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Transcription
In 2023, the speaker and his friend Sean had the best year of their lives by doing five specific things. The speaker had previously stopped doing these things and his life spiraled downwards. When he started doing them again, he felt confident, sharp, and powerful. These things included being part of a mastermind group and being around other motivated individuals. One of the main things that made 2023 the best year was getting uncomfortable and doing things they didn't want to do. This included being in a cold plunge, signing up for an ultra race, and putting in extra work. They both had different challenges, but they achieved their best year by doing the same things. Getting uncomfortable was important for both physical and emotional growth. The speaker encourages others to challenge themselves and get uncomfortable to achieve success in all areas of life. So the top five things that made 2023 the best year of my life, and it's super weird that it's the same top five things that we both agreed on that made it the best year for Sean in 2023. We're going to discuss those today, and as I looked at the list, I have done these things many times in my past. Over the last 15 years, I've done all these things, and up until maybe three years ago, I stopped doing all five of these things. I'm looking at the list. I stopped all five, and life spiraled down for me very quickly. I didn't even realize how low I had got. And when I look at this list, it's the same five things that have brought me back to life, that have brought me to a place where I feel so confident, so sharp, so ... I feel humble. I feel powerful, that my leadership ability is just ... it's gone through the roof, and it's because of these five things. I stopped doing them, so I have this perfect contrast of what it's like to do them, make those normal, and then stop and look at the absolute, to me, in my mind, the train wreck, physically, mentally, spiritually train wrecked when I stopped doing these things. I started doing them again. I didn't even realize I was doing them, but one by one, I think back to the year 2023, and a big part of it is probably the mastermind group that we joined, but just being around other minds that are doers, doing, looking for progress, looking for success, looking for elements in their life to become another level up. I look at this list, and it's actually worked. And I didn't even realize until 10 minutes ago that that's what did it, and it had created the best year of my life, and going into 2024, I feel like Superman, I feel bulletproof, and not in the way that you might think. We're going to discuss it. It's a very humble, very human ... the experience that you're looking for, the thing that you think you might want that didn't actually end up getting you that, we're going to talk about the thing that it does, that does actually bring what you're looking for. And Sean was about to say something before we started the podcast, and I was like, man, you should start with that. And we discussed it. He's like, no, you need to say what you need to say because it's important, but I've said my piece. Sean, take it away. So I told you on Behind the Scenes before we started that episode, we hit record. We always have this countdown. Three, two, one, and then we record another podcast video, so it's always fun. And I told him, I said, man, in 2023, we were talking about how can we benefit, or how can we provide as much value to our listeners, and just hone in, dive deep. And so you can apply the same things that we applied in, that I applied in 2023, and we came to a common ground on these things, these five things that we worked on. And I told you, and I said, hey, I said, man, in 2023, like for me, it was the best year of my life. And I'm 36, right? It was one of the best years of my life, probably the best year of my life, across the board in all areas of life. But it was also the most challenging year of my life. And so when I dissect that, when I reflect back on why that is, the first thing that I can point out, and the first topic that we have written down is getting uncomfortable. And so what I mean by that is doing the things that I didn't, that I don't want to do. And for me, that was being a part of a mastermind group, getting in a cold plunge, signing up for an ultra at the Spartan event, double downing on my training behind the scenes when nobody was watching, putting in the extra work, honing in on my nutrition, when nobody was saying, good job, Sean, you know, I didn't get. So these were the things that were uncomfortable for me, because what's comfortable for me is doing the things what society tells me to do, that I should be following the herd, the pack, which is, you know, enjoying the birthdays, going to the barbecues and doing all these things. When I'm out here running, training, preparing for what it is that I'm going to be up against. And instead, I would get uncomfortable because the comfortable Sean would do the things that is the road most traveled. So by challenging myself, by getting uncomfortable, by making the sacrifices, by saying no, it allowed me to say yes and to do these things to get me to where I am today. You know what's interesting? Well, first off, quick to the things you listed there, the cold plunge was the most uncomfortable thing I've seen Sean ever do. And he pulled the trigger on it. And I just, I don't know how I know this about you, but I know you don't like the cold. Like you can take a lot of pain, dude, and we played sports together and that all kinds of crazy stuff. With the cold, I was very interested to watch how you handled it. And when you pulled the trigger on it, I was like, man, that's another level because you really, not only was it very expensive, six, seven grand to invest in yourself, but that wasn't the hard part for you. It might've been a little trip, like not that the money was an issue, but to spend that, you know, just the, what's the return? It's very uncomfortable, but it's almost painful to be in that cold of water and you're paying lots of money to do it. So when you did that, I was like, man, that was a whole, that was probably, I think personally that would be my, if I was to guess, that was the hardest thing. And I'm saying that knowing you did a 31 mile obstacle course, you know, so that's, it's quite funny. But you know, as you're talking there, your best year of your life, 2023, my best year, we're not just making this up. I'm a person of honor and I wouldn't say if it wasn't true, I had to check myself first. Is this true that I'm going to say these things about 2023? And it probably wasn't until the last three, four months that it really kicked in. I'm like, I am changed as a human being. And so, and the fact that you said it