Ep 429 | The Man in the Arena

Thank you for joining me today. It's Brian Gubernick, and welcome to the No Days Off podcast, where we believe that every single day brings a new opportunity to get better. The man in the arena. You've probably heard this phrase, or specifically this speech, shared by Teddy Roosevelt many years ago. I want to talk about this. This serves as great motivation in my opinion, and I want to break down this component or this speech, the components of it, and think around how we can implement some of the action steps that we could derive from this, from this speech. So The Man in the Arena, if you haven't heard of it, is a speech that's actually an excerpt from a speech that was delivered by Theodore Roosevelt in 1910, April of 1910. The original speech was called Citizenship in a Republic, and Teddy Roosevelt gave this address in April 1910, uh, at, uh, in Paris, France. The specific passage, the man in the arena passage, emphasized the value of effort and resilience and striving for greatness even in the face of failure. And I think for our no days off nation, entrepreneurs looking to build big lives, big businesses impact many, not just their family, but their peers and those they work alongside and their partners. I think that this passage should mean a lot. I'm gonna read it to you. It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena. Whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs, who comes, who comes short again and again because there's no effort without error and shortcoming, but who does actually strive to do the deeds, who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement. And who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat. Probably something we should all have inscribed on a notebook or hanging up in front of us. The Man in the Arena. It's not the critic who counts, but those who do. And those who are willing to dare greatly and stumble, but do the deeds, win or lose, because the effort, the resilience, the striving for greatness, that's what matters. Now, the broader speech he gave discussed the responsibilities of citizens in a republic, and what Teddy Roosevelt was trying to do was urge individuals to participate actively in society and not just be spectators in that society. I think he would say the same thing about life. Teddy Roosevelt would want us to actively participate in life, not just be a spectator to life. So Roosevelt's words celebrate effort and celebrate courage and engagement over cynicism. Now, this particular passage has inspired so many, so many leaders, so many thinkers. It's a, it's a pretty popular motivational quote now. As a matter of fact, Brené Brown's book Daring Greatly draws its title and themes from just this one excerpt. So it has pretty enduring relevance. But how do we go about leveraging this knowledge now? You know, we've read this passage, we get what it means. How do I put it to work? I think it starts with adopting a growth-minded, a growth-oriented mindset, right? The lesson here in this speech is that failure is just a part of the process, and striving is more important than success. So reframing your failures as learning opportunities, setting big goals, knowing that there's going to be setbacks, that they're inevitable, but they're worthwhile for growth is the mindset we need in order to not just be a mere spectator in life. I also think we've got to learn to silence that inner critic. The critics and doubters, including self-doubt, they don't contribute to progress. My friend, Mack Newton, used to say that all the time. There's no value. There's no value in that inner critic. That inner critic, just the self-doubt, it doesn't contribute. It doesn't contribute to progress. So what's the action? Practice some self-compassion. Focus on effort over external validation. Remind yourself that your value lies in trying and in persevering, not in avoiding criticism. Which kind of leads to the next lesson we could draw from this: be courageous in taking risks. As Teddy Roosevelt said, the credit belongs to those who step into the arena regardless of the outcome. They're not mere spectators. They step into the arena. So the actions that you could take— take risks, take calculated risks, but take risks nonetheless in your personal and in your professional life. Embrace the challenges that push you outside your comfort zone. Maybe that's starting a new business, or maybe it's public speaking, or maybe it's just taking on a tough project. Embrace these challenges that get you outside your comfort zone. This is the man in the arena. Next lesson, focus on your own journey. True fulfillment, we've talked about it many a time here, true fulfillment comes from engaging deeply in your own pursuits, not in comparing yourself to others. We have a phrase around No Days Off, more mirror and less window. Look more in the mirror and compete with yourself, which is, by the way, the greatest competition one could have is self-competition. Compete with yourself, not in looking out the window and comparing yourself to others. So, set some personal metrics for success that align with your values. Celebrate your small wins. Celebrate your progress. Don't worry about the external judgments. Next lesson to draw, lead with some vulnerability. The speech that Teddy Roosevelt gave champions those who strive valiantly, even if they fall short. So share your challenges and your efforts with your people, with your team, with your family, with your peers. And what that does is inspire them, it inspires some trust, and it inspires camaraderie. So use your experiences to connect with others and demonstrate that failure is just a step towards growth. Lastly, strengthen your resilience. Failing while daring greatly is very honorable. The worst fate is doing nothing. So develop a resilience by reflecting on past challenges and how you overcame them and what you learned from them. And when facing adversity, again, focus on the effort. Focus on the commitment you've shown rather than the end result. So, some daily reminders maybe around this. How could we make certain that we're in the arena? What can we do to remind ourselves to step up and not just be a mere spectator? Maybe it's write down this particular quote or write down at least the essence of this quote somewhere visible. To remind yourself to focus on action and not on fear. Maybe use the question, am I in the arena right now? Am I in the arena or am I standing on the sidelines? It's a really good question. Am I in the arena or am I standing on the sidelines? Let that guide your decisions. See, by embracing this philosophy, I think you'll develop some confidence. I think you'll foster some deeper connections. And I think you achieve a more fulfilling life through active engagement and through, I guess I'd call it, courageous effort. So on that note, I don't think— I think there's a lot to focus on here. You don't need a focusing question or action today, but take a look at that Man in the Arena story— I'm sorry, speech— a little bit more, or at least that excerpt from the speech. And possibly hang it up in front of you, or at least jot down its, its meaning so that you're reminded each and every day about stepping into that arena. That's all I have for you today, the No Days Off Podcast. Thank you so much for listening, and remember, every single day brings a new opportunity to get better. So let's get after it.