It’s not about the number of reps you do.

It’s not about reading for an hour every night.

Or running 10 miles per day.

It’s about doing something every day.

That’s it.

Quantity doesn’t matter nearly as much as consistency.

The more you force yourself to do, the less likely you are to create a daily habit.

It becomes too much.

Eventually you crack and the habit dies.

But if you start off small and maintain a daily practice, it will become easier.

You’ll get better over time.

It won’t seem so overwhelming.

It won’t seem nearly as hard to accomplish.

When we see an audacious goal of an hour of reading or 20 minutes of meditation per day, it can become too much too soon.

20 minutes of daily meditation forever?

It’s not that you can’t get to that point.

It will just take time.

If you start out doing too much, it’s not sustainable.

Start small and be consistent.

Really small.

One page of reading.

4 push-ups.

3 minutes of running.

To make long-term progress you have to start somewhere.

To create a habit you have to start small.

Focus on incremental improvements over time vs. expecting immediate results.

It takes years of small, daily work to create the major changes we crave.

Don’t fall into the trap of overnight, instant success.

“It takes 20 years to make an overnight success.” – Eddie Cantor

I always thought I had to do more.

Add more.

More activities.

More habits.

More tasks.

More everything.

But what ended up happening everytime I added more?

It didn’t stick.

It would last for a while but would eventually fade.

Why is that?

You can only fill a cup with a certain amount of water.

Once the cup is full, you can’t continue pouring and adding.

Instead of first adding, subtract.

Remove habits and routines that don’t make you better.

Remove the bad habits to create room for the good.

Cut out one hour of television per day.

Stop drinking during the week.

Stop eating out all the time.

Focus on the things that matter most and remove everything else.

What we can’t do is stack good habits on top of bad habits.

The cup overflows.

The only way you can create the best version of yourself is to understand what matters most and eliminate the rest.

Let’s say your family matters more than anything.

If that’s the case, prioritize your health.

Focus on our well-being.

Your time spent with family.

Understand how you can create the best life for your family.

Freedom for you and your family.

Be the best parent you can.

Nothing else matters.

It starts with eliminating the excess.

Only then can you build toward improving yourself.

It’s something we often know but don’t want to hear.

It normally hurts in the moment.

Our typical reaction is to get upset.

“That guy doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”

“What a jerk.”

“That’s not an issue.”

What if they are right though?

We have to take that into consideration.

We have to reflect on what they said even if it wasn’t delivered perfectly.

They’re just voicing what they’re seeing.

It’s not the time to get upset and react.

It’s a moment to pause and learn.

They’re not saying it, in most cases, to hurt you.

They’re saying it for your own good.

Listen to the feedback.

Learn from what they’re saying.

If you had a gut reaction, it’s probably because it’s true.

Don’t let it keep you down.

Take their feedback and either change or keep doing what you’re doing.

That’s really the only two options.

The truth hurts.

It can also be a gift.

The thing we’re most afraid of has to be done.

If it scares you, it’s probably the most important thing you can do.

It will push you beyond your current self and abilities.

Hard and uncomfortable tasks are what make us better.

They make us realize this fear we have is actually good.

We should be fearful of hard tasks.

We’ve never accomplished them before.

What normally happens after you’ve done something you were afraid of or nervous about?

It’s not as bad as you thought.

Now you’ve done it.

You can do it again.

That’s the way to consistent self improvement.

If you don’t want to run today, a run is probably the most important thing you can do.

You don’t want to go to that interview.

You don’t think you’re good enough.

You think you’re not ready for the job.

You don’t feel like going.

You’re nervous and feel sick to your stomach.

Those are the signs you have to go.

You have to step on the other side.

Go towards the uncomfortable situation.

I’ve noticed the things I least want to do are usually the most rewarding after I’ve done them.

I normally learn the most from these situations.

They’re not as scary as the seem in our imagination.

They’re life changing events.

You can apply this to major events such as a speech or presentation or to our daily life – such as daily reading or exercise.

If you don’t want to do something understand why.

