“Monday 5 Things” ….. Crush It …..
March 31, 2025 by D. Paul Graham
Crushing It. Corey Williams and his Coastal Empire Wrestling alter ego of Scratch Savior. Photo by D. Paul Graham
Can anyone explain to me how we’ve got to the end of Q1 already? At the risk of sounding like an old man yelling at kids to “get off my lawn”, I am flabbergasted that March 31 is today. This month, I don’t recall any Ides’ to beware of, nor do I remember seeing a lion or lamb this month. There was a parade, a huge moon, and daylight savings time this month. All nonevents for me. I did celebrate women, but failed to observe National Puppy Day, Mermaid Day, and Cuddly Kitten Day. Oh, and I did not bring out my crayons or plant a flower for those respective National days.
I did however spend a good bit of time contemplating and working on habits, attitude, and energy in my life. My focus for this Q1 was on living a richer, fuller, more unstoppable life, that is bursting at the seams with momentum. A life lived like that isn’t about luck or waiting for the right moment. This morning’s M5T considers things ways that help can help us ‘Crush It’ in life.
1. ENERGY. It’s the ultimate fuel. Everything you do, your work, your relationships, your goals, depends on your energy levels. If you don’t have it, you get stuck trying to grind forward while the world flies by. Energy isn’t just physical. It’s mental, emotional, and spiritual. High-energy people don’t wake up every day feeling great. They create great energy through action. Don’t wait to feel energized. Move your body, fuel your brain, protect your peace, and align your thoughts, words, and deeds with what really matters to you. Prioritize your purpose. Defend your time. Focus on solutions. Surround yourself with people who light you up, not those who create clutter and stress, are toxic, and those who only want to siphon your fuel tank. Be a powerplant and generate energy. When you’re aligned with what you truly care about, energy tends to flow naturally.
2. THE BIG MO. Momentum is like the compound interest of effort. It’s what separates those who start strong from those who stay strong. Most people think they need huge leaps and bounds to create momentum. The secret is to just start moving, stay moving, stack small wins every day, and let the big mo take over. The hardest part is the beginning, but if you commit to showing up daily, even in small ways, you’ll hit a point where effort feels effortless. One workout. One sales call. One chapter read. One sentence written. The magic happens when consistency kicks in. Don’t let momentum slayers of overthinking, perfectionism, and waiting for motivation to happen to take you off task. Action leads to motivation, not the other way around. And when your momentum starts to build, protect it all costs. Keep moving. Keep showing up. Build it, protect it, and let the momentum carry you forward.
3. LEARNING. Sharpen the edge on your life by continuous learning. A dull blade won’t easily cut through anything, and a stagnant mind can’t create, innovate, or win. Learning creates options in life. The sharpest people, those who really crush it, are persistent learners. They’re constantly reading, listening, absorbing, and asking better, deeper questions. They know that the world moves fast, and if you stop learning, you start falling behind. Be a student of your game. Whatever your field, study the best. Read their books, watch their interviews, analyze their moves. Success leaves clues. Follow them. Get comfortable being the dumbest in the room. As the adage goes, if you’re always the smartest person in the room, you’re in the wrong room. Surround yourself with people who push you, challenge you, and influence you to level up, smarten up, and step up. Learn by doing. Knowledge without action is just trivia. The best learning happens in the trenches. Fail fast, learn faster, and keep sharpening your blade. The moment you think you “know enough” is the moment you start losing. Be a sponge, not a stone. Stay curious. Stay humble. Stay hungry. Stay ahead.
4. THINKING BIG. Stop playing small, it’s a waste of your power. Most people limit themselves before they even get started. They shrink their goals, lower their expectations, and settle for “realistic” instead of remarkable. The people who truly crush it think big. They ask bigger questions and take bigger chances. Your brain is wired to find answers for whatever you ask, so think and ask bigger things of yourself. Expand your vision. Big dreams absolutely should scare the heck out of you. Adamantly refuse to put a ceiling on their potential. Bet on yourself. Believe in yourself. Stop wishing and start creating. Big thinking isn’t about ego. It’s about possibility. Push beyond the immediate, beyond the safe, and beyond what you think you’re capable of. Give yourself permission to go big. Be bold, dream bigger, set audacious goals, move bigger, and demand of yourself to bust out of your comfort zone.
5. FIRED UP. Half-hearted effort begets half-hearted results. If you want to really crush it, you can’t keep one foot out the door, just in case plans don’t work out. You have to be all in. You can’t be half pregnant. Whatever your goal, vision, or dream is, commit like it’s already yours. The most successful people act and work like success is inevitable. Not in a delusional way, but with an intensity and confidence in what they are doing. They show up, do the work, and operate with conviction. Passion is a force multiplier. Ever notice how some people just walk into a room and bring energy that is unmistakable? Passion is contagious, and when you bring it, people feel it. If you give yourself an easy way out, chances are, with human nature as it is, you’ll take it. I’ve always loved the stories of Vikings who, when landing on enemy shores, would often burn their boats so there was not turning back. They were motivated and fired up to win. Or they would die. There was no middle ground. Apply a Viking mindset. Go all in like there’s no backup plan. When you’re all in, things in your life will shift. Opportunities open up. People rally behind you. You create momentum, energy, and results that wouldn’t have been possible otherwise. Commit to your dreams. Go all in. Burn your boat if needed. Bring passion, conviction, and fire to everything you do. Get fired up and don’t let up.
Here's to a new week and your life of being an unstoppable force. Crush it!
For over 13 years, D. Paul Graham has published “Monday 5 Things” ™, also known to readers as M5T™. He is always trying to find ways to Crush It in life.
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