WEBVTT

00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.659
Good morning, good afternoon, and good evening,

00:00:01.700 --> 00:00:03.700
everybody. Welcome to today's episode of the

00:00:03.700 --> 00:00:06.980
Never Peak Project Podcast. I'm your host, Coach

00:00:06.980 --> 00:00:09.720
Ranger. I walked across America in 2024, and

00:00:09.720 --> 00:00:11.679
now I take all those lessons that I learned on

00:00:11.679 --> 00:00:14.279
my journey, and I help entrepreneurs, nonprofit

00:00:14.279 --> 00:00:17.440
leaders, and just high achievers get what they

00:00:17.440 --> 00:00:19.820
want by getting past their internal and external

00:00:19.820 --> 00:00:22.179
barriers so that you can create real results

00:00:22.179 --> 00:00:25.179
in your life. In today's episode, I'm going to

00:00:25.179 --> 00:00:27.719
be talking about a very important concept, one

00:00:27.719 --> 00:00:31.469
of the key... secrets that I use on my walk across

00:00:31.469 --> 00:00:34.289
America to get from South Carolina, from Myrtle

00:00:34.289 --> 00:00:37.109
Beach, all the way to Los Angeles over in California.

00:00:37.450 --> 00:00:43.469
And that simple tool is to pretend that I am

00:00:43.469 --> 00:00:47.549
a frog in a pond. I know this sounds a little

00:00:47.549 --> 00:00:50.990
bit silly, but when it comes to different metaphors

00:00:50.990 --> 00:00:52.890
or ways to kind of break down these big goals,

00:00:52.950 --> 00:00:55.049
it really works for me. And I hope that this

00:00:55.049 --> 00:00:58.530
concept works for you as well. Now, before I

00:00:58.530 --> 00:01:01.850
really dive into the frog in a pond explanation,

00:01:02.130 --> 00:01:04.329
I'll give you a little bit of a story of how

00:01:04.329 --> 00:01:08.890
I came to discover this concept. So it was about

00:01:08.890 --> 00:01:11.489
six months before I started my walk across the

00:01:11.489 --> 00:01:14.390
country. I was sitting in the lunch area with

00:01:14.390 --> 00:01:16.150
one of my coworkers over at the county that I

00:01:16.150 --> 00:01:19.849
worked in, and she could tell that I was physically,

00:01:19.969 --> 00:01:22.909
visibly stressed. And she was like, hey, like,

00:01:22.950 --> 00:01:24.590
what's going on? Like, does it have to do with

00:01:24.590 --> 00:01:27.989
your walk? I was like, yeah, dude, like. I've

00:01:27.989 --> 00:01:30.170
been ready to do this thing for like two years

00:01:30.170 --> 00:01:33.049
now. We're six months out from my first steps.

00:01:33.189 --> 00:01:36.329
And I have no idea what I'm going to do for my

00:01:36.329 --> 00:01:38.530
route. I've tried making different plans. I've

00:01:38.530 --> 00:01:42.170
tried doing day by days. I've talked to other

00:01:42.170 --> 00:01:43.790
people that said that there's not even a point

00:01:43.790 --> 00:01:46.150
in doing that. I just feel super overwhelmed

00:01:46.150 --> 00:01:49.349
on how I'm going to get from one point to the

00:01:49.349 --> 00:01:52.409
other. And she was like kind of talking me through

00:01:52.409 --> 00:01:55.109
it a little bit. And at one point in our discussion,

00:01:55.349 --> 00:01:58.650
I looked at her. uh little what is it the the

00:01:58.650 --> 00:02:01.549
contigo cup thing the the whatever it's called

00:02:01.549 --> 00:02:05.250
that a lot of people have and she had a sticker

00:02:05.250 --> 00:02:07.969
of a frog on it and i said you know what it feels

00:02:07.969 --> 00:02:11.069
like it feels like i am a little frog and there's

00:02:11.069 --> 00:02:14.569
this huge pond in front of me and i'm trying

00:02:14.569 --> 00:02:17.770
to just jump from one side to the other and i

00:02:17.770 --> 00:02:21.090
have no idea how to make that happen and she

00:02:21.090 --> 00:02:23.009
kind of just paused for a second and she said

00:02:23.009 --> 00:02:27.610
well What if you didn't have to do it all in

00:02:27.610 --> 00:02:33.069
one leap? What if you found like lily pads to

00:02:33.069 --> 00:02:36.949
get from one side to the other? And in that moment,

