when old narratives die
A few years ago, I finally realized why I’ve been so focused on building (either by my Self or with a small team) ventures—RLS Wealth, The AGC™, PRST™, and my content–and being in a position of control in the building.
I am extremely trusting; if you ask my wife, I’m too trusting. I would much rather go through life putting my Self in a position to be disappointed, let down, or possibly taken advantage of because I give everyone the benefit of the doubt and believe everyone I come across is a good person than always have my guard up expecting people to harm me.
But, when it comes to my professional life, I’m less trusting because of the experiences of seeing my dad be too trusting with people in his professional life and being taken advantage of and ultimately cheating him out of significant amounts of income, equity, and financial freedom. Thankfully, he and my mom are in good shape, and he navigated those waters, but subconsciously, I adopted the mindset that I will always bet on my Self and I don’t want to rely on anyone else for my success and growth.
Combine those experiences with the experience of AIG’s bailout during the Great Financial Crisis impacting the opinions of the teachers in the school system, which impacted my business even though I had nothing to do with the bailout, and I adopted a mindset that I was always going to put my Self in a position where no one could mess up my reputation, business, and money except for me–and I was (and still am) confident enough in my Self that I was never afraid of that happening.
This mindset has served me well over my career.
However, there have been times I’ve wondered if that mindset has hindered my growth, reach, and impact. When I look at The AGC™, it’s been a great experience, and I certainly did not build that alone–Taylor Schulte was the perfect partner in crime to start and the Wealthtender team was the perfect team to partner with to make sure the community continues to serve the advisors and the profession in an impactful way. I could have never built The AGC™ to be the amazing community it is by my Self.
I am beginning to wonder if my “bet on me” mindset will expire—meaning it no longer serves me and needs to be replaced by a new one, which is currently yet to be discovered.
After my day hanging with my friends at Journey Wealth, I’d be lying if I didn’t wonder what impact I could have if I wasn’t by my Self. The windshield time on the drive home last night gave me plenty of time to think through my old/current mindset and explore new mindsets for the future.
I don’t know what the right mindset for the future is–maybe it’ll still be “bet on me,” or maybe it’ll be something new. Either way, understanding the narrative, where it came from, and being aware of the pros and cons of it is important to continue the evolution of my authentic life and not allowing my ego, as Eckhart Tolle would highlight–yes, another The Power of Now reference, stay attached to old mindset to feel needed.
What mindsets are still operating under that have expired long ago?
It’s important to understand what the narratives directing how we navigate the Pursuit of our authentic lives, both consciously and subconsciously, are. Until recently, I’ve never thought about whether or not our guiding narratives and mindsets need to be adjusted. The more I read, listen, and reflect, I think just like everything, our mindsets serve us for chapters in our lives and need to evolve as we evolve.
See you tomorrow and keep pursuing,
JC
