyond what matters to you you've left too much on the table that feeling again while uncomfortable is often what becomes the first step towards that which is truly meaningful a better version of [Music] yourself a realization by the way that's not uh some denunciation of who you

are right it's not saying I'm not good enough or I'm inadequate I would describe it as the exact opposite it's thinking enough of yourself to acknowledge that you're better than this it's saying yeah there's a reality where I stay the same where I don't change where I allow this to just be my life but that's not the reality I'm going to choose cuz I respect myself too much to continue living with that dissonance between my actions and who I know I truly am and I think at a deep level we all understand this you know

so many times in life funny enough we don't change until we have to until our backs are completely against the wall took me years in my previous professional life to say enough is enough but ultimately got to that point Point I've been there uh in relationships been there with my creative work been there with my finances and what's especially interesting is that as you grow evolve and your goals change what you expect of yourself changes grows along with you you'll find yourself at that place again and again and again and that's good listen to it

right that's your intuition telling you you're ready for more that something else awaits that theep status quo is no longer sufficient and there lies the opportunity right to recognize and Associate that feeling of disgust as ran calls it with the need to change or an opportunity to change before things blow up or become more difficult than they need to be everything in your life has been allowed by you to some extent you know that's an important thing to understand if there's someone in your life that's making it hell you to an extent are responsible for

that right no one gets your time without your permission if you're doing things that don't move motivate or inspire you well the reality is you're choosing those actions now the circumstances may be specific to to to you they may be difficult and I understand that but are you asking yourself how you can begin moving away from it how you can put walls between yourself and the things that drag you down because the bottom line is it's very easy to become accustomed to things that are a drain on our lives the old frog in the boiling

water right you throw a frog in a pot of hot water it'll jump right out but you put it in a pot of cool water and you slowly but incrementally increase the temperature until it's boiling the Frog won't realize it's burning alive I think in the same way we learn to live with that situational disgust the things we're unhappy with just become uh the baseline or normal it becomes regular and what I love about this Girl Scout cookie story is that light bulb moment where it's like no I don't have to accept this I can

take back control I dictate how I'm going to live and I know this isn't it now you don't need to have all the answers right away in fact you most certainly won't have them but every Journey as the saying goes begins with the first step that's precisely why the moment is so powerful you don't start moving to that new place until you realize that you want to start moving away from where you are ran talks about disgust being a powerful motivator that's why it's the initial leverage you need to create that momentum to to see

the gap between where you want to be and where you are and this is ultimately a call to that realization do an audit on yourself and your contentment the places you find lacking they're calling for your attention and it's normal it's okay it's part of life but it's also your opportunity to begin making that change I like very simple very straightforward notes to help me parse through this simple list two columns on the left everything that brings me some level of anxiety or that uh is a drain on my piece and on the column on

the right directly across from it simply what I plan to do about each item nothing major but a tangible manageable step because as Jim ran says you begin to utilize that feeling of disgust or discontent to act you turn that message into something beautiful an adventure some variation of growth that's where the good stuff is by the way it also changes our relationship with those emotions when they emerge it's no longer poor me I'm stuck my life is hard and the list goes on and on no it's oh this doesn't feel good how can I

use it to connect me to something that does let's listen to that I don't like the feel feeling of making excuses as to why I can't buy the cookies I don't like the feeling of not having the financial resources obviously can't fix it overnight but let's make a plan let's allow the wheels to hit the road right which hey who knows might be more than I've ever done this is the magic beginning he alludes to the confidence being earned the purpose the meaning and ultimately being that we only get results where we place our attention

the outcome we've been looking for so when you find yourself at that point when you experience a repetition of disappointment or frustration with your circumstance let that be the gift it's trying to be let it be the reason you will soon wake up a different person moving towards that which aligns with who you are life is perspective so during the good times find gratitude and during the difficult times find the opportunity when you have the answers when you know be proud of your knowledge and when you don't celebrate all the wisdom to come when the

