Books Referenced

Mindset - Carol Dweck

Do Hard Things - Steve Magness

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Today we're diving deep into a topic that I'm incredibly passionate about: becoming unstoppable. But I promise you, it's probably not what you're thinking.

When it comes to achieving move, we hear so many of the same topics over and over.

Hustle culture tells us that to win at life we have to wake up at 5am, follow some 10-step morning routine, journal on our goals, and have strict discipline.

We need to go monk mode.

We need to forget everything and only focus on our goals!

Well… this is a lot…

And becoming unstoppable is actually much simpler.

In this article, I'm going to share the truth about becoming unstoppable - a truth that transformed my performance and will transform yours as well.

The Common Misconception

When we think about unstoppable people, who comes to mind?

You might think of that guy who seems to have limitless energy (like Gary Vaynerchuck).

You might think of the entrepreneur with multiple businesses (like Elon Musk).

You might think about an indomitable athlete (like Kobe Bryant).

Society has conditioned us to believe that being unstoppable means:

• Never failing
• Always being motivated
• Constantly grinding
• Never showing weakness
• Having superhuman discipline

But this is not realistic. Most people are not going to be completely dialed into high performance at all times.

This advice sets an impossible standard that no human being can consistently live up to.

Let’s look at some of the advice we commonly hear.

Let’s start with morning routines.

We are flooded with content about the perfect morning routine.

It goes something like this:

• Wake up at 5am
• Mediate for 30 minutes
• Write down your goals
• Exercise
• Eat a healthy breakfast
• Do breathwork to get primed for your day
• Tackle the top 3 items on your to-do list

Then we just focus on our goals for the rest of our day.

And we all have the same 24 hours in the day, right?

Well… no… we do not all have the same 24 hours.

When I was younger, not married, and without kids, I had more time to dedicate to my personal goals.

I could get up at 4am. Meditate for 30 minutes. Write down my goals. And go through the rest of the morning routine I just described.

Now that I am a parent and a spouse, I have two other major roles which take up time.

You may have felt this shift too. If you wear multiple hats, then your 24 hours are divided up amongst all the roles you play.

So… we all have requirements of our time, and you may not have 2 hours for a morning routine.

Also, hustle culture teaches us to go all monk-mode and disappear for 6 months to focus on our goals.

Yeah… I am not disappearing. My kids and wife need a father and husband.

The Real Truth About Becoming Unstoppable

So, what's the real truth? Being unstoppable isn't about never stopping. It's about how you respond when you do stop - or get stopped.

And you WILL get stopped.

Life happens. Obstacles pop up. Priorities change.

Being unstoppable is about resilience - the ability to get back up, learn, adapt, and continue moving forward despite setbacks, failures, and obstacles.

It IS about driving toward your goals.

It is about focus.

But it is not about NEVER stopping.

When it comes to being unstoppable, there are 6 skills we need to develop:

1. Self-Leadership

Unstoppable people are leaders in their own lives.

They know what they want.

They have a vision for their life and their achievements.

They are on a path of growth and development.

And they are committed to that personal mission.

Your personal mission might be focused on career growth. It might be on being the best mother or father you can be. It might be bringing clean water to people in Africa. It might be becoming the biggest YouTuber on the planet.

Whatever it is, your vision provides a north star for your focus and effort. It also provides you with the energy to continue that effort even when things get hard.

And remember… things will get hard.

This is why the second skill is a must.

2. Embracing Failure as Feedback

Unstoppable people don't avoid failure - they reframe it. They see each failure as an opportunity to learn and grow.

They don’t say, “I failed. I am not good enough… I better quit.” They see failure as a part of the journey… as feedback helping them adjust course.

When Thomas Edison was working on the light bulb, he famously said, "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." That's the unstoppable mindset.

While Elon Musk was building SpaceX, they had 3 failed Falcon launches and a number of setbacks before their first successful launch.

On the road to achievement, we WILL experience setbacks. It is how we respond to those setbacks that make us unstoppable.

3. Developing Self-Compassion

Here's something counterintuitive: being hard on yourself doesn't make you stronger - it depletes you. Research shows that self-compassion - treating yourself with the same kindness you'd offer a good friend - actually leads to greater resilience and perseverance.

Unstoppable people understand that berating themselves for mistakes or setbacks only wastes valuable mental and emotional energy that could be directed toward solutions.

Steve Magness writes about this in his book Do Hard Things.

He notes that real mental toughness comes from listening to our internal voices, and our internal state, and then choosing to move forward. It does not come from ignoring pain or judging ourselves for feeling any pain at all.

