Month: April 2024

“I truly believe that everything that we do and everyone that we meet is put in our path for a purpose. There are no accidents; we’re all teachers – if we’re willing to pay attention to the lessons we learn, trust our positive instincts and not be afraid to take risks or wait for some miracle to come knocking at our door.”—Marla Gibbs

“I am here for a purpose and that purpose is to grow into a mountain, not to shrink to a grain of sand. Henceforth will I apply ALL my efforts to become the highest mountain of all and I will strain my potential until it cries for mercy.”—Og Mandino

“My purpose in performing is to communicate the joy I experience in living.”—John Denver

“To begin to think with purpose, is to enter the ranks of those strong ones who only recognize failure as one of the pathways to attainment.”—James Allen

“Purpose is what gives life a meaning.”—Charles Henry Parkhurst

“The purpose creates the machine.”—Arthur Young

“Your purpose is not what you are doing right now…. But what you do is connect with an innate sense of how you give and get meaning every day and channel that innate purpose that’s internal to your external life.”—Anna Hall

“Normal is not something to aspire to, it’s something to get away from.”—Jodie Foster

The more I teach courses like “Exercise Testing and Prescription” the more I am bothered by normative data—especially as it relates to age. Accordingly, I am expected to see declines in strength and performance and increases in body fat. I am expected age like everyone else. That is normal.

Normal is what everyone else does—for better or for worse. It is not necessarily what I should be doing. It is not what you should be doing.

Normal is not a “growth mindset.” Growth is a herd mindset.

“No! Don’t think outside of the box! Once you say that, you’ve established that there is a box.”—Walt Disney

Coyte Cooper (Make Your Mark and Flip the Script) taught me not to set “reasonable” goals like we are taught with the SMART goal-setting approach (i.e., specific, measurable, achievable, reasonable, and time). Instead, our goals should be unreasonable by ordinary standards. In other words, strive to be beyond “normal”—beyond the expectations of others.

Be (extra)ordinary! “Normal”—ever the higher percentiles for your age, gender, etc.—is what is expected. Normal is not potential. Normal is, by definition, “ordinary.”

People have expectations based on how others perform. We were not created to be normal. We were created to be (extra)ordinary.

Be your best today; be better tomorrow.

Carpe momento!

“For true success ask yourself these four questions: Why? Why not? Why not me? Why not now?”—James Allen

Those who will never find success are likely to ask only one question: Why me? Note that I did not write “failures.” True success will have many failures along the path. This is inevitable if we have a growth mindset and are focused on the “why not?” questions.

The first question of true success is often the easiest. After all, whoever says to themselves: “I want to be a failure because…”? We know our “why.” We often get stuck in the “why not.” The “Why not?” question too often opens the door to excuses. We make it a bit farther along the path than the person who locks on their excuses (i.e., the “Why me?” person) before discovering their “why.”

Asking the question: “Why not me?” takes ownership of the opportunity. It addresses the obstacles and the perceived limitations.

Asking ourselves: “Why not now?” gives us the sense of immediacy. It denies power to any excuse. It empowers us with the sense of urgency. It demands a plan of action (thus disallowing any excuse for inaction).

Want something? Go for it! Ask yourself: “Why? Why not? Why not me? Why not now?”

Be your best today; be better tomorrow.

Carpe momento!!