#31 The Path to Personal Peak Potential, Part 1

hey guys this is Greg Denning and you are in the school of awesome sauce where I share with you Amazing Stories and strategies to help you live an extraordinary

[Music] life hey hey my friends thanks for joining me and making the time to do this and I got to I got to stop and say that you are awesome uh awesome for making the effort and time to do this and it says a lot about you and who you are and who you're becoming that you put an effort to listen to podcasts and watch videos you're seeking inspiration and motivation and instruction and you're trying to be your best self so man kudos to you it's phenomenal I love people like you who are going after it and want to make the most of themselves and and become great people I love that I love that love you and man man I got I got to give you some praise and honor it's awesome and isn't life so good isn't life so good you guys every day every day now I'm getting messages from people who are doing our our monthly coaching program it's called the school of awesome sauce monthly coaching and like it's it's so fulfilling and so exciting like the the massive Transformations people are making in their lives um and that's what coaching does does it literally does that so if you're if you're feeling stuck and if you're feeling like you're living in default mode and you feel like you're kind of Trapped and life has lost some excitement it's getting dull or boring or you're just you maybe you're Con in constant state of frustration or preoccupation or you just you just feel bothered all the time like this isn't what I thought life would be like then you need some coaching and literally coaching is that key we all need it and and it's the same we get it in sports and in music we always hire teachers and tutors and lessons and coaches like we get that but somehow in life we've missed that like we've we've got to have a coach and so we've made it super affordable and getting tons of resources and so in our monthly coaching program the school of awesome sauce like you get so much for so little we wanted to make this accessible for everybody and then of course there's level you can go up to the group coaching and then you can go up even to one-on-one coaching if you're really ready to take it the next level but you got to you got to act on this stuff and and invest in yourself because anything you're paying out like that is an investment in yourself to seriously level up your life and with with the coaching that I do and that Rachel does my wife Rachel like it is holistic meaning the whole picture the whole you it's every part of your life just really leveling up so we're balanced whole people oh it's awesome it's so awesome but today I want to talk about I want to ask you a big question like what is the purpose of life oh yeah that's big right what is the purpose of life and I've been thinking about this question a lot since I was a young teenager uh because the question was presented to me and then my life was was pretty challenging and difficult at the time and so I've been I've been wrestling with that question for a long time and here's my conclusion after studying um many religions and the greatest books and thinkers of all time here's my my big takeaway is that the purpose of life is to vigorously pursue our potential and it's our potential as a as a human being um I also believe our potential as a child of God but then even our own unique potential like each of us I think I think all humans have have this kind of pursuit of becoming their best as as a human as a human being but then I think each of us additionally has this pursuit of becoming our own unique very best self like what can I do what Heights can I achieve in my own unique way that nobody else can and that only I can and if I go for it with all my my heart and my mind and my strength and my soul and I just go all after it what can I achieve who could I become wow right what Heights of possibility are available to me and I think I think that is the purpose of life now years ago a man named Abraham maslo came up with his this diagram called the hierarchy of needs and basically he he he was thinking through he's watching the human EXP experience and he's like look the humans need to have all these things in place before they can what he called self-actualize meaning they can become like they can reach their full potential they can become their best selves in in order to really attain those Heights of greatness they have to have some needs taken care of and he started with the very basic needs so here's what we're going to do I think we'll do five episodes five podcast episodes here and we'll get to the spot where we are are covering each of these areas so the basis is he it's it's drawn out like a triangle now with you know they're almost in steps it's five steps ascending up the triangle of the most basic needs first and then progressing upward so the most basic needs are the physiological needs needs for our body and then safety is next and then love and belonging is next and then esteem and then self-actualization like reaching for your potential and his point was like look you got to have all these things in place progressively and if you get those things in place then then and only then can you ascend up the ladder and we're GNA we're going to give this a Different Twist today we're we're going to give it a new approach here that like I I think is going to blow your mind of of why this is true and I think he was spoton but I think it was actually a lot deeper than what most people think and I wholeheartedly believe and I've seen it again and again in my own life and with thousands of people around the world that each level of the the hierarchy of needs becomes a barrier there's literally a ceiling there that if these things aren't taken care of well then there's a ceiling and it it prevents us from progressing and moving up whoa right and so unless each of those areas is taken care of adequately and really well then we can't progress and then we can go back through it we can go back through it again again and again through life and be like okay how can I even level up now how can I do this better and as we are strategically and effectively better at each area like it unleashes more power at each level and when you have more power at the ground level and more power at each level going up like it just unlocks your potential and it just gives you like Rocket Fuel to grow and progress and become your very best self woo so be excited friends we're going to go through this uh together step by step to unlock this so the first one is physiological needs and the physiological