Latest / The Black Sheep Leadership Podcast / SEASONS & CYCLES Know When to Wait, When to Work, and When to Break the Pattern

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SEASONS & CYCLES Know When to Wait, When to Work, and When to Break the Pattern · The Black Sheep Leadership Podcast

0:37
SPEAKER_00: What if I told you that one of the biggest mistakes in life is trying to harvest in a season when you're supposed to be planting?
0:48
SPEAKER_00: See, everybody wants to harvest.
0:50
SPEAKER_00: Everybody wants to break through the financial freedom, the relationship, the promotion, or the success.
0:56
SPEAKER_00: But nobody wants to talk about season and the winter seasons.
0:59
SPEAKER_00: Nobody wants to talk about the seasons when nothing seems to be growing and it's dry out there.
1:04
SPEAKER_00: Everything you do seems to fall apart, your money gets funny, and you're looking around and you're wondering, what in the hell is going on in my life?
1:13
SPEAKER_00: And here's something even more interesting.
1:16
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes what you're calling a difficult season, it isn't a season at all.
1:20
SPEAKER_00: It's actually a cycle.
1:22
SPEAKER_00: And there's a difference between the two.
1:24
SPEAKER_00: Because a season may require patience, preparation, and endurance.
1:28
SPEAKER_00: But a cycle, specifically a destructive one, that may require you to change something you've been doing for years.
1:35
SPEAKER_00: And until you learn the difference, you can spend your entire life waiting for a new season while you're repeating the same old pattern, stuck in a cycle.
1:43
SPEAKER_00: And that's why today we're talking about both of them.
1:46
SPEAKER_00: Because the calendar may say November.
1:48
SPEAKER_00: But that does not mean everybody that's listening in is in the same season of life.
1:53
SPEAKER_00: And before this year's over, I want you to understand three things.
1:57
SPEAKER_00: Number one, where you are, number two, what you can't control.
2:01
SPEAKER_00: And number three, what your next move needs to be.
2:05
SPEAKER_00: Alright?
2:06
SPEAKER_00: So I want to welcome you to the Black Sheet Leadership Podcast.
2:08
SPEAKER_00: I'm Athena Renee, and this is where the underdogs, the misfits, and the overlooked leaders come to turn pain into power so that they can do the life by design and leave a legacy behind.
2:17
SPEAKER_00: Now, if this is your first time tapping in, welcome home, family.
2:20
SPEAKER_00: Pull up a chair.
2:21
SPEAKER_00: We're glad you're here.
2:22
SPEAKER_00: Lock in with us.
2:24
SPEAKER_00: And if you're back again, welcome back, fam bam.
2:26
SPEAKER_00: What's going on with you now?
2:28
SPEAKER_00: I want to thank you for continuing to rock it out with me and trusting me with your time because you know I don't take that lightly.
2:33
SPEAKER_00: Now let's do this quick vibe check.
2:35
SPEAKER_00: Because if you're easily offended, you're entitled, you still wait on somebody to come save you after all of this time, or you're allergic to accountability, get your ass up out of here.
2:46
SPEAKER_00: This ain't to save space.
2:48
SPEAKER_00: But if you're ready to think bigger, move smarter, and take responsibility for the life that you want to build, stay locked in, my friend.
2:58
SPEAKER_00: Because by the end, you're walking away with something that you can execute immediately.
3:04
SPEAKER_00: Now let's get to work, alright?
3:05
SPEAKER_00: Now I want to welcome you guys back to another episode of the Sunday reset.
3:11
SPEAKER_00: This is where we take a little bit of the time to reflect, regroup, and get our minds aligned for the week ahead.
3:20
SPEAKER_00: Today's episode is called This Year Isn't Over Yet.
3:24
SPEAKER_00: It's time to break the cycle, master the season, and get a head start.
3:28
SPEAKER_00: You know, fam, this is my favorite for this particular time of year because around here, we don't just reset to feel better, we reset to move better.
3:44
SPEAKER_00: And today, family, like I said, I just want to remind you guys that the year isn't over yet.
3:50
SPEAKER_00: And I know, I know some of you already looking forward to 2027, you making plans, you're setting goals, you're telling yourself that January is going to be your first start.
3:58
SPEAKER_00: Well, hold on a minute, though, fam.
4:00
SPEAKER_00: One thing I want you to understand it's your life.
4:04
SPEAKER_00: Who told you that you had to wait until January?
4:08
SPEAKER_00: Who told you that?
4:10
SPEAKER_00: See, the way I look at it is this we've got we still got two months left in this year.
4:15
SPEAKER_00: And as a black sheep, I feel like this is your head start.
4:20
SPEAKER_00: Depending on the season you're in, those two months could be exactly what you need to recover, prepare, and plant something new.
4:30
SPEAKER_00: Okay, or even finally break that habit or that chain that's been holding you back.
4:36
SPEAKER_00: So today's Sunday reset is about understanding your seasons, recognizing your cycles, and making your next move before the calendar tells you it's time.
4:49
SPEAKER_00: Okay?
4:49
SPEAKER_00: Because your best next chapter, it doesn't have to wait for a new year.
4:53
SPEAKER_00: All right.
4:54
SPEAKER_00: So let's unpack today's episode.
4:56
SPEAKER_00: Part one.
4:58
SPEAKER_00: This listen, family, you got to understand that everybody is not in the same season.
5:08
SPEAKER_00: I repeat this, I'm gonna repeat this again.
5:10
SPEAKER_00: Everybody is not in the same season.
5:13
SPEAKER_00: All right.
5:13
SPEAKER_00: Now let me ask you something.
5:15
SPEAKER_00: Have you ever looked at somebody else's life and wondered why they seem to be moving forward while you're struggling, or you seem to be just keeping your head above water no matter what you do?
5:25
SPEAKER_00: You know, maybe they're buying a house while you're still trying to figure out how to pay your rent, or they're celebrating a promotion while you're sending out your 50th job application, or maybe they're posting pictures of their beautiful vacation with their beautiful spouse while you're sitting at home wondering how the hell you're gonna get through the next 30 days.
5:40
SPEAKER_00: And if you're not careful, you'll start measuring your life against somebody else's season.
5:46
SPEAKER_00: And here's the problem: you may be comparing your winter to somebody else's summer, and that comparison isn't gonna tell you what you need to do next.
5:55
SPEAKER_00: Think about the four seasons we experience in nature: winter, spring, summer, and fall, right?
6:01
SPEAKER_00: Each one of them has its own conditions, its own challenges, and its own opportunities.
6:07
SPEAKER_00: You don't expect the same things from a field in January that you would expect from that field in June, right?
6:13
SPEAKER_00: And we yet we expect ourselves to produce the same results regardless of what's happening in our lives.
6:18
SPEAKER_00: No, family, it don't work that way.
6:19
SPEAKER_00: We expect ourselves to perform at full capacity, even when we're grieving, rebuilding, recovering, or dealing with circumstances that we never saw coming.
6:28
SPEAKER_00: And black sheep, I know we're some of the strongest, intelligent, most do-gooders in the world, but it's like we really, we really put the pressure on ourselves.
6:43
SPEAKER_00: Even when we it's like we feel that we should be at full capacity, we are our own worst critic.
6:51
SPEAKER_00: Then we become frustrated when we're not moving at the same speed as everybody else, but family.
6:59
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes the issue isn't that you're falling behind, sometimes you're simply dealing with a different set of conditions.
7:11
SPEAKER_00: And here's something I want you to understand your personal season, here's another one, family, especially for my black sheep, because a lot of us black sheets, we are late bloomers, right?
7:21
SPEAKER_00: We don't, we a lot of us, you know, like they talk about peaking, some people peak in their high school years, some people peak in their 20s, 30s, 40s.