00:02:37.030 --> 00:02:40.389
I just felt like this like wave of clarity, like

00:02:40.389 --> 00:02:42.729
these weights off my shoulders. Have you ever

00:02:42.729 --> 00:02:44.629
felt like that where it's like, oh my God, I

00:02:44.629 --> 00:02:46.770
just figured this out. We just cracked this case

00:02:46.770 --> 00:02:50.389
wide open. Well, in that moment, I realized that

00:02:50.389 --> 00:02:54.550
you don't need to figure out every single step

00:02:54.550 --> 00:02:56.770
in between where you are and where you want to

00:02:56.770 --> 00:02:59.650
be. Sometimes you just need those big waypoints,

00:02:59.830 --> 00:03:03.270
those lily pads in between to get from one spot

00:03:03.270 --> 00:03:06.370
to the next. But you do need to be clear on where

00:03:06.370 --> 00:03:08.909
you're starting and where you're going. Those

00:03:08.909 --> 00:03:12.590
are really the only pieces that you need. When

00:03:12.590 --> 00:03:15.710
I was on the walk itself, I was able to figure

00:03:15.710 --> 00:03:18.550
out what those lily pads for me day by day. When

00:03:18.550 --> 00:03:21.270
I first started, my lily pads were super close.

00:03:21.800 --> 00:03:23.539
I was like every single day, I was like, okay,

00:03:23.560 --> 00:03:25.439
I'm starting here. I'm ending up in this general

00:03:25.439 --> 00:03:28.319
area. Where do I need to stop? And then I would

00:03:28.319 --> 00:03:29.860
plan out the next day and the next day and the

00:03:29.860 --> 00:03:32.879
next day. But a few weeks in, I was able to start

00:03:32.879 --> 00:03:36.159
expanding out those lily pads to where they were

00:03:36.159 --> 00:03:38.759
further and further and further away. Typically,

00:03:38.819 --> 00:03:42.860
my lily pads were either hotels that I knew I

00:03:42.860 --> 00:03:44.919
could stay at. Again, I stayed at a lot of Marriott

00:03:44.919 --> 00:03:47.819
properties during my walk. They were host families

00:03:47.819 --> 00:03:50.620
that I knew for sure I hadn't nailed down. And

00:03:50.620 --> 00:03:53.919
they were the waypoints. So before I even knew

00:03:53.919 --> 00:03:56.120
I was going to stop in Amarillo, that was one

00:03:56.120 --> 00:03:58.439
of them. Same thing with Oklahoma City. Same

00:03:58.439 --> 00:04:00.979
thing with a few other spots throughout the country.

00:04:01.680 --> 00:04:05.580
But what I did was I had those as the general,

00:04:05.740 --> 00:04:08.699
this is where I'm trying to land. And then in

00:04:08.699 --> 00:04:12.340
between, I wouldn't always have, you know, hosts

00:04:12.340 --> 00:04:15.500
or an understanding of where I was actually going

00:04:15.500 --> 00:04:18.250
to stay. And I kind of had to put myself in the

00:04:18.250 --> 00:04:20.910
spot of that frog again, right? Like, okay, there's

