Episode #240 Embrace the Suck

🎙️ Podcast Segment: “Embrace the Suck” – Inspired by Chapter 3 of Pure Unadulterated Guts Hello everybody, you’re listening to the Mindset Matters podcast, I’m your host Riley Jensen and today we are talking about Embracing the Suck. But we are also talking about how the great one’s don’t stay in the suck. Let me ask you a question. Have you ever felt like you're doing everything right—showing up, putting in the work, staying consistent—but nothing is happening? Like, you're watering the dirt... and all you’re getting is more dirt? That’s what growth feels like most of the time. And that’s why I love the story of the bamboo tree. See, if you plant bamboo, you water it, feed it, fertilize it, give it sunlight—and for five years, nothing breaks the surface. Five years of showing up, of digging in, of zero visible progress. But then—almost overnight—it explodes. In just six weeks, it can shoot up to 90 feet. That’s not magic. That’s how growth works. Quiet. Underground. Relentless. So here's a question for you: Could you keep going for five years without seeing results? Because the great ones do. The great ones embrace the suck. They water the dirt when it’s boring. They show up when it’s uncomfortable. They bet on who they’re becoming, not what the scoreboard says today. You know, people love calling athletes “overnight successes.” But Lionel Messi once said, "I wasn’t an overnight success. It took me seventeen years, six months, twenty-seven days, and four hours to become the player you see today." That quote hits hard. Because we often glorify the outcome and ignore the grind. So let me pause and ask you this: What’s your bamboo forest? What are you tending to—even when it doesn’t show? Are you prepared to keep going when it’s silent, when it’s hard, when the results don’t match the effort yet? You’ve got to train yourself to expect adversity, not fear it. Because when it hits—and it will—you’ll already have a plan. Mental performance isn’t about pretending things are easy. It’s about being ready when they’re not. I’ll leave you with a story my grandfather used to tell—one that always stuck with me. A traveling salesman breaks down on a dirt road out in the country. He’s hot, sweating, frustrated—and realizes he forgot to pack a jack. But in the distance, he sees a farmhouse. So he starts walking toward it, hoping to borrow one. As he walks, he starts thinking, “What if this guy doesn’t help me?” Then, “What if he’s rude?” Then, “What if he slams the door in my face?” By the time he knocks, he’s so worked up that when the farmer opens the door, he shouts: “You can keep your damn jack!” ...and walks away. We laugh, but that’s real life, right? That’s how our minds work when we let frustration take the wheel. Instead of solving the problem, we spiral. That’s why learning to embrace the suck—to lean into difficulty instead of running from it—is one of the most powerful skills you can develop. So here’s your challenge this week: When it’s tough, when it’s frustrating, when it feels like you're just watering dirt—keep going. Show up anyway. That’s how you grow your bamboo forest.