How To Design the Life You Truly Want
The following is a guest post from Gregory Henderson and if it doesn’t inspire you, you may be already dead!
How To Design the Life You Truly Want
It was a cold, wet, dreary winter night when death came calling.
I was at work, the sleet and snow coming down so fast you could hardly see your nose in front of your face.
I sure was glad I’d put my thermal underwear on, but even with them underneath my one-inch-thick insulated overalls, I was chilled to the bone.
All I wanted was that night to be over with so I could go home and snuggle with my new bride of three months and sip on some hot chocolate while watching a movie.
But That Wasn’t To Be…
You see, I worked for the railroad as a brakeman.
On that night, we were in downtown Troup, Texas switching box cars in and out onto the main track so that they could be picked up by another train coming through in a few hours.
Since the locomotive had to go out and block a road crossing every now and then, I had to stand in the crossing with my lantern and flare just in case a vehicle approached and couldn’t see the train in the middle of the road.
Just then, a drunk driver being chased by a Texas state trooper came flying up the road doing 110 mph.
You guessed it; me and the front end of the locomotive were slap dab in the middle of the crossing.
The drunk’s car hit a small berm and catapulted in the air.
Now, I don’t remember any of what happened next, but this was what the report from the state trooper and the engineer stated.
Nowhere To Run…
As the car went airborne, my lantern and flare shot about 25 feet into the air over the front end of the locomotive.
The drunk’s car hit the front end of the locomotive cartwheeling around it, flipping numerous times before coming to rest on its side.
The engineer stopped the train, the state trooper jumped out of his car, and two other workers on the job began frantically looking for me.
After 20 minutes they still hadn’t found me, so they went toward the drunk’s car.
The car had flipped 75 yards down the road before coming to rest on its side.
As they approached the car, the conductor noticed something halfway between both ends of the car.
He walked up shining his lantern to get a better look, and that’s where he found me.
I was on the ground two feet from the car, and if it had rolled one more time, it would have crushed me.
Flying Can Be Hazardous To Your Health…
When I was hit, the lantern, flare, and my body are what were seen flying over the locomotive.
The impact had catapulted me 75 yards down the road.
When they found me, all I had on were my tee shirt, underwear, and socks. It had literally knocked me out of my clothes.
I was unconscious and near dead when the ambulance arrived. They frantically worked on me all the way to the hospital, which was 20 miles away.
When I opened my eyes, all I could see was bright white.
It was puzzling. Where was I? What happened?
Then a figure disrupted the brightness.
It was the face of my new bride crying with a smile as she looked down at me.
I had been unconscious for five days.
The Truth Doesn’t Always Set You Free…
While freaking out over these questions and circumstances, a doctor entered the room.
He said, “The impact of the car hitting you at 110 mph should have burst you like a balloon, and it is only by the grace of God you’re alive. This is the only explanation we have for you surviving the impact.
You have multiple deep lacerations on various areas of your body, but a shattered right femur is the most serious of your injuries.”
A complete prognosis of what my future would look like would be available shortly after surgery.
Not Too Pleased With Where Life Was Heading
Surgery was a so-called success according to the doctors.
Their prognosis of my future was more on the line of unthinkable.
I would have limited mobility in my leg for the rest of my life, so I just needed to accept the fact that I’d need to make changes to my lifestyle.
They continued to caution me on what to do and not do when released, yadda-yadda-yadda.
“Bullshit!”
I’d heard enough.
By the sound of things, life wasn’t heading in the direction I thought it would, especially for the next two years or so.
What You Do Today Affects Your Life Tomorrow, But How Is Up To You…
After being at home for a while dealing with the pain and the thoughts of what the doctors told me was near unbearable.
Then one day, it finally all came to a head. My pity party of why me had to cease. I needed to take control of changing my life for the better.
So I came up with a plan — not too smart of a plan, or so I thought since everyone was all about setting goals back then.
Not me — I decided to make a shit list of what I hated in my life, and at the top of it was the doctors’ prognosis.
My Shit List
- I would be on crutches a minimum of 18 months Bullshit! Within 12 months, I would be walking without crutches.
- I would have to use a cane just to walk. Bullshit! Within 18 months, I would be running.
- I would have limited mobility in my leg for the rest of my life with numerous complications. Bullshit! Within 24 months, my leg would be fine, without any difficulties, and it wouldn’t change anything.
I taped my list on the refrigerator door so it would be staring me in the face every time I entered the kitchen.
When I did, it would make me so mad that my blood would feel like it was boiling and ready to erupt like a violent volcano.
As months passed, I noticed something shocking. My blood wasn’t boiling like it did in the beginning.
Instead, after looking at the list for a few minutes, I’d just walk away with no real emotional ties to the words anymore.
It’s All About Attitude
I noticed my attitude, belief, and confidence were all soaring like a powerful eagle in the sky.
Doubts, fears, and questions about my recovery and the doctors’ prognosis were all fading away.
My mission — 100% recovery, no crutches, no canes, and do whatever I wanted.
Well, here’s how it ended up.
In 12 months, I was walking without crutches or a cane. In 18 months, I was jogging. In 24 months, I was back to being my old self.
