Shoot for 1%

     What could you do if you improved 1% a week?  If we were all able to stick to working on improving 1% per week could you imagine how amazing a life we all could have?  We’re not talking about 50, 25 or even 10% here, we’re talking about 1%.  If you do the math, it would take roughly 15 months to double our ability, capacity or performance in a given area or aspect of our life.  It’s not about focusing on the big things, it’s focusing on the small things that you decide on a daily basis.

     Everyone wants to make the dramatic change, that 50% change immediately.  Think about people and New Year’s resolutions, I know we’ve probably all been there.  That’s all good and well but typically there comes a point of being overwhelmed or stressed that most likely reverts us back to old habits.  That’s why, by making incremental improvements, it will allow all us to lay the foundation for big changes and huge impacts on our lives, work, training, etc.  There are always dozens of little things that we could do, that we typically won’t do for one reason or another.  Mostly we avoid these things because they are “small” things that we don't feel will have much of an impact. 

     Almost every habit that we have, either good or bad, is a result of many small decisions made over and over again.  Hence how it becomes a habit.  And most people will forget this when they are looking to make a change.  People tend to get caught up in believing the only way something is meaningful is if there is some visible and tangible outcome associated with it that others notice. Fact of the matter is thats just not true. 

     Meanwhile, that person that set out to improve by just 1% isn’t making noticeable changes that are obvious to everyone around them, they’re grinding it out daily, making those small adjustments week in and week out, and that is just as meaningful.  Especially in this long journey that we’re all on together.  It’s like making an deposit in the bank, the positive 1% changes you make week after week will compound over time, again and again.  And the longer you can keep making those deposits the more and more it will compound over time.  This life is a journey not a sprint.

     What happens if you make a mistake and slip-up and revert back to a bad habit or stop a good habit?  Nothing…as long as you get back on track.  Know at the beginning of your journey that these moments will happen, so be prepared for them and we’ll be able to get the train right back on the track and start chugging along again in the right direction.  People probably aren't a fan of thinking about failure or bumps in the road, but it’s those people that prepare and plan for those moments, that expect those moments, that are the ones that push that obstacle aside or climb right over it and get that train rolling again.  Prepare for the worst and you’ll be the one saying “It’s not that bad” as those around you are freaking out.

     Everyone loves to look at success as one single event as opposed to a journey of good habits and making the right choices over and over again, even when making those decisions are hard to do.  This is what makes all those small wins and steady gains so powerful to us.  It becomes infectious in a positive way.  And not just to us, but to those around us.  Maybe it’s a coworker who sees you bringing a healthy lunch now, or someone at the gym notices you get on a foam roller more consistently.  Whatever it may be people are watching, and though they might not realize it, they’re being influenced by you.  Change the world!  Or at least your little world and those surrounding you…

     Figure out what you’re looking to optimize in your life, wether it’s your daily nutrition, weekly training program, nightly sleeping habits, or productivity at work.  It starts with you, and it starts right now.  Set a goal, figure out a plan of how you’re going to achieve it, plan to fail (so you can get back up), and keep grinding it out until you make it to where you want to go.  Nothing in this life is worth it if it comes easy, so enjoy the small wins and have fun on this journey.  And remember to always, #TankUp!

"Success is a few simple disciplines, practiced every day; while failure is simply a few errors in judgment, repeated every day."
—Jim Rohn

G

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Keep Calm and Tank Up

     …or as the British would say, Keep Calm and Carry On.  I’m sure that you have seen the posters that were created in 1939 as part of a campaign to raise the morale of their citizens following massive bombings.  Not everyone knows that they never actually used the slogan and it wasn’t until 2000 that the posters were rediscovered and the slogan began rapidly to be parodied.  So it was only fitting for The Tank Up Way to join the party.
   

     So while others are excited or afraid, we will be the ones that remain calm and steady.  Remember that it is our perception of events and life’s obstacles that don’t allow us to see things simply as they are.  So if we stay calm and see things straightforwardly as they actually are, neither good nor bad, this will be our biggest advantage.

     Where one person so easily loses control of their emotions, we can remain calm and steady. We’re not talking about being emotionless and having no feelings, just the loss of the harmful, unhelpful emotions that can paralyze us.  Make it a habit to not let the negativity in.  If we can do that it will allow us to realize that our power comes from a clear mind and a calm heart, and that when we are not in control of our own thoughts we are actually quite powerless, and we are nothing more than slaves to our fears and emotions.

     Do everything you can to always remain calm, to always stay in control, to genuinely love the opportunity to prove yourself, to those that want to see you succeed and for those that don’t.  So when that moment of adversity strikes, that is the most important time to remain calm.  Take that step back, be strong, be grounded and press on through that adversity.

     We all have moments of high stress in our life and that is why it is so important for us to find ways to de-stress, to get back to being calm.  Everyone will be different, but in the end everyone needs to find their center.  It doesn't matter how you do it, just know how to do it so you can get back to who you are unstressed as fast as possible.  Exercise, it works, trust me!  Go do yoga.  Have a drink with a close friend or friends.  Listen to your favorite band.  Go get out in nature for a hike.  Play with your kids.  Go for a motorcycle ride.  Whatever it is do it and do it frequently, it will change your life for the better.

