Steadfast Life: The Podcast

There is no doubt that life is about 97% journey and only 3% destination, but it's really important you choose a destination before you start your journey.  Your journey WILL take you somewhere, so its a smart move to take the time to aim at where the somewhere is.

It can be as simple as a calendar - simply deciding in advance how my time will be allocated the next day gives me the awesome experience of being able to quiet the mind chatter of "what should I be doing right now?" and, instead, just do what the calendar says.  Planning takes about 20 minutes and following that plan is a 24 hour journey of tasks and events ...there is no question that I want to do everything I can to make sure that 24 hour journey is the enjoyable because it is MOST of my life experience.  So even though I stay focused on enjoying the process, the process becomes automatically easier to enjoy when I know it's leading me in the right direction!

Take the time to choose your...

Our brain gets really comfortable thinking the SAME thoughts over and over.

Which is really efficient when those thoughts lead us to take the right ACTION to get to our GOAL or results. 

What about when those thoughts are keeping us STUCK doing the same habits or getting the same undesirable results?

That's when we need to get a CLEAR picture of our future self.

I'm not talking about just setting goals.

No, we're talking about becoming the person who reaches those goals.

What thoughts would the person who achieved those results think?

What type of action would that person who's already achieved that result take?

Get really CLEAR on who you need to BECOME in order to change and get what you want.

There are a few steps to take, in order to do this successfully. 

Watch here, we'll walk you through this process.

You can skip to 2:57- How to create your future self.

Feel free to leave us a comment.

"I'll believe it when I see it" - we've all thought it, we've probably all said it, but what if the entire premise is wrong.

Every time I've tried to chase down a scary goal or make a big change in my life I do a risk/reward or cost/benefit analysis in my head.  Ultimately I come to the same conclusion - if the result was guaranteed by certain date and come a certain way, then the goal wouldn't be scary.  The scary part is all the risk and all the reward have to be put in up front and reward is "out there" somewhere.

One thing I know for sure - if I DON'T put in the work I will FOR SURE miss out on the reward.  So the conclusion is this ..."I need to see it to believe it." is a cop out.  It's a trick that our lizard brain uses to keep us safe and comfortable.  The truth is that we need to believe it FIRST, then we'll take the actions that will allow us to see it.

How do you do that?  Step one = listen to the podcast ...the rest is in...

I'll keep this short and sweet - life is a process, not a result.  When you climb a mountain you spend 97% of your time getting up or getting down, but only 3% on the top.  Life is the same, there are times when we have those "I have arrived" type moments, but they are short because we have an inner desire for more and honoring that desire is the secret to living BIG.  It sounds like it would make a great song ...something like, "Life's a journey, not a destination."

If we're going to honor the journey that means we have to assess where we are, determine where we want to go, make a game plan about how to get there, then execute the game plan.  Again, keeping in mind that the goal is "Living BIG" - that destination is going to stir up some fear ...and when we get there, we're just going to celebrate the success ...then set another scary goal.  When we take a birds eye view at a life lived in this cycle, we can see that it is going to require...

Whether working with clients or navigating our own journey, it seems that Whitney and I spend a lot of time talking about the feelings that aren't serving us and how to choose thoughts that give us access to feelings that DO serve us.  

There are feelings, like worry, that are both negative and "indulgent".  Worry gives us a false sense of control, it tricks us into thinking that we are caring for others or protecting ourselves, but in reality it is keeping us stuck and causing inaction.

There are also feelings like grief that have a more complicated dynamic.  Grief can be paralyzing, or grief can be healing ...it all depends on how we think about it.  If you find yourself resisting grief, there is driving thought that you shouldn't be feeling grief.  When the circumstances of your life are such that grief is appropriate ...like experiencing great loss, the thoughts that the grief is inappropriate cause suffering to be piled on top of it.

I have...

When I was 13 years old, I was 4'-11", I was a freshman in high school, and I weighed 95lbs.  If you asked me if I was planning to play football - I would look at you sideways and tell you there was not a chance.  If you pressed about any other sports, I'd tell you I was going to play volleyball ...and I planned on making varsity.

Some might say the football answer was "realistic" - after all, the average high school football player at my school weighed double my weight.  Interestingly enough, the average varsity volleyball player was a full foot taller than me as well - but I had different beliefs about volleyball.

So what happened?  I played varsity volleyball and I never played football.  Additionally, I am proud of my choice to try out for volleyball and embarrassed of my choice to avoid football.

In this series we've been talking about learning to be OK with other people being wrong about us, but what about the situations where WE are the ones...

This past week was both a celebration and time of reflection. A bittersweet for sure.

It reminded me of the two different people I've had the experience of being. 

Here's what I mean.

Do you ever look at pictures of yourself and think back to how you were feeling?

I do. So powerful- right?

It's also why I love before and after pictures. They tell two stories of ONE life.

When I see other peoples, it gives me HOPE.

Which is exactly what I want to offer you.

Ironically, the picture on the left, I have this "tough attitude" expression on my face. I'd get that look often when I'd drink alcohol.

It was this feeling of being strong, not caring what others thought, and like I was invincible.

Unfortunately, it was 100% false- FAKE.

Now, I look at that picture and see emptiness, my eyes glazed over, I'm actually numb and not truly present in the experience I was having.

Even though, at the time, I thought I was having a "fun time", visiting some of my closest childhood friends, and in...

Once just a kid who played a little volleyball in Chicago, Kevin Barnett made the BOLD move to California at the age of 18 with no home, no job, no connections, and no plans ...well, no plans except to play professional volleyball.  

Now, the 2 time Olympian is the voice of the AVP - and he's still making BOLD choices ...about his wardrobe.

All of our actions in life are motivated by our feeling ...everything you do is do either feel something, avoid feeling something, or stop feeling something.  Sometimes, however, we have to take actions n order to grow even though we don't feel capable of success - and that's where learning to foster boldness comes into play.

What if, instead of working to feel capable, you saw the adventure, the challenge, and the excitement in taking action anyway?  What doors could that open in your life?  How could that help get you unstuck?

The question you have to ask yourself is, "Is it worth it?"  What if I get...

None of us are going to brag about allowing self-pity to invade our lives, but for some reason, from time to time, we find ourselves right in the middle of a pity party we are throwing for ourselves?  Why do I do that???

Basically - it's the same reason I give into any craving or temptation ...because it gives me short term pleasure.  Self pity allows me to tell a story that makes my suffering noble instead of optional.  My suffering makes me someone special instead of someone who is CHOOSING to think thoughts that make me feel bummed out.  I'm releasing myself from the responsibility of being in charge of my mind. 

I get to lower others expectations of me, I get to lower my expectations of myself, I get to feel special for suffering, and I get to avoid fear.   Buuuut ...I'm trading my FREEDOM from the obligation to feel negatively about the circumstances of my life.

So what's the other option?  It's to...

It turns out the mountain is one heck of a teacher...

Renee:  It's not just that I CAN do hard things, I WANT to do hard things

Gary:  I have to take a challenge as big as this and break it into small pieces.  Then as I go from one small piece to the next, I know I'll rise to the big challenge in time

Jason: This WILL end - take your mind off of the pain you're experiencing and focus on the slight improvements, then relief is simply a matter of time.

Jen:  When I continue to take the next step, I eventually overcome the obstacle.  The more obstacles I over come, the more equipped I become.  Soon that obstacle looming way down the road ...the one that looks too big for me gets easier and easier because the obstacles in between are making me stronger.

Whitney:  Pride in the process of preparation takes the impossible and makes it fun.

Jake:  My words matter ...I refuse to say it's difficult, it's just really, really NEUTRAL!!...