You’re probably aware by now that life is not going to make it easy. Whatever you want to do is going to take tremendous effort, perseverance and constant discernment. Nothing is going to be handed to you on a silver platter. And if it was, it probably wouldn’t be worthwhile anyway. Humans are a resourceful species. Over time we’ve adapted and created some incredible things; all of us together in cooperation and competition. Western society is probably the best example. At last, after millennia of tyranny, there is representative government, freedom, prosperity and opportunity for all. But with all this newfound opportunity, you’ve now got to compete against everyone else who wants the same thing. Competition for resources and success is open to everyone. In a sense it’s you against the world. That’s a lot of competition to say the least, so the barriers to entry have naturally evolved to make things that are worthwhile more difficult to attain. This is just the way it is. It’s simply the natural order. As soon as you realize this, however, you are immediately at an advantage. You are now consciously aware that life is a competition and that to excel, you’re going to have to vastly exceed the norm. You’re going to have to be willing to do what most other people won’t do. You are going to have to find a way to Break Through. Start with Gratitude. If the toughest thing you must do in your life is chase your dreams, you’ve got it pretty damn good. From this point of view, you’re one of the luckiest humans ever to walk the planet; consider everything else from here to be gravy. Being grateful as such will give you some healthy perspective. Generally speaking, you don’t need to worry about survival, and you get the opportunity to pursue any opportunity you desire. The whole world is at your feet. You get to pick what you’d like to do. And then chase after it. Historically, this is an embarrassment of riches. So, you’re grateful and you’re going to work your ass off. Good. Make sure to enjoy yourself while you’re doing it. Most things out there that are worthwhile are going to take some time to achieve; perhaps even years. It will do your quality of life and endurance a lot of good to enjoy yourself along the way. As I always say, life is 95% Journey and 5% Destination. You’re guaranteed the 95%, so you might as well CHOOSE to enjoy it. Living in the moment and taking satisfaction in the process will also work miracles for your long-term endurance and resilience. Your state of mind is the key to everything you do, so give yourself every advantage. Enjoy yourself along the way And while you’re in the thick of it, consider it all an exercise in character. Conduct yourself with excellence and produce quality output. Doing this will add tremendous intrinsic value to what you are doing, and this as well will sustain you over the long term. Plus, developing your character is the purest investment in yourself that you can make. It will pay dividends along the way and set you up for a high value and high quality of life in the long term. Knowing who you are, living Authentically and having the ultimate confidence in your character will also provide you with a measure of Outcome Independence. You’ll know that even if things completely fall apart, you’ll be fine because your character will always allow you to rebound. You’re not tied to any one outcome; you’re tied to you. And that’s what’s most important. But back to cold reality. The chances are good you’re going to hit the wall. Circumstances, other people or your goal itself is going to conspire to STOP you. YOU might even conspire to stop you. After the excitement fades and the dog days of a long hard slog roll in, it might become very easy to start looking for a convenient excuse to find a way out. This is when it becomes gut check time. When perseverance and sheer willpower need to come into play.

Becoming A Force Of Nature Podcast

Break Through

There’s a natural law out there operating in the universe… Either you discipline yourself or sooner or later something or someone else will. Better for you to take charge of your own discipline, than to leave it up to outside forces. Either you assign your own discomfort right now and continue to do so, or you will have to deal with the unknown consequences later; it’s better to deliberately choose your own path and your own consequences. Think of it this way—hard now, easier later vs. easy now, harder later. Plus, there’s no denying another law out there ruling over the natural order… Nothing truly worthwhile is ever going to be easy. If you want to accomplish anything at all in this life and make anything at all out of yourself, it’s going to take some discipline. There is just no way around it. Let us discuss the three pillars necessary to live a life of discipline. Self-Denial The first step—learn to deny yourself. It’s one thing to know what to do. But it’s certainly another, NOT to do something; especially when that something revolves around pleasure or bad habits. Want to lose some weight? Simple. Stop eating all the time. Deny yourself. Want to save some money? Simple. Stop spending it all. Deny yourself. Want to quit acting like as ass? Simple. Stop drinking. Deny yourself. These are 3 perfect examples of behavior that will slow you down. Behavior that will sabotage all your good intentions and positive actions. One step forward and one or two steps backward is no strategy for success. If you’re stuck in neutral or find yourself headed in the wrong direction you had better consider the concept of self-denial in these areas and more. Consider it a new way of life. Introduce the idea to your mind that from now on you’re going to deny yourself. And begin to take pride in this new reality. Be willing to do what most won’t and consider it an indicator that you’re on the way to distinguishing yourself. Most people today are soft, and they will not deny themselves. But you will learn to do so. Because you are not most people anymore. Or are you? Think about it. What kind of person always must have what they want? This is childish and weak behavior. And you should realize this. Get angry at yourself for succumbing to it. Get angry for being weak. This is righteous anger. It is justified anger. Use it. The only way you’re going to harden your character and toughen up is to start by denying yourself. Quit partaking in those things which are making you weaker and taking you off track. So, here is the Panzer QuickStart method to self-denial… Just because you worked hard all week doesn’t mean you should be nursing a beer and stuffing your face all weekend while watching Netflix or athletes compete for glory. If anything, your leisure time should be put to use forging and tempering your principles, interests and character. So perhaps this is a good place to start—the weekends, when you’re most likely to let down, yet are away from the daily pressures of work. Deny yourself in food, money, alcohol and television. Then find something better to do. And then as you develop some momentum on your weekends it just won’t feel right to backslide during the week. Next thing you know, suddenly you’re as hard as cold steel when it comes to self-denial. So, clear a path for glory then. And deny yourself. Turn your dreams into reality Right Action You’ve leveled up and you’ve cleared a path. Good. Now is the time to start moving forward. It’s time to start taking action. Most of the time, it’s not that complicated to know what needs to be done. The primary issue is consistency... To get in shape you need to train relentlessly, even after a tiring day at work. To become a better writer, you need to be writing all the time; not just when you feel inspired. To get to that next belt level in your martial art,