needs are like food Water Shelter air sleep right th those are the kind of Base levels and so most of us will look at that and say okay cool yeah um I'm obviously breathing and I have I have most of us have enough food and we have some kind of shelter and we sleep and we have some clothing right so we're good next level but that's where we make a gigantic mistake where we look at that and go yeah okay I'm good let's go next level and here is why that's a huge mistake because the vast majority of people and I know this is a bold statement this is a bold statement but I believe the vast majority of people are stuck at level one whoa yes I just said that the vast majority of people are stuck at level one and so literally there's a ceiling above them that is is preventing their upward momentum and progress or at least limiting their power and potential so on the upper levels they might sneak up to some of the upper levels and be doing okay but like they haven't Unleashed and unlocked their power and potential at level one and here's why so we say we we might say oh yeah I have food but what's our food quality like like I guarantee you the quality of your food is affecting every other part of your life and and and there's like tons of range of quality here but like when when I even this is fascinating when people are feeling depressed and discouraged and they're dragging through life and they're feeling bored and unmotivated and they're having behavioral problems and you know one of the very first things you do this with kids you do with people one of the very first place you look is food quality and very often you'll find that if there's behavioral issues if there's motivation issues struggles and strain energy levels it's food and a lot of people are putting all kinds of junk in their bodies that are not food and it's actually masquerading as food something that came from some Factory or something and is so dead and so full with junk and chemicals and garbage like we're we're literally tanking our own our own potential we're putting a cap and a ceiling on what we can do um right there with our food I mean think about it you guys what think think about if the fuel you put in your body the fuel you put in your car you know like and if if you're not if you don't have good fuel in your vehicle like it's not going to perform and if you don't have good fuel in your body it's not going to perform and so like what's what blows me away is people don't realize it often seems so unrelated you're like no no I have this struggle over here this problem and you're like no it's your food just change what you're eating like what that has nothing to do with it and often very very often it totally does and so if you're putting junk food in there and microwave food and processed food and and it's again not even food like it's just junk so my encouragement always is go to the most natural thing like does it actually grow does it grow right is it alive or at one point was alive and get as natural as possible as healthy as possible you know and and like if you can get local natural stuff that's not have doesn't have tons of chemicals and tons of processing and and the majority of your diet should be like locally grown natural stuff like lots of vegetables fruits and I'm even into the healthy fats uh meats and and healthy Butters and creams that come from like grass-fed animals like the healthier you can get like do that watch watch what happens when you remove a lot of the chemicals and the and the all that other stuff just go natural as possible um and study it spend time studying that but it like I promise that one thing you guys that one thing right there and you're like no I just want to it doesn't affect me whatever I'll eat whatever no I just try it just try and experiment if you don't believe this is trying experiment just eat healthier natural foods and watch how transforms your life and like and I love to ask people that how would your life be better if you had had three to five times more energy than you do now whoa and for most of us that would be totally transformational it would alter the course of our life what we could get done and it's it's often because of that number two then let's go with sleep um a lot of us aren't getting enough quality sleep now again if you're a parent or you're a student I mean there's going to be times where you're not getting a lot of sleep and and that's okay not getting that much sleep um isn't that big of a deal that's just me that's like it's it's not that big of a deal because you can do it um I've survived on little sleep in fact last night I got very little sleep and I got enough energy right now to run a small City like I can get stuff done because when I sleep I sleep well here's the problem a lot of us aren't going to bed on time we're staying up watching silly shows or movies or wasting our time or just scrolling on screens or whatever um and we've got to we got to turn off the screens a couple hours at least a couple hours before bedtime read a great book or something not one that's going to keep you up all night though um and and the setup pattern so get get your room dark and comfortable uh set up your bedroom so your bedroom is just it's it's it's comfortable it's and there you remove a lot of the lights you make sure you have a comfortable bed comfortable blankets comfortable pillow it's got the right temperature where you sleep well and just get it set up so you can sleep really well when you go in to go to bed you just boom gone and set up rituals and routines that help you go to sleep some of you you you have these really bad routines and rituals so you get in there and you can't fall asleep and your mind's just racing and you haven't settled it and you're just worrying about things you got to do and this that and the other and and then you're tossing and turning and and you just you've set yourself up to not sleep well so it's easy you've just trained yourself into that and and I promise you all of you right now you've trained yourself whatever you're doing you've trained yourself to do that or you've been trained to do that and so you just train yourself out of it that's the most wonderful thing about being a human being is you can train yourself into whatever you want to do well and so train yourself back into good sleep U and work on that study it learn about it and just train yourself back into excellent sleep just with those two things you guys think about that if you know you sleep well most nights and you're eating well most meals holy guaca moly is that going to change your life is that going to give you more power and influence to you know succeed and and get upward yeah whoa