August 28, 2025 • 28 mins
Terry Tucker’s journey reads like a Hollywood script—college basketball player, SWAT hostage negotiator, and now a 13-year cancer warrior. When doctors gave him just two years to live, Terry chose to reframe his diagnosis with one profound question: “How can I turn this death sentence into a life sentence?”
His answer reshaped everything. Despite losing a foot and later a leg, Terry radiates an unstoppable optimism that challenges how we view pain, purpose, and resilience. Drawing from his book Sustainable Excellence, Terry shares ten powerful principles for extraordinary living, including the reminder that most of us “think with our fears and insecurities instead of using our minds.”
Rooted in his “three Fs”—faith, family, and friends—Terry’s story is as spiritual as it is motivational. His raw honesty about gratitude, frustration, trust, and questioning God makes his message deeply relatable for anyone seeking hope through adversity.
In this episode, you’ll learn how purpose can be found in suffering, how to expand your endurance far beyond what you think possible, and why true freedom begins when you stop letting fear run your life.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Hello everyone, welcome to the Spiritual
Spotlight Series.
Today I'm joined by TerryTucker.
He is a speaker author.
He is also guest on a lot ofpodcasts and he speaks about
motivation, mindset andself-development.
Thank you so much for Terry tocome on the Spiritual Spotlight
Series.
I'm so excited you're here.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
Well, Rachel, thanks for having me on.
I'm really looking forward totalking with you.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
So you've had an incredibly diverse career, from
a SWAT hostage negotiator to ahospital administrator and now
motivational speaker.
So how has each one of theseroles shaped your mindset and
personal philosophies?
Speaker 2 (00:37):
Yeah, I mean I think I have to go back.
You know, I'm the oldest ofthree boys.
I grew up in a sports family.
All three of my brothers and Iplayed college basketball or
baseball.
My one brother was drafted bythe Cleveland Cavaliers, the
National Basketball Association.
So our whole life revolvedaround sports.
And you learn early in sports,the importance of mindset, the
(00:58):
importance of you knowunderstanding that you've got to
be focused and things like thatunderstanding that you've got
to be focused and things likethat, so that I think that goes
back to just our parents, youknow, and and teaching us those
kinds of things and I, and then,as you move into life, I was a
college basketball player.
Yeah, I was a SWAT hostagenegotiator, as you mentioned,
and for the last 13 years nowI've been a a cancer warrior.
(01:20):
So that's all about controllingthe mind and I mean, you know
that as a nurse and things likethat.
It's just your life is reallywhat happens between your two
ears.
It's not what happens out there.
It's not what happens to you,it's how you react to it.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
Absolutely so.
You kind of brought this up acouple of things.
So fighting cancer, facingcancer for the last 13 years, is
an incredibly journey ofresilience.
Can you maybe share a pivotalmoment where it shifted your
perspective on life?
Speaker 2 (01:55):
Oh, absolutely yeah, 2012,.
When I was diagnosed, they saidyou'll be dead in two years and
I was like, oh okay, you gaveme a death sentence.
How can I turn that deathsentence into a life sentence?
And it was finding your purposeand I had done so many active
physical things in my life, fromcollege basketball player to
(02:16):
police officer to SWAT.
Speaker 1 (02:18):
Yes.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
And in 2020, I had my second amputation my foot
amputated in 2018, my legamputated in 2020.
And so when you can't do whatyou're good at, I think you do
what's important in life, andthat's really.
I needed a purpose.
I needed to find meaning in mymisery during all that ugliness
(02:40):
and cancer and surgeries andtreatments and medications, and
that purpose now for me haschanged to putting as much
goodness, positivity, motivation, love back into the world with
whatever time I have left.
Speaker 1 (02:56):
I think that's amazing.
It's so important.
I don't think people realizehow much your mental mindset
matters when facing healthissues, financial issues, like
just issues of life and traumaof life, and I think it's so
inspiring that you've been ableto really hone in on that and
help others kind of dig out ofthat well of hopelessness.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
Exactly, and you know I've learned a lot through
cancer.
But two things I've learnedthat I'll give to your listeners
.
Absolutely Number one I don'tthink you truly know yourself
until you've been tested by someform of adversity in your life.
It doesn't have to be cancer oranything like that.
It can be anything.
And the second thing is andthis is going to sound kind of
weird cancer's made me a betterhuman being.
(03:43):
You, I've been asked thequestion if I could live my life
over again without cancer.
Would I do it?
Yeah, and honestly, rachel, Idon't think I would.
I think cancer has made me thatmuch, that much better of a
human being.
I always say I've had a greatlife before I got cancer right,
but I've done more living in the13 years that I've been dying
of cancer than I've done in myentire life.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
I want to say to you I have chills with that answer.
And two, I have a family memberwho has stage four cancer and I
feel like she's very much likeyou, she has the mental mindset
and she is thriving within hercancer and she has had the same
answer that you just had and Ijust like you're like the first
(04:26):
person besides her that I'vebeen able to make that
connection with and I find thatto be so inspiring because she's
like no, I'm thriving, shetravels, she loves her best life
, even though she still getschemotherapy, you know, every
other week.
You know it's fascinating.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
I just it's fascinating to me, like how it's
like, no, it's almost like awake up call to like what's
important you know it really is,and I think you know doctors
when I was diagnosed, you know Ialways say doctors are like
Vegas.
Speaker 1 (04:54):
you know they're kind of like bookies you know they
look at you and say based onyour age, based on your overall
health, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
And then based on your stage of cancer you're
going to live X.
Yes, what doctors don't like.
Is it your aunt or your sisterthat you just said, that you
were just talking about.
Speaker 1 (05:08):
It's my stepmom.
Yeah, my stepmom.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
OK, you know.
What doctors don't know is thatyou want to see your daughter
graduate from high school orwalk her down the aisle or play
with your grandkids, and thathaving something to live for,
yes, really does keep youpropelled, keep you propelling
forward in your life.
It's not just I sit back andsay, oh, woe is me.
No, I'm going to live my life.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
I love that so much.
It's so inspiring.
Yes, because you do see people,like you mentioned, I am a
nurse, I run a doctor's officeand you do see people that
unfortunately they give up theirwill to live and then they meet
the maker, so it's it isdifficult to see.
It's like who can really diginto faith, mental mindset,
what's going to push themforward and you know, and then
(05:53):
it's no shame or judgment tothose who are like you know, I'm
good, you know and that's okay.
So it's interesting yeah itisn't.
Speaker 2 (06:01):
but you know I always go back to victor frankl, who
was the holocaust survivor wroteman's search for Meaning and he
has hit a great point in thatbook.