The 3 Pillars Of Discipline

So you’re hurting. Hurting badly. And it’s tearing you to pieces. It could be your own fault. It could be someone else’s fault. Or just some fucked up circumstances. But the pain is searing. It is burning your Soul. Poisoning your Essence. Stealing your life. It’s incredibly difficult to function. There doesn’t seem to be a reason for anything anymore. No hope, no happiness, no joy. Just sorrow and pain. I’ve been there. In that dark, grainy and heavy place. Sinking into the ground. And in some respects I’m still there. But what you have to realize is, there’s a choice. If you still feel something, there’s a choice. And that choice is within you. It’s been there your whole life. For this very moment. Placed there on purpose. In Divine foresight. You can allow the pain, the sorrow, the regret, or the betrayal to consume you. Or you can take all of those and turn them. Turn the Pain. Turn it back, on itself. This is the choice. You will use it as fuel. Use it to focus. Use it to drive you. Turn the Pain in to anger. But then surpass the anger. To become better than the anger. Better than the pain. This is your answer. This is your payback. This is your revenge. This is your reason for being. You will rise up from the all consuming fire. Like a Phoenix. And soar. To a Higher Realm. Mightily. With power, certainty and your own fire. You will use it, this pain. Without guilt. Without remorse. Use it to become More. To become Different. To Evolve. It’s the only answer. So you will push back. And there will be a price to pay. By, and from you. For what has happened. You will use your Soul. Razor sharp, as a shining, glistening edge. To cut through the life in front of you. With Determination. With Precision. With Joy. On anything or anyone that lies in your path. Because you will not quit. You will never stop. Total immersion. Every Intention. Every breath. Is now one. Is you. Putting your life on the line. In total unyielding pursuit. In total retribution. To create something good. From something bad. When that’s all you can do. It becomes the only answer. The only thing. To make things right. As right as they can be. In Defiance. In Righteous Defiance. Turn the Pain.   All the Best, Max Panzer

Turn The Pain

Failure, disappointment, betrayal and defeat; they can all sting like a son of a bitch. Sometimes they can be heart crushing and leave you all but broken. And then just when you think it can’t possibly get any worse, it does. But, because you’re reading this right here and now, we both know you’ve still got a chance. Many, many have suffered much worse, survived and eventually triumphed. And so will you. So this is the first thought you’ve got to get straight in your head—you’re not the first and you won’t be the last. Welcome to the real world, where bad things happen to good people and where difficulty reigns supreme. And if you did it to yourself, the same still applies. Fault is only relevant for reflection, especially if the damage or failure was self-inflicted. Take note and don’t make or allow the same mistake again. Make a vow to become better, smarter and more disciplined. What really counts when things fall apart, is that you take responsibility for putting them back together again. For example, if it’s someone else’s fault that your leg is broken, it’s still your responsibility to heal up and get back to full strength. No one else can do this for you. And it’s the same with the rest of your life. Fault is irrelevant at some point. What matters is the responsibility for making things right; and that responsibility is yours. Take all the help you can get. But never release yourself from full responsibility. It’s your life and it’s up to you to fix it. Period. No matter what happens. Or no matter how often it happens. There’s only one answer. Rise Again. Don’t Expect to be Perfect As the saying goes, don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. By all means strive for perfection. Just don’t expect to be perfect. There are some absolute no’s in this world—decisions or actions that must never occur in your life. We need not discuss these here. You know what they are. And you will not use this line of reasoning as an excuse to cross the inviolable red line. But when it comes to performance, execution or discipline, do not expect to be perfect. Even the master, even the world champion will rarely attain perfection. Once in a while, a near perfect performance can be said to be had, but there are many, many more which are replete with failure and disappointment. The difference between the master and the journeyman is simply about level and peak performance. Consider yourself as a journeyman in your own life; a journeyman working his way toward mastery. Seek perfection. Seek excellence. Seek your best. But when you don’t quite make the mark, Rise Again, dust yourself off and get right back at it. And if some of these failures are about bad habits, the same reasoning applies. Shoot for perfection, but don’t expect to be perfect. Improve over time. Tell yourself, this time I will not falter. And if you do falter, tell yourself the same thing again; no matter the interval involved; long or short. Keep at it. Until one day when you finally do get it right. And you’ll thank yourself for forgiving yourself for not being perfect; for not letting the perfect be the enemy of the good; until good did become perfect. Rise Again. Over and over again if need be. Sometimes it’s the only answer. And besides, the only thing worse than a failure, is a quitter. So don’t expect to be perfect, just get right back up and try to be. Hold the line Minimize the Damage If you do mess up and ruin some sort of personal winning streak, do not use the breakdown as an excuse to flush it all down the toilet. Even if it’s the umpteenth time. As discussed above, you and I both know we’re not perfect. And there’s no need to punish yourself, or worse, feel sorry for yourself. And the same goes for any other circumstance that conspires to knock you off track. The worse thing you can do is to give up. Do what you have to do to stop the bleeding.