I mean this this is transformative right and and every one of us needs to do this from from little kids to grown adults our entire lives we need to make sure we're we're sleeping well and we're eating well and and that'll for most of us right there that I mean that would trange if you're overweight and you start eating well and you eat the right amounts like it it's going to change the way you feel the way you look that now that you see how that starts adjusting energy levels and confidence levels and Clarity in your mind sometimes our minds just feel so confused and we're having a hard time making decisions and staying focused and oh getting clarity about what we want to do and and a Hu like so often you guys that that confusion that frustration inability focus is literally tied to quality of sleep and quality of food there you go it seems totally unrelated but you those things and now you're like woo I got potential I got power I'm going after it right that's just two things you see you see why most people are stuck here at this level and they literally have a ceiling above them and they can't get off level one so the next thing is shelter we're like oh yeah I got shelter I got a place to stay but what's the quality of your shelter is it a place that's inspiring is your bedroom you know and and your living room and your office and your space is your space inspiring does it inspire you is it is it cluttered and messy and dirty and just kind of confusing if you you have some do you have some hoarder habits my friend where you're just Gathering up all this stuff and junk and things you don't need um and and but is it or is it organized and neat and clean and does it have inspiring sometimes we put posters on the wall that are not inspiring or do you have beautiful paintings and pictures and quotes on your wall that is your vision board up on your wall you know your your list of activities and goals are your goals up on your wall like you see you take your environment your shelter and a lot of people have this cluttered messy uninspiring shelter and so they get up and they're surrounded by uninspiring stuff and you just feel yucky and and sometimes your life is unorganized because your space is unorganized and sometimes your life is cluttered because your space is cluttered and everything we own and have like takes up thought space energy time money and resources like it always does like thorough said our possessions possess us and so we've got to make sure that that our shelter is a place of comfort and safety and inspiration so when we are there we feel motivated and driven we want to work we want to get things done it feels clean and organized and nice so all of you need to clean up your space and make sure your space is for the space so your desk ought to be neat and organized and designed for work and your bedroom ought to be nice and organized a place for sleeping and resting and recovery and change right and like it all ought to be neat and clean and just get rid of I I love the principles of minimalism and essentialism even more like you only have the things in your life that are essential that bring you joy and happiness and value everything else goes pass it along pass it along to a thrift store um give it away to someone else who needs it uh whatever let other people clut it up their lives but yours is is efficient and effective and it feels good it looks good it's organized neat that way your shelter is actually helping you a lot of us have shelter issues that are stopping us they're clogging up our lives they and and this is tied even emotionally sometimes a lot of us have these emot emotional turmoil emotional clogs from the past and stuff and and it's very often tied up with our shelter and it kind of it causes shelter problems and then shelter problems cause emotional problems and so when we can clear out the Clutter clear out the mess and we're not having to worry about and and you see we get this blockage we get a mental and emotional blockage that's often tied up with our stuff and our things and so now you guys see this isn't this amazing oh I love this so much like our food our sleep our shelter is causing these blocks in our minds and our emotions and it's preventing us from reaching our full potential so clean up your shelter get it organized take a big load to the to the shrift store be be tenacious about this be a little bit intense get rid of anything that's that's kind of clogging clogging up your life and blocking anything get rid of that now clothing is the next one um we're like oh yeah I have clothes well some of you have way too many clothes and you need to you need to get it down if you haven't worn it in months get rid of it if you if you look at it like pull it out look at it if it doesn't bring you joy and happiness and a feeling of success and progress then get rid of it um just just get rid of it let it go and get to a spot where you're just like yeah what I wear makes me feel successful if it makes you feel sloppy like look if you if sloppy dress leads to sloppy Behavior it really does and so we need to NE look neat and clean and confident and like successful you need literally you need to dress for success I know some of you don't think there there's a connection they absolutely 100% is the way you dress affects the way you feel you know this because when you get dressed up you can put on a beautiful dress or a gown or a nice suit like you just feel great right you get up you do your hair nice that's why people love going to to formal dances and dinners because it makes them feel good and if we haven't if you haven't noticed that connection yet man notice it now like the way you dress and carry yourself and the clothes you have they affect your feelings and your level of confidence and your your the way you feel about yourself and the way other people perceive you it's a big deal it's it's it's a really big deal so like make sure you are dressing in a way that makes you feel comfortable and confident and and successful and healthy and clean and neat again sloppy dress and sloppy appearance leads to sloppy ways sometimes we get caught up in these funny social trends that actually are preventing there you go the ceiling again right it's putting a ceiling over heads and it's actually preventing us from progressing more because we're we're more worried about what people think and the trends and kind of silly uh social statements or whatever and we're so caught up in what other people think and making a statement that we don't realize we're like tanking our own personal progress again what's the purpose of life is it to you know to please the neighbors and and social competition and social