10 Life Lessons I Didn’t Want to Learn
It’s time for some tough love.
In my life, there have been few better experiences of “tough love” than stepping out onto the mat to compete at a Jiu-Jitsu tournament, fully expecting myself to dominate my competition, and then proceeding to get choked unconscious in the first round.
Nothing quite exposes your limits like passing out due to a lack of oxygen.
It’s really hard to run away from the fact that you need to improve when you’re being woken up by a referee being told that you lost and you need to get off the mat so that they can continue with the rest of the tournament.
This was a painful lesson, but I’ve found that the most important lessons are usually the ones that you do not want to receive.
Here are 10 lessons that I have learned through the painful exposure of my limits, across all facets of my life.
In business, competence is only half the battle. You must also look competent.
About 2 years ago, I started bleaching and dying my hair. Usually, I’m plain ole bleach blonde like the picture above, but I’ve also been hot pink, red, and blue. Some people see this and judge me and draw conclusions about my character based on my hair color.
Other people don’t care and love my hair. I cannot control their opinions. In business, you must know your audience and recognize that you are not for everyone.
If you can’t handle the possibility of being rejected for looking a certain way, change your look.
“Work hard play hard” isn’t a thing if you want to be the best of the best.
Hard work does not pay off if you don’t drop your bad habits. If you are unable to do this, you will lose to someone who is.
Olympic athletes don’t go out and party every weekend. The top writers on the internet don’t go get bottomless mimosas at brunch every Sunday. Most entrepreneurs that achieve their goals don’t sit around and watch football for 9 hours on a Sunday.
If you have a gold medal dream with bronze medal habits, you will live in chronic…
