"If you want something you've never had, you must be willing to do something you have never done." -Thomas Jefferson

Today ⬇️

I help people build up their skills, confidence and networks.

Brands to scale up their reach, awareness, and engagement.

And businesses to grow their customers/communities, revenues/profits, and ultimately their ability to make a much larger impact.

Truth is, I wanted this life a long time ago.

But I wasn't fully prepared for what I would have to do to make it happen.

So for a few years I meandered on the path.

As Matthew McConaughey would say... "Don't Half Ass It."

I was half-assing it across the board.

Aesthetically fit, yet I couldn't run more than a mile or two without being completely exhausted for the rest of the day.

I had a lot of book knowledge and smarts, yet lacked a lot of real world in the trenches experiences.

Preaching to others about health, while on weekends I would binge drink and every night I would smoke weed because I "needed" it to sleep.

And then it all changed.

I still remember the end of 2019 like it was yesterday.

Erin and I were having some hard conversations around where our lives... specifically my life was going.

At the time I was going on 3 years in the full-time entrepreneurial game I had entered.

And other than a large network, and several up and down projects, I didn't have too much to show for it.

Something needed to change.

In those moments I knew I had two choices.

I could give up, throw the white towel in, and use my well earned engineering degree to go back to a life I left.

Orrrrrrr

I could double down and take on some bigger risks.

If you know me, you know I will always pick choice two.

But it wasn't just about me, I had Erin to factor into this equation.

And fortunately I have her, someone who understood that if I didn't chase the dream I set out on bringing to reality...

Then I wouldn't bring my fullest self to the world, and that would impact everything and everyone around me, including her.

So what did we do?

In December of 2019

1. We bought an investment property. Here is a photo the day we closed on the property.

2.Signed a two-year lease to a "live-work" space where I could train clients, consult brands/businesses, host events, podcast with guests, and ultimately grow the THRIVEONLIFE brand to the next stage of its existence. Here is a photo the day I moved some equipment into our rental office.

Here is a fun fact...

The lease to this above cost me $3600 a month.

EXPENSIVE.

But I live by the motto "bite of more than you can chew, and then chew like hell."

Chew like hell is what I did.

For the next month I hustled to get the space ready so that I could start utilizing it and generating a larger revenue.

I ordered/built the furniture.

Pieced together the equipment I needed for the gym.

And slowly but surely it started to come together!

By the end of January 2020 I got the space up and running.

I was damn proud of myself!

I started co-working sessions.

Hosted lunch and learns.

Held masterminds.

Trained a few clients.

Began my journey of building a more established brand.

And one of my favorite parts...

Being able to show my mom the space.

This woman has been there believing in me and being my biggest fan since I was able to walk.

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For a very short time from Dec 2019 - End of February 2020 my dream came to life.

And then the world came to a complete stop.

...but my $3600 rent was still due even though I could not longer use my space the way I wanted to.

I am not going to use today's message to talk about what I did to stay afloat during the pandemic.

All I want you to know is that not only did I survive, it forced me to get creative and really test my skills as an entrepreneur... and I came out THRIVING because of it.

For two years there was no "half-assing" it at all.

I had no choice but to show up every day and absolutely grind it out.

And what this led to was a completely transformed me.

I quit drinking and smoking.

I started to run everyday and take better care of myself physically, mentally , and spiritually.

I gained experiences that nobody can ever take away from me.

A few bullets from that time...

I got to work on businesses that were making 100k+ a month, I helped interns become entrepreneurs, I strengthened my marriage with Erin, and most importantly, I began to truly love and believe in myself.

I am telling you all of this because you may be face with a similar situation in your own life right now.

Do you take the predictable, more comfortable path?

Or do you choose to take the bigger risk? The path that will force you NOT to half-ass it.

You clearly know which one I would recommend you to choose.

It has to be done by you though!

I am just here to give you the confidence to make the choice.

As well as show you this quote that may help...

Make your choice.

Don't half ass it.

And along the way choose to make the best of everything that comes at you.

#thriveon

CJ

p.s. today I am grateful for the time I got to spend with Erin's sister and her husband the past couple days. Seeing them get to spend time with Aiden was so fulfilling.