The Day That Turns Your Life Around — Jim Rohn’s Ultimate Life Philosophy

Before we start, quick moment with you. If life feels a little heavy lately, you're not broken, you're just carrying too much without structure. Jim Rohn taught that progress doesn't begin with motivation, it begins with a decision you support daily. There's a simple system linked below this episode that helps you follow through, especially on the days you don't feel like it. No pressure, let's get into today's lesson. Let me just quickly give you a list of four emotions that can change your life in one day. Emotions are powerful. Sometimes it doesn't take much to alter your whole life direction. Okay, here they are. Number one, Disgust, powerful emotion. Disgust says I had it. See, that could be the day. The day you can say I've had it. And whether you've had it with something small or something major, the day you can say I've had it may not be the day it ends, but the day it begins. That's what I said when that little girl scout left my door when I'm 25. I give her the big lie, she leaves, I say. I don't want to live like this any more. I've had it with lion and being broke. Powerful day. The man's finally had it with mediocrity. He's had it with being a loser. He's finally had it with those awful sick feelings inside, knowing his wife is at the grocery store, looking at two cans of beans, one mark 37 cents, one mark 39 cents, and the guy sick inside knows. His wife's going to buy the 37 cent can, and she doesn't even like the brand. Do you know why she's going to buy the 37 cent can? To save, to sin. The guy sick inside finally says, "I've had it being on my knees and the dust looking for pennies, we're not living like this any more." Could be the day that turns your life around. The day you can say, "I've had it." He walks into his closet and rips everything in it to shreds and says, "I've worn this embarrassing stuff for the last talk." And not only will I never wear it again, no one else will ever wear it again. Commit an act that says, "I've had it." Powerful. Here's the next one, decision. And decision-making is powerful, and it's emotional. That's those knots in the pittier's demographic, right? Waking up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat, trying to decide. We sometimes call it inner civil war. What shall I do? Well, for progress, you must decide. The best advice I can give you came from a wealthy friend of mine who said, "If it's easy, do it easy. If it's hard, do it hard. Just get it done." If you went home tonight, and in the next few days, cleaned up a whole list of decisions, that might furnish enough inspiration for the next 10 years. I found this out many times after you've decided getting on with it is easier than deciding. Sometimes decision is the toughest part. Here's the next emotion, desire, wanting too bad enough. And I don't know how to tell you to want to. That's something you've got to come up with. There's two things I know about desire. Number one, it comes from inside, not outside. You don't send off for it. Number two, I know desire can be triggered by something. Who knows what it might be? Sometimes desire waits and sleeps for something to happen. Maybe it's a book, maybe it's a song, maybe it's a sermon, maybe it's a lecture, a seminar, maybe it's the conversation of a friend, a happening, an event. Who knows? The best I can, vice I can give you is what I give my staff. It goes like this, welcome every human experience. You never know which one is going to turn it all on. Even the bad experience, sometimes from the bitterest experience comes the greatest awakening. So let down the barriers, take down the walls, the same wall that keeps out disappointment, keeps out happiness. Let life touch you, don't let it kill you, but let it touch you. Here's the last one. This one's powerful, resolve. Resolve says I will. Two of the most powerful words in the language I will. Benjamin Disraeli once said nothing can resist a human will. That will stake even its existence on the extent of its purpose. Shortly put, I'll do it or die. See, that's powerful. That could be the day that turns your life around. The world has a strange way of stepping aside when somebody says I'll do it or die. The man says I will climb the mountain. They've told me it's too high, it's too far, it's too rocky, it's too difficult, it's never been done before, but it's my mountain I will climb it. Pretty soon you'll see me waving from the top or dead on the side because I ain't coming back. The best definition I ever got from the word resolve came from a little junior high girl in foster city California up north. I'm talking to the junior high kids one day. I love to ask kids definitions. They come up with beauties. I got to the word resolve and I asked who couldn't tell me what resolve means and I got several hands and they were all pretty good but the last one was the best. Little girl about three rows back. Tell her her hand. She said Mr. Real, Mr. Real. I think I know what resolve means. I said darling what do you think it means. She said I think it means promising yourself you will never give up. I said that's it. Webster stand aside. That is the definition. Promise yourself you will never give up. I asked the kids how long should a baby try to learn how to walk. How long? How long would you give your average baby before you shut them off? How long? See any mother in the world say you're crazy. My baby is going to keep trying until it learns how to walk. What a magic formula. Now let me show you what triggers all emotions into activity that brings results and results is the name of the game. Here it is. Action. Finally, you must do something about how you feel. Jesus the master teacher said dog just be listeners. Be doers. The world admires. The doers. Another Bible phrase says faith without action is useless. Some people these days are big on affirmations. You've got to be very careful of affirmations. There's a thin line between faith and folly. The best clue I can give you on affirmations is this. Affirmation without discipline is the beginning of delusion and there's nothing worse than delusion. The guy keeps walking west looking for the sunrise. I mean delusion is bad. However, affirmation with discipline can bring the most spectacular results. When the Jewish people surveyed the Holocaust at the end of World War II and for them it was a Holocaust. 