7:27
SPEAKER_00: Well, guess what?
7:28
SPEAKER_00: If you resonate with being a black sheep misfit or an underdog, a lot of times we don't peak when everybody else peaks, as they say.
7:35
SPEAKER_00: So I want you to understand this very clearly: your personal seasons is not determined by your age.
7:42
SPEAKER_00: Because you can experience a winter at 18 because you almost you because you lost somebody that you love, right?
7:49
SPEAKER_00: I remember I had a uh classmate, we weren't even in the 11th grade, and they lost a parent through suicide.
7:58
SPEAKER_00: Now, you and I both know that's a winter season.
8:02
SPEAKER_00: You can experience a spring at 65 because you discovered a new passion, started a business, or finally decided to pursue a dream you a dream you've been putting off for decades, and you can be in more than one season at the same time.
8:13
SPEAKER_00: You might be enjoying a summer in your business while navigating a difficult season in your personal relationships.
8:18
SPEAKER_00: Think about Colonel Sanders, the founder of KFC.
8:21
SPEAKER_00: He was in a summer season of his life because he finally got Kentucky Fried Chicken off the ground, right?
8:29
SPEAKER_00: He was at 65 years old.
8:31
SPEAKER_00: Prior to that, he had failed and was in winters and falls of trying to get KFC off the ground.
8:38
SPEAKER_00: And at the good old young age of 65, he became in his summer season.
8:44
SPEAKER_00: Okay, so listen, family, don't attach seasons to any age and don't let anybody else attach that to you because life isn't always neat to fit in a little box that people try to put you in, right?
8:55
SPEAKER_00: So before you start asking why you're not where somebody else is, or why you're not where you want to be or think you should be, ask a better question.
9:02
SPEAKER_00: What season am I really in?
9:04
SPEAKER_00: What season am I actually in?
9:06
SPEAKER_00: And what does this season mean or require of me?
9:09
SPEAKER_00: Because the answer to that question can change your entire strategy, all right.
9:14
SPEAKER_00: So let's talk about the four seasons and the lessons that they offer.
9:18
SPEAKER_00: All right.
9:18
SPEAKER_00: Now, listen, y'all.
9:19
SPEAKER_00: Years ago, the late, great, motivational speaker and entrepreneur Jim Rome taught four powerful lessons using the seasons of nature.
9:27
SPEAKER_00: I hope if you don't know about Jim Rome, look him up.
9:29
SPEAKER_00: I really, really love Jim Rome.
9:31
SPEAKER_00: He is one of those people that was just so down to earth.
9:33
SPEAKER_00: And the way he explained principles, I mean, family, you could drop that man or one of his um teachings into a class of eighth graders, seventh graders, and they'll get it.
9:45
SPEAKER_00: They'll get it.
9:46
SPEAKER_00: And that's what I loved about Jim Rome.
9:49
SPEAKER_00: Okay, so lesson number one.
9:53
SPEAKER_00: And listen, before I can give you lesson number one, I want to walk through them because they're simple enough to remember, but they're deep enough to change how you approach life in any of your seasons, okay?
10:02
SPEAKER_00: And so grab that pen and paper, and we're gonna jump right in.
10:06
SPEAKER_00: Lesson number one: learn how to handle the winters.
10:10
SPEAKER_00: See, winter is the season that nobody likes to talk about until they're standing in the middle of one.
10:15
SPEAKER_00: It's the season of loss, it's the season of uncertainty, the season when your savings start disappearing, your relationships fall apart, your health could demand attention, or your career suddenly take a turn that you didn't even anticipate.
10:29
SPEAKER_00: And sometimes winter doesn't give you a warning.
10:33
SPEAKER_00: One day everything is fine, it seems fine at least, and the next day you're looking at a situation you never thought you'd have to face.
10:39
SPEAKER_00: Now, here's where people get into trouble.
10:42
SPEAKER_00: They try to operate like it's summer when their circumstances clearly require a winter strategy.
10:47
SPEAKER_00: They keep spending money the same way, they keep talking, they keep taking on the same obligations, they keep on trying to maintain appearances, and they refuse to acknowledge that something has changed.
10:59
SPEAKER_00: But the thing about a winner is it requires adjustment.
11:04
SPEAKER_00: It requires adjustment.
11:06
SPEAKER_00: Because if you lose your job, your immediate priority may not be launching five new business ideas.
11:11
SPEAKER_00: It may be protecting your cash, reviewing your expenses, updating your resume, and identifying your next opportunity.
11:17
SPEAKER_00: If you're grieving, your assignment may not be to be to conquer the world next week, right?
11:22
SPEAKER_00: It might be to get through the day, take care of your health, and lean on people who genuinely support you.
11:29
SPEAKER_00: If you're dealing with a difficult financial season, it may be the time to put your pride to the side and ask for help, renegotiate obligations, or explore resources you never thought you would need.
11:39
SPEAKER_00: Because here's the lesson, family.
11:41
SPEAKER_00: Winter isn't always a season to expand.
11:44
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes it's a season to preserve what you have and prepare for what comes next.
11:49
SPEAKER_00: And don't confuse preservation with failure.
11:52
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes surviving a difficult season without destroying everything you've already built is a without destroying everything, guys, that you've already built, it's a victory in itself.
12:02
SPEAKER_00: Family, this is why you have to be your own number one personal advocate.
12:07
SPEAKER_00: I don't care what happens, make sure you got the right perspective and always vote for you.
12:12
SPEAKER_00: That's all it takes.
12:13
SPEAKER_00: Self-belief, it only requires one.
12:16
SPEAKER_00: You guys will always hear me talk about the power of one.
12:18
SPEAKER_00: It only takes one one idea, one thought of process away, one product away.
12:23
SPEAKER_00: Guys, you are that person.
12:25
SPEAKER_00: You, the man, you the woman.
12:27
SPEAKER_00: It only takes one.
12:28
SPEAKER_00: The power of one.
12:28
SPEAKER_00: If you don't believe me, what was the only product product?
12:31
SPEAKER_00: We got companies that come with one product, we got celebrities that have one song and it changes their life.
12:36
SPEAKER_00: Red Bull, five-hour energy shots.
12:39
SPEAKER_00: Amazon started with one product, books.
12:42
SPEAKER_00: Right?
12:43
SPEAKER_00: So don't forget about the power of one.
12:47
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
12:47
SPEAKER_00: Lesson number two.
12:51
SPEAKER_00: Learn how to take advantage of the spring.
12:53
SPEAKER_00: Now, listen, family.
12:54
SPEAKER_00: One thing about the winter time, you can bet your bottom dollar.
12:59
SPEAKER_00: Spring comes after the winter.
13:01
SPEAKER_00: And I was listening to Jim Ron again, and he was just really huge on the seasons.
13:06
SPEAKER_00: He was just talking about the seasons, and he was saying that one thing that a lot of people do when they get in a winter season is they make that winter season become their identity.
13:16
SPEAKER_00: So they start acting like they're gonna be in a winter forever.
13:18
SPEAKER_00: They make decisions like they'll be in the winter forever.
13:21
SPEAKER_00: But when you start thinking strategically and you a black sheep and you're gonna advocate for yourself, and you're gonna use every disadvantage to your advantage, you want to flip it and use that alchemy.
13:31
SPEAKER_00: Guess what?
13:31
SPEAKER_00: If you're in a winter season, that is a time that you need to look at it and say, you know what?
13:36
SPEAKER_00: It's time to reset for my next because I know spring is coming and I want to be prepared and ready.
13:42
SPEAKER_00: You ain't gonna just sit in your winter season and cry and not do nothing and say, Oh man, woe was me.
13:47
SPEAKER_00: You're gonna start preparing yourself, right?
13:49
SPEAKER_00: Like the black sheep warrior you are.
