You Can Control Your Reality!
Our brains are a neural networks. Basically, our brain evolved to interpret data gathered by our five senses.
This means our mindset, which is our most important factor in success, is influenced by the people we know, the environment in which we live, work, and play, and the information we read, watch, and listen. This means as much as we like to think we are an island in an ocean. We are more like a ship in that same ocean. Constantly moving and adapting with the ever changing sea of information.
This is why two people can experience the exact same event and actually have two entirely different perspectives on that event. This is also why it is so important for your success to control the information gathered by your senses.
Mindset determines success! However, your mindset is 100% within your control. It just takes conscious effort to make those decisions which will strengthen and positively change your outlook on the world.
Facts maybe facts, but those facts are interpreted through mental frameworks created by your brain. Those frameworks reshape, reorder, and prioritize those facts creating your reality. Knowing this, why would anyone choose to live in a world full of fear, never ending violence, and the downfall of humanity? While those facts maybe true, so are the facts supporting a world full of overwhelming world wide peace and prosperity, some of the lowest rates of violence in human history, and massive cooperation between nations.
You see, we live in the same world, but the information I consume and my mental frameworks create a world full of hope, peace, and prosperity. Taking control and developing a positive mindset is the single most powerful act you can do to create the life you desire and it is 100% within your control!
#RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Model #BrainyBlonde #Mindset #PeterDiamendis #Success #Leader #ThoughtLeader #BeLegendary
Www.ryonanderson.com
The Present is a Gift!
While reading Ryan Holiday’s Daily Dad email a line stood out. We cannot keep living in the past if we are going to give in the present.
Holiday was discussing past traumas, mindsets, or values that keep us in old ways of thinking and behaving preventing us from being fully present, fully engaged, and preventing us from becoming the person we desire.
It is so easy to focus on the negative emotions and events from a bad relationship rather than focus on healing those wounds and creating those behaviors we know are beneficial to ourselves and any future relationship. It is extremely easy to remember what we did not have growing up rather than acknowledging the gifts we each receive.
All of these traumas cause emotional scars that keep us fearful, prevent us from trying, and ultimately stop us from living the amazing life we all deserve. It is a tragedy!
The answer is not simply become present focused. That is a temporary bandaid. YOu must instead focus on healing those old wounds, forgive past transgressions, and understand who you were does not have to determine who you are and become. This process of healing and forgiving removes those emotional trigger points keeping you rooted in yoru past and allows you to be firmly in the present.
The present is named such because each moment is a gift! That means life is meant to be cherished, enjoyed, appreciated, loved, and valued because each moment is finite.
#RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Model #BrainyBlonde #Mindset #Leader #ThoughtLeader #Stoic #Stoicism #BeLegendary
Www.ryonanderson.com
Curiosity Equals Interesting!
Curiosity otherwise known as the beginners mind is the key to a rich interesting life!
A strong theme throughout my entire life is my deep desire to understand “why?” I am fascinated by the reasons people do anything and everything. If I can understand the why then I can understand the person and if I understand the person, their wants, needs, and motivations I can help them achieve their desires.
Being curious leads to interesting discussions and opportunities. It allows you to learn more about people, locations, industries, and whatever else people do. It is such a powerful way of connecting with others on a deeper level. It is what allows you to be interested in others and for others to find you interesting. Curiosity really does turn people into versions of the most interesting man in the world.
#RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Leader #ThoughtLeader #Mindset #Culture #Teamwork #Curiosity #BeginnersMind #Model #RevolutionModels #BeLegendary
Try, Try, and Try Again!
I recently went for a modeling test shoot. It went well and I ended up being signed. As much for my personality and professionalism as my look.
Now that the dust has settled a little there has been time to reflect. I am extremely excited for this opportunity! More so than many of the other opportunities that have come my way. It forced me to ask myself, “why?”
Before losing my vision my dream in life was to be an NFL quarterback. What I loved about that position and game was I had to be both physically, intellectually, and emotionally talented.
