image by Stefan Tell

Or Do They?

Life has a way of knocking the air out of us. Doubling us over and blurring our vision. We’re cruising along at a comfortable pace then WHAM! Life delivers a Chuck Liddell punch and we’re knocked on our ass.

We find ourselves dazed, wondering what just happened, and struggling to see clearly. Suddenly we’ve lost our bearings. Our equilibrium is off. Yesterday seemed so sure but today delivered a concussion and your head is spinning with what-ifs and whys.

Is This Really What I Signed Up For?

One minute we’re on top of our game, the next we’re injured. The “sure thing” fell apart. That business loan didn’t pan out. Promises were broken. A partner left. SLAM! We’re on the mat and everything is blurry. Now what?

The easy thing to do is nothing. Stay down. Stay put. Bitch and moan. Quit. Tap out.
OR
You can fight like hell. Stand up. But don’t you dare give up! You deserve better.

The Champion vs The Chump

At that critical moment we have 2 competing voices inside – the champion and the chump. The champion just got the snot knocked out of him so his voice is barely audible. The chump is a coward. His heart wasn’t in it to begin with. In fact, the only time he speaks up is to warn us how dangerous or impossible something is. Once he sees our inner champion down, he seizes the opportunity to cue the violin and ask, “Why are you doing this anyway? Why don’t you just quit? No one would blame you. After all, you’re hurt. Right?” Recognize that guy? That’s  the chump.

In This Corner… The Chump

The chump only wants the easy fight, the sure thing, the paved road, or a fixed bet. Sure we all want to lesson our chance of loss and increase our odds of winning. This is different. I’m talking about selling out, staying home, and playing it safe. The chump wants it all delivered to him, paid in full, sans effort or hardship. Sorry, but life doesn’t work that way and life isn’t fair. My dad told me so. My dad was a smart man.

Never Count a Champion Out Just Because He’s Down

Extreme sports, like Mixed Martial Arts, stir up something primitive within us where we’re forced to either stand and fight or lie down and die. The same is true of any dream. Sooner or later we’re confronted with the question, “Just how badly do you want it?” Our dreams will force the choice.  Are you going to stand up? Or just rollover and tap out?

What will you do? Your dreams wanna’ know.

We’ll talk more about champion methods for dealing with the blows that life deals us in an upcoming post. Stay tuned and pass this along.