This is the end my own show Welcome back to Matt's out everybody today's show is gonna be special because by popular demand the gentleman to my left is here I'm so excited about today. Thank you. That was me good Because this is one of the most gifted talented incredible communicators on earth, but as I've gotten home as a man I'm more impressed with you as a man Thank you your humility and your giftedness is so extreme. It's so beautiful So everybody I think you know this man is if you're watching this, but if you're listening you don't know yet This is inky Johnson.
So thank you for being here, but it's just so much. It's my honor and if you don't know inky Story everybody pre-prepared to be moved and inspired and I cannot wait for today I cannot tell you I told you I told you I've got many people requested to get you and I together Here it is Let's go back for a minute everybody. I want you all to know this story before kind of the story most people might know about you I want to know a little bit about how you grow up cuz we've been spending time off camera talking about it I want them to know a little bit about you. So how did you grow up describe it a little bit?
Yes, so born and raised in the city at Atlanta. My mother having 16 years old. She took me back to Kirkwood Southeast corner of Atlanta drugs violence you name it we had it and she took me back to 125 war which was a two-bedroom home 14 of us living there and Had more people in my family go to jail in prison than graduate high school and there I wanted I wanted to go to the NFL not so much of because I felt as if I got there You know I can get the glitz to glamor. I wanted to get my family a better living condition Right because I felt they deserved it my mother was working a double shift at Wendy's You know and watching her work and do what she had to do and me being a kid coming up in those circumstances I wanted to be the first one in my family to do something great.
You've done that in a different way Absolutely, so you're just not you growing up though. I mean you didn't even you stuck on the floor. Absolutely. Yeah on pallets I thought that was normal for you.
Yeah, it was normal. We had a ball man We should go make our pallets put our little cover to the side of the wall and you know, we really you know different It was just life, you know, it was what it was, you know Absolutely I think probably part of your humility comes from that upbringing this thing has struck me the most about you like you guys You know, I'm telling you I told him right when I met him. I said you're anointed He's an extremely gifted communicator I also think you're talented gifted is something God gave you talent is something that you worked on too, and I think you're both gifted and talented However, there's you know you're gonna be this NFL player you've got this NFL type ability you got a scholarship to go play football at University, Tennessee Which is one of the biggest and big time of all the places in the world for college football Take everybody through getting there and then sort of what took place that you sort of changed your life to some extent Absolutely So when I got my scholarship, I was at Krim high school in Krim high school Atlanta Public School, right five minutes away from my house And my freshman year there everybody tried to stop me from going to the school because people didn't go to college from there And so everybody at new I wanted to go to the NFL wanted to go to college Everybody I came in contact with told me inky don't go like if you want to go to college don't go to Krim I was like yeah, but it's five minutes away from my house It's like people don't go to college from Krim And so one day I was in the car with my mother and we were stopped light in front of the school and she looked at me She said son you plan on going to college. I said yes, ma'am going to college She said well inky we need to transfer you across town to Tucker high school Which was an incredible program like great They had it all right from education and sports and I say yeah, but I think I can do it from Krim And she said well inky I can't play with your future I said just give me a shot I think I can do it I went there my freshman year after my freshman year my mother got with my father they transferred me They took her I get to Tucker didn't want to be there didn't go to class went to a couple of football practices After the first semester they I went back to my mother I said can you please transfer me back to Krim?
She was like I can't do it ink I said please she kept going principal came He said well inky has straight s the school won't take him back Right and so I knew my school Krim high school at the time is when the lowest performing public schools in the state Not just Atlanta in the state and I told the principal in office. I said call and they'll take me You call the principal he told me the situation I said yeah, you don't yeah send him back. I told you I give back the krim Why did you want to go there so bad? Because I felt as if I didn't make it from Krim high school my cousins my peers all of them just would have an excuse Oh gosh They just would have said well inky went to college from across town We didn't have the same opportunity at the time I'm other than know that the coaches didn't know that because I saw the cycle in my community I saw the cycle in my own family And I knew if I went to college from Krim It was gonna be tied to some of my friends dreams my family members dreams And so when I got my scholarship my senior year to go to Tennessee all of my cousins my three younger cousins that I grew up with in the Streetland football all of them went to college my best friends came behind me he went to college Keep in mind people weren't going to college.
