025: Work As a Form Of Meditation: The Surprising Recipe for Endurance and Excellence

In today's digital age, hard work often seems less necessary, given the abundance of shortcuts, technology, and AI. But is it still a crucial ingredient for success? We're about to delve into the intriguing question of why hard work remains essential despite the modern conveniences.

Stephen kicks things off by asking Mike about his thoughts on the importance of hard work in today's world. But the real question lurking in the shadows is: Can anyone sustain hard work for extended periods, or do most people fizzle out after short sprints of effort?

As the conversation unfolds, they explore the fundamental differences between those who achieve their goals and those who start but never finish. What does it take to endure five or ten years of hard work rather than mere weeks? The intrigue deepens as they ponder the physical and mental aspects of maintaining this level of commitment.

Stephen reflects on his past experiences of burning out after intense work sprints and suggests that keeping the body at ease plays a crucial role. But is it really that simple? Mike chimes in, emphasizing the importance of maintaining a sense of calm throughout the journey. They discuss how staying calm can help conserve energy, cope with failures, and handle the pressures of work, especially during prolonged periods.

The conversation takes an unexpected turn as they emphasize that working smart alone isn't enough, even in the age of technology and information. The real differentiator is the ability to sustain hard work consistently. Stephen and Mike underline the necessity of mastering the art of remaining calm and centered while facing external pressures.

Stephen shares a poignant story about his journey from stress to a more relaxed and meditative approach to work. He recalls advice from a mentor, blending work with meditation. The discussion becomes even more intriguing as they explore the concept of making work your meditation and meditation your work.

So, what is the secret to maintaining hard work for the long haul? Stephen and Mike are on a quest to uncover the answer to this vital question. Join us as we unravel the mysteries of sustained effort and discover how it can impact the quality of our lives and the achievement of our goals.

Connect with Mike Chang:
- Instagram: @mikechangofficial
-Youtube: Mike Chang
- Website: www.flow60.com

Connect with Stephen Yeh:
-Instagram: @iamstephenyeh
-Twitter: @iamstephenyeh

Transcript

Stephen: [00:00:00] Welcome to another episode of Body Over Mind. This is Stephen Yeh with your co host, Mike Chang, and today we are going to talk about hard work. No, it's one of those things now where, especially nowadays, it can be seen as something that's maybe not as necessary. You don't have to grind like crazy hard and people are expecting to get.

Really amazing results. Why? Because there's the internet, there are systems, there's software, there's AI. But right before the podcast, we were just speaking about this, about why hard work is still necessary, even in today's world where things can be shortcutted. So I wanted to turn it to Mike and let his train of thought run through.

And then we. will discuss about this 

Mike: [00:01:00] So I think hard work is something that everybody agrees on, that it's important, even in today's age with all the tech and the AI, it's still important. However, hard work is not just a decision that a person makes if they decide I'm going to work hard. This doesn't mean that they're able to last.

Anybody can run a short sprint. But most people can only do that. They can only work hard for a short sprint. I guess my question is, how do you work hard for five years, 10 years, instead of just five weeks, 10 weeks? What's the difference? And is there a difference? I think this is a difference between somebody that's actually able to create their goals.

They're able to build something versus. Starting something, but not able to [00:02:00] finish because the two are very different. And that's what I really want to dive into. What's the difference? How does somebody maintain doing hard work for five years? How can they maintain doing it for 10 years? Most people can't maintain doing something that's difficult for any sustained period of time.

Let's look at exercise. Right. Somebody can't maintain exercising for more than a few weeks without dropping off. And so therefore, when it comes to work, because work is something that is needed for survival, so somebody will stick to it, but how many people are actually working hard for many years versus just doing the bare minimum to get by.

So I want to discuss this today. How do we maintain doing hard work? What needs to happen? So on the level of our body. On the level of our mind, what do we need to do in order to sustain this? Because our goals depend on it. Are the [00:03:00] quality of our life and what we are able to create, uh, depends on the answer to this question.

So if I was to ask you, Steven, what would you say is the key? What is the answer to how does somebody can maintain doing hard work for a very long period of time? As I am 

Stephen: formulating an answer for this, I'm also reflecting back on my history and just how I used to work. Right. Because I definitely was one of those people that would sprint like crazy and then I would burn out and then I would take a long break.

