Friendly reminder: the hard stuff and the good stuff are usually the same stuff.
The things we value most – our marriages, our kids, meaningful work – demand the most from us.

So stop wishing this was easier.
Stop hoping the conflict, the uncertainty, or your own doubt will vanish.
This is the good stuff.

Think about every story you love. Every myth, every book, every series. They’re great because the hero had the odds stacked against them. Because there was no way through… until there was.

So...

If you asked me how I'm feeling and I said, “Stressed,” you’d probably be concerned.

Most of us would.
Because we’ve been told STRESS is bad. Toxic.

But is it?

In my view, COMFORT, not stress, is the real villain.

I went for a run this morning, and it stressed my body.
I’m taking a marketing course, and it’s stressing my self-perceptions.
I started a business last year, and it put stress on my finances.

All good, necessary things. And yes, the stress in each has helped me.

Why? Because stress is what gro...

To all of you who’ve given yourselves to something important:

I don't know what circumstances you're facing today.

The challenges you're up against or the setbacks weighing on you.

But I know this: for 99% of us, it's way too early to become pessimistic.

Setbacks can feel permanent.

And this acute problem can easily feel like destiny, especially if you stare at it too long.

But pessimism ISN'T the way.

OPTIMISM is.

Now, I'm not talking about blind hope.

Optimism truly is the best way forward.

The optimist...

A client asked me the other day:

“Is any of this actually helping anybody?
Are we realizing our vision?
Am I moving the needle at all?”

Fair questions.

The day-to-day has a way of blurring the long view. You get lost in logistics. Buried in small fires.

Here's what I told her,

"The minutia matters. These mundane moments–the choices, the problem-solving, the small wins–they compound.

And if you stick with it, they don’t just add up. They multiply. They create whole worlds.

Not in weeks...
But...

The most deceptive desire is the desire to be desired.*

It’s a trap. 

You get hooked on their approval, their likes, their head nods. You start checking the metrics more than your own internal compass.

But you didn’t start this for them.

That vision that got you moving? It wasn’t focus-grouped.
It was yours.

So why are you handing them the keys now?

The people who matter don’t shift. The ones who are shifting? They were never your people anyway.

Here’s your choice: You can optimize for the...

One standard I set with many of my clients:
Don’t look yourself up on social media.
Especially in-season.

Why? A few reasons.

First, ‘fan’ is short for fanatic.
Everyone posting about your performance is, by definition, a fan.
That doesn’t mean they’re qualified. It means they’re emotional.

Second, not all commentary is worth your attention.
Cynicism often passes for insight.
But don’t fall for it.

There’s a big difference between feedback and fear.
Between a real critique
And someone hoping you’ll fold.

It ...

 I set this goal a few months ago.
Not just any goal–100 days of showing up. Shipping. Sharing.

Today is Day 70. Still a ways to go.
But here’s the truth: I reached my goal long ago.

Day 2 or 3, messages started rolling in–people telling me the work was helping them.
Day 8 and Day 14? I needed those days. They changed me.
By Day 24, a CEO friend told me his team was using my work in their weekly huddles.
Day 41 sparked an entire leadership retreat–of people I’ve never met.

It’s showing up in board...

You chase it.
A goal. A milestone. Day 100.

You swear it’s just over the next hill.
A little more effort. A little more grind. Then–arrival.

But when you get there?
It’s gone.

Turns out, “there” was never the point.

The process was.
The showing up.
The noticing.
The courage to care enough to act.
The discomfort of pressing publish.
The quiet joy of impact.

You didn’t cross a finish line.
You built a rhythm.
And in turn, the rhythm built you.

Funny thing about goals:
They’re useful–only if ...

Minutiae gets a bad rep.

Yes...
You can get lost in it.
It can feel small, slow, even pointless.

Still...
Details compound.
Progress often lives in what feels too minor to matter.

Vision of the whole gets you started.
Vision of the details gets you there.

Courage isn’t the absence of fear.
It’s the presence of vision.

This is one of my favorite cognitive reframes. I come back to it often—especially with clients who feel overwhelmed.

Because sometimes they’re buried in doubt.
The challenge feels too big.
The odds too narrow.
The leader above them seems impossible.
The NIL landscape is chaotic.
The timing, the market, the pressure—none of it ideal.

When these stories come up, I let them finish. I don’t rush to solve or redirect. I just listen.

You don’t have to take it personal.
You don’t have to get stuck in your hurt feelings.
You don’t have to turn every slight into a story.

There was this running back we worked with a few years ago—buried on the depth chart. So far down, his own position coach once blanked on his name in a team meeting.

But, you know what? The kid didn’t flinch.
He didn’t pout. Didn’t make a scene.
He just kept showing up.
Got lost in his process.
Stacked daily gains.

And here’s the mindset:

“What you think a...

We've worked with head coaches.
First-round draft picks.
Olympic medalists.
Fortune 100 CEOs and their teams.
NYT bestselling authors.
Founders who exited to millions.

Sounds flashy.
Maybe it is.
But here’s the truth:

They’re just humans.
Humans who did the one thing most people won’t.

They refused to stop.

In failure.
With critics.
On the good days.
And on the ones where everything in them wanted to quit.
They refused to stop.

When they didn’t win the starting job. When the launch bombed. When the mar...

For those of us in the storm, the fight, not quite "there" yet—but still believing.

Every pursuit has two signals: inputs and outputs.

Inputs: what you bring—time, focus, energy, intention.
Outputs: what you get—wins, revenue, recognition, results.

We obsess over outputs because they're visible and validating. They let us keep score.

But if you're in the trenches building something that matters, you already know: the scoreboard always lags behind the work.

By the time results appear, they're already h...

Who decides?

Your coach?
Your boss?
The GM?
The board?
The transfer portal?

Feels like they do.

They hold the pen.
Call the shots.
Dictate the path.

But they don’t.

The trajectory of your life has less to do with your circumstances—and everything to do with your character.

You’ve met someone like this.

Someone who, no matter the situation—bad boss, market crash, unfair treatment—you just knew they were going to make it.

What do they have?

Unshakable belief?
Remarkable skill?
More talent?

Maybe...