Nothing Less Than Legendary

I remember preparing for the baseball tryouts my freshman year of high school. My dad told me that everyone had to know I was the best player at the tryout, BEFORE the tryout actually started. I didn’t really understand. I asked him “what do you mean?” He said, “when you are walking to the field, people have to know that you are a bad ass. When you are warming up, people have to know you’re a bad ass. When you are stretching, you want the coaches talking about you, asking ‘who is that kid?’ Before you ever take a groundball or get an at-bat people need to know who you are." This theme stuck with my sister and I throughout our high school years, into college…..and shoot, we are still the same at the local 5k race. It’s not cockiness – well maybe a little. Although my dad never promoted cockiness. He absolutely hated when we wore Nike wristbands, Underarmour sleeves and bright, flashy and obnoxious colors. We did it anyway because they looked cool. He would always say things like, “put up, or shut up”. Or, “don’t talk about how good you are, show everybody”. What my dad was talking about was a mindset. A belief in yourself. Walking into a situation that could be intimidating and not allowing it to get the best of you. Being a freshman walking into a tryout with a bunch of older guys and KNOWING that you can play with them. It’s swagger. It’s a quiet confidence. It doesn’t mean that you walk into the tryout being loud and obnoxious, but people can feel your energy when you know you belong. You are different than all the other nervous freshman wondering if they are good enough. I can’t thank my dad enough for instilling this powerful mental strength in me. I have called on it so many times in my athletic life and in my professional life. I used this when I played in an All-Conference game my senior year of high school and again walking onto the baseball team in college. I have used it giving presentations to professionals worth more than $30 million dollars. If you believe in your mind that you belong on the field, or in that boardroom. You do. People can sense it. It’s a real, physical frequency that you are emitting. It means nothing can truly intimidate you.

Nothing less than legendary, is a line in a T.I. song that I love. It’s the same mindset that my father instilled in my sister and I. It’s self-belief. If you believe you are legendary, you will be. Your actions will be legendary and therefore, so will the results. You have to believe things before you can accomplish them. Because of these incredible lessons my sister and I learned at a young age, we don’t limit our accomplishments. My sister has won several sprint triathlons and half marathons. She now has her sights set on winning a half-ironman. There is no doubt in my mind that she will. I want to become a professional racquetball player. I will accomplish that. There is no doubt. The possibilities are endless. Sometimes when my sister and I tell people of our plans, they are deemed “unrealistic”. But are they? We don’t believe that you can just dream of winning a triathlon, never train, and do it. But it all starts in the mind. You have to see yourself winning every race. You have to see yourself dominating a baseball tryout or absolutely crushing a sales presentation. That will fuel you during your training and preparation. When it hurts or when you get tired, you will keep pushing. When you want to quit, you won’t. If you get beat, you’ll be back. It’s a relentless mentality. A mentality that gets tougher with the circumstances. A mentality that craves people to not believe – giving you an opportunity to prove your greatness.

Life becomes incredibly exciting when you stop seeing limitations. Even if your situation isn’t particularly awesome, you see great things. I can’t understand people that stop dreaming. I am going be a child the rest of my life. I see the world as an endless place of opportunities. I will never run out of goals, whether it is becoming a professional racquetball player, starting businesses, advising entrepreneurs, being on the senior PGA tour or sailing a yacht around the world for a full year. These are things that are real. There are people that do these things. What makes them so special? They put their socks on the same way that you and I do. The difference is that they just believe in great things and know how to work hard towards accomplishing them.

Don’t escape your reality. That is all too common in this world. People give up. They give up on their health, their professional dreams, and their happiness. They quit chasing things that excite them and replace it with things that are detrimental, like drugs, alcohol, excessive eating, etc. There is nobody that really wants to weigh 600 pounds, yet there are plenty that do. There are tons of people that don’t want to hate their job, but do. I see it on Facebook every week. Everyone joking about “humpday” or saying things like “can’t wait for the weekend” or “I hate Mondays”. Change your perspective and your life will change. Being miserable 5 out of 7 days, every single week, for your entire life, doesn’t seem like much of a life to me.

When is enough, enough? When are people going to get pissed off and decide to do something great? When are they going to get pissed off and truly decide to follow their dreams? What’s stopping people? When are they going to get off their ass and stop accepting mediocre and normal? Do people get fed up not having everything they want? Is drifting aimlessly ok for most people? I just don’t get it. People would rather complain than do something about it. I get so fired up. I want to meet every person who is fed up and help them break through that wall of inertia. Whether it’s losing weight, quitting their job, writing a book, or becoming a division I athlete. Yes you can! I’m fucking sick of people saying you can’t. I’m fed up. I don’t buy into that bull shit. With planning and relentless action, you can do anything. I’ll prove it.