Right. And I think it was also just the way that I was going at it at work as if it was war and it was like a sprint. And so it, I would totally just work my ass off for maybe months. But then afterwards my system. Would be so tired and exhausted. And it was almost like the system was traumatized where I didn't even feel [00:04:00] like opening the laptop sometimes.

And so I think to answer the question, looking back now is keeping the body at ease, right? For me, what that means is how you are approaching the work that is in hand. You can approach it calmly, relaxed. Or you can look at something and be like, ah, shit, I got to get this done. And you can even hear it in the voice and from the voice inside, you can feel that there's constrictions going on.

And over time, I feel like that constriction is putting more and more pressure and wasted energy that makes you tired much more quicker. I would say this besides all the basics. of Nutrition, sleep, drinking enough water, et cetera, because if you don't have those foundations down, there is a period, [00:05:00] especially When my little ones were growing up and my sleep was just all over the place, I had a damn hard time trying to operate properly for work or for anything else.

And as I've been seeing, the kids are getting a little bit older, they're sleeping better. I'm like, Oh, I feel like I'm starting to actually dial in again and I can focus my attention long enough to do stuff again. So it feels nice. But On your end, what would you say? 

Mike: I think that I agree with what you're saying about being able to maintain a sense of calm.

I think this is probably one of the primary things, because if somebody can maintain a sense of calm while working hard, then they're able to reserve energy. They're able to not feel so pressured when, there's deadlines and there's not enough time to do the work. They're able to, take failures.

They're [00:06:00] able to survive the falls, survive when something doesn't go right. Right. Cause if it's, five weeks, maybe things will go okay. But if it's five years, Oh, you're going to fall. You're going to fail at some point. You're going to make a lot of mistakes. Things are not going to work out, not everything.

And the ability to be able to stay calm, the ability to, feel relaxed as you are working hard. That is the key because like you mentioned, I totally agree. Need to get movement in. We need to be able to eat healthy and we need to get rest. These three things are the foundationals and it's always necessary.

But once someone is doing these three things, the biggest factor that's in play is the ability to do things calmly. And I think because most people only focus on these three things, they don't look at being calm as an important factor. They don't look at this like, how does that have to do with working [00:07:00] hard?

But if we take a look at this. If I had a lot of pressure and then I'm doing this work, then how long can I do this work under this amount of pressure? If I was to do this work in a calm way without the pressure, then we can probably agree that the length of time that I can do this work would be longer because I don't have the added pressure.

Now we're going to ask, well, this added pressure, is it self generated or is it generated by an outside party? We can't control the outside parties, not fully, right? We can make our suggestions. , but ultimately people are going to do what they do. The market's going to change the way it does.

So we don't have absolute control, but we do have absolute control over the self generated pressure. And when we are able to release that. Then that worst case is we have pressure coming on the outside, but we aren't amplifying that [00:08:00] pressure. Somebody can be telling us do this. If not, there's all these consequences.

You're giving us pressure, but we aren't amplifying that fire. We see it. Yes. Okay. Okay. Let this person get all worked up. But internally on our end, we are calm. We are, , centered. And therefore, this allows us to stick to doing this grind, doing this 10, 12, 14, 16 hour days and longer. For people that are working hard, they know exactly what this looks like.

People think that success is just working smarter and smart is absolutely needed as well. But smart alone is not enough. Even if you're leveraging all the tech and all the, things, it's still not enough because at some point everybody's leveraging the same tech. It's like, imagine 20 years ago, , if you didn't have a cell phone you're not going to be able to keep up, right?

Everybody else has cell phones. They're able to access this machine. [00:09:00] Right. But now if we look at it, everybody has a cell phone. So therefore tech is, is increased. So the ability to work smarter is the norm. So you're not going to get ahead, even if you're working smarter, because the smarter method is now the normal method.

So now there's an increase, right? There's more technology, there's more things to do. So eventually that's not going to last. Everybody's going to be doing it. So the component that is consistent is. The ability to be able to sustain working hard for years and years. And now the goals that we have, they're going to be met.

So that's the key to stay calm, to stay centered. 

Stephen: That makes a lot of sense. Cause as I reflect back, like I was in the earlier days of let's say the I was in the late stages of the golden age of selling on Amazon, where there was a lot of sellers who just had no [00:10:00] idea what they're doing and the quote unquote tech or the softwares and these other things that we were using to really get ranked very high and make a bunch of sales.