13:51
SPEAKER_00: So let's talk about spring.
13:52
SPEAKER_00: Spring represents opportunity, and here's the thing I want to tell you guys it's too late to prepare when the opportunity is made aware.
13:59
SPEAKER_00: It's too late to prepare when the opportunity presents itself.
14:02
SPEAKER_00: This is why you must prepare for the opportunity beforehand.
14:05
SPEAKER_00: This is why I always tell you, family, don't wait to be ready.
14:07
SPEAKER_00: You'll never always be ready.
14:10
SPEAKER_00: Completely, nobody ever is.
14:12
SPEAKER_00: So the spring represents opportunities, new beginnings, new possibilities, new relationships, new ideas.
14:18
SPEAKER_00: But check this out, y'all.
14:19
SPEAKER_00: Here's the thing about spring spring doesn't plant the seeds for you.
14:22
SPEAKER_00: You still have to get out there and do the work.
14:25
SPEAKER_00: Let's say you've been unemployed for six months in that wintertime.
14:27
SPEAKER_00: I've gone through that, and suddenly a company opens position in an industry you've always wanted to enter.
14:31
SPEAKER_00: That's a spring opportunity.
14:33
SPEAKER_00: But check this out, family.
14:34
SPEAKER_00: If you haven't updated your skills, improved your resume, or updated your resume or prepared for the interview, you might miss it.
14:40
SPEAKER_00: You might miss it.
14:41
SPEAKER_00: I don't care how competitive it is out there, you got to prepare yourself.
14:45
SPEAKER_00: And even if you don't get it, you can at least say, you know what, I prepared the best way.
14:49
SPEAKER_00: Now I can go in and look at the things where I need to improve and tweak and move forward from there.
14:54
SPEAKER_00: But it's a difference when you don't prepare at all.
14:57
SPEAKER_00: Okay?
14:58
SPEAKER_00: Or maybe you spent years saying you want to write a book, start a business, or return to school, and now your schedule finally gives you some breathing room.
15:05
SPEAKER_00: That's an opportunity to plant, right?
15:07
SPEAKER_00: How about you was just in a wee winter season and you didn't have a job and all these different things.
15:12
SPEAKER_00: Now you have a job, right?
15:14
SPEAKER_00: You got a good career going again, and now you you're looking at things different, and the springtime comes, and you find out you got access to free courses and certifications through the company.
15:23
SPEAKER_00: Guess what, family?
15:25
SPEAKER_00: Now you can start planting those seeds.
15:28
SPEAKER_00: That's an opportunity to plant.
15:29
SPEAKER_00: But if you spend the entire season waiting for the perfect conditions, spring can pass you by.
15:36
SPEAKER_00: And that's why I want you to remember this: an opportunity is not the same thing as a result.
15:41
SPEAKER_00: See, opportunity opens the door, preparation and execution determines what happens when you walk through it.
15:46
SPEAKER_00: So when spring arrives, don't spend all your time celebrating the winter.
15:50
SPEAKER_00: Get your seeds in the ground.
15:51
SPEAKER_00: What that means, family.
15:53
SPEAKER_00: Train to go.
15:55
SPEAKER_00: TTG, train to go.
15:58
SPEAKER_00: Be ready, family.
15:59
SPEAKER_00: Now let's talk about summer because summer is really interesting, okay?
16:02
SPEAKER_00: Because by the summertime, you've already planted something.
16:05
SPEAKER_00: You've started the business, you've ended the relationship, you've landed a new position, you've begun um building healthier habits, and things may be finally looking up, right?
16:14
SPEAKER_00: But that doesn't mean the work is over.
16:17
SPEAKER_00: Because anybody who's ever grown a garden knows that planting is only the beginning.
16:21
SPEAKER_00: You still gotta water it, you gotta watch for the weeds, you gotta watch for the pests, the bugs, the worms, the rodents, and you have to pay attention to when the conditions change.
16:30
SPEAKER_00: The same thing applies to your life.
16:32
SPEAKER_00: See, you can finally get your finances in order, but then you stop tracking what you spend because it's in the summertime now, right?
16:37
SPEAKER_00: You're doing it big, you finally land the job you wanted, and then you stop learning.
16:41
SPEAKER_00: You get comfortable, you build a healthy relationship, but then you stop communicating, you stop doing the things that it took for you to get that, or you launch a successful business, and then you start neglecting the very customers who helped you grow.
16:52
SPEAKER_00: That's how people lose things, they work years to build, and sometimes it isn't because somebody came along and took it from them, sometimes they simply stopped maintaining it.
17:02
SPEAKER_00: And summer is where you must protect what spring gave you the opportunity to build.
17:08
SPEAKER_00: Because one thing I've learned, family, and I've learned this even through weight loss progress needs maintenance.
17:14
SPEAKER_00: Progress, you made progress, you lost 10 pounds, you made progress.
17:17
SPEAKER_00: Now you need to maintain that 10.
17:19
SPEAKER_00: If you want to lose more, fine, but you definitely need to maintain that 10.
17:23
SPEAKER_00: And success without discipline can be very expensive lesson, all right.
17:28
SPEAKER_00: Lesson number four: learn how to reap in the fall without complaint.
17:33
SPEAKER_00: Now comes the harvest.
17:35
SPEAKER_00: All right, it's fall time.
17:36
SPEAKER_00: Y'all know fall is so beautiful outside, the leaves are turning green and or orange, and it's just beautiful.
17:42
SPEAKER_00: Oh my gosh.
17:43
SPEAKER_00: So, y'all know I grew up.
17:44
SPEAKER_00: If you don't, I grew up in the Midwest and a small city, like right outside of Chicago.
17:48
SPEAKER_00: Let me tell you something, family.
17:49
SPEAKER_00: Outside of Chicago and some of the other metropolitan cities, but for the most part, outside of Chicago, guys, is nothing but farmland and just land and cornfields and the Amish people and all of those different things.
17:58
SPEAKER_00: And when I tell you the fall, it is so gorgeous.
18:02
SPEAKER_00: And this is where you look at what you've planted, what you've protected, and what your efforts have produced.
18:09
SPEAKER_00: And sometimes you're gonna love what you see, right?
18:11
SPEAKER_00: You're gonna love what you see.
18:12
SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's your business growing, your health has improved, maybe you've paid down some debt, completed your certification, or you've developed a relationship that genuinely brings value to your life.
18:21
SPEAKER_00: Listen, family, one thing about it, especially y'all black sheep out here, don't forget to celebrate those wins.
18:26
SPEAKER_00: Not don't sit around and wait for it to be a championship ring and a championship game.
18:30
SPEAKER_00: Celebrate the small wins, right?
18:33
SPEAKER_00: Celebrate that.
18:35
SPEAKER_00: But sometimes you're going to look at your harvest and realize it wasn't what you expected.
18:41
SPEAKER_00: Maybe you planned late, maybe you didn't protect what you started, maybe you underestimated the work, or maybe something happened that was completely outside your control.
18:49
SPEAKER_00: It could have been a storm that came through, a medical key medical emergency that changed everything, the company closed, the market shifted.
18:57
SPEAKER_00: And here's where I want to make an important distinction.
19:00
SPEAKER_00: Taking responsibility for your life doesn't mean blaming yourself for every outcome, family.
19:04
SPEAKER_00: This is why in our last episode, or one of our previous episodes, we talked about making the outcome the side chick.
19:10
SPEAKER_00: Okay?
19:11
SPEAKER_00: Make that outcome the side chick and become obsessed or marry the process.
19:16
SPEAKER_00: Marry the process, family.
19:17
SPEAKER_00: Because even if you don't get the outcome that you're looking for, because sometimes you can do everything right that you know to do, and things will still come out the way you did not expect.
