It never fails: every day I read online or have someone ask me in person how to get bigger, stronger, and more awesome. I am the right person to answer this question. If you want to be bigger, stronger, or more awesome, you need to ask someone that is bigger, stronger, and more awesome than you are.

My response to this question is always the same: have passion, have the courage to follow your passion, and be consistent in your pursuit. Is it really that simple? Yes, it really is that simple. If you want the formula, I just gave it to you — but there is a better explanation. If you want to reach your goals you need to set specific goals, make a plan, and be consistent. If you’re not willing to put in the time and effort it takes to reach your goals, then you don’t deserve to reach them.

Want to start varsity? Work harder in the off-season than anyone else. Want to squat 600 pounds? Put time in under the bar and squat. Want to be a doctor? Study and work your butt off during your residency.

There’s only one secret to success: there is no secret.

One of my mentors has always preached to me that the hardest thing to do is to be consistent. If you want to reach your goals, do what it takes day in and day out. Do what others aren’t willing to do. My mentor showed me this through his daily actions, and I still thank him for that. When you do something that is contrary to your goals, you know it. You know you’re not supposed to eat that cheeseburger. You know you’re not supposed to miss your training session because you’re hungover or tired. You know you should be studying your playbook. You know you should get to sleep. You know you shouldn’t spend hours watching television and checking Facebook.

The reality is that it’s hard to study every night. It’s hard to wake up early and work 14 or 18-hour days. It’s hard to be consistent. What makes a person able to do these things is having the courage to go after his or her passion. It’s easy to sit back and judge others or to complain about the things you don’t have. People judge because they are jealous, weak-minded, and unable to fathom the amount of work it takes to reach the top. If you want something, get up and go get it. No one is going to hand it to you.

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I want you to sit and think about what is holding you back. Do it now. Have you figured it out yet? Still not sure? Well, I’ll give you the answer: it’s YOU! Sorry, ladies and gents, but your mind is the biggest mountain in front of you. No one and nothing else is holding you back more than yourself. I used to train a blind wrestler, and it was because of his “disability” (he didn’t think of his blindness as a disability) that he developed such a fierce and burning desire to succeed. He had to prove to himself that he could succeed in spite of the odds. His desire is what motivated him to train relentlessly in the gym four days a week and then be in the wrestling room to roll just about every day. He did what he had to do to succeed and never once questioned the process. To this day, the passion and the courage he had to attack life on a daily basis fires me up.

It’s very simple. You either want it, or you don’t. There is no grey area. There are no other choices. You either want something so badly that you’re willing to do whatever it takes to obtain it, or you don’t. That is why you need to be consistent while working out, studying, or eating your meals. There is no question about what is right and what is wrong when your priorities are in line and your desire to succeed outweighs your desire to stay up late or go to the bar.

Reaching your goals is not a once-a-day commitment. It’s not once a week. It’s part of every decision you make. It requires consistency and commitment to your goals. From the time you get up until the time you go to sleep, there has to be something burning inside you. If nothing burns inside you, you need to sit down and re-evaluate what you’re doing with your life.

Every day I hear excuses. I read Facebook and Twitter and see posts about all the things that other people have wrong in their lives. Every time, I shake my head. Yes, life is hard. So what? Who cares? Does that mean you’re going to give up? You owe it to yourself to push forward and become the best that you can. Your passion to succeed is more important than anything else in this world. It doesn’t matter if it is in the weight room, the classroom, or the office. You can cruise the Internet for advice, guidance, and motivation, but at the end of the day, you have to make those decisions. Only your passion to succeed will allow you to push forward when you’re too tired to do the things no one else will.

It’s easy to get distracted, but when you have passion that burns inside of you, and the courage to go after that passion, nothing can distract you. It’s important to stay focused on your goals and nothing else. The relentless quest, the thing that keeps you going day after day, your courage to go after what you want and truly believe in need to be at the forefront of your mind. There are no shortcuts in life; there are only your goals to be set and your goals to be reached. If you want to succeed, you will not allow anything to interfere with your passion and goals.

Few succeed. A lack of opportunity is often nothing more than a lack of purpose or direction. Set your goals so that you know where you’re going. If you don’t know where you’re going, then how will you know when you get there?

Your life is up to you.