May 27, 2025 • 23 mins
In this episode of The Different Thinking Podcast, Zach Hensrude challenges the myth that success is just a matter of flipping a switch. Inspired by insights from Jon Acuff’s Soundtracks and a powerful analogy from Dave Thomas of Daystar, Zach explores how real growth and momentum come not from instant changes, but from intentional tuning.
You’ll discover:
- Why the “flip the switch” mindset is a myth
- The truth about the success dial—and how to turn it
- How to recognize and reverse dial drift
- What it means to lead with long-term consistency
Whether you're leading a team or leading your life, this episode offers practical wisdom for turning up the volume on your goals, one notch at a time.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_01 (00:03):
Welcome to the Different Thinking Podcast,
where creativity is welcome,conventional wisdom is tried and
tested, and growth anddevelopment are nourished so
that someday you can help tochange the world.
Now here's your
SPEAKER_00 (00:18):
host, Zach Hensrood.
So I have a question for you.
Have you ever been in a placewhere you wanted to make either
a small or or significantchange, but have become
frustrated because even thoughyou have made those changes in
your life or in the way that youconduct business, they haven't
(00:40):
seen immediate results.
And you start to think toyourself, why can't I see those
immediate results?
It's almost like if I could justgo in and Do these things and
create that focus, thatconsistency and that discipline.
And I want this outcome.
(01:02):
Why doesn't it come so quickly?
I mean, I have fallen prey tothat question so many times.
And as you could see from therecording date, the last episode
that I did was in July of 2024.
And so there's been a bit of agap, but during that gap, I've
(01:23):
spent a lot of time reallyworking on developing myself as
a leader, creating the focusesand the disciplines that it
requires to run a largerorganization.
Probably, I mean, I thought Iknew what I knew, but then over
these last 10 months, I reallygot a masterclass in
(01:45):
understanding that I reallydidn't know what I thought I
knew.
And so I'm glad to be back onthe Different Thinking Podcast
with you.
I've gotten folks that havetexted me during this gap period
telling me how much they enjoyedthe show and wondering when the
new episodes are coming out.
(02:07):
And so here we are.
We're starting with this episodehere with this question of, have
you ever gotten frustrated thatwhen you have And let's go ahead
and define it a little bitbetter.
Where you've gone internally andflipped a switch and created
that focus, that discipline,maybe even tried to create that
(02:30):
immediate consistency, but youhaven't received those immediate
results back and wondered, whynot?
Why can't I?
I mean, all it is, is I justflipped the switch and it should
come back to me.
A few months ago, I was readinga book called Soundtracks by
(02:52):
John Acuff.
It was recommended to me througha program I was taking with
Buffini and Company.
I bought the book.
I actually bought the book formultiple people because of the
premise in behind the book.
I have a huge belief in, andthat is the internal stories,
the internal voices that, thatthat are in our brain that
(03:14):
really guide and direct us.
One of my coaches would say thestories that are just not true.
And it's really interesting froma psychology aspect when you
dive into really understandingand unpacking the internal
voices that people have and thethings that they would say to
(03:37):
themselves that they would neversay to another human being.
I mean, it was absolutely afantastic book.
And if I could recommend it, Iwould recommend it right now for
you to purchase and read.
Very simple to read, really welllaid out.
And if you've heard John Acuffspeak or read one of his books,
(03:59):
you know there's a bit of humorin there, and I always enjoy
humor.
Humor, having fun, I think isincredibly important.
But as I was reading this book,I had a lightning bolt moment
where I go, ah, this would be agreat podcast episode.
And if you've ever wondered howI structure and create podcast
episodes, it's not where I wouldread a book for an episode.
(04:22):
It's as I'm reading a book,personal development book or a
business book, all of it.
I will find those moments whereit comes to me, goes, this, this
would be a great podcastepisode.
This would be great to sharewith aspiring leaders or leaders
who know that they're, they're,they have so much more to do and
(04:43):
to give to their people.
I mean, that is really whatmakes a different thinking
leader.
Probably why you're listening tothis podcast is that you want to
give more back to your people.
One of the aspects of themission is that conventional
wisdom is tried and tested.
One of the things that's very,very interesting is that there's
(05:07):
a lot of conventional wisdom ofhow things have always that have
always been done a certain way.
And then you ask the why.
Well, why has it always beendone a certain way?