After losing my vision almost all of the arenas I could compete only involved my intellect and emotional components. I could be successful but it always felt empty, like a part of my being was missing.
It was, my physicality, which is extremely important to my identity was missing. Modeling gives me the opportunity to finally unite all three! I feel whole again!
Although modeling appears to just be the physical, if you step back and look at what goes into the career it is multifasited. The final product, the picture, is the physical. Being in shape and positioning your body to get the best shot. All of the marketing, bios, and conversations are the intellectual. The challenge of growing my brand and making the best career decisions tap into the mental arena of this game. Finally, the emotional side. Showing up, being happy, handling the pressures and criticisms are necessary to thrive despite the noise.
This journey has reminded me of an important lesson. Finding something in life that taps into those areas of your personality that you hold important. Without those areas being fulfilled we are empty, passionless, and lack purpose. We become members of the legion of the unjazzed.
Take that risk. Try that new thing. Put yourself out there. Luck finds those who are willing to try and try again!
#RyonEsquire #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #NfLAlumni #Model #Mindset #Leadership #Teamwork #Culture #Mind #Body #Spirit #BeLegendary
Do More of What Works and Less of What Doesn’t!
Persist and resist! It is really that simple.
Success in anything breaks down into two things. Do more of the things that are working and less of the things that are not. As an idea, I know, not Earth shattering, but how many of you are taking the time to evaluate what is or is not working?
People are so busy with all the noise. It is easy to get distracted. Unfortunately, distracted minds often make terrible decisions. It is easier to do some quick research and implement another strategy.
Before implementing something new why not take the time and evaluate what is and is not working? It is the simplest and most cost effective way of increasing your results.
#RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Leader #Leadership #Teamwork #Culture #Mindset #Change #Success #BeLegendary
Clarity Creates Energy!
Clarity creates energy. This was the last few words in a quote I read today.
The rest of the quote was okay, but these last few words are powerful! I have been told by former employers that I thrive on chaos. I think it is more accurate to say I thrive in chaos. The secret is it is all about that first step.
By taking that first step, any step really, clarity is created because any action limits possibilities. This by default creates clarity, and when people have more clarity action becomes easier.
So many people become overwhelmed by options. They worry about making a wrong decision and as a result do not decide. All the research shows it is much more effective to make even a wrong decision because once a decision is made you can course correct if necessary.
This is why clarity creates energy. It illuminates the path one needs to take to reach a desired destination.
So if you are feeling overwhelmed and do not know where to go or what decision to make. simply make a decision. It maybe scary, but it will start you down a direction that even if wrong will get you further toward your goal than never deciding at all!
#RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Leader #ThoughtLeader #Teamwork #Culture #Mindset #Decide #eLegendary
You Must Move Slow to Change!
American’s have a cultural philosophy of move fast and break things. America as a country loves the new! Whatever is invented today must be better than what it replaced. I am a product of my culture and tend to view the world this way.
The further along my journey of self development I travel the more I question this belief. Moving fast, accepting change, learning quickly, and constantly looking toward the future have their advantages. It is exciting, innovative, and dynamic. It is also, temporary, shallow, and short sighted.
Today’s rapid rate of change constantly keeps people on their toes. We are all in an ever state of movement. It is all about moving forward. We never stop to question, analyze, or explore ideas or technology on a deeper level.
This is where my fear is focused. Happiness, growth, and change all start from within the individual. You must look within to effect change without. How can anyone change the world if they cannot first examine and change themself? How can anyone change themself without first stopping and questioning? The answer is, they cannot.
In order to truly change as a person one must stop, unplug, question, contemplate, and decide what needs to b changed. Often this is not a fast painless process. It is messy, takes time, and is an ongoing evolution.
We as a culture must take the time to unplug, question, examine, and decide for ourselves is this the life I desire, am I living according to my wants and desires or someone else’s, am I happy and fulfilled, is there a better way?
##RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Leader #ThoughtLeader #Leadership #Culture #Teamwork #Business #Change #Evolution #SelfDevelopment #BeLegendary
No One Becomes Great Without Enthusiasm!