Winners win in their mind long before they win in public. They don’t accept failure as final, because it never is. You always have an opportunity to rebound. You can always get better and you can always do a little more. You can always think bigger and be more relentless. There are no limitations in this world. We create all of them for ourselves. Belief is reality. You become the person you see in your mind. It happens autonomously. Your subconscious mind propels you in the direction you see in your mind. You don’t even realize it is happening. You attract things that you hold in your heart and repel things that you don’t. If you believe in limitation, success will avoid you. If you don’t, it will find you. This can be applied to every single area of your life. Guard your thoughts like hell. Don’t allow these limitations to creep in. Don’t allow negativity to take over. Fight for positivity and accept nothing less than legendary, for your life. 

Something to Prove

Whatever it takes is what you have to do. If pain motivates you, then seek it out. If people doubting you lights your fire, find every doubter that you can. If proving people wrong is your motivation – then go out and prove the world wrong.

Having ‘something to prove’ is a mindset. It’s a dare to anyone who has ever questioned your greatness. To anyone who has ever tried to persuade you to do something safer or easier. Anyone who has tried to get you to lower your ambitions or be more like ‘everybody else’. To hell with that. I will never submit to that. My sister will never submit to that. Having confidence in your own abilities is your safety net. Safety is knowing, without any doubt, that no matter what happens to you – you will succeed. Safety is in knowing that you will rise to any occasion and overcome any adversity. In fact, you welcome adversity. Adversity is what toughens you. It makes you stronger and more confident. Even at your worst moments, or lowest points, you know you are the best.

They always say that intense motivation follows a moment of intense despair. Pain can be an ally of greatness. It can help you realize the things you don’t want in this world. It can be the necessary inertia that powers the change in your life. It can reconnect you with your true purpose. Think of a big loss in a major sporting event. Some people give up. Others are the first one in the gym the next day following a big loss. They are working to avoid that pain again. Which type are you?

Some people are not destined to find good jobs. They are destined to create huge opportunities. Some people have the will-power to push their body to the absolute limit. Some people will always believe in themselves. Some will not accept anything less than everything they want. Some people are built to prove a lot of people wrong. Some people spend every waking hour dreaming and working to create themselves. Some people are destined to break down the walls of possibility. Some people smile and grin through any pain they experience and keep pushing and moving towards their goals.

Some people ‘prove’ they are great.

Rejoice

“When you were born, you cried and the world rejoiced. Live your life in such a way that when you die the world cries and you rejoice”

-Native American Proverb

Any time somebody passes away it puts me in a very introspective state of mind. I take a look at the current trajectory of my life and do an evaluation. I wonder if the current path I am on is “good enough”. I don’t think that phrase really exists inside of me – in any regard. It’s my unique perspective on the world that has given me this gift. It is an insatiableness. It’s a boredom when I feel like something is too easy, or not challenging enough. It’s a desire to engage in unnecessary battles for battle’s sake. I’ve never been able to change it, so I’m not going to try. I can’t help but see opportunities for improvement everywhere I look. With my workout plans, my writing schedules, my diet, my sales techniques….literally everything. So what would make me rejoice? What is the end goal?

We all are born with one debt that we must repay. Death. We rent our body and our life for a fixed numbers of years. Those years are unknown. The only thing you can really do is live each day to the fullest. That sounds like the worst cliché in the world, and it is. But imagine someone had to give your eulogy today. What would you want them to say? Would you be proud of your life to this point?

Growth is my life. There is nothing else that matters to me. If I’m not growing, you might as well bury me today. I want to leave this world with a gift; a gift that keeps giving and giving. I want that gift to be inspiration and motivation for people to go do incredible things. My biggest inspiration is Muhammed Ali; I can’t help but dream of leaving a legacy as great as him. His legacy will live on for hundreds, maybe thousands of years. He will continue to inspire young men and women to believe in themselves. He will convince people that they too, are the greatest at whatever they want to be, if they believe it. He will continue doing this long after he leaves this world. Muhammed Ali was, and still is, a winner. He has battled Parkinson’s disease for over 30 years. He never plays the victim for his current situation. He has made the best of his situation and continues to inspire me and millions of others. A reporter asked him in a recent interview if Parkinson’s ever makes him feel “depressed?” In classic Ali fashion, he quickly responded with, “Depressed? Why would I be depressed? I am the 3-time heavyweight champion of the world.”

That is true legacy. That is true greatness. That is a man who made the best of an opportunity years ago and is continuing to do so. That is a hero. He is a token of exactly what he told the world he was at the age of 22 – The Greatest of All-time.

