SUMMARY SHOWNOTES with Bruce Vanhorn
How to make the next decade of your life the best decade of your life with Bruce Vanhorn
In this episode my guest Bruce VanHorn shares how becoming a marathon runner was instrumental in saving his life. He describes life as a marathon and the need to keep going until you complete the race.
This became his metaphor for what he does and how he pushes through even after the death of his daughter and debilitating mental condition of his wife. Inspite of all Bruce has gone through he said that he was more excited about the next decade of his life than he has ever been in any previous decade in the past.
Bruce speaks very candidly on subject matters that some would shy away from. He has instead used what life has handed him as a catalyst for helping others who find themselves in similar situation. Other difficulties he has experienced in addition to the above are two failed business, filing bankruptcy and being overweight.
Life didn’t turn out the way I expected it to. My wife’s significant health issues, filing bankruptcy and two failed business, led to feelings of being a failure. Running became my refuge. Marathon running saved my life. I was overweight and stressed out. I wanted a better life but I never decided to do anything about it. I kept hoping but did nothing about it. I dreaded getting older. I felt I had nothing to live for.
I knew I had to do something so I made a choice and started by getting my mind in order. Several books were instrumental in that process as well as making the decision to turn off television completely. I then began to feed my mind with positive messages. My faith and books became a huge part of helping me get out of this victim mentality.
Here are a few of the thoughts you’ll find in this episode:
- [Tweet “Nobody ever ran a marathon without running the first mile”]
- If we don’t fail we basically haven’t learned nothing new
- Life happens. It starts to beat on you. then you stop living intentionally, stop living passionately and start to live just day to day… just getting through the day is a good day
- You can’t control everything but one thing you can control is the way you think
- Making a decision isn’t enough. You must put that decision into action
- Make sure to factor in the people who need you when making your decisions
One of the questions that I ask is if he had a 6 month window to make a decision before that window closed, what steps would he take to decide how to live out his dream. Here are some of his answers:
- Look for the small ways you can serve people. The more you give of yourself to others, the more you will have coming back your way
- Fear loves darkness and seclusion. It seeks to isolate you.
- A mindset change is the first place to start.. Feed your brain .. Shut off the noise of your surroundings
Quotes that were shared:
- [Tweet “All of life’s treasures are guarded by fear and self doubt”]
- It’s not what I demand of life but what is life demanding of me right now… today
- Some people just want to dream about their dream rather than achieve them because if they set out to achieve their dream they’ll have nothing left to dream about ~ from the book: Alchemist
Final word:
- Living your best life is living intentional; being specific and really being passionate
Books mentioned:
- Take the stairs: 7 steps to success – Rory Vaden
- Man search for meaning .. Viktor Frankl
- The Power Of Self Confidence – Brian Tracy
- Born To Win – Zig Ziglar
- Think and Grow Rich by Napolean Hill
- The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Tool / App mentioned:
- App: irunurun.com … personal productivity application
Where to get in touch with Bruce VanHorn:
- www.BruceVanhorn.com
- Twitter: @BruceVH
YOUR FEEDBACK
This podcast is very practical and inspiring but also thought provoking. Both Bruce and I would love to hear your thoughts on what stood out to you the most within this episode. Leave your comments below. If you have an idea for a podcast you would like to hear or a question about an upcoming episode, e-mail me.
Also, would you please rate this podcast on iTunes and leave a brief review by clicking on view in iTunes and then click the review tab. Don’t forget to subscribe as well. That would help tremendously in getting the word out! Thanks.
February 4, 2014 at 9:42 am
Kinglsey, thank you for giving me the opportunity to share my story with you and your listeners! My prayer is that someone will here my story and be inspired to change their own life! Keep up the great work! This world needs more people like you!
February 4, 2014 at 9:55 am
Thanks Bruce for your kind words and mostly for your willingness to share as you did. Very inspiring message. I’m moved by how you have embraced the challenges of life and allowed God to use you in this manner. Keep doing what you’re doing. You’re a testimony to the power of Grace.
February 9, 2014 at 10:58 pm
Thanks for the mention of IRUNURUN! Please let us know if we can help. Run hard!
February 10, 2014 at 7:01 pm
Hey Mark, the app sounded so good coming from a person that I trust, I had to mention it even without at the time taking it for a test “run.” Thanks for noticing.