Our success in life and on the playing field (whatever that field is for you) will depend in large part on our ability to identify our objective, commit to achieving it and our ability to keep ourselves accountable.

The truth is accountability and especially accountability partners can be a HUGE pain in the ass. But truthfully I know of very few of us including the greatest athletes in the world who have the discipline, presence of mind and sheer will power to keep themselves on track and accountable all the time – especially to those big audacious commitments.

We all slip now and then… but to keep us from slipping too far or repeating the same mistake twice we may need someone to call us on our shit when it shows up.

In this episode of Max Mind Set I address the issue of accountability and how without it we can easily fall off the commitment wagon.

Watch the full Max Mind Set episode at Muscle and Fitness Magazine

Then come back and take my Accountability Survey

Click here to take survey

Here are the Survey results

There’s a of talk today about “transparency” and being authenticity who you are. But how much should you reveal about yourself to the world. Do we share with the public, our friends, the media the real reason we started lifting, the deep core truth about our desire… need to be better then what a fast food meal plan and 14 hours of boob tube would a week might otherwise produce?

In John Rowley’s inaugural BlogTalk radio show last week John asked me about my biker background, and the truth about winning the Mr. America… did I reveal too much?

Give a listen and share your thought… I certainly did.

I would appreciate your feedback.

Tom

If you’re anything like me, there’s a lot you have to think about from minute to minute, day to day and week to week. It can be freaking overwhelming at times.  Other times it seems like we’re running on auto pilot.

Just the other day for example, I was headed to Colorado Springs from Denver and after arriving at my destination – I had vertically no recollection of driving or even what exit I took to get there. I had taken the drive so many times that it was programmed in.

It was as if I were in a trance the entire drive down except when some idiot in a semi cut me off doing 90mph.   Then somehow as if on its own with no conscious effort on my part, my finger popped up…. followed by a short all be it intense stream of obscenities flowing from my lips.

It was like a reflex or part of the natural fight or flight response – or what I now call the fight/flight/finger response.

Like walking, breathing or the pumping of blood to and from the heart much of that stuff that happens automatically without us ever thinking about it is the job of your unconscious mind.

Your unconscious (or subconscious) mind is responsible for almost 90% of your actual mental activity and most of it is happening below our conscious radar.

Imagine a massive iceberg for a moment… your conscious mind is represented by what you see on the surface which is approximately 10% of the mass. This is the realm we like to think of as CHOICE.

The vast majority of the iceberg like your unconscious mind is somewhat hidden below the surface. And whether you’re aware of it or not it has massive influence over the vast majority of your actions, decisions and the choices you make on a minute to minute day to day basis… like flicking the bone at a truck driver that could run your ass over without a second thought.

Logically that might not have been the best choice but the emotional part of the brain can often hijack logic and automatically trigger an otherwise foolish response.

Consciously you may have decided to get up and go to the gym this morning, or grab those two beers last night, what kind of shape you’re going to be in or even the amount of money you make. But what you’re likely not aware of is the influence your unconscious programming had on those decisions.

Like the blueprints and programming you created early on about how to walk, talk and all the little idiosyncrasies you have – you we’re also busy creating unconscious blueprints and programming for how much success, happiness, fitness and money you we’re going to have… as well as the way you response to stress or fear.  All based on some early experiences you had, and or the decisions or beliefs you created.

The very programs you likely created to help you safely navigate your environment at that time my now limit your options and choices and may have become the primary factors in limiting your ability to achieve what you want… providing you know what you want.

My goal was to get to Colorado Springs and back home again safely in one piece and yet my very reaction to the environment around me could have produced a decidedly different result.  In many respects it was a fear based reaction.

That reaction unless identified and re-programmed does and will continue to represent a restriction and limitation to the otherwise more empowering and appropriate choices available.

Maybe it’s time to start questioning some of your unconscious automatic responses to what’s been cutting you off or getting in your way. Maybe it’s time to scrap some of the old blueprints and start building a new set of plans for the type of choice you want to make consciously.

There are countless times throughout the course a year, month, week or even daily that we feel sort of overwhelmed, overworked, under accomplished and what is commonly described as Burned Out.

Been there — done that.

