Author: Eric Deeter

Speaking Notes

Follow the Pirate Code!

The only thing I remember from Pirates of the Caribbean.

But when the Code isn’t working out so well for you:

Well, it’s not a Code. It’s more like guidelines we try to follow.

This is the start of a New Year.

A lot of us are setting goals for what we want to achieve this year.

Some of you are setting SMART goals.

Specific

Measurable

Achievable

Relevant

Time-Bound

For some of you SMART goals are like the Pirate’s Code.

“This is the way to set goals!”

Follow the Code!

I want you to consider that THE CODE of SMART goals is more like a guide.

“All goals should be SMART goals!”

Don’t get me wrong. There’s nothing wrong with SMART goals.

It’s a great framework for getting specific about what you want to do and then getting it done.

These guidelines help you get a handle on turning those things you want–dreams–into reality.

“A goal without a deadline is only a dream.”

Specific: If your goal isn’t specific enough your mind won’t have anything to grab hold of and make it a priority.

Measurable . . . hmmm. We’ll get back to this one.

Attainable: You’re probably not going to play pro basketball if your 5’5” and 150 pounds.

Relevant: For your personal goals – if it matters to you, it’s Relevant.

Time-Bound – A goal without a deadline is only a dream.

SMART goals have a lot of good points.

But remember – they are like the Pirates’ Code – they are more like a guide.

Some of your most important goals won’t fit in the SMART goals rules.

Let’s look at some differences:

Run 1500 miles in 2023 – SMART GOAL

Weigh under 200 pounds by December 31 – SMART GOAL

Double the number of regular listeners to this podcast by December 31. SMART GOAL

Learn how to be a better story teller.

Find ways to consistently let my wife know how much I value her.

These are not SMART goals. 

But they are worth pursuing.

I think everyone should set goals for personal growth.

When you stop growing you start dying.

You should have goals that will motivate you to become the best version of yourself that you can be.

And those goals may not fit the formula of SMART goals.

So don’t be afraid to be like the characters in Pirates of the Caribbean: the CODE is more like a guide. 

Don’t be afraid to go after your goals in a way that works for you. Don’t get stuck with a formula that doesn’t work for what you want.

Today’s Guest: Jaqui O’Donohoe

Information:

Jaqui is a Cricketer and in her childhood she played baseball.

Her father was a runner and that motivated her to run.

Jaqui works in a psychological clinic.

Jaqui is out of the social networks for a year and this is the end of the year for that.

For Jaqui meditation and running are very compatible.

Things we discussed:

In 2012 she ran her first marathon when she was struggling with losing her father.

She wanted to keep pushing herself and started trail running, hiking and Cricket adventures.

She went away for a weekend in the mountains and decided she wanted to write a book about her dad.

We talk about the current narrative of mental health.

We talk about how people think about depression and how women are free to talk about it and men are not.

Jaqui loves the idea of pushing your body to the point where your body wants to quit, but your mind doesn’t and that’s why she says Ultra’s are addictive.

She set out to hike the Bibbulmun Track in 28 days. This is a 1000K trail that usually requires 3 months to hike.

She ended up with a blister that got progressively worse. She ended up having to see medical help with an IV and antibiotics.

It took her a while after that experience to regain her love for hiking.

We talked about her reasons for taking a year break from social media.

She started meditating with a 12-week program. She found that it helped in running as well as staying at peace in life.

Bridge questions:

Her most important piece: Water bottle because she lives in Australia.

Strangest thing you’ve seen on the trail: In an ultra she started having hallucinations and thought the ski lift was some sort of alien spaceship.

Word that describes her philosophy of life: Adventure.

Connect with Jaqui:

https://www.jaquiodonohoe.com.au/

Amazing free offer!

New Year Resolutions don’t last much longer than fresh fish in the fridge.

Then why do we keep making them?

Here’s a radical idea. DON’T make Resolutions this year.

Instead, set goals that matter to you and do what it takes to crush them.

Here is a free offer! My video course called “How to Crush Your Goals.” 

The name isn’t fancy, and this course isn’t either. But it’s packed with mindset tools that will get you the results you want this year.

There is also a bonus video about how to manage cravings. Face it, those cravings are what derail your progress every time.

Make a good decision. Click the button below and get started.

The mindset to keep going no matter what.

Today’s Guest: Ryan Petty

Information:

Ryan is from a small town called Point Pleasant right on the coast and he always wanted to leave and when he did, he had to come back 20 years later.

He works as a mailman and listens to podcasts while he walks his route.

He fell in love with ultrarunning for the community.

He skied for 10 years.

Ryan in addition to running also puts in some weight training at the gym and then wants to incorporate some cycling into his training.

Leadville is his dream race.

Things we discussed:

Ryan is known for running with injuries.

He started running in 2005 when he was 28 years old and just over 300 pounds and was still in active addiction but he thought he should lose weight and decided that the only thing he could drink was vodka and soda water because it has the least amount of sugar.

When he was running he lost 25 pounds and thought about what it would be like if he added exercise.

He became obsessed with losing weight, running every day but also with eating very little without one thought about his health and longevity.

When he started training for his first 50k, that’s when he started to consciously train for what his body needed.

He learned not to be worried about his perspective on running and fitness. Now it’s more about living better so he’ll be able to do what he does now when he’s in his 60s or 70s.

Ryan says that running saved his life the night he was craving a drink and threw on a pair of shoes and ran out the door and kept going for miles in regular street clothes.

He tells us about how hard it was for him to learn to run slowly and how he has now gained much more knowledge of the science of running.

Running and training, it’s a game changer and I can learn anything I need to.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gfskier/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ranger.winter.5

Speaking Notes:

Anger Management

Imagine yourself sitting in the scene from Anger Management.