ONe of my favorite podcasts is Molly Fletcher’s Game Changers. She is a former sports agent who interviews high achievers in all walks of life. This weeks guest was Mike Greenberg.
I love this podcast because you get an unvarnished look into what it really takes to be great at anything! My take away from Greenberg was no one becomes great at anything without enthusiasm for what they do!
I know this is true from my own experience. It is why I walked away from being a lawyer. Even though I had the intelligence, education, and aptitude I had absolutely no enthusiasm for the law. I could not see living the next 40 or 50 years of my life arguing over details, writing legal briefs, researching the law, or filing motion after motion. It makes me want to pull my fingernails out just thinking about it.
It is also why I am a business consultant and peak performance coach. I love helping businesses and individuals achieve greatness! The game of constant improvement, overcoming setbacks, emotional control, leadership, mindset, teamwork, and strategy are endlessly fascinating to me!
Knowing what separates good from great and learning how to use those levers is the focus of my life and what gets me excited. It is my purpose and reason for bing.
Do you feel the same way about what you are doing with your life? Are you waking up each day with excitement and enthusiasm or are you a member of the legion of the unjazzed who go through life in a haze never leaving their mark on the world?
#RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NFLAlumni @Mollywfletcher @ESPNgreeny #GameChangers #GETUP #Enthusiasm #BeLegendary
Reinvention Will Create Your Future!
Reinvention is the key to never being left behind.
As a result of losing my vision, living in the middle of nowhere, and not being able to drive I grew up hanging out with my parents and their friends a lot. I listened to all kinds of stories from people who were in their 80s and 90s when I was only 12 to 18 years old. These stories gave me a unique perspective compared to many of my peers.
Looking back now, two things strike me. First, how much technical and societal change that has occurred since the 1920s. Second, how much more rapid change is occurring since the early 2000s.
The pace of change is only increasing. This means in order to stay relevant you must continually change and reinvent yourself!
This is so hard for many. ONe reason is people tie their identity to their job. When People ask who you are, is one of your answers what you do for work? Ie, I am an accountant, CEO, teacher.
When our identity is tied to our job and that job is lost, we are lost. Questions like who am I now, and what can I do if my job is no longer available? This loss of identity can lead to some dark places.
To combat this change your identity to something larger than your work. My identity is that of a stoic warrior. These two words and what they represent to me shape who I am and how I view the world. They are not tied to a specific job. They are tied to who I am and who I want to be as a person.
In addition, part of stoicism is accepting the situation for what it is and not wishing for something different. Part of being a warrior is being highly adaptable to constantly changing environments. You can see how my identity allows me to accept change, embrace the future, and adapt to circumstances as they are not how I wish they were. This identity allows me to continually reinvent myself and stay relevant today and into an ever changing future.
If you are feeling lost, left behind, and know your current identity is no longer beneficially serving you, lets talk. A few conversations can change everything!
#RyonEsquire #NoLImits #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Mindset #change #Identity #Leadership #Teamwork #Culture #Business #Reinvention #Future #BeLegendary
Trust is the Foundation!
What made your week?
This is the name of a Slack group created by one of Robert Glazer’s employees. The first post was by an employee who just got accepted to run her first Boston Marathon.
The group has continued for years and the posts have become more intimate.
The unforeseen benefit of this group was the trust it built. Trust cannot exists without vulnerability.
The uniting theme of this group allowed people to share exciting news about their personal lives. It allowed teammates to see beyond the professional relationship and learn other deeper aspects of their coworkers lives. In short, it created trust.
High performing teams cannot exist without trust! It is the fundamental element in the creation of a high performing team.
On the surface this group looks like it’s sole benefit is to relax a little and share highlights, its true benefit is as a platform for people to be vulnerable, share, learn about their teammates, and create trust.
Are you creating an environment that fosters trust? Are you allowing your people to be vulnerable, share about themselves, and develop that trust which is ultimately necessary for successful high performing teams?