sun is shining cherish the warmth on your skin and when it's not learn to run in the rain when you're focused appreciate the clarity and when life feels chaotic embrace the chance to Manu manufacture order when people come into your life value the ride that you'll share and when they leave take note of all they gave along away when you win reflect back on all the hard work that made it possible and when you lose take in the lessons that even winning can't provide when things go as planned Revel in your ability to execute but

when your plans and life's plans diverge remember that some things are simply outside of your control and now this moment is a chance to identify and utilize the things that are in in your control Henry David thorough it's not what you look at it's what you see so see the world as you'd like it to be never turning a blind eye to reality but realizing how much control you have over making reality your own we are the builders the world around us merely provides the components and the pieces and if one were to live as

though there were value in every moment they would inevitably find themselves looking for that value perhaps even when it was difficult to find most elusive when most would hang their heads and walk right by it I look out my window and see a world that is neither valuable or valueless I see a blank canvas in which we are tasked with making that decision life is a roller coaster ride it has ups and downs the obvious and the unexpected and while some think nothing of the high points and dwell on the low points there are an

abundance of resources of beauty of Joy reserved for those who understand how great the highs are and how valuable the lows who take what comes not as uh walls to live within but as parts to assemble not as antithetical to their hopes and dreams but is the very Foundation they will build those hopes and dreams upon this world is not for you just as much as it is entirely yours it calls for you to be that Arbiter for what you decide will inevitably take [Music] [Music] shape there's a haze that circles around our most important

moments and I say Haze because often the things that will uh be most meaningful in our lives or that will best position us for future transformation or success they don't accurately depict the value that they ultimately provide in fact a lot of the time we get the opposite impression the answer is deceptively masked as the problem the thing we are most inclined to run away from it's often unclear to us that the pain we're experiencing will become the purpose the loss will become the strength we can't always see that losing the job will become our

reason to find ourselves in the work that will be most meaningful we don't always understand that losing someone that was a big part of our Lives will ultimately create a little space that will bring about connection with others who will lift us up and make us better we aren't always aware that falling short is incredibly powerful because it's what most often prompts us to look in the mirror and ask that magical question how can I be better again we see it in a million different ways different contexts the solutions masquerade as problems or as has

been famously put the way often presents itself as the obstacle which means we have to operate with a sense of awareness and understanding that often eludes us sometimes the reality is that it hurts to let go but if it's not right for you it hurts to hold on as well the difference is is when you do find the strength to let go you simultaneously create space for the things that will make your life better and I've noticed you know as I've navigated this crazy Place well into my 30s that the discomfort I've experienced in the

past yet rarely uh utilizes my future as its Benchmark right when I'm uncomfortable it's because something has gone ay in the now this moment hurt in this moment I feel less than in this moment I feel lost in this moment I am X Y or Z it's all generally immediate emotive responses to what's happening which is why I advocate so strongly for pausing pulling back taking a breath and assessing the whole picture in totality see I've made decisions in my life that have set me back a year right that destroyed me emotionally totally altered my

plans and I look back on some of those decisions now with all the pain they brought and I think you know was there another way did I make the right move did I need to endure all that and I'm not going to pretend you know I know how some parallel universe would have unfolded if I acted differently but as I reflect back I still think that I made the right choice I don't see another way sometimes there are no easy decisions sometimes life is about choosing the least bad option I've talked about having to step

back in order to Leap Forward or stepping sideways in order to ultimately advance sometimes the thing we need just looks like discomfort the sheep in wolves clothing where you have to seek out monsters in order to destroy the ones that live inside of you the reason one I think this is so important and two I'm so passionate about sharing it with others is because again our instincts drive us away from the things we need most that's just how it is humans are more uh emotional than we are rational and there have been plenty of times

where you know just being reminded you know Eddie I get that this is challenging but where do you most want to go Eddie you're playing defensive which I'm sure minimizes problems now but will never Propel you forward with your career Eddie you're dragging your feet and calling it perfectionism could it in fact be fear right I've had a lot of these little uh and sometimes not so little epiphanies over the course of the last decade you when people ask me about speaking which being that I do it for a living would make sense right tips