Rise Again

There’s a place for you in this universe where you will execute from your optimal state. Everything around you could be in total chaos or everything might be just fine. It doesn’t really matter. You will be performing at your peak and handling whatever comes at you with the best of your ability. There’s no claim to perfection here. But there is a claim to your best. It may or may not be good enough, but you’ll know you’ve done all that you can. And you’ll know as well you’ve got the energy to keep on pressing ahead. You will be in balance. You will have found your Center. External events will be handled with Willing Acceptance. There will be no wasted time or wasted energy regarding the reality which exists around you. What is, will be what is; nothing less and nothing more. Internally you will process information and circumstances with Objective Perception. Emotions will remain in check and detachment will rule the day. And you will have clarity like never before. Your consciousness and focus will be immersed in the Present Moment. The lessons from the past will have been catalogued and the future will be dealt with in good time. And discernment will cut clean and true in the Now. All kinds of positive energy will be flowing through you. Events and others will be directly affected. And you will wield and project this energy through Right Action; as you would with a powerful flash light in the dark of night. And finally, a cool, even, burning Ambition will drive you forward. You’ll know exactly what you want from life and each new day will become a fresh new challenge. Yes indeed, not a bad place to be. And it will only get better. Find your Center. Know Your Mission You cannot just be drifting and aimlessly wandering around. You will need a Sacred Purpose; or as I like to call it, a Life Mission to anchor all that you do. Your Mission is your reason for being. It is something that will envelop your whole life. You will immerse yourself completely. Your Mission and you will become one and the same. It will be the stated and internalized Principles that will guide everything you do. Without a Life Mission, without a Sacred Purpose, you will not find your Center. You will not achieve your optimal state. And you will not be in balance. Knowing who you are, who you want to become and what you want to achieve are absolutely necessary for you to find your way in this world. Without these things you’re just an aimless soul who will be bounced around by circumstances and you will never fully reach your potential. By definition then, the stronger and clearer your Mission, the more likely you will be to find the sweet spot; the Center where you’re meant to be. So dig deep into your Core then. Dig deep into your Soul. Find what it is that will create the ultimate Meaning. Make it a set of principles that will make you proud as you lie on your death bed one day. Make it a Mission you would be proud to discuss with your Father, Mother and Children. And once you find this Mission and the weight and seriousness of it becomes palpable, you will have your start. Make it the most important thing in your life. And let it drive and support everything else that is important to you as well. This is the true beginning. Where you will ride the momentum of your life in balance and in control. Where you will have the opportunity to manifest your divinely inspired personal greatness. Find your Mission. Find your Purpose. Find your Center. Remain in parallel Mind, Body and Spirit All three aspects of your Being must be inline with your Mission if you are to find your Center. Work on your state of mind, work on your physical health and work on your Soul. And make sure all three are in consistent parallel to each other and trending in the right direction. There will be no Balance to be found if your complete Being is not in alignment.

Find Your Center

Between star athletes, celebrities, business tycoons, the ultra rich and even very successful acquaintances, it might be tempting to feel less than spectacular about who you are. But don’t kid yourself, these are people who put their pants on one leg at a time no different than you. They just happen to be at the peak of a very large pyramid in a particular specialty. Maybe they are really that good or maybe they just got lucky: whatever, it really doesn’t matter. Good for them. And remember, generally all you get to see is the gloss on the outside. Although there’s no doubt many of these people are highly skilled and very gifted, they experience many of the same issues in life the rest of us do; sometimes more acutely because of their position and the related pressures. We’ve seen and heard about all the sordid details many times. Extrinsic success does not necessarily lead to happiness and peace of mind. We are all aware of this at some level, but perhaps need to be explicitly reminded once in a while. There are more important things in life. My advice to you is to enjoy these people if they are entertainers and perhaps learn from them if their skill sets are appropriate, but to otherwise forget about them. And to focus simply on you. You are who matters in your life. And if you want more from that life it’s going to take a laser like focus on the main protagonist—which is of course, you. Forget about everyone else. Develop who you are. Define your principles. Improve your skills. Harden your mindset. Become smarter. Manage your money. Craft your lifestyle. Become the Best Version of You. Develop a Force of Character. Become a special human being. Inspire others. And learn to enjoy yourself along the way. Make this your Life’s Goal and everyone will benefit—you, your loved ones and society as well. Yes, Become the Best Version of You. This is a good idea. Be Authentic The first rule of Authenticity is to stop pretending to be something or someone you’re not. Running around putting on a façade is a waste of time and a waste of the gifts you’ve been given. Your true nature, your true genius is never going to be revealed trying to be something you’re not. Living a lie is no way to live. Pretending is for children. Living to please other people or acting to fulfill someone else’s image of you is a false existence. But we see this every day don’t we? People living fake, superficial lives. People putting on an eminent front. We know it when we see it. And it always seems so pathetic to see someone working so hard at being something they are not; at being insincere, at being fake. Being insincere will never lead to reliable success, fulfillment or admiration. No one appreciates this in another person. And yet so many out there make it their primary manner when they walk out the door in the morning. All because of a lack of courage—and a lack of personal faith. So have a look in the mirror then. Reflect on your own life and your own actions. In no way will you manifest your tremendous Divine Potential without being Authentic. Deep in your heart you know this. You’re cheating your true nature. Stop trying to fool yourself by fooling others. It’s not going to work and you will never truly be happy. Acquire the courage to be yourself. Have the courage to be Authentic. Give yourself some credit for who you truly are. Have some faith in the gifts you’ve been given. Start from scratch if you have to and work your way up. There is nothing as impressive as someone who bleeds Authenticity; as someone who is eminently comfortable in their own skin. Most will admire and respect true Authenticity in another, even if they don’t really like them. And better to be respected and admired than liked. But the hard truth is that if you’re not Authentic the chances are you won’t be much respected or liked. But then this is not really our concern here; to be admired or liked by othe...

