Jim Rohn said “you are the average of the top 5 people you spend the most time with”
It’s a concept in personal development that everyone repeats, but very rarely do they implement. It is the reason, I felt compelled to start my award-winning podcast; The Inner Changemaker a couple years ago.
I viewed podcasting not just as a business hack, but a life hack as well. A way to create genuine relationships with the people I look up to as well as give them an opportunity to share their lessons and perspectives along their respective journey.
Here are 3 life-changing lessons I learned from interviewing 100+ changemakers and successful leaders
- Intentions < Integration
Have you ever made a new year’s resolution only to find yourself quitting on the goal a few weeks in? According to Business Insider’s Kelsey Mulvaney, over 80% of new year’s resolutions fail by February of that year.
That means 4 out of 5 people would have failed to make the change that they wanted most in their lives. The old adage of “the road to hell is paved with good intentions” rings true here.
When speaking with successful CEO’s, startup founders, and/or New York Bestselling Authors, one thing became abundantly clear. The level of certainty that each man or woman possess is noticeable. They do not depend on discipline and willpower to make their wishes and goals come true.
They depend on integration. They make it an event in their busy calendars and it’s a non-negotiable. Instead of having the intention of losing weight and eating healthy, they put running shoes by their bed and immediately dive into it with a trainer every morning.
Don’t just set the intention, integrate it in your schedule and daily life.
- Your Language Sets Your Mindset
I remember I had the opportunity of interviewing Grant Cardone, NYT Best Selling Author and internationally recognized as one of the top sales trainer in the world for his newest book at the time, Be Obsessed or Be Average.
I was nervous at the time because Grant was one of the bigger names that have been featured on the podcast up until then.
So I went through his introduction and threw in a few great one liners.
“He is a NYT Best Selling Author”
“He is a multi-millionaire”
“He is a real estate mogul and serial Entrepreneur.”
“Welcome to the show, Grant Cardone”
Within minutes we had develop a decent chemistry. Or so I thought.
“Hey Jay, why do you have to piss me off before we really get to know each other?”
I personally had no idea what he meant. Did I mis-pronounce his name? OR did I misread the title of the book?
“Jay – you called me a multi-millionaire. Why do you have to put limits on me?”
I was shocked.
I know tons of people that would love to be considered a multi-millionaire. Heck, I would love it. But Grant and other successful changemakers are not interested in just the status or money. They are playing a completely different game.
A game that requires them to operate and think at abnormal levels.
A game without limits.
A game where the words you choose has the power to dictate how big you are thinking.
Be careful of the words you use.
- It’s a Privilege to Get to Zero
Growing up in a traditional school system, we have been trained to think in a linear fashion. When you finish grade 1 you go to grade 2 and so on. When I started my journey as an entrepreneur, I thought it would be the same. I am starting at 0 and I am going to 100. 0 being ground zero and 100 being your ultimate vision and goal.
If you talk to any entrepreneur that has built anything significant, they will tell you that the early-on days were not pretty. When Pejman Ghadimi released R.A.D.I.U.S (the follow-up to the bestselling book Third Circle Theory) earlier this month, this one concept was at the forefront.
When you begin on a path of creating any project or business, you don’t start at 0. You start at -200. It felt more like -500 for me. What that means is that most of the time, you are beginning with no skills, no understand of the landscape, no contacts. Simply put, you have no idea what you are signing up for and very quickly, you begin to realize just how difficult it is going to be.
It is a privilege to get to 0. A place where you feel you have a fighting chance to even attempt the positive numbers.
This is not just to make it all doom and gloom. It’s been well documented that the journey to living your dream life and running your own show is not for everyone. But it’s definitely worth it if you manage to stay in the game long enough.
Don’t worry that you are at -100 or -200 if you are just starting out. That’s exactly where you are suppose to be!
Conclusion
After hundreds of interviews with the top leaders and successful CEO’s, the lessons are sometimes overwhelming simple. From integrating your new goals and habits, to making sure you are using the right words for to develop a strong mindset.
One must remember “common sense is never common practice”
The road to your grand vision is not going to be easy. Might as well start and enjoy the ride at -100.