Even though the doctors said it was a one-in-a-million shot to have such a successful recovery, I knew exactly what was behind it all.
Faith, a positive mindset, along with a never give up attitude.
Everyone has challenges, and we all experience them in one form or another.
The most terrifying of them all is, when you wake up one morning realizing your life hasn’t turned out the way you thought it would.
Fortunately, you don’t have to live life this way.
I stated earlier, “I came up with a plan — not too smart of a plan or so I thought at the time.”
Making my Shit List helped me eradicate the emotional strain, build confidence, and boost my self-esteem enough to overcome the challenges in my life.
And it began with taking action.
Create your own shit list for success.
Mirror Mirror On The Wall
The reflection you see in a mirror is who you are; the image looking back sees who you can be.
Face it — if you’re sick and tired of the direction your life is heading, and if you want to design a life you truly desire, you must escape the I-Robot or zombie mentality that society has impregnated your mind with.
You’ve let someone rob you of your dreams. The essence of who you are and who you can be.
There’s no way you can just sit back hoping and praying that life will get better through some immaculate conception.
It takes guts along with determination and perspiration to get what you want out of life.
The image in the mirror looking back at you is a genius and knows how to get what you want.
No one on this planet is just like you.
You are a unique, special one-of-a-kind creation with abilities to create the life you desire.
The one-of-a-kind fingerprints, DNA, and brainwave patterns you possess validate this.
So take charge of your life, start dreaming, and live life on your own terms.
Mirror mirror on the wall, am I a success after all?
You can be!
Bio
Gregory Henderson is an unorthodox life change architect. His mission eradicates false beliefs and helps individuals get Fired Up! About living and loving life on their own terms.
Get his free True Story: Success Beyond Your Comfort Zone
Image Courtesy of Rich Roberts
I loved the article but I can’t agree with one point – It’s All about Attitude! While attitude plays a very big role in every result that we get, it’s not necessarily the only contributor for what happens in our lives. We can certainly create a right attitude, but without the strong will, unbeatable decision and crystal clear goals of what we want, followed by unbreakable persistence on our journey, it’s very unlikely that we’ll ever get to where we’re going.
But of course, all of these things when combined with the right attitude, the whole process will be even faster and more effective.
Thanks for the good article!
P.S. I loved the part about the Shit List. I’ll definitely create my own tonight! :)
Thanks for the comment Lukovski Z,
Great insight and you hit the nail right on the head, I agree with you 100%.
However I have learned through my experiences with people trying to make change in their lives, if a great positive attitude isn’t in place first, their staying power diminishes very rapidly.
Today in this chaotic world we live in most people have difficulty with being strong willed, decisive, and persistent with clear goals of what they want in life.
Their immediate attention is on survival, just figuring out a way to pay the bills for next month. This is a sad situation because they have lost control and now let fear and anxiety rule their lives.
This is exactly the reason I created lifechangearchitect.com to help individuals to overcome situation like this.
And that’s why I believe individuals like yourself and I have the responsibility to do whatever we can to help those in need.
Really appreciate your comment and glad you’re trying the shit list tool, it has helped me for quite a few years now. It’s been the pathway for me to getting unstuck in all sorts of life situations.
Thanks
Thanks for the comment Cathy, I’m glad you found my story inspiring. We all have an inspiring story within us just begging to be told. It doesn’t have to be on a blog or in writing for that matter. Just by telling your story to others might touch someone’s life for the better, you never know who’s listening.
Thanks again, Cathy
That was very inspiring! Thank you for sharing.
A truly amazing story. Couldn’t believe I’ll be reading this when I should be doing something else. Now I got your message, going back to take charge of my life.
Thanks for writing this Greg. I think it’s for me.
Michael thanks for the comment and I’m glad you got the message. You’re right it’s time to take charge of your life, but there’s more to it than just taking charge.
You need to get fired up about living and loving your new life to the fullest, as well.
Because it will not only rejuvenate the power within you, but will touch family, friends, and the world around you making it a better place for all of us.
Thanks again Michael we all need a little help sometimes, let me know if I can do anything.
Great Story!!! Thank you for sharing it!
Thanks Dave, glad you liked it, and hope it touched you in the right spot, the heart! We all need to come together to encourage each other to be all we were meant to be. Helping one another reach our potential will literally set the world on fire, and change it for the better.
Thanks again Dave
Well, Gregory, your story sure helped me get Fired Up about living and loving life on my own terms. You certainly did take control of your life and change it for the better. Your words, “You are a unique, special one-of-a-kind creation with abilities to create the life you desire” should inspire us all. Many thanks for sharing your story.
I think stories of ‘ordinary’ people doing extraordinary things are so cool.
It’s easy to disassociate ourselves from super famous successful people, but when we hear stories like Gregory’s it becomes more tangible and achievable.
Jenna thanks for the great comment, I’m so glad it got you fired up!
Anyone can take control of their lives, they just need a powerful why to make the change. As I indicated in my story, it was the thought of not being able to do the things that I wanted to do in life, which got me so fired up.