He said when people lose thewill to live, it's almost
impossible to get it back.
Speaker 1 (06:14):
So don't lose the will to live in the first place.
Absolutely, absolutely.
So you titled your bookSustainable Excellence.
What does excellence mean toyou and how do you sustain it,
even in face of adversity?
Speaker 2 (06:29):
Yeah, that's a great question.
I always get that.
You wrote the book SustainableExcellence.
What does excellence mean?
My answer is I don't know.
I love that you wrote the book.
How can you not know whatexcellence is?
And the reason I say that isbecause you and I may look at a
sports team or a band or a playor something like that and you
may say, hey, that's excellent.
(06:50):
And I may say, yeah, I thinkthey're good, but I don't think
they're excellent.
I think excellence, kind oflike beauty, is in the eye of
the beholder.
You've got to determine whatexcellence is for you.
So once you've done that, thenhow do you sustain it?
How do you keep it going?
And I think one of the biggestthings is you've got to
(07:10):
constantly innovate.
I mean, what happens whenpeople get to the top of the
mountain?
They sort of kick back, puttheir feet up on the desk, pour
themselves a drink and be likeman, I've arrived.
Speaker 1 (07:18):
Right or they keep going.
Speaker 2 (07:21):
Well, exactly, but a lot of people don't.
They're like you know.
And then, but like you say, sixmonths later, a year later,
somebody passes them up andthey're like wait a minute, what
happened?
Yes, yes, you didn't findanother segment of the market to
offer something.
You didn't find another productto deliver with your service,
and that's we get complacent,we're like we've made it.
(07:46):
And what people don'tunderstand it's not.
Life doesn't happen when youget to the top of the mountain.
Life happens on the journey toget to the top of the mountain.
And if your audience remembersnothing else that I say today,
remember this it's moreimportant who you work with and
who you work for.
Then it is the work that you do.
(08:06):
Find people that care about youyes.
Find people that are willing toinvest in you.
Find people that want to seeyou succeed.
Yes, it's your wagon to thosepeople and climb your mountains
together.
Speaker 1 (08:19):
That is such valuable advice.
I will say that like it's sotrue, because if you don't, if
people don't value you andpeople don't, if you don't hit
your, you know your cart to thatkind of philosophy of I'm going
to champion those that arearound me, I'm going to rise
above, we're going to risetogether, not going to gatekeep,
I'm not going to.
(08:40):
It's so important and thedynamic of what you do,
regardless of what you're doing,it improves so much.
It's because you're in ittogether.
You're in it to win together.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
Yeah, I mean, if COVID taught us anything, it's
you know we're not good separate.
We're not good in isolation.
You know we're better together.
We can't be successful in avacuum.
We need other people.
Speaker 1 (09:03):
Absolutely, absolutely.
So.
You've encountered extremechallenges, from high stakes
negotiations to major healthbattles.
What mindset, techniques orspiritual practices have helped
you?
Just maybe stay grounded?
Absolutely.
Speaker 2 (09:16):
I mean I always say what's gotten me through my life
?
Certainly, what's gotten methrough cancer in particular are
what I call my three Fs faith,family and friends.
I have a very strong faith inGod and I remember when I was
diagnosed as I said, the doctorswere like we've got nothing to
offer you other than surgery.
So they put me on a drug calledinterferon, which was a horrible
(09:39):
, nasty, debilitating drug.
You know that as an earth and Itook a weekly interferon
injection that gave me terribleflu-like symptoms for two to
three days every week after eachinjection, and I took those
weekly injections for almostfive years.
I know brain damage.
That's kind of where I at thatpoint in time.
But there was a point in timein there, rachel, where it was
(10:02):
like I was so sick of being sickthat I literally prayed to die.
I kind of felt there were twocamps.
There was the living and thenot dying.
Speaker 1 (10:11):
And I was in the.
Speaker 2 (10:12):
I wasn't really living, I was just kind of
marking time Exactly, and soprayer was incredibly powerful
for me.
And then let me fast forward.
So when I had my leg amputatedand I found out I had tumors in
my lungs, my doctor showed me myCAT scan, and I have no medical
background.
Speaker 1 (10:29):
I don't know how to read a CAT scan, but you can
kind of look at it and be like,oh, that sure didn't look like
it belongs there.
Speaker 2 (10:35):
These big tumors in my lungs.
I blew it all around thepleural spaces and I remember my
doctor and saying how was Ialive?
Speaker 1 (10:45):
And.
Speaker 2 (10:45):
Rachel, till the day I die, I will never forget this.
He put his head down, he shookhis head, no, and then he looked
up at me and he said I don'tknow, because you shouldn't have
been.
Which said to me God's not donewith me yet when I die, where I
die, how I die way above my paygrade.
Don't spend a lot of timeworried about the dying, spend
more time focused on the living,and I believe now God is using
(11:10):
my malignancy, my infirmity, toshow people his grace, his love,
his mercy, his comfort, hiscompassion.
And if that's what God wants todo with me until he wants to
take me, I'm great with that Ilove that.
Speaker 1 (11:23):
it's, it's so inspirational.
I I go back to my stepmom who,again, like she's was on.
She's been on differenttreatment plans and you know
when the beginning was in andout of hospitals and whatnot.
But for the past I think she'sbeen diagnosed.
Now, three years past, almosttwo years, she's had no evidence
of active disease being instage four.
(11:44):
So, and it's like in the samething with the doctors is like
it was everywhere, everywhere,and it was.
It's the same thing.
It's like, well, no, I really Ireally liken it to faith and
God, to having a bigger purposefor you, and and and same thing
for her.
It's like I know I have abigger purpose and I have more
to do here, so and so do you andI just, I just I just love this
(12:04):
so much, you know it just it'sso.
It just makes you so likegrateful for the fact that you
know you're living your life onpurpose and that you, you know
you have a bigger mission andyou know and to see, no, we can
do this, we can overcome.
It's just I love this, sorry.
Speaker 2 (12:20):
Exactly, and as a nurse and I'm sure you've seen
this, I have, and we haven'ttalked about this, but the
opposite of this is true.
You know, a doctor says, hey,you're going to be dead in two
years.
Now, I've always wanted my lifeto be based on the decisions
that I made yes, the ones that Ididn't make for me.
But I've also seen people andI'm sure you have too where the
doctor says you will be dead intwo years and literally on the
(12:42):
anniversary of that they're dead.
Speaker 1 (12:45):
It's like, cause they get it into their mental
mindset.
And then it's like, okay,because you know, and it's the
same thing with the medicalindustry we need to be able to
go into our hearts and be ableto discern.
