Andy Andrews: Keep Going

“Most people think it takes a long time to change. It doesn’t. Change is immediate! Instantaneous! It may take a long time to decide to change…but change happens in a heartbeat!” - Andy Andrews

Andy Andrews went from being homeless to a best-selling author. When he was at one of his lowest points, he got a free library card and read between two and three hundred biographies about happy, successful, and influential people. He said his biggest takeaway was learning that the most successful people throughout history have two things in common: they have all faced adversity, and they all kept going.

The question isn’t: Will it be hard? The questions are: How hard will it get, and how well will I handle the hard?

Andy Andrews has written several books on personal growth and overcoming challenges.

In The Noticer, he says our perception affects our reality, and we can change our lives by changing what we notice about life. Seeing the good in everything, even the obstacles, can give us the energy we need to overcome anything and become who we want to become.

In The Traveler's Gift, he recognizes the importance of each decision we make. We create the life we want with each decision we make, so choose wisely.

In The One You Feed, he talks about the two wolves that are inside of us: the good wolf that is full of positive energy, thoughts, and emotions, and the bad wolf that is full of negativity.

Which one wins? The one we feed.

Life is difficult. The winners are the ones who understand this and don’t let hard stop them.

Question of the Day: Which message resonates the most with you: The Noticer, The Traveler’s Gift, or The One You Feed?

Napoleon Hill: Water the Seed

“Every adversity carries with it the seed of an equivalent or greater benefit.” - Napoleon Hill

What can this teach me?

Whenever I’m going through something difficult, I ask myself, “What can this teach me?”

Napoleon Hill once said, “Every adversity carries with it the seed of an equivalent or greater benefit.” Everything we go through has a purpose and can make us better if we can see the good in it and are willing to learn from it.

The challenge for us is to not get too busy focusing on the adversity that we don’t water the seed.

When you are going through something tough, you have to make a decision: Am I going to feel sorry for myself and just survive this, or am I going to use this as an opportunity to learn and get better?

Author Peter Sage once said, “Many of the gifts in life that come to us are wrapped in a thin layer of problems; probably to stop somebody else from stealing our gift.”

Many people don’t get the gifts or blessings they deserve because they can’t see past what they have to go through to get it.

The strongest trees grow in the strongest winds, not the best soil. If you want to become the best version of yourself, pray for strong winds and don’t cry or complain when they show up.

When you are going through tough times, think of the adversity as a seed that will grow into a great opportunity. Water the seed by leaning into what you can learn and get out of the situation instead of focusing on the problem or running from it.

Question of the Day: How can you see the opportunity in the adversity you face?

Peter Sage: See Stars, Not Mud

 

“Your environment never defines you; it simply gives you the opportunity to find yourself.” - Nipsey Hussle

In his TEDx Talk titled, How to Become Your Best When Life Gives You Its Worst, Peter Sage says the most incredible adventure he has ever had the privilege of living was spending 6 months in one of the world’s toughest prisons.

How?

He said, “One of the greatest days in a human being's journey of emotional maturity is the day that we realize that life is not a comfort-centric experience but a growth-centric experience.” 

Peter was an entrepreneur and personal growth expert, and he said being in jail was an opportunity for him to walk the talk that he had been teaching for so many years in a real environment, and an opportunity to learn new lessons about himself and life.

Peter wrote a story called Mud or Stars about two prisoners sitting behind bars. One prisoner looked down and saw the mud, and the other looked up and saw the stars. 

Peter said, “Your environment never defines you; it simply gives you the opportunity to find yourself.” How you see yourself and see the world impacts how you get through and grow through The Pit.

Peter says, “When you are faced with uncertainty, you need something to hang on to. Behavior follows mindset, not skillset.”

One of the keys to life is to see stars, not mud; to train your mind to see the good, not the bad, so you can have a positive attitude and mindset no matter what obstacles you have to face.

Reflection Question: When life gets hard, how do you find the stars, not the mud?

Nipsey Hussle: It's Supposed to Be Hard

 

“It's supposed to be uncomfortable, it’s supposed to stretch you, and it's supposed to be a burden. Wrap your mind around it, accept it, and embrace it.” - Nipsey Hussle

Rapper Nipsey Hussle was not only a great lyricist but also a successful businessman who talked a lot about wanting to grow, expand, and become the best version of himself.

He said that growth and the added responsibility that comes with it are hard. As his career and businesses grew, he had to learn how to juggle and manage several different roles at the same time, and his mentality when everything started to become too much and overwhelming for him was to remember that this is what it is supposed to look like and feel like when you are pursuing greatness; it isn’t supposed to feel comfortable.

He said when it becomes a lot, remember that it is supposed to feel like a lot, it’s supposed to feel uncomfortable, it's supposed to stretch you, and it's supposed to be a burden to a degree. He then said you have to wrap your mind around it, accept it, embrace it, and catch the wisdom from it.

The growth that comes with pursuing greatness is supposed to stretch you and make you feel uncomfortable, and he said you have to be able to wrap your mind around getting comfortable being outside of your comfort zone and learn how to embrace it. 

The road to success is long, hard, and lonely … but it’s worth it if you know it’s supposed to be hard, learn how to handle hard better, and don’t quit.

Reflection Question: When it gets hard or uncomfortable, how do you respond vs how you want to respond?