Yeah, and then they ended up shutting the school down You know two years three years after I went you're kidding right and so when it happened when I got to Tennessee You're thinking this is a 1314 little boy. That's a good deal That's a good deal because the expectation was so low. Hmm and so when I got to Tennessee Be honest with you Ed like it was I was I was so grateful like we had state shrimp spaghetti You know like we had it all we had a training tape We had all the resources and I was like all I got to do is buy into the process and do what I say I'm gonna do it I get a shot not just at the NFL great equalize it life I get a shot at my education I like yeah, just do what you said you're gonna do I showed up I worked and I got into my junior season at the University of Tennessee And my coach just told me in key your projected draft pick He said you do what you got to do you handle your business the way you've been handling it and so you'll be automatic motel Millionaire and I went out my junior year first game we played against California Bears I got nominated SEC defense player of the week at a great game of my first game second game of playing against Air Force Incredible program tough discipline group of guys fourth quarter of the game a little bit over two minutes left Game is basically over and I go they hit a guy on the sideline Quarterback through in the little nice pass and as soon as I hit him as seen as if every breath in my body left Yeah, and I woke up two hours later after I had surgery in emergency room after fighting for my life and my arm is paralyzed And my career was over right in that moment and that moment go back to the play for a minute That's first off I'm believe that you were thinking of that at crim high school at a 13 4 to already the example you were setting I just think that's remarkable But so the play happens now you wake up two hours later, but was there a point when you were on the field and you went oh Something something's happened here. Did you know no?
No, I didn't think it was that serious. You did not okay? I thought it was a stinger maybe a broken arm, you know because in sports especially football things happen Why did you end up having to fight for your life? I've never asked you that before what was going on in your body that caused the injury to be so so significant I ruptured my seclavian artery in my chest and so I was bleeding internally and I ruptured the nerves from my breakea plexus That comes from my spine that controls my shoulder arm hands fingers I'm a freak incident, you know, it's just was a free thing and usually those two things don't happen together You know and so what that happened in together I was fighting for my life But also it ended my career because of they were restricted for surgery because the artery was busted They had to take the main vein out of my left leg and plug it into my chest and usually when it's a break your plexus injury They can go into the chest and do certain things but because of the artery they couldn't and we leaveable So okay, everybody so here's here's where's the turning point start to happen.
Here we go So there's this dream most people listening to this or watching it Maybe not as dramatic as yours have had a moment where they wake up and go my first big dream is over It's ended and so for you. You're this young man. You've got this future plan that's all right in front of you You wake up you now know what's going through you? I think your response to this is the thing I just cannot even get over the response that you have it Someone ends up coming to you don't they and saying hey?
It's you're not gonna play anymore what initially were you thinking really inky not the story? I'm so like what were you really thinking this just ended what went through you when you heard that news? I responded and said I'm good. I'm blessed But in my mind I wasn't thinking that it was over to be honest because in my whole life I had faced so much adversity in opposition and to me it was one of these deals to where go back to rehab You know who knows yes, right it was some faith in there that man I can't believe I got to this point.
Yeah, and I just lost it Right, I couldn't believe I was eight games away from my dream manifesting and so it was a part of me I was like oh my god. It's not gonna happen like this right like I haven't worked from seven to 20 For to go out of the window with one tackle right? I'm eight games away from being able to give my family a better life take care of my mother But in the same sense there's this out of me to where when opposition and adversity happens like quiddness Just not an option for me like I don't even I don't entertain it. Yes, and so when I told the coach I'm good I'm blessed I meant every bit of that but it was a certain element to where I was like I'm gonna go back to rehab and who knows yeah The most remarkable thing to me about this is what didn't occur to you which was quitting feeling sorry for yourself I mean most people in that situation be like why me that did not occur to you in these moments, correct?
No nor did everybody this is the thing that I want to emphasize nor did quitting on your teammates No, I've heard you say I didn't just get us I didn't decide to be on this team just if I could play take them through that a little bit after this It's happening. This is awesome. Everybody you started you still went to meetings you still talk about that Yeah, so I'm extremely loyal right and I think that's part of what makes me who I am right like my driving force in my life It hasn't just been my goals my dreams and my aspirations my driving force has been my team when I played sports My family right teachers right like people that helped me get in a position that I was in and so my injury happened I knew I had to get out of hospital as quickly as possible and get back into my rhythm and my flow and get back around my Team H right because when I got there I told them man. I'm gonna be a great teammate right I told them I didn't say I was gonna be a great teammate unless I get injured it wasn't conditionalized Right, I never said I'm gonna go to every meeting unless my right on and hand get paralyzed I never said that right I never said I'm a show up and I'm a go to win a workout unless I can no longer play right Like that'll be cheap of me right and so my injury happened They said inky what do you want?
