We don’t have a knowing problem. We have a Doing…DO THE WORK problem! And as a society, it’s killing us!

The hyper-connected world we live in provides unique access to learn nearly anything imaginable. So what’s stopping everyone from being: healthy, wealthy and strong? Or at least, not obese, not in debt up to our eyeballs, and not weak?

• Diet – I believe we all understand the concept that eating McDonalds or KFC every day isn’t healthy. It’s garbage. Would it surprise you that as a nation, we’re fatter, and unhealthier than we’ve ever been? In 2021, 38% (97 million Americans age 18 or older) were pre diabetic. That’s so sad!
• Health – How much would it cost to get in shape? I’d argue if you have a smartphone and therefore, access to the internet, there are thousands, probably millions of workouts available on YouTube. If you’re just getting started, or looked to get shredded, there is something for everyone. There are literally plans to go from the couch to a marathon in one year!! Knowing problem, or doing problem?
• Wealth – Less than 1 in 4 Americans have more than $1,000 in a savings account. Yet, the knowledge path to creating financial independence is quite simple. Spend less than you earn. Not sexy, but simple. Simultaneously, as 1 in 4 has less than $1,000, the US has $1.166 TRILLION in Credit Card debt. One Trillion is 10, one-hundred billion dollars. We’re going the wrong way.

So what gives?

It’s my belief as a society we’ve gotten weak and undisciplined and it’s also my belief that this is making us unhealthy. How do I know? I know this as I lived it in my twenties! The decade was filled with late nights, continuously poor diet choices, and persistent stress from work with little to no fitness regimen. What happened? The story I tell myself is that this destruction of my body led to my autoimmune disease taking hold of my body…begging me to slow down and take inventory.

Was I short on knowledge or were these issues behavioral? I knew what I was doing, I simply had no discipline.

To further this issue. I also believe the advancement in technology and medicine created the space to “Solve” an ailment with a pill. When offered the choice: hard work & behavior change, or a pill…the pill is winning in a land slide. (market capitalization of Ozempic is: $600 Billion.

Luckily, I have knowledge to lean on to change behavior. There are age old lifestyle principles to live by:

• Get sunlight and movement every day
• Make REAL connections with other real human beings
• When possible stress your body with exercise. A good sweat is a good indicator.
• Eat nuts, fish, meat, and vegetables. The closer you can get from farm to table, the better.
• Limit Debt and invest for long term asset growth. Einstein said, “compound interest is the 8th wonder of the world!” Embrace it.

This ancient cocktail produces a life free of self-induced stress on the body. That same body will produce the energy needed to live a wildly successful life.

What You’re Not Changing, You’re Choosing

Here’s the rub. As a society, many would rather have credit card debt, and a designer handbag than go through the discipline of saving for the time it would take to make the purchase. How do I know? Nearly 50% of Americans have used [buy now, pay later] installment purchases for regular consumer purchases like a pair of jeans. All this does is kick the can down the road, and this unquestionably adds undue stress. This is the piece I think many are missing. Bad diet, stresses the body. Poor finances and loads of debt, stresses the body. Immobility and lack of movement, leaves the body weak. All of these limit vitality AND weaken the mind to succumb to poor choices. The story repeats itself until society is immobile, overweight and heavily medicated on a cocktail of: diabetes, heart, anti-inflammatory and diet medications. It’s disgusting.

It’s Going to SUCK. So Embrace it. Choose your Suck!

Life has taught me, starting anything new is likely going to: look weird, suck, hurt, feel awkward. Then you do it a second time and it sucks less. But the question I think we’ve got to be asking ourselves is how can we better choose our suck? Would you rather it: Suck Now or Suck Later?

• Would you rather choose to suck it up, ditch most sugar/processed food and eat “mostly healthy” for six out of seven days and week? All while sucking it up to sweat 4-5 days a week? Trade a little discipline for a long life of vitality?
• Or would you rather choose the easy path (Suck Later). Eat fast and cheap garbage, mixed with a life of limited movement. Know you’re choosing an alternative suck down the road of: Diabetes, heart disease, a wheel chair and wheezing while on oxygen in your 60s!! Sign me up!

Excuses make today easy, but makes tomorrow hard.

Discipline makes today hard, but makes tomorrow easy.

We don’t have a knowledge problem. We have a doing problem. Share and get to work. Today!