And people will look at you thathave given you that advice,
mentors, or even if you'retaking classes and you raise
your hand and say, excuse me,you say that this is the right
(05:27):
way of going, but can you sharewith me why?
They go, there's really, Zach,there's really no reason other
than it's always worked thisway.
And so conventional wisdom is,would say that, hey, there's
been a certain way that leaderscan create change in their
(05:48):
organizations or theirbusinesses.
They just really need to do thisone thing.
And the lightning bolt momenthit when I was reading and John
was having a conversation withthe family counselor, director
of family counselor.
I should say this right.
Director of Family Counselor atDaystar Center, which is a place
(06:12):
in Nashville for kids.
And they're having thisconversation and Director Thomas
said this to John.
He said, we think that there's aswitch out there.
And if we can just find it, wecan turn it off.
We can turn off the backgroundnoise completely.
And we only have to do it onetime and we'll never hear it
(06:35):
again.
And I thought that was reallyinteresting and I'll share more
of what John responded backwith, but I found it really
interesting because I had alwaysheard coaches, trainers, or even
when I was in youth athleticswhere someone would just say,
Hey Zach, flip the switch, flipthe switch.
(06:55):
And it's something where he evensaid, director Thomas even said
to John, people want there to bea switch, right?
And I found that extremelyinteresting, especially when you
start to think about thefrustrations that we feel as
leaders or frustrations thatcome up when we either, I say
(07:19):
we, us collectively, I tiemyself into this, need to make a
change or are forced to make achange.
There's times where as a leader,I would like to make a change,
but there's other times whereI'm forced to make a change.
And in that, there's thatinternal mindset of, oh, I just
need to flip the switch becauseI was coached that mentality for
(07:47):
years.
It's just a switch.
You flip it.
And when you flip it, it cancreate that discipline, that
focus, and that consistency.
And so as I was pondering andprocessing it, I started to
think, okay, Okay, was thereever a time in my life where
(08:07):
I've fallen prey to this switchmentality?
Almost like a myth, this flipthe switch myth.
Has there ever been a time thatI've fallen prey to that?
And immediately, I began torecall a time in my life back in
2008.
I know I've shared this on thepodcast before, but I think it's
(08:31):
incredibly important to continueto share this Uh, my story,
because I think that createsconnection with you because the
thing is, is I, I share my storyto, to make connection, not to
say, Hey, here's everything thatI've overcome or done.
And, and I want you to know thatI'm no different than you other
than I'm just a, just a guybehind a microphone, just trying
(08:52):
to help others and createcontent.
So in 2008, uh, it was very,very heavy, probably the
heaviest I'd been in life.
Actually, I had that scarymoment where I was, I mean, I'm
in my mid-20s at that point.
I went to go bend down to tie myshoe and all of a sudden I'm,
(09:14):
you know, breathing heavy,trying to tie my shoe in my
mid-20s.
That's not, I can't live thatway.
And so I go on this healthjourney.
I'm single.
I'm rooming with my brother andmy best friend.
We're living in this small towncalled Snohomish.
I mean, no attachments.
(09:36):
And so it's something where I goon this health journey where I
buy all the supplements.
I go to the gym for two hours anevening.
I hop on like a weight losssystem.
I chose Nutrisystem at thattime.
I didn't read up on it.
I didn't follow the guidelines.
I just I just ate the food and Ibecame incredibly disciplined.
(09:58):
I became incredibly focused andI was consistent.
I mean, I even, there was timeswhere I said no to hanging out
with friends because it cut intomy gym time.
And I remember my friendsgetting so annoyed with me.
But it was, it was so fulfillingbecause sure enough, I started
(10:20):
to see the progress, theoutcomes of I started to lose
the weight.
My clothes started to getbaggier and baggier.
People were noticing andcomplimenting.
Which of you have ever done thatbefore?
It's really fun.
It's great.
It's a lot better than whenyou're gaining a lot of weight
because when you're gaining alot of weight, people don't say,
(10:42):
hey, wow, looks like you put ona few, right?
They don't say that.
But when you've lost it, theygo, wow, you look great.
I didn't want to say anythingbefore, but wow, good job.
And so I went through thisprocess in 2008 and I lost a
bunch of weight, like in andaround 150 pounds.
(11:03):
I was looking good.
I was feeling good.
I started, I actually starteddating someone shortly after
that.