too, I know you don't, you don't lie, dude, like you're not a liar. Like I just know that about you. You're just straight. Yeah. You're such a straight shooter. Cause there's no, it's like inefficient to lie for you. Like you wouldn't be able to live with yourself. So I know we're on the same place here, but when you're seeing how, what it was difficult for you, it's totally different for me. And which is awesome because anyone listening to this, it's going to be totally different for them too. Yeah. Right. But we were doing the same thing. Right. The same things that were the top five things we're going to talk about today. We agreed that those five things got me to my best year and those five things got you to your best year. But we totally had different perspectives because we had different challenges for different people. But we were around each other a lot this year and doing the same things. And so I'm finding it very interesting. I was thinking that we both happen to have the best years of our lives and there's something magical there. And I hadn't even really explored it yet, but it's something to do, but we were doing the same things and we got to a place where we're really happy. I think getting uncomfortable was the perfect number one because when does anything come easy? The thing you really want, the thing that is in the dark, it's hiding behind the dragon. You've got to go around the dragon or work through it or realize there is no dragon to get that gold. And we don't want to face the, we don't want to stare down, so getting uncomfortable. So for you, all those things, what was it, an emotional uncomfortable or physical uncomfortable for you when you're seeing those things? Yeah, I would say both. Definitely physical and emotional. I think it's tied together because it's overall well-being and health and wellness for me. And I think it's challenging and just flexing that muscle, that muscle, you know, in, in when it comes to physical physicality and emotional, because for me, it's like when you are in pressured environments, you, we, for me, I don't know how it is for you, Ewan, but we tend to go back to what we're familiar with, stress, anxiety, when these things hit us right in 2023, when all these things, the economy's falling apart and, you know, all these things are going on around us, inflation. And so you're either misrepaired or you're not, you're either on the road most traveled or you're not. And so for me, it's like, I've been down the road most traveled and which is the opposite of getting uncomfortable. Right. And I have learned that that does not, that leads for me, it just, it was just the existing, it was just the rat race. It was just the hamster wheel over and over and over again. When I, you go, you mentioned the cold plunge. When you, when I started doing those hard things, when I started getting uncomfortable, the ultra races, stuff like that and doing things, you don't even have to do an ultra race or a cold plunge. Maybe you're taking warm showers every single day, just like you said, and now you're doing cranking up cold, cranking up the cold, that's getting uncomfortable. It could be something. Don't have to turn that off. You can just turn it off, get dry, go on your date, date completely different. Man, the whole day, your whole mindset, the whole environment of life, when you turn it to cold, when you don't have to and sit in 33 degrees of cold water on your head for 90 seconds, it does change your day. You may be thinking like, oh no, I'm not doing that. Okay, cool. But, and so, and maybe it's not that, but what is it? See, how you do one thing is how you do everything. And so I even find myself, I challenged myself in 2024 because I seen the dividends that pay in 2023 in all areas of life. Challenging myself in my marriage, right? Reading devotions, going to these married life groups, re-engage. I did a 16 week re-engage group in 2023. Loving up our marriage. Now, you know, we're on this level playing field in our marriage. We're working on that and just being intentional and getting uncomfortable because I'm the type of guy who's like, oh, that was probably the most, you said cold plunge, I would answer it as probably the re-engage. You know what, that could send the shivers down any man's spine, you know, going to a marriage, but you guys weren't going because you had marriage troubles. You were going because you wanted marriage leveled up. That's right. Yeah, we were going, you know, me and Kendra, we've always, we're the type of individuals like we're very self-sufficient, we're very independent and there's a lot of things that we're very good at and we work together on and there's a lot of things that we struggle with and so level up and live and that's what, you know, living life to its fullest. Well, how do you do that? You get uncomfortable. You have to put yourself in these environments because there's obviously other people that are doing these things that have, are living the life that they want to live, right? And it's very far and few between. And so I want to be one of those guys. And the number one thing in 2023 that I've seen in my own life and these individuals that I've studied is they got uncomfortable. They did the things that they did not want to do, but they did it anyways because they knew it was going to level their playing field in that area of life. Whether that was finances, setting a budget this year, marriage, health and wellness, whatever it may be. I was about to ask you the question, do you think leveling up, I was going to ask, can you, can you level up and get to the next level without being uncomfortable? I don't know. I was going to, I thought I had an answer, but then I thought to myself, well, you can edge in, you can slowly, like, let's say the piano, for example, or you're uncomfortable, you know, with not knowing how to play, but then you learn some notes and then you get a little more comfortable and then you end up eventually leveling up. But you're still, you're still uncomfortable. Yeah, you're still uncomfortable. You're still leveling up slowly and you end up becoming a great pianist. Like, let's say if you did it for five years straight, what might be uncomfortable there is the consistency of doing that, right? So that would be uncomfortable. But then when you talk about, so you can do it slowly and what you would get there is an enjoyable, you'd be able to play an instrument, right? And then so is that going to impact your life long term? Is it leveling up as a human being to where you're satisfied and find that place of fulfillment and enjoyment? I would, I would then think that taking bigger steps of uncomfortability is going to excel that process depending on the areas of life that it is, right? So if you're trying to have more courage or have a more loving