Bring it 2021! Day 7 of 75 Hard

Focus on yourself to be successful in everything you do in life.

What do you look like when you focus on yourself? Are you where you want to be? Are you on the road to where you want to be? Do you know where you want to be?

Easy questions right.... wrong. That last question is something I’ve struggled with all my life. I’ve always looked ahead to something vague and broad. I’m not really sure why I couldn’t focus down on what I wanted. I think it is part of that inward journey we are all on for a lifetime.

Growing up the first passion I remember is playing base. I started in the grade school orchestra and moved up. Started playing in jazz band and marching band in jr high and high school. It made me really popular (not). But I enjoyed it and thought this something I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

I had the talent, but the drive to be good enough. Now it’s been years since I’ve touched a base. I still have an electric bass, but it gathers dust.

During high school, I changed my focus and wanted to be a police officer. At the time all I wanted was an adventurous way to help other people. That led me to join the Marine Corps, where they taught me all sorts of bad habits.

I was a good combat Marine, but couldn’t quite get the politics or barracks life. I loved being in the field in learning the craft of infantry. I worked at it and excelled at it. I read every book I could get my hands on about it. That’s how I lovingly got the call sign “brain” because I always had my nose in a book when training wasn’t happening.

Since I didn’t get along with the commanders in the rear (those that didn’t go or didn’t want to go to the field) I wasn’t as successful as I could have been. I got a chance to earn a boatload of money (compared to a Marine was making) to do the same thing as a contractor. So I became a mercenary (for the U.S. Government) and excelled at force protection.

I guarded bases for the U.S. Military in Iraq for a couple of years. There I continued to read everything I could get my hands on. Including a lot of secret and classified documents on war. I had the clearance back then.

For most of my life, I continually worked on the position I was in or the position I wanted to be in. I failed to focus on myself. Take my lesson and focus on yourself.

I would have been wildly more successful if I had focused on being a better me inside the position I was in. Focusing on yourself means looking in the mirror and seeing what kind of person you are, and what can be improved, and then working on it.

Right now my biggest problem is I’m fat. Been that way most of my life. I’ve always known it was a problem but failed to address it any more than I had to. I just barely made the standard to be a Marine my entire career. I barely made the standard for the police academy. I slipped under the radar as a contractor. And as I got older it’s been a problem with my health.

All because I failed to focus on myself. Helping others is a noble goal, but how much better can you be at it, if you are the best you, you can be?

I’ve put a lot of things before myself in my life. Most of them not for a noble goal. But as an excuse not to fix me.

I’m now 43 years old and just figuring out that I need to start fixing myself first, and then can help others.

It’s not about stopping everything else you are doing to focus on yourself, it’s about taking time every day to focus on yourself so that you can get on the right path. Once you are on the right path in life you will be able to help so many more people.

And you don’t have to be perfect to start or do anything. You just have to do it. Focus on yourself.

I’m chronically my journey here to help you. Most of what I learn on my 75 Hard Challenges is nothing new. I heard it all before. I’ll be someone else who has told you to focus on yourself first. On an airplane is always the example given, put your mask on first and then... I’m tired of hearing it! But now I’m getting it.

I want to be a better person and help you be a better person. From there we can all help one more person, and then another and another. And, I’m hoping, we can make the world a better place.

Are you with me? Try the 75 Hard Challenge yourself. You’ll learn things about yourself, and it will make you a better person.

Now, focus on yourself.

Ben Branam

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