#139 How To Get Inspiration & Guidance For Your Life

Rachel Denning (00:01.102)
Hey, my friends. Welcome to another episode of the extraordinary family life podcast. I have one amazing question for you. How would your life be different if you had more personal inspiration and guidance for your life? That's a, that's a powerful and a profound thought there, right? That question. Like, wait a minute. If I, if I had more guidance, more inspiration, if I knew what,

to do for each of the important areas of my life, for the challenges, the struggles, the difficulties, the things I want to chase down, would your life be better if you had that inspiration and guidance? And I think all of us say, yeah, absolutely. And at least from my perspective and experience, I think all of us want that. Everyone I've talked to, I...

I mean, that's a bold statement, right? But I think everyone I've ever talked to is just like, yeah, I'd love to have more direction, more guidance. I'd love to know how to do the things that I need and want to do. I mean, how do you, how do you get your spouse or your children to do the things that need to be done? Like, how do you get the guidance to say, Oh, how do I solve this problem? How do I tackle, how do I get to the next level of life? Or how do I,

tackle this obstacle that stands right in my way. I remember desperately wanting and especially in times of struggle or turmoil or when I wanted to level up and I just didn't know how. Have you felt that before? If you felt that it's almost as this gut wrenching feeling of desperation like what should I do? What should I do?

And it can be when a child is ill or totally disconnected. It can be when your marriage is hurting and you feel like it's about to fall apart. Like it feels like your life is unraveling right in front of your face. It can be when your business or finances are struggling and you don't know what to do or

Rachel Denning (02:22.51)
even on a positive side when you're like, Hey, I want to level up. I want to get to the next level. Like, you know, we've been, we've been doing well at this and now I want to go to the next level. Or have you guys ever experienced this where something great happens and you're like, how did that happen? Like, where, where did that come from, man? Like this great stuff comes along and I'm like, I wish that was predictable. I wish I could repeat that, but I honestly don't know what brought about those things.

And so I think all of us would benefit tremendously from having more guidance, more inspiration, even revelation, we can use that word, to know what to do with our lives. And so as is almost always the case, because you hear me say this a lot, if you've been listening to podcasts or videos or any of the trainings, if you're...

If you're in the Be The Man Master Class or any of other courses or the group coaching, we're always constantly talking about the need that we all have. Every human has this need to simply be more strategic. I don't know why we do it, and I did it for years, but we kind of go along and we...

want something, we need something, but we just aren't strategic enough about getting it. And so I want to introduce that idea today that we can all be and I think need to be more strategic about bringing in guidance and direction and inspiration into our lives. This time just came to my mind and I want to share it where it was after things took a huge slump in the economy of the U .S. and

that really negatively affected our family. And I, man, looking back now with hindsight, of course, it was because I was lacking inspiration and guidance in preventative measures and just lacking understanding, right, of seeing the bigger picture and didn't really have mentors at that time period. And just lacking the guidance and the inspiration we needed.

Rachel Denning (04:44.013)
got us into it. Well, lots of us got hit, right? Lots and lots of people. I talked to people all the time. They're just like, yeah, that was, in fact, I have a coaching client right now. He's like, he's like, that was our personal family, great depression, right? And a lot of people felt that we certainly did. And I remember as we're trying to just claw our way out of that for the next couple of years, as things were pretty stagnant in certain industries. I just remember desperately like,

very, very desperately wanting to know what to do and feeling that hopelessness, that sick feeling of not knowing what action to take or what would actually make a difference. Willing to work super hard, willing to do whatever it takes, but not knowing what that was.

and the intensity. I guess I'm sharing this experience with you and you've probably felt something similar whether it's been you know in your finances or your faith or in your family or in your fitness. Just...

