by Neil Mathweg | Nov 17, 2022 | Agent Rise Newsletter
We were out on a walk and it looked like the rain was coming our way. Of course, we didn’t grab the umbrellas. We had about a half mile to go, so we started walking faster. I said “We’ll make it and plan B, we can just tuck under one of the overhangs or awnings on one of these buildings.”
Then Izzy said, “We don’t need a plan B. We are going to make it!”
Oh my! Talk about a proud dad moment! I just got coached by my 11 year old! I love it!
And she is so right. We don’t need a plan B! In fact, having one hurts us. What we focus on expands and if we are focusing on a plan B we’ll probably go with plan B.
How many times in our lives do we have a plan B? We hold onto that job just in case this whole real estate thing doesn’t work out.
It’s the “burn the ship” theory where the captain burns the ships down to show his army there is no going back. Either we conquer this land or we die trying. There is no going back, there is no plan B.
We divide our focus when we have a plan B. Focus on where you are going, you’ll get there faster!
by Neil Mathweg | Nov 14, 2022 | Agent Rise Newsletter
Some people manage to do it, right? They break through when you could swear there’s no way they will ever break through. David and Goliath. They surprise everyone. No one expects it. But what if you could go backstage and find out what they did before the breakthrough? Maybe we can…
Rudy had a vision
One of my all-time favorite movies is Rudy, a film about a boy with a dream to play Notre Dame Football. I can’t watch it without crying. I even teared up writing this newsletter! Anyone else?
Anyway, I love this story for two reasons. First, it’s a great example of working according to a vision. And the second, is resilience.
I love a story where someone has a vision in their heart that doesn’t make a lick of sense to anyone else. They will face all kinds of adversity just to live out the vision. They endure pain physically and mentally. No one else understands and thinks you are going to make a fool out of yourself. They don’t want to see you get hurt, they encourage you to play it safe.
Ever had a vision in your heart that doesn’t make sense to others or even to your rational self?
Let your inner “Rudy” come alive!
How many times in your life did you have a vision come alive on the inside of you, only to let fear and doubt rob it from you?
We saw Rudy work according to his vision no matter what stood in his way. He didn’t focus on his roadblocks, instead, he focused on his vision.
Here is another thing I recently learned, “If you don’t know where you are going it’s because you are only looking at the problems.” ~Erwin Rapheal McManus
If you focus on the problem, you lose sight of the vision. The problem takes us off course. Vision keeps us on.
Be what you want to become
I admired how Rudy started being what he wanted to become. He wanted to be a Notre Dame football player, so he started doing whatever Notre Dame football players did.
They studied, and he started studying. They worked out day and night, he worked out day and night. They wore letterman jackets, he wore letterman jackets. And he sat in the living room with a football helmet on because “at any moment the coach might put you in the game.”
Man, I love it! Talk about being what you want to become!
Throughout the movie you see him walk a little taller as he was being what he wanted to become. Even though Rudy was the smallest kid, he didn’t let that stop him. At the very end of the movie, he was lifted up to be the tallest on the field. Again, I love it!
There is so much power in being what you want to become. What do you want to become? Do you know?
But wait—What if I don’t know what I want to become?
If you don’t know what life you want, you are just going to have the life you have. Most let circumstances stand in the way. But I also learned from Erwin Rapheal McManus: “Who you are has created the life you have. Not the other way around. Most think the life I have has created who I am.”
The path forward:
Know who you want to become.
Be that person. In other words, make changes.
And making changes can be hard.
Not only did Rudy need his vision, but he needed the drive to fight through the obstacles. Much bigger players towered over him and crushed him at times. It was like he was fighting Goliath on each play. He had to study his way into the school. He was homeless. He did whatever it took to live out this vision.
It’s not easy, you need to put in the hard work. But when you work according to the vision, the hard work becomes fun. Amazing things happen and eventually, you condition yourself to do the hard.
Where do you begin?
Once you know your vision, it may seem far out there and you don’t even know where to start. I point to one of my favorite Jim Rohn quotes:
“Success is nothing more than a few simple disciplines, practiced every day.”
That’s where you begin. Focus on what you want to become, start with a few simple disciplines and practice them every day.
For me, I started doing what healthy people do. I started drinking more water, getting 7-8 hours of sleep, cooking all meals (low carb high protein), and walking 10k steps a day. I also started taking cold showers to train my brain so that I can do difficult things.
