Once heard Tony Robbins pose the question:
“What if life happens for us and not to us?”
This one made me think for a minute, but ultimately, doesn’t life just happen? 🤷♂️
To be totally blunt, life doesn’t give a f*ck about what happens to you or me, but no need to take it personal and let that hurt our feelings because guess what?!?!?
Life cares deeply and is actually consumed with our reaction to absolutely everything it fires at us.
Our response to whatever life brings is forever creating our reality and manifesting current and future happenings.
I know, it sounds a little complicated. Let’s use a real life example to bring this baby home…
After playing for the A’s organization for parts of 8 seasons, my heart was ripped out when I got traded to the Rockies. Emotionally upset, I did my best to move on and try to adjust to a new city and a new team… 2 weeks later, I was just starting to feel comfortable when I was traded again. 🤦♂️
I was now a member of the Baltimore Orioles and came out banging, getting a hit in my first 11 games… Right about that point, Lee Mazzili (the Orioles manager who was instrumental in bringing me over) got fired. I went into an immediate tail spin and finished the rest of the season hitting like absolute horse manure. 💩
That off season, I was released by Baltimore.
With my career on the line and the help of many people including Karl Kuehl and Kevin Seitzer, I made a psychological adjustments and a few swing tweaks that allowed me to have the two best years of my career after signing with the Arizona Diamondbacks, hitting 26 homers and stealing 25 bags in 2006, then becoming the 11th player in baseball history to hit 20 and steal 50 in 2007 while winning a Fielding Bible award as baseball’s best defensive left fielder.
Next thing you know I tear a hamstring, shatter my hand and I am playing slow-pitch beer league softball for the Dutch Goose, broadcasting and venturing into the wild world of ultra endurance sports…
Look, so long as we are still feeling the precious air pass through our nostrils, life is going to happen… Whether it happens for us or to us is all perspective, just depends if you like your glass half full or empty.
Regardless, OUR REACTION to life each and every single f*cking day, MATTERS.
-EB