Audio Only Version


Hey hey! Welcome to episode 159 of Life on Fire. For all of us wherever we are in our entrepreneurial journey there comes a time when we realize something is holding us back. And what we do about that realization makes all the difference in how successful we become.


On today’s episode I share my own journey in realizing what was holding me back and the steps I took to break through to the other side. This isn’t a story I’ve ever shared before, and it’s incredibly personal.


In this episode you’ll hear:

  • What’s the first step in creating a breakthrough? (1:30)
  • A rising tide does what? (4:20)
  • What does it mean to “turn pro”? (5:15)
  • My fears of breaking through and how I overcame them. (5:50)
  • The moment I broke through what was holding me back. (9:00)
  • And so much more!


There are four steps in this process, the first is awareness.


1. Identify what is holding you back.


We are all capable of achieving greatness, but not all of us do. So why is that exactly? Those who do go on to do great things and realize their potential are the ones who break from from whatever it is that is holding them back.


All of us have an anchor in our life that is weighing us down. For some of us it might be an old relationship, or how we view food; it doesn’t necessarily have to be bad but there is something there.


For me it was alcohol and I’ve known it for many years, but I hadn’t done anything about it until just recently. 


2. Surround yourself with the right people.


The second step in breaking through is to surround yourself with successful people who support you, who are the kind of people you want to become and who have what you want to have.


A rising tide lifts all boats and I found this out firsthand. Throughout my 20s I struggled with the ups and downs of entrepreneurship. When I finally sold my first business at 30 and began Life on Fire I started hanging out with more successful people. These were people who were living the kind of lives I wanted to live.


And as I did so it became clearer and clearer to me that alcohol was holding me back, yet I swept it under the rug and never fully committed to giving it up entirely.


Recently I read Turning Pro by Steven Pressfield and it dawned on me that to turn pro I needed to give up alcohol and stop drinking. But I was faced with a new fear: what would I do with my friends now? I had always been the life of the party and we met up to grab a bite together and drink. What would we do now if I wasn’t drinking?


3. Face your fears and the ramifications of your choice.


That led me to step three: I had to face my fear of giving up alcohol and the what it would mean for my life. I knew I couldn’t perform at my highest with alcohol in my life; I couldn’t be the best husband possible nor could I achieve my fullest potential with my business with alcohol in my life.


I’m not condemning anyone who drinks alcohol, I simply knew for me it was the anchor that was weighing me down and it had to go.


That fact was further cemented when I went to a doctor recently and got every possible test done. The results were shocking: I had bad bacteria in my gut, a severe deficiency in my neurotransmitters which meant I should be on anti-anxiety meds and anti-depressants. I was experiencing fatigue and weight gain because of my digestive system issues.


The doctor told me one of the major contributing factors was my alcohol intake.


4. The critical decision point.


That led to the fourth and final step: my critical decision moment. I decided to turn pro and give up alcohol entirely. For me this happened as a result of my faith, for you it could happen in any number of ways.


But however it happens when you reach that fourth step everything changes after you embrace your decision to break through whatever has been holding you back. From that moment on you commit to giving up the anchor that’s been weighing you down, and embracing whatever comes next as a result of that commitment.


I’ve stayed on track, even through a nasty physical detox, because of the vision I have for myself, my family, my business and my life. I see where we are going and what will happen in our lives as a result of breaking through what’s been holding me back.


Like I said I have no judgment on anyone who drinks, I’m sharing this because I want you to think about what is holding you back. Do you have the guts to identify it and make the decision to change it? What are you going to give up to turn pro and break through to your life on fire? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below.


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