Staying Motivated to Live Your BEST Life

Brett opens by reminding you that you’re enough, capable, and moving toward your best days, then dives into Zig Ziglar’s core idea that motivation isn’t a one-time feeling—it’s a daily system you build.  He explains that motivation actually follows action, not the other way around, and emphasizes discipline, positive self-talk, and guarding your mindset as key drivers of consistent performance.  The episode highlights the importance of clear, written goals, surrounding yourself with positive influences, and taking responsibility instead of blaming circumstances.  Brett also reinforces that serving others, maintaining hope, and taking care of your physical health all play a major role in sustaining motivation long-term.  He closes by encouraging daily habits—like reviewing goals, acting even when you don’t feel like it, and practicing gratitude—as the real foundation for staying on your A game. 

James Ray | Make Decisions Based Upon Where You’re Going Versus Where You Are

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-quote-of-the-day-show-daily-motivational-talks/id1163094296?i=1000752842623

Terri Savelle Foy | 3 Best Ways to Defeat Anxiety and Stress The power of a 20 Minute Timer

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/terri-savelle-foy-podcast-audio/id274538089?i=1000755585254

Inky Johnson | Whenever You Start, You Make Sure You Finish It

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-quote-of-the-day-show-daily-motivational-talks/id1163094296?i=1000748872305

Daily Healthy Lifestyle:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1coeDFfQP3wt1DX-nRvIi4Q0W9IJSB8Mr/view?usp=drivesdk

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:03

Welcome to A Conversation of Hope with Brett. This podcast is all about you. The mission to remind you that you are a masterpiece. To inspire you to dream again. To equip you with simple, actionable strategies for success. Strategies you can start using today to begin your journey toward the incredible life you deserve. He wants to remind you of the champion you were born to be. No matter your past or current struggles, Brett firmly believes that your best days are still ahead. He's grateful you're here and promises to give us all each week to help you create the life you were meant to live. So buckle up. Let's get started.