or insights whatever it is I'm being completely sincere when I say that I wish I had some formula I could propose right that would make you go from 0 to 60 in 3 months but the truth is the biggest bang for your buck is stepping right into the terror the thing you're most inclined to run from and that was it for me right sheer Terror actually shaking nights where I stayed aake reciting Keynotes into Hotel mirrors couldn't eat and I'd you know wrap up the event would be over I'd just go back to the room

and collapse in bed cuz I hadn't slept the night before right that's how it started and the more times I didn't give myself away out the more I saw past the fear put a tions aside and reiterated to myself that underneath all that discomfort was value the better I became the less dramatic each speaking engagement became and the terror evolved into excitement Eddie please get through this eventually evolved into Eddie how can you make this speaking engagement more exciting more fun more captivating than the last one right I recently spoke with at the MGM Grand

Arena and it was one of the most incredible experiences of my life and I'm sure you can imagine not necessarily because of the event but it prompted me to think back to all those times I wanted to say no so badly with all my heart with every fiber of my being but didn't it was just a proud feeling like you get those moments from time to time where everything becomes a single snapshot it all makes sense like CU over times I truly didn't understand why I was moving forward I just did I just knew I'd

burn the boats there were no other options and when you collect that W you quickly remember into all this to emphasize the very important point that it may not be speaking at the MGM Grand Arena that your North Star maybe it's something totally different but I want to remind you that the road to wherever you most want to be is not perfectly paved and decorated with flowers It won't always be sunny with clear blue skies and to take it even further the paths that are paved with flowers and clear blue skies are often the wrong

ones in a world of tradeoffs we know that the best things often require the greatest sacrifice the beautiful things are often derived from a willingness to endure prior turbulence and should you find yourself amidst all that in the thick of it it's essential to know that should you choose to do so you can transform the chaos into something incredible realistically that pain of loss we can't do anything about right Nature has made it so that we feel every sense of what's been taken away but nature doesn't do such a good job of reminding us of

the infinite value the canal move into our souls be used to open our eyes so that we may see the world as we've never seen it before there is such power in the ability to view that fleeting emotion the discomfort of now in terms of what it will ultimately become as the saying goes the hardest thing and the right thing are often the same thing so be your own judge your own critic decide what best points you to that place amongst the Stars you long to be just understand that the road won't be painfree and

those who try to make it so miss out on a lot of the Brilliance available to us that Haze that tries to conceal what's most important is it's only effective if we keep our eyes closed if we aren't honest with ourselves but if you know one what's most important and two are committed to one day arriving there the shortterm obstacles become a relatively small price to pay [Music] [Music] understanding what you want sometimes requires learning in 1,000 different ways what you don't uncovering who you are means first experiencing who you are not finding the right

person or people in your life calls for initially letting the wrong ones in life seems to demonstrate that there's a price to pay in order to get where we need to be patience exploration they're expensive they exhaust energy time resources but they are the only way as though one needs to dig a hold in their heart before fully understanding how to best fill it in it's stepping back to Leap Forward I've always believed the NOS teach us more than the yeses the chaos more than the calm we are tasked with taking our heart and from

it better understanding ourselves holding our losses and with them finding answers we once overlooked embracing our fears and alongside them becoming courageous that's why maintaining perspective is everything when we find that we've been slighted by life we have to recognize that yeah maybe we didn't get the answer we wanted in the short term but still picked up something beautiful something necessary we still learned what didn't work and saw where not to go because every step taken in One Direction is a simultaneous decision to not go another to embrace one option is to neglect its inverse

every loss is a data point every time we fall our world view is shaped and that's not just helpful it's imperative it's a brush stroke just as valuable as the ones derived from our successes all culminating into one all-encompassing Masterpiece and I look back at the mistakes I made the time spent learning where I shouldn't be the days with people who didn't lift me up and I'm incredibly thankful for them they brought me Clarity like marble being slowly chiseled away Peace by peace they have left an understanding a self-identity that takes shape one day at