Become The Best Version Of You

So you’re moving along in life. Things are better for you now. You’ve been working hard, you’ve made some decent progress and you’ve had some success. Good. Your trajectory is headed upward and the sky’s the limit. Every month and every year you raise the bar. Your maxim is that you can do more, you can get smarter and you can become more efficient. The future looks great and your life is very exciting. Excellent. But be prepared. For forewarned is forearmed. Life will eventually get in the way. We are on this earth to face challenges and face them you will. And even if you’ve already had your share of difficulties, get ready for some more. Just smile and be ready. What’s going to come is going to come. Don’t ever expect a smooth ride. Ever. Best case scenario is that you’re able to maintain your momentum regardless. But sometimes, urgent and important matters will need to take priority and you’ll get knocked off track. And once in a while difficulties will begin to stack up and you’ll begin to consider them as justification for giving up some of your gains. Or you’ll lose your morale completely and simply quit on your goals. There’s a tendency when all hell breaks loose, to just let everything else go. Perhaps not such a bad thing once in your life. After all, every man has his breaking point. But with life being what it is, this type of reaction or mindset can quickly turn into a bad habit. Let me suggest a Principle to you in advance of such a day. Hold Your Ground. Hold the Line What if you fought like hell to at least maintain your gains? What if you raised the bar and doubled down, just to Hold Your Ground? You’ve busted your ass to get to where you are. And if you’re smart you’ll do the same to hold on for dear life. After all, it’s much easier to tear something down than it is to build something up. Never taking a step back, but only forward when the storms clear will make for a great man’s destiny. In my opinion this is one of the keys to Personal Greatness; refusing to give up gains. Life is easy in fair weather. Good feelings beget more good feelings and momentum continues to grow. This momentum can become a healthy addiction. If feels great to keep making progress. But then what happens when the momentum is ground to a halt and the good feelings disappear? Sometimes success can create softness. A man can forget how to fight for what he wants. He can lose his edge. The difference, I believe, between the men who reach their goals and those who do not is how they react when the fair weather passes and the storms roll in. When the momentum stops and life gets ugly and difficult, most will bail on their Mission; and just try to survive. Some men, however, will dig in and fight like hell to hold on to what they’ve achieved. They’ll get mean. They’ll get mad. They’ll get nasty. Whatever it takes. Because they realize this is what life does. This is the kick in the mouth meant to dissuade you from your path. Perspective is the key. Most difficulties will pass. And certainly some will not. But time heals all wounds. But time can also never be recovered. And the goal in life should be to live your Mission and achieve your worthy endeavors regardless of what life throws at you. This is what men do. When things get difficult. And when things get ugly. They hold the line. You will endure and you will recover Minimize the Damage Sometimes there will be breakdowns in life. Mistakes can be made, circumstances can legitimately overwhelm and every man does have his breaking point. Shit happens as they say, even to the best of intentions and the best of men. Loses will occur. Failure will occur. The unexpected will occur. And there is a natural tendency when things in life crater, to just throw it all away. “It just wasn’t meant to be” is a common refrain. Bullshit. If your Purpose is worthy, it is meant to be.