19:26
SPEAKER_00: And you have to know in your heart that number one, I did everything I could do.
19:30
SPEAKER_00: Number two, because of that, I'm still a better person.
19:33
SPEAKER_00: I'm still a better person.
19:35
SPEAKER_00: It may not feel that way, it may not look that way, but you're gonna get some type of fruit from doing the right things in those seasons just because of the process.
19:43
SPEAKER_00: It's like the process is almost like refinement to make you peer as goal.
19:47
SPEAKER_00: You gotta go through the fire, okay?
19:49
SPEAKER_00: And like I said, family, taking responsibility for your life doesn't mean blaming yourself for every outcome.
19:54
SPEAKER_00: It simply means be willing to examine what happened and identify what you can do differently.
19:58
SPEAKER_00: So when your harvest doesn't match your expectations, don't waste the entire season complaining, right?
20:03
SPEAKER_00: Extract the lesson, what worked, what didn't, what needs to change, and what are you going to carry into the next season?
20:08
SPEAKER_00: Because a disappointing harvest can still produce valuable intelligence, but only if you're willing to examine it.
20:14
SPEAKER_00: And that brings us to the next to the next part of today's lesson.
20:18
SPEAKER_00: Because I want you to understand, family, there's a difference between going through a difficult season and repeating a destructive cycle.
20:26
SPEAKER_00: Now, I was listening to Bishop Dale Bronner, he was discussing seasons and cycles, and one distinction really stood out to me.
20:33
SPEAKER_00: He said a season is a period of life that you're moving through, but a cycle is a pattern that keeps bringing you back into a familiar place, and sometimes that pattern requires you to make a different decision before you can get a different result.
20:48
SPEAKER_00: Okay, a lot of times when you find yourself in a cycle, that is an indicator that there's something that you need to do differently.
20:56
SPEAKER_00: A season, you moving through a season.
20:58
SPEAKER_00: Obviously, you can still do things to move better through the season because you always want to make your next move your best move.
21:03
SPEAKER_00: You should always be thinking about moving.
21:05
SPEAKER_00: Don't get me wrong, some family.
21:06
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes you have to, you're being still.
21:08
SPEAKER_00: That don't mean just because you're being still, that don't mean you're just doing nothing, right?
21:12
SPEAKER_00: You have strategic solitude, strategic rest, right?
21:17
SPEAKER_00: So I want you to understand that when it's a season, you're moving through, you're flowing through, right?
21:23
SPEAKER_00: But when it's a cycle, you're going in a circle, and you keep coming up to this same place every time.
21:29
SPEAKER_00: That is an indicator that it's something that you need to do differently.
21:31
SPEAKER_00: So let me give an example.
21:32
SPEAKER_00: You lose your job because your company shuts down.
21:34
SPEAKER_00: That's a difficult season.
21:37
SPEAKER_00: But suppose you keep moving from one job to another, and every time you start getting comfortable, you stop developing your skills, you ignore warning signs, and you find yourself unprepared when the industry changes.
21:47
SPEAKER_00: Now we have a pattern worth examining.
21:50
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
21:51
SPEAKER_00: Maybe you go through a painful breakup.
21:52
SPEAKER_00: Here's another one that's a season.
21:54
SPEAKER_00: But check this out if you repeatedly ignore red flags, abandon your standards, and stay in relationships, consistently.
22:00
SPEAKER_00: That consistently violate your boundaries, there may be a cycle that you need to interrupt.
22:04
SPEAKER_00: And here's the important part not every repeated hardship means you have done something wrong.
22:10
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes circumstances beyond your control keep creating similar challenges.
22:16
SPEAKER_00: But even then, it's worth asking what resources, decisions, or support systems might help you respond differently.
22:24
SPEAKER_00: Because the question isn't always, why does this keep happening to me?
22:27
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes the better question is what keeps happening and what part of it that can I influence and what haven't I tried it yet?
22:34
SPEAKER_00: Or why haven't I tried it yet?
22:36
SPEAKER_00: Right.
22:37
SPEAKER_00: So let's look at four areas where the cycles can keep you or keep people stuck.
22:43
SPEAKER_00: Okay?
22:44
SPEAKER_00: Let's look at some cycles where they can keep you stuck.
22:47
SPEAKER_00: Number one, the financial cycle.
22:49
SPEAKER_00: When the money keeps disappearing, let me share something from my own experience, family.
22:53
SPEAKER_00: So there was a period when I had done what many financial experts recommended.
22:59
SPEAKER_00: I had built up emergency savings.
23:01
SPEAKER_00: I was doing well with that family.
23:03
SPEAKER_00: Um, I was in a fall season.
23:06
SPEAKER_00: I was looking at everything.
23:07
SPEAKER_00: I harvested, everything was going so good, and you know, I had my savings.
23:12
SPEAKER_00: I was finally, you know, I was proud of myself a little bit.
23:14
SPEAKER_00: I'll be honest with you, family, um, because my business had been doing the best that I had ever done.
23:20
SPEAKER_00: Um, it was in my business as well as my career.
23:22
SPEAKER_00: We were making well over six figures, and I was thinking to myself, I said David Ramsey would be proud of this right here.
23:30
SPEAKER_00: Okay, so I was doing well.
23:34
SPEAKER_00: Now, one of my personal goals has always been to build a life without unnecessary debt.
23:39
SPEAKER_00: Okay, and listen, family, before I'm not, I'm not here to tell you not to live and get the things you want.
23:43
SPEAKER_00: Because family, we only get one of these things.
23:45
SPEAKER_00: Many of you may or may not know I am absolutely a car junkie.
23:48
SPEAKER_00: I love all types of cars, old schools, new schools, pickup, all of it.
23:52
SPEAKER_00: So, one thing about me, family, I'm always gonna tell you if you got it, listen, get you something that you love to ride in that really juices you up.
23:59
SPEAKER_00: So, I'm not saying this uh about having a life without unnecessary debt.
24:05
SPEAKER_00: I'm simply saying this to say this was something I chose so that I can enjoy myself a little bit better, right?
24:14
SPEAKER_00: And have some type of freedom.
24:15
SPEAKER_00: I thought that was a great goal.
24:16
SPEAKER_00: Now I understand that some people strategically use debt to build wealth or expand their businesses, but personally, I wanted financial freedom without carrying a bunch of obligations.
24:24
SPEAKER_00: And check this out, family.
24:26
SPEAKER_00: And then I experienced a financial winter.
24:28
SPEAKER_00: And one of the lessons that I extracted from that season was this although I had prepared my savings money, I had not fully considered having access to an additional financial backup, right?
24:39
SPEAKER_00: I had the six months of savings, right?
24:42
SPEAKER_00: And but I didn't consider, hey, maybe you can have an additional one, additional family, my financial backup for an example, family, an established credit card with a reasonable limit that could potentially have provided temporary flexibility for certain expenses.
24:56
SPEAKER_00: See what I'm saying, family?
24:57
SPEAKER_00: Because when the money ran low, I could have had the credit card there.
25:01
SPEAKER_00: But I'm on my, I don't want no credit cards, I'm dealing in cash only, I'm gonna budget here and there.
25:07
SPEAKER_00: Guess what, family?
25:08
SPEAKER_00: You gotta think, like I always say, five steps ahead or give yourself plenty of options.
25:13
SPEAKER_00: Now, let me be clear: a credit card is not an emergency fund, it's borrowed money and you can't pay it back.
25:18
SPEAKER_00: And if you can't pay it back, the interest can make an already difficult situation worth.
25:22
SPEAKER_00: But the lesson that I learned wasn't simply about credit cards, it was about understanding that financial preparation needs more than one layer, right?
25:29
SPEAKER_00: You may need savings, insurance, accessibility to credit card, marketable skills, and a realistic plan for what happens if the income changes, right?
