A Penny or A Million?

I love a good hypothetical question, so here is a good question for you! Given the option, would you rather be given 1 penny, doubled every day (.01 , .02, .04, .08, …) OR $1Million right now!?

At first glance, your gut would love a nice cool million in your bank account, tax free of course. BUT, you being a smart person you are also trying to do some math real quickly because you think there is a catch…

Well, there isn’t a catch, just some good ole fashion patience and compound interest at work. We can also call this investing. There is nothing wrong with taking the million now, but assuming a 30 day month, you would be passing up on over $5 Million. If it is a 31 day month like January, you would be passing up on over $10 Million! (I have placed the break down daily at the bottom of the article). The crazy part is that you only pass the $1 Million mark on Day 28!

It takes almost the entire month for it to make sense… but sticking to the process through those final days make all the difference.

This is the problem I see all too often in this day with athletes, coaches, and people in general in today’s world. Their vision is set so close to the here and now that it is negatively affecting their decisions when it comes to long term development.

We have come to the point where we as a society want things now (microwave fast), and if it is a decision that affects us more than a week down the road, it is hard to think about.

I want to challenge you to become a strategic thinker with your vision and plan for life. I want you playing chess, thinking a couple moves ahead, rather than the boardwalk Whack-A-Mole life where you just hit whatever pops up in front of you in the moment.

Short Term Vision

When we play the Whack-A-Mole lifestyle, it robs us of our long-term development. We begin to…

1.    React to situations rather than respond with forethought and planning.

2.    We rush back from the injury too quickly because “we HAVE TOplay this weekend”.

3.    We base our decisions on how we FEEL in the moment, sacrificing our ultimate goal in the process. Let’s be honest, we don’t always feel like working out, eating right, reading, preparing like we need to… but we must if we are wanting to accomplish the big goals we have set. We all know how great of decisions we make when we base it all on our feelings…

4.    Athletically, we neglect strength training during season because “I HAVE TObe at 5 practices a week for my travel team, and I don’t have time.” 

5.    We begin to feel like we are falling behind at 12 years old if we aren’t playing on a “Travel” team yet or aren’t going to showcases.

6.    We begin to play more games than Collegiate teams because the perception is that’s the way it is done.

Our short term visions yields to our emotions, wants, desires, pressures at the expense of what is truly important. We have an unwillingness to invest physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually, and react to whatever seems quickest, easiest, and most socially acceptable when compared with the world.

Long Term Development Mindset

A long-term development mindset has a plan and a vision of the kind of person, husband, wife, father, mother, athlete we want to become. This mindset takes time to evaluate what actions, thoughts, habits and behaviors are robbing us of this vivid vision. 

With this mindset, we begin to take action on these traits, habits and mindsets by either modifying or completely ridding ourselves of them.

1.    The comparison trap– We no longer look to the left and right to gain social approval for the decisions we are making on our future. We have a plan for success and we relentlessly stick to it, regardless of how we FEEL at any given moment.

2.    Prioritize Our WLWL– Our When Life Works List! We know what allows us to perform at our best. That might be reading, praying, strength training, mechanical work, talking with mentors, journaling, getting our minds right! We stay as closely connected with these beneficial areas of our life and MAKE TIME for them!

3.    Avoid Average– If we do look around and find that we are doing everything that everyone else is doing… by definition that is average. We MUST break out of average and blaze our own trail. That might mean eating differently, reading even though nobody else does, having conversations that are uncomfortable, leaning into challenges and digging deep into our purpose… even though everyone else isn’t doing it. 

4.    Train More, Play Less– Despite what many leagues and travel organization will tell you, playing more doesn’t create better athletes. It actually creates more stressed, unenthusiastic, passionless, injured, mentally drained and burnt out athletes. Games are where you go to put on a show for how hard you have trained. Training is where you grow, push your limits, learn new skills, challenge yourself and become a better athlete. With this in mind, we should be training year-round (Yes DURING season) because the long term development mindset wants to get better for as long as possible. Who will perform better? The one who trains to grow for 12 months and performs for 2, or the one who performs for 10 months and only trains for 2?

5.    We Gain Clarity – At the end of the day we gain clarity because we don’t feel rushed or pressured. We know rushing back from an injury to make the weekend game isn’t that important at 13 years old if the focus is wanting to perform at max level at 18 years old. We suddenly see that missing that practice, game, or even season isn’t that big of a deal!

With the long-term development mindset, we begin looking for solutions, regardless of how we feel, rather than getting caught up in reasons and excuses. Don’t have time AFTER school or work to train? Solution says get up before school and get your training in.

Personally, with my packed schedule, that is what I had to do! My afternoons were so full of practices, homework, papers, family obligations (I have 1 brother and 5 sisters) and more practices that I had to get into the gym early before my classes. No, it wasn’t easy and I didn’t feel like it… but I also couldn’t afford NOT to do it.

I will never forget the time that I met an Olympic Gold Medalist at a competition I attended while I competed in high school. He let me hold the Gold Medal (which was awesome!) and asked me how I thought he got that medal.

I stumbled through my words and guessed “with lots of practice?”

He replied with “In 20 years of training, I never missed a training session.”

He didn’t say he never missed a practice. He didn’t say he never got injured. He didn’t say he only worked out when he felt like it or had time.

He NEVER missed a TRAINING session. Now THAT is some discipline and dedication to the long term development mindset.  He knew that during training (lifting, recovery, nutrition, sleep, mindset, mentoring, mechanics, mobility, self care) was the times that he was improving… NOT the times he was standing in front of thousands watching him lift more than anyone else in the world.

It was all that time training, compounding over 20 years, that allowed him to stand on the podium while his country’s national anthem played. 

My challenge to you is to look at where you are slipping into the short term-mindset, and how you can change those habits and actions to align with the long-term development mindset!

If you need help, you know I am always here to help! Please don’t ever hesitate to reach out! I am always here to serve you in any way I can!

Cherish The Challenge!
- Ryan

 31 Day Penny Compounding Chart

Day 1: $.01
Day 2: $.02
Day 3: $.04
Day 4: $.08
Day 5: $.16
Day 6: $.32
Day 7: $.64
Day 8: $1.28
Day 9: $2.56
Day 10: $5.12
Day 11: $10.24
Day 12: $20.48
Day 13: $40.96
Day 14: $81.92
Day 15: $163.84
Day 16: $327.68
Day 17: $655.36
Day 18: $1,310.72
Day 19: $2,621.44
Day 20: $5,242.88
Day 21: $10,485.76
Day 22: $20,971.52
Day 23: $41,943.04
Day 24: $83,886.08
Day 25: $167,772.16
Day 26: $335,544.32
Day 27: $671,088.64
Day 28: $1,342,177.28
Day 29: $2,684,354.56
Day 30: $5,368,709.12
Day 31: $10,737,418.24