Real Talk on Rock Bottom, Recovery, and Redemption
The Struggle Is Real
Welcome to this week's You Are Destined For Greatness, coming to you this afternoon from here at hitch and post.
So I want to talk to you a little bit about times in your life when it's been tough. I mean the hard times, and I'll tell you a little bit about mine. You know I've had times in my lowest of lows, I've had thoughts of suicide. I've wondered if that would be the right option. I've had panic attacks so deep that I, I couldn't feel like I can control what was going on with my body. I just couldn't hardly breathe, and it felt like the whole world was collapsing around me. I felt abandoned and alone and just really depressed, and maybe you have too at some points of your life.
I've been locked up a few times, and it's never a good place to be in jail. I didn't really enjoy that at all. And in those lowest of lows I, you know, I made choices, and you made choices too. You made a choice to be here, you know?
Right now I just found out today a man that I know an acquaintance of mine looks like that he may have committed suicide within a day or two ago. And he had a choice too, he had that choice too. I've been in those moments where I didn't know if I could go and continue to go on, and I looked at the odds and the odds were stacked against me. And it just felt like it was too much to try to go for it and to try to conquer those odds.
Overcoming the Odds
But you know, I'm at a place today, and I'm going to give you a few examples of the things that I have accomplished. Not because I'm some superstar, not because I'm more gifted, more talented, more smarter, more intelligent, nothing more certainly didn't have any a head start, right. None of that, okay?
The reason that I bring these up is just to give you, to show you what's possible with thought patterns and systems and and a little bit of and a little bit of drive. Okay? So I'm just gonna tell you.
Right now I really shouldn't even be here. I'm in like a fraction of a fraction of a percent of people who have been able to do some of the things that I've done, and here they are.
Beating Addiction
I drank to excess. And I don't mean a little bit, I mean fallen down practically, fallen down drunk every day for over 20 years without fail, without misses, okay. I went to a three-day rehab and I walked out of the, excuse me, a three-day detox, no rehab, no long-term therapy, none of that. I walked out of there with the resolve and decision and I'm coming up about this close to 10 years sober, no relapses, okay? According to that, I'm in 1% of people who accomplish that and don't fall back.
I quit tobacco also. I've been five years. I've used smokeless tobacco, chewing tobacco for, I don't know, approximately 30 years every single day since I was in high school. I quit that. Okay, and I'm five years right now five years plus. According to the CDC less than five percent quit tobacco and don't relapse and stay off tobacco for five years, less than five percent.
Winning at Health
I lost 35 pounds, okay. I lost 35 pounds, and I've kept it off. I've kept it off again nine plus years almost ten years. According to statistics, there's, what is it? I think it's 2-4% have a significant weight loss of 30-plus pounds and keep it off for anywhere near 10 years. Okay?
Staying in the Game
I've been in business, okay, I've been in business for 25plus years. And I don't just mean… It's my sole source of income. I have employees, we make the payroll. There's no fallback plan, and I just go for it, alright? And I've been doing this for over 25 years. According to numbers, there's less than 1%, like a quarter of a percent to 1%, who start their own business with employees and stay in business for the long term.
Before I was 50 years old, I created a net worth of over $2 million. There's a low percentage, I think it's 4% or less of people that are in their 40’s get to $2 million worth, of net worth.
Challenging the Limits
I ran a half marathon, not a full marathon, a half marathon with my daughter when I was 55 last year, a little minute ago, whenever it was. 13.1 miles and we had a very good time. I mean, we had a goodtime, but we had a good, we completed it in a, in a very respectable time period. Okay. There's less than 5% of men that are my age that can even think about that enter a half marathon, and less than 5% that complete, right, complete the race.
Redemption and Reinstatement
I was convicted of a felony when I was much younger. And I not only didn't get back in trouble, commit no other crimes for 20-plus years. In addition to that, I applied for a pardon and I was granted a pardon by the governor of the state of Nevada. There are less than 1% of felons, that are, people who commit felonies, who stay crime-free for the long period of time, 20 plus years. And less than approximately 1% of people who apply for pardons are granted pardons, and it's not an easy process.
The church that I go to, I was disfellowship for my church for actions that I did, and I got my membership fully reinstated after 20 years. They don't put out statistics on numbers of how that they go about that, but it's a fraction. It's an extremely, certainly extremely rare that after 20 years that someone goes back and gets fully reinstated to full membership.
Why This Matters
So, the thing of it is, is to do a few of these things is something, but to be in less than a percent, 1%, 2%, 5% or less, on multiple things, okay? There's a reason for that, and it's not because I'm special. It's not because I'm, because I had a leg up. It's not because I had a head start. It's not because of anything other than what's available to all of us. Okay?
So what my point is, is regardless of where you are, regardless of what you're feeling like today, regardless of the odds that you feel like you're in front of you, I can promise you that what you want is available. What you want, can be, can be had. It can be your reality. And it's as simple as learning, be it having the willingness, learning the thought patterns, and being consistent to follow through.
Final Word
Hey, be sure to catch the podcast on this. Stay with me. Remember, You Are Destined For Greatness.