25:37
SPEAKER_00: Because a financial winter can teach you something that a comfortable summer never will.
25:41
SPEAKER_00: And sometimes the missing piece isn't something you did wrong, it's simply something that you didn't know you needed to prepare for.
25:48
SPEAKER_00: Okay, and that's why I believe financial literacy is so important.
25:52
SPEAKER_00: Don't do just learn how to make money, learn how to protect it, manage it, and position yourself when the shits hit the fan, right?
26:00
SPEAKER_00: Whatever you can do to mitigate the risk, soften the blow, because family, we all get punched in the face by life.
26:05
SPEAKER_00: We don't ask for the crap.
26:06
SPEAKER_00: If you resonate with being a black sheep, you can you got punched a lot.
26:09
SPEAKER_00: You don't want to get punched again, right?
26:11
SPEAKER_00: But life tends to take you through the fire before it gives you more so of what you desire on that next level.
26:18
SPEAKER_00: Like I said, family, it's like a refinement.
26:20
SPEAKER_00: This is why we're marrying the process.
26:22
SPEAKER_00: Because when you decide I'm gonna marry the process, when you're going through, it's gonna be painful and ugly, but you say, you know what, I'm gonna extract something out of this time, I'm gonna extract something out of this season, this cycle, whatever it is that I'm going through, I'm gonna get the lesson out.
26:32
SPEAKER_00: So the next cycle is the relationship cycle.
26:36
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes, have you observed this, family?
26:38
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes you can change the person, change the location, change the phone number, and still find yourself dealing with the same riff wrath in the same type of situation, different face, different foolishness.
26:50
SPEAKER_00: And I'm not just talking about romantic relationships, I'm talking about friendships, family relationships, and even professional connections.
26:56
SPEAKER_00: Maybe you're always the one giving, and it's this one-sided stuff.
26:59
SPEAKER_00: You're always the one checking in, always the one making accommodations.
27:02
SPEAKER_00: And when you finally need support, everybody suddenly has a scheduling conflict.
27:06
SPEAKER_00: Now, that doesn't mean you're responsible for everybody else's betrayal or poor behavior, but it does mean you can examine how relationships or how you select relationships, what you tolerate, and how you respond when somebody repeatedly crosses a line.
27:18
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes breaking a cycle means learning to communicate more clearly.
27:22
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes it means getting comfortable with solitude, and sometimes it means accepting that a relationship can have history without having a healthy future.
27:30
SPEAKER_00: We talked about access and boundaries in our previous Intel briefing, so I'm not going to repeat that entire lesson, but here's the connection.
27:37
SPEAKER_00: You cannot interrupt a recurring relationship pattern if you refuse to examine the decisions that keep you participating in it.
27:44
SPEAKER_00: Okay?
27:45
SPEAKER_00: And that includes knowing when to seek support and when to repair relationships and when to walk away.
27:51
SPEAKER_00: All right, let's talk about the next cycle.
27:52
SPEAKER_00: This is the health cycle.
27:53
SPEAKER_00: When tomorrow keeps becoming next Monday.
27:55
SPEAKER_00: Now, listen, family, we got to talk about health because this one can sneak up on you.
27:59
SPEAKER_00: And you know, you will always hear me say health is wealth.
28:01
SPEAKER_00: You say you're gonna start walking, you say you're gonna reduce your sugar intake, you're gonna get more rest, you're gonna schedule that appointment you've been putting off, and when life finally life, right?
28:10
SPEAKER_00: When life be life, next thing you know, next Monday has become next month, and then uh something comes up, right?
28:17
SPEAKER_00: Not every health problem comes from lifestyle choices, and nobody should ever feel ashamed because they're dealing with the condition they didn't choose.
28:24
SPEAKER_00: But where you where you do have choices, small actions can still matter, family.
28:28
SPEAKER_00: Okay, maybe you can't afford the wellness retreat, or maybe you can't afford to go to Turkey to some specialist you've heard about.
28:34
SPEAKER_00: Maybe you're dealing with limited time, money, or limited access to care.
28:37
SPEAKER_00: But what you can do with the resources you have, what can you do with what you have?
28:42
SPEAKER_00: Can you take a 10-minute walk?
28:44
SPEAKER_00: Is that appropriate for your health?
28:46
SPEAKER_00: Can you stretch?
28:47
SPEAKER_00: Can you ask your doctor better questions?
28:48
SPEAKER_00: Can you research reliable medical information?
28:51
SPEAKER_00: Can you finally follow up on that symptom you've been ignoring?
28:54
SPEAKER_00: Now, listen, family, none of this replaces professional medical care, and you should work with qualified healthcare professionals, right, when making decisions.
29:01
SPEAKER_00: The point is you don't have to know how to fix everything before you start taking responsibility for the next appropriate step.
29:08
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes breaking a cycle begins with keeping one small promise to yourself.
29:13
SPEAKER_00: Lastly, the career cycle, when you've outgrown where you're at now or your strategy.
29:17
SPEAKER_00: This one right here is especially important because some of you are not necessarily in a bad career.
29:21
SPEAKER_00: You're just operating with an outdated strategy.
29:23
SPEAKER_00: You've been in the same industry for 15 years, you know your job assists the people, but you're starting to realize that the opportunities you want require skills you haven't developed, or you've just hit a ceiling and you're ready to level up.
29:32
SPEAKER_00: You've applied for promotions, you've taken on extra responsibilities, and you've waited for somebody to recognize your value.
29:36
SPEAKER_00: But guess what?
29:37
SPEAKER_00: Nothing changed.
29:38
SPEAKER_00: Now you got a decision to make.
29:39
SPEAKER_00: You can keep waiting, or you can start examining what the next level actually looks like and what it requires.
29:45
SPEAKER_00: Maybe you need a certification, maybe you need to improve your technology skills, maybe you need to learn how to negotiate, lead products, analyze data, or communicate your accomplishments more effectively.
29:52
SPEAKER_00: Or maybe it's time to explore a different industry altogether.
29:56
SPEAKER_00: This is where I want to introduce a principle from Jim Ron that I love.
29:59
SPEAKER_00: And actually, this was from Dale Bronner.
30:01
SPEAKER_00: It was called learn to earn.
30:03
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
30:04
SPEAKER_00: In other words, don't focus exclusively on what somebody is willing to pay you today, family.
30:08
SPEAKER_00: Focus on developing the knowledge, the skills, and judgment that can expand your opportunities for tomorrow.
30:14
SPEAKER_00: Because your current job title, family, is not the full measure of your potential, it's not the full measure of your ambition.
30:21
SPEAKER_00: And your current salary doesn't have to be the ceiling for your entire life.
30:25
SPEAKER_00: But potential alone isn't going to change your circumstances.
30:29
SPEAKER_00: You have to develop it.
30:30
SPEAKER_00: And that part brings us directly in today's ancient intel.
30:35
SPEAKER_00: I want to take you to 2 Timothy 2 and 15.
30:38
SPEAKER_00: Some of you may remember the familiar King James wording.
30:40
SPEAKER_00: It says, Study to show thy approved unto God.
30:43
SPEAKER_00: But in the message translation, Paul emphasizing that doing your best for God, producing work you won't be ashamed of, and handling the truth correctly.
30:50
SPEAKER_00: Now let's understand the context, family.
30:52
SPEAKER_00: Paul was instructing Timothy about faithful service and responsibility for teaching of God's word.
30:57
SPEAKER_00: He wasn't promising that everybody who studies hard is automatically going to become wealthy overnight or successful.
31:02
SPEAKER_00: But the principle here is that we can apply how we approach our responsibilities, or we can do the work right in a way that you can stand behind.
31:11
SPEAKER_00: You're proud of what you do.
31:12
SPEAKER_00: This is your brand, right?
