Well, on a date that is fun to write (don’t lie and say you don’t like writing 1/11/11), I have a fun post to add!
Some of you may remember my “CrossFit Blog Central” post back from 12/29/10, where I posted an article from Alec Hanson – The CrossFit Gamer. In the piece, he discussed “Why you Matter Enough to Face the Pain.” I really liked the article, and commented on his post thanking him for his words.
Then I kept thinking about it, and decided I wanted to reach out again. I left Alec a Video Reply on his blog, and didn’t know what to expect… The reply wasn’t from “Smashby the Trainer/Blogger”, it was just from me. Then, while he was on vacation in Hawaii! Alec posted another video for his fans and made mention of my note, saying, “this guy Smashby sent me a great video response, so I’m going to get that on my site soon.” Alec, you’re the first human being in history to say “Smashby” from Hawaii. Congrats!
Sure enough, shortly after returning from vacation, the next Drive Time with Alec was released, and he proved to be a man of his word. Check out his latest “Drive Time” post from yesterday where he let us know he will definitely following up on his “Self Worth” topic again. (Click ahead to around 2:15 to hear his 2nd shout-out)
Here it is! Alec’s reply to my question!
Keep your eyes tuned to his blog (http://www.thecrossfitgamer.com) in the future, he posts some great stuff!
It’s really fun for me to see how far this CrossFit Community reaches out, and how connected we all can be through the internet. I hope you enjoy getting these other perspectives, too.
Smashby's Training Blog 
I think it’s an interesting question. David Foster Wallace once said that “Everybody worships SOMETHING…” Whether it’s a god, their self, money, sex etc.
I think sometimes people who worship superficial things have a harder time feeling real self worth, so the whole exercise is a little harder than just “thinking about it.” If money is the most important thing to someone, my opinion is that thinking about money all the time is not necessarily going to help them in the long-run.
Finding something meaningful takes an understanding of self, goal setting, trials of different things and a lot more “stuff.” Basically I am just saying that an honest expectation is likely that these things can take a while.
I agree completely. What I am coming to learn (or at least believe) in my life, is that material things come and go. If you worship money and equate it with your worth as a human being, you may wake up one day and have none. Then what are you left with for your own self worth?
I love this quote from ~ Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club, Chapter 5
“You buy furniture. You tell yourself, this is the last sofa I will ever need in my life. Buy the sofa, then for a couple years you’re satisfied that no matter what goes wrong, at least you’ve got your sofa issue handled. Then the right set of dishes. Then the perfect bed. The drapes. The rug. Then you’re trapped in your lovely nest, and the things you used to own, now they own you.”
That’s the impact that holding material things has on many people in this world. I agree with both you and Alec. Identifying what it is that you bring to the world and what only you have and what you love about yourself is key. I also agree that it’s not something one finds overnight, and quite frankly, I think it’s something that is constantly changing. As we learn and grow as people, our worth and value also change with us.
Making the time to think about those things is what is key. Having “you time” to block out everyone and everything else and to take the time to sit and think about what makes you special may sound soft and mushy, but I feel it’s the most important way to truly sleep well at night.
“Regardless of what happens in my life… at least I know that I….”
I think that’s a pretty good exercise that people can use. Say, and then finish that sentence every night before you go to bed. Make it something happy and positive about you. That’s a great way to put a smile on your face right before dozing off to wake up and live another day!
Thanks for the thoughts, Joe!