ELITE PerforMENce with Dr. Brad

I know we all want to succeed. But for many of us the question is…how do we simultaneously succeed AND maintain our faith and relationship with God? Is it really possible to succeed professionally without sacrificing your faith?

For many of us success has come at a great sacrifice. It has come at the cost of…

• Our faith
• Our family and marriage
• Our Personal relationships
• Our Health

For many of us we believe that you must choose between one or the other…Choose between success OR faith and fulfillment. We've been lead to believe that success and a strong faith and walk with God cannot happen at the same time.

Since we accept this belief as truth, we end up choosing success…but success that comes at a great cost.

Also, since all we see are examples of success costing people their personal lives…then we feel that there's really no other way.

Therefore, we hunt success and justify not being close to God, not spending time with our spouse and children, and not prioritizing our health. Eventually, we achieve but we look at what it cost us…

• Feeling far away from God
• Marriage that feels more like having a roommate
• Children wish you spent more time with them
• Relationships that are transactional
• Health is not optimal…high stress and high blood pressure

And we justify our actions by saying…"I'm busy….busy building my dream". We say "once I achieve" or "when I have more time", then I will…

• spend more time with God
• spend more time with family
• and do all the things that matter

We edge God out of our lives saying we don't have the time to spend more time with Him and wonder why our lives aren't working. The reason our lives aren't working is because we aren't working with God.

Here's what I found…

Faith must come first, if I want to succeed without it costing your life and fulfillment.

Your personal relationship with God MUST come above all if I want everything you've ever dreamed of.

You don't have to choose between success and faith. As a matter of fact…your level of success IN ANYTHING is completely dependent on your level of personal relationship with God and the faith that comes from that.

• Personal relationship with God is the path to peak performance.
• Personal relationship with God is the path to success and being highly effective in what you do.

There are 2 different ways to achieve your goals:

• Without God: When we try to succeed without God, it costs us our sweat, and sorrow from the relationships we sacrifice to achieve our goals.

• With God: When we try to succeed by prioritizing our faith and personal relationship with God, the currency is faith…the currency is letting go of how you want to do it. The currency is surrendering.

My story: I tried to succeed without God and it nearly cost me my marriage, my family, and certainly cost me my fulfillment. It wasn't until I started working WITH God, that I experienced my work & life being more effective than it ever had working alone.

Having it ALL…which is the ability to achieve at a high-level, and have great integrity, and great relationships and get it all done, is contingent upon a strong relationship with God.

One of the main reasons why faith must come first in order for you to succeed is because your relationship with God will serve as your primary means of fulfillment, instead of trying to replace the incomparable lasting fulfillment from God, with temporary fulfillment from your achievements. Being fulfilled by God will cause you to live life from a place of abundance and eagerness to serve others from your filled cup.

So here is the challenge: Live out Matthew 6:33

"Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added to you"

Believe it, and trust it.

If you need help, book a 1:1 Discovery Call with me at https://drbradmd.com

Talk to you soon,

Dr. Brad

The CHALLENGE:

We have multiple responsibilities in our work, businesses, and personal lives and it is often times struggle to get everything done. More often than not, we are only getting a portion of our tasks done…and many times it's coming at the cost of…

• Overwhelmed
• Stressed
• Being busy but not much to show for it
• Sacrificing our family and personal lives

I've been there before and know what it feels like to work really hard, and really busy, but at the end of the day seems like not much actually got done.

The SOLUTION:

Here is the simple key to greater productivity in work & life:

SLOW DOWN & PLAN

I'm talking about taking the time to think about your next best step. We often times are moving too fast to stop and think. We are running so fast that we are slowing down long enough to see if we are running in the wrong direction. What's the benefit of speed if it's only getting me to the wrong place faster?

Here are the steps to slowing down and planning:

1. Take time daily to plan:
   • Think about the area of life that needs the most attention (i.e. faith, family/marriage, health, wealth, career, calling)
   • Daily: Look at that area of life and figure out what needs to be addressed daily in order to achieve your goal
   • Weekly: Take time weekly to reflect on how the prior week went and what needs to be done or tweaked this week to improve toward your goal in that area of work or life.

