18 Minutes to Master Human Training | Mind Hacks from Cesar Millan

In this country, they don't need more dog trainers. They need somebody who trained the humans so they can rehabilitate the dogs. So I created my own job. I didn't really dwell on that one. Yeah. You know, for me, like, bankruptcy wasn't a big deal. Money is not a big deal for me. A lot of people think I have this gift and I'm a Superman or something, and it's not. I'm just like anybody else. I'm just very aware of my emotions, you see? So I learned to manage my emotions.

Need motivation? Watch a top 10 with Believe Nation! What's up, it's Evan. My one word is believe, and I believe in you. I believe you have an amazing gift inside you that I want to see explode out onto the world. So let's get your motivation to a 10 and get you believing in you. Grab a snack and chew on today's lessons from a man who went from growing up on a farm in Mexico and working with animals and crossing over into the US border at age 21 speaking zero English to becoming a New York Times bestselling author and creator of the Dog Whisperer brand. He's Cesar Millan, and here's my take on his top 10 rules to success. Enjoy. Alright, let's kick things off with rule number 1: Create your own job.

As an immigrant, you look for opportunities. And so creativity is part of necessity, or necessity is part of creativity. So I said, well, you know, in this country, they don't need more dog trainers. They need somebody who trained the humans so they can rehabilitate the dogs. So I created my own job, 'cause I couldn't compete with the other guys 'cause I didn't have papers in the first place. So I needed to open my own job, you know? And that's when people start saying, you know, that guy has something going on. That's when the LA Times came and say, you know, Will Smith is your client, NBA people are your client, NFL people are your client. What would you like to do next? And I said, I would like to have my own TV show. So she wrote it down and the newspaper came on a Sunday, but Monday was a line of producers outside wanted to know what this show is all about. And it was about training people and rehabilitating dogs.

Rule number 2 is take control of your life.

In the beginning, I didn't manage my career. It was managed by somebody else. So I went into a lawsuit and I was not in control of my intellectual things. And so it, So I realized that. So that's the beautiful part about what I went through, that I realized that I was not really leading that side of my life. I was pretty much a follower and employee, which then I find out that a lot of guys in Hollywood go through it. They don't really own the intellectual property. And so that was a great thing. And from that point on, I learned, okay, so I have to pretty much understand that I have to lead that world as well in order for me not to have that experience again. And so I went back, I went all the way to bankruptcy. I already knew how to be without money. So it wasn't a big deal for me. And the show was already, the show was taking off at this time and things. Yeah, yeah, everything was gone. It's just, I have no money. You know what I mean? I have zero money. I have this popularity and I have this relationship with the networks. But when it came to money, working for so many years, I had zero. So I went back, I went back to my old self. So it was like a slap in the face from life. And like snap out of it and understand that you have to also lead this side of life. So I took it that way. I took it in a very optimistic, very positive way. And I didn't really dwell on that one. For me, like bankruptcy wasn't a big deal. Money is not a big deal for me, even though I make good money. What's for me is about the goal in life I have, the mission. Money's a byproduct. Money follows. I don't follow money. So for me, that wasn't so much me. It's about the pack, the family, the wellbeing and all of that. That's why I have such a hard time dealing with because I was doing everything by the book. I was a good follower. I was a good team member. I work hard. I got great positive energy, but then this thing happened and it needed to happen. Now I'm the— it's just the greatest thing that happened to me.

Rule number 3, my personal favorite: Believe.

So I was super poor. Sometimes we eat, sometimes we don't, right? I was short, as you see, I'm still short. I was a farm boy and I was a dog boy. And the dog boy was actually el perrero, which in Mexico, el perrero, it wasn't something positive. It wasn't something that you should celebrate. It was a kid that smells like dog. They have fleas or ticks. That's their perception. So I went through that in my childhood, right? Because dogs were following me. I didn't know why, but dogs followed me. But so people would go after me just because dogs would follow me, you know, would say mean things to me. Then in my adolescent stage, dogs still followed me. I was still being called el perrero. I was super short. I'm still short. I was not hip at all, and I was not popular at all. Then I came to America, and in America I was called an immigrant, which I was, right? I was homeless. I didn't have a place to live, so I lived in the street for 2 months, and then I speak no English. But it got better. It got better because I stayed focused on what I really wanted for me to happen. I wanted to be the best doctor in the world. I was 13 years old when I told my mom, Mom, you think I can be the best doctor in the world? And she believed in me and she says, yes, you can be whatever you want. And that's really what we need to attach ourselves, not what somebody else might see in us, you know, all the negativity that they want us to pay attention to. Yes, I was poor, but not from the heart, not from the mind, right? So So what I did is I got a hold of the people that believed in me, and that was very important to me. I don't like to use the word success, but I just like to use the words I accomplished something because I believed in me, because God believed in me. Everybody has a gift. I don't think I'm the only human in the world that has a gift. Everybody has their own special gift. So I just want to let you know that sometimes when somebody sees something different than you, it's actually a gift. It's a gift that they don't have.