Naomi Osaka: Beginner's Luck and the Victor's Test

"Every search begins with beginner's luck. And every search ends with the victor's being severely tested." - Paulo Coelho

When I graduated college, I was one of those people who vowed never to read another book until I found The Alchemist, the story about how Santiago, a young Andalusian shepherd boy embarks on a journey to the Egyptian pyramids to fulfill a recurring dream of finding treasure, where he learns to listen to his heart and discover the true meaning of life.

This quote reminds us that while our journey might start on the right foot with Beginner’s Luck, true success often requires overcoming The Victor’s Test: a significant challenge that demands resilience, perseverance, and the ability to adapt to unforeseen obstacles.

The rise of Naomi Osaka in tennis perfectly illustrates Coelho's words. She burst onto the scene with an almost perfect blend of power and grace, seemingly effortlessly winning Grand Slam titles. This 'beginner's luck' quickly catapulted her to global stardom but also brought intense media attention and immense pressure, which led to struggles with anxiety and depression.

Osaka openly discussed her mental health challenges and withdrew from tournaments to prioritize her well-being. This period of self-reflection and recovery tested her resilience and determination.

Osaka eventually returned to the court with a renewed focus and a deeper understanding of herself both physically and mentally.

Beginner’s luck helps us get started on the right foot and builds confidence, but nothing great is accomplished without overcoming a great challenge. To do so, have grit, resilience, perseverance, and the ability to adapt to unforeseen obstacles.

Reflection Questions: How do you leverage Beginner’s Luck, and how do you manage and overcome The Victor’s Test?

Simone Biles: Bouncing Back

“Always work hard and have fun in what you do because I think that's when you're more successful. You have to choose to do it.” - Simone Biles

Simone Biles is the most decorated gymnast in history, but at the peak of her career at the 2020 Olympics, she had to withdraw from several of her events and took a two-year break to recover from the twisties.

The twisties happen when a gymnast is in midair and loses their sense of where they are and how they’ll land, making the move risky. Biles described it as being "lost in the air."

When she took her break, many people sympathized with her and applauded her for addressing mental health, but many others took this time to take shots at her and criticize her for a lack of mental toughness.

This showed not only how a mental block can keep you from performing your best, but how many people will take any chance they get to knock you down.

People will build you up when you are climbing the mountain, but when you get to the top, those same people will tear you back down. On your journey, you will have to have the mental toughness to not only manage not only your own mental health and inner voice but also the outside noise.

Simone Biles recovered from the twisties with the help of therapy, hard work, and a focus on mental health. She also rediscovered her joy for the sport and set goals on her own terms.

Have a vision, create a plan, have the discipline to stick to the plan, and most importantly - enjoy the journey.

Reflection Question: What inner and outside noises are distracting you, and how can you overcome them?

Noah: Faith and Obediance

 

"People should be your greatest commodity, your greatest resource in a high-performance environment, people are the center of everything when it comes to high performance." - Greg Carvel

Most coaches have favorites. Their favorites are the ones who show up, do their job, and add value to the team. UMass hockey coach Greg Carvel says one selfish mindset can destroy a culture, and they rank their players either a 1, 2, or 3.

1s = The low-maintenance favorites who do what they are supposed to do.

2s = Teammates in the middle that are either squeezed into being 1s or squeezed into being 3s and kicked off the team.

3s = High maintenance and need to be removed from the team.

When you do the right thing the right way, you help yourself and the people around you, and you are likely to both get more opportunities and take advantage of those opportunities.

A Biblical example of someone who was given one of the most important opportunities in the history of the world is Noah.

By the time Noah appeared in the Bible, God was upset with the people he created because there was so much evil and wrongdoing in the world. In Genesis 6, God decided to remove all people and all animals from the earth, but Genesis 6:6 says, “But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord,” and God decided to save Noah and His family. Noah was one of very few 1s in a world full of 3s.

When we do the right thing, our coaches and leaders will find favor in us, and good things can come from that favor.

But then Noah had to do the hard part: he had to actually obey God by building a massive ark to save himself, his family, and all the animals on the planet. I could imagine seeing everyone talking about and laughing at Noah for building this ark; they probably thought he was going crazy. I don’t know if they had ever experienced rain before, and even if they had, they must have thought Noah was losing his mind.

But Noah obeyed God and did what he was told.

Obedience can feel foolish. It might mean going against the crowd, facing ridicule, and stepping into the unknown. But true faith isn't about understanding; it's about trusting God, doing what He asks us to do, and trusting that everything will work out for good.

The story of Noah reminds me that:

• God's promises are true: Even when it seems impossible, God will keep his word.

• Obedience brings blessings: Though the journey was challenging, Noah and his family were spared.

• God provides a way: He gave Noah specific instructions and the strength to carry them out.

Noah saved himself and his family by being a good person and by obeying God. God did the rest. Do your part. Make good choice and do what you can, and trust that God will take care of the rest.

Somethings to Think About

1 - What is your biggest takeaway from this devotional?

2 - When do you find it easiest to hear from and obey God?

3 - When do you find it hardest to hear from and obey God?

4 - What does fully trusting God and obeying His word look like in action?

My Prayer

Our Father. Thank you for all the blessings and opportunities you have given me and will continue to give me. Please help me stay close to you so that I identify the opportunities when they come, and please help me seek your guidance first and always so I can attack each opportunity the right way. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.