relationship, that is a bigger, faster slap in the face. If that's going to be a really hard thing for you. So there's different levels of getting uncomfortable and there's different levels of getting better at something or feeling more comfortable because man, what uncomfortability is a lot of times uncertainty. You don't know, I don't know what I'm doing. Right. Don't look foolish. You don't want to be embarrassed. So it's like, I think it's a lack of knowledge. So getting uncomfortable, I guess like you all say. What is your why behind doing it? And that formula of why are you not doing it versus why that you do, you know, so on the marriage side, it was to level up on your marriage. Yeah. And the uncomfortability of that and the results, was it worth it? One thousand percent, me and Kendra have reflected back on this and we talk about this often. It's like one of the things that we reflect back on is like what we what we did in 2023. And I think she even wrote a post, a Facebook post out a couple of weeks ago on reflecting back. And it was so cool. I even thought I was like, man, so it was inspirational to me, made me smile because on her post, it had a little picture and it said the places that we had traveled and then the relationship, because she had even put the different areas of life, you know, where she had the things that she had done. Yeah. Super cool on Facebook if you follow her. And and so she put all the places we traveled and she put all the health and wellness, the workouts, the competitions and up top, she relationships, she put re-engage, 16 week program and married life. And so I can tell all these different areas of life, even my wife, Kendra, she got uncomfortable in these different areas of life and had leveled up in her own life. I can't speak for her. I've seen that in her. But like she's definitely changed as a person because she works so hard. Yes. Like, you know, getting uncomfortable. Yeah. And getting uncomfortable. And like we always say, if you want to get tired of it, what you do in one area of life is you'll do it in other areas of life. That's right. A lot of times you can argue that. But if you nitpick, break it down, you will actually see that, no, it does keep showing up in the same places. It's just true. So when you level up in a different area, it will show up in other areas. So that's why it's worth it. Right. To me, I'm like, so I'm in medical sales and I had to get very, very uncomfortable here recently. New situation, new product, very high level people, very expensive product. Not knowing what I'm talking about at all. And it was really taking my peace because there was expectations there. Whole bunch of guys in the same boat. And I decided, you know what? I'm tired of feeling this feeling. I'm just going to get out there. I'm just going to do it. I don't care what happens. Putting myself in the worst environment for me personally, like how my personality is like doing, being unprepared, not knowing the uncertainty. It was very, I often have avoided that in the past. And I always end up pushing myself through. I can do very difficult things. I've always figured out ways to do it. But this was just a raw, most recent one. And what was so uncertain and so worrying within a couple of attempts of me doing what I was doing, I started feeling very confident, very comfortable and very certain. And I think I mentioned before, I was very uncertain that I wasn't certain, but I was certain about it. So when I'm talking to my clients and the offering I was putting out there, people were listening because I was certain I had this energy about me and that I was just being very humble. I think questions and the uncomfortability went away very quickly. Now, I'm actually very excited about what I'm doing. I don't know what I'm talking about. I'm still very uncertain about what it is. I'm certain I can help these people, certain that I will figure out the problem. That's right. And so it took uncomfortability. I went from this place of weakness, like mentally complaining, small in my mind, to now energized, bursting with energy, walking on air, very confident. And that's what getting uncomfortable gets you. I hadn't decided to do those things. I know there's a number of people still in that boat and they're still sitting there worried, as well as if they had just taken a step and realized you don't get burnt. And even if you did, it's not what you think it's going to be. Yeah, it's worth it to get uncomfortable. So if you wouldn't have gotten uncomfortable, what would have happened? I'd still be in the same boat. It would have gotten worse. It's a spiral down. You can't think your way out of something that requires action to get out of. You can't conceptualize confidence. You can conceptualize courage. You can have moments of courage to go do this thing this one time. And that gives you experience. And once you get that experience, continual courage creates confidence. Courage and confidence is very different. But once you continually do the courageous thing, it becomes your new norm. And then you can't fake confidence. Like you can, but you can smell it a mile away. And to me, that's, you don't have to, how am I going to be confident? If you're asking how to be confident, you just haven't done the thing enough. Once you've done it, you've earned the confidence to go be that person. And honestly, man, it's hit me in other areas of my life because it's just awoken. This reminded me that, Oh, when you do that, when you get uncomfortable, you get outside your comfort zone and do very difficult things and realize that it's okay, man, you become, you start to become bulletproof or else can I, I can't be hurt. Nothing can hurt me out here. You know what I mean? There's no human being. There's no words. They're just people like everybody else. And that's true in relationships and anywhere you go. And then to me, that makes all the other things we're going to talk about today just aids to help you be uncomfortable, to get outside of that, that zone. You've got to do the things that we're talking about that will help you get that courageous moment and become confident. And then once you're confident, most of your problems disappear. And what's interesting to me is here's the key ingredient. You have to stay consistent, getting uncomfortable. I did a 16 week re-engage and even during that 16 week I was sitting there and we were sharing, it was like group therapy, you know, group counseling, right? We had a facilitator and we were, we were all sharing kind of what we're going, you know, what our lives, communication, it was, it was difficult. So we worked through this book and they had a curriculum that we, that we went through. It was like communication and all these different areas. So it was super cool. It was all lined out. But