a time so as we make our way through life let's not fail to see the value in these short-term misfortunes for in many ways we are fortunate to have them perhaps the value lags maybe you don't see why the mistakes saved your life while you were making them but they are contributing to the building up of a greater you they are mitigating the noise and lighting up The Path so hold your head up high and not just for the sake of doing so but because you had the courage to step out into a world that

you knew would at times bring you to your knees hold your head up high because every time you stood back up you made a statement you declared that you wouldn't let discomfort and obstacles deter you but rather shape you you were willing to learn where not to go in exchange for the privilege of taking your road through the haze across the war torn ground beyond the hills and toward a distant Horizon your horizon [Music] [Music] [Music] around around 2011 I hurtt my left arm and had to get surgery so for a while I was pretty

limited uh as far as what I could do with my upper body and that's really when I fell in love with running started doing it almost every day sometimes those long runs outside clear my mind sort of reset a little bit and sometimes I'd mix it up hop on the treadmill and do my favorite workout which was a a pyramid right where you break 10 minutes into four segments 4 3 2 and one um increasing in intensity with each segment and then you start over and that's where this whole idea comes from it's it's this

treadmill workout uh that I want to talk about because there's a little ritual uh I picked up that I still Implement to this day and it was simple at the very end of my workout or my run I would always add 22 seconds my lucky number twice two and two so for example if I told myself you know the workout is going to be uh you know three pyramids or 30 minutes I would stop running at 30 minutes and 22 seconds and if I told myself it was going to be an hour I'd stop at

1 hour in 22 seconds always tacking on that 22 and I don't really remember the first time I started doing it or even why but like so many things that 22 second period or organically became a habit sort of evolved to take on a life of its own and would come to symbolize for me uh a little challenge the idea that the end is never really the end and no matter how tired I was or how bad I wanted to stop especially when you can see that Finish Line in reach I could always squeeze out

a little more like there's always something extra to give and you could certainly go down that 22 second rabbit hole right just 22 more seconds and then you finish that and you realize you can do just 22 more and just 22 more it's like this NeverEnding Spotlight um into how incredible we are as humans that our stopping points almost always are constructed rarely is there not an extra 22 seconds or 22 something we can endure [Music] and not only that I think there's a case to be made that our growth occurs in that final push

there's a ton of value uh you know hidden away in there the the stretching of the Mind and Body the last rep that breaks down the muscle the last few seconds of that run that forced the lungs to work their hardest exhausting that last bit of energy and focus you know studying for an exam maybe that's where you confirm your comprehension and understanding of the subject matter it's like when we are pushing ourselves just outside the limits we drew up we are simultaneously expanding those limits and so over the years I've adopted that mentality and

I look at myself in the mirror now and I can see it I'm not the same person I was a decade ago those little decisions to add on 22 seconds they stack up and they stack up in a unique way cuz it's not necessarily about the time it's not the same benefit that say an hour every morning at the gym would bring you know obviously that would be incredibly valuable but in a different way I'm talking about mentally an armor that we come to wear an identity that gets materialized it's how you see yourself and

how you see the world you understand how manufactured our parameters are and I get it we have to stop somewhere sure but it's an acknowledgment that those somewes are fiction they are arbitrary you weren't made to exist within them but to stretch them to recreate them and that's an Endeavor that is always uncomfortable but as far as I can tell always worth it the strength to go a little bit further than initially intended or designed is what will place you in a league of your own and that's where I wanted to start right bringing attention

to the idea that there's always an extra 22 seconds and you are always capable of obtaining it that is yours whether you choose to see it or not it's an option it's always an option which sort of connects us to my next thought if I know that's who I am someone that fights for that 22 seconds if I know that's what I'm capable of and that's what lights me up what about those times in my life when I had no desire to reach for the extra 22 because sitting here I can think of Plenty I

can think of times when there was dissonance between my identity and my actions here's a quick story right this was a a a shift in in my life and my understanding of reaching for that little bit more right when people ask me uh about my process right what I'm building or where I see myself in X number of years I tell them I'm playing the long game right like I'll sacrifice some short-term wins now uh to continue forward with a plan that I believe wholeheartedly will trans form from linear to exponential right it's like Gary