     People who are the calmest typically will use all their vacation days, will fight for 8 hours of sleep, go be social with friends and family and not be social by looking at their names on a screen, The type of social where you have to actually look someone in the eyes and speak words and listen to words.  When’s the last time you left you cell phone at your house and went out the door without it.  That’s my point.  I give you permission to put down your smart phone and get back out in the world and see it, like with your actual eyes. I promise it will be ok.  It’ll probably be pretty amazing.

“Calm mind brings inner strength and self-confidence, so that's very important for good health" -Dalai Lama

Thanks for all the support, 

G

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One Last Thing You Shouldn't Be Doing!

     Over this past week, I noticed on multiple occasions the amount of people that I come across that tend to complain…a lot!  So I had to add a #14 to the list of last week’s 13 Things You Shouldn’t Be Doing. 

14. Don’t complain.

       a. No one likes a complainer, if something isn’t how you want it change it

     That being said, we have all had points in life where we can remember complaining about something, be it traffic, a long line at a store, a coworker, the weather, whatever it is, most of us probably already complained about something today.  We have all been guilty of it at some point.  I know we’ve talked about shifting our perspective, but what we all need to do is suffer to allow for that shift to completely happen permanently.

     Here’s a dose of that perspective the next time you find yourself thinking about complaining.  It’s the story of Sir Ernest Shackleton.  He was an arctic explorer who on a voyage to traverse Antarctica from end to end through the South Pole got stuck in the ice 100 miles off shore before they could land.  His ship The Endurance was ground to a halt in the Winter of 1915.  He now found himself and his men stranded in the ice with months before it would be warm enough to melt and release the ship.  10 months in the ship was crushed by the shifting ice.  That’s not a typo, 10 months! Makes 15 minutes in traffic with the AC and radio not too bad…right?

     They would hunt seals and penguins to survive as their rations ran low, and it even reached a point where they had to kill their sled dogs to live.  Dude ate his dogs without hesitation in an effort to save his men.  That’s someone who is hungry, not that person that says they are starving in the mall food court.  Just when it couldn’t get worse for them the giant ice slab they were calling home drifted into warmer waters and began to melt out from under them.  They crammed into the remaining life boats and were able to navigate to the Elephant Islands 150 miles away. It'd been almost 500 days since they'd been on land...

     It turned out the uninhabited island wasn’t any better than the ice slab they were on previously.  So in a last ditch effort to survive, Shackleton and a few of his crew navigated 800 miles to South Georgia Island.  Somehow they were able to navigate their way through the frigid rough seas and made it.  However, they were on the wrong side of the island and had to march across mountains and glaciers for a day and a half to reach civilization.  Without stopping.  Knowing that with their level of exhaustion and extreme cold, if they fell asleep, they'd never wake back up.  What’s on the other side of Mountains?  More mountains!  Talk about not wasting time complaining about the situation and doing everything he could think of to save his crew.  Which he did.  Every single one of them.  Pretty sure nothing in his life was ever worth complaining about after that.

     So stop.  Make a commitment to yourself to not complain the next time you’re tired during a workout.  You’re going to live; you’re not stuck in an Antarctica winter eating dogs to survive.  Push yourself beyond your comfort zone, that’s where the great things happen in this life, that’s where you get stronger, that’s where you harness your fear and use it to your advantage.  If it’s something that makes you uncomfortable, it’s probably the thing that you need to be doing.

     In the end what I want is for all of us to maximize our lives and realize our true potential to allow us to live that memorable life that we have to work hard and fight for.  It’s time to stop complaining and time to TANK UP and get after this opportunity that is waiting right in front of us.

G

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13 Things You Shouldn't Be Doing

This is a little different than the other postings, but I had to share this with you guys.  I saw this list over a year ago and wrote it down where I could see it on a daily basis.  It certainly is a work in progress and a struggle daily, but I know it has helped me so much.  It’s a really simple concept that may appear difficult to master, but the journey of trying to apply these motto’s daily will only make you stronger both, mentally and physically.  I can’t remember the exact title of the list, but I believe it had something to do with things Mentally Strong People Don’t do:

1. Don’t feel sorry for yourself.

a. Take responsibility of your role and understand life isn’t always fair

2. Don’t give away your power.

a. You are in control of your emotions and actions, no one else

3. Don’t shy away from change.

a. Change is inevitable at some point, so adapt and thrive

4. Don’t waste energy on things you cannot control.

a. Recognize that sometimes the only thing you can control is your attitude

5. Don’t worry about pleasing everyone.

a. Strive to be kind and fair, but know that not everyone will always be happy

6. Don’t fear calculated risk.

a. Not reckless or foolish, but calculated and understand the pros and potential cons

7. Don’t dwell on the past.

a. Live for the present and plan for the future

8. Don’t make the same mistake twice.

a. Learn from your past, move on and make better decisions from now on

9. Don’t resent another’s success.

a. Success comes with hard work, so work hard and your chance will present itself

10. Don’t give up after the first failure.

a. Keep trying till you get it right

11. Don’t fear alone time.

a. Don’t fear silence, embrace it and be productive with your alone time

12. Don’t feel the world owes you anything.

a. We’re not entitled to things in this life but the opportunities that we make

13. Don’t expect immediate results.

a. Understand that real change takes time, apply your skills to the best of your ability

I hope you find this insightful  and are able to start applying some of these principles to your daily lives.  Focus on the things that you can control in your life, your attitude, your work ethic, your passion, your drive, your skills and let someone else worry about all the things you can’t control, because at the end of the day, you’re going to be to busy kicking ass at this life no matter what you’re doing to have the time to waste.

G

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