I was sitting there and it was so uncomfortable for me because, you know, the last 30 years of my life, we never talked about this. My dad didn't talk about this. I didn't go to church. And so I'm sitting here sweating palms of my hands when it's my turn to talk. I'm like, you know, and everybody's leaving. And you were uncomfortable. You were incompetent. Oh, I wasn't confident. But you do in a room of insurance agents and you're a seven figure earner. Yeah. You know, you could just flip the switch, pure confidence. And so, but in this situation you hadn't experienced it yet. That's right. Yeah. Yeah. And so going through this and reflecting back, I'm like, every time we left, I felt good about it and what I had got from it. Right. But every time I showed back up for the next 15 weeks, it was the same feeling every single time. And then I was like, all right, when it was done, it was like, okay, we're done with this. Re-engage. Well, in the past, I would have been like, I'm done. I'm checked out. Checked it off, checked the box. But what I've learned from mentors is, and the reason 2023 was the best year of my life and the biggest challenge because of that, getting uncomfortable, is for the rest of my life, human, I'll have to be uncomfortable. That is what my mindset goes on. Robert Kiyosaki says the best. He goes, and this dude's 80 years old, right? Still says the same. Rich dad, poor dad. First book I ever read. He goes, I stay uncomfortable. And I'm like, yes. I'm like, because that's where the magic, that's where the magic happens is when you stay uncomfortable and you look for it. Yeah. Because to me, I stopped doing a number of things. I don't know if it was the pandemic, like everything changed. My reasons for working out changed. So I just was sick of working out. I've never said those words. I just wasn't interested. So I was like, I'm going to deliberately take a hiatus from working out. Stop doing meditation. I wasn't reading as much. I was more just, I don't know. I was learning about charts and stuff on my own. I just like charts and, you know, I couldn't go see my customers, my clients and whatnot. So I was just talking to them like virtually on the phone and everything just spiraled down. So the things that had got me to where I was just kind of, and it's funny because, because we were, I was on paper being more successful than I'd ever been, but I was not happy. Like I was miserable and I didn't even know what was happening to me. It was spiraled down and get like, just was kind of lost at the end of it all. And it's been a climb back up. 2023 is my climb back up. And if I was to think back, that's what happened. And so I think, yeah, if you, well, there's an example right there. You should stop getting uncomfortable. Stop doing the things that put you aside. Look what happens. I was down and out, man. You know, when you said you're on, you know, you build your business successful and everything you wanted time, freedom, and you still end up burning out on the couch. Was that, I never thought about it. Is that an element you stopped getting? That's it. Yeah. I was doing the same thing. I've shared this previous episode. I was doing the same thing over and over and over again. Well, the problem with that is you just become so familiar. I was so comfortable doing the things you even said it earlier. I'll get the results. It's a slow death. You're just existing. And so getting uncomfortable is doing, maybe it's a new hobby. Maybe it's picking up that book that's got cobwebs all over it or listen to a podcast, whatever it may be. And so it's doing something that you're not used to doing. That's a new skillset. It's something different out of what you've been doing. It could be anything, just something new to spark that. Yeah. And man, honestly, I think one of the biggest catalysts that I said at the start, what was getting around other guys, because I can't, I can't put my finger on anything else that really, once I saw other people doing it, like being around other people, that just really, that was therapy for me. Honestly, it was like a therapy. I didn't even realize it, but it brought me, brought me back to life. And we just discussed all these great things. And I was seeing people doing amazing things. And I started discussing the things I've done in the past that reminded me of what I was capable of doing. It was just a slow grind back up. And now I'm like, oh man, I'm, I'm past where I was before. I'm past, I don't, this is new ground. I'm reaching new all time highs. So it's price discovery in chart terms. You don't know how high it's going to go. Like that's, which is very exciting, man. When it's going to all time highs, it's very exciting because never it's the wonder of how excellent this could be. And you certainly don't want the, um, the opposite of that. The bottoming out is the worst feeling in the world. Like it's just miserable, you know? So we're talking about uncomfortability a lot is number one, because it's so important because everything else we're about to discuss leaves right into it. And Sean, you said this first, but number two was, was books and podcasts that people might think, oh, well, yeah. Books, information, podcasts. Okay, cool. If you just bypass that, it's something you don't need to listen to. And you need to listen to this. Like, so what was it for you, Sean? The biggest thing was I really tried to double down on this year was the leadership. Uh, so I, I picked up a handful of leadership books. I, I prided, I prided myself reading a book, uh, two to three books a month. And then it got to a place where I was like, okay, I'm, am I retaining all this information or am I just trying to get through the books? And so now in 2023, I just, what I focused on was if it was something that I wanted to improve on, like leadership, which was, so I asked myself in the first place, well, why am I not diving deep? It's because, well, I'm comfortable reading two to three books a month. Why am I doing that? Because that's what I'm familiar with. So what is getting uncomfortable? So I got uncomfortable. It's like, okay, well, obviously I struggle with the leadership. So I need to read more books on that and get uncomfortable and apply these different things in leadership that I'm looking for. What, what, um, you said that you wanted to level up your leadership. Um, what was that catalyst? What was that moment? Like, Hey, you know what? Cause you, you excel as a leader. So for me to hear you say that, it's like, man, I awesome leader saying I'm struggling this portion of leadership and being vulnerable and say it to everybody. And then just excelling beyond like, cause I've, again, I just keep bumping up. I'm like, dang, let me show him do that. Start being that guy. And it's from your reading. Yeah. I mean, I know it's