1. Ask yourself questions:
   1. "What is the most effective use of my time?"
   2. "What's the best next step I need to take to make my next step easier?"
      1. Example
   3. "What worked/didn't work last week? How can I improve?

1. Execute
   1. Take action after slowing down and planning
   2. Implement what you've discovered needs to be adjusted.

THE RESULT:

Here's what you'll experience if you regularly slow down and plan:

• Less stress
• Less overwhelmed
• More effectiveness leading to productivity

If you need help, book a 1:1 Discovery Call with me at https://drbradmd.com

Talk to you soon,

Dr. Brad

"Our fulfillment is rooted in clarity of our identity"

Hold on to your seats!!! This interview is REAL, RAW, AND RELEVANT to you and your life!!

WOW! This was one of the most energetic and also one of my favorite interviews! Myron Edmonds is a pastor, leadership consultant, author and Founder of The Winning Circle coaching for men.

So many nuggets & bombs dropped in this interview! Myron talks about how we as men 'don't have to have it all together'…yet this stereotype we continue to fulfill is one in which we hide behind trying to be perfect in the world. When we feel like we have to have it all together…we fall victim to not being authentic and vulnerable, which causes us to lead these secret lives filled with distractions and devices that draw us farther and farther away from our full potential. Vulnerability and authenticity is the cure for this…which are IMPERATIVE traits to being an ELITE MAN.

He talks about the difference between the 'persona' vs the 'person' and the problems we create for ourselves when these two ideas become disconnected…which leads to what he describes as a 'Crisis of Faith'.

The good news is he gives us some GREAT practical things we can do as men to eliminate this 'Toxic Masculinity' from our lives and how we can become the men we've all envisioned for ourselves.

Be sure to follow him @itsmyronlive on Instagram and Myron Edmonds on Facebook

Enjoy!

See you soon,

Dr. Brad

How do you feel about yourself when you don't succeed at something?

How do you feel about yourself when you fail to reach your goal?

Do you define your identity, self-worth, and value based on your results?

For example, do you self-identify with being of value and worthy only once you succeed at something? Do you beat yourself up if you fail to accomplish something?

A 'success mindset' can be very helpful in our ability to achieve, but if we become dependent on success for our self-worth…it can go from helpful to hindering our effectiveness and fulfillment.

Don't beat yourself up when you don't succeed at something!! Don't go down the self-destructive mindset of becoming dependent upon success to have a sense of worth and value.

I've experienced this self-destructive success mindset before. I only saw myself as accepted and validated once I accomplished something…and if I didn't, I would feel really bad about myself. I needed to succeed primarily to MAKE ME FEEL BETTER ABOUT ME!!

Many of us are striving to achieve something to help us have a sense of value, worth and significance…feel validated. Often times it is success!! Achievement!! Once we achieve something or succeed at something it brings us a sense of worth and value as a man.

• Once I earn the money, I will have made it…I'll feel better about myself
• Once I lose the weight, I will have made it…I'll feel better about myself
• Once I launch that next project……I'll feel better about myself
• Once I succeed at the next thing……I'll feel better about myself

We become dependent on success and achievement to validate us…to feel worthy…to feel valuable.

Definition of dependence: relying on or being controlled by someone or something else

A synonym for dependence is…addiction! We often rely and become controlled by success…it becomes an addiction.

The self-destructive success mindset poses a challenge in 2 ways:

1. When you don't achieve…you feel inadequate. Because your value is tied directly to your success
2. No amount of success ever becomes enough. Just like any addiction…what satisfied before, won't continue to satisfy. Now it becomes a viscous cycle of shame and guilt and feeling less than, because of a constant chase for something you feel you need but can't ever get to.

When we become dependent on something external from us (success, money, titles, what others say, etc.)…aka things we cannot control…to provide validation and fulfillment, we set up an addictive relationship with whatever the outcome is that we want.