And I get that sometimes you'regiven tough information and
it's like do you choose to takeit in and trust it as the gospel
, or am I going to choose to dosomething about it?
(13:07):
It's like, what are we going todo?
And it is, yeah.
I will say that I've been anurse now a little over 20 years
and when I, when I firststarted in the career, I worked
in a hospital and I was one ofonly two nurses that did chemo.
So cause I worked on theoncology unit and I worked on
another unit.
And it is fast, you, even thenyou could see like some people
(13:28):
it's like they're living to die,or some people that are just
I'm going to, I'm going to beatthis, I'm going to show you.
Speaker 2 (13:38):
I mean, it all happens up here.
I mean the mind can, will thebody to do amazing things.
Absolutely People don'tunderstand that.
Yeah, yes To somebody in awhite coat with a bunch of
initials after their name andit's like I've always said to my
doctor look, whatever you wantto do, tell it to me.
Explain it to me.
Yes, not in medical ease.
I got to understand what youwant to do and what you hope the
(14:00):
outcome to be.
Speaker 1 (14:01):
If you can explain that to me, then there's a good
chance, I'll go along with you.
Speaker 2 (14:05):
If you can't, I'm probably going to be like, yeah,
I don't think I want to do that.
Speaker 1 (14:08):
I like that and also like cause you brought up
another good point.
It's okay, like, if you'rehearing something that doesn't
compute with you, get adifferent opinion, find a
different doctor.
Like the same thing with mystepmom.
Like we actually sent her outof state to specialty care and
because she didn't jive withcertain doctors and I'm like,
okay, well, let's find yousomeone else.
And they got the righttreatment plan in place.
(14:30):
So it's like be okay withsaying this doesn't feel right
to me and and go on to someoneelse.
Speaker 2 (14:36):
Sorry, when your spidey senses go off like that,
it's like, oh, wait, a minute,feeling good.
Yeah, you've got to dosomething different.
Yes, and it's okay.
And if your doctor's offended,well then the heck heck with
your doctor, find another doctoryou're paying your doctor.
They're not paying you so andthere's a reason they call it
the practice of medicine.
Speaker 1 (14:54):
It's a practice, they're not 100, sure you know I
like that the practice'm goingto.
Next time I someone says it'sthe practice of medicine and
you're not always right, I'llget those doctors in line.
So you built a platformmotivational check, which is to
help others live extraordinarylives.
(15:14):
What inspired you to start thisand what has been the most
fulfilling part of sharing yourwisdom to start this and what
has been the?
Speaker 2 (15:20):
most fulfilling part of sharing your wisdom.
Motivational check is a word ora phrase that came from when I
was in the police academy and itwas a phrase that our defensive
tactics instructor gave us that, if I mean, we did some crazy
things when we were in thepolice academy.
We would run to this bigapartment building, had this
fountain outside and thefountain had about a foot of
(15:41):
water in it and we would get inthe fountain and we would do
push-ups and then we would runback, we would be all wet and
stuff like that.
But that phrase was if you werejust having one of those days I
can't go on, I'm hurting youcould yell out motivational chat
and the rest of the class wouldyell 84.
We were the 84th recruit classin the academy, just to let the
(16:03):
person know you're not alone,we're here with you.
We're struggling as well, butwe're going to get through this
as a group, as a class, notindividually.
So when I was looking forsomething you know what do I
call this Motivational checkjust kept coming over and over
and over in my head.
And one of the biggest thingsthat I've learned through this
(16:25):
this happened about six monthsago.
A young man sent me an emailNever met this person before and
he said Terry.
I just listened to your podcastand it was so inspiring I really
needed to hear it today.
And I said, great, what was thename of the podcast?
And he gave me the name.
And Rachel, I didn't rememberthis podcast.
Speaker 1 (16:43):
Oh my goodness, I went back and looked it up.
Speaker 2 (16:46):
Yeah, it was a podcast I had done two and a
half years ago.
Wow, found the episode,listened to it and said it
inspired him.
He was having some healthissues.
So these things that we'redoing now today no-transcript we
a lot of times think that wedon't.
You know, oh, my story doesn'tmatter.
(17:08):
Or, you know, nobody caresabout what I have to say, or
anything like that.
And this I'm going to give youa nursing story.
So this was a young nurse thatI met when I was in the infusion
center.
She was already a nurse, about25 years old, but was learning
to be precepted.
And about six months latershe's taking care of me by
herself and she comes in shesays Terry, I've got a story I
want to tell you, but I don'tknow how to tell it to you.
And I'm like I mean Rachel, Idon't know how to respond to
(17:30):
that.
What do you say?
I'm like well, I hope you decideyou want to tell me.
So she's in and out for thenext couple hours, finally comes
in, sits down.
She's like all right, here'sthe story.
She said when I first metfamily I was going to quit
nursing, I was going to go towork for Amazon.
And she said and then I met youand I see how you react to have
(17:52):
a terrible reaction to medicine.
And she said no.
I went back when I was takingcare of you and your file and I
read about everything you'vebeen through.
And she said when I finishedreading your story I knew I was
where I was supposed to be Now.
Speaker 1 (18:06):
if she would have never told me that I would have
no idea that my life had apositive impact on her.
Speaker 2 (18:12):
So, everybody who's listening to us that thinks your
life doesn't matter, whatyou're experiencing doesn't
matter.
I guarantee you, there arepeople out there watching you.
Speaker 1 (18:21):
Some of you may know some of you may not.
Speaker 2 (18:23):
They're watching how you handle your adversity and
would give almost everythingthey have just to walk five
minutes in your shoes.
I love that.
Speaker 1 (18:31):
Wow, I'm so.
It's how amazing that she feltlike she definitely that she
shared that with you.
You don't realize the positiveeffects that you leave with
people and the ripple effectthat happens like years, months,
like after maybe we just had abrief encounter Like that's
fascinating.
So do you believe thatovercoming adversity strengthens
(18:55):
one's spiritual awareness?
Speaker 2 (19:00):
If so, how has your own spirituality evolved through
your experiences?
Yeah, I mean, there have beenmany times where I mean, I
figure, if God made the entireworld, if he's the supreme being
, you know, if he made me.
Yeah, there are times when Iget mad at God.
You know, I don't think thishurts, I don't like this, knock
it off.
You know, and I like to thinkthat there's a relationship
(19:22):
there that I can say you know,on those days when I'm I'm
depleted mentally, emotionally,physically, when I'm crying,
when I'm down on myself, it'slike God, I want to pray, but
all I can say is God, you knowwhat I need, help me out, you
know, work with it.
