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Nike is a monster brand globally. Everyone knows the Nike brand and all the pro athletes they have signed endorsement deals with over the years. I remember living through the birth of branding Michael Jordan as Air Jordan. Now, I grew up in the Detroit area. I was a big Detroit Piston fan, especially a fan of one, Isiah Thomas, so it was hard for me to stomach the Chicago Bulls and Michael Jordan…ugh! I digress! Let’s move on!
In 2016 and 2017 I went through one of the hardest, most painful, times of my life. It was extremely difficult. It was a time when I fought to get through every day hoping the next day would be a little better than the last. I had nightmares which proved to be my true reality with every waking morning during that time. If you have lived long enough to gain experience in life, one thing you learn to accept is…life will always come with times of struggle.
During this time, one of the things I learned is that there are always silver linings in EVERY tragedy. I don’t care what it is that you are dealing with. If you look for silver linings and actively pay attention…you will find them. Furthermore, in times of struggle, I think it’s vitally important to not miss out on a message being delivered to you no matter where it might come from. For me, this would come in the form of a simple t-shirt.
So, I am walking around the Nike store at the local outlet mall looking to see if they had anything interesting. While in the store, I came across one of their t-shirt racks and this shirt’s message was very simple, but it hit me like a concrete brick smacking me in the forehead. There, hanging on the rack, was a Nike shirt that simply said: “Destroy Excuses.”
Not only did this shirt speak to me at a time when I was desperately needing it, but it spoke to me about my life overall…and has stuck with me ever since. It’s such a simple phrase and such an easy implied message, but what a lesson to learn and adopt. Simply, “Destroy Excuses!” Don’t let there be excuses as to why you can’t succeed and overcome in every hardship.
When it comes to your relationship with your spouse and why it is not working out: “Destroy Excuses!”
When it comes to your relationship with your kids and why it’s not going the way it should: “Destroy Excuses!”
When it comes to a strained relationship with your parents: “Destroy Excuses!”
When it comes to your career and being successful when it’s difficult: “Destroy Excuses!”
When it comes to starting your own business and you have hurdles that have you defeated: “Destroy Excuses!”
When it comes to getting healthy or trying to lose weight: “Destroy Excuses!”
When it comes to budgeting your money and being financially responsible: “Destroy Excuses!”
When it’s time to give forgiveness, even when not deserved: “Destroy Excuses!”
When it’s time to offer love when the circumstances make it hard to love: “Destroy Excuses!”
And, when it comes to serving the God who created YOU: “Destroy Excuses!”
This is a blog about Have Character! It doesn’t get much stronger than this. We don’t just move around with excuses. We don’t just push them away. We surely don’t let excuses stop us from accomplishing our goals. Instead, we simply DO NOT let them live in our headspace while doing everything in our power to destroy them!
Now let’s be clear here. We are human. Will excuses get the best of us from time to time? Of course. This life is too hard for it not to. What I am talking about here is something much deeper and stronger than when one excuse or situation gets the best of us. It’s what do you do when this happens? Do you stay there? Do you let excuses keep you down forever? Do excuses win and run your life? My encouragement is to always answer that with NEVER! We all need a moment…a time to get down in the fetal position and mourn over our struggles. The trick is to never stay there. Instead, give yourself a moment and then get up, dust yourself off, punch excuses in the mouth knocking them to the ground, and then step over them without ever looking back. You do this because you can!
No matter where you are in life…no matter what season of struggle you might be in…I know, without a shadow of a doubt, you can Destroy Excuses! I know because I have been there.
To this day, I cherish that Nike t-shirt so much that I simply never wear it. I don’t ever want to have to throw that t-shirt away. Instead, it sits in my dresser drawer and serves as a reminder when I see it to Destroy Excuses. Years ago, Nike came up with a very successful marketing campaign message of “Just do it”. But for a guy like me, they came up with a different, simple, t-shirt message that was way more powerful. During some of my darkest days, this message spoke to me in a way that has forever resonated with me…”Destroy Excuses!”
In conclusion, I don’t want this to just be a rah-rah speech because I understand life is tough man! Instead, let me be bold and tell you what having this attitude does for you. It creates confidence in yourself. It creates determination. It creates strength. But even more than that, it creates peace and comfort that you can tackle anything that comes your way…and even more than that…ultimately, it gives you freedom over adversity!
Have Character!
J. Noah Russell
HAVE CHARACTER™