keep using that word desperate just that desperate feeling of wanting needing to know what to do and I remember just pleading and I remember times also where you know almost begging God in my prayers like please just tell me come on just tell me what to do I have to know help right and it was it was begging and pleading and I think at least in my own experience and of course he did answer prayers and I did receive

inspiration, but looking back now and learning what I've learned, that there was more I could have done to set myself up to prepare myself to receive guidance and inspiration or to go get it right. Sometimes we sit around. Have you guys ever done this? I know I have. Where you sit around hoping someone will just come tell you right. And if I, if I pray enough, if I want it desperately enough, someone will just tell me what I need to do. Right. And

Rachel Denning (06:57.485)
Man, we fall into that a lot. I talk to a lot of people that are, they think like that. There's like, I just need someone to tell me what to do. Just tell me. I don't know what to do. Just tell me what to do. And, and they're hoping for that. They're hoping. I don't know. I don't know if they ever played out in their minds, like, cause it doesn't make any sense. Someone's just going to randomly ring your doorbell one day and be like, Hey, this is what you need to do in this situation. Like, yes, finally. Or we're, you know, we go.

you just are desperately looking for anyone to tell you what to do. And I think the power lies within us. So anyways, that's an idea. I just want to introduce you that the power for inspiration and guidance lies within you and within our grasp. If we will access it more as a role with me on this one. So the one major piece of advice here that I want to share, I'll just give this a try. Just try it, test it.

Even if I say it, what I'm about to say right now, you're like, I don't know, we can't do that, or I tried that, I don't think that'll make a difference. My invitation is just please, just try it. Try it for a while, just test it. And are you ready? You ready for this? And what's crazy is this advice is as old as the hills, my friends, it's been around forever. But are you doing it? Here it is, number one.

Go to bed early and get up early.

that you've heard that before. And maybe you even do it, but it's not getting you what you want. So lean in here with me and I want you to test this, I want you to try it, I want you to work with it here. A lot of the greatest people that I've studied their lives and people I know today I've talked to, people who are leaders and thought leaders and geniuses, I mean they're just cranking out ideas, even inventors.

Rachel Denning (09:02.605)
writers, you know, high achievers, they're getting to bed and they're getting up early. And right now you might be like, Oh, come on. I hate mornings. I'm not a morning person. Right. And again, that's training, right? It's all training. And yes, there are different body types. I understand that. And I've like said all that, but, but across the board, there's some common denominators and I want you to try this. So it's, it's training. If you're not a morning person, I don't,

Who is a morning person? I've been getting up early for decades and it still hurts. It's hard to get up and get going. It's just like this sleep inertia is like, oh, but it's training. It's conditioning. It's all about the training, right? It's all about training. You guys heard me talk about this so much. Like it's excellence. This is Will Durant. Excellence is not an act, but a habit, right? It's in.

comes it's an art one through training and habituation. So my invitation for you is to go to bed early and to get up early. I pretty consistently now I'm getting better and better. And again, we have seven kids and a couple of businesses and we're traveling around the world. So we're busy and we get it. Cause I know some of you right now are like, I can't do it. Can't do it. Can't get to bed early. Nope. Not gonna happen. Can't do it. And I want to, I want to invite you to,

to try it, to test it, to put forth tremendous effort to get to bed early and get up fresh. And we'll talk about what to do when you get up, but just the biggest thing is to get to bed early. Now, you know, the coaching I'm doing and the people I get to work with, and I go to work with a lot of people in a lot of places. I'm finding across the board my observations, and this is from the people I'm working with, they are telling me, I'm not telling them, they're telling me that this...

the biggest kind of upset in their performance is late nights. And that one element right there, it carries over to everything else. Those late nights then just, man, smashes into their sleep, right? And actually going to bed, some of the research that I've come across, like going to bed later actually affects the quality of sleep. But then, of course, you're tired, right? And so starting the day early,

Rachel Denning (11:23.693)
Boy, that doesn't sound very appealing. If you do, you're kind of groggy. If you usually sleep in hitting the snooze button, you don't feel like getting up right. So you either feel kind of yucky or you don't get up early. So then you you're getting up later and often just getting up right into what you have to do. And so there's you've missed this beautiful window. And this is my invitation here. You've missed a beautiful window, an opportunity to get revelation or inspiration or guidance. In those early morning hours.