Hold Your Ground

How’s this for a simple life philosophy: Always do what you know to be right. You do know what’s right. Deep down in your Core, you do know. Simplify your life and brush everything else aside. Cut out all the bullshit. And leave only what is right and good. Be a good person. Embody Virtue. Ninety-nine percent of the time, there’s no question what the proper path or thing to do is. And don’t bother to feign ignorance. This is you reading to yourself here. You can start by being honest. And for those occasions where the right move is not immediately obvious, you can use your intellect and discernment simply to do what you believe is best; take action, evaluate the results and repeat the process until the right answer does become clear. So make the decision to distinguish yourself in this degenerate world and have the courage to take the right path. Just do it for its own sake. There’s no need to seek fanfare or praise for doing so. Do it for yourself, for your family and for the Heavens. These are the right reasons for doing the right things. Of course, there’s no guarantee that doing what’s right will lead to an easy life without concern or difficulty. But then we are not children here. We know this. As men, we’re aware we exist in a broken world where life is as much about suffering as it is about happiness. But let me suggest to you that doing the right thing as a matter of principle will be a powerful way live. It will simplify your life, provide you with the benefits of a clear conscience and add tremendous meaning to all that you do. You will have Force of Purpose. It seems to me like this might be a pretty good way to go. Do the right thing. The Hard Right doesn’t only mean ethical or moral, it can also mean hard; as in hard path or easy path; hard way or easy way. Doing the right thing can also mean doing the hard thing. For whatever reason, the natural order has been shaped so that much of what’s worthwhile in this life is hard to achieve. Too bad I know, but it is what it is. It’s going to take some serious effort to do well; lots of effort. There will be hard work, difficult circumstances, difficult people, disappointments, competitors, mistakes; you name it. Hard is hard for a reason. One of the main reasons people don’t succeed to the level they would like to, to the level of their potential, is they’re simply not willing to ignore the effort it takes to get there. Most of the time it’s no more complicated than that. Hard work kills dreams. Period. Most people know what their abilities are. And they know what they’re capable of, but they come up short in the long run because they won’t gut it out. Things just get too hard and they will look for and find an excuse to quit. Or when it begins to dawn on them it will take 2 to 3 times as long as they expected, they will not simply ignore the time it’s going to take. And once again, a convenient excuse will manifest itself for a way out. The problem in both cases, effort and time, is that the difficulty becomes the focus instead of the goal. Don’t let this happen to you. There’s just no way around it. At some point you’re going to have to get sick of failure or tired of being average. At some point you’re going to have to do the right thing by yourself and ignore the time and ignore the effort it takes to get to where you want to be. Ignore the difficulty. Get angry if you have to. Or just sellout to your God given potential. Whatever it takes. Go hardcore. Take the hard path. And do what you know to be right. Do the hard work. Get angry if you have to The Important Distractions are killers, killers of dreams; especially today. It’s never been easier to spend all of your day immersed in distraction. These electronic devices we all carry around are designed to steal your attention. The most sophisticated of thinking and programming has gone into doing this.

Do What You Know To Be Right

Find your One Thing. Achieve Personal Greatness. Live life in the High Country. All the best, Max Panzer

Podcast – Find Your One Thing

Time is passing. You can sense this. And you’re still worrying about this and that; every-single-day. “But these are serious concerns. You don’t understand. There’s a lot on the line here.” Of course there is. This is the nature of life. And it seems to get all the more serious as the years pass. Have you noticed this trend? And do you think for one second that it’s unique to you? Or that it’s going to stop? And certainly you know there are many who have had it much, much worse; if only because of their birthplace and time in history. If you’re not careful, you could spend your whole life worried and anxious about problems and possibilities. This is no way to live. After all, there will always be something—real or imagined. Life will never be perfect. We are not denying there are serious immediate matters now and then which will be cause for concern. But should you be spending every day insecure and worried, or afraid? Perhaps it’s just that you’ve developed yourself a bit of a bad habit. Yes, perhaps most of your anxiety and worry could simply be a bad habit. Maybe you’ve simply conditioned yourself to be a worrier or just to be too damned serious all the time. Difficulties and struggles in life can do that to a man. It’s very easy to over adapt under duress. And maybe you’ve had enough of it by this point in your life. Perhaps it’s time to just Let Go and Enjoy. Perhaps it’s time to exhale. Let Go. And Enjoy. You Do Have This Choice You do realize, that you do have this choice; to just Let Go and Enjoy your life. There is no one stopping you. You could just decide one day, “That’s it, I’m going to quit walking around with the weight of the world on my shoulders. And I’m going to enjoy my life from now on.” You do have free will and you can control your Perspective. Even serious difficulties can be handled with composure, confidence and ease if you really decide to do so. You could simply make a hardcore decision one day to employ Willing Acceptance to all things external and then take Right Action to the best of your ability. There’s nothing more that anyone could ask of a man. There’s nothing more that you could ask of yourself. And you could also decide to stop worrying about things that might happen in the future. Certainly it’s good to plan and prepare, but at some point you have to decide that fate is fate. If you prepare and it’s not good enough then too bad. You’ll handle that possibility when it occurs. After all, you’re still alive and you’ve made it this far. Let that spark some confidence. You’ve found a way to overcome before, so you’ll simply do so again if need be. Worse case scenario, you fail miserably and have to start over from scratch. You wouldn’t be the first to do so and you won’t be the last. So be it if that’s the case. So let these ideas enter your mind then; that your constant worry is just a conditioned habit and that you can choose to be happy and at ease. And that you can break this cycle and Let Go and Enjoy. You don't need anyone's permission Give Yourself Permission And as ridiculous as it might sound, you don’t need anyone’s permission to be happy. Give yourself permission. Right here and now, I give you permission to give yourself permission. You don’t need your parents’ permission. You don’t need your wife’s permission. You don’t need your big brother’s permission. And you don’t need your Pastor’s permission. It’s your decision and yours alone. And I would also venture to say that none but the Creator Himself wants you to be happy and to relax and enjoy your life. Even if you’ve made mistakes. Even if you’ve done bad things. And even if you’ve hurt people. As broken as this world is, there is still so much goodness and beauty, it only stands to reason that it’s there to be enjoyed. That makes sense doesn’t it? You wouldn’t be able to see it and long for it if it wasn’t supposed to be.