So this has really, this battlethrough cancer has really
(19:45):
allowed me to say, okay, I'mgoing to stand on your shoulders
when I need it.
But then, on those times whereI'm good, just be there in case
I need to stay there or in case,you know it's a trust fall
where I need to fall backwards,and you catch me, you're there
for me and honestly, Rachel, Iwould not be here if it wasn't
(20:05):
for God.
I mean, I thoroughly believethat this whole thing and, if
you think about it, god doesn'towe me anything he made me.
He can do whatever the heck hewants with me or any of us, but
he's given us freely his love,his mercy, his caring, his
compassion.
He doesn't have to do that.
He could be like I want nosupper, I could care less.
(20:28):
But no, you love me enough tobe there for me to get me
through this and hopefully I'mdoing what you want, and God has
always been able to turn badinto good.
I can use your bad, your pain,your suffering for something
good.
You may not know what it is, butI just trust that, whatever I'm
going to go through, he's goingto use it for something that
maybe I don't even understand.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
Absolutely, absolutely.
So what's one belief or habitthat maybe you had earlier in
life, that you've since outgrown, and what replaced it?
Speaker 2 (20:58):
Boy, that's a great question.
Speaker 1 (21:01):
I think in a lot of ways.
Speaker 2 (21:02):
I, you know, I mean being a college athlete, and
that I thought I was invincible.
I mean I really, I mean I hadhad, I'd overcome three knee
surgeries in high school to playDivision One basketball and I
was invincible.
And then I graduated fromcollege.
My dad was dying, you know, andhe was my hero, and I went into
this kind of funk where I waslike I don't under, I don't
(21:24):
understand what's right or wrong, I don't know.
So, right or wrong, I don't,you know.
So, like everything was, Iquestioned everything, and I
think that was more relying onme and less relying on something
that was bigger than me.
I think we should all be partof something that's bigger than
ourselves, and I quickly learnedthat no, you, you, you can't do
this by yourself.
(21:45):
You've got to do this withsomething that's bigger than you
, and for me, that's been myfate.
Speaker 1 (21:50):
Oh, I love that.
I love that.
So your book outlines 10principles for leading an
uncommon and extraordinary life.
If you had to pick just onethat's been most transformative
for you, which would it be, andwhy?
Speaker 2 (22:02):
Oh gosh, perfect question.
Love that question, and it'sfun for me as an author, because
whenever somebody reaches out,there's always one principle
that it's like.
This is the one that resonatedwith me, but I put this in the
book because I've done it in mylife and I'm not proud of it.
This is not something that oh,look at me, look how great I am.
No, this was.
I was an idiot for doing this.
And the principle I think it'snumber two.
It's this one Most people thinkwith their fears and their
(22:26):
insecurities instead of usingtheir minds.
And I know I've done that,rachel.
I know I've wanted to start aproject, get involved in
business or something, and youpull back and you're like wait a
minute maybe I'm not smartenough, or maybe I don't have
enough information, or what willpeople say about me if I fail?
That's thinking with our fearsand our insecurities.
That's not thinking with ourminds.
And whenever I have theopportunity to speak, especially
(22:48):
to young people, I always tellthem if there's something in
your heart, something in yoursoul that you believe you're
supposed to do, but it scaresyou, go ahead and do it, because
at the end of your life, thethings you're going to regret
are not going to be the thingsyou did.
They're going to be thosethings you didn't do, and by
then it's going to be too lateto go back and do them.
Speaker 1 (23:09):
Absolutely.
I always say to my clients thatGod wouldn't put these desires
in your heart unless theyweren't meant to come true Like
you have to.
It's okay to be uncomfortable,it's okay to be scared.
I always end up with fear tofalse expectations appearing
real.
So I that's.
That's beautiful advice.
So before I ask you the lastquestion, if anyone's interested
in learning more about yougetting your book, you also have
(23:31):
a blog, like you do.
A lot of you have a lot.
Where's the best place for themto go to?
Speaker 2 (23:37):
He's like I know, thank you, here's the $20 I pay
you for yeah, He'll pay meafterwards yeah the best way to
get ahold of me to do all thatis just go to my blog, my
website calledmotivationalcheckcom, and leave
me a message there.
You can get access to the bookthere as well.
Speaker 1 (23:56):
I love it.
So for someone listening todaywho feels stuck in their own
life, whether in their mindset,career or personal growth,
what's one actual step that theycan take right now to start
leading an uncommonextraordinary life?
Speaker 2 (24:10):
So I'm tell you a story it's going to start kind
of weird, but work with me hereon this story happened back in
the 1950s at johns hopkinsuniversity, there was a
professor there by the name ofrichter who wanted he was doing
an experiment with rats.
That's why, as soon as he'sgoing to tell a rat story, yes,
I'm going to tell a rat storytell it, we don Okay.
So he wanted to see how long theaverage rat could tread water.
(24:31):
So he put these rats in a tankof water that was over their
head and the average rat treadedwater for about 15 minutes.
And just as those rats weregetting ready to sink and drown,
he reached in, grabbed them,pulled them out, dried them off
and let them rest for a while.
And and let them rest for awhile and they took the exact
(24:59):
same rats and put it back inthat exact same tank of water
and the second time around, onaverage, those rats treaded
water for 60 hours.
Yeah, first time, 15 minutes.
It's not like you know yourbusiness is going to fail or
your marriage is going to gounder.
You're going to flunk a testyour life's over.
You're going to die the secondtime, around 60 hours.
Which taught me two things.
The number one, the importanceof hope in our lives.
And if we know we're doing theright thing maybe not today,
maybe not this week, maybe noteven this year, and nothing's
(25:19):
100%, but there's a really goodchance if we know we're doing
the right thing, we'll get towhere we want to be.
And the second thing it taughtme was just how much more our
physical bodies can handle thanwe ever thought they could.
Now don't get me wrong.
I think we all have a breakingpoint.
That breaking point is so muchfurther down the road than we
ever thought it was.
We quit, we give up.
We give in because we listen toour minds.
(25:40):
Our minds say this hurts, it'suncomfortable, stop it.
And we do.
You don't have to stop it whenit's hurting, when it's
uncomfortable, when you don'tthink you can go on.
Just put one foot in front ofthe other, keep moving forward,
and it's amazing what your lifewill end up looking like.
Speaker 1 (25:54):
I love that.
Keep moving one feet, one footat a time.
That's, that's amazing adviceand it's so true.
I'm thinking about when Iexercise and like, oh, but I can
keep going, I can lift more.
Yeah, I can do it.