there's something magical about getting up early before everybody else, even before the sun and having some quiet reflection time to carefully consider your life and those things. There's something magical about that. And I think, I think the universe and your subconscious mind and God,

They reward that effort to get up early and on purpose not just get up early for whatever because some people were like well I got up early once but I didn't have anything to do so I went back to bed or I got up early and it was a waste of time or I got up early and I just started working more and so I put in more work hours. It's not that. It's not just to get up to do more work although sometimes you'll have to do that and it's not just to get up early just because or whatever right it's to get up early seeking here's the strategic part seeking revelation inspiration guidance.

It's with the strategy of looking for the answers. So you get up early to look for answers. So if you can picture this, picture yourself getting to bed early, sleeping well, getting up, moving your body, getting hydrated, right? Drink at least 16 ounces of good water with some lemon juice ideally in it to help kind of cleanse out your body. Then move your body a little bit just to get the blood flowing so you're awake and alert.

You don't want to sit there like a zombie and kind of nod your head and then you know kind of priming the pump. We'll talk about that here in a second. Priming that pump, trying to get the flow of things going and then spend some time in prayer or meditation or deep thought or especially writing or even reading. You got to prime the pump to get things flowing with specific questions right and seeking the information.

Rachel Denning (13:48.301)
When we do that strategically, my friends, we can open this.

pathway is this flood of guidance into our lives. And I, you know, as I've studied this from all these different angles and, and so all these books for decades, you know, it seems to all kind of coordinate and work together where the it's the it's puzzles of a P pieces of a puzzle. And they kind of all fit together like this. It's this beautiful tapestry. And one

You know, one day it comes from a book. Another day it comes from something in sacred writings. Another day it just bam, out of nowhere. Boom, right in your head. Sometimes it happens when you're asleep and you wake right up and you have the idea. Sometimes it's while you're writing, while you're thinking. Other times you think about it and don't get anything, but then you go out on a run or you're driving or you're in the shower and boom, there's the idea. And it all kind of coordinates sometimes.

You know, you hear somebody, it's a conversation and you, you got your mind working for you. And so you have your subconscious mind working on it. Hey, that's one of the pieces. Then you have your RAS, your reticular activating system. Uh, it's like kind of looking for it, noticing it now out there trying to catch it. And then, then I think I, I believe in God and I believe God is working in our favor, conspiring in favor. And I believe he gives us answers. I realized some of you may not believe in God, but there's still.

I think we all have to recognize there's still this energy, this power, this spirit that's in the universe and in the world and there's ideas there. And then we can talk about the quantum field, right? And quantum physics and how there's that, there's that energy and spirit there. Even for those who don't believe in God, that's still, it's there. There's this inspiration. There's this source of guidance that we can tap into if we will.

Rachel Denning (15:49.197)
Isn't that a cool idea? Just kind of work. Sit. I know for some of you are like, wait, wait, what about this? I don't know about that. I don't know. But just kind of sit with it for a second and just think about it. If there's this source of inspiration and guidance that we can tap into, whether it's in our own heads or out there, I think it all just kind of works together as my experience. And we can have that. Now, I want you to, here's what I want you to imagine for a minute. As you're listening to this, think, whoa.

What would it be like? And you've probably already experienced this. In fact, I would guess I would be so fun if we were all together, but I would guess that all of you have received some kind of burst of inspiration or guidance, of ideas or things to do. And then right there, you're like, okay, there it is. That's the answer. And it's just the most amazing experience. What if you could tap into that more often? I believe you can. I believe we all can.

And that's what I want you to picture for a minute. Imagine your life and you as you're going along and you make this a bit of a daily practice where you pause and say, what should I do today? What's the most important thing? What do I need to do for this to move it? And you trust in that more. It's almost like many of us have lost this trust in our ability to get some inspiration and guidance and then act on it. We've almost...

become super dependent on outside sources to tell us what to do. And we've lost some of our own strength and competence and confidence in getting clarity and direction for ourselves. And I want to invite you to join me to keep leveling up on that. I've gotten better and better and I want to keep getting better at it so I can just constantly be living in this guidance and living the inspired life.

