I recently read an article by Ray Dalio. – Nope, he’s not the inventor of a special pizza, but rather one of the world’s premier financial analysts. Ray says we’re headed for a perfect financial storm which may last about 10 years. – Whoop! WTF. As if wars, petrol prices and now monkey pox were not enough on our little plates… Now we have to deal with pending worldwide financial indigestion…
In times where YouTubers are collecting millions for filming how they play Minecraft, it’s little wonder that the 40 plus guard is feeling a little left out of the party. Let’s face it… this world does not pay you for being a good person. Your income is directly proportional to the value you are able to bring to the marketplace, no matter how f’d up and crazy that marketplace is.. – but guess what…you can fix this if you’re not happy with your income. You can fix it but it’s but it’s entirely on you.
– but you have to participate in your own rescue operation. You’re so far from redundant and you’re so worth saving… but where would you begin… ?
Right now, between the person you are and the person you want to be, there is a gap of skill-sets. You can accomplish what you set your mind to, but first you have to believe that you can. Begin by earning credibility with yourself in very small increments.
The only way to elevate yourself for yourself is by having better conversations with yourself ie controlling your self talk.
Ironically, there are 2 ways of gaining control over the mind. The first involves literally gaining control of your thoughts. That’s a scary and abstract undertaking, and you need to be something of a Monkey tamer in a circus to succeed at this. It’s etherial and intangible.
The 2nd way is through the body.
I decided some time ago that my Kung Fu was going to be to get good at controlling the body and in that process, I was going to re-connect with the my brain. To learn about nutrition which was going to allow me to help others and in that process, I was going to start earning credibility with myself. This is important, because you actually start believing in yourself, albeit in increments.
Do it in micro ways
For me, just showing up to the gym was a minor victory.
When I started out, I hated every moment of it. People would speak of an endorphin rush and I wanted to rush them the middle finger. I’d rather be eating ice-cream. The journey is unique for each one of us, but as Yoda would have said:” Journey we must.”
For me, what that was, was showing up daily and putting in the work. It was reading books about how to live longer. It was learning about the brain, the metabolism. It was about earning a little bit of discipline every day, knowing that I did it yesterday and that I can at the very least, do it again today, and most importantly – it was about changing my identity.
Because at the end of the day, identity and values are what drive behaviour
So if you want to change yourself you have to change your own vision of who you are.
You have to start telling yourself a different narrative and the narrative you tell yourself about yourself…. Is everything. – because if you tell yourself that you’re a scared under educated kid from Waterkloof Pretoria, who has never made their mark, – Guess what you’ll become… – a scared unendutated kid from Waterkloof Pretoria who has never made their mark…
On the flip-side … How about telling yourself that you learn faster than most people. That you’re willing to put in more work than most people… That you’re willing to read more than most people and fill your head with more idea’s than most people and that you’ll admit that to be green is to grow… that you won’t let your ego get in the way when someone criticises you…
…So that the next time someone tells you that you’re a scared uneducated kid from Waterkloof Pretoria, you can say:” You’re right! – That’s Amazing. Thank you for pointing that flaw out. Now I can get to improving it.
Because once you switch your narrative from being the victim, to being a learner, it does not matter where you start. It only matters where you want to go, because you will believe that you can execute.
You will believe you can do anything you set your mind to, even if the world around you is losing their marbles. It’s only Game over if you think it is. Yes, these are crazy times, but if others can find the tools to thrive, so can you.
I’ll bet you a pizza on it.