Todays’ current economic landscape is more difficult than ever. It is hard to find qualified employees and once you do, it is even harder to develop a high performing team. Developing a culture of high performance is your competitive edge! I can help your company become that high performing team.
#RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Leadership #Culture #Teamwork #HighPerformingTeams #CompetitiveEdge #BeLegendary
Marriage of Art and Science!
Experts are great at one thing; giving you the so called one right answer!
Humans love certainty, and when someone we think is successful loudly proclaims, “this is the way to do it,” we tend to believe. It is easier to buy on the approval of others and lean into the assumption of success rather than do the research and become an expert ourselves. After all, one person cannot be an expert in everything.
The reality is, there is never one way to do something or one right answer. Even in math, 2+2 is 4, but so is 5-1. In business, as in life, there are fundamental principles not one right answer. What works for you may not work for me.
My favorite example is all the books and information proclaiming successful people get up at 4:00 am and take control of their day by being more productive than everyone else before 8:00 am. I will not deny the value of starting off your day powerfully. If you are a morning person, this will be your most productive time of day. Plus, if you are up before the messiness of life starts you can do deep work without distraction.
However, if you are a night person, getting up this early will do nothing other than make you angry, tired, less productive, and leave you feeling unsatisfied. Night owls can be just as productive as early risers, it is more about knowing yourself, your schedule, your lifestyle, and when you are most alert creative and productive.
The fundamental principle in this example is knowing the elements that will lead to your success and understanding what time of day you perform those elements at your highest level and building your schedule around your peak performance times.
To me, this is the true essence of coaching. Understanding funidmental principles, understanding human behavior, understanding business, understanding team dynamics, and creating solutions that work best for that person and those circumstances. It is the marriage of art and science.
#RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Leadership #Culture #Teamwork #ArtAndScience #BeLegendary
Ryon@ryonesquire.I’m
It Only Takes One Bad Apple to Destroy a Team!
What is more important, hiring for skills or hiring for attributes?
There is always a question regarding hiring. Do you hire someone who already has the skills you are looking for so you can plug and play them into their role, or do you hire someone who has the personality traits to be a great member of your organization and train them up? The answer is and always will be hire based on the personality traits you Dean desirable.
Organizations are a blending of different personalities with hopefully complimentary skills. They are a team with team culture and dynamics. Well performing teams are a delicate balance. It only takes one bad teammate to destroy a high performing team or high functioning company culture.
This is why hiring the right person with the right personality traits is vital to continual high performing success. Culture can take years to build but only takes moments to ruin.
Depending on the type of industry the attributes you find desirable will be different. Organizations like accounting or medical lab work will covit highly detailed individuals. Conversely, organizations such as marketing or consulting will want people who are highly adaptible.
Regardless of your industry, the number one trait required for all members of a high performing team is trust! You must have people who buy into your thoughts, beliefs, processes, and culture. They must trust and believe in the mission of the organization. Additionally, all the current members must be able to trust the new member is competent, reliable, and places the needs of the group above individual needs.
Highly performing teams are not simply a result of leadership. They are also a result of being made up individuals who trust one another, are willing to learn, are competent, and have the correct balance of attributes.
If you are a leader of a team or organization who feels your team’s performance could improve. Reach out. I help turn good teams to great teams!
#RyonEsquire #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Leadership #Teams #Teamwork #Culture #Business #Organization #HighPerformaning #BeLegendary
Humanity Always Wins!
Generative AI spawns content it does not build businesses.
Generative AI is amazing at compiling large amounts of information and producing quality work. It is an acceleration partner. It speeds up the process of compiling, drafting, and automating. It is a master of tangible skills.
Like any tool it has it’s strengths and weaknesses. It is not a master of the intangible.
Generative AI does not have emotional intelligence, it does not have the ability to understand and manipulate team dynamics, it does not have leadership intuition.
These are the skills of the future! Understanding people, undersanding team dynamics, and the ability to creatively think outside the box and connect previously unconnected pieces of information.
LIke any disruptive technology generative AI will destroy jobs. It will also, according to history, create more jobs than it destroys. It is a tool to leveraged and used. It is not a replacement for human insight, human vision, and human creativity.
#RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Leadership #Culture #TeamWork #GenerativeAI #Future #Create #BeLegendary
Numbers Aren’t Enough!
Heart centered leadership.
I spend my days focused on the individual. How to make us think better. How to become a better leader. How to tap into your inner knowledge. As a result of my focus, I often forget how many businesses, leadres, executives focus exclusively on numbers, systems, and processes.
It makes since from a pure I can objectively measure numbers, systems, and processes viewpoint. Like the saying goes, “what gets measured gets monitored.”
This is a flawed and limited view. No matter how hard we try, people will never be as clean, predictable, sterile, or structured as automatons.
Humans are a beautiful mixture of emotions, thoughts, fears, anxieties, traumas, hopes, dreams, and experiences. This is what gives humans the ability to create, understand, and empathize. It is our ability to see past the factual into the abstract and connect the two.
This is why heart centered leadership wins! It allows leaders to understand what their people are thinking and feeling and allows leaders to guide their people through difficult situations and emotions. It allows people to feel heard, understood, and valued. It creates trust, respect, and safety which are all required to get the best out of people.
#RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Leader #ThoughtLeader #HeartCenteredLeadership #Heard #Understood #Win #BeLegendary
Become Your Ultimate Competitor!
While reading Arnold Schwarzenegger’s weekly newsletter I was struck by one part. His only competition while Mr. Universe was the man in the mirror.
I have heard the man in the mirror idea before. What brought it home was when he mentioned his calves were not big enough, he needed to work on them. He did not have enough definition, that was the next thing he needed to focus on.
It was not about his competitors. He was his only competition. He was the only one who could control how much work he was putting in each day. He was the only one who could control his diet each day.
By focusing on the only thing you can control, ie yourself, you know exactly what you need to work on in order to improve each day. YOu know what yesterday looked like. You know how much effort you put in today. You know what improvement looks like.
When you focus outside yourself you get a distorted picture. Most people put pictures of their best lifts, fastest times, and sexiest outfits. They do not post those lifts they failed, those days they cut a workout short, those days they rolled out of bed not looking their best. It creates the illusion of perfection!
Everyone has failures. Everyone suffers setbacks. Everyone has those days where they do not feel like putting in the effort. It is important to remember that. It is more important to stop comparing yourself to them. Move your focus inward. Become your ultimate competitor because you are the only one who knows your truth!
#RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #ArnoldSchwarzenegger #MrUniverse #Mindset #Focus #BeLegendary
Deep Thinking is Game Changing!
Deep thinking is a rare commodity.
We live in a world of distraction. Emails, texts, meetings, coworkers, personal drama, not to mention our own chattering minds. It is no wonder most of us rarely if ever do any actual deep thinking. Deep thinking requires a few things, time, space, and a lack of interruptions. The mind needs time to wander. To make connections. To examine from different angles and perspectives. None of this can happen if you are constantly losing focus.
Luckly, the solutions are simple. Unfortunately, the desciplain required is hard.
The solutions include turning off all unnecessary notifications. Schedule large blocks of time to work on the one or two most important tasks for the day. Set these blocks according to when you are most productive. Ie, are you a morning or afternoon person?
Learn what calms your mind. Does a few minutes of meditation focus your thoughts. Does being in nature for a short walk relax you? Maybe reading a few pages from a none work related book brings you clarity.
The goal is to create an environment so the mind can slide into flow and make those game changing connections.
Another key that few talk about is learning to say no. Over committing leads to a full schedule making difficult to create blocks of time. Taking control of your time, ie saying no, prevents you from living a life and doing work that is important to others rather than important to you.
In a world of constant noise and superficial information thinking deeply is a paradigm altering shift that will change everything. It will allow you to devise better solutions, stand out from the crowd, and become a premium service.
#RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Leader #ThoughtLeader #DeepThinking #BeLegendary
A Beautiful Life is a Result of Beautiful Choices!
If you want a beautiful life you must make beautiful choices.