There are simply not enough beads on the average abacus to count how many times I have thrown my head back, covered my face with my hands and screamed,“I need a vacation!!!!!” That was before I understood the principles of full engagement and the importance of recharging the emotional and physical batteries.

As a pro athlete I had learned the hard way the critical importance of recovery in the process of achieving something beyond average and mundane. I recall how during preparation for a incredibly important competition I had all but lost it, my sanity that is. I was just 3 weeks out form the event when my body and mind simply said NO MORE F*&%#R!

I tried to push through and press on because I thought had no choice. I had witnessed other athletes do it. But I had also seen the results. More often than not they would push through but then crumple and fall apart either physically or more often emotionally at the very last minute before the event.

One last competitor for me to worry about.

That’s not to say as a warrior you should just lay down your weapon in the middle of a battle or stop marching forward simply because your mind or feet are telling you to stop. Not at all. In fact in most cased when the mind is telling you to stop or back off it’s an indication to push even harder or to swing the ax even faster.

However, what a truly seasoned and experienced warrior is willing to recognize - is that when he or she is faced with superior or overwhelming forces the only way to live to fight another day is to RETREAT – REGROUP, tend to their wounds, devise a more effective strategy or plan and then RE-ENGAGE again later.

I learned through my own experience and by watching the warriors falling around me that if I were going to compete with and prevail over obviously superior and even overwhelming competition I would need a superior strategy and tacked. So I started learning not only how create “rapport” with my body by listening to its needs but also how to CORRECTLY Interpret the meaning of the messages I received from my unconscious mind you know those little inner voices that are always trying to stop you from moving forward… I battled them too, we all do.

If you are going to do more than just survive but prosper in your hard working quest for a better life you must learn to do the same.

This Thursday (May 5th) during a live teleseminar I am going to be talking about how, if you are going to either overcome or avoid being overcome by out you too must learn how to employ a superior strategy and tack.

If you have ever felt like an exhausted and overwhelmed warrior just trying to hold your ground with little visible progress then you need to join me and my good friend and business coach extraordinaire, Travis Greenlee on Thursday, May 5th as we share some extremely valuable tools and strategies for winning not just the battle but the war.

You can return to this page and listen below or go to Retreat and Re-engage NOW

You can also submit your questions below and we’ll do our best to answer them during the call.

See you then!

Live call:

Date: Thursday May 5th, 2011

Time: 11am PT, 12pm MT, 2pm ET

Replay is Available!!:

NOTE: The special offer is only available for the next 48 hours. Offer expires May 7, 2011!

BONUS GIFT: Action Goals Criteria

Last night I had a opportunity to visit with New York Times bestselling author and the host of Wine Library TV Gary Vaynerchuk. Gary is one of those people who, in spite of all the “economy bullshit” we keep hearing about is creating massive success not just for himself but for others as well. Have you ever wondered to yourself when witnessing someone on the rise “how the hell is he doing it?” That mystery is solved the moment you meet meet this guy.

His latest book The Thank You Economy which I have not finished reading yet (picked it up last night) is based on Gary’s acute observations about the future of old school relationship marketing and the new media opportunities to cultivate those relationships without overt marketing intent. “The internet, where The Thank You Economy was born, has given consumers back their voice, and the tremendous power of their opinion via social media means that companies and brands have to compete on a whole different level then they used to.” Gary V

Actuality the Thank You Economy wasn’t born on the internet but rather with our grand parents and great grand parents. It was in their day that “every” customer was personalized, appreciated and Thanked for their patronage. What, Gary clearly recognizes and writes about in his book is that the internet and social media has give even large non mom and pop enterprises an opportunity to engage with their prospects and customers one one one on a very large scale.

Word of mouth and relationship opinions have always been a powerful force. Remember how in High School or even JR High a bad word about someone from an influential fellow student could destroy someones reputation overnight? On the other side of that coin a single friendship with the right person meant mass approval or respect by the entire student body – even if your parents didn’t approve (especially if your parents didn’t approve).

Gary writes about the power of reaching out to provide service, answer a question, pose a question or just make a friend without any visible agenda and how that relative intangible can, although difficult to measure in the here and now, create a massive ROI in the not so distant future.

