Good

“If you can say the word “good”, guess what? It means you’re still alive. It means you’re still breathing. And if you’re still breathing… well then hell… you still got some fight left in you.”

Jocks Willink

I’ve been a huge fan of Jocko since I was turned on to his book Extreme Ownership. I’ve listened to several of his podcasts, read/listened to his book several times, and have interacted with him on twitter. His message is simple. “It’s on you.. take ownership of it and do something about it.”

I really like that. Today I was writing up the weekly newsletter for our gym and I always try include a meaningful quote and add a video. This week I stumbled back across a video Jocko posted from one of his podcasts titled “Good.”

In the 2 minute video, he tells about how when one of his direct subordinates would come with him with a major problem or issue, Jocko’s response was always “Good.”

He turned the tables on the bad situation and instead of looking at it from a pessimistic angle, he looked at it as a moment to improve. To grow. To learn.

In situations where most people may panic, get upset, frustrated, bummed out, or focus on the loss.. he chose to instead accept the challenge with a smile, like it was a gift. What can we learn from this. How can we improve from this.

That’s powerful.

Just that simple action of accepting problems with a smile and that attitude of “what can I learn from this? What a gift this problem is.” You can completely flip the tables on it.

By looking into the darkness and finding the light, you come out the other end stronger.

If you haven’t been exposed to his book Extreme Ownership, I cannot recommend it enough.

But if you’re not willing to read through the book, take a few minutes and check out the video I am referencing posted below and attack the problems head on!

Be good, stay safe, one love.

   -aaron