• For example:
  • Money
  • Titles
  • Status

Here's a good way to check if you may be affected from the self-destructive success mindset. Ask yourself these questions:

• "How would you feel about yourself if success in your career or business completely stopped?"
• "How have you felt about yourself in the past whenever you failed to accomplish a goal?" Do you take it really hard? Beat yourself up?
• "Would you feel inadequate? Like a failure?"

It's ok to feel disappointed, but you can't stay in those emotions. You can't turn your mistakes and failures into what defines you.

How do you avoid becoming dependent on success for your validation?

3 things to understand:

1. Your validation MUST come from INTERNAL, not EXTERNAL from you!
   1. You cannot completely control external circumstances
   2. If you rely on external circumstances to define you, then your emotions and self-worth will be defined by things you cannot fully control
   3. You will become your mistakes
      1. For example: If you failed as a business owner, you cannot define yourself as a person who's not good at business. It was simply a mistake to learn from…not to self-identify with
   4. Your validation MUST come from who God says you are!
      1. This is validation from INTERNAL, not EXTERNAL
      2. This validation doesn't change. This validation is consistent.
      3. This validation is the truth of who you are
         1. You are fearfully and wonderfully made
         2. You are made in the image and likeness of God

• You are more than a conqueror

1. You will safely experience more success once you depend on your identity in God, than your identity in yourself by your results.

Once you see yourself as God sees you…WATCH OUT!!

Similar to basketball, a mistake is no more than a missed shot. Just because Steph Curry misses a shot, he doesn't self-identify himself as a bad shooter...it's simply a missed shot. A missed shot doesn't define who he is as a basketball player. Part of why he's a good shooter is because he believes himself to be before he ever picks up a ball.

Once you see yourself as God sees you, you won't be a slave to time and circumstances…you'll rest in the inevitability of your results, because you'll know who you are…an ELITE MAN!

If you need help, book a 1:1 Discovery Call with me at https://drbradmd.com

Talk to you soon,

Dr. Brad

Have you ever been in a season of consistent challenges? Where it seems like you can't catch a break?

Recently I've been navigating a season where I've been faced with challenges in multiple areas of life, including…

• Major transitions within in my career
• Unexpected Financial dilemmas
• Fatherhood challenges of an adolescent daughter
• Health & Fitness challenges

In the past…this is type of stressful season would be a prime setup for me making horrible decisions. Stress is a trigger for poor decision making. Stress is a trigger to develop 'escapes' from negative emotions of adverse circumstances. Escapes are defined as poor decisions, bad habits, and vices take away value from your life or adversely affect the well-being of others.

This leads to potential bad decisions in any area of life including…

• Poor health decisions
• Poor marital decisions
• Poor financial decisions
• Neglecting faith & Family…just to name a few

Here is the typical sequence when we face significant stress:

Stress -> Negative emotions -> Bad decisions -> More stress -> on and on…

In the past, I would also would get in the habit of working harder during this time. It was easier to work harder and neglect the poor decisions being made, instead of slowing down to stop the cycle of stress and poor decisions.

This can become really discouraging. So, How do you successfully navigate this season of consistent challenges?

What I've found is that in the midst of challenges and stress, it is not the time to just put your head down and keep on working. That's a setup for neglect and snowballing problems.

There are 2 strategies I've found that have been gamechangers when it comes to successfully navigating the valleys along the way to future victory:

1. Slow down
2. Share your thoughts

First let's discuss Slowing down:

Definition: Taking dedicated time to THINK!

• "What is my greatest challenge right now?"
• "What's the best next step for me to take?"

• Allows you to work smarter, not harder
• Allows you to be reassured that everything will be ok
• Puts things in right perspective and limits worry
• Allows you to get clarity

Action item: Prayer and silent time in the morning! This time will allow you to gather your thoughts and have clarity on what's the best next step to take.

Second, Share your thoughts:

Definition: Sharing your challenges with someone you know and trust

• Allows for clarity also
• Allows for release of the weight of overwhelm…it's therapeutic!

