No one is perfect. Even in the areas where we see greatness there are still times when mistakes happen.

But the average person may look at greatness and think it could never happen to them. For example:

I could never be an expert in my field.

I could never achieve financial freedom.

I could never have a lean and pain-free physique.

We assume those that have achieved success are blessed with talent and abilities that we don't. We got short-changed when God was doling out the gifts. And there's no point trying, failing and then proving to yourself and the rest of the world that this is true.

Do you feel this way? Do you have self-limiting beliefs?

Many people doubt what they're able to achieve. And this has less to do with talent and more to do with not meeting a minimum threshold of effort or not making the effort for long enough. Sometimes it could be both of these.

In Napoleon Hill's book Think and Grow Rich, Hill tells the story of a prospector giving up on his quest for gold. Later when others resumed the dig they struck gold 3 feet from where the previous efforts had stopped.

How frustrating would that be? To be so close to success and to quit. This is what happens to many with their health efforts. They haven't seen the outward sign of their sacrifice and so they pack it in.

You can succeed in any area of your life. And here's how.

If you read 10 pages per day that would be 3650 pages per year. This would be equivalent to 12 books a year or over 300 journal articles. If you did this for a year or two do you think you might be an expert on the topic? If you weren't you'd be well on your way.

If you were to move with intensity for 15 minutes per day you'd be down 10 kg per year. Keep this up for a couple of years and you'd be down around 45 pounds. How would this improve your health? How much better would you sleep? How would your knees feel with almost 200 lbs less pressure on each?

Let's say as a young person of 15 years you got your first job. And you committed to investing $3 per day until retirement. This would be $100 per month and yield a 6% return with compounded interest. At retirement you'd have almost $400,000 saved. Not a bad nut to add to your nest egg as a reward for the dedication of small, consistent investing.

Maybe you've been chasing a strength or performance goal for a while. And it seems impossible to get any closer to realizing your potential. But you get 5-6 hours of sleep per night and struggle getting up in the morning. Injuries and colds come on more frequently now as well. Getting an hour or two of extra sleep per night could be the difference between staying where you're at or reaching the next level of performance.

Lastly, how would your life change with being a little closer to your best friends? I remember my gramma saying

'In order to have good friends you need to be a good friend'.

Wise words gramma. How would your life change to call a close friend or family member that you don't see that often? Pick one friend per week and give them a call to check-in and reconnect. If you turned it around how would you feel to have someone you like do this for you?

Take home message

You can have pretty much anything you want in life. Talent or ability isn't what holds you back. It's having the right plan, making small consistent efforts and staying with it.

Are you ready to have a little more? Would you like to have better health, fitness and performance?

That's the easy part. Decide whether you want it or not. You don't have to say 'Yes' and it's not for everyone.

But if you would like to see what's possible...

And you're tired of previous efforts not leading to success...

Than you should connect with one of our coaches. We can figure out what is reasonable for you to achieve, what the prescription should look like and hold you accountable during the process. You can email athletetraining (at) shaw (dot) ca or text 250-212-2972. One of our team will be in touch to offer solutions and help you started on the right track.