31:14
SPEAKER_00: You want to become a leader, then develop the qualities that's required to lead and be proud when you're doing a good job.
31:20
SPEAKER_00: Because you are working for the creator.
31:22
SPEAKER_00: Finally, this is why I always talk about purpose.
31:23
SPEAKER_00: You don't have to be a believer.
31:25
SPEAKER_00: But when you are working for a divine purpose and you are doing those things, family, a lot of times the jobs won't value you, they won't.
31:31
SPEAKER_00: But trust and believe, when you work towards a higher purpose and you know that's your brand and you're developing your skills, listen, your next best, I promise you it's coming.
31:40
SPEAKER_00: I promise you it's coming.
31:41
SPEAKER_00: It's just like people that they don't have to have a title to be a leader, and they are a good leader.
31:47
SPEAKER_00: They don't even have the title, right?
31:49
SPEAKER_00: Because they're preparing for their next best, and a lot of times they are connecting that to say, listen, this is my brand.
31:54
SPEAKER_00: I don't need a title to do that.
31:55
SPEAKER_00: This is who I am.
31:56
SPEAKER_00: And if you want to make your if you want to move into your new career, find out what the market requires and begin preparing yourself for that.
32:02
SPEAKER_00: If you want to build a business, learn how to build a business that actually operates, right?
32:06
SPEAKER_00: Learn how they actually operate.
32:08
SPEAKER_00: If you want to become an expert at something, put in the time and learn your craft, right?
32:13
SPEAKER_00: Learn it.
32:13
SPEAKER_00: Everything don't happen overnight, but when you just take one step at a time, right?
32:17
SPEAKER_00: You don't have to prove your readiness by announcing your intentions, family.
32:20
SPEAKER_00: Listen, you know the black sheet, we're gonna move in silence.
32:23
SPEAKER_00: We're gonna just prepare.
32:24
SPEAKER_00: We're gonna demonstrate it through preparation, character, and execution.
32:27
SPEAKER_00: Because we ain't never scared.
32:28
SPEAKER_00: If we are, we still gonna push forward.
32:30
SPEAKER_00: And sometimes the reason you feel stuck isn't that you've reached the end of your potential, it's that you've reached the end of what your current knowledge and habits can produce.
32:37
SPEAKER_00: Okay?
32:37
SPEAKER_00: Now listen, it can it can make but it can make you a better person being prepared when something comes available.
32:42
SPEAKER_00: It doesn't necessarily guarantee anything, right?
32:44
SPEAKER_00: But it still makes you better prepared.
32:46
SPEAKER_00: So instead of spending the next six months telling everybody what you're gonna do, spend some time actually doing it.
32:51
SPEAKER_00: Don't just pray for the opportunity, prepare to handle the responsibility that comes with it.
32:55
SPEAKER_00: And speaking of preparation, let's zoom out for a moment.
32:58
SPEAKER_00: Because sometimes the season you're experiencing isn't just personal, sometimes the entire world is going through changes.
33:06
SPEAKER_00: Now, I want to talk to you about something that I think is especially important right now because everywhere you turn, somebody is talking about the economy.
33:11
SPEAKER_00: I'm not gonna sit here and lie to you, family.
33:13
SPEAKER_00: You know, I'm not gonna sell you some fluff and act like you know, everything is speeches and cream out here because everywhere you turn, you hear inflation, interest rates, layoff, politics, wars, technology changing, the workplace, AI, the stock market, and all these different things.
33:26
SPEAKER_00: And depending on who you're listening to, you might walk away believing the entire world is about to fall apart tomorrow morning.
33:31
SPEAKER_00: But family, here is something that I really want you to consider.
33:34
SPEAKER_00: Humanity has been navigating periods of prosperity, instability, conflict, and transformations for thousands of years.
33:40
SPEAKER_00: In Ecclesiastes, which was wrote by Solomon, I believe, we find a familiar biblical idea.
33:47
SPEAKER_00: And he says, There is nothing new under the sun.
33:50
SPEAKER_00: Now, that doesn't mean every historical event is identical.
33:53
SPEAKER_00: It means that when you study human history, you begin to recognize familiar patterns in human behavior: power struggles, economic instability, competition for resources, social upheaval, and people trying to figure out how to survive and build a future in the middle of it all.
34:07
SPEAKER_00: Let me give you a few examples.
34:08
SPEAKER_00: The American Revolutionary War began in 1775, the American Civil War began in 1861, 86 years later.
34:15
SPEAKER_00: Then we had World War I that began in 1914, that was 53 years after the Civil War began.
34:20
SPEAKER_00: World War II began in 1939, 23 years later, after World War I.
34:25
SPEAKER_00: Now, these interviews aren't identical, and not every major war belongs to the same historical category, but they remind us that the large-scale conflict is not something our generation invented.
34:35
SPEAKER_00: There's an interesting historical framework that explores this idea even further.
34:39
SPEAKER_00: It's called the Fourth Turning, developed by William Strauss and Neil Howe.
34:42
SPEAKER_00: They studied American history and proposed that societies move through recurring generational eras, including periods of institutional crisis and rebuilding.
34:51
SPEAKER_00: Okay, and rebuilding.
34:53
SPEAKER_00: Their framework explains major historical periods such as the American Revolution, the Civil War, and the Great Depression, as well as the World War II era.
35:00
SPEAKER_00: Now, these now the events themselves are historical facts.
35:03
SPEAKER_00: The proposed generational pattern is an interpretation of that history, right?
35:07
SPEAKER_00: And we don't need to settle that debate today.
35:09
SPEAKER_00: What matters for our conversation is that studying history can help us recognize that major disruptions have happened before and people have made it through.
35:18
SPEAKER_00: And there were people that went up and there were people that went down.
35:22
SPEAKER_00: And there was not always only the rich getting richer, it was people that prepared for the different seasons.
35:29
SPEAKER_00: They knew what season they were in, they on they started to understand things and they positioned themselves.
35:34
SPEAKER_00: And the economy gives us another example.
35:36
SPEAKER_00: Let's look at some of the recessions from the United States had experienced, right?
35:39
SPEAKER_00: We had a recession beginning in 1981, then another one in 1990, then another one in 2001, then another one in 2007, and another one in 2020.
35:48
SPEAKER_00: Did you notice something?
35:49
SPEAKER_00: Those events didn't arrive at particularly regular intervals, but they did keep happening.
35:53
SPEAKER_00: And if you go back further in history, you'll find even more examples.
35:57
SPEAKER_00: So why am I telling you all of this?
35:59
SPEAKER_00: Because I want you to stop believing that your future has to remain on hold until the world becomes perfect, until a perfect uh politician comes in and all of this stuff, right?
36:06
SPEAKER_00: I'm not going to tell you to ignore politics.
36:08
SPEAKER_00: I'm not telling you that economic policies don't matter.
36:11
SPEAKER_00: I'm certainly not telling you that everybody has equal opportunities or resources because we know the truth.
36:15
SPEAKER_00: But what I am saying is that you cannot build your entire personal strategies waiting for somebody else to fix the world.
36:23
SPEAKER_00: I don't care what politicians get in there.
36:25
SPEAKER_00: We're not waiting.
36:27
SPEAKER_00: We're not gonna take it.
36:30
SPEAKER_00: Okay, we're not taking it anymore.
36:31
SPEAKER_00: Black sheep, you're gonna step out and make the changes you need to make.
36:35
SPEAKER_00: For you, you have to make up in your mind.
36:38
SPEAKER_00: I don't care who in the office, I care, but I'm gonna make my move anyway.
36:42
SPEAKER_00: Right?
36:43
SPEAKER_00: Don't get caught up in it because governments change, markets change, industry change, technology change, companies change.
36:48
SPEAKER_00: Why wouldn't you change?