And I want to invite you, if you have children, teach this to your children. And teach it to the people around it. Teach it to your students, if you're mentoring or you're guiding other people. Teach them how to find answers for themselves. Right? And then measure it against, against, you know, the great truth. Because sometimes, sometimes you might, I come across people sometimes they're like, no, no, I was like, and that they have the.

Rachel Denning (18:08.462)
All right, like I'm all about unconventional ideas. You guys know this. I'm all about unconventional, nonconformist ideas of like, hey, we can't just be doing the same thing everyone's doing because we'll always just get the same results and nothing will ever get better, right? We have all these wonderful things in our lives right now and technologies that are coming. The future is just changing because people are willing to question conventional thinking. I get that. What I'm talking about is like sometimes our ideas are like, no, I was, I got the inspiration that if I wanted to be healthier, I needed to eat a whole package of Oreos daily.

It just came to me and I knew that was it. And I'm like, whoa, that's gonna kill you. Right? And so there's sometimes, and I'll come across things like that and people are like, no, I felt inspired to do this. And I'm like, oh man, that's just, no, that one won't work. Sorry. And so you gotta measure it against the great thinkers and great leaders. And you gotta have inspiration and guidance and be measuring against that stuff so you don't end up.

crazy and doing something that's really not going to help you and even be in sabotage. But so here's my invitation. Go to bed early, get up early, and as you're going to bed, believe that answers are coming. And actually, I've come across this, this is for stuff that's like old, old, old, old stuff that's written, you know,

many decades ago, even centuries ago, they would say things like, you know, ask your subconscious, ask yourself questions as you're going to sleep. And very often it will come to you in the night and in the morning when you first wake up. So my invitation is keep something, even if you know, keep a pad of paper or something near your bed. So that if you get an idea, capture it, man, do not, I have failed at this so many times, I would think, oh, that's so good. I'm going to remember it. And it was gone. I didn't write it down. It was gone.

And so one of the key elements for this is you have to write it down. You've got to write inspiration down, capture it. So have something there and then when you get up in the morning, lean into it and clear, clear your head. Don't just start thinking our brains get so busy with to -do lists and worrying about this and worrying about that. And what are we going to do here? And all I got to do all this. I have these chores and we start, we get into our own, like our own little mental to -do and actually prevents us from some deeper thinking.

Rachel Denning (20:37.581)
So set aside time and space, do this purposefully to clear your mind and then think about the thing wherever you want to have the inspiration or guidance. And like Earl Nightingale said, see it like a rotisserie chicken, like let it rotate in your mind and see all the different things, write down all the ideas you can come up with just total list of ideas of like, these are all things we could do and force yourself to come up with more than, than just what's obvious. Like it's that.

I did a podcast on the next levels of thinking, right? Get beyond the obvious and, and kind of exercise your brain and it can be exhausting as well. Good thinking is one of the hardest things in the world. And that's why most people don't do it, but good, deep thinking will change everything. It'll generate ideas. Right? Here's another element. One of my mentors, uh, this was maybe 24 years ago.

he would consistently say inspiration comes after or behind information. And so I've made that a habit of just constantly consuming lots of information, but seeking inspiration. Here's the strategic part. I'm seeking inspiration and guidance in the information. Sometimes it comes directly from the information, and sometimes it comes because of the information. And it's just a spark, it's a catalyst. And so you start seeing things, asking questions.

And then again, asking God if you believe in God and you know, asking your mind to generate ideas, asking the universe and the quantum field. Just, I know this can all sounds kind of crazy weird, but just roll with me here on this. If we put more effort into just opening ourselves up, clearing our mind, putting in the mental effort, the spiritual effort, just getting aligned. It's incredible that you can find the answers you need. You can know what you need to know.

And it's different and unique for all of us. Every situation is different.