Action: Choose someone who is close to you that you trust to be transparent with (i.e. spouse, brother, friend, etc) Call them and ask if they would be willing to lend an ear simply so you can get your emotions off of your chest.

Remember this: These seasons are important…very important! Because how we navigate these valleys determines how we navigate the future victories. This adversity is a precursor to future achievement.

Therefore, Slow down & Share your thoughts

If you need help, book a 1:1 Discovery Call with me at https://drbradmd.com

Talk to you soon,

Dr. Brad

The best gameplan for results in your work and life, is dependent on how solid your God-Plan is for building a personal relationship with God.

We need to get used to expecting the unexpected. Unexpected adverse circumstances (aka. crisis & challenges) are going to happen…it's a guarantee. When it comes to dealing with these adversities…How we respond will determine our results.

Much of success and fulfillment is related not so much on what you do at the mountaintop of life but how you manage the valleys of adversity.

We are pretty good at setting goals for the different areas in our lives where we want to see results.

We then set a gameplan in order to hit the goal.

However, it's not uncommon that an unexpected adverse outcome/crisis/challenge will force you to change the gameplan. (i.e. covid pandemic, job loss, decreased business, relationships challenges, etc.)

And how you respond to that crisis and challenge will determine your results:

• Responses to unexpected crisis/challenge that ruin our future results consist of:
  • Panic
  • Fear
  • Lack of Action/Stuck
  • Depression
  • Focusing on the problem
  • Negativity

However, a God-plan can handle ANY challenge and adverse outcome…PERIOD!! You don't have to change the God-Plan!

Gameplans change. Godplans don't. Godplans work when gameplans won't.

Your gameplan for results, should be a GodPlan for relationship.

What is a God plan?

• A personal plan to build a strong relationship with God
  • A schedule to spend time in prayer
  • A Bible plan
• The more you practice a plan for God, the more God can share his plan for you!

Why a God-plan?

1. God-Plan establishes the right belief that leads to the results you desire.
   • Belief -> Thoughts -> Feelings -> Behaviors -> Results
     • Defines your TRUE identity: You cannot outperform your self-perception
     • Example: If you drive a Ferrari but believe you have the equivalent of a Ford Focus, then you won't get out of the Ferrari it's true potential. Therefore, you cannot outperform how you perceive who you are or what you have.

1. God-Plan provides confidence to have more faith than fear
   1. Isaiah 41:10: "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand"
2. God-Plan provides redemption
   1. Turns past wrong into right; Past pain into future purpose; past trial into triumph
      1. Genesis says what the enemy meant for evil God turns into good
      2. God is the ONLY way our permanent poor past, can be changed into future purpose and triumph

• Example: Despite my past pain and bad decisions in marriage, fatherhood, career, finances, and business…God continues to redeem prior poor decisions into future good.

1. God-Plan helps you avoid getting stuck & helps you take ACCURATE action!
   1. It is a fact that what you focus on expands. Therefore, if you focus on your problems and stuckness, it will get bigger. However, a God-Plan will help you focus on God and his Power in you…and HE gets BIGGER!!
      1. Example: When golfing, it is taught not to focus on the trees or sand traps, because you'll hit them. Instead, focus on the fairway and you will be more successful.
   2. God-Plan provides fulfillment
      1. Fact: We cannot have true sustaining fulfillment outside of God…he's our creator. Therefore, closer connection with Him will make you whole and fill your cup. Outside of relationship with God, lasting & sustainable fulfillment cannot happen
      2. God plan allows us to get our personal cup FULL, and then FILL the cups of others. Therefore, we become FUL-FILLED. But we can't do it with an empty cup. We need relationship with God to fill our cup.

So, what is your God plan? What are you going to do to ensure that you build a consistent relationship with God so that no matter the circumstance…you can still see results because of how you respond to crisis?

If you need help, book a 1:1 Discovery Call with me at https://drbradmd.com

Talk to you soon,

Dr. Brad

Living Legendary: Combining Success & Fulfillment with Tommy Breedlove

"If we are not growing…we are dying."

