Many people are creating a false belief of real prosperity. The more alarming part is that innocent people are putting their future and their hard-earned money into shortcuts. They believe there are simple hacks to building a life of prosperity. They fail to understand that only a very small percentage of people accomplish the vision they were sold.
There are many truths in this book that are critical components to ensure you have the necessary tools to make your impossible hill possible.
Despite what you may have read or heard from some wanna-be business expert, there are no shortcuts to success. Believing this myth will only lead to disappointment and discouragement.
As you visualize the goal of reaching your North star, visualize it in its entirety. This will provide you with the motivation and inspiration to hold yourself accountable with great discipline, commitment, sacrifice, and accountability.
As difficult as it will be, this will be the adventure of a lifetime for you if you enter this challenge mentally prepared.
Nothing is impossible as long as you prepare yourself both physically and mentally. It took me 35 years to get to the peak of my impossible hill. Yes, I had unbelievable moments along the way, and every time I experienced one of those moments, I embraced it with gratitude and appreciation. But I never once settled or compromised on my North star. My drive let me turn my attention back to the ultimate goal I had set for myself, my company, and my employees.
Having a positive image and confidence in yourself is the starting point for charting your course towards success. You have to believe that you are capable and deserving of whatever success looks like for you. Otherwise, when things become tough, you might remove yourself from the situation rather than overcome it. You’ve heard me say it before; winning isn’t easy. This is why discipline, commitment, and dedication become so important to press through difficult
times.
“Success is where opportunity meets preparation”
Here’s an interesting perspective regarding human behavior when what is believed to be impossible becomes possible.
In 1954, there was a belief that it was physically impossible to break a 4-minute mile. Experts warned that anyone who attempted such a feat would die. At the time, it was considered the Holy Grail of sports. Media members and crowds were constantly looking for the superhuman that could break that barrier.
Roger Bannister became the first human to break that barrier, running a sub-4-minute mile. While his accomplishment was a remarkable feat, the real lesson was learned just 46 days later. A man named John Landry ran the mile in 3 minutes 58 seconds. Three more runners broke that 4-minute mile a year later, and all three were competing in the same race.
That says a lot about the word impossible. The truth is that the impossible lives only in our minds. Once our minds believe we can achieve something with the right steps, anything is possible.
The other lesson is to be aware of whom you surround yourself with. Three men accomplished the impossible feat of breaking the 4-minute mile, and they all achieved it by competing with one another. I often say anyone can be a hero if you set the bar at your ankles. These men pushed each other to places that humankind had never seen or ever believed could be possible.
Don’t ever let someone else’s version of what’s impossible become your view. It’s your life, your dream, and your persistence that will serve you to make your impossible possible.
Who is your Sherpa? Who are you taking your advice from?
The word impossible comes from people who have given up. They use the word impossible because from their perspective, the world around them appears impossible. Unfortunately, people underestimate the power of verbally projecting their shortfalls or defeats onto others. This is why earlier in the book, I spoke extensively on the importance of maintaining a positive attitude.
I’ve concluded that people who tend to have a poor attitude toward life generally have a poor attitude or image of themselves. Remember, your attitude is a mindset and a standard you set for yourself every waking moment of your day.
Most people take advice from the people they love the most. Our impossible hill mindset often comes from parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, teachers, and the people we trust the most. We are conditioned to believe them because they care about us. The problem is that they are projecting the same limiting beliefs that they were taught. Our grandparents grew up without telephones, without televisions, and they didn’t have smartphones in their pocket. Even though they love us and want the best for us, they justify their limiting beliefs by saying, “they are trying to protect you.”
Oprah Winfrey was an African American woman born into poverty. She was beaten, raped, and abused throughout her childhood before she ran away from home. Oprah grew up during a racially charged time where it was difficult to live a normal life as a black woman, much less become successful. Today Oprah has her OWN television network and is worth an estimated $2.5 billion.