Vee's motto uh you know you're young you have time and impact is not about succeeding at 34 it's about flourishing at 45 and 55 and 65 and 75 like that's fun to me that's the exciting game to play and it's methodical the challenge is you know as you're locked into this big picture plan you have to pass pass a lot of shiny objects along the way a lot of hey look at them over there maybe I should be doing that too that worked for her will it work for me right sometimes you forget to trust

yourself and stay the course and so a few years ago I felt this pressure to Pivot to adjust focus right I'd been you know talking uh with some mentors of mine who were you know very successful in their individual fields and passions um and I thought hey you know what it's time for me to start focusing Less on the craft and more on monetizing the craft right the daero side of things which is great and it's healthy but here's the catch as long as you're doing it in a way that aligns with who you are

and so a few months go by and I found myself living in this overly sized and price condo on the beach that I was going to use to uh impress clients you know making products didn't excite me talking to people I didn't really want to be talking to living a life that was uh not my own I'd lost myself right my love is storytelling it's capturing life seemingly overlooked secrets that's what I get excited about in the morning that's the value I want to share with the world and look money is important it's necessary it's

freedom but for me it can't be about the money or I lose the drive right and here's here's the point I'm making where it all comes together what I found is that when you're a stranger in your own body there's almost no incentive to push for that little extra it's like who cares about fighting for 22 seconds I'm so misaligned I don't even want to be here right that is the red flag that's the indicator that it's time to adjust because if I'm someone who wants more who pursues and acquires more and I don't feel

the urge to do so you know it's time to change and and I broke the lease put everything I had in a car went on a little 3-month Excursion realigned and if I'm not willing to suffer through that little extra to go above and beyond it's not for me and so that's a big example but it obviously manifests in smaller ways as well well yes you are someone who can and will chase down the beauty in life who will transform that little extra into something meaningful but you also have to position yourself and the world

around you to make it possible and when you don't feel that hunger inside and this is the point you need to understand it's not you it's not broken Hardware it's not that you innately lack drive or confidence it's that you need to rearrange the scenario you need to find alignment because I promise you if you want something enough you'll be willing to fight for it to hurt for it to break boundaries for it but you must first make sure that you're pointed at something you want something that moves you [Music] and here's the part where

I remind you of all those things you've already overcome in your life of all the times you thought your tank was empty but you found a way all the times you were hurting but kept moving all the times you were broken but put yourself back together we are not told in school or at work how resilient we are we're not told that we often stop thousands of 22 second period short we aren't told that we're living at a 30% capacity operating at a fraction of our potential we don't even realize the Little Miracles we've created

along the way a strong purpose and a willingness to stretch yourself as you pursue it will change your life and that's not hyperbole that is fact if you want what you've never had then push yourself further than you've ever gone and we're talking little stressors expanding one step at a time until you eventually look over your shoulder and see the miles you've traveled until you look at your reflection and see the evolution that has occurred it was never just 22 seconds it was a consistent and sustained shot at the walls you placed around yourself for

the the opportunity to see them [Music] crumble I find it interesting that what we want most is often brought about by the inverse of what we'd expect it's a paradox that's amazed me for much of my adult life and what do I mean well here are a few examples the best way to achieve freedom in your life is to be incredibly disciplined right two things that are seemingly opposite it in a sense or that the worst of times often open the door to the best of times or it's from a position of strength that one