And I mean, life was awesome.
Now, like anything though, if Ikept up that consistency, that
discipline, that focus, I wouldprobably have not gone back or
changed or drifted back to whereI was.
(11:26):
And over the next, I want tosay, well, I know for sure I
gained most of my weight backwithin four years.
And then after that four-yearmark, I gained the rest of it
over maybe about a seven-yearperiod.
(11:47):
And I've always struggled withweight.
As long as I can remember, I'vealways struggled with weight.
But what kept me positive andwhat kept me going was an
internal voice where I just keptsaying, hey, all I got to do is
just flip the switch.
All I got to do is just flipthat switch, start working out
again, eating right again, andI'll be successful.
(12:12):
And there was a couple of timeswhere I'd start to flip the
switch.
It would go good for about aweek, maybe two, maybe even a
month.
And then I would inevitablydrift back to where I was.
And for me, I can easily gainweight when I'm eating the wrong
things.
And so that little lie that youtell yourself, oh, it's just
(12:32):
this one time turns into, it'sjust this two times turns into,
holy crap, it's been threemonths.
Wow, it's been a year and now myclothes aren't fitting.
And so that's that moment whereI realized I have fallen prey to
this flip the switch myth.
And in the book, John goes onand director Thomas said, it's
(13:00):
not a switch though.
It's a dial.
John's like, it is a dial.
And that's really the secondpoint of this podcast is when
you understand about thesevoices or this internal dialogue
that you have with yourself orthis subconscious belief that is
that it's not a switch.
I can't just flip the switch,but I can start to turn down or
(13:20):
turn up the dial.
Just like right now I have mypodcast board in front of me and
I have dials and switches.
The dials allow me to turn downor turn up, you know, depending
on what I want to accomplish.
And when I read that in thebook, that moment of aha, that's
(13:42):
exactly what I've beenstruggling with.
is that I've been thinking thisentire time internally that I'm
just one switch away fromimmediately being successful,
but that's not how human beingswork.
I mean, I didn't gain all myweight back off of just one time
I ate something and flipped theswitch, and guess what?
(14:03):
I'm fat again, right?
It was incremental changes.
It was like slowly turning upthe dial.
Slowly that scale went higherand higher and higher, right?
And so when you start to thinkabout these internal factors,
why we get so frustrated is itreally kind of depends on where
(14:23):
our dial is at.
It really depends on where thedial is at is with the process
that you're going to have to gothrough.
Like in this podcast and even inthe book, they talk about
turning down the dial, switchingthe switch off to silence the
voices, to do it one time.
(14:43):
And so let's follow along withthat premise in leadership when
it comes to success.
Let's turn down the things thatare stopping us like
procrastination.
Let's turn down the things thatare stopping us like drama or
energy drainers.
Let's turn down the busynesswork that we know we should be
(15:04):
delegating.
Let's turn down the voices thatsays, hey, I'm the only one that
can do this.
No one else can.
I mean, these are the things asleaders that we tell ourselves
that can hold this back.
And it's like, oh, I can justflip the switch.
I could just do this.
I can just use this tool, thisprocess.
(15:25):
And it's this incrementalchange.
And it's something where it's aprocess.
Like I think of a switch goingfrom one to 10, one being just
silent or even maybe zero whereit's off completely.
Right.
And 10 just being silent.
you know, bonkers crazy, youknow, like at a concert, you
know, a guitar rift.
And so it's something where, youknow, turning down that dial is
(15:50):
incredibly important to start tocreate that focus, that
discipline and that consistencyin the change that you and I
want to make in our businesses,right?
I can't just flip the switch andall of a sudden cut all spending
and be immediately profitablebecause businesses have to spend
(16:15):
money to make money.
I mean, in my real estatebrokerage, there's times my
staff will reach out to me, hey,can we order these postcards for
this agent?
Well, yes, we have a servicethat allows them to do that,
that we make a little money on,but we have to wait the 30 days
to do so.
right?
We have to spend the money tomake the money.
(16:36):
And ultimately by having themsend out postcards, the hope is
that they'll meet new sellersand start to work with them.
And there's another sale.
There's another opportunity forboth the agent and the
brokerage.
And so it's something where youcan't, you know, it's
incremental changes.
You can't just cut all spendingand be profitable, but you can't
(16:58):
just not focus on spending andexpect to To go, whoops, we ran
out of money, right?