Rachel Denning (22:40.333)
Right? There of course are major common denominators for all of us. There are rules and laws. I did a podcast episode on this quite a while ago about the rules of the kingdom, that every kingdom operates on laws. So the kingdom of health, the kingdom of wealth, the kingdom of relationships, of marriage, of parenting, of family, of mentoring, of guiding, of living an extraordinary life. There are rules, right? And there's common denominators for all of us. But then there are specific instances.

I think what should I do right here? What would actually make the difference? And this can even be down to in a moment, what should I say in this conversation? What should I do with this child or this person or in this business transaction or this negotiation or what should I do to succeed? Because you're all facing things where we need to succeed, right? All of us, every day. We're facing situations where,

We need to succeed.

where maybe we're really struggling, maybe we're really afraid, or maybe we need to make some serious changes to get different results. You need that guidance. And it comes in a burst of inspiration that you might maybe need to move, maybe need to start over.

Maybe you'll get the inspiration, hey, what you're doing is spot on. You just need to do it for a little bit longer or it's spot on, but you need to do it a little bit better. You're doing the right thing. You're just not doing it well enough because we'll get into situations like that, right? I I've been there so many times where I was doing the right thing. I just doesn't, I wasn't doing it very well, right? Or I was doing the right thing. I was doing it well, but I just didn't do it long enough. And it was, it was a cumulative effect that once it hit bam, then it, then it unlocked.

Rachel Denning (24:36.909)
power. So let's let's get to bed early. Let's get up early. Let's be super purposeful, intentional and deliberate and strategic about carving out time to think. John Maxwell wrote an excellent book called Thinking for a Change and talked about his his his habit of setting aside time every day just to think.

Like how many of us do that? That is a rare, rare thing where people set aside time just to think. They'll go into a space. I remember one author would go in a room with a table and it was completely dark. There was no windows, nothing. You go in there, turn off the lights and there was a table. You sit at the table and there's a pen and paper, but he turned the lights off and he would just sit there and think and no distractions, nothing. You would just think until the inspiration came and he click on the lights and right, right, right, right, right. Right.

Other times, I've mentioned this before, I read this book called Accidental Genius, I think is what it's called, where he talks about how, and I mentioned this earlier, you have to prime the pump. You have to do things to start the flow of inspiration. And his point was, don't wait until, so it's kind of the opposite of this other guy, he says don't wait until the inspiration comes to start writing. He says start writing and the inspiration will come. It's like turning on the faucet, then the water will flow. It's like you just, you sit down and you start writing.

I know a lot of writers will do that. They'll sit down, they'll just start writing, because that's what they do. They write and write and write, and then some days it hits, and some days it just flows, and they hit it, and they're spot on. They're just so, it's amazing. It's just, it's all there, right? Because they have the habit of creating the flow.

So my friends, I guess the biggest mess, if you've list all this, thank you, you're here, you're awesome. Like, I just want to drive this home. You can have all the inspiration and guidance that you want. I wholeheartedly believe that. And I, I invite you to believe that too, that you are literally surrounded at any moment, just absolutely surrounded with available inspiration, guidance, revelation.

Rachel Denning (26:51.821)
for you and for your life. That at any instance, you can know for yourself the best thing for you to do.

Rachel Denning (27:03.085)
But it's, it's so often like it has been for me so often. I just couldn't see it or I wouldn't see it rather. I wanted it. I begged for it. I pleaded for it. I desperately needed it, but ironically, I wasn't open to it or I didn't prepare for it. I didn't set aside time or I kind of went through, you know, there were times I remember going through the motions of it, right? Kind of checking the boxes of thinking about it, trying or at least trying to think about it or.

praying for it or whatever, but to really, to really be intentional, strategic and deliberate about like, no, I'm gonna lean into this, I'm gonna clear a space, I'm gonna make time to think, I'm gonna get the answers I need. Anyways, I hope this has been helpful for you. I hope just these ideas, these principles.