39 million people lost their lives. World War II. 19 million were Russian but compared to the population it was not quite the Holocaust visited on the Jewish people. 6 and 1/2 million Jews perished World War II. 6 and 1/2 million that was a Holocaust after Hitler's final solution and the Nazi Jack Boots and Eichmann and Bournemann had done their evil task. 6 and 1/2 million. When the Jewish people count of the dead surveyed the Holocaust and mourned the loss. Those that survived together said never again. that. was the affirmation. Never again. Will we take our families silently walk to the box cars and let them ship us through the night to Auschwitz? Never. Well, that's good to make an affirmation. But the next question is, what are you going to do to back up the affirmation? They said, well, number one, we'll build a nation. Then they said, we'll build an army. Wow. And a navy, my. And an air force, and we'll buy some bombs, my. And some bullets, wow. We'll spend a big portion of the national treasure. We'll even spend some of Israel's finest lives. We mean it. Never again. That's called backing up affirmation with discipline. Does it work? Well, yes. They've been tested four times in war on their affirmation in the last 25 years. Four times major. The next to the last war was called the six-day war, as if to say, didn't we tell you? Never. Make sure you always have a game plan to match your wishes. Otherwise, they will always be wishes. The day that turns your life around. Let me give you four questions to take home when we're finished. These are called questions to ponder. And this wraps it up. Gosh, you've been a great audience tonight. How fantastic for so many people here. It's been unbelievable. I really enjoyed it. I could talk all night, but-- [INAUDIBLE] I'm staying here, right? So I got it made, right? You got some ways to go. OK, here's the questions I want you to take home, in closing. First question is one of the major questions of the world. Why? Why should you try? Why read that many books? Why go that far? Why earn that much? Why share that much? Why learn all that? Why get up that early? Why put yourself through that much? Why try for all that? Good question. Why? One of the best answers to why is the second question. Why not? What else are you going to do with your life? Why not see how many books you can read? How far you can go? How much you can earn? How many friends you can make? How much personality you can develop? Influence you can have. How many things you can accomplish? How far you can go? And what you can see? Why not? You got to stay here, too? You go. Why not? The third question is, why not you? Why not you? Some people have done the most incredible things with limited start. Why not you? Some people have done so well. They get to go. They get to see it all. They get to do it. They get to be there. They get to have it. They get to enjoy it. Why not you? Why not you watching the morning mist rise over the mountains of Scotland, exploring the mysteries of Spain, soaking up history and London? Why not you? You got to take a stroll through the palace of Versailles. Why not? You. You got to have lunch in one of those neat little sidewalk cafes in Paris. I mean, Denny's is OK. You got to try. Perez, someday you got to gaze directly at the Mona Lisa. I can show you where to find the most exquisite seashells in Miami and the Bahamas. I know where they are. Why not you? You got to shop on Fifth Avenue in New York. You got to stay at the Waldorf Astoria, have dinner at Luchaus, slice roast goose on a bed of apple struple. Why not you? You got to drink in an Arizona sunset. You got to see the world. You got to read the books. You've got to do the enterprises. You've got to be involved in commerce and love and travel and experiences. You got to do it all. Why not you? You've got to know the results that come from Splendid Discipline. There's nothing like a view from the top. And the last question is, why not now? Don't postpone your better future any longer. Get at it tomorrow with new vigor. Get you some new books. Ask some new questions. Set some new goals. Get you a new journal. Start your project's book. Get a game plan going. Do some more reading. Start to make changes. Have conversations. Make contact. And do it now. And if you will, I have a feeling. One of these days we'll be hearing your story. You'll make us a phone call, write us a letter. Get in touch with this and let us know what's happening to you. I want to thank you for being here. My final comment would be, ask for God's help. Which may sound a little strange coming from a strictly commercial company. We are not a religious order, but if you would allow me a personal word, that would be it. I think humans are unique, but we could all use a little help. But of course, you've got to do your part. That's what we've talked about mainly to. And I do your part, and I think God will do his part. It's a two-way street. And we do play a part. There's a story about the man who took a rock pile in two years turned it into a fabulous garden. People came from everywhere to see it. One day a guy came by. I saw the garden, thought it was fabulous. But he wanted to make sure the gardener didn't take all the credit. So to get his point across, he meets the gardener, shakes his hand, and says, Mr. Gardener, remember you and the good Lord together have this beautiful garden here. And the gardener said, hey, I understand that. I know what you mean. He said, if it wasn't for the sunshine and the rain, and the miracle of the seed and the soil and the seasons, there would be no garden for sure. But he said, you know, you should have seen this place a couple of years ago when God had it all by himself. [LAUGHTER] And I think that's true. We do play a part. I'm glad I was not an angel. I think humans have a lot more fun. You've made it a splendid evening, and I want to wish you the very best. Look forward to seeing you on the weekend. Make sure we get the little white slip of paper. And let's be in touch. I wish you the best. Good night, God bless. [APPLAUSE] Thank you. Thank you. Appreciate it. Thank you.