It’s the LAW of RECIPROCITY on a massive one on one scale.

What are your thoughts on the subject, Gary and his new book The Thank You Economy?

Masking your insecurities by presenting an inauthentic side of yourself– your crusty truth– your false face, only leads to losing rapport with yourself and the sight of your true inner core.

BE REAL. There is only one you. In terms of microeconomics 101 supply and demand, that makes you a HOT COMMODITY!

Achievement Bootcamp Mini Training 4 of 4…

Can you really achieve something great in spite of the presence of fear?

Register for the  Achievement Bootcamp !

 

It doesn’t matter if you’re an ultra athlete or a weekend walker the conditioning that may be holding you back has nothing to do with your current exercise program.

Achievement Bootcamp Mini Training pt 3 of 4. Your past conditioning may be the single most influential factor in the inability to achieve your dreams and goals. In this video The Achievement Mentor shares his Bootcamp training insights.

To view the first two videos in the Bootcamp Training Series and to register for the October Achievement Bootcamp click this link ACHIEVE MORE NOW

This whole ego business is pretty interesting. On one hand, the ego is often responsible for not allowing us to admit our own limitations and for the cocky arrogance that is the greatest obstacle to our own success.

On the other hand, our ego is responsible for our protection and safety – in doing so it often acts like an overzealous park ranger. It sit’s up in the tower with its binoculars and shouts DANGER‚ÄìLOOK OUT every time someone lights a match or a little possum pokes its head out of a hole.

The ego is also what’s responsible for our anger and rage. Think about it. The last time you got cut off on the highway or someone wouldn’t let you in the merge lane from the on ramp‚Ķ “F-U – you freaking son of a bitch!”¬†¬† You got pissed, didn’t you?¬† ¬†WHY?

What threatens your ego?

Were you really at risk of life and limb? Or was it that your space, power, and sense of control were being threatened?

I had an interesting experience tonight that put a spotlight on the part of my ego I thought I had under control. My wife and I spent the last 90 minutes alongside our two 9 month old Schnauzers at a group dog training class. I was in charge of our little female, Tootsie while Dawn had the beast, Bosco. As the training progressed and the drills got increasingly complex Tootsie began challenging me more and more. She simply refused to lie-down and getting her to stay was impossible. She knows the verbal commands but with over twenty dogs in the class I am quite sure she was as distracted – as was I.

There was one incident where we were all instructed to have our dogs lie-down and stay while we backed away. All the dogs except Tootsie complied. I must have spent 10 minutes while everyone watched trying to get her to obey the command. As the seconds ticked by I could feel myself becoming more and more frustrated and angry‚Äì (here’s the interesting part) not because she wasn’t getting it, but rather because I was being disobeyed. I could feel my power and command of the situation being challenged even taken away‚Ķ in front of a group of strangers. It was that delicate part of my ego that I had long since thought I had conquered that was being threatened‚Ķ by a dog no less.

What threatens your ego?

How delicate is your sense or power and control? Could a driver cutting you off, a partner rejecting your advances, the loss of a job, or some worldly possession cause you to freaking lose it? Why would something or someone else’s attempt to steel your power invoke such contempt and even rage?

As I said one of the ego’s jobs is protection and keeping you safe. It does that by maintaining the statuesque. Anything that threatens that statuesque is met with fear and often disguised as anger or rage. Whatever power it thinks you have it will fight to keep. Because we don’t recognize that power and control is nothing more than an illusion our ego can go on full action alert as soon at the illusion is threatened.

Tootsie would testify to that – if she could talk. She was able to shatter my illusion of control and power with a single “I don’t think so” attitude. As I was fighting with her and losing – it dawned on me that it was my fear, frustration, and anger that was actually causing the situation. I stopped, took a deep breath, gave Tootsie a big hug and started all over ‚Äì this time from a place of love and a desire to help her learn and grow.

So what threatens your ego? Share your comment. I would love to hear from you.
TT

Discover the ramifications of not listening to our body’s messages. Start honoring the biggest part of you by redeveloping rapport with your body.

Body Rapport is to know, like and trust yourself; to consciously strengthen your mind body connection.