Average Sucks...

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Before we dive in 🤿...

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This FLIGHT is Average…

This STORYBOOK is Average…

This LIFE is pure and simple, Average…

…And that SUCKS! 😓

At least according to Michael Bernoff, the author of the book AVERAGE SUCKS. 📘

And after finishing his book last night, I learned from his point of view and do not disagree.

Bernoff is a serial entrepreneur, founding the Human Communications Institute, the Inner Circle Mastermind, and developer of Human Interactive Technology™️.

He’s a successful speaker, coach, author, and trainer focusing on mindset, communication, and personal development.

And…he’s is located right in my backyard in Scottsdale, AZ. 🌵

I have never personally met Michael, but I know other people who know him personally and all say amazing things!

You may find him adorned with an Average Sucks t-shirt 👕, which usually throws people for a loop, but it’s a reminder for us all to break away from mediocrity and strive for a meaningful life that promotes growth.

Here are my five 🖐️ takeaways and thoughts from the book…

First, you must identify YOUR current average.

You see… Bernoff off considers your average as not YOU ARE average when compared to others…

…but with an emphasis on the word YOUR, it’s your comfort zone.

It’s your baseline and everyone’s average is different.

Being stuck there and not focused on growth, initiative, or the desire to be better in all aspects of life, is what SUCKS. 👎

By understanding where you are currently and where you want to be, helps you create clear goals to exceed your baseline and build the foundation for a new average.

We all have an average and will always have an average, it’s just a matter of which level you’re on, and which level you want get to. 🚀

A master in the art of communication, Bernoff deploys practical tools and resources all throughout his book, which helps you learn how to influence and settle all situations through effective practices.

The self communication aspects were super insightful to me…

• GET vs. HAVE

  • Would you rather “have” a goal or “get” a goal?

  • Having it is a dream, but getting it is a reality.

• TRY vs. WILL

  • Saying try gives you an out. Saying will or will not is much more clear and solid with how you will act.

• MORE OFTEN THAN NOT

  • For example… Instead of “I will workout 5 days a week”, say “I will work out more often than not.”

He also goes into how leveraging strong communication for better leadership and remaining open to other people’s perspectives in order to learn and grow together, brings a remarkable amount of clarity for all involved.

I resonate with this the most.

This is a MUST in my eyes. 👀

If we don’t know where we’re going, and we cannot create something we can whole heartedly believe in, then what’s the point? 🤔

It’s important to define our Purpose to know our WHY and create our Vision to know WHAT we’re striving for.

Without it…

We’re simply floating through life without any direction. 🍃

If you don’t believe it to be true and it’s not motivating enough for you, then you’ll lose your drive and it won’t work.

Create a COMPELLING vision to make decisions based on that and remain in alignment with where you want to go.

This will keep the momentum. 🚀

Most of our confidence and resilience is born from piggy backing off our ability to overcome setbacks and obstacles…

Bernoff identifies how certain experiences can be triggers for how we react to various situations later in life.

One particular story that he shared, goes all the way back to when he was a kid and had no fear walking up to play with a group of other kids he didn’t know at the park. 🛝

Confidence was through the roof, playing in the sandbox without a thought of danger in the world…

…until one of the kids launched a hot wheels car at his head and caused him excruciating pain. 🤕

Excruciating may be a bit of an exaggeration here, (I don’t think he used that exact word in the book) but it was most definitely impactful enough to correlate the act of walking up to strangers to proceed with caution as he might get hurt again.

This early experience became a PIVOTAL MOMENT for him in terms of developing confidence and resilience later in life.

He learned to confront challenges head-on, stand up for himself, and see adversity as an opportunity for growth. 📈

We all have a sandbox story that made an impact on us early on and shifted our perspective for how similar encounters in the future make us feel.

Elevating your Average is required to achieve your DREAMS. 🤩

However, you cannot elevate it without changing habits.

POSITIVE HABITS.

And change happens by repetition.

The formula Bernoff details is as follows…

Taking action on your “I wants” to get out of your box, will turn them into “I ams” and achieve an increasing love for who you are as you progress through your life.

I really enjoyed this book. 🤓

It was an easy read and it felt like I was listening to Michael Bernoff talking as I was reading it.

He told the stories and perspectives from his point of view, in the way he probably speaks verbally.

This was my first time reading his book and many of his philosophies and ideologies align with how I view the world as well.

The main TAKEAWAY here is consistent focus with working on yourself to become the best version of yourself.

There’s many different ways to go about it, so find what works for you, but in the end of it all…

…action on what you want and eliminating the things stopping you from achieving them, proves to be the catalyst to getting there.

It takes patience, and discipline, but no matter what situation you’re in…

…you always have it in your control to learn, grow, act, and achieve towards your perception of success and happiness. 😁

P.S. I am not an affiliate for Michael Bernoff and I don’t get paid for these Mindset Rec Rundowns. These writeups are shared to help you realize your potential through things I learn about and experience. If you’d like to order a copy of Michael’s book, you can do so here 👉 Average Sucks

Until our next FLIGHT, check out our latest episode of the SuccessFlow Podcast.

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Episode 47: Viewing Grocking Takeaways from Tulum

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Cheers! Steven

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