It's an incremental change.
And so it's a dial.
It's not a switch.
It's a dial.
So I started to dive in evenfurther because, okay, so let's
(17:18):
say...
I start to turn down this dial.
Well, why, why doesn't it juststay there?
Like bringing up the healthsituation again with losing the
weight.
Why didn't it just, why didn'tit just stay there?
Because we naturally drift inthe, in the way that we don't
want to go.
especially as leaders, if you'retalking about being more
focused, more disciplined, oreven more consistent, you're
(17:42):
talking about creatingprofitability or a standard
operating procedures or, um, uh,keeping staff towards mission.
If we're just to, to set it, ifyou and I were just to set it
and walk away with noaccountability, no minor
adjustments, um, Well, whathappens over time is that it
(18:06):
goes the opposite way of whereyou and I want it to go.
For our businesses, ourorganizations, or even our
groups that we're leaders of, toget them to go in the direction
that is on mission or where ourvision might be, it requires
(18:27):
focus, discipline, andconsistency.
And so this dial tends to driftin the opposite direction.
I mean, even in this premise ofthe book, if you don't work on
the negative soundtracks, if youdon't work on the negative
things you say to yourself,while you may get to a point of
(18:50):
success, eventually those startpopping up again.
You're no good.
You suck.
You can't do this.
Just give up.
You had your chance.
It's over now.
Someone else is coming toreplace you.
And so this dial, this dialstarts to drift.
(19:11):
It really does.
So that gets me to this finalpoint of like, if this is
constantly creating frustration,if this question is coming up of
why can't I just make thesechanges one time and just be
good is because that's not howlife works, right?
And I know it kind of suckshearing that, by the way, like I
(19:33):
wish it did where we could justflip a switch and that's it
done.
But that's not how life works.
We what we give attention towhat you and I give attention to
as leaders.
That's what gets fixed.
I mean, I just had somethingrecently come up where I had set
something up over a year ago.
(19:54):
had an expectation of one of mystaff members to be doing this
one activity.
And, and I went back to thatstaff member over a year later
and said, Hey, I'm justfollowing up.
I realized as I went through andstarted to follow up on what I
asked you to do there, this ismarketing.
(20:17):
There's no posts.
There's no, there's no, there'snothing out there.
And the staff member got back tome and goes, Oh, I didn't know
about that.
And see, in my mind, I alreadythought it was fixed.
But because I went on to thenext dragon or the next thing
that was in my way, the nextobstacle, the next mountain, it
naturally just drifted awaywhere what I was expecting to be
(20:39):
done was not being done.
And this poor staff member waslike, I don't remember having
this conversation.
And to that person's point, theyhad every right to say that
because they don't recall that.
There was no follow-up for overa year.
And it naturally drifted awayfrom not ever happening.
And so I think it's important toalways remember that to have
(21:04):
something successful, to havesomething that is going to hit
goal or hit what you're aspiringto, it has to be intentional and
proactive.
You're not going to accidentallyjust accomplish what you want to
accomplish, right?
And so it's this process ofconstantly turning this dial
(21:25):
down.
Now, if you're like me, you loveextremes, like turn the puppy
all the way up and turn it allthe way down.
But that's not how that works.
It's incremental changes,incremental turns.
Just it's one step at a time.
And so since there's no switch,there's no immediate.
(21:45):
And so as leaders, we have toturn down that dial.
Each and every day to finally dothe things that we want to do.
That dial, when it goes up, Imean, especially if we take it
from the premise of this book,that's where you find the
procrastination.
That's where you find theinternal voice that tells you
(22:06):
you can't.
Your inner critic.
Bedros Koulian talks about yourinner critic all the time.
And so if you're struggling withstuff not getting done as you
intend it to get done, it'sMaybe because you're believing
in this switch mentality, thisswitch myth, where all you have
to do is flip the switch andnext thing you know, you will be
(22:28):
successful.
But I'm here to tell you,friend, that's just not the
truth.
Well, hey, I really appreciateyou listening to this episode
and being a part of thiscommunity, the Different
Thinking community.
As always, feel free to reachout, whether emailing or even
through the podcast itself.
(22:49):
Give out a comment or even sharehow much you've been enjoying
this podcast.
And I'm excited to be bringingforward more content that is
helping to really help us asleaders, you and I as leaders,
help people.