36:51
SPEAKER_00: Right?
36:52
SPEAKER_00: So ask yourself, right?
36:53
SPEAKER_00: Technology changed, companies reinvent themselves, and sometimes the conditions you were counting on, family, they disappear.
37:00
SPEAKER_00: Family, I remember I would work two jobs just in case one acted crazy, I had something to fall back on.
37:04
SPEAKER_00: And guess what, family?
37:06
SPEAKER_00: I went through a season where I was laid off from both jobs, both of them, family.
37:11
SPEAKER_00: I'd be like, what the crunch is going on?
37:14
SPEAKER_00: So you have to ask yourself, what skills can I develop?
37:18
SPEAKER_00: What resources can I protect?
37:20
SPEAKER_00: What can I do to strengthen my backup plans?
37:23
SPEAKER_00: What relationships can I strengthen?
37:24
SPEAKER_00: What decisions can I make today that might make me a better person and in a better position tomorrow?
37:29
SPEAKER_00: You may not be able to control the economy, but you can improve your financial literacy.
37:33
SPEAKER_00: You might not be able to control whether your industry adopts a new technology, but you can begin in learning how the technology works anyway.
37:39
SPEAKER_00: You may not control every opportunity, right?
37:42
SPEAKER_00: You may not be able to control every opportunity, but you can work on becoming better prepared to recognize and pursue the opportunities that do appear.
37:54
SPEAKER_00: I want you to remember something else, family.
37:56
SPEAKER_00: The people who came before us had their own winners, they had their own wars, their own economic problems, their own uncertainty, and they still had to make decisions about how to live.
38:04
SPEAKER_00: So instead of asking, what is going on in the world and when is it going to get back to normal?
38:08
SPEAKER_00: Hey, listen, it may never get back to normal.
38:10
SPEAKER_00: So the more the best or the uh a more better useful question might be how do I prepare myself for a world that I'm actually living in?
38:17
SPEAKER_00: How do I become flexible so I can be like a bamboo tree?
38:20
SPEAKER_00: And no matter what's going on, I can bend and bounce back.
38:23
SPEAKER_00: That's a different mindset.
38:25
SPEAKER_00: Now I'm gonna give you one more perspective, family, um, because I want to introduce you to something because I truly believe that black sheep, you're so unique, and we're just out of the box.
38:34
SPEAKER_00: You can't put us in a box.
38:35
SPEAKER_00: And so a lot of us really need personalized strategies and counseling and coaching for our lives.
38:41
SPEAKER_00: Only you know your story.
38:42
SPEAKER_00: But one of these concepts I'm introducing to you today is very interesting, and that is the concept of your personal year in numerology.
38:48
SPEAKER_00: Okay, now if you've been rocking with me for a while, guys, you already know that we sometimes explore numerology as a tool for personal reflection and self-understanding because, number one, family, you want to know yourself.
38:57
SPEAKER_00: So I want to make a important distinction.
38:59
SPEAKER_00: Numerology is a symbolic, symbologic, interpretive framework, it isn't a science-established method for predicting events or determining what must happen in your life, okay?
39:07
SPEAKER_00: We're not doing that, but some people, and I do, it's very interesting and find it useful as a structured way to reflect on where you are and where you want what you want to focus on, okay.
39:18
SPEAKER_00: And um, it's just some very interesting insight, all right.
39:22
SPEAKER_00: And so, in common numerology traditions, personal years follow a nine-year sequence, okay.
39:28
SPEAKER_00: And so, we're just gonna talk about, and when I say these personal years, yeah, a nine-year sequence.
39:32
SPEAKER_00: So, for an example, 2026 was a year number one, which was all about beginnings and independence.
39:38
SPEAKER_00: That's 2026.
39:40
SPEAKER_00: How do you know what year?
39:41
SPEAKER_00: Okay, for a personal year, right?
39:45
SPEAKER_00: A personal year, excuse me, the personal year that you're in, it represents a certain number, and it could be one through nine.
39:49
SPEAKER_00: So, personal year number one is associated with beginnings and independence.
39:54
SPEAKER_00: Now, the overall year is similar and the complete world year, right, as far as the era we're in 2026.
40:02
SPEAKER_00: If you add that up and break that down to a one-digit letter, you get one, and it's all about independence and new beginnings and look at what's going on.
40:10
SPEAKER_00: But check this out year number two emphasizes cooperation, relationships, and patience.
40:15
SPEAKER_00: So if you're in a personal year number two, this is the time to emphasize relationships and passion, patience.
40:22
SPEAKER_00: Three, focus on creativity and expression.
40:24
SPEAKER_00: Four, associate with structure, discipline, and building foundations.
40:27
SPEAKER_00: Year five represents change, flexibility, and exploration.
40:30
SPEAKER_00: Year six emphasizes responsibility, family, and relationships.
40:33
SPEAKER_00: Year seven, it's associated with reflection, study, and inner development.
40:37
SPEAKER_00: Personal year eight focuses on ambition, achievement, and material possessions.
40:40
SPEAKER_00: And the personal year nine represents completion, release, and preparation for another beginning.
40:45
SPEAKER_00: Now that that does not mean somebody in personal year four can't start a business.
40:49
SPEAKER_00: Of course not.
40:50
SPEAKER_00: It doesn't mean somebody in personal nine is guaranteed to be experiencing ending.
40:54
SPEAKER_00: The value, if you choose to use this framework, it's in better asking better questions about your priorities.
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SPEAKER_00: What am I building?
40:59
SPEAKER_00: What am I holding on to?
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SPEAKER_00: What needs more attention, and what might I need to release?
41:04
SPEAKER_00: Because two people can be 40 years old and have a completely different circumstance, responsibilities, and opportunities and goals.
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SPEAKER_00: Your strategy should reflect your actual life.
41:11
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
41:12
SPEAKER_00: Now, listen, family, if you're interested in exploring your own personal year and using it as a reflective strategic planning exercise, stay connected, family.
41:18
SPEAKER_00: I'll be sharing more resources to help you explore that.
41:21
SPEAKER_00: But regardless of whether you use numerology, a journal, a financial plan, or a personal development assessment, the objective remains the same.
41:27
SPEAKER_00: Know where you are in life so you can make better decisions about where you're going.
41:32
SPEAKER_00: All right.
41:33
SPEAKER_00: All right, family.
41:33
SPEAKER_00: So you know how we do it because I love y'all so much, and I want you to become the best version of yourself.
41:39
SPEAKER_00: All right.
41:40
SPEAKER_00: We're not leaving today's without giving you something to execute.
41:44
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
41:44
SPEAKER_00: So we're gonna run through these, and I got some exciting announcements.
41:47
SPEAKER_00: Number one, identify your season.
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SPEAKER_00: Sometime today, take 10 minutes and look at the four areas of your life, your finances, your relationships, your health, and your career, and ask yourself which season best describes each area right now.
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SPEAKER_00: Are you in the winter trying to stabilize and recover?
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SPEAKER_00: Are you in the spring where new opportunities require action?
42:01
SPEAKER_00: Are you in the summertime where something you've built needs protection and maintenance, or are you in the fall when it's time to evaluate results and extract the lessons?
42:07
SPEAKER_00: And remember, you don't have to be in the same season across every area.
42:10
SPEAKER_00: The goal isn't to label yourself, family.
42:11
SPEAKER_00: You can't label a black sheet.
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SPEAKER_00: The goal is to understand what each area needs from you.
42:15
SPEAKER_00: Number two, identify one cycle that needs to change.
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SPEAKER_00: Now, listen, I don't want to try to overhaul your life by Tuesday, family.
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SPEAKER_00: Pick one reoccurring pattern that you've noticed.
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SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's overspending, uh putting off health appointments, you know, repeatedly accepting commitments you know you don't have time for.
