Develop incredible drive, vision, and persistence to set and continually evolve goals, progressing through different life stages and achieving them.
Engage in your craft daily, as Tony Hawk does with skateboarding, to maintain skill and stay at the forefront of your field for decades.
Recognize that drive and discipline can outweigh natural talent; consistent effort and determination are often more critical for achieving excellence than inherent ability.
Cultivate an internal, non-pride-driven compulsion to achieve specific personal goals, especially after setbacks, as this deep-seated need can fuel recovery and ultimate success.
Prepare comprehensively for challenging goals, including diet and abstaining from alcohol, and engage in incremental practice sessions focused on specific components without immediate pressure to succeed.
After a major injury, return to and complete the specific challenge or trick that caused the injury to overcome the trauma and demonstrate persistence.
Be very disciplined in your diet, schedule, and sleep, especially during recovery from injury, to support healing and overall well-being.
Prioritize your core performance and avoid activities like excessive partying that can diminish your skills and hinder your progress, maintaining a clear focus on what is paramount to you.
Consciously pull away from high-risk auxiliary activities that could jeopardize your primary career or passion, learning from past injuries to prioritize safety in other interests.
Invest in long-term assets like property early in your career, especially when income is fluctuating or uncertain, as a crucial saving grace for future stability.
Be willing to quit activities, even those with family involvement or expectations, if you discover a true passion that resonates more deeply with you.
Seek out activities where you feel a unique connection and ability, even if it’s not yet a career path, and commit to doing it because it feels awesome and unique to you.
Actively seek out experiences that create an epiphany, where you witness something that looks like magic and immediately know it’s what you want to pursue for as long as possible.
Identify specific challenging environments or tasks that serve as your ‘proving ground,’ and make it your mission to master them, knowing that success there will build confidence for other challenges.
Approach new skill development by thinking about how to combine existing elements, considering body position and timing to ensure they work in unison, rather than haphazardly.
Adopt a deliberate and confident approach to new challenges, knowing you possess the foundational skills, and focus on precisely combining them rather than relying on chance.
Keep a method to capture ideas that come to you in the liminal state between wakefulness and sleep, as these moments can be fertile ground for new insights and creative solutions.
Utilize the twilight moments between wakefulness and sleep, or other mundane moments, to achieve deep focus on creative problem-solving or developing new ideas, as distractions fall away.
Develop a structured warm-up routine with basic movements to gauge your physical state and make necessary adjustments for the day’s activity, similar to a surgeon preparing for an operation.
Pursue the intrinsic reward of creating or mastering something new, as the unique feeling of accomplishment can become a powerful, lifelong motivator.
Cultivate punctuality as a sign of respect for others’ time, ensuring you show up on time for commitments, which is a distinguishing factor in any occupation.
Recognize that discomfort in social interactions, especially when young and famous, can be misinterpreted as arrogance; learn to break out of your comfort zone to connect with others.
Recognize that external perceptions, even of support, can sometimes create uncomfortable labels like ‘favorited’ or ‘spoiled,’ and learn to navigate these feelings.
Use external pressures or accusations of favoritism as motivation to push yourself harder and prove your skills, as genuine ability cannot be faked.
Prioritize being available to your family, especially children, and in your career, focus on specific, achievable goals that will have the furthest reach and best impact on your field or community.
Actively advocate for equal divisions, prize money, and attention for all genders in sports and activities, as this can significantly shift acceptance and participation, fostering a more inclusive environment.
Support the development of public spaces, like skate parks, in underserved areas to provide a sense of community, identity, and purpose for young people, as these resources can be life-saving.
Engage with people of all ages and skill levels, as diverse interactions can provide fresh perspectives and key insights for your own progression, even from those much younger or seemingly less experienced.
Even after a main event or when expectations have shifted, be ready to seize opportune moments to try for your personal goals, as the energy and focus can lead to unexpected success.
Create a personalized playlist of high-energy and meaningful songs to motivate and hype yourself up for challenging tasks or performances, leveraging paired association for focus and reward.
Represent your passion or field authentically, showcasing its diverse aspects and positive culture to ensure people understand its true nature beyond mainstream perceptions.
Dissolve one packet of Element (electrolytes) in 16-32 ounces of water and drink it first thing in the morning, and also during any physical exercise, for optimal brain and body function and to prevent cognitive/physical performance diminishment.
Use a meditation app like Waking Up to access various meditation durations and types, including Yoga Nidra or Non-Sleep Deep Rest (NSDR) protocols, to restore cognitive and physical energy even with short sessions.
Identify your strengths, such as understanding concepts and relating them to others, and lean into them, potentially considering roles like teaching where you can leverage these abilities.
When facing criticism or lack of external support, channel your energy into continually getting better at your craft, letting improvement be your primary focus.