Chapter 1 - Guidelines for a Healthy and Successful Life

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Don’t Let Setbacks Set You Back

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In order to be really successful in life, you have to learn to deal with adversity. If you study the really successful
people in the world, both past and present, you will find that they are people who keep trying even when they consistently
fail. Abraham Lincoln, arguably the greatest president the United States ever had, is a prime example of a man who refused
to let failure defeat him. Consider the record of failures Lincoln compiled over the years: in 1831, he failed in business; in
1832, he was defeated for the Legislature; in 1833, he again failed in
business; in 1836, Lincoln suffered a nervous breakdown; in 1838, he was
defeated for Speaker of the House; in 1840, he was defeated for the Elector;
in 1843, he was defeated for the Senate; in 1856, he was defeated for the
vice-presidency; in 1856, he was again defeated for the Senate. Finally, in
1860, he won something…the Presidency of the United States. Isn‟t that
incredible? Lincoln‟s not the only person to rise above his failures and
become successful. In fact, history is full of such examples.
Walt Disney was fired as a newspaper reporter because he was not a
“creative thinker.” And did you know that he was also given a dishonorable
discharge from the United States Marine Corps School? Leo Tolstoy flunked
out of college and Winston Churchill failed the sixth grade. Jim Plunkett was
cut from his High School football team. Both Mike Tyson and Larry Holmes
were defeated a number of times as amateurs. Curt Leslie lost the first eleven
contests that he entered in powerlifting. Bill Russell was cut from both his
Junior and Senior High School basketball teams when he was in the ninth
grade. Roger Staubach was at best a mediocre football player in High School.
O.J. Simpson was such a bad running back in Junior College that they made
him a defensive tackle. And here‟s something that really boggles the mind.
Sholly Mahn was completely paralyzed as a child, but went on to win two
gold medals in the 1964 Olympics at the age of fifteen.
There are literally thousands of people who have achieved
greatness by overcoming failure and/or adversity. The world belongs to
such people. Perhaps Martin Luther King Jr. put it best when he said,
“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of
comfort and convenience, but where he stands in moments of challenge
amid controversy.”
You know, most people invariably assume that adversity is
inherently bad. We don‟t believe that for a second. Show us a man who
hasn‟t had adversity in this life and we show you someone who hasn‟t
lived. Adversity constitutes a sign of life. In fact, we would venture to say
that the more adversity you have, the more alive you are. Adversity helps
you grow, it builds character and endurance.
Ardis Whitman said, “If we live our lives well in suffering,
hardship, or failure, if we can use all our talents and courage, then
something of great worth will emerge and be added to the common good.” This longing to beat the odds, to conquer our own
weaknesses, has carried humanity through its long history. Undoubtedly, the true measure of any man is how well he deals
with adversity. Of course, the question still remains . . . how do you deal with adversity? Well, in all candor, that‟s not the
easiest question in the world to answer. After all, people who have a whole lot of letters behind their name have written
entire books about that very subject. We don‟t claim to be as intelligent or prolific, but we do believe we can give you a few
suggestions that might help. First of all, we think Saint Francis had a pretty good idea. How does it go? “God grant me the
strength to change the things I can, the patience to bear those things that I cannot change and the wisdom to know the
difference.”
There are a lot of things in this life over which you have no control; natural disasters or what insurance companies
call “Acts of God.” On the other hand, we‟re not exactly helpless . . . otherwise the notion of “free will” would never have
been necessary. It has been said that the trials of life are far less important than how one deals with them. Sometimes you
can‟t choose what happens to you, but you can choose how you will react to the situation. As Saint Francis suggests, there are
two major forces in life, extrinsic and intrinsic. We have little control over extrinsic forces such as illness, injuries, or pain.
What really matters is how you handle the intrinsic forces. That‟s what we have control over.
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Think about Mohammed Ali, one of the greatest fighters who ever lived . . . maybe the greatest. After being
stricken with Parkinson‟s disease, Ali could have quit on life and I don‟t think anyone would have blamed him. Can you
imagine what it must be like for Ali? He went from being
one of the most graceful athletes in the world . . .
remember, he floated like a butterfly . . . to an absolute ∞ WELLNESS FOR LIFE ∞
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motor invalid. Now handicapped, simple daily chores like
putting a key in a lock are a physical challenge. No one
The Rocky Bleir Story.
could blame him for quitting. But Ali is not a quitter. It‟s
not in his character. Every time Ali got knocked down in Have you ever read the Rocky Bleir story? If you
life he always got back up. We are not saying he never haven‟t, do so. It will give you the courage to believe that no
doubted himself, we are sure he did at times, but he never form of adversity is too great to overcome if you believe in
quit. The Parkinson’s disease was something Ali couldn‟t yourself. Bleir was a rookie running back for the Pittsburgh
control, but he had the wisdom and patience to bear it and Steelers when he was drafted into the United States Army,
he had the vision and courage to learn from it. He couldn‟t during the Vietnam War. While fighting on the front line, Bleir
control his circumstances, but he did control his response to had his right leg almost blown off when he stepped on a land
mine. His injury was so bad that doctors wanted to amputate his
his circumstances…THAT‟S WHY HE‟S ALI!
leg, but Bleir wouldn‟t hear any of that type of talk. Not only
Like Ali, when disaster strikes you have a choice did he refuse to have his leg amputated, he swore that he would
to either give up or go ahead. The real champions of life go once again play professional football. Amazingly, Bleir kept his
forward despite being afraid or blocked by obstacles. They promise. Not only did he go on to play professional football for
do what has to be done no matter how hopeless things look eleven seasons, but he also became an All-Pro running back,
or how overwhelming the odds. They are aware that leading the Steelers to an unprecedented four Super Bowl
fighting back may not always restore things to normal, but championships. Here is what Bleir said about his comeback. It
trying always makes things better and provides immense will give you instant inspiration:
self-satisfaction. They are disciples of the classic slogan, After my injury, there was never any doubt in my
“When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” mind that I would play professional football again. I knew that
if I was willing to work hard and kept my faith in God I would
We also believe that persistence is of paramount be back. I believed strongly in God and in myself. I knew that
importance when dealing with adversity. When things between us there was nothing that couldn‟t be handled. I knew I
really look hopeless, that‟s where you have to really suck it would do it. I had to, and I did!
up. You have to think positive. You have to believe that Is that great or what?
you can still achieve your objective provided you persist.
You have to rid yourself of negatives…nothing is hopeless,
nothing is impossible. Such self-defeating words are for
fatalist, not intelligent people. Never say never!
People who say that a state of affairs is beyond
their control are defeated before they even get started. They
are just giving themselves an excuse for giving up too soon.
To be successful, you need to look for the circumstance you
want, and if they aren‟t available, then you manufacture
them. Successful people don‟t look for excuses. They look
for opportunities. They know that there is always a way to
make things work out. That‟s the type of mindset you need
when dealing with adversity. It‟s always too soon to
quit…never quit, and nothing is impossible…nothing.
Of course, when things get tough and your back is
to the wall, that‟s when you really have to plug away.
Refuse to quit. Don‟t even entertain the thought. No matter
how overwhelming the situation seems, it can be handled
provided you‟re patient and persistent. How do you eat an
elephant? One bite at the time! How do you handle adversity? One step at a time! By reinforcing small bits of behavior,
eventually you‟ll get your desired response.
Think about this, it took Thomas Edison almost ten thousand unsuccessful experiments before he invented the light
bulb. It took Jim Fix more than fifteen years to find someone to publish his best selling book, Everything You Wanted to
Know About Running. Steve Young sat on the bench behind Joe Montana for seven years before he got a chance to start for
the San Francisco 49ers. And listen to this, Joe Tanner spent seventeen years in the minor leagues before he was brought up
to the major leagues. Be assured that God is with those who persist patiently. Note also that tough times never last, but tough
people do.
Norman Vincent Peale said something very profound concerning this very issue. He said,
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“If you think defeat, you will foster the circumstances that lead to defeat. If you think inadequacy, you will ultimately fail to
perform in an adequate manner. But if you think victory and success…really think it and believe it, really believe it…you
will perform in a manner that leads to victory and success.”