expectations no but that's you'd think you'd think that's the purpose of life if you watch human beings and how they behave socially but you got to remember like cut that stuff off it it really doesn't matter and what happens to be cool or trendy or uh DEA like like this the you know uh I'm translating there like what's what's the latest Trend or you know new thing like whatever like let that stuff go we got to start living independent of the opinions of other people and make sure we get really clear on this sorry guys I'm going I'm going off here but this stuff is so important can you see why I started off with my original bold statement the vast majority of people are stuck at level one and their clothes and their food and their sleep and their shelter are either preventing them from going up or really limiting their power to ascend in their own personal progress and potential and this is just level one my friend friends this is just level one and and make sure we're getting lots of water most people are chronically dehydrated we're not getting enough water and good water there's so much junk in the water is coming out of the tap so make sure you're getting good water and then the other one is air and people are like oh I got air I breathe all the time come on what's the big deal actually we're probably not breathing well enough and if you've ever studied like the breathing exercises from guys like um whm Hoff um and other other guys that are into biohacking and just optimizing the body performance they're doing breathing exercises and the top like the top performers you know athletes and speakers and presenter businessmen they actually are doing breathing exercises every day and some of the top performers that's the very first thing they do in the morning they get up and they do the breathing exercises where you're just super oxygenating your blood and your body and Wim Hoff holds all these records for doing these like unbelievable you think they they're like inhuman Feats but he's doing it and simply because of his breathing technique he's oxygenating his body and so and again the brain is functioning on oxygen the body is functioning on oxygen and if we just are just at normal breathing we're kind of lunched over we have poor posture we're not getting enough oxygen in our bodies no wonder our bodies aren't performing near where they could or our brains aren't even close to capacity because they're not getting enough food and oxygen you see what I'm saying this is amazing and so do some breathing exercises take take a couple minutes um in the morning do it multiple times throughout the day and do these breathing exercises and I'll just quickly teach you how to do it you breathe in through your nose and and people the people around you should be able to hear you if you're doing this right so you breathe in through your nose and after your and try that try that try that for like 30 seconds and you you might feel like you're like hyperventilating and you your lips might get a little tingly or your fingers or hands might get tingly and don't don't fall over and like learn how to do this I'm like I'm not I'm not a doctor here or anything like but learn learn how to do this stuff but if you're just and you you oxygen just try it try it right now for 30 seconds if you can just try it and watch what it does you and at first you're like who whoa it feels weird and like tingly I'm a little bit dizzy but like when you do it and and you you you get used to it then all of a sudden you like you feel alive literally your brain feels alive your body feels alive and energize you're like this is incredible and so if we will hyper oxygenate our our our minds and our bodies then then all of a sudden we're like we have Clarity and mental energy and physical energy to approach work or studies or conversations or difficult situations what if you did that every time you needed to you to sit down to study something you just got the oxygen in or your before you go to work before you engage with your kids before you you tackle a task you've had good sleep good food you're dressed well right you you've got plenty of good water and you do some breathing exercises whoa now you're ready to start your day you know what I'm talking about my friends like now you're ready like okay I'm on it now I'm ready for this boom I'm ready to show up do extraordinary things in an extraordinary way I got this who you see the difference I mean you can literally feel that right now I can feel it right now versus I got sloppy clothes on I didn't sleep well because I was staying up too late on social media or binging on Netflix I didn't eat very well I had a bunch of junk food I haven't had water for days I drinking soda and junk and and I I'm always sled over you know poor posture and dressed like a slob and and now yeah gez I just got to try to do this I got to go to this interview or I got to deal with this problem and you see the difference you feel the difference you even hear it my voice as I'm slumping over like it makes a gigantic difference just these little things will transform the way you go into the things you need to do and I would say you need to do well so you see how level one is completely affecting your performance levels and and limiting you from maximizing your potential we haven't even got to the other levels yet we're level one and I promise you if you'll just do these little things at level one it will bring about massive transformations in your life and then if you can take that fuel and power now and move it up to the upper levels wo Unstoppable okay so next time we will jump into level two of maso's hierarchy okay you guys remember awesome is always an option reach

upward hey everybody thanks so much for listening to this episode I hope you got a lot of value out of it and found some things that you can apply to your life right away hey I'm I'm being totally sincere when I say I I live to help you live your extraordinary life so I hope you'll reach out to me if you have any questions or let me know how I can help you in any important area of your life and in fact you know this this podcast is brought to you by the school of awesome sauce monthly coaching program take advantage of that get in there if it's the best way to get a breakthrough to the next level so you can level up your health your spirituality your OT ions your mind your relationships your finances business every part of your life just get in there where you have a a coach and a mentor you have a supportive Community to make things happen so so jump in there take advantage of this try it out get in there with us and level up your life see you on the inside reach upward [Music]