Oprah’s story would have been an impossible hill for anyone, except for her.
I want to encourage you to think about your impossible hills and remember who told you that it was impossible. If you are thinking to yourself, “I just don’t think I can do it,” who sold you those beliefs? Because it wasn’t you. Your limiting beliefs were given to you by people that believed they couldn’t accomplish their dreams. Those were their thoughts, not yours, and that stops today.
For me, I was blessed to have my father as my Sherpa. He may not have built a multi-international franchise, but he showed me what was possible. I watched him leave everything he knew to move to a small city and take over a failing grocery store. I saw him take that failing grocery store, turn it into a huge success. I watched him renovate and add to the store four times to
continue expanding. I saw him accomplish what many people thought was impossible, and he did it by sheer determination, taking the hill every day.
After I saw him accomplish his dreams, how could I not believe that I could fix a failing health club? I believed I could accomplish anything because I had the right Sherpa. Later in life, I watched my twin brother reach his impossible hill. My brother and I were always competitive growing up. He brought the best out of me in many ways and showed me what was possible when he exited his first business.
These were the examples I had in my life and the possibilities I believed in. It was a simpler time when I was growing up. There was no Instagram and far fewer opportunities to feel inadequate. Today, you open your cell phone, and every two seconds, you see photos and videos that will make you feel “less than”
“You are too fat… I have the secret to help you?
“You are too broke… I have the only solution?
“you will never find love… unless you follow my guide.”
You are continually being sold that who you are is not good enough. Whether your goals are personal or professional, people become rich by telling you that you can’t accomplish your impossible hills. That is the pattern I’ve watched over and over again. If I’m not careful, even I can fall into that trap if I spend too much time on Instagram.
Just like Roger Bannister or Oprah, your reality is created by your perception of possibility. The interesting thing about perception. All of our perceptions of what is possible are interpretations from previous experiences and encounters. Everything you have ever experienced shapes how you view the phrase impossible.
How many times do you think Steve Jobs was told that putting a personal computer in every human’s pocket was impossible? Today we get frustrated if our internet takes an extra second to load.
Once again, everything that has happened and everything that will happen, was once considered impossible.
This is my invitation to fire whomever you are taking advice from in your life and start listening to your heart. There is probably something deep down that you know you want to achieve in your life, and somebody you love will probably tell you not to try. This is my invitation to reignite that fire that lies within you and consider me as your new friend and Sherpa!
There will be times where you will feel your brain start to creep in, saying things like “You’re tired, stop” or “you can’t do that, why are you trying?” Remember the lessons I’ve shared in this book and keep taking the next step forward. Let go of the limiting beliefs that were given to you when you were younger. Trust me, I had excellent Sherpas, and even I was called crazy for thinking I could accomplish anything great.
I still remember being that boy who grew up in a 2-room schoolhouse with nothing. I remember what it felt like to watch my dad take the hill every day to provide a better life for our family. I remember waking up and battling every day at my first health club, and occasionally, I would hear the voice in my head calling me crazy.
That’s why I am so passionate about the hilltaker method and the concepts in this book. We’ve been conditioned to believe success comes easy and is for everyone regardless of the sacrifice, discipline, or commitment we’re willing to make. We were sold 8-minute abs, 7-minute abs, and then 6-minute abs. If we don’t see an immediate result, we lose interest and look for the next shortcut or quick-fix to a million-dollar net worth. People will continue to try and sell you get rich quick strategies as long as you’re willing to pay for them.
Here is the secret that they don’t want you to know…
THERE IS NO EASY BUTTON, AND THERE ARE NO SHORTCUTS,
At the beginning of the book, that might have sounded a little depressing. You may have thought to yourself, why should I even try?
Now, this advice is liberating because there is no more pressure to accomplish your dreams overnight. Now that you know concepts like infinite progress and manageable cadence, you have the real secret. Stop thinking about the impossible in the
short term and start thinking about the possibilities of forever- one step at a time, one day at a time, and one decision at a time. An impossible hill is reached when you keep moving towards your North star and never stop moving.
