Week 2: Mental Toughness

Have you ever been behind the wheel of your car heading down a familiar stretch of road and before you know it, you’ve arrived at your designation, or just barely missed your exit, or had to flip a u-turn to backtrack a little bit? I think we are all guilty of going on autopilot from time to time. From behind the wheel to behind the scenes, autopilot can be a resourceful tool, but when we are working on consciously making lifestyle changes, it’s important that we remain the commander of our vessel.
“Many of us have fallen asleep at the wheel in life, letting the outside influences guide and direct us to the path of least resistance. Unfortunately, it’s often the path of least resistance that requires very little of us. We lose our way, our goals, or ambitions when we slip into the habit of autopilot.”-Jeremy Fouts, CorVive Founder
Essential to the building blocks of CorVive is to ensure that individuals have the opportunity to fully direct their destinies by actively engaging in their lives—rather than being a bystander watching your life pass you by, CorVive Endorsers fully engage in piloting their destinies in the most opportune direction to achieve goals that create purpose and reason. You may wonder why this is so important to me and why I train on it…and that is because without actively engaging in your life you may end up at a destination where you’d rather not be.
I have experienced the moments in my life when I left the driving up to the wind and occasionally it took me to where I needed to be, more often than not when I was disengaged is where I found trouble. Daily things from maintaining your health, to maintaining your financial health, to even your personal relationships all suffer when you check out and don’t check in often enough to see forward momentum…because remember if you’re not going forward you’re going backward.
“If you’re not engaged in your life propelling it forward you most likely end up going in reverse.”-Jeremy Fouts, CorVive Founder
My advice to you is to commit to yourself to have a say in your destiny. In simpler terms—Grip that wheel! Have fun with life. You get to enjoy your time here for a brief minute so squeeze all you can out of this wonderful existence. When you master the ability to be behind the wheel in all of your decisions in life, you’ll be surprised how much power you really have to control the direction your life takes. You may seek advice from trusted friends and mentors to check your roadmap from time to time and don’t be afraid to ask, because if there happen to be any warning signs, chances are your teachers and coaches have been there. Regardless, take the wheel, enjoy the ride, and don’t fall asleep at the wheel.
As the days turn into weeks, weeks into months, and months into years we all find ourselves in a constant state of evolution and hopefully growth for the better. Most days I rise early, find myself going about my business and contemplating things in life that I have typically pondered before. One thing that I humbly accept as part of my life is that I am in a position where people ask for my ‘advice’. This isn’t a position in life that I take lightly. I truly always want to help better people’s paths, ease their burdens, and hopefully somewhere in the crossroads there is something from my experience that they can learn from and assist them in their journey.
A particular subject comes to me more frequently than others for whatever reason, whether it be destiny or just plain old common sense, I often find myself pondering purpose, passion and reason…or better known as a ‘why’. My why has served me throughout my life and continues to be the reason I strive to be a better father, husband, brother, and friend. It is my why that has propelled me forward when nothing else held the power to do so; which is the reason I want to help you find your hearts desire or your why. I have had people seek advice around a “why” and I want to share some thoughts that have been bouncing around in my head. As I continue to grow I hope that I can help you navigate finding your why, so that it becomes such a force nothing can stop you from achieving your goals. It’s easy to say things like, “write it down”, “place it in spots that are constant reminders”, and these things are valuable, but I want your why to be something so big that it becomes a feeling within you, that it defines you.
Your why should be worth fighting for and allow you to have fearlessness to explore new territory. Envision yourself on the most amazing destination family vacation then times it by one hundred, fuel your why with a monsoon of visualization. Let your why be powerful enough that it allows you to help others feel safe, that you literally remove fear from their life and let your why shine through helping to light their way. Let your why be even bigger than a dream, and have fun doing it. The power of your why should fill you with joy. And remember everyone is watching you so let them see you filled with a sense of purpose that exposes your intellectual muscle that is building the brand that you are selling the world. Consider that your why should be able to overpower any insecurities that might be holding you back. Those people that you feel like are judging you really shouldn’t matter, don’t forget that no one is thinking about your insecurities as much as you are, and if they should be thinking about your insecurities—their thoughts are really none of your business. Really ponder your why and plant it in fertile soil where it will continue to grow, develop and drive you.
This little exercise for continuing to fight for your why is what I continue to do to this day. It may evolve and experience some periods of metamorphosis, but it still compels me to move forward in the world doing my best to do good; and that is exactly what I want for you. A purpose and reason so strong that nothing can rob you of your why. For most of you a why is maybe something you have always known, for many of you it might be something you are working on. No matter where you are at in the evolution of your why don’t stop short of letting it propel you forward, with gratitude in your heart and a good reason why it is there. This debt-free, stay-at-home dad has come a long way on this journey to let you know that your WHY is worth it, hold it tightly in your grasp and near your heart
Being one of only two players to win 5 super bowls makes Tom Brady a really special football quarterback. As if that feat was not great, Brady set the record of being the only quarterback who won 5 Super Bowls playing for the same team. However, that is only the beginning of what puts him in a league of his own.
He has 4 Super Bowl MVP awards (the most), has been into a dozen Pro Bowls, has 2 league MPV awards to his name, and has seen his team win more division titles as a quarterback than anyone else.
Tom Brady is easily in the list of the greatest athletes in the sport. He has been an inspiring figure to tens of millions. These quotes from this legend will not only help inspire you, but they can also provide you an insight into the stuff that makes him so great!
“You can’t go out and practice average on Wednesday, average on Thursday, okay on Friday and then expect to play well on Sunday.”
“A lot of times I find that people who are blessed with the most talent don’t ever develop that attitude, and the ones who aren’t blessed in that way are the most competitive and have the biggest heart.”
“I think sometimes in life the biggest challenges end up being the best things that happen in your life.”
“You wanna know which ring is my favorite? The next one.”
My personal favorite quote from Tom Brady is the following:
“You Push your body to the limits, but you have to train your body to deal with the limits.”