And as always, remember today isa great day that you can apply
(23:13):
different thinking.
Take care, everyone.
Thank you for listening to the
SPEAKER_01 (23:18):
different thinking podcast.
Please follow the show onYouTube, Instagram, and
Facebook.
Don't forget to rate and reviewus.
And remember today is a greatday for you to apply different
thinking.
Thanks again for listening.
Welcome to the Different Thinking Podcast,
where creativity is welcome,conventional wisdom is tried and
tested, and growth anddevelopment are nourished so
that someday you can help tochange the world.
Now here's your
SPEAKER_00 (00:18):
host, Zach Hensrood.
So I have a question for you.
Have you ever been in a placewhere you wanted to make either
a small or or significantchange, but have become
frustrated because even thoughyou have made those changes in
your life or in the way that youconduct business, they haven't
(00:40):
seen immediate results.
And you start to think toyourself, why can't I see those
immediate results?
It's almost like if I could justgo in and Do these things and
create that focus, thatconsistency and that discipline.
And I want this outcome.
(01:02):
Why doesn't it come so quickly?
I mean, I have fallen prey tothat question so many times.
And as you could see from therecording date, the last episode
that I did was in July of 2024.
And so there's been a bit of agap, but during that gap, I've
(01:23):
spent a lot of time reallyworking on developing myself as
a leader, creating the focusesand the disciplines that it
requires to run a largerorganization.
Probably, I mean, I thought Iknew what I knew, but then over
these last 10 months, I reallygot a masterclass in
(01:45):
understanding that I reallydidn't know what I thought I
knew.
And so I'm glad to be back onthe Different Thinking Podcast
with you.
I've gotten folks that havetexted me during this gap period
telling me how much they enjoyedthe show and wondering when the
new episodes are coming out.
(02:07):
And so here we are.
We're starting with this episodehere with this question of, have
you ever gotten frustrated thatwhen you have And let's go ahead
and define it a little bitbetter.
Where you've gone internally andflipped a switch and created
that focus, that discipline,maybe even tried to create that
(02:30):
immediate consistency, but youhaven't received those immediate
results back and wondered, whynot?
Why can't I?
I mean, all it is, is I justflipped the switch and it should
come back to me.
A few months ago, I was readinga book called Soundtracks by
(02:52):
John Acuff.
It was recommended to me througha program I was taking with
Buffini and Company.
I bought the book.
I actually bought the book formultiple people because of the
premise in behind the book.
I have a huge belief in, andthat is the internal stories,
the internal voices that, thatthat are in our brain that
(03:14):
really guide and direct us.
One of my coaches would say thestories that are just not true.
And it's really interesting froma psychology aspect when you
dive into really understandingand unpacking the internal
voices that people have and thethings that they would say to
(03:37):
themselves that they would neversay to another human being.
I mean, it was absolutely afantastic book.
And if I could recommend it, Iwould recommend it right now for
you to purchase and read.
Very simple to read, really welllaid out.
And if you've heard John Acuffspeak or read one of his books,
(03:59):
you know there's a bit of humorin there, and I always enjoy
humor.
Humor, having fun, I think isincredibly important.
But as I was reading this book,I had a lightning bolt moment
where I go, ah, this would be agreat podcast episode.
And if you've ever wondered howI structure and create podcast
episodes, it's not where I wouldread a book for an episode.
(04:22):
It's as I'm reading a book,personal development book or a
business book, all of it.
I will find those moments whereit comes to me, goes, this, this
would be a great podcastepisode.
This would be great to sharewith aspiring leaders or leaders
who know that they're, they're,they have so much more to do and
(04:43):
to give to their people.
I mean, that is really whatmakes a different thinking
leader.
Probably why you're listening tothis podcast is that you want to
give more back to your people.
One of the aspects of themission is that conventional
wisdom is tried and tested.
One of the things that's very,very interesting is that there's
(05:07):
a lot of conventional wisdom ofhow things have always that have
always been done a certain way.
And then you ask the why.
Well, why has it always beendone a certain way?
And people will look at you thathave given you that advice,
mentors, or even if you'retaking classes and you raise
your hand and say, excuse me,you say that this is the right
(05:27):
way of going, but can you sharewith me why?
They go, there's really, Zach,there's really no reason other
than it's always worked thisway.
And so conventional wisdom is,would say that, hey, there's
been a certain way that leaderscan create change in their
(05:48):
organizations or theirbusinesses.