Taking the hill of your dreams is a lifetime game, so it’s critical that you’re all in and passionate about what you’re doing. Once you find that fire and give your mind permission to believe anything is possible, then you start taking one step at a time towards that impossible hill. There will be roadblocks, setbacks, and downfalls along the way, but you’re no longer concerned with being an overnight success.
Now you can smile at resistance because it is one step closer to reaching your impossible hill. Now that you have a Sherpa who has given you permission to believe, there truly are no impossible hills in your life.
Start to imagine your future self, reaching the top of your impossible hill. Imagine what it will feel like to accomplish your life’s biggest goals. Now, start to think about everything you are proud of in your life up until this point. Maybe you were awarded an athletic scholarship, perhaps you fell in love, or maybe you graduated at the top of your class with honors.
If you are honest with yourself, you are likely proud of those accomplishments because they were not easy. The athletic scholarship resulted from years of discipline and hard work, becoming the best athlete that you could. Surely you recall the early morning workouts and sacrificing free time for practice.
If you fell in love, I’m sure you remember the effort you put in each day to grow closer to your partner. You probably recall the deep conversations, the quality time spent, gifts, acts of kindness, and going out of your way to make them feel special. You invested years building trust, growing closer, and developing the love you have today.
If you graduated at the top of your class with honors, you certainly remember the hard work. You remember the late nights in the library, the all-nighters preparing for exams, and the hours spent in front of the mirror, reciting your speeches. You probably missed parties that would have been more fun and may have sacrificed relationships along the way.
Everything you are now the proudest of once seemed like an impossible hill in your life. You were already a hilltaker, and you didn’t know it yet. You decided that you were going to be a great athlete, spouse, or student. You swung the first bat, you bought the first flowers, and aced your first test. You were already a hilltaker, and took action.
You knew exactly what your vision was, and you probably still remember that vision. You told everyone that you were a baseball player, you glowingly told the world how in love you were, and you said no to after school social hour because you had a big test tomorrow. That entire time, you were solidifying that you were a hilltaker, and your actions were showing others that this was your North star.
You were taking the hill every day, and you didn’t even know it. I used those examples for a reason. Most of us find our confidence at a young age, and it becomes part of our identity. We are hilltakers, and we are confident in that area of our lives. We identify ourselves as an athlete, someone who feels loved, or we identify as smart.
Most people stop taking the hill because we are told that whom we thought we were, is no more. Your athletic career ends, and you feel an empty feeling inside; you don’t know who you are anymore. That person falls out of love with you, and the relationship ends. You graduate, land your first job, and your boss tells you that you might not be qualified for the promotion.
Regardless of which scenario best suits your narrative, it’s easy to fall into the mindset of wondering who you are and who you’ve become.
Our impossible hills continuously change because of what others have told us to believe about ourselves. They are conditioning our beliefs based on their perspective. Even worse, we believe them. We stop taking the hill because we remember that pain of rejection, loss, or our own perceived failure. Most people never take the hill again and spend the rest of their lives wondering
What if?
What would you accomplish if fear wasn’t in your way?
The only thing keeping you from the hill of your dreams is that fear. Fear of loss. Fear of rejection. Fear of failure. By the end of this book, I hope you understand the myth of fear. Fear never disappears, no matter how successful or wealthy you may become. Fear only grows when you become responsible for hundreds of families’ livelihoods with every decision you make.
Your courage just grows a little bigger than your fear each time. Remember, none of your worst days ever killed you, and the only reason you stopped trying is that you were afraid to feel that way again. Instead, what if you converted your mindset to possibility and gave yourself permission to believe in yourself again?
When I started my first health club, I had no idea what I was doing. But I gave myself permission to believe, even though others said I couldn’t.