I said I done just lean in the Velcro strap and said what I said I'm going back to practice with my teammates right and I was in the sand pit the next week the next week next week I was in The sand pit yeah with staples in my body staples in my body I was in the sand pit it meant that much to me not so much of the game Like what I vowed to meant more than the game right? I vowed to them that I was gonna be a great teammate right and that was my driving force And I think for most people they're driving forces something that's superficial or materialistic and so when they lose it It doesn't mean that much but if my driving force every single day of my life is my son my daughter my wife my friends The people that have helped me get in a position that I'm in now You're dealing with a different monster when I versed in opposition it Okay, so I know you feel me. I'm like you know I told you I knew this would be one of the best interviews I've ever done and it is just because you there seems to be this thing With you one you're flooded with gratitude the second thing is your commitments mean something to you And it's interesting to me that God shows you to give this test to because I know he knew you could pass it Right and that's true for everybody this test that God's putting you through is giving you this because he knows you can pass He knows you can but I want to go back just for a few minutes about something So you've kept these commitments it throughout your life There seems to be this theme where there have been people kind of show up at the right time I know coaches have been important to you You were telling me about you know your coach when you were a young person that you know I think I think you learned some of these things from modeling people too So you had coaches make commitments to you that wasn't just when you played right tell a little bit about the coach If you were telling me about off-camera a little bit who made a difference in your life one of them There's many but I think I'll explain why you had this kind of commitment yourself Absolutely, and so the guy that I was speaking about his name is Trey Hearst and me and my cousins We started our playing football in the street because our family couldn't afford to put us in organized sports And so we just go play light-poda light-pole every night and when the street lights were popping on we kind of would time it Like I got around ten minutes or we got to go in the house And so one night street lights pop on it's a blue pickup truck And so I had to boil in my hand and my cousins on the opposite sidewalk and I was the oldest at the time And so I was waving the truck by I'm like come on man I got a couple moves I want to get where we got to go in the house And this truck rides up and it's the first white guy we'd ever saw in our neighborhood And so drug dealers on the corner thinking the guys are police right nice has gotten the world gets out of his truck Amen, would you all like to play football on grass? I'm like brother.
I would love it. This street. It's getting rough. So go on How's it get your parents?
Let me talk to him when in the house my uncle was there my mother was at work Uncle comes out He says hey I run his program across town bring the boys out big great opportunity for them uncle says so we greatly appreciate it He said but I hate to inform we just don't have the money for anything like that at this moment He said don't worry about you bring him to the park tomorrow. I'll pay for an old one I remember I tapped my cousin's leg. I said man. He hasn't even seen my skin movie Let's play he hadn't he hadn't even seen us play and I would get to the park the next day And he wasn't just paying for me and my three young cousins He's paying for kids over cost Atlanta, right?
And I wanted to understand not so much of the action even though I was grateful for it I wanted to understand the spirit that drove the action and so one night he had to take me home They wouldn't let my mother off work and I got out of his truck And I said coach can I ask you a question? He's like sure what you got in and he walked around stood directly in front of me I said I'm not trying to be disrespectful but I want to understand this and he said think you can't disrespect me He said son, I love you at that point. I was a first man ever tell me love me, right? And he said son what you got I said why do you love life the way that you love it?
Why do you treat people the way that you treat people? He said I'm gonna share something with you and I don't want you to ever forget it and it was it was simple He said as long as you can make sure that somebody else is like is okay He said some guy will always make sure that your life is okay and through that the vehicle of sport He's just taught me so much like I was telling you my family's house got broken into Christmas Eve, right? One pair of Nike's or shoes that we did have you know got stolen right and that next morning my mother didn't call my pastor Right my mother didn't call anybody my mother called my coach And I was sitting on the curb in our neighborhood just chilling just sitting there with my head down to my coach drove up And he had two little brown little bags. He got out said ink I got the car late, you know But this is what I can do and I hugged him he hugged me and I said thank you man I greatly appreciate it But it was just filled with drawers and socks, but it wasn't about the drawers and the socks It was about my gosh showed up man, you know like it wasn't just there doing like he showed up for me Yeah, and so I wasn't just word don't you see the theme though that then you show up for your teammates after you had this adversity Do you see that I don't know if you've seen that I never thought about the new way.
Yeah, I know when you're telling me the story It's like it's like I think sometimes in life we model behavior of some of our heroes You know people that made a difference and because there's this remarkable wisdom to you as a young man, right remarkable gratitude to this day You're one of the most humble people I've met off camera that is so powerful in front of people And I just wonder if maybe some of that was just you know Ring it in your mind that he kept those commitments when you've kept all yours It's just it just it's just I think and I think what it goes to is your perspective And you have this thing that you talk about that guys when you get a chance to dive into in his content in his message It will move you you will remember it. I was telling in key I share his Messages with my son more than I even share some of my own because you live it. There's people who have inspiring messages Then there's aspiring people you're the combination of both I consider to be your messages are unbelievable inspiring But you're an inspiring man to me and so talk about that for a minute perspective drives performance Obviously your perspective about this injury is what's I think altered the direction of your life a lot of people You know you're not naive had this injury in a thrown him into the tank the rest of their life a lot of people go through a divorce Or a business set back and they use that story for the next 50 years of their life to explain why they've not become somebody and done something great Right your perspective so talk about perspective drive and performance a little bit I just feel as if how we view what we do affects how we do what we do right the perspective that we have about the things we encounter The things we're connected to the people we love and so pretty like this I came in contact with the gentleman in Seattle Right and I'll never forget he was he was driving me to the event He was crying and I just asked him is everything okay and he shared with me that his wife has passed away and died Right and I just asked him at the guy done I said could you tell me at a basic level how will you encounter was probably the toughest blow of your life? How did you just get up and put one foot in front of the other and I know it's tough and continue to raise your children continue to function in your Business and he just told me so went through it a periods where it was ugly right terrible.