Just that one idea, just that one idea is enough. Like it would make all this worth it. If you listen to every episode of this podcast and you just got to this one idea that you have unbelievable access at any moment that you're willing to do it, to have all the inspiration and guidance you need specifically for your life, to be unbelievably successful in every important area of your life. Just that one belief would be worth all that effort.

to say, no, it's right here and I can access it. That I can put my own subconscious mind to work, to find answers. That I can tap into inspiration and guidance from both the universe and from God.

And if you believe on that and look for that and do it daily, my wife's really great at this actually. She'll, she'll wake up and she'll be like, okay, what's the most important thing for me to work on today? And she'll get that guidance and then she just works on it. It's really great. And it's, it's special because if we're doing that thing, then it makes it happen. Now here, one last thought you have to, once you get the inspiration with, if guidance comes,

Rachel Denning (29:06.509)
then you gotta make a plan to make it happen, to implement it. I can't, oh man, with so much personal regret and remorse, learn from my mistakes, my friends. There were so many times I got really clear guidance about what I needed to do, and I was like, oh, that's fantastic, I'm gonna do that, I even wrote it down, but I didn't do it. I didn't make a clear plan, I didn't take action on it, because I, honestly, I...

That was where I lacked skills. I lacked skills at implementation and execution. I got ideas, what, 12, 13 years ago, what I needed to do. Got the guidance, got the inspiration. And I was like, yeah, I'm gonna do that. And I didn't do it.

And so please learn from my mistakes. And maybe you've had that experience too where you got some guidance about doing something and oh yeah, all the best intentions but never actually got to it. So when it comes, set yourself up strategically to get it. And when it comes, man, act on it. Take action. Get your life dialed in enough that you're a doer. And so again, let me paint this last picture. This is so beautiful.

You go to bed early, you get up early, you're just fresh and alert and alive. You go through your morning rituals and routines, you get that spark of inspiration and guidance, what you need to do, and then you execute on it. You implement it throughout that day in the week and you do it and you do it well. Right? And then you step, that's how you live your life every day. Every day. You seek inspiration and guidance.

and you act on it. You seek inspiration and guidance and you act on it. And you genuinely live this inspired guided life and it creates and generates peace in your head and in your heart and results in your life, both personally and professionally. Like this, this is the way to do life, right? It's the path that I'm seeking to live on.

Rachel Denning (31:21.709)
And I want to invite you to get on that same path and watch what kind of wonders flow into your life and out from your life. Man, it's a great way to live. Love this stuff. All right, you guys love it. Hey, if this was helpful or valuable, any of these episodes are, please like them, subscribe. If you haven't subscribed to the podcast yet, go to the podcast. You can find it on iTunes or any other major outlets. Subscribe to the podcast.

Take a clip of this. You can capture it on your phone, do a little screen capture and you can share it or you can take a picture of the podcast and tag it and put a hashtag and throw it out and share it with others. Or if somebody in your life that you know, like, hey man, they need this reminder or they've been seeking for guidance or needing guidance or inspiration, share this episode with them and let's share this stuff and get on it. And if there's anything we can do to help you, I wanna help. This is my mission, this is my life. I love this stuff.

Oh, by the way, I'm recording this right now from the time of this recording. We are in Orizaba, Mexico, below this unbelievable volcano and this kind of gorgeous tropical. I'm sitting here surrounded by palm trees and bamboo and parrots. Oh man, it's just absolutely gorgeous. It's so awesome. We're out having an amazing adventure. But we live for this, my friends. Rachel and I, we just want to help you.

live an absolutely extraordinary life on your terms. And you know, we've got the Be the Man Masterclass is going so well. Just absolutely loving that as tribe of elite men who are committed to becoming their best selves. And we got that we have the extraordinary family life group coaching that we do, we've got courses and resources just to help help your family. So if we can help you anyway.

check those out, ExtraordinaryFamilyLife .com. And let's live, life can be so awesome. Do not settle for a mediocre life, my friends. Do not settle for anything less than your best, your personal best, and the way you wanna live your life. And let's get out and make it happen. Love you guys, reach out for it.