SPEAKER_00 0:52

Welcome, welcome, welcome to a conversation of hope. Your time is valuable and I appreciate you tuning in. I have a ton of great information this week that I know will help you and me stay motivated. Right from the start, I want to remind you you are enough. You have what it takes. You are, in fact, a champion whose absolute best days are straight ahead. One of the biggest challenges in life is staying motivated and staying on your A game. Life is hard and can beat us down at times. Sometimes we truly don't know if we can get back, get fired up, and get back to our A game status. Today I am going to share some amazing information from Zig Ziggler's program, How to Stay Motivated. I have listened to this program at least 10 to 15 times, and it always helps me get re-fired up and refocused when I am in a down season. After reviewing this today, I know it will help you get re-fired up and back to your A game status. I want nothing but the best for you, and that is why I am super, super excited to share this information with you today. All right, y'all, let's go. All right, Zig Ziglar, how to stay motivated. It's a program that I heard probably 20 years ago, 25 years ago. Um, we all know Zig Ziggler uh was a motivational speaker, and he literally reached over 250 million people in his lifetime. And think about that, y'all. That was pretty much a hundred percent pre-social media. So to reach that many people pre-social media, that's pretty spectacular. All right, Zig Ziggler's How to Stay Motivated Program isn't about hype. It's about building a system for motivation so you don't depend on feelings. Zig's core belief. People often say motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing. That's why we recommend it daily. Here's a deep breakdown of the core principles and structure of the program, telling y'all it's good stuff. Motivation is not an event, it's a process. Zig teaches that motivation fades because people treat it like a one-time spark. Instead, motivation must be fed daily, protected intentionally, linked to purpose. He compares it to bathing, eating, and physical exercise. You don't do it once, you build a habit around it. One of the key ideas, motivation follows action more than it precedes it. That's pretty powerful, y'all. So motivation follows taking action. You don't get motivated first, then take action. Alright, let's take a look at it. Zig Ziggler strongly believed that performance will never exceed self-image for long. If you see yourself as undisciplined, then you'll act undisciplined. If you see yourself as average, you'll produce average. But if you see yourself as capable, you'll take capable action. He emphasizes positive self-talk. I think that works great, y'all. Replacing negative mental scripts get the negative scripts out of your head. Those thoughts they'll try to destroy you. Guarding what you allow into your mind. So powerful. Your input will always determine your output. He says change the input and you'll change that cycle of success. The power of goals. Zig is famous for saying, if you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time. His motivation system revolves around written goals. He teaches short-term goals. So you want to have goals that are daily and weekly. Then you want to have intermediate goals they're monthly and quarterly. And then you want to have those long-term goals like a year from now or five years from now, or even ten years from now. But more importantly, goals must be specific. They must be written down, t, reviewed daily, t and emotionally compelling. Motivation increases when you know what you want, you know why you want it, and you believe that you can achieve it. And then be very careful, y'all. We want to make sure that we associate with winners. Big deal is who you spend time with. Zig emphasizes that motivation is contagious. You become like the people that you listen to, the media that you consume, the conversations that you tolerate. He teaches limit negative influences, spend time with growth-oriented people. And we know you do that. You listen to the podcast now. Read positive material daily. Listen to encouraging content consistently. And with podcasts and stuff, it's so awesome because it's endless the amount of good stuff we can put in. Your environment either fuels you or it drains you. Attitude determines altitude. Zig's core message your attitude, not your aptitude, determines your altitude. He teaches that circumstances don't determine success. Your response does. Motivated people look for solutions. They take responsibility and they focus on opportunity instead of obstacles. Demotivated people blame, complain, and justify. Motivation thrives in responsibility. Discipline creates long-term motivation. One of the most powerful parts of the program is this motivation often follows discipline, not the other way around. Zig explains, waiting to feel motivated is a trap. Taking action builds momentum. Momentum builds confidence. And confidence builds motivation. He advocates structure daily routines. We I talk about that all the time, y'all. Daily habits. So powerful. They will determine your destiny. So those daily routines, daily habits, morning mindset, consistent learning habits, always be looking to grow. The importance of hope. Zig believed hopelessness kills motivation. He teaches there is always a next step. Growth is possible at any age. Failure is feedback. It's not final. Hope fuels effort. Effort fuels results. And results fuel belief. Having that character and integrity, powerful. Zig ties motivation and moral foundation. He emphasizes honesty, responsibility, faith, serving others. His famous principle and statement, you can have everything in life you want if you just help enough other people get what they want. Motivation becomes sustainable when it's connected to service, not just self. Wow, powerful. So when you're motivated to serve others and help others, that contains it becomes sustainable. Number nine, health and energy. Zig connects physical health to motivation. Sleep matters. Oh boy, do we all know that. Exercise matters, chotru, and nutrition matters. Low energy often disguises itself as low motivation. Take care of the body, sharpen the mind, and you will sustain motivation. The daily motivation system in the morning, read something positive, review your goals, speak affirmations, express gratitude during the day. Focus on one priority at a time. Avoid negative conversations. Act even when you don't feel like it. In the evening, evaluate your progress. Celebrate wins and then adjust tomorrow's plan. So his formula is simple. Feed your mind daily, write and review goals, guard your associations, take action first, don't wait to get motivated, take action, serve others, always great. Protect your attitude and stay physically