Why don’t I want to do this?

Is it because I don’t feel ready?

Is it the pressure?

The unknown?

Whatever it is I guarantee after you’ve done it, it will be easier than you thought and you’ll feel proud.

You’ve done it.

Now when the next uncomfortable task comes your way, you’ll know what has to be done.

Do what you least want to do.

It will open doors like nothing else.

There’s something in running called the rule of thirds.

One third of the time you’ll feel good – or great.

One third of the time you’ll feel okay – average or below average.

One third of the time you’ll feel terrible – it feels like you’ve lost a step or you simply don’t have it.

If you’re training is generally like that, you’re on the right track.

Then why do we get discouraged when we run or perform poorly?

We should perform poorly one third of the time.

We should expect hard days.

We should expect off days over half the time.

You shouldn’t feel good all the time.

What if you changed your mindset?

You don’t have to go in thinking it’s going to be an off day.

Go in with a positive attitude and try your best each day.

The outcome doesn’t matter.

If it’s a great day, good.

If it’s an off day, that’s okay too.

Off days are expected.

It’s really all about showing up.

Showing up even if you don’t feel like it.

No one feels good every day.

Control what you can control.

Show up every day.

We strive for things to be easy.

For our jobs. For our relationships. For our wealth. For our success.

Do you really want that?

Does easy really mean better?

Would your life be more enjoyable if everything was easy?

It would be fun for a while.

You would enjoy getting everything you’ve every wanted.

After that, what would be your purpose?

Would you still strive to do difficult tasks?

Would you still have goals?

Would you feel proud of your life when you die?

Things are hard for a reason.

Not everyone can do it.

Not everyone wants to do it.

Not everyone will do it.

Wouldn’t it feel better to work towards a goal and accomplish that goal no matter the time horizon?

Life isn’t a short sprint, it’s a marathon – it’s really an ultra marathon.

Just because you’re not accomplishing your goals immediately or after a few years, doesn’t mean you’ll never achieve anything.

It takes time.

It takes years.

Life would be boring if everything was easy.

You would feel good about your life having worked for your success.

Don’t wish it to be easier.

Accept what’s in front of you and run towards it.

What we least want to do is what we have to do.

It’s counterintuitive, but it might be the best option.

Longevity or injury?

What if you ran every run slower?

What if you only ran fast when you needed to?

If the best runners in the world run 80% or more of their runs slow, don’t you think you should to?

The issue is your ego.

Running fast looks good.

You want people to know you’re fast. You want to show them that you’re good.

Why does that matter?

Why do you care?

You shouldn’t.

Don’t worry about other people.

Run slow and stay healthy but look slow to people who don’t matter.

Worry about yourself.

They don’t know your goals.

They don’t know your body.

Worry about longevity and health vs. Ego.

Injuries can be demoralizing.

Running fast is fun and exciting.

It feels good to open it up.

Purposefully running slow is much harder to do.

If something seems overwhelming in the moment, remind yourself that it’s such a small amount of time in your life.

It’s so hard in the moment.

It’s exhausting and can feel like it will never get better.

It does get better.

It will get better.

You might even look back and appreciate those moments.

If something takes 3 months or 3 years, it will be over before you know it.

It will be hard now but gets easier later.

Your current struggles prepare your future self.

The pains of today will be an afterthought tomorrow.

So really it’s just about getting through it because there will be an end.

It will get better.

Can we suffer now to ease the pain on our future selves?

That might be the secret.

Life is hard.

Like, really fucking hard.

It’s confusing. Frustrating. Depressing. Annoying. Tedious.

It seems like you’re never going to get it right.

But, that’s the whole point.

You should never feel comfortable because you’ll never get it 100% right.

There is no end.

It should be challenging.

It should be hard.

You also shouldn’t believe that the next thing – whether it be a material item or promotion or pay increase – will finally make you feel like you’ve made it.

It won’t.

So you shouldn’t expect your next achievement to feel like you can finally relax and be content.

You won’t.

Unless you change your perspective.