Let Go And Enjoy

Credit goes to James Northeimer—@JamesNortheimer, the Beta_Killer, on Twitter—for the title of this essay. Ok, so your life is bad right now. You’ve hit rock bottom. Good. Reality has sunk in. You’ve got a place to remember for comparison. A place you never want to return to. But how in the hell do you get your ass out of there? First step: get yourself a mentor. Reach out and ask for some help. I bet there’s someone out there who’s just been waiting for the opportunity. Someone who’s been working his ass off to put himself in the strongest possible position; simply because there was nothing else he could do; and simply to be ready when and if the call came. Have the courage to reach out. Your future self will thank you. It could be the smartest thing you ever do. Take the help and do your part. Listen, be humble and do the work. Second step: stop doing things that make you weak. You know what these are. No more inebriation and no more Shallow Distractions. Quit television, ignore the poison of politics, let go of people who are a bad influence and no more junk food. Get comfortable being alone and without distraction. Quit hiding from yourself. Have the courage to be alone for a while. Face yourself. Stop running away. Good and bad, face yourself. You’re not the first man to be where you are and you won’t be the last. There’s nothing unique about your difficulties. Accept your situation. Accept who you are right now. And let’s roll from there; but without all of the things that make you weak. Clear a damn path. Start simply and build a foundation for success Third step: Progressive Resistance as a Way of Life. Here is where we will begin to roll forward. We will start simply and build a foundation for success. And then slowly dial it in, slowly add some progressive resistance. Just as with weight lifting to add muscle mass and power you will start with some basics and pay attention to form. There will no heavy lifting to start. But you will begin to take action. Day in and day out you will take simple action. You will handle what needs to be handled and take care of what needs to be taken care of. No more putting off and no more weakness. Ask your mentor for help and ask him to keep you accountable. And when he does, stand up and be accountable. Always remember where you ended up and where it is you don’t ever want to ever be again. And just as with weight training, growth will begin in the kitchen. It’s much harder to be mentally strong if your physiology is not also strong. Quit eating processed foods and switch over to real food instead. Eat as humans have evolved to do. Eat meat, fish, chicken, eggs, cheese, butter, vegetables and some fruit. In other words, move away from a carbohydrate based low fat diet, to a protein based high fat diet. And cook only with butter, olive oil and coconut oil. No more vegetable or seed oils. They are unnatural and no good for you. Moving away from carbohydrates to animal based saturated fat for energy will convert your metabolism from being a sugar burner to a fat burner for energy. This will have obvious benefits if you’ve got some excess weight to lose, but it will also prevent the ups and downs of a carbohydrate based diet. You’ll have steady energy all day long and mental clarity like never before. Energy and mental clarity, this is a good start. Next up, get your sleep cycle in order. Get your ass out of bed early in the morning. Life is for the awake and is meant to be lived during the daylight. Getting your diet in order will provide you with the energy to keep going all day long. Get up and get busy. Get busy and tire yourself out. This is a good kind of tired; the kind of tired that is rewarded with a good night’s sleep. Just as you will get up early at the same time each day, set a consistent time to get to bed and stick to it. If you have trouble falling asleep, then read until you do.

Progressive Resistance As A Way Of Life

There are some pluses and minuses to living in the best time in history in this civilized modern society of ours. If you’re a man of even modest means, life can become pretty comfortable—yes, pretty comfortable indeed. Of course this is good in many respects. A man can live his life in relative safety, there is ample employment, as well as easy access to both health and educational resources. And there are countless entertainment and pleasure based distractions readily available for rest and relaxation. Never before has so much rich food, diversion and vice been simply a few dollars or the click of a button away. But all of this wealth, material ease, distraction and comfort can lead to a certain emptiness. As with all extrinsic based stimulation, tolerance eventually comes into play. In other words, eventually nothing external to you is able to create the same level of pleasure as it used to do. This tolerance, or The Hedonic Treadmill as I call it, can twist a man into what he should not become if he is not careful. The pursuit of pleasure and materialism as an end tends to corrupt the Soul and can take a man completely down. Even if you’re disciplined and wise enough to avoid this trap, excessive ease and comfort can still steal the fire that used to reign within. Comfort can be an ambition killer. Once your life is on cruise control and you reach a certain level of satisfaction, that satisfaction can backfire and you can lose your way. And the same goes for the daily routines of work and family. The worse part is, that in working to provide for your family, you can lose the all important focus on your own well being—and your woman and children will see it. Raising a family and working for a living, along with all the responsibilities of doing so, can dull a man’s edge after a few years. You can become soft in physique, soft in ambition and soft in spirit; a shadow of your once formidable self. If you’re sick of this shadow and tired of being sick and tired, then perhaps it’s time to break away in some fashion. The good news is, if you’re dissatisfied with your current state it means there is still yet, some life within. A small ember or pilot light remains. This dissatisfaction is good then. It’s a signal to your Core, to your Soul, to your innate God given potential that something is amiss; relish it, because it means you haven’t given up. Yes, relish this unease and then turn it around and light it on fire. Take a step back and reassess your life. Put aside all distractions for a day and get serious with yourself. It won’t take very long, if you bear down and dig deep. Perhaps it’s time to break away from the comfort and ease, by choice and by deliberation. Perhaps it’s time to challenge yourself again with a brand new course of action; time for some Personal Evolution and some gut busting effort; time to make life your playing field again; time to Live to Thrill. Create your Vision So it is done then and the decision is made. You will start at the beginning. Find your Purpose and then use it to create a Life Vision. Dig deep into your Core and find what it is that will give your life the most possible Meaning—this is your Purpose or Life Mission, as I call it. And then craft a Life Vision from that Meaning—who you want to become and the goals you want to achieve. Design your Ideal Self; you at your very best utilizing all your innate potential. And then create a list of accomplishments that would propel you to that Ideal. Your Vision can contain something you’ve always wanted to pursue or maybe just take you in a whole new direction. The key is that it will light your hair on fire. It will stretch you and require personal evolution. You will need to become much better than you are, more than you are. So you will specifically delineate a new Life Vision then. And you will write it down and post it where you will see it each day, first thing in the morning. Sick of it or not,