Speaker 2 (26:06):
I mean, we know that from you know, looking at people
who do marathons you know theyhit that wall and if they keep
moving forward, they get thatsecond win that same thing
happens with your mind.
Speaker 1 (26:17):
So so true.
Oh, my goodness, this has beenamazing.
Terry, thank you so much forcoming on Spiritual Spotlight
Series.
It truly has been amazing totalk with you today.
Speaker 2 (26:24):
Well, Rachel, I've really enjoyed it.
Thanks a lot and I hope ourconversation makes a.
Hello everyone, welcome to the Spiritual
Spotlight Series.
Today I'm joined by TerryTucker.
He is a speaker author.
He is also guest on a lot ofpodcasts and he speaks about
motivation, mindset andself-development.
Thank you so much for Terry tocome on the Spiritual Spotlight
Series.
I'm so excited you're here.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
Well, Rachel, thanks for having me on.
I'm really looking forward totalking with you.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
So you've had an incredibly diverse career, from
a SWAT hostage negotiator to ahospital administrator and now
motivational speaker.
So how has each one of theseroles shaped your mindset and
personal philosophies?
Speaker 2 (00:37):
Yeah, I mean I think I have to go back.
You know, I'm the oldest ofthree boys.
I grew up in a sports family.
All three of my brothers and Iplayed college basketball or
baseball.
My one brother was drafted bythe Cleveland Cavaliers, the
National Basketball Association.
So our whole life revolvedaround sports.
And you learn early in sports,the importance of mindset, the
(00:58):
importance of you knowunderstanding that you've got to
be focused and things like thatunderstanding that you've got
to be focused and things likethat, so that I think that goes
back to just our parents, youknow, and and teaching us those
kinds of things and I, and then,as you move into life, I was a
college basketball player.
Yeah, I was a SWAT hostagenegotiator, as you mentioned,
and for the last 13 years nowI've been a a cancer warrior.
(01:20):
So that's all about controllingthe mind and I mean, you know
that as a nurse and things likethat.
It's just your life is reallywhat happens between your two
ears.
It's not what happens out there.
It's not what happens to you,it's how you react to it.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
Absolutely so.
You kind of brought this up acouple of things.
So fighting cancer, facingcancer for the last 13 years, is
an incredibly journey ofresilience.
Can you maybe share a pivotalmoment where it shifted your
perspective on life?
Speaker 2 (01:55):
Oh, absolutely yeah, 2012,.
When I was diagnosed, they saidyou'll be dead in two years and
I was like, oh okay, you gaveme a death sentence.
How can I turn that deathsentence into a life sentence?
And it was finding your purposeand I had done so many active
physical things in my life, fromcollege basketball player to
(02:16):
police officer to SWAT.
Speaker 1 (02:18):
Yes.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
And in 2020, I had my second amputation my foot
amputated in 2018, my legamputated in 2020.
And so when you can't do whatyou're good at, I think you do
what's important in life, andthat's really.
I needed a purpose.
I needed to find meaning in mymisery during all that ugliness
(02:40):
and cancer and surgeries andtreatments and medications, and
that purpose now for me haschanged to putting as much
goodness, positivity, motivation, love back into the world with
whatever time I have left.
Speaker 1 (02:56):
I think that's amazing.
It's so important.
I don't think people realizehow much your mental mindset
matters when facing healthissues, financial issues, like
just issues of life and traumaof life, and I think it's so
inspiring that you've been ableto really hone in on that and
help others kind of dig out ofthat well of hopelessness.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
Exactly, and you know I've learned a lot through
cancer.
But two things I've learnedthat I'll give to your listeners
.
Absolutely Number one I don'tthink you truly know yourself
until you've been tested by someform of adversity in your life.
It doesn't have to be cancer oranything like that.
It can be anything.
And the second thing is andthis is going to sound kind of
weird cancer's made me a betterhuman being.
(03:43):
You, I've been asked thequestion if I could live my life
over again without cancer.
Would I do it?
Yeah, and honestly, rachel, Idon't think I would.
I think cancer has made me thatmuch, that much better of a
human being.
I always say I've had a greatlife before I got cancer right,
but I've done more living in the13 years that I've been dying
of cancer than I've done in myentire life.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
I want to say to you I have chills with that answer.
And two, I have a family memberwho has stage four cancer and I
feel like she's very much likeyou, she has the mental mindset
and she is thriving within hercancer and she has had the same
answer that you just had and Ijust like you're like the first
(04:26):
person besides her that I'vebeen able to make that
connection with and I find thatto be so inspiring because she's
like no, I'm thriving, shetravels, she loves her best life
, even though she still getschemotherapy, you know, every
other week.
You know it's fascinating.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
I just it's fascinating to me, like how it's
like, no, it's almost like awake up call to like what's
important you know it really is,and I think you know doctors
when I was diagnosed, you know Ialways say doctors are like
Vegas.
Speaker 1 (04:54):
you know they're kind of like bookies you know they
look at you and say based onyour age, based on your overall
health, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
And then based on your stage of cancer you're
going to live X.
Yes, what doctors don't like.
Is it your aunt or your sisterthat you just said, that you
were just talking about.
Speaker 1 (05:08):
It's my stepmom.
Yeah, my stepmom.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
OK, you know.
What doctors don't know is thatyou want to see your daughter
graduate from high school orwalk her down the aisle or play
with your grandkids, and thathaving something to live for,
yes, really does keep youpropelled, keep you propelling
forward in your life.
It's not just I sit back andsay, oh, woe is me.
No, I'm going to live my life.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
I love that so much.
It's so inspiring.
Yes, because you do see people,like you mentioned, I am a
nurse, I run a doctor's officeand you do see people that
unfortunately they give up theirwill to live and then they meet
the maker, so it's it isdifficult to see.
It's like who can really diginto faith, mental mindset,
what's going to push themforward and you know, and then
(05:53):
it's no shame or judgment tothose who are like you know, I'm
good, you know and that's okay.
So it's interesting yeah itisn't.
Speaker 2 (06:01):
but you know I always go back to victor frankl, who
was the holocaust survivor wroteman's search for Meaning and he
has hit a great point in thatbook.
He said when people lose thewill to live, it's almost
impossible to get it back.
Speaker 1 (06:14):
So don't lose the will to live in the first place.
Absolutely, absolutely.
So you titled your bookSustainable Excellence.
What does excellence mean toyou and how do you sustain it,
even in face of adversity?
Speaker 2 (06:29):
Yeah, that's a great question.
I always get that.
You wrote the book SustainableExcellence.
What does excellence mean?
My answer is I don't know.
I love that you wrote the book.