strong. And he says, keep in mind, motivation is intentional, self-talk shapes your destiny, hope is powerful, discipline beats emo, service multiplies success, and consistency wins. More consistent productivity. Not because motivation magically appeared, but because you built it. If you go to Zigziglar.com, he has all sorts of different programs for everything, from relationships to marriage to raising kids, um staying motivated, success principles, sales principles, um, just phenomenal. Everything I've ever gotten from Zig has been fantastic. So I want to share that with you. And then just keep in mind, come back to this episode anytime that you want, um, whenever you need to get motivated, and uh just refresh and recharge. I know I'll be doing the same thing because at times we all need to get motivated. And we can, because that input you put in will determine your output. All right, y'all, it's time, it's time, it's time, it's time to enter the laugh zone. Buckle up and brace yourself as we have two dynamic jokes headed your way. And now, for a joke that my dad used to tell all the time, my dad was the greatest man I have ever known. Amazing, amazing, amazing man. Why did the scarecrow win an award? Because he was outstanding in his field. Why can't you give Elsa a balloon? Because she will let it go. Time for our stories of the week. One of the stories is short, so I have included three great stories for you this week instead of the normal two. So let's get right into it. Here we go. A passing angel rescues woman who was eight months pregnant from a sinking car. A woman, some eight months pregnant, has a total stranger to thank for her life and that of her baby. When she was driving down I-95 in Martin County, Sheldie remembered feeling dizzy. It was her twenty ninth birthday. She was probably in a good mood, but biology and fate had a wicked gift in store for her. The dizziness grew until she lost control of her car, which trundled off the highway and into a pond. Confused, she called her fiance, and she said she was in the water, which confused him. The report said that the phone went dead at that moment, just when water began seeping in through the holes under the pedals, and the car began to tilt forward into the brown water. I tried to open the door on my driver's side and my passenger side door, but they were both submerged in water, so I could not get out, she said. I started feeling water at my feet, so I started to panic. That's when Good Samaritan on scene Logan Hayes stripped off his excess of layers, took a running jump, and swam to the car to open the back door before it became too submerged. When he swung that door open, I was like You are an angel, Shelby said. Fortunately for Shelby, Hayes reached the doors before the water did and helped her to safety. Paramedics arrived and rushed her to the hospital, where it was determined the stress of the near death experience caused for an emergency C section. Shelby's fiancee arrived at the hospital after the birth of their daughter. She weighed three pounds fourteen ounces as it was seven weeks early. Shelby described Ivory as her miracle baby, and it was easy to see why. Hayes said he was just happy to be at the right place at the right time. Wow, once again, people helping people. The decision that that guy made literally saved two people's lives, and we know all of us would do the same thing. That's who we are. That's what our community's about. All right, mysterious hero dog leads police officer straight to a missing three-year-old. A police officer and self-described dog guy hooked his own instincts up to those of a local dog to find a missing three-year-old in Kentucky. There was a drone and a helicopter in the air, and a half dozen officers from the Louisville Metropolitan Police Department scouring the immediate location of the missing person's call on January 7th. Reasoning that a boy that young couldn't run very fast, Officer Josh Thompson and another officer who rides a beat in that area named Story begin to canvas the street near the boy's house. As I'm walking to the front door, the craziest thing happens. There's a dog and he starts walking with me, said Thompson. And at first, you don't know about dogs. You don't know where the dog's from. He's barking, jerking me a little bit. So I begin to knock on the house again, and then I make a gesture on the body cam, kind of funny. I guess I'm kind of a dog guy, right? But I just said, let's go find this kid. The dog immediately spun around and started trotting back in the direction Officer Thomas came back from, barking periodically. He described it all in a video posted on social media by the department, and at one point said unflappably that the dog was telling him to hurry up, maybe showing just how much Thompson's heart and mind had merged at that moment. Sure enough, they returned to the back of the house, and then Thomas knew that the child had to be there somewhere. The dog ran over to a parked car and sat down next to the back wheel. Officer Story called out that he had found the child in the seat of the car. He was locked inside and the child locks were on, and they had to coach him on how to open the door. When he finally did, he jumped out of the car, bear hugged my neck, and wouldn't let go. I don't think I've ever seen a happier kid in my life, said Officer Thompson. I don't know where the dog came from, but it was a blessing from God on that day. That is absolutely fabulous. They found the dog, they found the boy, three years old, and the dog was a huge help on that one. All right, last story. Another great one, though. Dozens of strangers formed parade for a man with cancer driving classic cars past his home for one last surprise. A Colorado man was given a heartwarming surprise last week after his granddaughter reached out to strangers who provided one last look at his favorite thing, a classic car show. I just wanted to do something special for him, said his granddaughter, and special it was as dozens of car owners paraded past their grandfather's home. After posting the request on social media, the family only expected to have a handful of autos show up, but around fifty showed off their curvy bumpers and round mirrors for eighty-year-old Max Archelletta, a lifelong fan of vintage vehicles. Since being diagnosed with terminal cancer, he no longer has the energy to attend his beloved car shows. I had seen him at a show last summer, and I was like, that's something that you do for a community, said Butch, who even taped a poster of Max's photo on his 1951 Ford shoebox. The historical cars in every color lined up in single file and drove slowly past the home, some with American flags and every driver waving and honking their horn. I couldn't believe everybody, Max said. Just all of this was for me. Acts of kindness, people