I made excuses I left I came back. I told my wife. I would never leave again. No matter how bad I'll tell if I rough it gets I'll always stay there.
I'll stay in the pocket right? I said I got that part I said now instantly this if you could change or do anything different about it What would it be? He said I would have shifted my perspective a lot earlier and I would embrace it He said because the moment I shifted my perspective and I embraced it it changed not only my life It transformed my whole household and everything I was connected to and I didn't even view her situation as opposition or adversity anymore I viewed it as an opportunity. I said bingo.
He said why did you say that? I said I'm just a firm believer that perspective drives performance I said how we do what we do will always affect how we do what we do right at the time when I was growing up I view my situation in my circumstance as man. It's cool. I got a roof over my head Yeah, I'm sleeping on the floor, but my perspective about it is I'm going back to a home I'm not on the side of the street when my injury happened.
I went to the Mayo Clinic at the first person I sat down in front of I'll never forget this I was at the Mayo Clinic Rochester Minnesota waiting on my doctor's visit the first person I sat down in front of I had my Head down and I was looking at a contraption that they had given me for my arm And when I looked up it was a young girl in front of me. She couldn't have been no more than 10 years old I don't know what her medical condition was when I looked at her it was as if she was trying to keep the skin up on her face Right and when I went into the doctor's office. It's like how you doing? I said I just got paralyzed on My perspective about what I'm going through.
I just got a paralyzed arm like my man Eric LeGrand had a situation happen I'm like a fucking wheelchair. We both know him right? Yeah, I just got a paralyzed right on in hand right my perspective It's gonna affect my performance every day of my life if I look down at it and just use it as an excuse or something negative I'll be a better blaming individual. Hmm beautiful message truthly speaking You ever have that do you ever know anytime's you look at it?
Does that ever happen now? I'll tell you what's been the hardest thing for me has been like One of my dreams as a kid, you know, and I was a force sport I love everything about sports, but my dream as a kid It was a swimming pool across the tracks in my neighborhood And I would always go and walk by the pool because sometimes you had to pay you know And I didn't have my little 75 so I just walk over hang out and I would always see like a father Right with kids and throw them up catch him nice You'd be like man I can't wait until one day I have a family and I could throw my kids up and catch him right in a pool That was something that I always wanted to do and so even when the doctor said to me in the hospital He was saying all these things like ain't you probably won't be able to write with your right hand again You probably won't be able to carry groceries and certain things lifting weights none of those things hit me But when he was like if you have kids one day you probably won't be able to do certain things with your kids Right and I thought about it my mind reverted back to that and so even with my eight-year-old son Now your daughter when we're out with playing in a pool and some water sometimes I think about that Sometimes and like that's the only thing that kind of knocks me off my pivot from time to time But it's it's not anything I will not think about I think about like hugging my wife with two arms Who you met in the fifth grade? I met in the fifth grade like hugging my three little sisters You know but in terms of life and just functioning, you know none of those things even come to mind That's a perspective piece. You all see why I love this man.
You're all getting it right now. So Faith absolutely a major part of things. I hear you talk about It is with me as well. How did it impact you during the injury and what part does it play in your life now?
Yeah, and so um, you know I didn't I didn't realize this until after my injury happened I just feel as if I was being prepared the whole time for it because when I got to college like I grew up mother grandmother Always went to church, you know in spite of what was going on in our household. They always went to church And I was like any other kid I would go, you know me and my cousins wouldn't pay attention Mom pop you in the back of the head Grandmother push your ear right and when I got to college our chaplain he works for the Titans now He's the Titans for the chaplain. I mean he's the chaplain for the Titans. Sorry and he called me to his office He's like, hey, man.
I wanted to cycle you spiritually and I was like, what is that? Sounds hard and he's like no, I want to develop you spiritually and I was like give me a second I want to go and I want to ask my buddies and so my buddies at the time was and it's still his day Gerard Mayo played for the Patriots first round 10 pick Robert A.S. He went first round 18 pick to the Broncos Ramon Foster He went free agent and starting for the Pittsburgh Steelers past nine years and a guy by the name of Sinclair Cannon I went to him. I say, man, do you guys want to take this journey with me?
You know again disciple It was like what does it entail? I said before we go to wait workouts we go and we discuss scripture, right? We get it from our chaplain. We discuss it.
