Attitude is Everything!

How we do anything is how we do everything. How we approach a task should be how we approach any task. It’s all about attitude. There’s the ‘can-do’ attitude and there’s a ‘no-can-do’ attitude. The difference usually boils down to our beliefs in effort and motivation.

• Need to go to the Gym? – Good, enter it with an attitude to give your time there 110% effort.
• Approach a Barbell to lift? – Good, approach it with an attitude to make it.
• Need to get mentally tougher? – Good, get mentally tougher.
• Need to shift that attitude from negative to positive? – Good, Just Do It.

Ever wonder how Nike got started? Ever wonder why there logo is ‘Just Do It’? It’s so simple in it’s saying…but when you think about it then you should adopt it like a mantra against all negativity and excuses.

What’s ‘It’? That, dear reader, is 100% up to you. Guess what? You get to do it. You don’t have to do anything…unless your in the military…but that’s another story!

Steve Prefontaine’s realm was the track. Running was his why. Ask me who I feel embody’s the ‘can do’ attitude spirit and I’ll likely not tell you someone you’ll know. But I really want you to. The heroes of yesteryear live on forever. They live through our action if we want them to.

And watch the movie (Netflix) of a young man who at just 24 years of age will forever inspire every generation to get their grind on in whatever physical effort imaginable. Nike literally exists because he did. He was the personification of embracing the grind required in effort: by just doing it.

His quotes are nothing short of legendary…and they’re all about attitude.

• I’m going to work so that it’s a pure guts race at the end, and if it is, I am the only one who can win it.

Do you embrace the daily grind? Do you complain about having to keep fighting this uphill battle called life? Is your attitude in need of an adjustment? Excuses are easy. Accountability is a full time job. Welcome to life. It’s kind of AWESOME. To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift. Stop caring so much what others think. No one on this planet cares about what you think more than you do. You’re attitude is your everything.

• Somebody may beat me, but they are going to have to bleed to do it.
• I have a positive mental attitude but I also think it takes a heck of a lot of blood, sweat and tears.

How bad do you want your dreams? Your goals? How far are you willing to go? Are you truly willing to do whatever it takes to get from point A to point Z? Or will you shy away when you first stumble? Get used to it. Embrace the WE not the me. We’re all in this together. Help each other be better than yesterday because we’re competing against ourselves every single day.

• A race is a work of art that people can look at and be affected in as many ways as they’re capable of understanding.
• My philosophy is that I’m an artist. I perform an art not with a paint brush or a camera. I perform with bodily movement. Instead of exhibiting my art in a museum or a book or on canvas, I exhibit my art in front of the multitudes.

What’s your passion? What can you not possibly describe in words to anyone but those who are on the same ‘path’ as you? What is art to you? Can you respect every single discipline because you can truly see the passion we all share? Or are you judging them? And if you are why are you letting the ego have a vote?

• A lot of people run a race to see who is fastest. I run to see who has the most guts, who can punish himself into exhausting pace, and then at the end, punish himself even more.
• Did you ever run behind a slow pack? You get a trailing wind and a lot of body odor.
• The best pace is a suicide pace and today is a good day to die.

This was the most impactful quote when I started getting serious with fitness in 2003 (it’s no secret…reps + sets + EFFORT divided by time…just do the time friends…it’s no secret…stay true to YOU). It made me approach the activity (rowing) with vigor and acceptance…nothing premeditated. Today was a great day to say goodbye to yesterday…every single day.

It was more than just physical for him. Much more than external. It was completely internal. What better way to set a standard than if you do lose you know you you gave it your best. And you know what? Today, you got better than last time. You can push that limit farther than your mind can comprehend. IN ANYTHING.

• Over the years, I’ve given myself a thousand reasons to keep running, but it always comes back to where it started. It comes down to self-satisfaction and a sense of achievement.
• It doesn’t feel that good when you’re ahead the whole way.
• Why shouldn’t I do what I want to do…I’m an American citizen

These are my favorite pictures. When you see the real person. Not the flashy nonsense player who performs…but the true person. The one inside. He was all about his passion up until the end, there was no end.

To Recap…

• Having a bad day? Good. Remember you have the opportunity to do anything you want BECAUSE YOU’RE ALIVE. (ummm…AWESOME)
• If you want something bad enough then adjust your attitude to make it so. It doesn’t have to be drastic. It must be intentional. It must come from within.
• I don’t care how good at sport Steve Prefontaine was. I don’t know his stats. I don’t care. You shouldn’t either. It’s not important. It’s who he was as a person that I absolutely try to emulate on that 3-2-1 Go! and you can too whenever you get your GRIND on in your physical endeavor. Look in the mirror, that is YOUR competition. Every day in every way.
• Attitude is everything – How we do anything is how we do everything. Don’t make compromises with yourself because:
• To sacrifice anything less than your best is to sacrifice your gift! Every day TRULY is a gift. Make the most of it using your attitude to literally lead the way.

Thanks Pre. Every time someone’s on the floor after giving it there all I know your there with a smile on your face…saying, ‘nice pace!’