How can you not know whatexcellence is?
And the reason I say that isbecause you and I may look at a
sports team or a band or a playor something like that and you
may say, hey, that's excellent.
(06:50):
And I may say, yeah, I thinkthey're good, but I don't think
they're excellent.
I think excellence, kind oflike beauty, is in the eye of
the beholder.
You've got to determine whatexcellence is for you.
So once you've done that, thenhow do you sustain it?
How do you keep it going?
And I think one of the biggestthings is you've got to
(07:10):
constantly innovate.
I mean, what happens whenpeople get to the top of the
mountain?
They sort of kick back, puttheir feet up on the desk, pour
themselves a drink and be likeman, I've arrived.
Speaker 1 (07:18):
Right or they keep going.
Speaker 2 (07:21):
Well, exactly, but a lot of people don't.
They're like you know.
And then, but like you say, sixmonths later, a year later,
somebody passes them up andthey're like wait a minute, what
happened?
Yes, yes, you didn't findanother segment of the market to
offer something.
You didn't find another productto deliver with your service,
and that's we get complacent,we're like we've made it.
(07:46):
And what people don'tunderstand it's not.
Life doesn't happen when youget to the top of the mountain.
Life happens on the journey toget to the top of the mountain.
And if your audience remembersnothing else that I say today,
remember this it's moreimportant who you work with and
who you work for.
Then it is the work that you do.
(08:06):
Find people that care about youyes.
Find people that are willing toinvest in you.
Find people that want to seeyou succeed.
Yes, it's your wagon to thosepeople and climb your mountains
together.
Speaker 1 (08:19):
That is such valuable advice.
I will say that like it's sotrue, because if you don't, if
people don't value you andpeople don't, if you don't hit
your, you know your cart to thatkind of philosophy of I'm going
to champion those that arearound me, I'm going to rise
above, we're going to risetogether, not going to gatekeep,
I'm not going to.
(08:40):
It's so important and thedynamic of what you do,
regardless of what you're doing,it improves so much.
It's because you're in ittogether.
You're in it to win together.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
Yeah, I mean, if COVID taught us anything, it's
you know we're not good separate.
We're not good in isolation.
You know we're better together.
We can't be successful in avacuum.
We need other people.
Speaker 1 (09:03):
Absolutely, absolutely.
So.
You've encountered extremechallenges, from high stakes
negotiations to major healthbattles.
What mindset, techniques orspiritual practices have helped
you?
Just maybe stay grounded?
Absolutely.
Speaker 2 (09:16):
I mean I always say what's gotten me through my life
?
Certainly, what's gotten methrough cancer in particular are
what I call my three Fs faith,family and friends.
I have a very strong faith inGod and I remember when I was
diagnosed as I said, the doctorswere like we've got nothing to
offer you other than surgery.
So they put me on a drug calledinterferon, which was a horrible
(09:39):
, nasty, debilitating drug.
You know that as an earth and Itook a weekly interferon
injection that gave me terribleflu-like symptoms for two to
three days every week after eachinjection, and I took those
weekly injections for almostfive years.
I know brain damage.
That's kind of where I at thatpoint in time.
But there was a point in timein there, rachel, where it was
(10:02):
like I was so sick of being sickthat I literally prayed to die.
I kind of felt there were twocamps.
There was the living and thenot dying.
Speaker 1 (10:11):
And I was in the.
Speaker 2 (10:12):
I wasn't really living, I was just kind of
marking time Exactly, and soprayer was incredibly powerful
for me.
And then let me fast forward.
So when I had my leg amputatedand I found out I had tumors in
my lungs, my doctor showed me myCAT scan, and I have no medical
background.
Speaker 1 (10:29):
I don't know how to read a CAT scan, but you can
kind of look at it and be like,oh, that sure didn't look like
it belongs there.
Speaker 2 (10:35):
These big tumors in my lungs.
I blew it all around thepleural spaces and I remember my
doctor and saying how was Ialive?
Speaker 1 (10:45):
And.
Speaker 2 (10:45):
Rachel, till the day I die, I will never forget this.
He put his head down, he shookhis head, no, and then he looked
up at me and he said I don'tknow, because you shouldn't have
been.
Which said to me God's not donewith me yet when I die, where I
die, how I die way above my paygrade.
Don't spend a lot of timeworried about the dying, spend
more time focused on the living,and I believe now God is using
(11:10):
my malignancy, my infirmity, toshow people his grace, his love,
his mercy, his comfort, hiscompassion.
And if that's what God wants todo with me until he wants to
take me, I'm great with that Ilove that.
Speaker 1 (11:23):
it's, it's so inspirational.
I I go back to my stepmom who,again, like she's was on.
She's been on differenttreatment plans and you know
when the beginning was in andout of hospitals and whatnot.
But for the past I think she'sbeen diagnosed.
Now, three years past, almosttwo years, she's had no evidence
of active disease being instage four.
(11:44):
So, and it's like in the samething with the doctors is like
it was everywhere, everywhere,and it was.
It's the same thing.
It's like, well, no, I really Ireally liken it to faith and
God, to having a bigger purposefor you, and and and same thing
for her.
It's like I know I have abigger purpose and I have more
to do here, so and so do you andI just, I just I just love this
(12:04):
so much, you know it just it'sso.
It just makes you so likegrateful for the fact that you
know you're living your life onpurpose and that you, you know
you have a bigger mission andyou know and to see, no, we can
do this, we can overcome.
It's just I love this, sorry.
Speaker 2 (12:20):
Exactly, and as a nurse and I'm sure you've seen
this, I have, and we haven'ttalked about this, but the
opposite of this is true.
You know, a doctor says, hey,you're going to be dead in two
years.
Now, I've always wanted my lifeto be based on the decisions
that I made yes, the ones that Ididn't make for me.
But I've also seen people andI'm sure you have too where the
doctor says you will be dead intwo years and literally on the
(12:42):
anniversary of that they're dead.
Speaker 1 (12:45):
It's like, cause they get it into their mental
mindset.
And then it's like, okay,because you know, and it's the
same thing with the medicalindustry we need to be able to
go into our hearts and be ableto discern.
And I get that sometimes you'regiven tough information and
it's like do you choose to takeit in and trust it as the gospel
, or am I going to choose to dosomething about it?
(13:07):
It's like, what are we going todo?
And it is, yeah.
I will say that I've been anurse now a little over 20 years
and when I, when I firststarted in the career, I worked
in a hospital and I was one ofonly two nurses that did chemo.
So cause I worked on theoncology unit and I worked on
another unit.