But what you said, eventually people figured it out. , everybody became smarter over time, especially nowadays, people are much more open to just sharing what's working for them, et cetera. And then eventually everybody is doing it, which evens out the playing field. Right. And like you said, then it's not just about working smart.

Although you do definitely still need that component because without working smart or without the hard work. Especially nowadays, it's very difficult to get ahead. And back then I remember when I didn't know this experience yet of working calmly. Of working relaxed, I created a lot of stress in my body.

And I remember it was a time where when I was [00:11:00] working, and I was in that mode. I'm going to work, I'm going to work. And then I get all flustered and I get all anxiety ridden. And then I had a meditation practice as well. So after the work I'd, I'd go home and then I'd sit and then I could feel all the stress inside.

And I'm just like, Oh, I just want to stay here. Like, why are we doing all this work and bringing on all this stress? And then eventually I had, I just call him mentor, but he was a older guy who was in his fifties or so. He used to work pretty closely with Steve jobs and he retired. And he was also like a yogi guy.

And I told him about the cycle that I was having. And , he gave me a line that I remember to this day, which is make your work, your meditation. And make your meditation your work. Make your meditation, your work, make your work, your meditation. [00:12:00] And it took me a little while to get that. But then eventually I was like, 

Mike (2): ah, that's what's 

Stephen: going on.

It's I'm not being more of the observer. I'm not being at ease when I'm working. I'm I go into a complete different mode of a fight or flight mode, but if I'm able to get myself to quote unquote meditate while working or just be aware, just be relaxed, also keep in tune with what's happening inside, just breathe and observe and still do what I got to do, then.

My work just becomes more at ease. I don't feel as much pressure anymore. 

Mike: How does somebody, and by the way, that's a really good line. That's a really good line. That's something I'm going to, we're going to put this on the wall somewhere. That's a really, you can take it and share that with 

Stephen: your community.

Mike: It's, it's done. I already have the, I already have a marker and a [00:13:00] paper in hand right now. I need some tape on the wall in like 30 minutes. Oh, No, that's a really, that's a really good line because it gives a lot of context. People know the association of meditation and they know what work is and to combine the two, it gives a really clear visualization, a clear association of a very clear message.

So let's dive into the next obvious. Which is how does somebody be able to meditate while they work and vice versa? People can't even meditate, right? Just in general without working. So how can they make working meditation? So I'm going to dive into the subject. Yeah. So first we have to identify what does it mean to meditate?

Because I think some people think meditation is just sitting down with your eyes closed, doing nothing, silencing your mind, right? [00:14:00] And that's one form of meditation, but that action itself helps create meditation, but meditation is not defined by that action. So, that action creates meditation because it allows our mind to be more still, we can be more relaxed.

But when that happens, we're able to slow down the streaming amount of thoughts in our mind. Our attention is not so fixated on the thoughts in our mind. And to dive in even deeper, we have to be able to do this, uh, to talk about, to define work as meditation and vice versa. When we are meditating, it's not just slowing down the stream of thoughts.

A deeper layer of this, Is we are able to separate from our sense of self. When we separate from our sense of [00:15:00] self, now we can have thoughts, but the thoughts doesn't have our sense of self attached to it. That's the most accurate way that I can explain it. It might be a little complex or confusing. But we're going to explain that in a moment, but that is the most accurate way that I can say what meditation really is, because it's not just silencing the mind because of this subject we're talking about, right?

How can you silence your mind and work? At some point you're going to have to think, and when you think you're out of meditation, right? Unless meditation is not simply silence. Silencing of the mind. And the answer is meditation is not silencing of the mind. That silencing of the mind helps create a meditative state, but meditation is in its more deeper, truthful way of looking at it, [00:16:00] it's walking away, separating from our sense of self.

So then when we have thoughts, who's thinking? Me, my sense of self is thinking. I, I like this. I don't like this. I prefer this, my opinion about that. There's a sense of self in it. Now, if I'm working, what do I think about this thing? What do I like to do in this situation?

All of this has my sense of self in it. So then if I remove that I part, even if I'm working and I remove the I part, now there's only what needs to be done right now, what needs to be done here? There's not anything to do with me. It's just what needs to be done here. Now, who's going to do it?

I'm going to do it. But do I have a personal position about the work that needs to be done? Do I have a preference about the work that needs to be done? If I'm in a meditative state, no. Do I have my feeling about what needs to be done? If I'm in a [00:17:00] meditative state, then I do not. Do I like what needs to be done?