is best able to ensure peace or from our suffering our pain comes our purpose and contentment right and you get the point I could go on and on and on but the reason this is so important why I think it's worth discussing is that it sheds light on the value hidden within our struggles you know when you realize uh the paradoxical nature of growth the discomfort makes a little more sense it's easier to wrap our hands around so let's say getting up early perhaps you weren't a morning person but you're trying you're trying because you

think those few extra hours in the morning will add some lift right the alarm clock goes off the last thing you want to do is open your eyes maybe you even start thinking who cares right this isn't that important you begin rationalizing ways you'll go back to bed and just make up for the time throughout the day but when you simplify the equation you realize what you have is an opportunity and you're either going to say yes and capitalize on that opportunity or say no and stay where you are discipline even with the small seemingly

trivial stuff becomes freedom and if you want to position yourself for a life on your terms where you're at the wheel on your schedule it means facing demons just like this it means you fight your fight now so that you can mitigate it later rather than saying I wish or beating yourself up for not being a little bit tougher in the moment you instead get that sense of accomplishment you get the luxury of time and freedom and I think that's a simple but perfect example of how discomfort in one moment becomes contentment in future moments

not a very intuitive tradeoff or how about our low points we all know no one escapes low points I've always found them easier to handle and internalize when I know that it's bringing me closer to something valuable when I know that there's something good on the other side in that the pain I'm feeling the thoughts that are inevitably going to pass through my mind like clouds on a windy day they're obviously not ideal but they're not a waste either because something will come of them and the goal in that moment under the duress is not

to move the immovable after all you can only control but you canol control but it's to Simply put one foot in front of the other until you emerge from the storm because we all eventually emerge from that storm it's when we get into the habit of trying to do what is outside the scope of our control that we do ourselves a disservice because look we're human equipped with human biology and human emotions navigating a tough world that is indiff to how we feel or what we think and while we can certainly strengthen and fortify that

emotional IQ the reality is no one is on a high all the time life is ups and downs and when we realize our superpowers is not to fight the down times but to accept them take them in stride learn from them and extract the value we Empower ourselves we're giving ourselves permission to live life just a little Fuller after what we've experienced The Human Experience requires many seemingly contradictory puzzle pieces all working together in unison to create that final illustration we're looking for not just discipline and freedom not just low points and high points but

countless others Jordan Peterson of course famously discusses chaos in order and how both not only exist but are pivotal to a fulfilling life we are designed for chaos we must step out into unknowns situations that feel bigger than us the courage to do so ultimately becomes the pathway to order as we get used to the change we acclimate we find our answers and all ultimately create a sense of fulfillment the challenge being that now we have conquered our demon we must prepare for the next because just like uh too much chaos isn't good too much

order is equally destructive right another example of something we'd assume as negative chaos being the thing in actuality that paves the way for better days it's a staircase I've heard Tony Robin say something similar when talking about our need for both certainty and uncertainty we must have some elements of everyday life mapped out but too much creates a mundane existence without the adventure and growth we've been looking for it's from the unknown we capture more of ourselves it's from the uncertainty we get growth and I say all of this not just because I think it's

fascinating in and of itself but because it's incredibly easy to forget especially in the thick of things that it's all essential to life working the way it should work those losses become gains the disappointment becomes growth the down times become launching pads to evolve experiences greater adventures and new chapters it's certainly not in itive to look in the mirror when amidst life's chaos and say thank you to the universe I get that I'm not implying that you should but I am saying it helps to know it helps to be aware of the paradoxical nature of

your journey I look back at the times I was most fearful or angry at myself and if I could go back and tell that version of me one thing it would be that all that adversity is going to to push me forward that I'd never have the things I wanted most if I didn't step into all that discomfort that it's going to be okay that I'm going to be incredibly thankful for it all and so will you this is the push pull of Life the Chaos and Order of the day it is not in spite

of but because of those moments you'll be more than you've ever been The Human Experience is a paradox and the quicker we get that the quicker we let it work for us no more fighting unwinable Wars but rather taking all that we can control and using it to lift ourselves up to be our best selves to make tomorrow the miracle that it can be [Music]