Welcome to The PhD Mommy’s Journey Podcast, a podcast for those who want to actually enjoy life.
I’m your host, Brie, your bestie who also happens to be your number one fan. I am an educator, scientific researcher and Qualitative Storyteller who’s obsessed with science and dedicated to equipping you with valuable and useful tools along your life journey. I believe you have a unique and special gift the world needs to experience, and I am here to help. Understand one thing: you have exactly the tools needed to create a more purposeful and meaningful life.
This is the seventh episode of the series, Unf—k yourself, by Gary Bishop. On the previous episode, I talked about the importance of knowing who you are, also known as your identity. In addition, I briefly talked about the importance of your identity, how it’s formed, and the impact it has on human behavior. I also talked about the brain, mind and how both of these key components of your behavior is influenced by your thoughts. The mind is a powerful thing because your thoughts have power; however, it is very important to know that you are not your thoughts, you are what what you do.
On today’s episode, I’m going to start off by asking you this one important question: Do you really want to enjoy a life you love? How comfortable are you with being uncomfortable? Are you willing to go against the grain to achieve beyond your wildest dreams? If so, stay tuned.
The title of chapter seven is: I am relentless. Are you relentless?
What is relentless and why is it important? Relentless is showing or promising no abatement of severity, intensity, strength, or pace. Another word would be known as unrelenting: not softening or yielding in determination. How many times have you been successful in life? How many times have you experienced winning? How did it feel? Great, right? Everyone wants to win; everyone wants to be congratulated and celebrated…I mean, you worked hard, so why not?
Here’s another question: What is something you’ve always dreamed of? What is something you wish you could’ve always done? I’ll go first: I have always wanted to be a philanthropist…I’ve always wanted to be someone who makes a difference in the world by helping people feel better about themselves. I shied away from it through starting to apply to medical school, becoming a teacher, getting a phd…which have all been great because I learned a lot along the way, but I never felt a sense of fulfillment because those things were very easy for me. However, one area in my life: speaking, specifically public speaking…that has been something I’ve always ran away from on the other side.
Anyone who knows me knows I’m an introvert; I’m very shy, quiet and I prefer to stay to myself. I know a lot of people and I have a lot of people who support me, but I tend to be alone. I enjoy being alone because I can get lost in my thoughts…however, I started to notice that there were a lot of people who became very depressed. I felt bad because I realized that there were so many people who have either lost hope or lacked confidence and lacked an ability to have some type of self-worth. I’ve tried encouraging a lot of people and realized I needed to do more…so I did. It hasn’t been easy, but I am in a better place mentally simply being myself.
What about you? What about you? How are you feeling? No, really how are you? It’s okay to be honest. Take a few seconds to really sit down and think about how you are feeling.
See, the thing about life is that we all face obstacles; we all face battles, silent battles, embarrassing battles…tragic battles. Think about the battles you have faced and continue to face in your life. Think about the things you have done and allowed others to have a specific judgment about you? Maybe you are someone who is ready for a change…maybe you are someone who is truly tired of being stuck in a never ending hamster wheel of depression, anxiety, fear, laziness, procrastination…maybe you are someone who wants to change. Guess what, you can change…you can become this beautiful masterpiece after chipping at that invisible rock over your life. Are you ready to change?
“Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty.” -Theodore Roosevelt
Back to my earlier question: What have you always dreamed of doing? Who have you always dreamed of becoming? What have you always dreamed of working towards? Why haven’t you done it then? What are you waiting for? The perfect moment? That doesn’t exist…you can’t dictate how things will turn on. You can’t dictate on how the game will go or how the story ends, but you can dictate your actions. You can dictate your response to your situation and create a life you truly enjoy.
It’s only true if you agree Do you know the difference between successful people and unsuccessful people? Relentlessness…of course, it’s so easy telling someone: never give up…but you seriously need to keep moving forward. Even on the days you feelik it is the end, you need to keep moving forward. You have a purpose, you have a goal and you have a responsibility to show your talent to the world.