Rule number 4: Be a good listener.

You have to be like marriage counselor, financial advisor, everything in this new show. I'm a good listener. I'm a good listener. I think something that I learned from a dog— dogs listen well. They don't know what you do for a living, they just know how you live your life. So it doesn't matter how wealthy you are, how famous you are, how powerful you think you are, in the dog world who you are is energy. So when you become calm and open-minded, you get to listen to what people are saying and what world they live in.

Rule number 5, focus on your goals.

How did it feel to like have that overnight success? I mean, you went from, you know, people not necessarily knowing you name every day to everyone loving you. How did that feel? Well, everybody knows that it's never an overnight success. Right. You know, you've been doing it for a while. It's just now people get to see you. It's a bigger platform. But I think it's a labor of being focused. I think since I don't go outside and experiment with alcohol and drugs and anything, I stay very focused on the goal. I want to rehabilitate dogs. I want to train people. I want to educate the world. I want to transform. And I think that pays off. And also the fact that I surround myself with people who believe in that concept. Who you surround yourself, who's your pack is also going to influence your growth. And so I think a lot of the knowledge that I learned from dogs and apply it to my business life and to the way I parent, the way I relate with people. If some people have a bad energy, I'd rather not be around. 'Cause if they can't change, I'm not gonna change 'em. I can change a dog. But I can't change a human unless the human is willing to to do it, you know? So you have to read all of that and feel it and, and just, uh, move on. Yeah, right away.

Rule number 6 is become aware.

How do we train, uh, confidence in human beings? Or, well, first, before you're raising the ego, before you train, awareness needs to rise. You know, without, without awareness, there is no possibilities, right? And then through that awareness, then the human takes responsibility. Then once the human takes responsibility, then you enter into surrender. That's when you can teach. You can't teach a mind. The thing knows everything. That's a fact. You can't. So fight, flight, avoid, and surrender. You can only teach the mind to surrender. The mind that fights, flight, and avoid, you can't. Wow. You can't. You can't. So once they surrender, they're aware. Once you surrender, what happens is you open up. That means you're willing to follow. Follow what direction? What direction? Yoga, meditation, math, whatever you want. Whatever you want. Because now you open your mind to absorb information. Once you absorb it, then you have to feel it. Once you feel it, you clear, then you execute. Feeling and thought. You can do things without the feeling. It's not gonna look good.

Right?

Yeah. Dancer is a perfect example, right? They have to feel the music. Before they execute the act. Yeah, singers, you know, when a singer is nervous, they can sing, they can think they're singing, but you know when it feels good. Yeah, it's a feeling. Yeah, it's an art. The goosebumps, right? Kind of gives you goosebumps when you feel it, when you see it, you know. It connects you to it, you know. It touches something deeply inside of you, you know, the soul, the heart, the, the body, and then the mind. The mind is the flesh, is the last thing. Yeah. You know? Yeah. And the mind is a second thing. But really the deep side of you is the soul, the spirit, and the heart where passion lives. That is really what we have to always connect. Yeah. And everything else is, you know, secondary.

Rule number 7: Manage your emotions.

A lot of people think I have this gift and I'm a Superman or something, and it's not. I'm just like anybody else. I'm just very aware of my emotions. You see, so I learned to manage my emotions, you know, because it's so important to be honest with yourself. One of the things that I find the most is people are not honest with themselves. And so you have to work with your calmness and your assertiveness, you know. For example, if a dog is very dominant, you can't come with calm energy. He's gonna take over you. So you gotta step up your assertiveness so the dog see, okay, you understand how to play this game. It's like a Wild Wild West type of thing.

Rule number 8 is give first.

You were a young man coming from Mexico and you had $100 in your pocket and a dream of becoming a dog trainer. Tell me about that. I want to be the best dog trainer in the world, right? So the dream was big. When you're starving, you dream big, right? So that's the good thing about being poor. Then you come to a country where, you know, opportunities are pretty much endless, right? And, um, and then I saw the opportunity that instead of training dogs, I should train people. And nobody was doing that, right? As an immigrant, you look for empty spaces. And that to me was an empty space. So before I even started charging, you know, American people, I did it for free. I walked dogs for free. So that's what they call me, the Mexican guy who can walk a pack of dogs. So that was my title. That's fine. Yes, I'm Mexican, right? And so eventually once people start trusting me and respecting what I have to share, They became loyal to me. So trust, respect, loyalty. I first give that, then I start charging $10 per dog.

Rule number 9: Pursue greatness.

