“You are not to be denied” — A new and powerful mantra for success by Jim Loehr, a high performance athlete coach.
Who doesn’t enjoy a Tim Ferriss podcast?
For Entrepreneurs, self-improvement junkies, and high-performance individuals worldwide, I don’t think there is anywhere that compares to the insight and knowledge that can be absorbed from this podcast.
Lately, I listened to an interview between Tim and the high-performance athlete coach, Jim Loehr.
There are so many moments within this interview that I could pluck and relay to the aspiring entrepreneur — like myself — but one five-word sentence stuck with me and has become my new mantra for success…
YOU ARE NOT TO BE DENIED.
On a day where I was doubting my abilities, doubting my resilience, and losing confidence in myself to achieve everything I had longed for in business and in life, Jim dropped this pearl of wisdom among a sea of pure gold…
The World Doesn’t Owe You Anything, You Owe Yourself…
I have altered this mantra for success to become one that works for me.
It is now written in my journal, as the closing sentence, every single day…
I will not be denied.
Understand that this is not a shout-out or a demand for the rest of the world, this is encouragement for yourself. The world does not owe us anything. We have no right to scream at the rest of humanity, “You will not deny me my success!”
No. Let’s get this clear… You must not deny YOURSELF. It’s time to stop beating yourself up and give yourself what you deserve.
This is a mantra for success that can infuse you with the go-getter’s outlook. At the beginning of a startups journey, drive and tenacity to keep pushing forward are essential. The likelihood of failure is almost guaranteed but you will DENY YOURSELF of success if you do not find a way to keep moving forward.
It is up to you to harness the mental strength required to do this. It is not for us to request that everyone else clear the path and lay down a red carpet. Please.
You must carve your own path on your hands and knees until your fingers are bleeding, your nails are peeling off and your back is broken (metaphorically, of course).
Every single day I repeat this new mantra for success over and over to myself
I will not be denied because I see challenge as opportunity and make it work in my favor.
I will not be denied because, despite all of my failures, I am learning from my mistakes in order to do better next time.
I will not be denied because I am dedicated to learning.
I will not be denied because I am willing to sacrifice things I enjoy to MAKE THIS WORK.
I will not be denied because I am earning the right to my success through persistence and dedication to my craft/trade.
I will not be denied because when things get tough, I embrace the struggle and find the lesson within them to move forward with positive intention.
I will not be denied because no-one is working harder and no-one wants this more than I do.
This little line has guts, intention, and would be made of steel if it were embodied as a physical object. Adopt this mantra and see how your mindset shifts from hesitant to unstoppable.
Natural-Born Talent Doesn’t Guarantee A God Damn Thing
And then you have others who are these, what we call the natural ones, who don’t have to work that hard, but they’re willing to put up with it and they just don’t like failure, they don’t like to fail, so they work hard enough so they don’t fail. — Jim Loehr
During this interview, the discussion led to matters of talent. Natural-born talent.
Of course, my curiosity piqued.
I don’t like to toot my own horn but in some areas of life, I do consider myself to have natural-born talent. For example, my artistic flair. I have never properly studied art; the refinement of color matching, drawing in perspective, working with shade and tone… but I can pick up a paintbrush and work with a blank canvas to create a piece that others consider to be ‘incredible’.
I don’t see it, but I’ve been told often enough now to believe that perhaps it is true.
However, in the areas of my life that I give the most time and attention to, where my true PASSIONS lie, I don’t consider myself overly talented.
I do not have a flair for business. I don’t find it easy to comprehend the entrepreneur mindset. Writing is something that I am constantly working to improve on because I cannot make words sing on the page the way Shakespeare could… yet.
But, according to Jim and Tim, there is something that is far more integral to a person’s success which is why ‘no talent‘ shouldn’t stop you.
Something that, when utilized, you can say with certainty that you will not be denied…
Drive, Grit, Determination, and Persistence.
People who are driven, Angela Duckworth calls it grit, that takes a lot of different forms. Can be persistence, determination, but it means somehow this sport has captured your interest, your passion, and come hell or high water, you’re going to be good. — Jim Loehr
Talent counts for very little if it isn’t utilized.
Talent doesn’t mean that someone has a great work ethic or is free from a shitty attitude problem and it doesn’t guarantee success because it isn’t always regarded highly enough by its owner.
To have natural talent can be considered a bonus.
To have the drive, grit, determination, and persistence to make this thing, this goal, whatever it may be, WORK… that’s where the real talent lies. And in this interview, Jim expresses that if you can harness that drive — rollover setbacks, adjust your trajectory, and keep going no matter what — then you are not to be denied the success that is rightfully yours.
Which is exactly why this mantrs for success is so damn powerful.
The real talent is dedication.
Think of all the successes in history from athletes, musicians, entrepreneurs, artists, writers, etc… No matter what talent they possessed (or didn’t) the real talent that they all have in common is dedication.
Dedication is what fuels an aspiring entrepreneur.
You want it, you’re hungry for it, you’re ready to live life differently from everything you’ve ever known thus far. But we all know that startup life is a shifty bastard. Many will have to try multiple ideas, multiple times, and start multiple times over before even getting the first sniff of success.
But you are not to be denied if you refocus and make dedication the true talent. Top entrepreneurs and artists understand this…
JK Rowling famously wrote Harry Potter from her tiny flat whilst living off state benefits.
Nick Woodman failed at creating FunBug and lost investors millions before the invention of GoPro
Walt Disney was living on dog food, had his first character stolen from underneath him, and was rejected by MGM the first time he pitched Mickey Mouse.
Thomas Edison famously took over one thousand attempts to invent the light bulb.
The ability to bounce back and keep going is integral. Talent isn’t going to help much in overcoming failure and objections, but the determination to keep going will.
Making This Work For You
I’ve never been once for mantras or affirmations. Occasionally I’ve felt a tad desperado and told myself, “I am Emma Loveday, and I can do this”
I don’t feel like a complete idiot chanting this to myself in the bathroom mirror. It’s certainly been my go-to pick-me-up when I’ve needed an internal boost.
Yet, this new mantra for success has sparked something in me that has lit a fire under my backside like Pop-eye on too much spinach…
This is not because I wasn’t determined enough to live this entrepreneurial life, but that I was slowly coming to believe that perhaps I just didn’t have what it took to succeed.
But… I will not be denied.
I can recognize that everything in my journey thus far does in fact prove that I have the drive, grit, determination, and persistence to get to where I want to be. There have been many failures and there will be many more. The setbacks have been many but perhaps not enough yet for me to fully understand how to get from point A to point B.
There is weight to this mantra.
It is emboldening. It makes me feel strong and it makes me feel DESERVING because I can see that my actions align with the truth of it — hard work, passion, commitment, and sacrifice will always pay off for those who earn it.
Your new mantra for success…
You are not to be denied.
To get you started, take a look at the Top 10 Best Life-Changing Books that I recommend to all of my readers who are ready to transform their lives!