from your reading. Cause you keep saying, I'll write this in this book and I'm like, oh, that's cool next week or a month from now. I'm like, he's implementing that thing that he told me about it, that you read. And he's totally, he wasn't like that six months, 12 months, five years ago. I don't recognize this person in front of me right now. And it's awesome. I mean, yeah. So what was that catalyst on the leadership thing? Right. There's a tidbit. So leadership is everything. So what I mean by that is like in 2023 being one of the most challenging, getting uncomfortable in the best years of my life, starting a mastermind group, starting a run club, doing these different things that I normally wouldn't have done. Guess what? It all aligns with leadership. And so I knew I could do these things, but I knew what I had known was not going to get me to where I wanted to go. And I felt one of my strengths is responsibility and maximizing people. And learning about my strengths in 2023, I knew it was all tied to leadership. So I got every book, every podcast, every audio book that I possibly could with leadership, because I wanted to lead a mastermind group. I wanted to lead level up and live. I wanted to lead my team members. I wanted to lead my wife. I wanted to lead everybody around me. And where focus goes, energy flows. So I want to be the best leader, the best version of myself, the best leader that I possibly can. And that is where I've just 10X to what you're saying. And so, as you're talking there, I'm thinking that like getting uncomfortable part, once you get uncomfortable, well, it's the unknown, right? And so once you step into that, it's very exciting, very thrilling, and very nervous. Like people can be very nervous getting into that. But Luke, what it ends up having you do, you have to end up finding new ways to become more than what you were before to handle, to get to where you need to be in that situation. So you were not the same human being after starting what it is you started after compared to what you were before. Like you had to change. And that is progress. That is leveling up. And that is where the fulfillment lies because you're serving other people. It's not just, it's not the Sean Meyer show, you know, like you have impacted so many of those lives and that's what your mission statement is. Well, behold, he's actually doing what his mission statement is. And so it's really working and it's so cool to see. And I know for me, I read so many books at one point, like I was just, I was reading so many books. I don't know if you were reading that much yet and I don't know what you thought about it. I just always, a lot of audio books. I drive a lot, you know, it's a lot of audio and I would get so much stuff. And a lot of times I didn't realize what I was picking up. But if I think back to a lot of things I did, I'm like, that's because of that book. Like I didn't know what was seeping into my mind. And then I stopped reading. I don't know, again, pandemic or whatever. I wasn't in my car as much. I wasn't just listening to books and, um, and reading as well as physical books. And so it kind of just stopped. And I stopped as soon as I stopped reading the books, I guess like my development stopped and, and then I just felt miserable. So like the power of books, like, and if you haven't started reading yet, man, you've got to, well, consistency, commit to reading in an area that you want to do something that you, you know, you don't want to suffer through it yet. It's gotta be something that you want to do. But the power of books, uh, podcasts being around the nature of doers thinkers, that's the only way you eat. It's so hard to think about it in your own mind because you only have your own experiences, uh, and to get yourself to where you want to go with just you, very hard, you know, and if you did get there, there's a good chance you're gonna end up on the couch and you're gonna end up spiraling down. And yeah, so that's, uh, yeah. Getting back into books for me, 2023, um, man, I I've seen what it's like to do it for the longest time, step out of it, see the result, get back in and feel immediately what it is that I'm getting from reading these things. Like that who not how that you gave me. I keep talking about it. It was so powerful, man. Like it's changed me as a human being. I don't want to do anything anymore. Myself. I want to find people who are really good at what they do and let them do it. Let me get out of the way and go focus it on what it's I'm good at and then I can get the results and we all rise together. And so, yeah, that was an amazing book. But, um, yeah, of course, you know, level up and live is all I listen to now, you know, on repeat. So no, I'm just kidding. Yeah, I, I, there's over getting all our downloads back in a podcast, you know, because I was like listening to one of our episodes one time, just to, I was wanting to gauge where we're at, putting our craft. And so it got me back on the Apple podcast deal. And so I start seeing some of the old guys I used to listen to. I'm like, Oh, that's a cool, I want to hear that one. So now I'm back listening again. Like, man, that's gold. I'm listening to, I'm going to apply that in my life. I'm going to do that. And just being around them, hearing their energy, hearing their voice right now, maybe you're feeling the same way. Uh, it does something to you. And if you were just hunkered over in a room and a chair and a shoulder slouched scrolling through Facebook versus the you who's simulating information, visioning yourself, doing the same things or doing something that you want. And those there's two people going to end up in very different places over a year. Where are they going to be in 10 years? You know, I mean, it's going to be 90 day difference. But what's interesting to me is with a lot of my coaching clients over the 20, 23, one of the beautiful thing about like their results that they're getting and what they're applying and filtering in their own lives. Now I've shared podcasts with them, shared books with them. And the cool thing about it is they've inspired me too. Some of them have shared books with me, which has been super impactful. And I think that's your point, like surrounding yourself with those individuals. And the cool thing is if you like, one of the things that I learned in 2023 is if I level up, not only is everybody that is leaning in, in your tribe, in your community, and maybe outside of that, when they lean in, they want to come up, they want to lean in with you. They want to bring their baseline up. So everybody levels up around you. Right. And so with my coaching clients, like one of the cool thing about it is the, the, the getting uncomfortable coaching them one-on-one. And I could tell that they were uncomfortable. They, you know, they