I recently had the honor of interviewing Jack Canfield one-on-one for an hour.  I have to tell you it was one the most inspiring interviews I have done to date.  For those of you who don’t know Jack Canfield, he is one of the most successful authors and success coaches of our time.  He known world-wide for his Chicken Soup for the Soul Series and his Success Principles Series.  His books have reached the lives of over 100 million readers and his inspiration is reaching more people every day.

 

Before I did this interview, I only knew Jack Canfield as the successful person he is today.  I have often heard the quote: “When you see a successful person, we usually only see the tip of the iceberg.  We usually don’t see all the hardships, failures, and challenges these people have gone through in their lives to get where they are today.”  After spending an hour with Jack, I can tell you I was shocked to hear about his challenging childhood with alcoholic parents, the number of times he was rejected for “Chicken Soup for the Soul” (144 rejections), and that he earned a C+ in writing at Harvard.

 

Below are just few takeaways I learned from spending just 60 minutes with Jack Canfield

 

DON'T LET YOUR CHILDHOOD CRIPPLE YOU

Jack had a very difficult childhood raised by a father who was an alcoholic. The cool thing about Jack Canfield is that he used his childhood as an example of what he didn't want to be as an adult. The main point is we have people in or society that live in two camps.

 

Camp #1- Those of us who leverage challenging times to fuel our future success.

 

Camp #2- Those of us who use our backgrounds for excuses as to why we are not successful and never will be.

 

So my question to you guys is: “WHAT CAMP DO YOU LIVE IN?”

 

If you are in camp #2:  Congrats because you have made an awesome choice on the path to an empowering life versus a victim mentality life. If you are in camp #1:  it’s time to re-evaluate your life and ask yourself better questions. If you are in camp one...go back and listen to Episode 28 with Navy Seal Commander Mark Divine on HOW TO CREATE AN UNBEATABLE MIND. That episode will give you a solid foundation on how to forge mental toughness and become resilient.

 

DON'T LET YOUR GRADES DICTATE YOUR SUCCESS IN LIFE

Jack got a “C+” in writing at Harvard and was always told he was an "average writer.”  Jack is now one of the most successful authors of our time. Had he listened to his professors at Harvard and didn't move forward with his passion to tell stories, our generation would not know the Jack Canfield we know today and he would have never had such a positive impact on the world. S

 

So, my question to you is: “WHAT HAVE OTHER PEOPLE TOLD YOU ABOUT YOUR SKILL OR PASSION THAT YOU HAVE BOUGHT INTO?”  What if for a minute you no longer bought into those labels?  What if you decided to step into your greatness?  What would be the worst that could happen?  I grantee 2 things are certain:

 

1.  If you failed you would be no worse off than you are right now.

 

2. If you decided to pursue your dream, whether you failed or succeeded, you would not live a life of "I wish". Pay Flynn has a great quote that really hits this home which is..."I would rather have a life of "oh-wells and not a life of I wish I would haves.”

 

DON'T LET FAILURE STOP YOU

Jack was rejected by 144 publishers for his first “Chicken Soup for the Soul” Book. Let that sink in for a second...144 rejections. How would you feel about your purpose/passion if you were rejected 5 times, 10 times, 50 times, or even 100 times? What if Jack Would have thrown in the towel at the 143rd rejection?  The cool thing that Jack Canfield mentioned is that he would have self-published no matter what. It's empowering to have a backup plan and know you will move forward even if it's on your own when no one else believes in you.  The lesson here is to fail forward and not give up. Each time we fail there is a life lesson, we learn, and we move forward.

 

Guys, thank you for tuning in to our new segment - Five Minute Thursday's. The goal of this mid-week podcast is to give you the powerhouse cliff notes of the week, to kick start your weekend, and ultimately to empower your life. Guys make sure you head to gooddadproject.com to get several free resources. Also make sure you grab a copy of “The Dads Edge” on Amazon. It's an easy read and has become a bestseller.

 

See you next week with a powerhouse guest!  Up next week have Jason Mackenzie with The Book of Open, we also have Joe De Sena, founder of the Spartan Races and NYT BESTSELLER of SPARTAN UP. FINALLY also have professional UFC fighter Frankie Edgar also coming up in a few weeks.

 

Guys have a great weekend and live your life with purpose and without regret!