They just really need to do thisone thing.
And the lightning bolt momenthit when I was reading and John
was having a conversation withthe family counselor, director
of family counselor.
I should say this right.
Director of Family Counselor atDaystar Center, which is a place
(06:12):
in Nashville for kids.
And they're having thisconversation and Director Thomas
said this to John.
He said, we think that there's aswitch out there.
And if we can just find it, wecan turn it off.
We can turn off the backgroundnoise completely.
And we only have to do it onetime and we'll never hear it
(06:35):
again.
And I thought that was reallyinteresting and I'll share more
of what John responded backwith, but I found it really
interesting because I had alwaysheard coaches, trainers, or even
when I was in youth athleticswhere someone would just say,
Hey Zach, flip the switch, flipthe switch.
(06:55):
And it's something where he evensaid, director Thomas even said
to John, people want there to bea switch, right?
And I found that extremelyinteresting, especially when you
start to think about thefrustrations that we feel as
leaders or frustrations thatcome up when we either, I say
(07:19):
we, us collectively, I tiemyself into this, need to make a
change or are forced to make achange.
There's times where as a leader,I would like to make a change,
but there's other times whereI'm forced to make a change.
And in that, there's thatinternal mindset of, oh, I just
need to flip the switch becauseI was coached that mentality for
(07:47):
years.
It's just a switch.
You flip it.
And when you flip it, it cancreate that discipline, that
focus, and that consistency.
And so as I was pondering andprocessing it, I started to
think, okay, Okay, was thereever a time in my life where
(08:07):
I've fallen prey to this switchmentality?
Almost like a myth, this flipthe switch myth.
Has there ever been a time thatI've fallen prey to that?
And immediately, I began torecall a time in my life back in
2008.
I know I've shared this on thepodcast before, but I think it's
(08:31):
incredibly important to continueto share this Uh, my story,
because I think that createsconnection with you because the
thing is, is I, I share my storyto, to make connection, not to
say, Hey, here's everything thatI've overcome or done.
And, and I want you to know thatI'm no different than you other
than I'm just a, just a guybehind a microphone, just trying
(08:52):
to help others and createcontent.
So in 2008, uh, it was very,very heavy, probably the
heaviest I'd been in life.
Actually, I had that scarymoment where I was, I mean, I'm
in my mid-20s at that point.
I went to go bend down to tie myshoe and all of a sudden I'm,
(09:14):
you know, breathing heavy,trying to tie my shoe in my
mid-20s.
That's not, I can't live thatway.
And so I go on this healthjourney.
I'm single.
I'm rooming with my brother andmy best friend.
We're living in this small towncalled Snohomish.
I mean, no attachments.
(09:36):
And so it's something where I goon this health journey where I
buy all the supplements.
I go to the gym for two hours anevening.
I hop on like a weight losssystem.
I chose Nutrisystem at thattime.
I didn't read up on it.
I didn't follow the guidelines.
I just I just ate the food and Ibecame incredibly disciplined.
(09:58):
I became incredibly focused andI was consistent.
I mean, I even, there was timeswhere I said no to hanging out
with friends because it cut intomy gym time.
And I remember my friendsgetting so annoyed with me.
But it was, it was so fulfillingbecause sure enough, I started
(10:20):
to see the progress, theoutcomes of I started to lose
the weight.
My clothes started to getbaggier and baggier.
People were noticing andcomplimenting.
Which of you have ever done thatbefore?
It's really fun.
It's great.
It's a lot better than whenyou're gaining a lot of weight
because when you're gaining alot of weight, people don't say,
(10:42):
hey, wow, looks like you put ona few, right?
They don't say that.
But when you've lost it, theygo, wow, you look great.
I didn't want to say anythingbefore, but wow, good job.
And so I went through thisprocess in 2008 and I lost a
bunch of weight, like in andaround 150 pounds.
(11:03):
I was looking good.
I was feeling good.
I started, I actually starteddating someone shortly after
that.
And I mean, life was awesome.
Now, like anything though, if Ikept up that consistency, that
discipline, that focus, I wouldprobably have not gone back or
changed or drifted back to whereI was.
(11:26):
And over the next, I want tosay, well, I know for sure I
gained most of my weight backwithin four years.
And then after that four-yearmark, I gained the rest of it
over maybe about a seven-yearperiod.