If I'm in a meditative state, I do not.

That's what meditation really is, letting go of our sense of self. Because when we realize this, now we can look at work and we can go, there are times to where we're going to use our mind and we're going to think about things, analyze things. In our mind, our head is not going to be silent. But just like what your yogi friend said, the way that we're able to approach work and in meditation is because there are things that we need to do.

In our work, and we remove our personal opinions, our personal judgments about the things that we need to do. And when we remove our personal opinions, judgments, likes, and dislike agreements and disagreements, preferences. Now there's only the things that we need to do. We let go of our [00:18:00] own personal judgments about it.

Without the personal judgments, 

Mike (2): we aren't in a sense of self, Mike, let me ask you, 

Stephen: because I feel like what you're talking about here is like one of the, let's just say the quote unquote highest forms that you can get to, right? Now, as we start to talk about it here, do you think that with the understanding that people can get from where they are and with the understanding, they're able to get to that space or.

Is it more like a path that they got to go through in order to start to experience that more and more? It's definitely a path. And the first step for most people on this path is to have a intellectual understanding. Because with the intellectual [00:19:00] understanding, now they have a reason to aim for success.

Mike: This objective until then, why would I And a destination, yeah. Why would I go there? Well, work meditation. This is even, doesn't even have anything to do with each other. . What do you mean? What are you talking about? I don't know. I don't get it. I'm not even gonna try it. It doesn't make sense. So now they learn this.

They connect the dots and they go, Oh, okay. I'm, it makes sense now. If I'm in a meditative state, I don't have the personal judgments. I'm not exhausting myself. I don't have all this made up pressure in my head, all this stuff. And I'm able to perform at the highest. I'm able to get things done. I'm able to sustain working hard because I'm in a meditative state.

Okay. I get it. 

Stephen: It's very funny because it's, , there needs to be like a dangling of the fruits. Because essentially what we're saying is, Hey, if you want to perform at a very high level or just be [00:20:00] very successful or et cetera, whatever it is, then you'll start to, I don't know if implement is the right word, but you'll start to perceive work and everything else in life this way.

But then at the same time, the more and more that you enter that space, I know it's more almost like the objective changes. Yes, 

Mike: that's the paradox, you can't, you don't, 

Stephen: if 

Mike: somebody can't know this coming in, if you're listening to it, and now, you know, 

Stephen: I'm giving, I'm giving the secret exactly 

Mike: what it is.

All right. Here's another way of saying that. So in order to, have your work to be your meditation, you have to let go of your sense of self. You got to stop having it to be all about you. But in order to want to make meditation your work, so you can work really hard, so you can accomplish your goals, it is all about you.

So you [00:21:00] come in going, I'm going to do this. Because it's all about me and my life and my ability to reach these high levels and for me to create what I want, what I deserve. Great. So now I may learn this. Okay, great. I am going to get into this meditative state so I can create what I want for my life.

Notice how it keeps emphasizing, right? So now as I'm going into it and I learn more and more, how do I let go of my sense of self? Oh, I need to stop thinking about me. Okay. When am I thinking about me? Every time when I want something, every time when I am aiming for my own personal gain, every time when I do something for myself, for my gain, my life, my riches, my wealth, my health, me, and then we realize that.

So I need to let go of all of this me and then I will be able to let go sense of self and then when I do, [00:22:00] I can actually reach much higher states. My performance will go through the roof. It'll be untouchable by other people. They can't even fathom this because literally you're talking about a person who doesn't get in the way of themselves anymore.

So their performance will reach very high levels. It'll be higher than most people around them, or at least it will be at the maximum that they can achieve. That's more of an accurate way. 

Stephen: It's so funny as you speak about this as well, because. I can see, I can even notice like little tingles inside me.

I'm sure it's going to happen to other people where they're like, Ooh, this is amazing. That's what I want. That's what I want to get. And so I'm going to do this thing to get that. But then essentially as they go along the path, that is the thing that they also need to let go of in order to get to that next level that you're talking about.

Mike (2): Yes.

That's like [00:23:00] the walk through the invisible door. Yeah. And this subject is the key to highest level of personal development. And we talk about this very often because I feel it's not talked about enough. If more people start to realize how this really works, then they can start to skip some steps or they can start to aim, aim for this.