Massimo Backus writes about this in his book “Human First, Leader second.” He notes that leaders who only focus on external behaviors and being tough have a disadvantage over those who also focus on self-compassion and their internal world.

Don’t neglect your internal world.

4. Focusing on Process Over Outcomes

Unstoppable people understand that they can't always control outcomes, but they can control their process - the daily actions, habits, and mindsets that eventually lead to results.

By shifting focus from the end goal to the process of getting there, they remain engaged and motivated even when progress seems slow or uncertain.

This doesn’t mean we lose sight of our end goal, we just focus on what is in front of us.

While goal setting is a crucial part of success, developing process goals is the real key to achieving more. Process goals are also like the Atomic habits and Tiny habits that you can read about in the books of the same name.

If you execute on your process goals and keep doing the small things you can achieve on a regular basis, then hitting your larger goals becomes inevitable.

5. Building a Recovery System

Rather than trying to power through indefinitely, truly unstoppable people build systems for recovery into their lives. They understand that human performance is cyclical, not linear.

Elite athletes know this well - they don't train at maximum intensity every day. They incorporate rest and recovery as essential components of their training program.

The same principle applies to every area of life: work, creativity, relationships. Sustainable progress requires rhythms of intense effort followed by meaningful recovery.

Just as an athlete periodizes their training to reach peak performance levels, we can periodize our efforts to take advantage of time of high motivation and build in recovery periods so we can recharge and show up again to crush it.

There is a lot of alignment between personal performance and athletic performance.

Sprinters can run at max effort for about 30 seconds before their energy systems change and the slow down.

If you sprint, you must slow down and recover.

If you are a marathon runner, it could take days to recover back to your full levels of energy.

Personal performance is no different.

Edison used to take naps.

Lebron James sleeps 8-10 hours per night.

Arianna Huffington learned this the hard way after suffering from burnout. She now advocates for sleep, unplugging from tech, and boundaries around work. She even created Thrive Global to promote well-being. Jeff Bezos prioritizes 8 hours of sleep, avoids early-morning meetings, and takes time to think and reflect. I could go on, but you get the picture.

Merk Vertstegen is a very successful trainer for professional athletes and he has a memorable saying: work plus rest equals success.

For the modern high-performer rest is a requirement.

6. Cultivating Adaptability

Possibly the most crucial element of being unstoppable is adaptability. When circumstances change (as they inevitably do), unstoppable people don’t stop… they adjust.

They adjust their strategies, they pivot, and they remain committed to their core values and vision.

This last skill is a combination of self-leadership and learning from failure. Our north star keeps us headed in the right direction. Embracing failure ensures we learn from our trials and errors.

Adaptability enables us to shift and roll with the punches.

We should expect that challenges will come. Adaptability ensures we can continue making progress toward our north star even when things change.

How to Develop These Qualities

Now that we understand what being unstoppable truly means, how do we develop these qualities in ourselves?

First - Create a Vision for Your Life

Ask yourself, “what do I want?”

This is one of the most powerful questions in your arsenal of self-reflection and self-leadership.

The clearer you can be, the quicker you will be able to take aligned action toward your goals.

If you are really struggling to create a clear vision for your life, then create and anti-vision.

Ask yourself, “what do I not want?”

Answering this question is way to start considering your future with more clarity.

Do you not want to be out of shape?

Do you not want terrible relationships?

Do you not want to be broke?

Do you not want to be uninspired?

Another question you can ask yourself is, “who do I want to become?”

Do you want to be more disciplined?

Do you want to be healthier?

Do you want to be a better parent or spouse?

Creating a future vision of your traits and qualities can also serve as a north star while you figure out exactly what you want.

You don’t have to be 100% clear on your ideal outcome. But you do need to be directionally committed.

Also, the vision of your life should expand beyond just one realm. I mentioned earlier that we all wear multiple hats. We play multiple roles.

Your vision should include a north star for your work, personal growth, and relationships.

I call these “realms.”

You are more than just an employee. If you only create a vision for your career, then it will come at the expense of growth in your personal and relational realms.

So, create a vision for your life and do so in at least these three realms of work, personal development, and relationships.

Second - Create Self-Awareness on Failure

Take time to reflect on your relationship with failure and setbacks. Do you take failure personally? Do you see setbacks as permanent? Developing self-awareness of your mindset is the first step toward changing it.

And our “mindset” is not just one thing.

It includes all the ways we think about different situations. It includes our mental models and the stories we tell ourselves.

Start by reflecting on your relationship with failure, but be aware that we have a mindset for many different scenarios.

If you don’t already have a growth mindset, start shifting your perspective by telling yourself, “every mistake is an opportunity to learn.”