There comes a time in everyone’s life when enough is enough, and that’s the time when you really find out if your why is adequate.
If you don’t know who you are deep within the battle is over before it ever gets started, and you continue living with the I-Robot syndrome. But if you really know who the individual is that resides in the flesh, then that knowledge will create a spark that will grow no matter what obstacles are forced upon it.
From a small spark to a burning inferno is what getting Fired Up is all about. A why that is white hot with desire or frustration as in my case.
Thanks again for the comment, Jenna.
I truly enjoyed reading this post. Probably especially so because it touches on topics discussed by Tim in his blog, i.e. faith / positive mindset / never-give-up-attitude and ACTION. I think that the first three are necessary to kick-start the action, but without faith (in yourself in this context) and a positive mindset, the action will in all likelihood not occur.
And what a true sentence in Patricia’s comment – “he was having too much fun being a defeatist”! That is the case with people who are in love with their “shortcomings”, with their ailments – often because they are supposed to elicit the “poor you” commiserations from others – they don’t want to be healed …defeatists are emotional vampires, energy drainers and it’s best to either stay away from them if you can, or not buy into their little mind machinations.
But we need more of these inspirational stories that show us the power of acting positively, consistently and with unwavering faith in a successful outcome on a “Shit List”. Here’s another one:
My Karate Instructor had a mishap early in his career, where he almost single-handedly ripped off his left arm with a stupid gymnastics stunt. To cut a long story short, his arm had to be screwed into his shoulder with the prognosis that he would never be able to use it again – for anything! This wouldn’t do for Sensei Johan…for years he continued practicing punches with his left arm – the practice being in mind only, as the limb hung limp and lifeless to his side and wouldn’t even twitch. After three years’ unwavering belief that he would disprove the medical prognosis, that he would be able to use his left arm again, after three years – in the Dojo – practicing his left-arm punch…one day… the arm twitched! And later, when I trained with him, his left punch could shatter whatever he chose to hit! Today, after starting out as a Motorcycle salesman, he is not only a Company Managing Director, but a world-class, 5th Dan Karateka. He is another living example of faith, positive never-give-up attitude and action.
Michael your words pierce the heart, they are so true, without faith / positive mindset / never-give-up-attitude and ACTION, one will never see dreams come true.
They are the building blocks. You have to have faith in yourself to develop the positive mindset, that give the courage to never give up, which will create the action plan to succeed.
All this can be possible to the one who really knows who they are, but that’s the never ending problem, most people don’t really knows who they are. They’re plagued with the I-Robot syndrome and can’t make decisions for their own lives.
Plus you’re so right about needing more inspirational stories, we need to encourage one another to be what we were meant to be, happy with a purpose.
Thanks for the comment, great insight, and sharing.
It’s time to get Fired Up! About living and loving life to the fullest on your own terms
Wow that’s awesome.
Now we know that the brain can literally rewire itself so people have even less reason to give up.
You’re so right Tim, but most individuals have been stricken with the I-Robot Syndrome for so long it has become a reality escape for them.
Now they just lounge around getting fat and lazy, and I’m not talking about a physical weight problem here, but one of the mind.
The mind has been weighted down with so much bullshit, put out by society, social media, big corporations, and governments that getting fat and lazy has made giving up easy.
And we all want easy, right?
The sad part is, if only we would let the brain, as you stated rewire itself, the whole world would be a better place.
Thanks Tim for the insight.
And thanks for a great post and getting involved in the comments mate!
I met a early 30-something guy on the Light Rail a few years back and was talking to him about his ankle, which had a cast or wrapping around it (I can’t remember which).
He was very down about it and said he’d have to change jobs, as he was in the kind of job where he needed to stand a lot. I mentioned various and sundry resources that he could look into as far as the pain he was having, exercises for strengthening his ankle, and a few other points.
At every suggestion, I was shot down. “No, it will probably just…” Our conversation ended with him saying “I’ll probably just be like this for the rest of my life.”
And you know what? He was right!!!! He was having too much fun being a defeatist.
I think of him sometimes, and tell myself not to be my version of him. I needed to do this today. So, even though my meeting with him didn’t accomplish anything from his point of view, it sure as hell did from mine.
Thank you so much for your comment Patricia.
Your experience with the young man is exactly why Life Change Architect was created. I have come in contact with too many individuals who have given up, because they think they aren’t good enough, smart enough, worthy enough, to live the life they desire.
Excused me, but that’s Bullshit!
We all have a wonderful life just waiting on us to take control of, but society has stripped us of our belief in ourselves. The chaotic world we live in has literally stolen the dreams we once had.
Society has set a standard for success in every area of our lives, and that standard is nothing less than perfection. Now I ask, how many of these perfect people do we see in this world of ours? NONE!
Why, because they don’t exist, they are made up to profit someone.
We as individuals have the power within ourselves to create the life we so desperately desire, but we have to take the first step, and never give up until we succeed, and it all begins with attitude.
It’s time to get Fired Up! About living and loving life to the fullest on your own terms.
Thanks again Patricia
You don’t need excusing for calling a spade a spade mate!
Great story!