Do What You Enjoy Doing

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Now here is one more little piece of advice. If you want to get the most out of what you are doing in life, do the
things that you enjoy. In other words, make your work a labor of love. The people who are really successful in life are those
who really enjoy their profession. They work harder and longer because they love what they are doing…when you really
enjoy doing something it‟s not labor it‟s…well, fun. Think about weightlifting for a second…the sport is extremely hard
work. You probably can‟t name a job that is more backbreaking or intense then lifting weights. You know something though,
the guys who are into the sport they don‟t look at it as work. It is truly a labor of love for them. If they miss a day of training
they get upset about it. We know guys who lift weights even when they are dead tired, sick, or injured, and they will never
complain about it. They love it.
That is the way it is with most successful people, they literally work their butts off, but love doing it because they
enjoy what they are doing. It‟s not work to them, it‟s a joy. They get so engrossed in what they are trying to accomplish that
they are totally oblivious to the effort they are putting forth.
Usually, they don‟t even know what time of the day it is. They
work harder and longer them everyone else and they love every
minute of it. That is why they are successful.
Unfortunately, most Americans are not like that. As
soon as they find a job they stop working. When Lee Iacocca
was asked how many people he had working for him he said
“Oh, about 50% of them.” He was probably right too. Most
Americans don‟t like the work they are doing consequently they
don‟t do a good job. Actually, there was a study done by H. M.
Greenberg in which interviewed over 180,000 people about their
employment. Guess what he found out? Over 80% of the
individuals surveyed did not like their jobs. Can you believe
that…80%? No wonder America produces more defective merchandise then any other place in the world and is ranked
second to last in production when compared to the most highly industrialized nations in the world. If you don‟t like what you
are doing you will never do a good job. And that is the way most successful people function…they are not motivated
necessarily by the money, the fame or the status. They are intrinsically driven by the shear joy of what they are doing and
what they are accomplishing. Work gives us more then just our living, it gives us our life. Man is never really happy unless
he is expanding himself and making a contribution to others.
Leo Rosten says “Happiness comes only when we push our brains and hearts to the farthest reaches of which we are
capable…the purpose of life is to matter-to count, to stand for something, to have it make some difference that we lived at
all.”