For me, rejoice would be the perpetuation of my ideas for thousands of years. To inspire people for thousands of years, long after I am gone, to continue fighting to get better each and every day. I want to be mentioned in the same breath as Aristotle, Muhammed Ali, and Ayn Rand. That is the kind of impact I intend to have. I want people to remember me as the guy who always made everyone feel incredible about themselves – whether in person or through my writing. I want to be the greatest ever at inspiring and motivating people to get better. I want to be second to no one when it comes to helping people move themselves past the immobilizing inertia that stops most people from being incredible. I want every person I meet to become a better person. I am going to continue fighting for the souls of brave men and women ready to make a change. People ready to place a bet on themselves and their own personal greatness. People who are ready to believe that they deserve greatness and all of the prosperity that this world has to offer.

Sometimes it takes a tough emotional experience to really awaken yourself. Every morning I say that I don’t end my day until I am exhausted, but is it really true? There are days where I don’t push myself like I need to. Where I don’t act like a bestselling author or a professional athlete. These are the days that are tough. The days that you have to look yourself in the mirror and make the necessary changes. The days you have to whoop your own ass into doing more. These are the days that it is necessary to set bigger weekly commitments. Or to put something on the line to ensure your progress and your further betterment. Accomplishment is the greatest joy we can experience in life. Accomplishment presumes the freedom to pursue your own convictions. We live in an incredible country. We should be thankful every day that we are free to pursue whatever we desire. Man is a hero. I am a hero. You are a hero. Everyone can be a hero. There are so many people that just need to meet the right person, or hear the right message at the right time. These are the people I am after. The people that are ready to make a little sacrifice to show the world how great they really are.  

Defiants

Trouble-makers. Rebellious and unconventional. Fighting to stay outside of the box. Going against the grain. Swimming upstream. Marching to the beat of their own drum.

These are the people that are crazy enough to know, without a doubt, that they can produce a platinum record or a bestselling book. The ones who believe that can be a starting quarterback in the NFL or the best shortstop in all of MLB. They are the people who have the strength to drown out all of the negative thoughts around them. They don’t believe in limitations and they always maintain forward progress. They are the people that breathe life into everyone around them. They are the catalysts for change. They inspire people to live more.

Life is meant to be lived. Growth is a necessity. If you are not aspiring to do great things, change it. You’ll never feel more alive, more motivated, or more excited than when you are chasing down something exciting. Don’t just go through the motions in life. There are way too many people that do that. They let their internal fire burn out. They lose the light in their eyes. Life becomes something to endure, not something to conquer. Conquer your daily habits. Give yourself time to work on your dream every day. Start with the small and you will become the big. Never believe anyone who says you can’t be big. Prove them wrong. Wake up every day believing you are the greatest. Everything starts in your mind. Your mind can be on your side or it can be your biggest opponent. Challenge your mind to grow.

Being big is a mindset. Reality begins internally – with your mind. You must work to think bigger. Every day. The world will attempt to limit your thinking. Don’t allow it to. Allow nothing but positivity, abundance and opportunity into your mind. Let everything else go in one ear and out the other. If you recognize negativity, you welcome more of it in your life. If you deny it access, it will go away. You attract that which you think about. If you work hard to plant the right seeds, you will gain conscious control of your thoughts. Your actions will closely follow.

Fight the negativity in the world. You are bigger than it. You are too big to concern yourself with it. Fight for control of your mind. Fight to change your daily habits and most importantly, fight to get a little bit better each day. Picture yourself with your hands in the air, in total victory of your life. Never let go of that image. It will propel you through the tough days. You will get up when you get knocked down. You will fight until you win.

21st Century Slavery - Breaking the Chains

Call me a trouble-maker. Call me a non-conformist. Call me an entrepreneur. Call me right, or call me wrong. Just don’t call me accepting of the arbitrary definition and schedule of work.

I think many people misinterpret the difference between work and adding value. The definition of work should be “Creating and adding value to somebody, somewhere”. Why does this have to be confined to such a rigid and miserable 9-5 schedule? Why does it have to be the bane of most people’s existence? Why can’t work become more a fluid concept integrating all of our passions – personal and professional? The answer is that it can. But will it? Well, it already is by a lot of people. Some people are too mentally lazy to really “work” to figure out what their passions are. Some people are afraid to take a risk – unsure if they can recover from an apparent failure. Is it not riskier to guarantee that your whole life will be miserable by doing something you hate for the most energized hours of your week and the most energized years of your life?