And it is fast, you, even thenyou could see like some people
(13:28):
it's like they're living to die,or some people that are just
I'm going to, I'm going to beatthis, I'm going to show you.
Speaker 2 (13:38):
I mean, it all happens up here.
I mean the mind can, will thebody to do amazing things.
Absolutely People don'tunderstand that.
Yeah, yes To somebody in awhite coat with a bunch of
initials after their name andit's like I've always said to my
doctor look, whatever you wantto do, tell it to me.
Explain it to me.
Yes, not in medical ease.
I got to understand what youwant to do and what you hope the
(14:00):
outcome to be.
Speaker 1 (14:01):
If you can explain that to me, then there's a good
chance, I'll go along with you.
Speaker 2 (14:05):
If you can't, I'm probably going to be like, yeah,
I don't think I want to do that.
Speaker 1 (14:08):
I like that and also like cause you brought up
another good point.
It's okay, like, if you'rehearing something that doesn't
compute with you, get adifferent opinion, find a
different doctor.
Like the same thing with mystepmom.
Like we actually sent her outof state to specialty care and
because she didn't jive withcertain doctors and I'm like,
okay, well, let's find yousomeone else.
And they got the righttreatment plan in place.
(14:30):
So it's like be okay withsaying this doesn't feel right
to me and and go on to someoneelse.
Speaker 2 (14:36):
Sorry, when your spidey senses go off like that,
it's like, oh, wait, a minute,feeling good.
Yeah, you've got to dosomething different.
Yes, and it's okay.
And if your doctor's offended,well then the heck heck with
your doctor, find another doctoryou're paying your doctor.
They're not paying you so andthere's a reason they call it
the practice of medicine.
Speaker 1 (14:54):
It's a practice, they're not 100, sure you know I
like that the practice'm goingto.
Next time I someone says it'sthe practice of medicine and
you're not always right, I'llget those doctors in line.
So you built a platformmotivational check, which is to
help others live extraordinarylives.
(15:14):
What inspired you to start thisand what has been the most
fulfilling part of sharing yourwisdom to start this and what
has been the?
Speaker 2 (15:20):
most fulfilling part of sharing your wisdom.
Motivational check is a word ora phrase that came from when I
was in the police academy and itwas a phrase that our defensive
tactics instructor gave us that, if I mean, we did some crazy
things when we were in thepolice academy.
We would run to this bigapartment building, had this
fountain outside and thefountain had about a foot of
(15:41):
water in it and we would get inthe fountain and we would do
push-ups and then we would runback, we would be all wet and
stuff like that.
But that phrase was if you werejust having one of those days I
can't go on, I'm hurting youcould yell out motivational chat
and the rest of the class wouldyell 84.
We were the 84th recruit classin the academy, just to let the
(16:03):
person know you're not alone,we're here with you.
We're struggling as well, butwe're going to get through this
as a group, as a class, notindividually.
So when I was looking forsomething you know what do I
call this Motivational checkjust kept coming over and over
and over in my head.
And one of the biggest thingsthat I've learned through this
(16:25):
this happened about six monthsago.
A young man sent me an emailNever met this person before and
he said Terry.
I just listened to your podcastand it was so inspiring I really
needed to hear it today.
And I said, great, what was thename of the podcast?
And he gave me the name.
And Rachel, I didn't rememberthis podcast.
Speaker 1 (16:43):
Oh my goodness, I went back and looked it up.
Speaker 2 (16:46):
Yeah, it was a podcast I had done two and a
half years ago.
Wow, found the episode,listened to it and said it
inspired him.
He was having some healthissues.
So these things that we'redoing now today no-transcript we
a lot of times think that wedon't.
You know, oh, my story doesn'tmatter.
(17:08):
Or, you know, nobody caresabout what I have to say, or
anything like that.
And this I'm going to give youa nursing story.
So this was a young nurse thatI met when I was in the infusion
center.
She was already a nurse, about25 years old, but was learning
to be precepted.
And about six months latershe's taking care of me by
herself and she comes in shesays Terry, I've got a story I
want to tell you, but I don'tknow how to tell it to you.
And I'm like I mean Rachel, Idon't know how to respond to
(17:30):
that.
What do you say?
I'm like well, I hope you decideyou want to tell me.
So she's in and out for thenext couple hours, finally comes
in, sits down.
She's like all right, here'sthe story.
She said when I first metfamily I was going to quit
nursing, I was going to go towork for Amazon.
And she said and then I met youand I see how you react to have
(17:52):
a terrible reaction to medicine.
And she said no.
I went back when I was takingcare of you and your file and I
read about everything you'vebeen through.
And she said when I finishedreading your story I knew I was
where I was supposed to be Now.
Speaker 1 (18:06):
if she would have never told me that I would have
no idea that my life had apositive impact on her.
Speaker 2 (18:12):
So, everybody who's listening to us that thinks your
life doesn't matter, whatyou're experiencing doesn't
matter.
I guarantee you, there arepeople out there watching you.
Speaker 1 (18:21):
Some of you may know some of you may not.
Speaker 2 (18:23):
They're watching how you handle your adversity and
would give almost everythingthey have just to walk five
minutes in your shoes.
I love that.
Speaker 1 (18:31):
Wow, I'm so.
It's how amazing that she feltlike she definitely that she
shared that with you.
You don't realize the positiveeffects that you leave with
people and the ripple effectthat happens like years, months,
like after maybe we just had abrief encounter Like that's
fascinating.
So do you believe thatovercoming adversity strengthens
(18:55):
one's spiritual awareness?
Speaker 2 (19:00):
If so, how has your own spirituality evolved through
your experiences?
Yeah, I mean, there have beenmany times where I mean, I
figure, if God made the entireworld, if he's the supreme being
, you know, if he made me.
Yeah, there are times when Iget mad at God.
You know, I don't think thishurts, I don't like this, knock
it off.
You know, and I like to thinkthat there's a relationship
(19:22):
there that I can say you know,on those days when I'm I'm
depleted mentally, emotionally,physically, when I'm crying,
when I'm down on myself, it'slike God, I want to pray, but
all I can say is God, you knowwhat I need, help me out, you
know, work with it.
So this has really, this battlethrough cancer has really
(19:45):
allowed me to say, okay, I'mgoing to stand on your shoulders
when I need it.
But then, on those times whereI'm good, just be there in case
I need to stay there or in case,you know it's a trust fall
where I need to fall backwards,and you catch me, you're there
for me and honestly, Rachel, Iwould not be here if it wasn't
(20:05):
for God.
I mean, I thoroughly believethat this whole thing and, if
you think about it, god doesn'towe me anything he made me.