were kind of hesitant on why are you giving me, why are you, why are you, you know, why are we doing these things? And I said, trust the process, right? I had to send Mr. Miyagi from Karate Kid. Have you seen Karate Kid? I had to ask because you didn't know about Star Wars. We're going to watch Star Wars one day. I'm going to take you down with a bag of popcorn. We're going to watch Star Wars. I'm just kidding. Don't hold your breath. But yeah, Mr. Miyagi, you know, whacked on myself. You just, man, that's another thing I know best. That's the worst possible attitude you can have. You do know best, but why not listen to what else is going on and assimilate that information and maybe someone else knows best. You've got to get into those terms. Other people know best. Who's the expert? Who knows more than me? I can't know at all. So if they know best and that's what they're saying to do, just calm the ego down and be humble and do what they're saying in your way. You know, you're not, you're not squeezed, forced to do it the way they do it, but at least do it your way and things that they're saying and, and just trust that you'll get the same result that what they're talking about, you know? So I think that's, and did you talk about coaching? That leads perfectly to number three, coaching. And I was thinking about it. I was like, man, I got a coach in 2023, my Enneagram coach and he really, I think just got me set, got me on track. And he did it in five sessions. Honestly, to be fair, but it was one big, big catalyst. It's all the things involved, right? The environment, the crew you're around, I had a mastermind and I had this coach and he was just excellent, man. I love, love him to death for what he did for me. And I, I wouldn't, I don't know if I'd be sitting here right now if it wasn't for him. I just thought about that. Yeah. I need that, man. Yeah. Anyway. So for you, you said coaching. My coaching clients are saying the same thing. That's all you need to say. Like look at the results they're getting. Yeah. One of my coaching clients and I won't disclose his name because it's for privacy purposes, but one of my newest coaching clients, he, man, multimillion dollar business, killing it, crushing it. About five years younger than me reminded me a lot of myself, you know, five years ago he came to me and as soon as this guy started talking, I was like, I'm going to like this guy. And he kind of said the same thing. And so we hit it off and been a business owner for six years now. Got some employees office out of Austin and just been in the grind, hustling, grinding, and has not come up for air the last six or seven years, which is what pretty much story. Yeah. Business owner. I'm like, I resonate. And so everything else around him, he's neglected health time for himself, family and relationship issues, stuff like that. Right. Everything. You're like, how does it happen? You know, like how does it get there? How do we not see that coming while it's happening? And well, that's why you're, that's why you're, it's your mission now because you went through that and you're like, I got to stop people from ever getting in that boat again. That's right. That's what, that's what led me to coaching. Right. And that's what I feel like that it's been so impactful because I've had coaches in my, my, in my areas of life too for counseling. And so it's, I've seen what it's done because it's a different perspective and that's what I brought to this gentleman. It's brought a different perspective. And just in the short amount of sessions, he thought it was going to be this, but it was completely like I shed the light on this. And it was like, now you can just see the weight lift off his shoulders. Like, yeah, I understand. I was like, okay, maybe I do need, maybe it's okay to take 30 minutes for myself, you know? And, and it, because it's what it's going to do you and it's just going to allow you to 10 X, right. Your finances, the other areas of life. See, that's why people are so resistant because they think about, well, I don't need a coach first off. Like they can't help you. They don't understand that you, that would be someone unknowing of what is possible out there. They don't want to spend the money because why would you give your money to someone else to help you out? That's, that's a barrier at the cross. And I'm just thinking, I've spent a lot of money on different coaches over my time. And I remember the first time I was like, I need, I need this person's help to get, it was a business I was doing at the time. And, and it really helped. And I spent a lot of money doing it. And from there I was like, I see the return. I see what it's worth. It's worth putting the money out there. But before that though, it's like, you wouldn't consider doing it because you just don't know what the benefits, but what you just said right there, the 10 X, that's what you have to anticipate. That's what you have to, that's what the only reason you do it is to 10 X, something else. Like what is the return? Why do you put money in the stock market? Why do you put money into crypto to hope to get a return? Why don't you put money into yourself? We're talking about finances here. We're talking about like, well it could be finances, but emotionally, like what am I, mentally this, the coaching gets your mental state in the right place to do the things that you're not currently doing or else you wouldn't be seeing them or helping you understand to get to a place where, um, there's hope. You know, because man, a lot of times, man, if you think about it, most people end up getting a coaching because they don't have hope. They're hopeless. They've lost. They don't know. They don't know what to do next. They need someone to help them out. And normally it's a crash and burning situation. Um, you know, we go out and talk, how do you, how would you get someone that catch it beforehand? You know, knowing what we know now, like, well, we, I'm actively looking for multiple different coaches in different areas for a number of different things. I haven't pulled the trigger on it yet. Um, but I'll be doing it out of a place of, um, joy. Like it's not, it's just as an experience part of the process, getting uncomfortable. Yeah. And knowing that the best have multiple coaches really, we should have them at the start. That would be ideal. But we, it's like, as you get one and you realize that really helped. And then you get one in another area. And like any football player, it's high level football player have multiple different coaches, but they're the best. So why did the best need coaches? They don't need anybody, right? Well, that's, well, why do they have more coaches than anybody then they have mental coaches, physical coaches, spiritual, like all those things to help them be the best, help