The hard work is just repetition of what you do. Yeah. So as long as you are a working person, you're going to work hard. So that comes, that comes with the formula. It's just, that's what you're going to do. Remember, people are consistent, but they're sometimes consistent of doing the wrong thing. So even lazy people are consistent. Yeah. You see it? So they work hard to be lazy. Yes. So the hard work comes along just by the fact that you're doing something every day. Yeah. You know, but it's what you put in your, in your goals. What is your mission? Is it your mission to help others? Was it your mission to help yourself? So if you help, if your mission is to help yourself, you're not going to go too far. If your mission is to help others, you're going to fulfill spirit. Heart, instincts, and mind, because that's when you make a bigger difference. That to me is greatness. It's just the greatness to help others. And for me, it has been dogs, right? To help dogs. And then through that, I help humans. And then from that, it's a roller coaster of like so many things I can do. I can create a great world. Why not? It's available.

And rule number 10, the last one before the bonus clips: have fun.

So he was like walking around like dirt. Oh, what's wrong with this dog park? Well, it's a dog park. It's poop and it's dirt and it's pee and it's squirrels. You know, that's a dog park. Once he's okay, I'm in a relaxed state, then you can walk in first. And happy birthday, Auggie! It's Auggie's birthday, so I'm going to make the best birthday. Impossible for Auggie. It's his birthday today, by the way. Yeah, what an awesome way to— I know, I can't believe it. By the way, Auggie's having a good time. The only one is you, and you're ruining your son's birthday, by the way. You know, it's like Nicole, you know, you're supposed to have like a good guy and a bad guy, you know, and Nicole has two bad guys. It's like the whole entire time. Oh, no balls. If he runs after that ball, he's going to fight, Matt, and you know it. So is that why you sent her out to time out? Well, I guess. Oh my God, that was horrible. Is he going to be okay? He's good. He is okay. What are you talking about? Get out of the dog park. Okay, goodbye. I'll come back. Just take a little break. I'm going to take a break. Next time we're going to bring wine or something. Yeah, come on. Uh, this is the first time I sent a human to time out, but it was necessary. I mean, it was necessary to send Nicole to a time out, honestly. Why is Nicole in quarantine? She's in time out because Nicole was crashing her son's birthday. Then Jamie and Brad said, well, she's in quarantine. That was hilarious. That was funny. But it was more like a cool-off time. "Look from the outside, nothing bad is happening. We take care of your dog." I mean, you're around, he probably sees Caesar here, "I better behave." Hopefully when you leave, he's not like, "All right, let's go." "I was in your picture." Let's put a Caesar mask on. Just do it here like that. Copyright, Cesar Millan.

Now I've got some special Caesar bonus clips for you, but before that, my question of the day today: Are you a dog person? Dog or cat person? I'm a dog person. What are you? Leave in the comments below. I'm curious to find out. Thank you guys so much for watching. I believe in you. I hope you continue to believe in yourself and whatever your one word is. Much love. I'll see you soon and enjoy the bonus clips.

You've been very honest about things that you've experienced in your personal life and you talked about a dark period that you had. Can you talk a little bit about that and how you were able to overcome it? I think the more you talk about your weaknesses, the stronger you become because you learn to surrender. That's how you become wise. You know, I think the more you suppress what you don't like about you, the more it stays within yourself. So I like to share everything with people because I think you can inspire people, not just in things that you achieve, but how you go through those dark moments of your life. You know, I think it's very empowering. And as a father, I want my kids to tell anything that they don't feel comfortable with. You know, instead of suppressing that emotion of failing, speak about it, you know, and somebody's gonna come and tell you, you know what, you're not a failure. You're a really good person. That actually is very important sometimes that somebody comes and just give you a hug and tell you you're not that bad. Don't try to kill yourself. You can help a lot of dogs and a whole bunch of humans. In one episode, neighbors encourage a woman to put her dog down because the dog showed aggression even after working with multiple trainers. What did you do with that dog? Well, most trainers focus on the dog. I focus on the person, and you're gonna see in this show that we are definitely— it's more people training than dog rehabilitation. And the perception that people get by when a dog attacks them and the fear that they develop, trainers never address that. And so that's why I say I train people and rehabilitate dogs. So I train them to see what they're doing wrong. Everybody focus on what the dog is doing wrong, but the dog can't speak and say, wait a minute, What about what the human is doing? Nobody's addressing the human. When I came to America the day, December 23rd, it was not a plan. It was just a desire. I just didn't question my desire, right? And then of course, the bigger you get, then you need to hire people, very smart people. And that's one thing that I teach my kids. As long as you have instincts, you can always hire brains, right? So I hire people. They're very smart. You know, you can hire lawyers. Yes. Yeah, so I have my own lawyers, you know. So this is a guy that went to high school only and, and hires all these amazing people that went to school. So then you realize, okay, what do I need to do to get there, right? I'm still the pack leader, but I say, okay, I have to hire this person because this person understands that goal. Raise your standard. Apple, at the core, its core value is that We believe that people with passion can change the world for the better. Not one drop of my self-worth depends on your acceptance of me. I don't ever give up. I'd have to be dead or completely incapacitated.

Hey, Believe Nation, if you want to see my all-time favorite top 10 rules of success, I have a very special secret video for you. These are the individual clips that I have I personally learned the most from and applied to my life and my business. Check the link in the description for details.