He can do whatever the heck hewants with me or any of us, but
he's given us freely his love,his mercy, his caring, his
compassion.
He doesn't have to do that.
He could be like I want nosupper, I could care less.
(20:28):
But no, you love me enough tobe there for me to get me
through this and hopefully I'mdoing what you want, and God has
always been able to turn badinto good.
I can use your bad, your pain,your suffering for something
good.
You may not know what it is, butI just trust that, whatever I'm
going to go through, he's goingto use it for something that
maybe I don't even understand.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
Absolutely, absolutely.
So what's one belief or habitthat maybe you had earlier in
life, that you've since outgrown, and what replaced it?
Speaker 2 (20:58):
Boy, that's a great question.
Speaker 1 (21:01):
I think in a lot of ways.
Speaker 2 (21:02):
I, you know, I mean being a college athlete, and
that I thought I was invincible.
I mean I really, I mean I hadhad, I'd overcome three knee
surgeries in high school to playDivision One basketball and I
was invincible.
And then I graduated fromcollege.
My dad was dying, you know, andhe was my hero, and I went into
this kind of funk where I waslike I don't under, I don't
(21:24):
understand what's right or wrong, I don't know.
So, right or wrong, I don't,you know.
So, like everything was, Iquestioned everything, and I
think that was more relying onme and less relying on something
that was bigger than me.
I think we should all be partof something that's bigger than
ourselves, and I quickly learnedthat no, you, you, you can't do
this by yourself.
(21:45):
You've got to do this withsomething that's bigger than you
, and for me, that's been myfate.
Speaker 1 (21:50):
Oh, I love that.
I love that.
So your book outlines 10principles for leading an
uncommon and extraordinary life.
If you had to pick just onethat's been most transformative
for you, which would it be, andwhy?
Speaker 2 (22:02):
Oh gosh, perfect question.
Love that question, and it'sfun for me as an author, because
whenever somebody reaches out,there's always one principle
that it's like.
This is the one that resonatedwith me, but I put this in the
book because I've done it in mylife and I'm not proud of it.
This is not something that oh,look at me, look how great I am.
No, this was.
I was an idiot for doing this.
And the principle I think it'snumber two.
It's this one Most people thinkwith their fears and their
(22:26):
insecurities instead of usingtheir minds.
And I know I've done that,rachel.
I know I've wanted to start aproject, get involved in
business or something, and youpull back and you're like wait a
minute maybe I'm not smartenough, or maybe I don't have
enough information, or what willpeople say about me if I fail?
That's thinking with our fearsand our insecurities.
That's not thinking with ourminds.
And whenever I have theopportunity to speak, especially
(22:48):
to young people, I always tellthem if there's something in
your heart, something in yoursoul that you believe you're
supposed to do, but it scaresyou, go ahead and do it, because
at the end of your life, thethings you're going to regret
are not going to be the thingsyou did.
They're going to be thosethings you didn't do, and by
then it's going to be too lateto go back and do them.
Speaker 1 (23:09):
Absolutely.
I always say to my clients thatGod wouldn't put these desires
in your heart unless theyweren't meant to come true Like
you have to.
It's okay to be uncomfortable,it's okay to be scared.
I always end up with fear tofalse expectations appearing
real.
So I that's.
That's beautiful advice.
So before I ask you the lastquestion, if anyone's interested
in learning more about yougetting your book, you also have
(23:31):
a blog, like you do.
A lot of you have a lot.
Where's the best place for themto go to?
Speaker 2 (23:37):
He's like I know, thank you, here's the $20 I pay
you for yeah, He'll pay meafterwards yeah the best way to
get ahold of me to do all thatis just go to my blog, my
website calledmotivationalcheckcom, and leave
me a message there.
You can get access to the bookthere as well.
Speaker 1 (23:56):
I love it.
So for someone listening todaywho feels stuck in their own
life, whether in their mindset,career or personal growth,
what's one actual step that theycan take right now to start
leading an uncommonextraordinary life?
Speaker 2 (24:10):
So I'm tell you a story it's going to start kind
of weird, but work with me hereon this story happened back in
the 1950s at johns hopkinsuniversity, there was a
professor there by the name ofrichter who wanted he was doing
an experiment with rats.
That's why, as soon as he'sgoing to tell a rat story, yes,
I'm going to tell a rat storytell it, we don Okay.
So he wanted to see how long theaverage rat could tread water.
(24:31):
So he put these rats in a tankof water that was over their
head and the average rat treadedwater for about 15 minutes.
And just as those rats weregetting ready to sink and drown,
he reached in, grabbed them,pulled them out, dried them off
and let them rest for a while.
And and let them rest for awhile and they took the exact
(24:59):
same rats and put it back inthat exact same tank of water
and the second time around, onaverage, those rats treaded
water for 60 hours.
Yeah, first time, 15 minutes.
It's not like you know yourbusiness is going to fail or
your marriage is going to gounder.
You're going to flunk a testyour life's over.
You're going to die the secondtime, around 60 hours.
Which taught me two things.
The number one, the importanceof hope in our lives.
And if we know we're doing theright thing maybe not today,
maybe not this week, maybe noteven this year, and nothing's
(25:19):
100%, but there's a really goodchance if we know we're doing
the right thing, we'll get towhere we want to be.
And the second thing it taughtme was just how much more our
physical bodies can handle thanwe ever thought they could.
Now don't get me wrong.
I think we all have a breakingpoint.
That breaking point is so muchfurther down the road than we
ever thought it was.
We quit, we give up.
We give in because we listen toour minds.
(25:40):
Our minds say this hurts, it'suncomfortable, stop it.
And we do.
You don't have to stop it whenit's hurting, when it's
uncomfortable, when you don'tthink you can go on.
Just put one foot in front ofthe other, keep moving forward,
and it's amazing what your lifewill end up looking like.
Speaker 1 (25:54):
I love that.
Keep moving one feet, one footat a time.
That's, that's amazing adviceand it's so true.
I'm thinking about when Iexercise and like, oh, but I can
keep going, I can lift more.
Yeah, I can do it.
Speaker 2 (26:06):
I mean, we know that from you know, looking at people
who do marathons you know theyhit that wall and if they keep
moving forward, they get thatsecond win that same thing
happens with your mind.
Speaker 1 (26:17):
So so true.
Oh, my goodness, this has beenamazing.
Terry, thank you so much forcoming on Spiritual Spotlight
Series.
It truly has been amazing totalk with you today.
Speaker 2 (26:24):
Well, Rachel, I've really enjoyed it.
Thanks a lot and I hope ourconversation makes a.
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