Who are you?

Not your job.

Not your personality.

Not your roles and responsibilities: Mother, Father, Husband, Wife

Most of the time none of us stop to think about this.

Why does it matter?

Carl Jung: The world will ask who you are, and if you don’t know, the world will tell you.

What does this mean?

The world will tell you that who you are is determined by what you do and what you have.

Job.

Role as father, mother, wife, husband.

The talents/skills you have . . . sports, art, music.

The car you drive.

The house you live in.

The clothes you wear.

How attractive you are.

This is a trap.

If you’re looking “out there” to know who you are, you’re letting the world define your identity.

Most of us fall in line and accept our place in the world and what we’ve been told about who we are & are supposed to be.

But there are some of us who wake up and see that this isn’t working for us anymore.

Usually happens around 30 to 40.

Then you’re left with the same question.

I’m not going to let the world tell me who I am.

But now what?

How do I find out who I am?

Place to start:

Core values

Eg. Loyalty, Honesty, Integrity, Kindness, Tenacity, Keeping your word to others & self

Core beliefs

About yourself. About the world.

When you live from your core values and core beliefs, you have an answer when the world asks who you are.

You live your best life.

You make a difference in the world and in the lives of the people around you.

Here is the most important part:

You decide your core values and core beliefs.

If your core values and beliefs are not working for you, you can change them.

If you look at who you are and don’t like what you see, you can choose to see yourself differently and become the person you want to be.

 Approaching life with curiosity and joy.

Today’s Guest: Jane Tabolt

Information:

Her first race was a 10K and then she went straight to Madison American.

She did her first Ultra at almost 40 years old.

When she got pregnant she trained to be an aerobics instructor.

Running is something that connects her to her parents because it was something they did.

In 2019 she competed on the track for the first time even though she knew nothing about this type of running.

Jane likes to learn to do new things and one of those was learning to swim butterfly.

When she was little they would watch a sports TV show and her father would take them outside to mimic the drills as a game and she hated it.

Things we discussed:

In her 20’s he grew to love becoming a school teacher.

At work she started running to socialize and to do something else.

We talked about Jane being post-menopausal and how that brought a glitch to her performance. She told us about the hormone therapy and how difficult the training was when she entered menopause.

Jane was not enjoying her 40’s and had to work at it.

She told us about the time she asked herself the question “Why am I doing this?

She wants to make the most of her body and mind and remain active like her parents who are currently in their 80s and 90s.

We talked about people’s limiting beliefs about age and how they believe that people can only run until they are 40.

We talked about changes in training depending on what you are going through in your life.

We also talk about respecting your body and knowing how to take care of it and what is your resistance capacity.

Bridge questions:

Her must-have piece of gear (kit) is a sort of metronome that goes under her bathing cap.

The most shocking thing she has ever seen was one night when she was camping and she went for a run at night and the sky was beautiful with the moon and a pile and for her it was one of these images that stays forever in your mind.

Word or phrase that describes her philosophy of life: Play!

https://www.facebook.com/jane.talbot.526

https://www.instagram.com/intrepidjane/

Home

Speaking notes

You’ve probably heard the story of how to boil a frog.

If you put the frog in a pot of boiling water, he will jump out.

But if you put a frog in a pot of cool water and gradually turn up the heat, the frog will stay in until he boils to death.

My experience with frogs: They wouldn’t stay in the pot no matter what.

But the conventional wisdom from this story: You will adapt to gradual “crap” piling up on you until it eventually kills you.

But that’s not always true either.

There are some who are more afraid of change than “boiling to death.”

But most of us reach a point where we snap and say, “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore.”

So what is your snapping point?

And do you really want to wait until that point to take action?

The 13 American colonies were like the frog in the pot.

England kept turning up the heat with laws that were headed toward making them all slaves.

And just like the frog in the pot, it happened a little at a time.

If you’re like me, the story you remember from American History class is that everyone reached the snapping point and rose up to declare their independence.

The Declaration of Independence was written and we all came together for fight for freedom.

Truth: There was never more than 45% of the country in favor of the war.

And ⅓ of the colonists fought for the British army.

Depending on where you lived, you could have been the only one on your street in favor of freedom.

Think about these numbers: 30% of the people were willing to actively fight to remain on the path to eventual slavery.

And another 25% were willing to accept slavery in order to avoid conflict.

These numbers show you how much most people resist change.

Men and women will put up with horrible and unhealthy circumstances and conditions just because it’s familiar.

You’ll stay stuck in a toxic relationship or career because it’s familiar. 

You’ll stay stuck with toxic and unhealthy habits because changing feels like too much work.

The danger is that sometimes it’s too late once you reach your “snapping point.”

The frog in the pot will reach a point he can’t get out before he’s truly cooked.

You and I aren’t frogs in a pot.

When you’re in a bad place and it’s getting worse, you know it.

But most people are like that 25% of the American colonists who want to keep waiting and hope that things will get better if we just ignore the problem.

So how do you keep from getting cooked?

1. Decide what you want for yourself.
2. Start moving toward the life you want.
3. Don’t stop until you get there.

As a mindset coach, I help my clients with all three of these steps.

And the key to success is managing your thoughts, emotions, and energy.

Best-of Podcast Episode

Brian Hoover is a man who loves adventure. And I can’t think of a better person to feature on a best-of episode. This conversation comes from way back in Episode 28. 

Brian decided to kayak the Mississippi River from the headwaters to the Gulf of Mexico. My first conversation with him had been about his trek, hiking from Mexico to Canada on the Pacific Crest Trail. 

If you love stories that inspire you to find your own adventures, you will love listening to Brian tell about his mindset that lets him pursue experiences that feed his soul.

Connect with Brian:

https://www.facebook.com/brianhooveradventures