The Motivation Manifesto

Apply these life lessons in the gym to realize your goals

- Mark Bell

At the end of the day, any measure of success is determined by quantifiable improvement. In order to be successful at anything, you must go from your current Point A to an improved Point B and have something to show for it. And in order to do that, you must first set a goal and work toward it each and every day.

Now, you might think this sounds daunting—that this labor of love will consume every hour of every day. But let’s start small. Yes, your goal might turn into a bit of a project. It might take years or a lifetime to come to term. But it might also manifest and start at a point that takes only 20 minutes a day. And if you ask me, that’s not a lot to ask in exchange for improvement.

BEING GREAT

Let’s talk about being great. A lot of people don’t have a definition for being great, which makes it easy to fall flat because you don’t have a clear picture of what it is that you want to do. But remember that nobody starts out being great. We start out naked, as fat, squishy tissue, not knowing what to do with our hands and feet. But we adapt and make progress over a long period of time.

Think about this: How long does it take you to learn to walk? It takes a lot of kids a year. So how long is it going to take you to make progress toward being wealthier or being in better shape? It’s going to take you some time, maybe even a few months or years. Obtaining strength and being a professional powerlifter and going the course that I went took decades.

BE GOOD BACK

Another important piece of the puzzle: Figure out why you want to be great and who you want to be great for. For me, it’s really simple. I like to be great to my family. If I start there, it makes it easy to branch out and be great to other people and really make an impact.