I am taking a stand today. I am saying that work is no longer a place you go. Or something that you hate doing every Monday morning. Or something that you can’t wait to end every Friday afternoon so that you can speed home and crack open a beer. To live in a constant state of wishing and waiting; wishing it was the weekend and waiting impatiently for it. If we can change the way we think about work, we can change this lifestyle – we can break the chains. If we just think of ways to add value, via a service or a new product, we can be a happier society. There are so many opportunities to distill and analyze information today. It is the best time EVER to become self-employed, to become an entrepreneur and even to just work remotely. You can become an expert in a lot of things from the comfort of your living room. You can share your unique perspectives and add tons of value to the marketplace.

Work doesn’t have to be a place you go. It especially does not have to be a place you hate. It can be an outlet for you to help people. This will create a deeper connection between you and your work. It will mean more to you. It will be more alive. You will be more productive because you enjoy it.

Instead of asking yourself “how do I find a job?” Ask yourself, “How do I take the things I know and love and share my perspective (value) with more people?” People are begging for fresh new perspectives and ideas. The opportunities are endless. Just because there are a certain number of jobs, doesn’t mean that can’t be changed. There are an infinite number of opportunities. There are so many jobs that are waiting to be created – why not by you? If you can’t find a job – create one. Create value and share it. Change your perspective, change your life. Work from a beach chair in Puerto Rico. The world can be this and if you believe it, it will be.

Don’t Stop Short like Frank Costanza

Today I found myself in an intense group fitness workout (total understatement). It was a HIIT (high intensity interval training) class that lasts 60 miserable minutes. It’s called “Chisel” for a reason. I hate it. It is taught by none other, than my mother. She is mean. I don’t like her a whole lot during those 60 minutes. But I see nothing but results from the 2 hours of hell she puts me through each week.

There are so many times during that workout that my mind tells me to quit. It tells me not to do all 10 burpees, to just do 8 or 9. That’s plenty, right? Probably. But what’s the real goal? To do “enough” or to do whatever it takes to get better? My mind is screaming at me to not go very deep on my squats or to not jump very high on our squat-reaches. It would be easy to do that. Everyone would understand. But I would only be cheating myself. Stopping short on the little things gives you the ability to stop short on the big things in life. To workout 3 days a week instead of 4. Then 2 instead of 3. This becomes a theme in your life. You always give yourself permission to not quite finish what you started. When I set the timer to write for an hour, the last 5 minutes are always the hardest to stay in the chair. I want to get up and leave so bad, but that would be “stopping short”. No one would even know, except me. That’s not the type of person I am striving to be.

I find the mental growth that occurs from a tough workout, much more rewarding than the physical gains. It is always a constant battle between you and your mind. Your mind always wants you to take the easy way out. It’s human nature - procrastination and laziness are hard-wired into our brains. You have to work every day to develop a mental toughness that will not allow to quit. That will not allow you to stop short of finishing something that you started.

We can constantly develop our mental toughness through repeated practice. Listen hard to what your mind is telling you during a workout. Most of the time it is saying “stop”, “you’re in too much pain”, or “you have done enough to this point”. All of this negative self-talk can be overcome if you choose to ignore it and fight through it. You will emerge stronger if you just tell yourself things like “yes I can” and “I won’t quit now”. Your mind always wants to give out before your body. Remember that. You can always push yourself a little bit harder. That’s what I love about sports. Your mind is the command-center for your body. You can control your thoughts. You can always dig a little deeper, get a little stronger, run a little harder, write a little longer, and be a little better.

I have only had my body give out 2 or 3 times and you know what? I was fine. Nothing bad happened. I just found out where my current limitations were. I reached it once on a timed 300-yard shuttle as a college freshman in a baseball workout. This is basically the worst run you can imagine. It is 5 consecutive 60-yard dashes with no break between. You accelerate, then decelerate, change directions and repeat way too many times. The last leg is the worst. As soon as you plant and touch the line with the last 60 yards to go, your legs feel like Jello. You still have 60 yards to sprint and your whole body is screaming at you to stop. So at 6:00am one morning in the gym at my college, the first time I ever ran this timed race, I stepped up to the line. The whistle blew and I took off. As hard as I could. This run was different for me than anyone else. I started stumbling with about 20 yards to go and wasn’t sure if I was going to make it to the finish line. I ended up face-planted just past the finish line. I am not exaggerating when I say that my face actually hit the ground when I was running at full speed. My legs had collapsed on me. Physically, I had given that race my all. Everything I had in the tank. I posted the best time on the team. Prior to the run, the older guys on the team had told me to “make sure you save some energy. If you go all-out you won’t be able to finish.” I wanted to disprove their advice. I told them I wasn’t going to save anything. If I collapsed before the finish line, I would know my limit. I barely made it, but it made me realize that as painful as that experience was, I finished. I tested my body to the absolute limit. More importantly I defeated my mind telling me to slow down a bit the whole run. The next time we ran the timed 300-yard shuttle, I gave it my all again, the sole of my shoe actually tore off on the last leg, I didn’t collapse and I had shaved over 2 full seconds off of my previous time. I had broken through another personal barrier of mine.