We challenge each other sacrifice. I was like, yeah, let's do it And so we started doing it our freshman year sophomore junior year. We're doing it consistently We will meet with him. He will have different assignments for us and so when an injury happened It was an amazing thing man.
I didn't know what this situation was about the birth But I knew something was going to happen because when an injury happened My guys were reminding me about what we went through in discipleship. They were and so they were like hey ink You remember we discussed that Jeremiah 29 11 Hey, you remember we talked about Romans 828 and said all things work to the good of those who loved the Lord who Called according to his will and his purpose, right? And so I didn't know what the situation was about the manifest But I knew something was about to take place but I was extremely grateful because I can honestly say this I don't believe it if I had been through that discipleship those few years prior to my injury I would have been able to handle it and process it the way that I did. Interesting.
I don't think I would have been able to process it I wouldn't have had their perspective because I have been working for my whole life Yeah, and so when it happened luckily for me, I had been in spirit to the discipleship And so my perspective was already changing. I wasn't the individual that I am now the injury brought that out because it forced me to live it But prior to I was already transforming in a mental state in terms of what I was learning what I was processing And so it's something that I'm extremely grateful for and I think the creator knew the whole time I need to prepare you know, it's interesting about that I've never said this before never thought about it till you just said it But hindsight on our life is one of the great evidences of our faith. Absolutely Do you know what I mean? Isn't it though?
I never thought about it before like when you look at everyone's not everyone that has any faith that's listening to this or watching Is you just look back at your life? You can see wow there was a plan here There was preparation happening his hand was in my life like clearly the way you grew up and clearly your gratitude and clearly this discipleship That prepared you for this moment and then the most remarkable thing too is you're talking about for me on one hand I think I know who the best speakers on the planet are and the one through five rotates from time to time But you're on that hand for me as you know, right? And what's interesting to me is I doubt that the play before that play you were thinking you know I'm me doing some day. I'm standing in front of millions of people over my lifetime me this kid who grew up with no bed Right mom's working double shifts at Wendy's, right?
I'm flunking out of the second high school I go to right then I'm gonna be an NFL player the plate You know what I'm gonna be in many years I'm sitting in ed my left living room in the good of beach is one of the top speakers in the world Right like and you didn't really want to get into the speaking space, right? Tell them about they're like you guys it's like it's almost home for you though, right? Like I think eventually in your life you find your home like it just feels right, but you didn't want to speak it first Did you what happened with that idea? Yeah, didn't have any any interest in it and people would say to me hey, you might need to look into it right because we would go places for community service and people would just strike up dialogue Hey, what happened to your arm?
Yeah, and before long everybody would be sitting there just firing off questions I would answer them and I wouldn't think anything of I would leave and I would just go oh man And I remember I was coaching and my wife got pregnant and she was back in Atlanta And she's a teacher and so I made the decision to move back to Atlanta But prior to moving back I said man, I need a job and so I called the guy that was over at Lanham public parking recs He picked up I said hey man, I need a job. I need to come back I want to work at the same rec center I grew up in right? He was I don't know problem You can come back lead the kids teach curriculum. I was like great.
He said you could have came like yesterday I packed up went back I called him never answered right email never responded and I was back and I was just get up every single day Go put out my resume looking for jobs getting dressed and my buddy Gerard Mayo I was still doing community service go places people still fire off questions and I remember he said to me Man, you really need to look into the speaking thing Mm-hmm and at the time I would just be getting up every morning when my wife would get up and using my wife's grandmother's home And it was me her and our daughter and my daughter was sleeping in a wagon that somebody had purchased for a birthday We were all in one bedroom at her grandmother's home And I remember one morning I got up and I didn't have nothing man like I wasn't planning to speak I didn't have a thing right I didn't have a plan and I didn't have any money and I had a family And I remember my wife walked out of the door and I left and I was like, you know what man I'm gonna try this thing and I prayed that was simple. I still remember till his day My prayer was this god. I don't know what it is you want me to do in my life People are telling me to speak it feels right. I'll be obedient.
You said obedience is better than sacrifice I'll be obedient and for most people what do we do if we start out on a journey or quest we just The level of sacrifice without first being obedient. What is it going to cost me right now? What do I have to sacrifice? But the Bible says obedience is better than sacrifice god.
I'll be obedient right first trip I get to speak as a 15-hour round trip in Mississippi. I drive right I get back home close to three in the morning My wife wakes up for me. I walk in the door. He says how was it?
I was like, oh, it's great. She's like, what did you get? I was like he gave me this cool coffee mug She's like what she's like you sure this is what she's supposed to do. I was like, yes, ma'am She's like you sure I was like, yes, ma'am.
She was like go for really and I've been speaking every since man over 13 years right and I've never handed out a business card to nobody and said I wore the mouth all referral word a mile Yeah, they might wait. I usually is the and but it's too important now. You need to be following this man on Instagram, right? And it's at achy johnson achy johnson pretty simple.