• Tommy Breedlove

Have you ever felt like there is more to life than what you are currently experiencing?

Do you feel like despite your current success…you aren't nearly as fulfilled as you want to be?

If that's the case…this interview with Tommy Breedlove is a MUST LISTEN to interview!!

Tommy is a Wall Street Journal & USA Today bestselling author of the book, Legendary, and a business, relationship, and mindset coach who is a regular featured keynote speaker at global events.

He shares his story of how he went from very SUCCESSFUL in his career, yet STUCK in his life to eventually turning his life around and becoming even more successful and simultaneously fulfilled! This is a very tactical interview with tips, tools, and strategies that will help you follow steps to get you unstuck and start living legendary.

One of my favorite parts of the interview is when he is breaks down exactly what he did to turn his life around including what he calls 'making me a fulltime job'….which includes his daily routine of taking care of himself so he can be the best man in all areas of life! This part of the interview is very helpful and provides a plan for a outlining a great morning routine.

I hope this interview inspires you and blesses you as much as it did me. TONS of nuggets and tools to apply to your work and life in this episode.

Be sure to follow him on social media @tommybreedlove

Happy to be walking with you on this journey of growth and fulfillment,

Enjoy!

See you soon,

Dr. Brad

Succeed in Your Goals Without Neglecting What Matters

Fulfillment is the precursor to success, not the product of success

Many of us are stuck & unfulfilled…despite our success. Despite the goals we've achieved and the material things we've accumulated we still feel like, "there's GOT to be more to life than this". We often ask…"Is this it?".

It is not uncommon for high-achieving men to think…"If I can succeed at the next goal, then I'll be fulfilled". Our fulfillment is directly tied to some achievement or measurable success.

This way of thinking fuels a drive to succeed at our goals in order to soothe an underlying lack of fulfillment in our lives…and are completely unaware of it. Our lack of fulfillment becomes our motivation to succeed….because if we 'can just achieve our goal, then we will be fulfilled'.

This results in achieving the goal, but still feeling stuck, and your goals coming at the COST of your fulfillment, instead of your fulfillment being the CATALYST for your goals.

Here is what I've learned…

Fulfillment is what you are REALLY looking for…not success. You just believe success is going to fulfill you.

Ultimately, we are looking for lasting fulfillment in all the places that only provide temporary satisfaction.

What I've learned is that in order to succeed at your goals, without it costing you your fulfillment…we must flip the current way of thinking…

Fulfillment is the PRECURSOR to success, not the product of success!

Fulfillment First, Success Second!!

We have it backwards…it's not success first, fulfillment second. It's fulfillment 1st, Success 2nd .

The goal is to attach your fulfillment to something that will not be affected by circumstances out of your control. Unfortunately, we place our primary source of fulfillment in things external from us that we have little control over including…

• Our work
• Our success
• Our status
• Our relationships
• Our health
• Our wealth

The goal is to be 100% fulfilled before you ever set foot in your building for work, before you ever get the promotion, before you ever earn a certain amount of money, before you engage within a relationship. To have your cup full, before you ever have to fill the cups of others.

The only thing that is NEVER going to move or change due to the circumstances of life is God. We have complete control over this relationship because God is ALWAYS there and available and willing to build this relationship. However, we are in control of whether we engage in his invitation for the relationship.

For example: It's like grocery shopping when you are hungry. When I grocery shop while I'm hungry (aka, not full), I continue to make poor choices of what I'm purchasing because I'm looking for things to fill my appetite and quench my hunger. However, when I grocery shop and I'm full already, I don't make poor choices because I'm not purchasing things based on a need to satisfy my hunger.

Life is very similar. If we are unfulfilled, we look for things that will satisfy our hunger that is only temporarily filling. However, when our cup is perpetually filled by God, then I make better choices, because now I'm not making decisions to satisfy an underlying lack of fulfillment.