Think of each step as a move closer to becoming the best version of yourself.

As Reid Hoffman says, “Permanent beta is essentially a lifelong commitment to continuous personal growth. Get busy livin’, or get busy dyin’.”

That’s exactly it.

You will never be a finished product.

That next thing won’t make you feel whole.

That promotion will feel good for a little while, but it will wear off.

Do things instead that will make your current and future self feel good.

Being a great father or husband or sister or friend.

That’s what we should really focus on.

The people around us.

The positive impacts you can have on someone.

That’s what should drive us.

Individual achievements are great but having a positive impact on someone else is the mission.

Your actions will speak for themselves.

People don’t need to know how much you work or what awards you’ve received.

No one cares about your achievements. They care about their own.

Focus on improving each day vs. a focus on achieving some great reward.

The day to day actions ARE the reward.

The struggle is the reward.

Failure is the reward.

It may not feel like it in the moment, but the path is the reward not the end.

Don’t brag about the things you’ve accomplished.

Be grateful for the failures you’ve endured.

Be grateful for the tough days and the lessons learned.

Bragging might make you look better outwardly but won’t make you feel better for long.

It’s like getting drunk – it’s incredible in the moment but awful the next day.

Keep the focus on doing the right thing each day vs. the outcome from those actions.

It will pay off.

Have you ever heard someone say, “I have no regrets.”

Usually it’s someone successful replaying their life and mentioning they wouldn’t change a thing about their past. They have no regrets because they’ve learned a valuable lesson from their mistakes.

No regrets? You don’t regret anything you’ve done?

That’s bull shit.

If you don’t have regrets, you’re either just an asshole or a narcissist – most likely both.

You should have regrets.

You can learn from your regrets but you shouldn’t feel bad about having certain regrets.

You shouldn’t dwell on your regrets.

You shouldn’t be consumed about the things you wish you did differently.

Learn from those regrets.

Think about the feeling you had after that moment.

Try to reduce the number of regrets you have in life but don’t deny the fact that you have regrets.

That’s not real life.

Clothes with sensors at all of the common areas that hit the ground first – knees, shoulders, elbows, butt, etc.

Family and caregivers will receive an immediate, urgent alert that the family member has fallen.

Potential inflated pads – not as large as air bags – that inflated as someone falls.

Goal is to reduce the impact, injuries, and avoid someone being left by themselves on the ground.

App that could track heart rate, steps, calories burned, number of weekly/monthly falls, preventative actions to take, breathes per minute, stress level, etc.

The application is used to make sure your parent or loved one is safe, healthy, and happy.

Run virtually together.

Run with your friends via a projection from a smart watch that shows a holographic image of them running next to you.

You can chat via phones or from an app – maybe a speaker from your watch.

Could also be used as a potential pace setter for runners on a track – holographic image shows a runner at a pace that you would like to hit.

You could also have a virtual reality treadmill and headset but if you want to really “get outside”, the watch projector would be the way to go.

Projector would have to capture your video via the watch and sound could from your watch speaker or you could use headphones.

It would be a true virtual workout. Would be great for motivation in training or if you hired a coach, they could help make sure you’re on pace during your workout and get feedback in real-time vs. having to be with you in-person.

Heavy focus at first on running vs other sports but other sports would work too.

Great to workout with others and connect to relatives or friends in far away places.

Our individual ability to make a lasting impact is unlikely.

I’m not saying that to be a downer or negative, it’s just a fact.

Very few figures have been able to do it and soon they’ll be forgotten.

If that’s the case, what you do each and everyday should matter only to you.

Why should you care what people think?

It’s ultimately up to you to make your own decisions and actions.

Act in the way that makes you and your family happy, not what will look good externally to the greater masses.

Have fun and enjoy your short time on earth.

Change your job.

Change your attitude.

Change your after work activities.

Change the way you interact with your loved ones.

Don’t sit in unhappiness and take it out on others.

You have more control than you believe.

Change what you can control and don’t let outside forces impact you.

Change is the only constant to becoming a better version of yourself.