Stop being “balanced” and go all-in on your goals.
Yes you read that right.
Stop being balanced.
For a long time in my life, I was out of balance
But the balance was in the wrong direction.
And in the wrong direction I mean I was living like a loser taking no responsibility for my life.
I was drinking, going out every weekend.
And even some weeknights I was also drinking and getting out of control.
At the same time I was blaming other people for my lack of progress.
I was working a dead-end job.
I was overweight and unhappy.
I had limited success with women because I was overweight, unhealthy, and broke.
I was in a corner.
But I turned it around and I started changing my life and day by day I got stronger.
I started digging myself out of the hole that I got myself into.
And eventually, I started seeing success.
But as you start having a bit of success you get opposition.
You get opposition from people who are close to you.
My “friends” started questioning me.
They told me I'm an “obsessive work person”.
They said I needed to be more “balanced”.
And for a short while, I started listening to those people.
I started being more “balanced”.
I started taking some weekends off to go camping with them or going on a road trip.
I started skipping some gym sessions in the week so I could go for drinks after work.
But soon I realized this wasn't about me being “unbalanced”.
It was about these people being uncomfortable with what I was doing.
They didn't like that I was going after what I wanted.
They didn't like that I was now dating more women.
They didn't like that I was in good physical shape.
They didn't like that I was now working on my own business and making my own money.
They labeled me an “obsessive work person” not because they really cared that I was “out of balance”.
What they cared about was that I was making moves and they were static.
I was dynamic and that made them uncomfortable.
Another thing they didn't get was what it took to build real success.
What it took to build yourself up and going after your full potential.
Going after an ideal.
An ideal that you created in your mind and decided to chase.
They don't realize that our time on this planet is limited.
Yes, I want to have some fun sometimes and enjoy life.
But I want to do it on my terms.
Not their's.
So yes I am an obsessive work person.
But that is what it takes if you are unreasonable with your expectations of what you want for yourself.
I want total freedom to do whatever I want.
I run my own business and I travel all over the world.
However, there are levels to success and I am still on the ground floor.
And I want to move up to the top floor.
Not just for myself but for the people around me.
For my family and my community.
Because the better I become the bigger the impact on everything around me.
All this being said , I want to tell you again stop being “balanced”.
There Is A Reason You Are Reading This
“When something is important enough, you do it even if the odds are not in your favor.”
– Elon Musk
If you are reading this then you are also on a path.
A path to something bigger than just the current version of yourself.
You want more.
That is a great thing to realize.
But for you to get there you must become obsessed with your vision, goals, and mission on this planet.
Become unreasonable in your expectations.
The mission is number 1 and everything else is number 2.
“But John what about my girlfriend and family?”
The truth is they are number 2.
Because guess what?
If you dont step up and do whatever it takes to get results you cant give them the security they need.
Your true compassion for the people in your life gets shown when you are obsessed with your mission.
You can only pull other people up around you if you are strong.
If you are weak they are weak.
How To Step Up?
Ok so you have some goals but you are living a “balanced” life and being “realistic”.
You stopped dreaming and are living in “reality”.
Well, your “imagination” is the strongest weapon you have.
It's your sword.
It's the weapon you use to change reality.
To change the physical world around you.
You do that by first going into your imagination and you start dreaming about that thing you want to turn into reality.
So then you get back into your logical brain and you start thinking about how long your goal will take.
So you start telling yourself “It's going to take too long”
Or “It's going to take ten years”.
I get it !
Maybe there is some truth to the fact that something will take a long time.
Maybe in the balanced world, it will take 5 or 10 years.
But that is in the balanced world.
In the “balanced” or “realistic” world it probably will take 5 or 10 years.
But what if you left that “balanced” and “realistic” world?
What if you reject it?
Don't forget reality but reject the limitations it places on your imagination and dreams.
The greatest minds in history have figured out that reality can be a bent if you choose to do so.
If you choose to become “unbalanced”.
If you choose to become “unrealistic”.
If you choose to walk alone.
And go after what you want.
Be Unrealistic
“Stop being patient and start asking yourself, how do I accomplish my 10 year plan in 6 months? You'll probably fail, but you'll be a lot further along than the person who simply accepted it was going to take 10 years!”
– Elon Musk
Become “unrealistic” and make “crazy” timelines.
If your goal will take 10 years in the “balanced world” cut it down to 6 months or a year.
If your goal is 5 years in the “balanced” world then cut it down to 3 months.
Here is the key to this “unrealistic” thinking.
The chances are pretty good that you might fail in that timeline.
But you will finish it so much quicker than you ever thought possible.
The 10-year goal might end up taking a year and a half.
The 5-year goal might end up being 6 months.
The whole point of the exercise is to confront reality and bend it to your will.
Stop just bending over and accepting the rules of the “real world”.
Start challenging the “balanced” world with your imagination and your willpower.
One More Thing To Remember
“Work like hell. I mean you just have to put in 80 to 100 hour weeks every week. This improves the odds of success. If other people are putting in 40 hour workweeks and you're putting in 100 hour workweeks, then even if you're doing the same thing, you know that you will achieve in four months what it takes them a year to achieve.”
– Elon Musk
But one more thing.
A very important thing.
And this is where most will stop and walk away.
You will have to work as you have never worked before.
You will have to become an obsessive work person.
An unbalanced person.
A man that is unreasonable in his expectations.
You will have to push yourself into the red.
You will have to make a plan and execute it.
Then get feedback, adapt, and execute again.
Whatever it is that you are doing you need to evaluate where you are going and see if you are pushing hard enough.
The clock is ticking and once that time is gone you never get it back.
So now the question is this:
Until next time.
