I am stressed out. So stressed out, I stress out about not stressing out these days. But thing is, institutively, according to my past experiences, and the available data, stress only hinders your progress and results. I know for a fact that I have always delivered my best performances when my stress levels were under control. Now there are two main ways to really get those stress hormones under control:
- Prepare so freaking effectively that you have nothing left to stress out about
- Get really good at walking into situations unprepared and being okay with not having the kind of control you would have liked to have over the results
The first situation is the dream. It’s why we’re always talking about things like consistency and discipline. But let’s face it, life is tough. Sometimes it hits you where it hurts and doesn’t give you the kind of time you need to get your balance back. And it will keep doing that. You need to keep going anyway. Anyone who’s anything right now didn’t get there by acing every single challenge thrown at them. They got there by just showing up. Because the courage to show up is mostly what makes the difference in the end. The audacity to show up.
So, show up. That’s all I have to say to you today.
Back to the Future is still just a movie; you and I can’t go back in time my friend. And neither can we control the future. And that is the root of every tense muscle in our body: the past and the future. They can both be very scary. And nothing we can do is going to change that. We have ZERO control over what life decides to throw our way. You worried about failing an exam you didn’t study a word for? Imagine someone who knew every word dies right before the test. I apologize for the morbidity but that’s life. No matter what you do, you can’t guarantee anything in this world. You just do what you can. Because that’s the SINGLE thing in this world that’s actually under your control.
Think of the worst thing that could happen and imagine it happening because it very well could and get very comfortable with it. Why do you think pop culture is full of characters that finally start living life when they get a terminal diagnosis? Because that way they are forced to face the worst case scenario, and once that’s over, they can start living life like it’s meant to be lived: without fear. Because guess what, that terminal diagnosis, we all have it.
And yes there are some things worse than death in this world unfortunately, but all the stressing out and fear in this world isn’t going to protect you from them. But accepting them as part of your reality will take away any power they have over you and your decisions. Bad things happen to good people. And sometimes really bad people get away with it all. It sucks. But you don’t have to be the one to bear that weight. The only weight you should carry is the one that has your name on it.
“God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the
difference.”
—Serenity Prayer
I know it was really heavy today guys, but to quote an amazing friend of mine: “The horrors persist, but so do we.”
Remember, you’re tougher than anything this world could ever throw at you. You just need to finally have the audacity to shout it from the rooftops and tell life to bring it on, because guess what, it was never waiting for an invitation in the first place.