00:04:20.910 --> 00:04:22.870
this big pond. I'm trying to get from, well,

00:04:22.910 --> 00:04:26.529
the east side to the west side, Kerploth. But

00:04:26.529 --> 00:04:28.970
how am I going to get from, like, those lily

00:04:28.970 --> 00:04:31.290
pads to the next lily pad? Some were close enough

00:04:31.290 --> 00:04:33.149
that I could just kind of jump and hop from each

00:04:33.149 --> 00:04:37.149
one. But as I got better at figuring out where

00:04:37.149 --> 00:04:39.069
the pads were and I got further into the walk,

00:04:39.329 --> 00:04:42.379
they got further and further away. I kind of

00:04:42.379 --> 00:04:45.360
thought, OK, well, shoot, like if a frog can't

00:04:45.360 --> 00:04:47.379
jump from one lily pad to the next, like what

00:04:47.379 --> 00:04:50.779
would it do? In that moment, I was like, well,

00:04:50.860 --> 00:04:53.139
shoot, dude, like it would swim. It would just

00:04:53.139 --> 00:04:56.660
get in the water and swim. And that was powerful

00:04:56.660 --> 00:05:01.279
for me because a frog is able to swim very naturally.

00:05:01.339 --> 00:05:03.899
It's something that just it just works for them.

00:05:04.180 --> 00:05:06.220
So then I have to figure out, OK, well, what

00:05:06.220 --> 00:05:08.660
is so natural for me that even when I can't get

00:05:08.660 --> 00:05:11.540
from lily pad to lily pad. i can reframe it in

00:05:11.540 --> 00:05:15.100
a way that i was confident in my abilities and

00:05:15.100 --> 00:05:16.860
i knew that i was confident in my abilities to

00:05:16.860 --> 00:05:19.939
just figure things out i had the tools to just

00:05:19.939 --> 00:05:21.680
sleep on the side of the road if i ever needed

00:05:21.680 --> 00:05:25.620
to but i also had things like technology i posted

00:05:25.620 --> 00:05:28.680
a lot on facebook i had the support of the various

00:05:28.680 --> 00:05:31.180
communities that i was going through i was able

00:05:31.180 --> 00:05:33.079
to find you know local facebook groups local

00:05:33.629 --> 00:05:36.410
um you know police stations firefighting houses

00:05:36.410 --> 00:05:39.170
etc etc like i had these resources just like

00:05:39.170 --> 00:05:42.829
a frog has its legs to figure out how i was going

00:05:42.829 --> 00:05:46.750
to get from pad to pad now this is something

00:05:46.750 --> 00:05:49.870
that has come up in various coaching clients

00:05:49.870 --> 00:05:53.550
that i've had pre during and post law but the

00:05:53.550 --> 00:05:56.889
idea here is when you're striving for a goal

00:05:56.889 --> 00:05:58.689
you're really trying to get from one spot to

00:05:58.689 --> 00:06:01.370
another from your current state in your current

00:06:01.370 --> 00:06:06.459
state to a more ideal situation it can feel super

00:06:06.459 --> 00:06:08.980
overwhelming like you're that frog that needs

00:06:08.980 --> 00:06:11.680
to get to the other side of the pond in one go

00:06:11.680 --> 00:06:17.779
that's not the case now this is is a method methodology

00:06:17.779 --> 00:06:22.560
a tool called chunking down you take your big

00:06:22.560 --> 00:06:25.620
goal and you find the smaller pieces that you

00:06:25.620 --> 00:06:28.879
need to do in order to make that goal possible

00:06:29.439 --> 00:06:32.319
For me, it was, OK, instead of looking at it

00:06:32.319 --> 00:06:35.379
from South Carolina to California, can I look

00:06:35.379 --> 00:06:39.180
at this from Myrtle Beach to halfway across South

00:06:39.180 --> 00:06:42.459
Carolina? Can I make this from the Georgia border

00:06:42.459 --> 00:06:45.180
to the Alabama border? Can I do a state or two

00:06:45.180 --> 00:06:48.279
at a time so that it's less overwhelming in the

00:06:48.279 --> 00:06:50.860
moment? And as I get my sea legs or my walking

00:06:50.860 --> 00:06:53.600
legs, I can really understand what those next

00:06:53.600 --> 00:06:55.500
steps and what those next few days or weeks are

00:06:55.500 --> 00:06:58.529
going to look like. So one of the easiest examples

00:06:58.529 --> 00:07:03.310
is I want to start a business. Well, that state

00:07:03.310 --> 00:07:06.329
from being a nine to five or being a W -2 and

00:07:06.329 --> 00:07:09.089
not having your own business to having a thriving,

00:07:09.310 --> 00:07:12.910
let's say, $100 ,000 a year company, that's a

00:07:12.910 --> 00:07:16.449
huge jump. But if you kind of chunk it down,

00:07:16.490 --> 00:07:19.529
you say, OK, what is the most important next

00:07:19.529 --> 00:07:24.199
step? Your MINS, M -I -N -S. Most important next

00:07:24.199 --> 00:07:26.480
step. I learned this on the BiggerPockets podcast.