42:28
SPEAKER_00: You got your own stuff going on, but you steady showing up for everybody else.
42:31
SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's a career situation that you know you need a new strategy.
42:33
SPEAKER_00: You're just tired of and you've hit the ceiling already, right?
42:35
SPEAKER_00: Write down what keeps happening, then ask yourself three questions.
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SPEAKER_00: Number one, what seemed to trigger the pattern?
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SPEAKER_00: Number two, what part of this is within my control?
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SPEAKER_00: And three, what's one different action that I can take the next time it appears?
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SPEAKER_00: Because sometimes a cycle doesn't end with one dramatic announcement, it ends when you finally make one different decision and follow through.
42:50
SPEAKER_00: Number three, build your black sheep head start.
42:53
SPEAKER_00: Now, this is where we're going to bring everything together because we have approximately two months left in 2026.
42:58
SPEAKER_00: All right.
42:58
SPEAKER_00: And I don't want you to spend these two months beating yourself up over everything you have in the compass family.
43:02
SPEAKER_00: No, we're not doing that.
43:03
SPEAKER_00: The fact that you even listen to this and still stand in, you've already been victorious, okay?
43:06
SPEAKER_00: But I want you to prepare for what's next.
43:08
SPEAKER_00: Choose one meaningful goal you can make progress on before the year ends.
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SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's finishing that course, the book, organizing your finances, updating your resume, taking a course.
43:15
SPEAKER_00: Maybe it's starting a consistent walking routine, reconnecting with somebody important, or finally creating a plan for that business idea.
43:21
SPEAKER_00: Whatever you choose, make it realistic.
43:22
SPEAKER_00: Then identify the first action you can take this week, not next year, not when the economy improves, not when it's a new president, not when somebody finally gives you permission.
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SPEAKER_00: This week.
43:32
SPEAKER_00: This week.
43:32
SPEAKER_00: Because black sheep, head start, it's not about pretending January is already here, it's about refusing to waste another ounce of time and the opportunity that's still in front of you.
43:41
SPEAKER_00: And sometimes the best way to prepare for a new year is to start repeating the old pattern before the current year ends.
43:46
SPEAKER_00: Y'all, that's really the game right there.
43:47
SPEAKER_00: When you just, I'm talking about even if you say I'm gonna lose weight, man.
43:50
SPEAKER_00: If you just give yourself, I'm talking about even if you say a three-week head start, man, family, I'm telling you, it changed the game.
43:56
SPEAKER_00: Now, family, before I we wrap this up, I know this was a longer episode because family, you know, we're getting ready to take off.
44:01
SPEAKER_00: It's about to be a new year, and we we just gotta have it, guys.
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SPEAKER_00: I want you to go for you, go for the people who told you couldn't do it, right?
44:07
SPEAKER_00: Whoever that was, and go for you, go for your family, for the people you love, right?
44:11
SPEAKER_00: We changing the game, and we're gonna start right now.
44:13
SPEAKER_00: So before I we wrap up, I want to leave you with this.
44:15
SPEAKER_00: Some of you are frustrated because you feel like you're behind.
44:17
SPEAKER_00: Family, you're not behind.
44:18
SPEAKER_00: I know you had plans for this year, you had goals, you had expectations.
44:21
SPEAKER_00: I did too, fam.
44:22
SPEAKER_00: I did too.
44:23
SPEAKER_00: And somewhere between January and November, life decided to introduce a whole new plot twist.
44:27
SPEAKER_00: And for some of us, it was a few plot twists.
44:29
SPEAKER_00: Maybe you lost something, lost somebody, had to start over, maybe you have to spend most of the year trying to get yourself back together and recoup from what you lost.
44:35
SPEAKER_00: And I want you to understand something.
44:36
SPEAKER_00: Number one, you're not alone.
44:37
SPEAKER_00: Number two, a difficult season doesn't mean you've lived an unsuccessful year.
44:41
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes the greatest thing you can accomplish is learning how to survive a winner without surrendering your future.
44:45
SPEAKER_00: Okay, sometimes the greatest lesson comes from recognizing a pattern that you refuse to repeat.
44:50
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes the biggest breakthrough isn't what you gain, it's the wisdom you develop about what to do differently, family.
44:55
SPEAKER_00: So don't measure your entire life against a calendar.
44:58
SPEAKER_00: Learn how to handle the winners because one thing about it, you got the spring coming next.
45:01
SPEAKER_00: And that's why sometimes, family, as black sheep, we want to save everybody so much.
45:04
SPEAKER_00: We got to hit winters hard because it shakes a loose the day it leaves to let you know what's truly important, right?
45:10
SPEAKER_00: Because we carry a lot of folks when they're going through and when it's our time, people disappear.
45:13
SPEAKER_00: Protect your crops in the summer and when fall arise, examine the harvest, harvest, celebrate what worked, and learn for what then.
45:19
SPEAKER_00: But above all, don't confuse a season you need to navigate with a cycle you have the power to interrupt.
45:24
SPEAKER_00: Because the one may require patience, the other one may require change.
45:28
SPEAKER_00: And wisdom is knowing which one you're dealing with.
45:30
SPEAKER_00: All right.
45:31
SPEAKER_00: So before you start worrying about everything that might happen in 2027, just take an honest look at what you're doing with the time you still have in 2026.
45:39
SPEAKER_00: All right, family.
45:40
SPEAKER_00: Now, before we wrap up, I got a couple announcements that I want to put on your radar.
45:46
SPEAKER_00: First, if today's conversation about season and cycles got you thinking about your personal year that we discussed, I'm putting together an exclusive black sheep personal year video report to help you explore your personal cycles and create a more intentional plan for your next chapter.
45:57
SPEAKER_00: All right.
45:57
SPEAKER_00: So I'll have that link in the box, description box.
46:00
SPEAKER_00: And for my black sheep who are thinking about making a career move in 2027, don't forget about the career pivot report because sometimes, family, the next season of your life requires a new skill, a new strategy, or a completely different direction.
46:09
SPEAKER_00: And it is not about having a degree.
46:11
SPEAKER_00: All right.
46:12
SPEAKER_00: So that link will be there.
46:13
SPEAKER_00: But last and definitely not least, y'all, I got something special coming for this holiday season.
46:17
SPEAKER_00: I am so excited about this.
46:18
SPEAKER_00: We're planning our first black sheep virtual holiday party.
46:22
SPEAKER_00: Y'all is gonna be so bomb.
46:23
SPEAKER_00: We're gonna do giveaways and we're tying it into a major milestone.
46:27
SPEAKER_00: Family, we are going to be celebrating our 100th episode.
46:32
SPEAKER_00: Oh, y'all, I'm so excited about it, and I'm sharing this with you guys because I want you to understand that we're here for you, we're here to stay.
46:38
SPEAKER_00: We're not coming in by day and out by night.
46:40
SPEAKER_00: We're setting this foundation, and this is gonna be generational, and everything that we talk about, family principles that's not going anywhere.
46:46
SPEAKER_00: They can have AI, they can have Chat GPT and his brothers and cousins.
46:51
SPEAKER_00: These principles will still apply.
46:53
SPEAKER_00: But we're gonna be talking about, we're gonna be getting together, celebrating, having some fun, and connecting with people who make this community what it is.
46:58
SPEAKER_00: So I hope that you'll be there.
46:59
SPEAKER_00: I'll be sharing more details soon.
47:00
SPEAKER_00: So make sure you subscribe and stay tapped in because we're not just about building a podcast, family.
47:05
SPEAKER_00: We're over here building a community.
47:06
SPEAKER_00: And remember, remember, family, don't just hear today's lesson.
47:10
SPEAKER_00: Run the play because information is everywhere and execution is rare.
47:14
SPEAKER_00: I'll see you on the next one.