Mike: Yeah. But before, I've been in personal development as long as I can remember, I always wanted to grow and improve. I was like most people, this idea of never stop growing, never stop improving, right? Because I want to be my best. And, Decades of this. And it wasn't until my thirties, early thirties, when I started to learn about this and realize that my drive and hunger for improvement was preventing me from reaching this next level.

And once I realized that it was like a cosmic joke, I [00:24:00] was like, wow, I get it. Huh? I've been stopping myself. And then after that, once I understood that it's not like it happened and then it took many years Later years to actually obtain it. So once I understood this is what I want to do, then my aim be came to accomplish this.

If I didn't know that this is what is needed, then it could have took me, I probably wouldn't have even gotten there to be honest. But because I understood that this is what's needed and why and how it all works, then at least I was able to aim for it. And that's my main intention for sharing this so that this way more people can aim for this.

And if you can aim for it, now you have a chance of hitting it. And this is what it is. Coming all the way back. If you can make work your meditation, then you're [00:25:00] able to do everything in a meditative state. Which means you're not creating much additional pressure than it's necessary.

Your mind is very expansive. You're not attached to the outcome of your goals, of your desires. You're centered and calm. Your personal self isn't getting in the way you're able to create better win win solutions, because it's not about you, because your sense of self is not in the way you're able to see the bigger picture.

And because your body is calm and centered, your body's relaxed. You're able to physically work longer periods. It's like somebody who's, whose body is not calm. They can't sit in meditation for very long, right? , they can't last. But now you see a person who's really calm. They can sit in meditation for many hours.

So that's the same thing. If a person's body is calm and relaxed, you're able to [00:26:00] work for many hours and they're able to maintain that. But if they're not, yeah, they can't last. And now they'll never burn out. You don't burn out from meditation. That never happens because burnout is coming from emotional stress, mental stress, and physical stress.

And meditation is exactly the opposite. So you'll never burn out. That means you're able to build your dream because your dream is going to take. A lot of hard work, and it's going to take a while, most people's do. So therefore 

Mike (2): you got to be able to do this formula.

That do the formula. And as, as you're speaking as well, I'm just thinking in terms of like your body, your mind needs to be relaxed and needs to be at ease, right? And as you're talking about this, I'm just noticing and being aware of what's going on inside of me. [00:27:00] And what I have noticed is for sure. I've definitely eased my body a lot more than in the past, but I'm also aware of, as you're speaking about certain things.

Stephen: I can start to feel subtle little tension areas starting to light up a little bit. And for me, that's also showing me those are the areas where it's not fully relaxed yet. It's still using unnecessary energy. And I can see it more and more. I can notice it more and more. 

Mike: So the relaxing, being calm is, it's like closing your eyes and being still.

Helps create a meditative state, but it is not what is Defined as meditation because remember meditation is defined as letting go of our sense of [00:28:00] self if we're tight, if we have pain in our body, but we aren't attached to our sense of self. So therefore we know that we are tight. We can tell that we have pain in the body, but now at this point we get to choose, do I want to continue?

Or do I want to get rid of this pain? Can I continue? Is it necessary? We don't get upset about it. We don't get bothered by the fact that's happening. It's happening, but because we're not attached the body it's my body is happening, this is happening, but we don't take it personally.

We don't think I'm not so healthy anymore. Right. Because my body is tight because I feel pain because this is still My attachment to my sense of self. I'm a healthy person who's strong and energized. We're not attached to these things. So if I have energy, okay, I have energy, but we don't embody this title.

[00:29:00] Everybody's embodying all these titles in their head about who they are. And therefore they'll never get into a meditative state because they're always attached to their sense of self and they are proud of it. We have to let that go. And now if I have tightness, if I have pain, okay, then that is what's happening.

Okay. Now, what should I do about it? Do I need to get rid of it? Yes. Go do something about it. Go move, go stretch, breathe, relax. You don't need to do anything about it right now. What is what you're needing to do right now, is something else. Then you don't do anything about it. You continue to do your work.

Now we are in control. We're in control of our action. We're in control of our body. We're in control of what we do. This is very different than somebody who's neglecting their body. When somebody is neglecting your body, they're not making a conscious choice. They're not realizing that their body's in pain.

Or their body's tight, they're not realizing it, right? They don't even feel it. There's no awareness of it. What I'm saying is that we can be aware that this is what's [00:30:00] happening in my body. And now I can make a choice. Should I do something about it? Or is right now, not the time. I'm tired. Okay. You're tired.