them focus. And that's what, that's what they bring in. I know that's what it brought to me. Um, and it brought that to you too and look, it brought you to bringing that to other people. And I think coaching aligns with kind of like what we got going with like the mastermind group, you know, and holding each other, like the discipline, the accountability and the things that we're bringing to the table, each of us with our collaboration, that's a sense of coaching in its way, right? Cause we all have our own different, yeah, it's a group coaching. And so that's been powerful aligned with camaraderie. Yes. Which has been so powerful and paid huge dividends in 2023. Which leads right into number four, which is identity and purpose. I know, man, if I was to think about it, like when I was working with coach, he got me focused back to who I was, like who, what I was about and where I needed to go. And at least he got me to a place to where I could go find the purpose I was after. And mixing that with the, I think the purpose portion came from the mastermind group. He got me to where my identity was able to execute and move forward. And it was being in the mastermind group that really, and being around you, you know, like, like everything you're talking about. And we've always done this like together. We've always talked and we've never thought about doing anything together, but like that purpose, like, that's what you're so good at is making a space for someone to step into and then just excelling at what they're good at, like the who know how type thing, you know, and it feels wonderful, you know, and you created that. And that, so your purpose was served and my purpose is served. That's right. You know, it's, it's all ships ride the tide, you know? So for me, identity and purpose. And I know for, I don't know what you're going to say here for you on identity and purpose, but I'm curious because you've podiumed in a number of athletic endeavors. And I'm curious if that, like identity for you, was that part of what you were thinking about identity and purpose or what would you say? Yeah. So I think it all ties together, right. From what we're talking about and, and, and learning from people and being around, being around that environment, because let's be honest, when you're, when you're around other, whether it's in a marriage, when you're around other happy married couple, healthy married couples, you're going to learn from that. You're going to level up your marriage. You should, if you continue to be around that same thing with health and wellness, same thing with finances, you are the average of the five people you hang around. Right. And so for me with the podium, I was surrounding myself with guys that have leveled up, right. With running and hit workouts and endurance. And so the number one key ingredient that I saw was after getting uncomfortable, listening, reading books, listening to podcasts on how to do these different things. Like I told you, I'll run this morning. And then third, hiring a coach, which I did. Shout out. And then boom, I start podium, right. Because I'm putting in the work behind the scenes because I'm doing all these different things and surrounding myself with those guys and plugging myself in. That is the key ingredient. Would you be there without them? Would you be podium? Absolutely not. It's so crazy because I witnessed it in real action, real life, real time that you got these people involved. And I just saw the absolute hockey stick kind of going flat and shoot straight up because it didn't take you long to get to the podium. In my mind anyway, I'm sure like your experience, you're like, no, I took a long time. But for anybody watching, it was, I mean, it was lightning quick. Yeah. I mean, it was so fast. Well, so that's interesting. That's fascinating that you say that. And that's very insightful. See, well, most people see on the outside, right. The external forces, you see stuff on social media, you hear stuff, but what you don't understand is what it goes, what goes on behind the scenes. Right. And that to me, what you do behind the scenes, the reps that you put in and doing these different things. And that's where everything that we're talking about from getting uncomfortable to having that coach that you can lean on and talk about these vulnerabilities and talk about these things with, because there's nobody else to talk about it with. And then the third thing is having that coaching group, that mastermind group to lean on other guys that have either been or have different ideas and collaborations. Oh my gosh. Talk about, you know, putting yourself, uh, setting yourself up for better chances of success and to where you want it to go and becoming the best version of yourself. You weren't doing all those things and getting better and moving along with what you had. Your identity wouldn't line up with who you're hanging around with. It wouldn't match. You would end up just not hanging out with those people who would do something else, which is fine, but you certainly wouldn't have what it was that you wanted your purpose, which was to be excellent, you know, excellent in the physical, uh, uh, um, competing space. And, and so it's the, yeah. And that goes through for the mastermind. Well, and I told the story earlier about like turning on the cold water. I told, I, I shut, I did a big woohoo after I did this cold water. I turned in the shower today. It was so unbelievably cold. It was in the low thirties and I wasn't even, I wasn't expecting to my breath go away. And I stayed in there for 90 seconds. And, uh, it was amazing. So I came downstairs, my kids were like, Oh, what happened up there? I say, well, I took a cold shower. So exciting. I felt so rejuvenated. It helped me feel just phenomenal. Adrenaline pumping, all the good stuff. And my son, he's eight and said, I'm going to, I'm going to do a cold shower dad. And I'm like, man, it was music to my ears to say that he's going to put himself in a comfortable environment. And my daughter said, I'm going to do that. They're like, come time up. Both of them were like, whoa, when I hear them, it's high-pitched squeals and they turn it all upside time. And they're like, okay, how long was it? You know, I'll give them the time. So what is amazing is my wife and I were talking last night and she cold. I can't, nobody would try to describe it. It's impossible to describe. Cold is not a word that even rolls off my wife's tongue. Like she just cannot handle it. The cold, she's like cold natured, you know? So she's always wrapped up in a blanket, always got the slippers on. She likes to be cozy, but she's a beat in all of the areas. You want something done? My wife will get it done and it will be exceptional more than you'd ever think about. But when there's not, she is