00:07:26.920 --> 00:07:29.420
They're about real estate investing, but the

00:07:29.420 --> 00:07:32.160
same thing, right? Like, what is that most important

00:07:32.160 --> 00:07:34.560
next step I need to take? What is that first

00:07:34.560 --> 00:07:37.339
leap? It's probably figuring out, well, what

00:07:37.339 --> 00:07:39.600
is the type of business I want to start? Do I

00:07:39.600 --> 00:07:41.319
want to do service? Do I want to do products?

00:07:41.540 --> 00:07:44.259
Then after that, what kind of licensing would

00:07:44.259 --> 00:07:45.959
I need? Do I need a bank account? Do I need to

00:07:45.959 --> 00:07:48.560
fill all this paperwork? Those are those first

00:07:48.560 --> 00:07:51.920
lily pads. And they're very close to each other.

00:07:52.329 --> 00:07:54.629
Just like my first few days on my walk were very

00:07:54.629 --> 00:07:56.750
close, you know, instead of being, you know,

00:07:56.750 --> 00:08:00.370
100, 120, 250, whatever miles out, it was 10,

00:08:00.470 --> 00:08:05.009
15, 20, like pretty close, like day by day. And

00:08:05.009 --> 00:08:08.629
as time goes on, those lily pads do get further

00:08:08.629 --> 00:08:11.230
and further apart. Once you have your business,

00:08:11.410 --> 00:08:13.790
you know, you have the name, your fictitious

00:08:13.790 --> 00:08:15.689
business name statement, you know, all these

00:08:15.689 --> 00:08:18.350
county, state, et cetera, paperwork filled out.

00:08:18.550 --> 00:08:21.839
The next thing is get your first customer. Then

00:08:21.839 --> 00:08:24.680
it's get 10 customers on retainer, then this,

00:08:24.759 --> 00:08:26.819
then marketing and sales. And it feels like these

00:08:26.819 --> 00:08:29.300
lily pads get further and further and further

00:08:29.300 --> 00:08:32.799
out as you try to make your way to 100 ,000.

00:08:32.980 --> 00:08:35.759
But in that case, from my beliefs and where I

00:08:35.759 --> 00:08:39.320
stand, the way that you swim in that situation

00:08:39.320 --> 00:08:43.480
is to show up every day, do something of marketable

00:08:43.480 --> 00:08:45.620
value while working on your business, whether

00:08:45.620 --> 00:08:49.090
it is Work on advertising or sales or cold calling

00:08:49.090 --> 00:08:51.269
or reaching out to your network, showing up to

00:08:51.269 --> 00:08:54.570
your BNI meetings or different referral networks.

00:08:55.370 --> 00:08:58.149
It's just that day -to -day work. And if you

00:08:58.149 --> 00:09:00.850
can develop those skills of networking, having

00:09:00.850 --> 00:09:03.570
good conversations, eventually that will lead

00:09:03.570 --> 00:09:05.950
you to the next lily pad and then the next one

00:09:05.950 --> 00:09:08.509
and the next one. Same thing with your relationship.

00:09:09.029 --> 00:09:11.710
Maybe you want to go from single to married.

00:09:11.990 --> 00:09:13.549
First of all, you need to figure out what you

00:09:13.549 --> 00:09:15.590
want in a partner. What is important to you?

00:09:15.950 --> 00:09:17.889
Am I going to get in the dating apps? Am I going

00:09:17.889 --> 00:09:19.950
to get out in person and try to meet people?