There's not a lot of achy johnson So go follow him there. So you did something there that's really interesting. First off actually this I'm just curious what makes you a great speaker Drop the humility first. I'm gonna what makes you a great speaker because people ask me all the time How do I become a better speaker how I communicate better?
Do you think there's something in particular that's one of your guests or that you do well? Mm-hmm good. So I would say first preparation who I'm serving I want to know everything about him I want to know what's important to them right so I can better serve them But just in terms of being a dynamic communicator, right? I've always wanted to be able to communicate on any topic in any room on any subject but also learning what drive emotions Right what stories pull on certain emotions in a story whatever environment I'm in what stories Can I use that's gonna resonate and sit well with the crowd to pull on certain emotions if they say hey Hey, we want the crowd to feel this I know I got a certain amount of stories that I can pull from that can connect with those emotions And so just want to be dynamic in terms of my communication But also being more concerned with what they want for me whether than what I want to say I totally I surrender on that too often So one thing about that is huge lesson.
I just wanted to pass everybody by stories are huge as any kind of a communicator I use my stories when I teach lessons to my children rather than just you know demanding things at them I usually tell some kind of a story. I hope they can remember facts tell stories sell right so so my big story telling myself I'm always coggling about emotion and the thing you do that you give me is you transfer energy super incredibly well And you can't transfer energy that you're not really experiencing I think you really mean the things you're saying and so I feel them there's an authenticity to it You also talk about often long that line, but talk about process over product for a second. I love this right? Yeah, and so for me the process over product deal is about eliminating the outcome right not being driven by the outcome Not being driven by the product whatever that is and so the way that came about was after my injury And I got placed in a two-year process and so to break your plexus of ocean Nobody knows if filling is gonna come back really nobody knows if movement is gonna come back because all of them are different And so what they'll do is put you in a process and see what happens And so they said and we'll put you in a two-year process or do you the best pieces of equipment on the planet and you just show up Five to six days a week and do it we don't know what's gonna happen.
We're not telling you when you get done You'll be able to work your arm again. We don't know what's gonna happen. Go to five to ten people you love and respect tell them the situation See what they think I went to five to ten people. I love the respect.
I told them the situation all of them said don't do it I said why and I knew they love me. I knew they cared about me. They said they can't guarantee you nothing They said they can't guarantee you that it will work. I said I thought true courage was the ability to start something without any guarantee of success I thought that's what a warrior was right being able to walk into a situation being able to start a process start a business And they don't need you to guarantee anything right.
It's not driven by the product. It's not driven by the reward It's driven by the process and so a year and a half into the process my mentality was concrete Right like I didn't need anybody to guarantee me anything right it was processed over product concrete commitment The ability to start something stay focused stay the course and you don't need anybody to guarantee your thing is driven off your integrity It's driven off your character and it's driven off of what you represent. Thank you. God.
Yeah, that's why you're here right there right there right there right Right right there. There's always always pray in an interview for me. You asked me why do you do this show? Why do you do this?
I said for me because every once in a while and every few interviews There's like a moment where I go. Oh man. How come I never thought of that or that's that's new for me that right there when you just described everybody go back rewind about Two minutes and replay that that thing you just described is the separator from the people I know they get over to the other side of their life In some way change the relationship their body their faith their money is they don't need a guarantee They'll go through a process not having to have the result guarantee to them It's their ability to be willing to go through a process and step into the unknown whereas most humans and you know this too You saw this even in football you see every day in your life They won't they they they tiptoe into the process They won't give everything of themselves because they're not sure about the payoff Successful people are willing to step into these spaces of the unknown Longer with more commitment than the average person does to win end of story big time combined with faith combined with these other things We're talking about see that's why I did the show right there that fit guys trust me That's a huge point in your life and you need to evaluate what this man just said in some area of your life What are you are you in a relationship still because you're so afraid to be alone right or you're so afraid you'll stick in this crappy thing You're in because of the unknown where you are you're gonna stay in this career But you know isn't you're calling you know isn't here everyone knows it But you're so afraid of this unknown space because there's no guarantee where you're going it's someday You're gonna wake up and go man I spent all this space and then all my time in this known space where all the love all the joy all the juice of life is in the unknown So good. Okay, that's why right there right there right there Okay, and then there's just this brilliance that comes out of you.
It's fact though, right? Right you said I didn't I just reset it. I wish I said it. I'm not that's okay So, so I want to ask you this a couple things too like I know we're going a little longer than I thought you It's too good.
It's too good. Okay. You talk a lot about this transaction idea too Like the way you say things is different and it just I don't know maybe because we're both athletes It hits me the right way when you speak right? So talk a little bit about this concept of the transaction and energy and all that stuff It's this is brilliance guys here's somewhere brilliant right here It's just about you know doing things with a transactional mentality It ties into what we just speak about the interconnection of it But just that transactional mentality of it's it's like when a person does something right?