And the next time you fail, be intentional about seeking the lesson in that experience.

Skipping reflection after a failure is a wasted opportunity to learn.

Third - Practice Deliberate Resilience

Challenge yourself in small ways daily and pay attention to how you respond when things don't go as planned, because each small challenge is an opportunity to practice bouncing back.

One of the simplest ways to do this is to run… or hit the gym.

When we exercise, we intentionally challenge our body and mind. We step into the pain cave and then have to choose whether to either keep going, or to quit.

When I am running, for example, my brain is always telling me to quit.

It says, “stop… this is uncomfortable… why are you doing this? your legs hurt!”

This voice is meant to keep me safe and comfortable… but if I listen to it, I’ll never push myself harder and discover what I am capable of.

Also, consider for yourself, where are there situations when you quit when things get tough?

Is it exercise? Is it in having a difficult conversation?

When we hear that internal fear voice (or our inner victim) start to chime in, it is an opportunity to acknowledge its presence and then choose to keep going.

We can practice and build resilience just like any other skill.

When we do hard things and deliberately practice resilience, we realize that we are not delicate flowers.

We are actually savages just waiting to be unleashed.

Fourth - Build Your Support System

No one becomes unstoppable alone. Surround yourself with people who support your growth, provide honest feedback, and pick you up when you fall.

We humans are social animals. We find strength in our tribe.

Your tribe might be a support group, but it should also include people who can hold you accountable.

We humans are more likely to rise to the expectations that others hold for us. Creating accountability partners is a great way to commit to action and then stay motivated to execute.

Your accountability partner might be a friend. It might be your spouse.

Sometimes our accountability partner doesn’t even know they are holding us accountable. For example, if you want to achieve more to give your kids a better life than you had, then the thought of their future can support your desire to stay the course, be resilient, and keep going.

Make a list of the people who could be on your team.

Who can help hold you accountable?

Which friends should you hang out with that will push you to become more?

Fifth - Develop a Learning Mindset

This is where we really start to build a growth mindset.

How can you approach every experience, especially difficult ones, with curiosity rather than judgment.

Ask "What can I learn from this?" instead of "Why did this happen to me?"

One of my favorite questions to ask is, “What is the opportunity here?”

I am not saying this is easy. Often times, when we fail or when we are hit with an obstacle, our emotions kick in and we get frustrated or fired up.

This is a natural human reaction. What really matters, though, is how we respond.

Do we respond by giving up or blaming? Or do we learn and move forward?

Unstoppable people learn and move forward.

Carol Dweck writes about the Growth Mindset in her book Mindset. She writes how having a fixed mindset keeps us stuck and limited in our growth. But having a growth mindset reframes our perspective so we are always learning and moving toward the future we want.

The next time you catch yourself wanting to give up, just pause. Take a breath. And ask yourself, “What is the opportunity here?”

You may be surprised at the response you get.

There is always an opportunity if you look for it.

Finally - Create Rituals for Recovery

Unstoppable people design intentional practices that help them recharge mentally, emotionally, and physically.

This might include meditation, time in nature, doing hobbies, quality time with loved ones, or simply getting enough sleep.

This also may mean blocking out time for focus work and then planning short recovery periods in the day. You may have heard of the pomodoro technique…

This is where you set a time where you work for 25 minutes and then break for 5. Of work for 50 minutes and break for 10.

Personally, I find that for every hour that I work, I will need about 10 minutes of unwinding and relaxation before I can be effective with my next task.

If I am in flow state for 2 hours, then I will need about 20 minutes to chill before moving to something else.

Play with this and figure out the timing and rhythm that works for you.

Also, get sleep.

I have learned that I can go 3 days with only 5 hours of sleep… then I get sick.

I can operate on 6-7 hours of sleep, but my peak mental state feels best at about 7.5 to 8 hours of sleep.

There is plenty of research supporting sleep and performance as well.

That whole thing of “I’ll sleep when I’m dead” is dumb.

High performers do not say this.

They sleep.

The Wrap Up

The truth about becoming unstoppable isn't about superhuman abilities or never experiencing failure. It's about developing the resilience to keep moving forward despite obstacles.

It is about having a compelling vision.

It is about the wisdom to learn from setbacks.

And it’s about the self-awareness to know when to push and when to rest.

Being unstoppable isn't about literally never stopping. It's about always being able to start again - be wiser, more adaptable, and with a deeper understanding of yourself and your path.

Being unstoppable means not being a victim of your life. But about being the creator of it.

And remember, true strength isn't about never falling. It's about rising up every time you fall.

Thanks friends. Until next time.

Clark