Live To Thrill

No matter what your age and what your situation It’s a Wide Open Road Ahead. You’re never too old and you’ve never made too many mistakes. You possess Free Will and you live in the greatest time in history. Take advantage of this good fortune. Don’t live your life and let this slip by. Without a doubt, it is possible at this very moment to change your life. From unlearning bad habits to radical life change, this power does reside within you. Stop right now and think. Really think. Free will. You do possess it. Do you deny it? Of course not. Then accept it as Truth. Accept it as your new Law for Life. Today is a new day. Right now is a new moment. Choose and set yourself free. And then keep choosing, day by day and moment by moment. As soon as you intuitively grasp this reality it will light the Fire of Joy within. You will see nothing but possibilities and potential. And hope, excitement and a new Energy will begin to drive you forward. And what better Energy is there for success in this life than Joy? It is positive, powerful and will arm you to handle just about anything. With Joy as your fuel for change, the sky’s the limit. So open up your mind and open up your heart. Think about what it is that will light you up like nothing else. What is it that will be as exciting and rewarding in the pursuit as it will be when attained? And even it never fully realized, what is it that will always be worth the effort? A new career? A new shredded physique? Financial independence? A new love life? A renewed Faith? Or perhaps just you at your very best from now on until your last day; troubles be damned. Ask yourself these questions while considering the fact that you are a man with Free Will. And that you have access to resources, information and technology that even royalty could not even imagine just a couple of generations ago. Not that it will be easy. Nothing in this world that is worthwhile will ever be easy. But you know this. After all, nothing is easy right now. But mix in a new Mission with an abundance of Joy and it becomes a whole new ball game as they say. You’ve got to believe in your Core that you do indeed possess the ability to change who you are. You do posses the ability to change how you live your life.  And you do have the ability to change how you think about things. You can determine your own Destiny You can determine your own fate. And you can control your own Destiny. You can be happy if you decide to be. It’s that simple. You possess both a Soul and a Mind. And each is unique unlike anything else in the universe. Both your Soul and Mind are self directed. Through the use of Free Will each one can make itself better. And each one can also complement the other. A healthy Soul will lead to a healthy Mind. And a healthy Mind will lead to a healthy Soul. Belief in this simple concept is the key because it will give you the power to change. You can change. And you can change right now. Both Soul and Mind can make it so. Will you have difficulties and failures along the way? Sure. Will you have doubts and issues with confidence? Yes. Will everyone you care about cooperate and support you? No. But once again, how is that any different than right now? It’s time to move past all of that. The difference today is you’ve brought to the fore of your Mind and Soul that your life is yours to do with as you wish. You’re fed up with your past. And you’re fed up being fed up. So it’s time to take the gloves off and let yourself loose on the world. Deep down you know what it is you want. You know who it is you want to become. Intuitively you know who you can be at your very best. So you will become that person right now and then get out there and get after it. But let’s be smart here. Give yourself every advantage. Write down who it is you wish to become and what it is you wish to achieve. Be as specific as possible. Make it concrete. Crystallize your ambitions into words so that you cannot f...