Benefits of fulfillment first:

• Emotional stability: You don't experience the rollercoaster of emotions associated not succeeding
• Peace of mind = Better decision making: We don't make decisions that compromise our character
• No pressure!: We have no added pressure to succeed because we are already fulfilled. Pressure produces added stress, and stress is NOT consistent with peak performance.

How to build this relationship with God

• Reserve time & space:
  • Create consistent daily time and space both in your schedule and a physical space at home where you'll invest in building your relationship with God. For me it's first thing every morning in my office.
• Open your heart
  • Any meaningful relationship requires us to open our hearts and be vulnerable and transparent. This relationship with God is no different.
• Daily time
  • This MUST be practiced daily. I can't say this enough. Consistency of this daily practice will dramatically create change in your life in the form of greater fulfillment and sustainable success that doesn't come at the cost of what really matters!

If you need help, book a 1:1 Discovery Call with me at https://drbradmd.com

Talk to you soon,

Dr. Brad

Don't let going in the wrong direction, take you off of the right path!

Our pain:

We often get discouraged when going after our goals. It's easy to get discouraged when pursuing our goals.

We lose hope because we meet resistance or feel like we are going in the opposite direction of our goal.

• Family/Relationships goals: Goals to become closer with our spouses and children…but seems like relationship is getting farther apart
• Health goals: Goal to lose weight but seems like scale is going in the wrong direction
• Wealth/Financial goals: Goal to get out of debt or earn a certain amount but income, are going in the wrong direction
• Careers goals: promotion or elevated income but it's not happening

Our aspiration:

We want the straight line approach when pursuing our goals. The shortest path between 2 points is a straight line…and that's exactly what we want. We don't want obstacles or resistance.

We want to achieve our goals without:

• Resistance
• Challenge
• Obstacles
• Detours
• Without the scenic route

Our challenge:

The challenge we have is that we look at resistance, challenges, obstacles, detours, and the scenic route as BAD!

However, what I've learned is that resistance is not all bad. Challenge is not bad. Obstacles are not bad. They are opportunities to learn and grow.

• Relationship: Marriage challenges turn into marriage triumphs
• Relationship: Child challenges turn into child triumphs
• Health: Physical health challenges lead to health triumphs
• Financial challenges lead to financial freedom

Our lives are filled with different dichotomies:

• No freedom without restraint
• No triumph without trials
• No light without darkness

We often want the triumph without challenge, but the challenge is necessary for the triumph!

In every challenge, obstacle or opposite-direction type situation…no matter what the situation…there is an opportunity to do 2 things: "Learn and/or Lead!"

This is what I've learned…Life is about staying on Right path, even though it may be riddled with wrong/opposite directions.

For example, this is very similar to driving to a destination that has detours. Sometimes along the way, you may be driving east, when you destination is west. However, just because you are going the opposite or wrong direction, doesn't mean you are on the wrong path.

Action Step:

How do you ensure that you are on the right path, despite it seemingly going in the opposite direction?

Ask yourself these questions:

• Do I have a solid personal relationship with God? Do you trust him?
  • Ensures that you are on the path he wants you on…even if it seems like the wrong direction
  • Nobody knows better than God, what's best for you
  • Sometimes it's a holding pattern…sometimes it's the opposite direction
• Do you know someone who has successfully gotten to where you are trying to go?
  • Can accelerate your progress along the path
  • Can help you avoid some of the potholes along the way
• Are you more dependent on the "future" or your "faith" for your fulfillment?
  • If fulfillment is dependent upon your future success, it will make for an emotional rollercoaster ride along your path
• Are you seeing obstacles along your journey as opportunities to either learn or lead?
  • Sometimes we don't know what to do in a season…we don't have clarity where are next step to take is. This is on purpose. But you can ALWAYS lead or learn at this point in your path.
    • Lead: Either by example or help someone else out
    • Learn: Self explanatory
  • Do you have clarity of the end goal?
    • What does the destination look like?
    • Why am I doing this?
    • Clarity on your destination is MUCH more important than clarity of your path to get there

I can guarantee that any goal that is worth going for, will have its fair share of. But it's about mentally managing the turns along the path. If you do this…you'll enjoy the journey instead of fighting through it.