I asked the guy my freshman year I said are you committed to what we're doing right or you committed to it? He's like yeah, I like it. I was like what are you committed to it? It's like I like it.
I said no are you committed in terms of I am going to stay true to what I said I would do long after the move that I've said it in has left It's not transactional right like in my marriage. It's not transactional for me to try to drive to be a better man every single day Well my children it's not transactional they try to be a great father. It's not predicated upon Situation circumstances. It's not driven by that right.
It's not transactional I don't have transactional behavior right? I tell my son all the time I'm like man, it's a big difference between being somebody that works hard and a hard worker Right? If you're somebody that works hard if the situation plays in your favor If you get what you want from a transactional standpoint, you might give me everything you got I said but when you're a hard worker we can take it to the bank and my let's a monster We can take it to the bank. He's wired that way, right?
And so it talks back to that point about the transactional behavior Oh my God. Based upon situation circumstances people and things The way you said that about long after the emotion of making the commitment of the decision is gone Then who are you? Oh my gosh I've always I did the show because I really wanted to learn What is it that separates happier more successful people in their life? Like really what is it like not the the means you know I mean and that is one of the huge things Is that in the moment when you're in a relationship, it's all beautiful and awesome Okay, once that emotion is gone, who are you in the relationship?
I want to change my body. Oh, I'm all motivated like this for then once that's gone and it's day 92 Right and it's raining out and you gotta go on your run then who are you? Absolutely. Do you think that's part of that is character?
I don't know. Is that a character thing? Like when I meet you, I honestly like There are people that I've met and I'm like I want to be better I want to be better before you uttered a word like this is a good man. I want to be better You seem to have to me anky exceptional character You know what I mean?
Like it seems to me when you give someone your word Just so you know everybody you talk about 13 you're about 13 hour round trip today to come see me So that first speech for the coffee cup, right? Not so different almost a decade later sitting here today with me. He's doing one of those trips just to be with me today And I'm grateful for that my audience is grateful this man still keeps his word I just want to know do you think it's a character thing with you or what do you think it is? I think so and the beauty of it is Like character is something always say character is not something we inherit Right character something we got to wake up every single day.
We got to fight and we got to build it So the character you possess right now even though your son is your son he can't inherit your character He can inherit some of your traits but he can't inherit your character He's gonna have to build that from the things you've instilled it my son Right even on his father he can't inherit my character He's gonna have to wake up and build it through actions through decisions and through choices And so when we speak to character if it is a character situation I think it can play in people's advantage if they're willing to build it Right but most people would say well I don't have I didn't inherit it like it's not it's not who I am Character is something you wake up every single day you fight and you build it Every decision you make how you treat people I call them destiny moments Right the moment that when you bump into somebody and it's really not convenient for you How you treat that person the moment when you come into somebody's home and there's something on the floor You grab the tissue you wipe it up that's my man I'm gonna treat this home like it's my home Right character I need to tell him that so there was we were off camera There's a little spill that I noticed this man goes into the restroom He's cleaning up my house for me and so that's just that is character I'm that type of person too if I'm in my business partner Andy if I'm in the restroom And dudes are throwing stuff on the floor pick it up like I just can't stand that sort of thing So I want to ask you a couple things as we wrap up But I want everybody to get the most out of you today first off if they want to hear Have you come speak for them? Absolutely They go to their Instagram is that the best place to go or to the website inkyjaunson.com Okay, and so just email us there inkyat inkyjaunson.com It's fire people it is fire okay trust me yeah I don't endorse a lot of speakers it's fire Okay because it comes from a real place in a real life in a real story But okay I want to there's millions of people listening to this right now we're watching And they're down there you on the football field that day Everything was great you called a play actually went and helped out on a guy that wasn't your guy on that play did you know? Yeah, and they're down and they're going look I I don't know which way's up I don't know where I want to go I want to change my life. I want to be happier I want to have my test be my testimony at some point.
Where do I begin? What would your advice be to somebody just in general relationship body business? This is where I should begin. What would you recommend to them?
I would say tie it to something that's real like whatever that driving force is tie it to something that's real whether that be family Whether that be the life that you aspire to have and be loyal right be loyal to what you say you're going to do Like I've heard Tony Robbins say it before when he said um like I asked it was I happiness that cheap Right like it's your drive that cheap right to the point to where when you don't get what you thought you were going to get I put it on my instagram today I said man everybody will tell you what they're going to do when things go right But nobody addresses what they're going to do when things go wrong And we both know in the words of Martin Luther King right character right is built in times of challenge and controversy And so when you encounter the challenge in the controversy, I would say be grateful for it You say it all the time things don't happen to us they happen for us You say it all the time hidden blessings right all it is all the travesty and opposition that it's a hidden blessing That you don't know is a blessing yet. So consider it a blessing grace right Consider it a blessing before you consider it a blessing and watch the perspective that you acquire about the situation And when you're acquiring a right perspective about the situation Don't look at it and say why me look at it and say why not you and just get up and put one foot in front of the other And use your situation to add value to the world The quicker you shift your perspective to add value to the world the quicker you'll get to your situation in your circumstance And this is by the way from a man who did this within hours of waking up from his dream being over Coach foamer who's a legend many the AD now at Tennessee comes in and says hey, you know, hey coach I got this I'm good. What exactly did you say to him? But there's something right around those lines, right?