(11:47):
And I've always struggled withweight.
As long as I can remember, I'vealways struggled with weight.
But what kept me positive andwhat kept me going was an
internal voice where I just keptsaying, hey, all I got to do is
just flip the switch.
All I got to do is just flipthat switch, start working out
again, eating right again, andI'll be successful.
(12:12):
And there was a couple of timeswhere I'd start to flip the
switch.
It would go good for about aweek, maybe two, maybe even a
month.
And then I would inevitablydrift back to where I was.
And for me, I can easily gainweight when I'm eating the wrong
things.
And so that little lie that youtell yourself, oh, it's just
(12:32):
this one time turns into, it'sjust this two times turns into,
holy crap, it's been threemonths.
Wow, it's been a year and now myclothes aren't fitting.
And so that's that moment whereI realized I have fallen prey to
this flip the switch myth.
And in the book, John goes onand director Thomas said, it's
(13:00):
not a switch though.
It's a dial.
John's like, it is a dial.
And that's really the secondpoint of this podcast is when
you understand about thesevoices or this internal dialogue
that you have with yourself orthis subconscious belief that is
that it's not a switch.
I can't just flip the switch,but I can start to turn down or
(13:20):
turn up the dial.
Just like right now I have mypodcast board in front of me and
I have dials and switches.
The dials allow me to turn downor turn up, you know, depending
on what I want to accomplish.
And when I read that in thebook, that moment of aha, that's
(13:42):
exactly what I've beenstruggling with.
is that I've been thinking thisentire time internally that I'm
just one switch away fromimmediately being successful,
but that's not how human beingswork.
I mean, I didn't gain all myweight back off of just one time
I ate something and flipped theswitch, and guess what?
(14:03):
I'm fat again, right?
It was incremental changes.
It was like slowly turning upthe dial.
Slowly that scale went higherand higher and higher, right?
And so when you start to thinkabout these internal factors,
why we get so frustrated is itreally kind of depends on where
(14:23):
our dial is at.
It really depends on where thedial is at is with the process
that you're going to have to gothrough.
Like in this podcast and even inthe book, they talk about
turning down the dial, switchingthe switch off to silence the
voices, to do it one time.
(14:43):
And so let's follow along withthat premise in leadership when
it comes to success.
Let's turn down the things thatare stopping us like
procrastination.
Let's turn down the things thatare stopping us like drama or
energy drainers.
Let's turn down the busynesswork that we know we should be
(15:04):
delegating.
Let's turn down the voices thatsays, hey, I'm the only one that
can do this.
No one else can.
I mean, these are the things asleaders that we tell ourselves
that can hold this back.
And it's like, oh, I can justflip the switch.
I could just do this.
I can just use this tool, thisprocess.
(15:25):
And it's this incrementalchange.
And it's something where it's aprocess.
Like I think of a switch goingfrom one to 10, one being just
silent or even maybe zero whereit's off completely.
Right.
And 10 just being silent.
you know, bonkers crazy, youknow, like at a concert, you
know, a guitar rift.
And so it's something where, youknow, turning down that dial is
(15:50):
incredibly important to start tocreate that focus, that
discipline and that consistencyin the change that you and I
want to make in our businesses,right?
I can't just flip the switch andall of a sudden cut all spending
and be immediately profitablebecause businesses have to spend
(16:15):
money to make money.
I mean, in my real estatebrokerage, there's times my
staff will reach out to me, hey,can we order these postcards for
this agent?
Well, yes, we have a servicethat allows them to do that,
that we make a little money on,but we have to wait the 30 days
to do so.
right?
We have to spend the money tomake the money.
(16:36):
And ultimately by having themsend out postcards, the hope is
that they'll meet new sellersand start to work with them.
And there's another sale.
There's another opportunity forboth the agent and the
brokerage.
And so it's something where youcan't, you know, it's
incremental changes.
You can't just cut all spendingand be profitable, but you can't
(16:58):
just not focus on spending andexpect to To go, whoops, we ran
out of money, right?
It's an incremental change.
And so it's a dial.
It's not a switch.
It's a dial.
So I started to dive in evenfurther because, okay, so let's
(17:18):
say...
I start to turn down this dial.
Well, why, why doesn't it juststay there?
Like bringing up the healthsituation again with losing the
weight.
Why didn't it just, why didn'tit just stay there?