You always have a little more in the tank than you think. Your mind will limit your physical and mental capacity if you allow it to. You can always find the energy to push a little harder; either that, or you will collapse in victory knowing that you gave it your all. You will be stronger the next time. You will break through a barrier. Breaking a physical barrier for yourself and creating another opportunity raises the ceiling for yourself. The same is true in everything we do in life. We can push ourselves to new levels and we will never be able to return to our original state. You really know how far you go until you push the envelope. There is greatness in all of us. There is so much untapped potential that most of us never realize, because we never get past the mental barriers. We never get past the little voice in our head telling us that we “should stop.” We never really allow our face to hit the ground in total exhaustion. Let’s test ourselves. Let’s find where our real limits are. I guarantee they will surprise you.

What mental barriers do you have that are getting in your way at the moment? Are they weight-loss limitations? Are they business related? Whatever they are, how can we knock the door down and get you to the other side? What more can you do to prevent yourself from stopping short of your own personal greatness?

One More Year

I am 28 minutes from turning 27 years old. I am incredibly thankful for the past year. I have grown a lot in the past 365 days. I have had a lot of down moments and have had a lot of successes. I have gotten knocked down and have picked myself up several times. I have met some incredible new people and read several phenomenal books. I have become a truer version of Matt Harris. I have taken huge steps in the direction of my dreams. My vision has become clearer. I have grown physically, intellectually, emotionally and mentally. 27 is my blow up year. It’s where all of the work I quietly do in silence will be manifested in the results.

You only have 365 days in a year. 104 of those are weekend days. If you aren’t working on your dreams on the weekends you are sacrificing 28.5% of your week, every week. I am not saying that you should be working 12 hours per day. I think that is dumb. You can leverage the 4-hour workweek principles and still maintain the positive forward momentum through creating activities that prevent you from voluntarily giving up your momentum. Even if it is as simple as reading a vision statement, or writing for 15 minutes. Anything you have to do to keep your brain immersed in your large vision. Keep yourself taking steps, even if they are baby steps, forward. In the direction of your dream-world.

This year I am asking myself one question: Why not me?

I have everything. I believe in myself. I understand the importance of big visions and small actions. I know how to implement and I know how to sell. I know about finance, networking, problem-solving and I have incredible people skills. There is literally nothing that can stop me except myself. I will not allow myself to get in my own way this year. I am a pot of water at 211 degrees right now. I have to keep applying the heat which will make that water start boiling this year. I am committed to my writing and committed to reading my vision statement. There is nothing that is going to stop me from doing that every single day. A bestselling book will come out of that activity. The proof is in the belief and the execution. My plan literally could not get any simpler. I have 2 daily activities that I do no matter what. The rest of my week is “extras”. I am not focusing on or trying to control outcomes. I am focusing on the process and letting the faith drive the results. Letting the world of the infinite handle the rest. All I can do is put the rubber to the road.

Today is a day to give thanks for the past year. 365 days that have made me stronger, more focused, and more relentless, with a much clearer vision. I am incredibly thankful for the opportunities I have had to develop myself. To regain strength when I felt like I couldn’t. I am thankful for all of the tough days that made me stronger. The people that have always believed in me and have helped push me towards bigger and better things, knowing that I have the capability.

Nothing is better than being field tested for 365 days and then having the opportunity to reflect and be thankful. To see all the positives and growth that have occurred this year and every subsequent year. It is a post-game and a pre-game all rolled into one. Reflecting on the prior year and preparing for the upcoming year. I’ll take any opportunity I can to focus on the next 12 months coming up and really reflect on what went well each year. You can have the worst year of your life and your perspective on it can make the world of difference. If you fight to see the positives, things will start to turn your way. If you see every setback as an opportunity to learn and get better, failures and setbacks will stop existing in your world. You will see the world as it is; as a fruitful place with an infinite number of opportunities. If you can’t see this, none of that abundance will ever be yours. Every year on your birthday, reflect on all that you are thankful for. We all have so much to be thankful for and so many people, to thank. This is my way of saying thank you to everyone for their support over the past year. If you are reading this, you are one of them. Keep fighting for your dreams and keep being thankful for what you already have. Here is to you, and I, having our BEST YEAR EVER!