helping people. We talk about it all the time. Absolutely fabulous. Golden rule, just making a difference in somebody's life every day. What a great life to lead. All right, y'all. I am excited now to share my top three podcast episodes of the week. I like you enjoy listening to as many podcasts as I can. If I can even get one nugget of truth or belief or something that's going to help me be better, my goodness, that I can apply. I want to do it. I want to do it quickly. All right, here we go. Number one, James Ray. Make decisions based upon where you're going versus where you are. The line between your ultimate prosperity and happiness or misery and failure is as fine as a razor's edge, James says. What are you creating in your life? Your life starts now. Make decisions based on what you want versus what you don't want. Everything changed for James when he started making decisions based on where he was going versus where he was. If you continue to make decisions based on where you are today, you will get the same results. After changing the mindset, he had the best year he's ever had. Relax, have faith, and know that your future will get better. Enjoy the journey as you get closer to your dreams. Recognize that temporary roadblocks are just that. They're just temporary roadblocks. Your birthright is first class, but you have to be willing to do what it takes. Your destiny and future is carved in the moments of decision in the here and now. What you're deciding right now will be your future. Be willing to do what other people will not. It's not easy. It's not supposed to be. If it was easy, everyone would be at the top of their game. Only the one who is willing to go the furthest will ever know how far someone can go. Good stuff, everybody. Link to the The full episode is in the show notes as always. And number two, three best ways to defeat anxiety and stress by Terry Savell. When things are out of order, peace slowly leaks out. Make a list of the physical messes in your life. Which areas of your life feel like they're out of order right now. A lot of stress is rooted in what we see every day your home, your office, your purse, your garage, your car, your closet, your bathroom, countertops, kitchen pantry, the messes cause stress. There is a direct link between organization and success. A cluttered desk is a sign of a cluttered mind. Clutter blocks peace. Clutter drains energy and clutter creates anxiety. Getting organized is not about perfection. It is just about preparing yourself for peace and promotion. Make a list of the mental messes in your life as well. A mental mess is anything that is unfinished, that just keeps popping up in your thoughts. Everything from a phone call that you keep avoiding, an apology you need to make, a relationship you need to end, a promise you didn't keep, a bill you have not dealt with, or a dream you have postponed. A mess is any disagreement between what you desire your life to be and how it actually is. Mental clutter makes you feel incomplete and incompetent. Unfinished projects create stress. A double minded person is unstable in all their ways. Once you work through the mental clutter, you will have the clarity to pursue your dreams. Focus on one thing at a time and ensure you do not overwhelm yourself. You'd be amazed at the peace that comes from even finishing just one thing. Yay everybody. So that was Terry Savell. As you know, Terry is always good. And she has um, like we talked about women's conferences, all sorts of stuff. She is an amazing leader and great motivational lady, and especially like when if you need help with visions as far as creating a vision board or as far as setting goals and really going after them, she's very, very good with that. Alright, y'all. Number three, Inky Johnson. Whenever you s whatever you start, make sure you finish it. Inky's mom would always tell him, whatever you start, always finish it. A lot of people start something, but if they don't like a person or the process behind it, they just quit. What they don't understand, Inky says, about quitting is that it becomes a habit that will affect you in all areas of your life. The process is more important than the product. Take pride in what you do. And every night, when you look in the mirror, know that you gave all that you had that day. Learn to work from the inside out. When you do that, you understand your why and your how and your what. Never worry about the outcome first. Life will test your will. Stay strong. Life will see how bad you want what you say you want. Commitment is staying true to doing what you said you would do long after the mood that you set it in has left. Commitment is when you don't want to get up in the morning, but you get up anyway, and you do what you said you would do. Master the process and impose your will on it. Life will give in to you when it realizes that you're serious about what you say you're gonna do. When Inky got paralyzed with his right arm, he had to literally learn how to rewrite with his left arm. Life didn't slow down for him. He had to figure it all out. People saw something in him when he could not even see it in himself. At a certain point in your life, it can't just be about you. Honor the sacrifices that others have made for us, like our parents. He told his mom, I will never embarrass you and I will never quit. What a winner. Link to full episode is in the show notes as always. Alright y'all, and now for our challenge of the week. This week, let's do an act let's you and me, let's all do it. Let's do an act of kindness for someone who could never pay us back. Buy someone's groceries, help someone in need, speak words of life over someone who is discouraged. Take your eyes off yourself, me included, and focus on someone who could really use some encouragement. I think you and I will see how powerful it is to selflessly help and serve others. It feels great when you can make a positive impact in the lives of others. Alright, y'all. It is time to close it out the way we started. You are enough. You have what it takes. You're an absolute champion whose best days are straight ahead. You are loved and appreciated. Thank you for being a part of our great community, everyone. I really do mean that from my heart. As we roll to one million, have an epic day and have a magnificent week. God bless.

SPEAKER_01 27:51

Thank you once again for listening to a conversation of hope with Brett. Brett wants to remind you that you are loved and appreciated. If you found value in this episode and know someone who could use a little hope of encouragement, please like, share, and comment. Be sure to check out the show notes for links to Brett's top three podcasts of the week. Until next time, wishing you and your family an incredible weekend. And ultimately, a great life. Because you, you, you deserve it.