I said coach I'm good. I'm blessed. I'm blessed after his dream had just ended So this is someone who's lived this guys like legitimately lived this and tying it to something that's such brilliant advice because I say often we say a little bit different but I was about I'm blown away by how easily someone's will to win can be bought You know me like yeah But they'll say they'll sell it right and so but you know what most of you won't sell is if you do it this man just advise you to do it You'll tie your dream to something you wouldn't sell out like your children like your spouse like your god You'll question someone out your kids, but if you don't tie your kid to your dream Hey, it's easy to quit but all of a sudden you just sold your kids dreams That's harder to do you just sold God out because you don't have faith something's going to happen Maybe you'll stay in a little bit longer when you tie it so there's a brilliance to what this man is telling you Okay, I'm telling you and so there's there's just very few people who just speak real truth And the reason your truth is so profound is because you live it. It's not speeches you give it's a part of your story Okay, last question.
Okay, by the way, this is just awesome today. Okay, and I can feel I just hope everybody hasn't run off the road That are in their cars because of the fuel that we're giving everybody but I want to ask you lastly about young people I asked you this off camera, but I want I want your answer here A lot of people here that are listening to this have children or will play this part of the interview and you speak a lot to kids And there's something that we haven't talked about here today. I just want to finish on it if we're going real this is a you grow up Poor now not poor of spirit poor of family, but when you got 12 people in a two-bedroom place There was not a ton of money floating around that house here. Okay, so there's somebody listening to go You know I'm poor so I can't win or you know what?
I have a I think I have a disadvantage because of the color of my skin or my religion or my sexual preference or Something like that that they're they're not in the mainstream. They're not in the majority There's a circumstance where their dreams end if they don't have a father in their life What advice would you give that young person who thinks potentially that's a negative is it? Are they right and can they overcome it anyway? Or should they just be grateful for the blessings that they have?
I would say um play the hand you doubt like it's the one you always want it Right because we all know like who you run with in terms of direction that you run who you hang around as who you become And so the way that I feel as if I got through my circumstance It wasn't all by my mind and my power even though I had a level of focus and I saw the collateral damage as it happened Right the same way that you could be in a circumstance and you can learn from people that do things right? You can learn from people that do things wrong, but I had people that I respected enough not to disrespect I had people that I respected enough not to disrespect my coach. How is level of respect? I couldn't disrespect him being lazy would have been disrespecting him My mother working in a double ship being lazy cut in class smoking weed out.
I'd have been disrespecting her Right my teachers that went to bat from me and said son you got it Right I would have been disrespecting them if I wouldn't have tried to do my best and accomplish what I feel I could accomplish And so the thing I would say to him is it's somebody in life and this is across the board Not just young people It's somebody in life that situation in circumstance is a lot worse than yours And they took their hand and they're winning with it. Their hand is a lot worse than yours They took it they pick up the pieces every single day and they're winning with it It's only an excuse. It's only a bad situation if you label it that perspective drives performance every day of the week How you do what you do with effect how you do what you do play that hand that's your doubt like it's the hand that you always run it Thank you. I love today.
I'm so grateful that we did this today and I know the audience is too You need to go Come on. You need to go follow him and you all understand why and I understand why so many of you wanted him here today I'm so grateful. Thank you, and I admire you. I'd admire you anything.
I can never do for you It's me. I'm here. We're friends and I'm here to help you anyway I can't everybody here to help you too because you all know every day I run the max out two-minute drill if you're not doing it You follow me on instagram. I make a post every day seven 30 Pacific 10 30 Eastern when I do that I've created a situation So I can coach engage and meet you so the winners on this two-minute drill they fly on my jet sometimes They get maxed up here.
They come see me speak they get coachy calls from my guests all kinds of cool Thanks autograph copy my book here's all you got to do to win when I make a post in the first two minutes I have your notifications on make a comment just make a comment we pick a winner every day if you miss the first two minutes make a comment every Day on every post I make at the end of the week everybody makes a comment all five we pick winners from that and if you make comments and other People's comments we select winners from there as well So there's three ways to win I'd love to engage with you and hopefully you'll be engaging with people like inky through that as well So god bless you and max out everybody This is the end moment show