Life is a sum of our choices. I like this saying, but it seems passive to me. It serves as a reminder that we are a result of our choices.
I prefer if you want a beautiful life make beautiful choices. This statement gives me hope. It reminds me that I have control over my choices and with a little intentionality I can live a beautiful life.
I can choose to forgive. I can choose to be kind. I can choose who and how I want to love. I can choose desciplain and hard work over laziness. I can choose to be a giver rather than a taker.
Life does not have to be just a summation of our choices. It can be an intentionally directed summation of our choices. I choose to live a beautful life! What type of life are you chooseing to live?
#RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NfLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Mindset #Choices #Beautiful #Life #Stoic #Philosophy #BeLegendary
Why Think When You Have Generative AI?
Generative AI is all over the news right now and depending on what you read will either destroy humanity or become a useful tool that unlocks human potential.
Right now I am not all that impressed with the generative AI articles I have read. While the logical factual information is correct and written in an easy to read format, it has no soul! It reads like math, correct but uninspired and boring.
While I am not worried about generative AI taking over humanity in the next couple years, I am worried that the use of generative AI will create a legion of lazy thinkers. Thinking is not simply the thoughts in your head. Thinking is an active, structured, desciplaned, framework that leads to clarity, solutions, and insights. It is hard! Thinking requires practice, guidance, and continual use. That is why so few people do it.
Thinking also requires questioning. Questioning thoughts. Questioning beliefs. Questioning paradigms. Questioning answers. Weak thinkers do not question the information presented. Instead, they assume validity and blindly follow.
This is the real concern with generative AI. Why learn to think when AI can do it for you?
#RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Mindset #Thinker #Leader #ThoughtLeader #GenertiveAI #BeLegendary
Numbers Do Not Explain Why!
As a business consultant I often wonder what makes me and my information different from other consultants? Regarding myself, I am different because of my experiences, mindset, learning. Regarding my information, in many ways it is not much different than any other consultant. Best practices are best practices for a reason.
It is the same for any product or service. At a basic level it is all the same. The difference is in the execution.
Knowing what to do is the easiest half of the battle. Actually implementing and consistently executing those best practices day in and day out is what separates average from extraordinary.
While attending a group meeting yesterday I noticed the different elements each amazing individual focused on. No surprise, for almost all of them, the focus was purely on the numbers. In their minds the told the entire story.
Unfortunately, they are only seeing the result. The numbers do not explain why the result occurred. By only focusing on the end they do not know which element of process might need to be changed in order to directly effect that end result.
When you flip the script and focus on the fundamentals and process you unde and understand which element is effecting the end result. More importantly, you understand why and how that element is effecting the result. Once you understand the why you can develop solutions and implement change that will lead to your desired result.
Using numbers are a great measuring tool. They are a terrible guidepost. They are a lagging indicator of your process.
By focusing on the imputs you can control, measure, and effect the outputs. YOu proactively create the desired result rather than reactively reverse engineering why a particular result might have happened.
#RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Mindset #Process #Results #Change #Focus #BeLegendary
Focus On What You Can Impact!
Focus on what you can impact.
There is so much noise in the world today. Social media triggering dopamine causing addiction and making us want more. A 24 hour news cycle that constantly feeds us anger and fear to keep you glued to the screen. Notifications on your phone persistently alerting you that something exciting or important might be happening and requires your immediate attention.
None of which you can do a damn thing to influence or change. All those distractions do is keep you angry, keep you from focusing, keep you distracted, and keep you from having an impact.
Learn to control the controllable and leave everything else! Instead focus on growing and building relationships, work on becoming healthier, learn a new skill, read a book.
Attention is a limited resource. Attention management is really energy management. So start proactively deciding where you want/need to put such an important resource into people and events that you can have an influence or impact. You will discover life is much happier when you are doing rather than consuming.
#RyonEsquire #NoLimits #NFLAlumni #BusinessConsultant #PeakPerformance #Leadership #Teamwork #culture #Mindset #Energy #Focus #Impact #BeLegendary