Now, is it appropriate right now to break? Can you break? Now, I remember the subject today we're talking about is working hard. And so sometimes we're tired. We need to keep going. We need to keep finishing. There's people in front of us. You guys are working on a project. You got to finish it. If you don't finish it right now, it could be delayed for another few days.

And then all of these other things are delayed. So then the answer is. You need to stick with it and keep going. But if we have our sense of self, then we will go, do I feel like doing this? No, I don't feel like doing this. Now, suddenly you created a problem. You tell your people, Hey, I don't feel like doing this.

I'm just so tired. You make up a reason. And then of course, then you, everybody takes a break. Now you're delayed by four days, which then creates a delay across the board for the rest [00:31:00] of everybody else. 

Mike (2): But 

Mike: if we let go of that. We feel tired. Okay. I'm feeling tired. Now, what needs to happen? I need to finish this with these people.

Okay. Then do what you need to do at this moment to get the energy up. Do you need a stretch? Do you need to breathe? Do you need to walk around? You need to drink a glass of water. Do you need to stretch? You need to do something. Get a fresh air for five minutes, but no matter what, you got to finish this.

So we don't let our tightness, our low energy, our pain. We don't let these things dictate our decisions. We take them in account. But we are the ones that are ultimately deciding the outcome of our action. Think about the way a person can operate now when they're not a, just a constant reaction of the way they feel.

They're not a constant reaction of their personal preference. This is what I mean when we first started talking about the ability to work [00:32:00] hard, the ability to be able to last when you operate in this way. now You're able to push past all of these limitations that was holding you back before and holding everybody else back because you're actually getting to choose.

And sometimes . It's not like somebody is going to work 24 hours a day, every day. And no, you're not going to be able to even pay attention at some point, but there are times where if you, let's say, we're able to go another 90 minutes, you're You will be able to finish this thing, create action steps and move forward.

But if you were to stop because you were tired or you're to stop because you just can't mentally or physically or emotionally handle it because you have this strong personal preference, I don't like this. Why am I staying up and et cetera. We're talking about delays with delays. It creates a ripple effect.

This is why people aren't able to move forward in their life, move forward in their business. They're not able to move forward powerfully because they don't have the stamina, they don't have this [00:33:00] ability to actually get the things that needed to get done, it doesn't matter their desire about doing it, they can't get it done.

But they need to be able to do this when they can do this. Now they can push past all of their previous limitations. That's how a person's able to really succeed. This is what it really means. To be able to work hard. So what does a person need to do to be able to meditate while working? What are the steps?

So meditation while working, the first thing to do is you need to practice meditation. So this way you're able to get familiar with being in this state if you don't practice it, it will be impossible to be able to do. So that means you want to start meditating every single day.

I would recommend 20 minutes in the morning and 20 minutes in the evening. So this is going to start to create that space. Where you're not totally attached to the thoughts in your mind. There's not this sense [00:34:00] of self in all the thoughts. So therefore you're able to observe the thoughts. And you don't think that you are the thoughts in your head.

Okay. So this is really important. If you are struggling to be able to meditate for 20 minutes, twice a day, then I would recommend doing some practice beforehand. That means doing some stretching beforehand, some breath work beforehand. You can tap your body. You can do the flow 60 practice beforehand, and then you meditate at the very end.

So then now when you're meditating twice a day, now what happens is you're able Feel more calm, you're able to be in more of a meditative state throughout the day. But it doesn't mean you're going to actually get there, but you're starting to move a little towards it. The second thing that you want to obtain is fully accepting who you are at the moment now, because when you accept who you are, which basically means you're not needing to improve or get better when you can do this, now you're [00:35:00] not going to be attached to the outcome of your work.

So whether or not you succeed in your next project and your next task, whether or not you get that customer, get that deal, it's not going to affect you personally. Because you're okay with who you are. So you don't see yourself gaining in some type of value because this thing is going to happen.

So therefore now you can be okay with whatever's happening now, keep in mind. You're still going to go after what you want, but if it doesn't happen, you're not going to freak out. You're not going to get upset. You're just going to look at what needs to happen next, what you need to do, and then go do it.

Now, whatever happens, you're going to do the same thing. Look at what needs to happen next and go do it. At no time are you going to get upset, get worked up, start to blame, start to complain, right? You don't need to do any of that. All that's just a waste of time. To be able to accomplish that is to. Be okay with who you are right [00:36:00] now, now that in combination with your meditation practice twice a day, those are the winning two combinations.