It’s A Wide Open Road Ahead

Of course when the shit hits the fan and your life is in the toilet it’s not so easy to Make Your Day a Work of Art. To hell with that Max Panzer and his stinking, idealistic “Work of Art” posts. Sometimes I say the same thing to myself. What the hell was I thinking? That’s just an ideal. It doesn’t apply for when life gets really nasty and serious. But it does indeed Gentlemen. Let’s define “Work of Art.” When things get nasty, when they get extremely difficult or even ugly, there is still a best way to conduct yourself. Even if you’re not exactly sure what to do or what the best response is, you can still endeavor to do what you believe to be right. If you Center yourself and drop down to your Core Values, search your Soul and then proceed from that point, there’s not much more the Creator could ask. And that gentlemen is a Work of Art. To struggle for the right answer or best way to proceed in the midst of extreme difficulty is Noble and Virtuous. Irrespective of your bad feelings at the time, conducting yourself with courage and good character is a beautiful thing. We are on this earth to face challenges and face them we will. This is simply part of the Creator’s natural order. As I always say, we live in a broken world and it has a lot of moving parts, competing interests and extremely fallible human beings. To say nothing about some of the pure evil that’s out there. So in the midst of all this chaos, sometimes all you can do is all you can do; even if it seems worthless and without meaning at the time. This is simply what men do. Principle An advantage you can give yourself in preparation for difficult times is to set your core principles for life ahead of time. And if you’re unprepared, confused and currently getting hammered, take a step back and do the same. It’s never too late. Of course, being prepared beforehand might help you to alleviate the situation with less complication and gnashing of teeth. So take the time to set your standards. It will pay dividends many times over. Part of the battle is simply defining what behaviors you will not engage in. And what characteristics you do not wish to incorporate into your character. Most of these are probably what I would label as Shallow Distractions. But some of them, to state the obvious, would be purely immoral behavior. Avoiding what you know to be wrong and not doing things that will make you weak, will put you on good footing if things should get difficult. The other half of the battle is living your defined principles each and every day. Make it a habit. Make it instinct. Doing so will give you the courage of your convictions and place you on a solid foundation as an automatic response. There’s something to be said for a clear conscience. There will be no self-defeating holes in your armor. And you will indeed have the legitimate courage of your beliefs and principles when confusion and torment begin to rain down. A man with a clear conscience can stand tall and stand defiant. If you were to make the pursuit of Virtue your number one principle for life, you couldn’t do much better in my opinion. Virtue will pretty much cover all the good stuff and eliminate all the bad stuff. For me there’s Soft Virtue and Hard Virtue. Examples of Soft Virtue: compassion, empathy, courtesy, consideration, faith, faithfulness, order & cleanliness. Examples of Hard Virtue: honor, loyalty, discipline, honesty, courage, fitness, preparation, competency, dynamism, self-denial & sobriety. Work to become all of these Virtues. It is my belief they are all pre-programmed into your DNA with divine intention. Manifest this intensional design and you will never regret it. Make your core principle the pursuit of Virtue and you will indeed paint yourself an artful life. Righteous Defiance Sometimes there is no best answer or any answer at all. There are some things for which there is a point of no return.

Make Your Day a Work of Art – Principle, Defiance, Higher Realm

Consider each new day a blank canvas. And then paint yourself the best day possible. Make it a point not to be deterred, regardless of the circumstances and people you encounter. The nastier it gets, the better you will paint. After all, you’ve tried it the other way. And where has that gotten you? Has it elevated your spirit? Has it infused you with positive energy? Perhaps it’s time to cut yourself a new path. Perhaps it’s time to flip the usual script and become indomitable instead. In no way, shape or form will you become a pushover. If someone crosses the line or circumstances go sour, you will handle it as man should, but with composure and control. And you will manage your emotions and then get right back on track. If you have to paint with some black paint for a while, then this is what you’ll do. But you will make the most of it, wrap it up and then move on back to the full palette. And the same goes for those days where it’s nothing but the same old same old. There’s no need for inspiration. You’re a man. You live your life based on principle; and one of those principles is that no matter what … You Will Make Your Day a Work of Art. Kindness Conduct yourself with Courtesy, Consideration and Kindness. Take the offensive here. Stand tall and strong, carry yourself with energy and power and kill them all with Class. Be confident and untouchable. Disarm people with your controlled demeanor, even those who you really do not appreciate. Acquire the attitude that no one can touch you. You know who you are and you know where you’re headed. And you might as well distinguish yourself along the way. The reaction and opinion of others does not really matter; so the high road it will be. Be authentic and be genuine. Look for the good in everyone and be compassionate towards those who are not so good. The probability is great they are suffering in some way and they are simply lashing out as a matter of consequence. You’ve been there before and would appreciate the same consideration. Just move on and let them be. Elevate your conduct as such and it will change your life. Not only will it pay dividends in return from others, but it will also set you on a higher plane. Becoming a class act in your interactions will help you to cleanse your Soul. Treating people with respect and honor is the proper way to live. It will put you in congruence with the Creator’s natural order. And doing what’s right will begin to multiply in its returns. And while you’re at it treat yourself in the same way; with Courtesy, Consideration and Kindness. Hold your feet to the fire, but save some of that compassion for yourself as well. Make Your Day a Work of Art. Gratitude Be grateful that you can even consider working at crafting each day. If you’re reading or listening to this essay, you’re one of the most fortunate men ever to walk the planet. To have the freedom and have access to the technology to read or listen to my thoughts from half way around the world is nothing short of a miracle. You have the ability to communicate and learn from another, literally at the touch of a finger. The world is your oyster. If you’re in need of information, understanding or motivation it’s all out there for the taking. Ideas, attitudes and strategies for self-development are freely shared. And interaction and direct questioning is once again, just a few keystrokes away. All of this freedom, modern technology and information combine to provide more leverage for a man than ever before in history. Make use of this leverage. It’s the most powerful tool you will ever have to become the very best you can be. Combine all of this with Right Action and the sky is the limit. Mix it all together with an indomitable attitude and you can’t fail. Learn and apply. And then learn and apply some more. Make it a point to become a little bit better, a little bit smarter and a little bit healthier every day.

Make Your Day a Work of Art – Kindness, Gratitude & Order

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