How To Stop Comparing Your Journey And Start Developing Greatness | Eric Thomas
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Hi, my name is Lewis Howes, and welcome to The Daily Motivation Show.
How did Eric Thomas’s 12-year college journey begin and why did he delay graduation?
I'm gonna be real, that's why it took me 12 years to get a 40 degree, because I never went to college for college. I went to college for Dee Dee. That's why I went to college. And so once I got to college and we got married, I was like, yo, I got what I wanted. And she was like, okay, we're gonna have to do this again.
What moment made Eric commit to finishing what he started?
I can't be with you if you don't finish what you start. So then I had to go handle this business again. And I started the speaking career in the middle of that as well.
There's a lot of pressure for people to accomplish certain things by certain agents. but it took you 12 years to graduate college, right? So you're in your 30s or whatever.
Why does Eric warn against comparing your timeline to others (what is the outside-inside theory)?
30, absolutely. And then you're 44 when you got a PhD. What do you say to some of the younger generation that feels like they're a failure if they don't accomplish things by 20 or 25 that they feel like they're supposed to accomplish?
So here's where I went with that. One of the dangerous things is the outside-inside theory. It's dangerous because what you're doing, whether you know it or not, you are comparing your journey and your life to somebody else's journey and somebody else's life. Like, you don't even have... Let's just be honest. You don't even have the right context to do that. You don't know why they're doing what they're doing. You don't know what their strengths and weaknesses are. So you're comparing yourself to somebody that may have strengths that you don't have.
How can adopting an 'inside-out' mindset change your development and purpose?
They're nowhere near who you are. And so you're comparing yourself. So this is why I believe For those of us who finally get it, it's the inside out. Like everything we do starts from the inside. And then from there, we kind of say, oh, okay, I see my boy Louie doing X, Y, and Z, but I'm not doing it because you're doing it, but I'm calling you, you're kind of saying, and the industry is, so I'm using the information you're giving me to build my journey, not I'm trying to be you. And so what I realized was, yeah, there's some kids that can come and graduate in four years, because they took K through 12 series. Or, not to be disrespectful, there are some kids that can come and graduate for four years because they're going to get a job.
You can't come and graduate in four years, one, because you didn't take K-12 series, and you're about to be one of the greatest speakers ever. It's going to take a little longer. It's going to take a little bit longer to develop you. So my man on the four-year plan, but he might, no disrespect, but he may settle into a traditional life And so for the four years, that's all it takes. But if you are about to be Eric Thomas, that I didn't even know I had the capacity to talk about the school of greatness. God was like, you have to be in the school of greatness a little bit longer. You have to be in a school of grace a lot.
How does Eric explain being 'pulled back like a slingshot' and delayed success as preparation?
Why? I always say, you know, and everybody knows it. But when you're doing a swing shot, the further you pull it back, when you let it go. Oh, so. So for me, it was like I was like, It's going to take 12, not because you're behind. It's going to take 12 because that's how much time it's going to take to develop you. So once I release you into the world, now you're going to be able to do phenomenal stuff. Let's go. So I can't compare myself to the dude that's just going to get a job somewhere who's just going to settle and all he's caring about is his life. You know, he's not necessarily creating content or writing books that are going to change the world. He's just trying to take care of his family. So 40 years works for him.
So now I'm comparing my life to a person who is not even trying to accomplish what I'm trying to accomplish. That's dangerous.
Dangerous. Wow. But I mean, what about the people? Going back to kind of your story of the victim mindset. Yeah. You know, your mom lies to you about your dad. You don't see your dad. You know, abandoned warehouses. You know, all the problems, inner city kids, struggle, getting kicked out of school, struggles.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:01–0:13
2
How did Eric Thomas’s 12-year college journey begin and why did he delay graduation?
0:13–0:26
3
What moment made Eric commit to finishing what he started?
0:26–0:46
4
Why does Eric warn against comparing your timeline to others (what is the outside-inside theory)?
0:46–1:30
5
How can adopting an 'inside-out' mindset change your development and purpose?
1:30–2:42
6
How does Eric explain being 'pulled back like a slingshot' and delayed success as preparation?
2:42–3:47
7
How should people stuck in a victim mindset respond to external obstacles?
3:47–4:52
8
Where can listeners find more resources and full episode details after this conversation?
4:52–6:44
Speakers
2 identifiedMore from The Daily Motivation
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