Now to obtain, how does somebody be okay with who they are? That means we have to stop wanting to be somebody different. You're going to stop wanting to be the best version of yourself, which is what we were talking about earlier, right? This is what somebody desires when they first start. It's probably pretty much 99 percent of people are listening to this podcast is wanting to be a better version of themselves.

But what I'm saying is in order to get to this state, you're gonna have to let that go. You first understand why you need to let that go. You have to understand why it's so important to be into this state of no self, let go of your personal preferences and self centeredness. And once you understand that, then be okay with who you are now.

Mike (2): And now focus your attention on. Serving others and genuinely do that. Cause you can't trick yourself [00:37:00] on this. This doesn't work. You have to genuinely stop caring about your own personal gains of things and just go after serving others. And just remember that you will gain everything that you ever wanted plus more by far.

Mike: Now you're able to make work in meditation because your sense of self is not in the way. So now you're able to go and do the things that are necessary. And the outcome of your sense of self, not being in a way is you don't feel pressured. If you don't feel pressured, does this absolutely mean you're going to be relaxed?

No, because it depends what your work is, right? If you're carrying bricks up a ladder, you're roofing, you're not going to be relaxed. If your job is you do professional triathlons. You're not going to be relaxed. You're having to climb and swim and bike. There's no relaxation. You're going to, you would relax the most that you can, but it doesn't mean you're not going to get sore and aching if [00:38:00] you're a professional fighter, you can stay as relaxed as you can, but you're going to still be working your butt off.

So it's not that your body's totally going to be relaxed and you're totally going to be this. It doesn't absolutely represent that. You will be able to relax more, but depending on your profession or depending on what you do. We can say that you will be in a more calm state. You will have the ability to tense up only when you need to tense up, feel pressure only when you need to feel pressure, and then when you don't need it, you're not going to create it for yourself because you let go of your sense of self, you don't take anything personal, so whatever is happening is not personal, you didn't create it.

It's just part of your profession. It's just part of what you do.

Mike (2): And that's how somebody gets there.

And there you go. 

Stephen: Every day, every podcast, slowly, maybe start unlocking more and more of [00:39:00] this. And then one day. Maybe we will all experience this

and that's what life is going to be like. 

Mike: Practice every single day. If you're listening to this podcast, listening helps you have the intellectual understanding, but you're not going to experience any of this. Not until you're practicing every day. So yeah, make sure you're meditating 20 minutes minimum every morning, every evening, if you do that, man, you're going to experience a world of a difference.

And then you do the second thing. And keep in mind, you can't do the second thing until you do this first. So if you go, Oh, I'm going to be okay with who I am and you're not meditating, it's not going to happen for 

Mike (2): you. 

Mike: That's not the way to do it. That's not going to happen. You need to meditate before you aim for the first.

Okay. Cause here's the thing. I'm going to say this now. Most people, they're going to go, Oh, they're going to try to skip the meditation part. Why? Because that's the hard work part. [00:40:00] That's the hard work part. That's the consistency part. That's the part where you spend 20 minutes just meditating every morning and evening.

Oh my God. It's going to feel like an hour, hours. You're gonna feel like you're sitting there for days. You're going to open your eyes and go, is that timer pause again? How many days can somebody last doing that before they go? I'm just going to do the harder part, accepting who I am. Maybe I can accept myself without meditating.

People are going to come up with all kinds of stories in their mind to try to avoid doing the work. That's the meditation part. Okay. And then the outcome of meditating helps you be able to accept who you are. But if you think you're going to get there without meditating, not going to happen. Okay. 100 percent not going to happen.

Save yourself some time, start meditating every day, every morning, every evening. And then after that, naturally, if you didn't aim to become okay with who you are, [00:41:00] that's going to naturally happen anyways, it's just that you want to do it as quick as possible, therefore that becomes your intention. Okay.

But first, get in your practices every morning and evening, and remember that if you're struggling to sit there for 20 minutes, then stretch beforehand, breathe beforehand, do a short workout, right? Shake your body around, move that energy and tension, release some of the pent up energy before you sit there for 20 minutes, all right?

Mike (2): Awesome. 

Stephen: That's it for this episode. Ladies and gentlemen, thank you again for listening once again, and we'll see you on the next episode. Pew.