If you need help, book a 1:1 Discovery Call with me at https://drbradmd.com

Talk to you soon,

Dr. Brad

This ONE DECISION Can Lead To Breakthrough Success & Fulfillment

Ever feel like you've tried everything in your power to succeed or achieve a goal and you are still not where you want to be…either in your career or life? Maybe you've tried the 'secrets' that others talk about but it doesn't work.

I call this place in life "The Crossroad", because you have to make a decision to do something different so you can get something different. If you continue to do the same thing over and over again and expect a different result, then that's insanity.

That crossroad often comes down to this question…

"Am I going to continue to do things my way and in my own power OR submit to God's way with God's power??" It's either your way OR Gods way

MY STORY:

After doing everything I could possibly do to succeed in my home-based business and take my practice to the next level…I found myself getting the same results. In addition, my pursuits were coming at the cost of everything that mattered in my life…my faith, family, physical health, and overall fulfillment. The things that worked in the past to achieve my goals weren't working anymore. I tried "the secrets" the gurus talk about for business…I tried conferences…I tried just about everything and nothing turned into results for me. The proverbial "well ran dry" after trying everything I could do...went through every option…and it cost me important relationships. Until I finally took the option I'd avoided the whole time…God's option.

After I finally submitted to God's way and God's option of success and fulfillment in my work and life…everything changed! I started experiencing peace of mind, fulfillment, and clarity in both work, business, and life.

OUR PROBLEM:

1. We believe our way is the right way…or better put, we believe our way is superior to God's way. As crazy as this sounds when you read this out loud…it's true. If we believed God's way was better we would have been doing it a long time ago.
2. We believe we are completely in control of our results. We believe that our results are 100% dependent on ourselves and our decisions. In reality, the ONLY thing we are in control of on this life IS OUR DECISIONS…but we ARE NOT 100% IN CONTROL OF OUR RESULTS! We can decide to plant a seed, but we aren't guaranteed that because we plant it, that it will grow. We are not in control of the weather or the elements. This is the same for our businesses and relationships. All we can do is try to make decisions that will hopefully put us in the best place to succeed…but it's not guaranteed.
3. We are stubborn and selfish. We want things to happen our own way. We don't want obstacles or challenges along the way.

If you are at a crossroads regarding some area of your life, here are 3 questions you can ask yourself to help you decide on what direction you should go (your way OR God's way):

1. Do I believe God knows better than I do about my current situation?
2. Why am I REALLY going after this goal I'm struggling with? (be honest with yourself)
3. Do I trust God?

Consider this…

Sometimes I have patients that come to see me in my clinic for a certain pain…knee pain for example. They have sought me out as an expert to help them with this problem of knee pain. However, they currently have a treatment plan that they have been doing, that isn't completely working out for their pain. They often time will share that plan with me, hoping that if they continue doing that plan, that the pain will improve…despite the fact that I'm the expert and recommend doing something else that will work.

We do the same thing with God…the expert of ALL things. We come to him with a problem but try to convince him of our plan and not accept his plan.

THE SOLUTION:

1. Accept that you are not in control
   1. God controls everything
   2. The only thing you can control are the decisions you make. The choices we make.
2. Accept that God is the expert
3. Accept God's help

THIS ACCEPTANCE REQUIRES TRUST!! TRUST REQUIRES RELATIONSHIP!

ACTION PLAN:

1. Build a relationship with God that will reinforce trust in him
2. Decide to trust in God's plan more than you trust in your plan.
   1. Difference between belief and trust.
   2. Story of tightrope walker

Here is what you can expect as a result of building a relationship with God, trusting Him, and choosing God's way…

• Clarity on your "Why"
• Your Purpose
• Clarity
• Peace
• Patience
• Fulfillment

If you don't…you will continue to struggle, stress, and strangle your future success and fulfillment.

If you need help, book a 1:1 Discovery Call with me at https://drbradmd.com

Talk to you soon,

Dr. Brad