If you ask most people their opinion of Elon Musk, they might tell he’s you crazy. He once spent millions of dollars on building an electric-powered car after his dream car exploded. Now, you can see Teslas on every corner, and electric charging stations have become standard.
Elon Musk launched Space X to advance spaceflight with the aim of landing humans on Mars. He’s getting closer. He’s also launching Neuralink, a brain chip that will solve medical conditions, along with anxiety, addiction, memory loss, and a long list of other issues. He might just do it.
That is the thing about the impossible. Everything is impossible until someone has the courage and belief to make the impossible possible. That is the North star of this book, the belief that anyone can be a hilltaker and that anything is possible.
Thirty years ago, you had to hand-wind your videotapes and drive them back to the store. Now you can watch any movie ever created within minutes on a personal computer that sits in your pocket. You had to track down a phone book, look up a person’s name, and hope they were home when you called. Now you can see their face any time, anywhere in the world with the touch of a button. Better yet, a “Hey Siri, facetime dad” Don’t even get me started on the impossibility of air pods.
Steve Jobs was another man that decided nothing was impossible. But it’s also important to remember that impossible hills are not climbed overnight. Steve Jobs hill started in 1976 when he co-founded Apple with Steve Wozniak. Steve Jobs dreamed of putting a personal computer in the hands of every person in the world. He was perhaps the most extraordinary visionary of our time, and even then, the iPhone wasn’t released until 2007.
It took Steve jobs over 40 years to launch the iPhone, and most people stop trying because they are not rich or in great shape after a few months of work. If you believe that anything is possible and the fire to see it come to life, nothing is impossible. Over and over again, we have proven that impossible is a word for the people who have given up.
Before you read this book, you might have been one of those people. None of that was your fault. You have been conditioned your entire life to play it safe, stay in the box, and play by society’s rules. They tell you what you can accomplish, and you listen. They say you should be grateful for a job, a 401K, a nice house, and a retirement plan, they will also tell you that you aren’t good enough and you should stop trying. Your friends, family, and own brain may have convinced you that you were a failure because your first business didn’t work. They might call you crazy for even attempting what you are hoping to achieve. But now you know, that is actually their belief they are passing onto you. It might be impossible for them, but not for you.
You have been empowered with the truth that anything is possible, but nothing worth achieving is easy. Your North star and big goal won’t be easy either. It shouldn’t be because nothing worth doing will ever be easy. You won’t appreciate easy anyways, and you never have.
You are now a hilltaker that understands this is a game we play forever. There is no shortcut on your journey, climbing the impossible hills of your life. There is no overnight success or get rich quick scheme. There are no funnels that will make you a millionaire and raising capital won’t make the climb any easier. You don’t need easy anymore because you have a vision and have decided that nothing will stand in your way.
Now you don’t have to worry about being an overnight success. You have your entire life ahead of you and a North star to aim at. Solidify your decision by taking the first step. Your climb up the impossible hill happens one step at a time. With each step, you will see yourself getting closer, even when times get hard, or you have setbacks. Setbacks are progress, and every obstacle you overcome creates momentum, confidence, and reaffirms the belief that you will reach the top of the hill.
Remember, you won’t have to go it alone. The people closest to you in your life all know your North star and support or at least understand where you are going. You’re not worried about the hillfakers anymore. They will be in the same place a year for now when you look back at how far you have come.
You have removed the sandbags and remembered that your courage will always be greater than your fear. You are focused on infinite progress, refining your skills, and getting one step closer each day. You set up disciplines to keep you on track and accountability to follow through. It’s the sum of thousands of compounded small decisions that will get you up that hill.
Somewhere on that journey, you will meet the person of your dreams. You will grow into the best version of yourself with every step and every decision you make. Don’t forget to stop and celebrate your milestones and progress with gratitude and your supporters along that journey. Remember, what you are doing is climbing an impossible hill.
Only you know the truth; when you’re prepared and determined, there is no such thing as an Impossible Hill!