At some point, you need to realize and understand that your journey of becoming the person whom God has created you to be requires you to be on another level…it requires you to constantly lose day after day after day after day. It requires you to cry, scream, kick, feel sad. Sometimes when we feel sad, we feel as if our life is over…it’s not, you’re going to be okay. You will be okay. You have a gift the world needs to experience.
Don’t believe me, here’s an example: The Wright brothers…they were the first ones to successfully fly a plane. Think about it: so many people doubted them, even their father who was a minister told them they were going to hell because they wanted to fly. Nevertheless, they persisted; they were relentless and so are you.
Now, even though you have a talent and a gift, that doesn’t mean you deserve to be successful. You have to get over yourself because it’s not about you…if you really want to be successful and live a life you want on your terms that allows you to be who you want to be, then it requires hard work, late nights, early mornings, sweat, blood, tears, isolation, insomnia, repetition, grit, courage, perseverance, relentlessness and a little bit of faith. From there, now you will be able to reach your goals. It’s not a feeling; it is a lifestyle…if you wait until you feel good, you will be waiting there by yourself for a long time.
Don't be that girl or guy.
Believe in yourself. Trust yourself. Don’t listen to the naysayers or those who are too scared to reach their own dreams. No matter what it is that you want to do, you have to first believe in yourself. When you believe in yourself and you tell yourself that you’re going to be the greatest one to ever do it, you dont care what others say… you dont care how long it takes…you dont care how many times you have to keep going back and forth over and over and over again because you love the process…you love the hunt, you love how much of yourself is coming to the surface. You love that other ppl are beginning to notice the difference and think: she’s built different, he’s built different…and guess what? That’s because you are…you are fearfully and wonderfully made. You are created in the image of God your creator. You better hold your head up high and tell yourself: I am relentless.
There are going to be times where you feel like this is the end. You are going to want to give up and throw in the towel.
Don’t
This is the time where it counts the most and you must give everything you’ve got…and when you have nothing left in the tank, stay up high, and keep moving forward. Keep going, don’t stop… keep going.
You don’t know the plans…okay, that’s not important now…just keep going. Do not rest in the middle, rest at the end. Life is a journey…becoming great is not a dedication, it is a process. Don’t worry about the outside noise, worry about what is in front of you: here and now. Worry about things that matter today. Relentless doesn’t mean you are coming in swing or loud. Relentless is working while raising kids, relentlessness is being focused and dedicated to the cause…it’s Monday-Monday, 24/7, 365, 366, no days off. All in. Relentless is not some fad, slogan…relentlessness is a way of life.
There will be obstacles…there will be challenges. There will be setbacks and road blocks. What are you going to about it? Are you going to sit down and continue to cry, whine and feel good under your blanket of excuses. Or, are you going to wake up and understand that you need to learn more about yourself. You need to study your craft, you need to work day in and day out to understanding who you are and what you have been called to do. That’s when the real magic happens.
Imagine if you committ to something for 6 months, 1 year…think about how you get to look back on your past and say “wow”…that new car, that new job, that new husband, wife, child, house, party, company, car, brand, whatever…all because you kept going forward.
I leave you with this: as you face the many obstacles in life, never give up. Don’t fall, don’t waver, don’t shy away, run away…instead go towards it. Welcome it, say hello to it and give it a big hug and kiss and tell it how much you missed it. See yourself winning. See yourself in the position, see yourself as CEO, academic scholar, doctor, mvp, and more. Be that person who you want to be. Be the individual who you want to be. You are worth it. You can do it.. I believe in you. Do you believe in you? If you are ready to live the life you want to live, are you willing to be relentless? Are you willing to go against the grain and become who God has designed you to do be. If so…then what are you waiting for?
You are relentless. Say it with me: I am relentless, I am relentless, I am relentless. You are. You can do it. Go and blaze a new trail.
This was episode 7, be relentless, where I talked about the importance of moving forward. As always, I'm here to help you live a life you love and enjoy. You are the one who has to make the change.
Thank you for listening to the PhD Mommy's Journey Podcast. Feel free to subscribe to this channel wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. Follow me on Instagram @Thephdmomlife https://www.instagram.com/thephdmomlife/ or website at https://aphdmommy.com.