unstoppable person. Amazing in all areas. But if you talk about cold, that's a kryptonite man. You put cold on there, like even like, Oh man, when I think it's hot, I mean she just doesn't like, it's not even, it's kind of hilarious. She'll like, she'll scream, you know? And so she, no, this is weird. Stay with me here. She told me yesterday, she put her hand on the handle of the shower to turn it to cold. She didn't turn it. So this is super weird. I'm saying it. But she thought about it and I was so proud that she even crossed that barrier to think about touching it. Cause that was progress. I know at some point she will have to the way she is now that she's gotten a little uncomfortable touching it. She's got that far now. The next time she might just tweak it a little bit, you know? And eventually she might get into it and it's got nothing to do with the temperature. It's about your mind controlling over your body that you can handle something difficult. And so to me that that me and my kids had been discussing this, we're having a great time or high fiving, discussing it and loving it like so rejuvenated that she felt her identity didn't match. That's all I can assume. Like you haven't even really got a chance to discuss it. But she, this is what I'm talking about. You hang around with people who do things you're going to end up doing the same thing. Good or bad. Come on, my job, bro. It's just so, it's just truth, man. So if you think about people who eat the way they eat, you're going to eat the same way. Uh, if you hang out with people who do exercise or whatever, your identity will match. It just matches. So you've got to get in that environment and it will happen automatically. We didn't even talk to my wife about doing it. That's right. And same thing with a mastermind. Like we haven't talked about the things that we're doing. It's like they just see aura, the energy, the identity that we're building with ourselves by being there. So I think it's just, it's so understated. We maybe should have put it at number one, to be honest. I mean, cause once you have that identity, the purpose, uncomfortable gets a lot less uncomfortable. The confidence that you feel and yeah. So anyway, side story right there. But funnily enough, that leads into number five, which is movement for success. And Sean's podium. And there's a lot of athletes that listen to this and they can totally identify that. But you might be, you hadn't, you hadn't ran, you haven't even walked more than a mile in five years. And you might be thinking, I can't podium. Well, let me tell you, like I've been a big, I've worked out since I was eight years old, chest expanders. I used to watch the Rocky movies. I started in pull-ups when I was 10 years old. And so I've always worked out. I was the school champion for athletics for like four years straight. I played rugby for my, my school, my city. I trained for running, sprinting for, for the city and all kinds of stuff through college, always played sports. It was always fast and any sport. I loved it. Very competitive. And then again, the pandemic, I just, you know, I was big into CrossFit for the longest time, even coach CrossFit as well. And then I just fell off the wagon, man. I still haven't fully processed what happened there. Just difficult. Everybody went through a difficult time, but I stopped working out. How about this you? 2021 is probably when I started to really realize it's been like a year since I've really done anything. And then I got, I got COVID, I think it was March. And so that really kind of just impacted my body. And so it really held me back. And then from there, I just kind of got out of the habit or the mental space that really the mental space I got out of it. And so my movement went down and my whole, I think that's what cascaded everything. Like I wasn't moving nearly as much. And you didn't have a purpose too, right? No purpose. My identity was matching with my actions, which was just nothing, you know? And so I wasn't reading, podcasting, not getting uncomfortable at all. The thought of uncomfortability was petrifying. I remember being this like, what would you like? I was a shell myself, lost my shadow, you know? And so 2023 was a year of getting it back, you know? And I feel like, have you seen, you've probably not seen it. It's the Dark Knight Rises where Bane, Batman is Batman. It's the third one. And so Bane, is this just jacked monster and he can't feel pain. And so Batman is eight years older from the second film. And he, this guy comes back and he, they end up going head to head and Batman is old, broken at this point, but he has to save everybody, you know? So he goes to fight him with him. And he's just laying into Bane, cannot, the guys just let him hit him. And then Bane hits him one time, knocks him down. And it's like, what is happening? It's an unbelievable scene. He ends up, he ends up breaking Batman's back and sends him to this hellhole pit that's impossible to escape from. And there's like a hundred prisoners in there and on the other side of the world. And Bane broke him like mentally, physically. And he didn't want to kill Batman. He put him in a room with a broken back with bars and he just had a TV so that Batman could watch him destroy the city that they lived in. And so he ends up Bruce Wayne, Batman, he ends up repairing himself. He gets his back fixed up. He works out over this long period of time and he figures out a way how to escape from this hole. Like it's hundreds of feet high hole and he has to make this impossible jump to get out. It's impossible. No one's ever, everyone's ever tried to die. He does it. He gets out. And so then, you know, I don't want to, I'm going to ruin the film. You know, you got to watch it. It doesn't matter if you know the story or not. At the end he fights Bane again and right as Bane sees him, he's like, how I broke you. Once he knew he was, uh, that he came back, he was then broke. Let's go. And that's, I guess that's how I feel. Yeah. Love that man. Yeah. Stopped existing and started living. Yeah man. Yeah. So I, yeah, I just was all the way out and got all the way back. I wasn't sure it was going to happen. Yeah. And there has been hope. That's because you've got uncomfortable. Yeah. You hired coaches. Yeah. You've read books, listen to podcasts, surround yourself with like-minded individuals. Huge thanks to you, man. I, I honestly wouldn't be here, uh, feeling the way I'm feeling if it wasn't for you. No doubt brother. And I didn't mean to steal the hog, the horn there, but yeah. Movement is success for you. I think we can end it there, man. That was beautiful. Yeah. Well said. That's what it's all about. Yeah. Appreciate you sharing that, man. Yeah. Love you too, dude. There's some vulnerability right there. A lot of love to live. Yeah brother.
