Don’t miss The September 5th Labor Day Mash Strength Spectacular! Powerlifting, Weightlifting, Strongman, and GridStyle all together on our 10 acre farm. Hurry because Early Bird Specials End July 15th!
Passion, not to be confused with Obsession
One thing that no one can ever take away from me is that I have always followed my passion. If there was something that I wanted to do, I would do it. Being a black sheep has always come natural to me. When I graduated college, I jumped in my car with $200 to my name, and I drove to Colorado Springs, CO in hopes that I could convince Wes Barnett to coach me in Olympic Weightlifting. Everyone around me told me that I was crazy. They told me to get a real job.
When I told people that I wanted to be the best powerlifter in the world, they told me to be realistic. Once again, they told me to get a real job. Several world records later, I realize that they were so wrong. I have spent my life learning everything that I could learn about the barbell because I was drawn to it. I followed my heart, and now I know that I was following a plan. Life is short! We all know this to be true. So why spend it doing something that you hate?
If you are passionate about something, then the money will come. If you are doing something just to make a certain amount of money, then you will spend your life never filling fulfilled. There will be no purpose! God has given me passion about something, and he has gifted me at that passion. Now I am spending my life helping others and glorifying Him in my daily life.
I was in New Mexico all weekend teaching my Learn 2 Lift Seminar at CrossFit Sandstorm. My daughter Bailey made the trip with me, and we spent a few extra days exploring the high deserts of New Mexico. The beauty of the canyons and mountains caused me to reflect on my life, and a tear rolled down my cheek as I was overcome with emotion. I am 41 years old, and I coach some of the best athletes in the world. I coach over 500 online athletes that are quickly rising to the top. Over 20 of my Online Team will be at the USAW National Championships. Never in a million years did I realize that I would be at this point so soon.
Now my mother and friends are glad that I didn’t listen to them, and so am I. I followed my heart with full conviction, and that is the key. You can’t kind of follow your hopes and dreams. You have to go all in man! If you are not willing to go all in, then take that job that your parents are telling you to take. People hear me and guys like Jon North talk about following our dreams, and they want to do the same. However, they are not willing to go all in. They want to follow their dreams if someone is willing to help them out. They are willing to follow their dreams if they can get a high paying job to support their spending habits.
People like that are not going to make it. I went all in when I drove to Colorado. I had no doubts that I was going to make it. The thing that people have to remember is that the worst thing that can happen is failure. So what? I have failed several times, and I emerged from every failure stronger than ever. Guys, people learn from failure and success. The only thing that people don’t learn or grow from is being stagnant. When you are young, you have absolutely nothing to lose. If you fail and go broke, get back on your feet and rebuild.
Following my dreams has placed me in a number of dream positions. For example, coaching at Muscle Driver USA has been one of the most amazing opportunities of my life. The coaches and athletes are people that will be in my life forever, and helping them reach their amazing goals is just one of the benefits. How did it happen? I was given an opportunity at the Nationals to help Coach McCauley coach the MDUSA Team. I took on the challenge, and I gave it my all. I had no idea that the owner of Muscle Driver would be watching, and I especially had no idea that a coaching job was a possibility. I just knew that I was going to give the opportunity 100% because that is what I do. My advice:
Take whatever opportunity that is in front of you and give it 100%! People will notice!
Coach Joe Kenn gave me that advice on several occasions, and it works. People will see your passion, and they will naturally be drawn to it. If you don’t like your job, and you are not giving it 100%, people will see that too. Slackers are never the people that are recruited. Treat whatever job that you are doing as the best job in the world.
I can’t believe that I have a beautiful daughter, an amazing son, the best wife in the world, 500 of the best online athletes in the world, my own Mash Mafia Team, and everyday I work with some of the best athletes in the country. Wow, and all because I followed my dreams. I know without a doubt that I am exactly where God wants me. Now I am going to spend my life being the best father, husband, coach, and follower of Christ. I love my family, and I love my athletes. I will give them every ounce of me, so that I can serve my purpose on this planet.
It’s not too late for you! Follow your dreams and passion! Just start taking steps towards your dreams, and don’t take no for an answer. Go all in! Get involved with something within your passion, and treat each stage as if there was nothing better in the world. That type of attitude will help you shine, and that will get you noticed by the right people. This is my advice! Don’t waste one more day! My prayer is that everyone will experience the joy that I find right now in my life!
To join our online Mash Mafia Weightlifting Team, go to: http://www.mashelite.com/join-the-online-team/. For a consultation from me about anything that you want to talk about, go to: http://www.mashelite.com/online-programming/.
For the “I Do What I Want” T-Shirts and the sweet new Mash Mafia Wrist Wraps, go to: www.MashElite.com/apparel/.