Because we naturally drift inthe, in the way that we don't
want to go.
especially as leaders, if you'retalking about being more
focused, more disciplined, oreven more consistent, you're
(17:42):
talking about creatingprofitability or a standard
operating procedures or, um, uh,keeping staff towards mission.
If we're just to, to set it, ifyou and I were just to set it
and walk away with noaccountability, no minor
adjustments, um, Well, whathappens over time is that it
(18:06):
goes the opposite way of whereyou and I want it to go.
For our businesses, ourorganizations, or even our
groups that we're leaders of, toget them to go in the direction
that is on mission or where ourvision might be, it requires
(18:27):
focus, discipline, andconsistency.
And so this dial tends to driftin the opposite direction.
I mean, even in this premise ofthe book, if you don't work on
the negative soundtracks, if youdon't work on the negative
things you say to yourself,while you may get to a point of
(18:50):
success, eventually those startpopping up again.
You're no good.
You suck.
You can't do this.
Just give up.
You had your chance.
It's over now.
Someone else is coming toreplace you.
And so this dial, this dialstarts to drift.
(19:11):
It really does.
So that gets me to this finalpoint of like, if this is
constantly creating frustration,if this question is coming up of
why can't I just make thesechanges one time and just be
good is because that's not howlife works, right?
And I know it kind of suckshearing that, by the way, like I
(19:33):
wish it did where we could justflip a switch and that's it
done.
But that's not how life works.
We what we give attention towhat you and I give attention to
as leaders.
That's what gets fixed.
I mean, I just had somethingrecently come up where I had set
something up over a year ago.
(19:54):
had an expectation of one of mystaff members to be doing this
one activity.
And, and I went back to thatstaff member over a year later
and said, Hey, I'm justfollowing up.
I realized as I went through andstarted to follow up on what I
asked you to do there, this ismarketing.
(20:17):
There's no posts.
There's no, there's no, there'snothing out there.
And the staff member got back tome and goes, Oh, I didn't know
about that.
And see, in my mind, I alreadythought it was fixed.
But because I went on to thenext dragon or the next thing
that was in my way, the nextobstacle, the next mountain, it
naturally just drifted awaywhere what I was expecting to be
(20:39):
done was not being done.
And this poor staff member waslike, I don't remember having
this conversation.
And to that person's point, theyhad every right to say that
because they don't recall that.
There was no follow-up for overa year.
And it naturally drifted awayfrom not ever happening.
And so I think it's important toalways remember that to have
(21:04):
something successful, to havesomething that is going to hit
goal or hit what you're aspiringto, it has to be intentional and
proactive.
You're not going to accidentallyjust accomplish what you want to
accomplish, right?
And so it's this process ofconstantly turning this dial
(21:25):
down.
Now, if you're like me, you loveextremes, like turn the puppy
all the way up and turn it allthe way down.
But that's not how that works.
It's incremental changes,incremental turns.
Just it's one step at a time.
And so since there's no switch,there's no immediate.
(21:45):
And so as leaders, we have toturn down that dial.
Each and every day to finally dothe things that we want to do.
That dial, when it goes up, Imean, especially if we take it
from the premise of this book,that's where you find the
procrastination.
That's where you find theinternal voice that tells you
(22:06):
you can't.
Your inner critic.
Bedros Koulian talks about yourinner critic all the time.
And so if you're struggling withstuff not getting done as you
intend it to get done, it'sMaybe because you're believing
in this switch mentality, thisswitch myth, where all you have
to do is flip the switch andnext thing you know, you will be
(22:28):
successful.
But I'm here to tell you,friend, that's just not the
truth.
Well, hey, I really appreciateyou listening to this episode
and being a part of thiscommunity, the Different
Thinking community.
As always, feel free to reachout, whether emailing or even
through the podcast itself.
(22:49):
Give out a comment or even sharehow much you've been enjoying
this podcast.
And I'm excited to be bringingforward more content that is
helping to really help us asleaders, you and I as leaders,
help people.
And as always, remember today isa great day that you can apply
(23:13):
different thinking.
Take care, everyone.
Thank you for listening to the
SPEAKER_01 (23:18):
different thinking podcast.
Please follow the show onYouTube, Instagram, and
Facebook.
Don't forget to rate and reviewus.
And remember today is a greatday for you to apply different
thinking.
Thanks again for listening.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.