00:09:20.110 --> 00:09:22.850
What does that actually look like? But then those

00:09:22.850 --> 00:09:24.789
lily pads get further and further apart. You

00:09:24.789 --> 00:09:27.289
know, you find a partner, eventually you get

00:09:27.289 --> 00:09:29.049
engaged, then you plan the wedding, then you

00:09:29.049 --> 00:09:31.289
have kids, then you do this. Like those pads

00:09:31.289 --> 00:09:33.950
get further and further apart, time -wise, distance

00:09:33.950 --> 00:09:37.330
-wise. But there's soft skills in between, like

00:09:37.330 --> 00:09:40.370
good communication skills, being able to express

00:09:40.370 --> 00:09:43.350
what you need, setting boundaries. That is the

00:09:43.350 --> 00:09:48.360
swimming. So... Really, the takeaway that I want

00:09:48.360 --> 00:09:52.080
you to have from today is in order to get where

00:09:52.080 --> 00:09:54.740
you need to go, the first step is knowing where

00:09:54.740 --> 00:09:58.460
you are and where you want to go. Be very clear

00:09:58.460 --> 00:10:01.620
on that vision for yourself. Whether you're starting

00:10:01.620 --> 00:10:03.919
in South Carolina and you want to get to Los

00:10:03.919 --> 00:10:07.019
Angeles, be clear on the destination, the waypoint

00:10:07.019 --> 00:10:10.860
on your map. And then start filling in the lily

00:10:10.860 --> 00:10:12.899
pads in between. Literally, I got a piece of

00:10:12.899 --> 00:10:16.850
paper and I drew a pond. And on the right side,

00:10:16.990 --> 00:10:20.350
I put start. On the left side, I put end. And

00:10:20.350 --> 00:10:22.370
then I kind of just started making little dots

00:10:22.370 --> 00:10:25.330
on the map of where I wanted to go. Same thing

00:10:25.330 --> 00:10:27.230
with my business. Same thing with my relationship.

00:10:27.649 --> 00:10:31.370
Do that. Start filling in what those little destination

00:10:31.370 --> 00:10:34.009
points are for you. On the other side, write

00:10:34.009 --> 00:10:37.909
down swimming. And then put in those soft skills

00:10:37.909 --> 00:10:40.549
that need to come naturally to you. The day -to

00:10:40.549 --> 00:10:43.919
-day activities. Just like walking is something

00:10:43.919 --> 00:10:45.679
you need to do to get from one lily pad to the

00:10:45.679 --> 00:10:48.759
other. What is the smallest, most important next

00:10:48.759 --> 00:10:51.419
step you need to take in order to make yourself

00:10:51.419 --> 00:10:54.580
go from the right side of the map to the left

00:10:54.580 --> 00:10:57.500
side? And if you would like some help and support

00:10:57.500 --> 00:11:00.259
figuring out what your, you know, what your waypoint

00:11:00.259 --> 00:11:02.019
is, where you're starting from, where you're

00:11:02.019 --> 00:11:04.279
going, figuring out what the lily pads are or

00:11:04.279 --> 00:11:06.879
what that walking in between each step that swimming

00:11:06.879 --> 00:11:09.179
looks like for you on a day to day basis. I'd

00:11:09.179 --> 00:11:11.139
be more than happy to support you in that journey.

00:11:11.559 --> 00:11:13.940
In the description is a link to my channel to

00:11:13.940 --> 00:11:16.519
schedule a free 15 -minute consultation in which

00:11:16.519 --> 00:11:18.519
we'll go over where you are, where you're going,

00:11:18.639 --> 00:11:20.720
and what you need to do in order to make it a

00:11:20.720 --> 00:11:23.519
reality. Completely free. Just go ahead and sign

00:11:23.519 --> 00:11:26.240
up for a time, and I will speak to you then.

00:11:26.779 --> 00:11:29.960
As always, remember that the best is yet to come

00:11:29.960 --> 00:11:31.759
as long as you are willing to make the decision

00:11:31.759 --> 00:11:34.899
to never settle, never quit, and never peak.

00:11:35.340 --> 00:11:36.860
I'll see you guys in the next one.