From Chad

Do you know what the 3 stages of life are? Today’s message is a story of two brothers that illustrates the best part of Christmas.

Leadership is crucial for team performance, as demonstrated by the Navy SEAL’s boat races as told be Jock Willink. A strong leader can transform a struggling team into a successful one, emphasizing the importance of taking ownership and setting high standards. Recognizing team member’s performance and fostering a sense of care can significantly boost productivity and effectiveness.

Upgrading your mental game breaking free from limiting frames. Stories like Fiona Oaks, who runs marathons, despite losing her kneecap, challenge preconceived notions, and inspire us to shatter our own limitations. Embrace the idea of breaking frames and seek out stories that expand your perspective.

Emma Gatewood became the first woman to through-hike, the Appalachian Trail at age 67. Despite a difficult life, she achieved this feat by taking one step at a time, inspiring others to believe they can achieve more than they think.

Upgrade your mental game by breaking down big changes into small, manageable steps. Small steps, like dedicating 1% of your day to improvement, can lead to significant progress overtime.

The “Great Gauge Change of 1886“ unified North American railroads, demonstrating the power of interdependence over independence. This historical event serves as a metaphor for the challenges of collaboration in the importance of fostering right relationships. Life is better when we’re all on the same track.

Your attitude shapes you, your environment, and interactions, and it’s within your control. Change your attitude to change your life.

The “plus, minus, equals” (+, -, =) method, developed by retired MMA fighter Frank Shamrock, emphasizes, continuous improvement through feedback from coaches, challenges, and companions. This philosophy, adopted beyond MMA, encourages humility and well-rounded development. Identify your +, -, & = and recognize the collective victory in growth.

Personal growth benefits, not only ourselves, but also those around us. By focusing on self improvement, we become better equipped to serve others and create a positive impact. The story of a young woman asking Santa for a son-in-law, for her mother illustrates how fulfilled wishes can benefit others.

Are you using what you have? Abraham Maslow wrote, “Capacities clamor to be used and cease their clamor only when they are used sufficiently.”

The chicken man, a mentally ill man in Columbus, Ohio, pushed a stroller with baby dolls, and a woman’s photo, clucking like a chicken. His tragic backstory involved a house fire where he couldn’t save his family, leading to his breakdown and self imposed identity as a coward. Letting go of past burdens is a prerequisite for moving forward.

Habits, good or bad, become engrained through repetition, following the habit loop of reminder, routine and reward. To master behavior change, utilize the SCIENCE acronym: stepladders, community, important, easy, Neurohacks, captivating, and engrained. Start small, practice daily, and make permanent the qualities that bring out the best in you.

To establish new habits, create a strong reward that excites your brains reward center, making behavior automatic. Captivating rewards are key to rewiring your brain and forming lifelong habits.

When trying to establish a new habit, focus on action rather than feelings, as action determines attitude and motion creates emotion. Use Neurohacks like setting passwords that reinforce your desired self-identity to bypass the mind and create lasting behavior change.

Stephen Guise’s “Mini Habits” concept emphasizes starting with absurdly small, easily achievable goals to build lasting habits. By making habits so simple they require minimal willpower, individuals can bypass resistance and build momentum. The key is consistency, as even the smallest actions, when repeated daily, can lead to significant progress.

The most important question to ask yourself when making a change is “why.“ Finding the right meaning and a clear, concrete reason for change, motivates more effectively than abstract reasons. Disconnects to Sean Young’s framework for making change stick, emphasizing the importance of a clear “why“ in achieving goals.

Lewis Pugh, a British open-water swimmer, used the psychological forces of breaking down goals into smaller steps and surrounding himself with a supportive community to become the first person to swim in each ocean. The acronym SCIENCE (stepladders, community, important, easy, neurohacks, captivating, ingrained) summarizes the science of making behavioral changes stick.

Feelings are not part of our being, but rather signals that provide information about our experiences. They have been described, like the weather, passengers on a bus, or a car dashboard. The better story to tell ourselves is that we are not our feelings and that we control them, they do not control us.

Feelings can sabotage change and commitment. To achieve goals, it’s important to act according to ones identity and focus on the finish line, rather than being driven by feelings. This requires recognizing what feelings are working against you and forcing yourself to act until you feel like it.

When trying to change, focus on who you want to become, not just what you need to do. Nelson Mandela‘s identity as a leader for all of South Africa, drove his actions, even after 27 years in prison. Let identity drive your behavior, not the other way around. Identity equals destiny.

The easiest resolutions are often about stopping something rather than starting something new. Stopping a negative habit can have a significant positive impact on various aspects of life, requiring less energy and resources than initiating new behavior. Identifying and eliminating one detrimental habit can lead to a ripple effect of improvement.

Robert Kraft, nicknamed “the Raven,“ has run 8 miles daily for over 50 years, covering 145,000 miles despite challenges. His dedication has inspired a community, a book, and even a street named after him. His streak is arguably the greatest New Year resolution ever.

A one-word focus can help filter distractions and provide clarity. This concept, popularized by Ali Edwards through her “One Little Word“ tradition, encourages choosing a single word to guide actions and decisions throughout the year. This focus act as a rallying cry, simplifying goals.

New Year’s resolutions often fail because they start on January 1st, a time when routines are disrupted. Instead, use the time between Thanksgiving and New Year as a “preseason“ to practice and prepare for your resolutions. This allows for experimentation, failure, and building confidence before officially starting.

Lynne Cox, an open water swimmer, exemplifies the ability to endure pain, swimming in extreme conditions for up to 27 hours. Like Muhammad Ali, who only counted situps when they hurt, true growth comes from pushing through pain. To achieve excellence, one must expand their capacity for pain by embracing discomfort in setting high standards.