Moving Forward In Life – Dan Clark
moving forward in life
SUMMARY
Practicing gratitude and finding happiness in little things are key things in facing any setback and to moving forward in life.
On today’s episode, we are here with Dan Clark. He’s a former NFL football player and star of the American Gladiators. He’s also been on various notable publications and television stations.
Dan shares what he realized after having a heart attack and what he did to reach his goal, which was not only to come back but also to become a better human being.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
In any setback you have, start asking yourself a better question.
When trying to find a way to gather the strength to do something, give yourself a small goal each day, and each day, build upon that goal.
According to a scientific research, it’s not the magnitude of experiences that creates happiness so much but it’s the frequency.
What we focus on in life grows.
Every day, find simple things that give you joy.
Once you start practicing gratitude, happiness beats a path to your door.
When you become what you want to see in the world, the world around you changes in amazing ways.
If you want something, first have that inside and project that outwards.
Each person can change the world one human interaction at a time.
TRANSCRIPTION: MOVING FORWARD IN LIFE – DAN CLARK
Luis Congdon
If you’ve been struggling with motivation, inspiration, doing what you’re supposed to, and moving forward in life, today’s guest will inspire you. It’s because he is somebody who had a heart attack, had incredible experiences in life and then, it all went downhill with his heart attack and he still had to find his motivation and inspiration.
Today, we’ll be talking to our guest about how to stay inspired and keep moving forward in life even when it knocks you down.
Today’s guest is Dan Clark. He’s a former NFL football player and star of the American Gladiators. He’s been sharing everything he’s learned about happiness and what makes life worth living as a writer and a speaker. He’s also been on shows like Good Morning America, The Early Show, Access Hollywood, Entertainment Tonight, ESPN, People, Time Magazine, and many other notable publications and television stations.
Today, Dan’s going to talk to us about what it was like to overcome his heart attack, keep moving forward in life, and find inspiration after all his successes.
All right, Thriving Launchers, we are here with the man, Dan Clark. Dan, are you ready to launch?
Dan Clark
Let’s get this party started.
Having Resilience To Keep Moving Forward In Life
Luis Congdon
Dan, you’ve overcome a fair amount of adversity in your life and had a lot of challenges. You also created some incredible successes in your life. One of the keys that I found to anyone who’s successful in anything in life is that they’ve built this kind of resilience, this layer that allows them to take the punches of life and keep moving forward in life.
I’m curious to hear from you, what’s one of the first things you think about that has helped you build that resilience to keep moving forward and pushing beyond those obstacles?
Moving Forward In Life And Facing Any Setback
Dan Clark
Well, I agree with you, Luis. We’ve all faced setback whether it’s a business deal gone bad, whether it’s the death of the dream, losing someone close to you, but the key to facing any setback and having the ability to make a comeback is you have to believe.
I had a heart attack a few years ago and when I had the heart attack, I remember lying in the hospital and my first thoughts were “Why me? Why me? Why me?”
I ate great, worked out like a beast, and took all the right supplements.
Moving Forward In Life – Change The Question You Ask Yourself
Dan Clark
Lying there in the hospital that day, I was depressed. I was beaten and I couldn’t find a good way to make a comeback until I changed the question I ask myself. Instead of feeling like a victim and being a victim, and feeling sorry for myself, and asking “Why me?” I changed the question to “What could I be given these circumstances?” Once I changed the question, I changed the locust of controlling focus. New ideas and thoughts came tumbling in on how I can keep moving forward in life.
So instead of “Why me? Why me?” it became “What could I be?” and some of the things I thought “Well, given these circumstances, maybe I could be someone who could show people how to come back from a heart attack?” Maybe, in the best instance, I could be someone who took a personal tragedy and turn it into a gift of inspiration for others?”
Changing Your Focus To Keep Moving Forward In Life
Dan Clark
So when I changed my focus and I started asking myself better questions, I got new answers.
In any setback you have, start asking yourself a better question.
Kamala Chambers
Wow. That’s a really interesting thought experiment that you can have with yourself with that.
Reminding Yourself You Have To Keep Moving Forward In Life
Kamala Chambers
What are some ideas that you have on some ways that we can remember to do that and keep moving forward in life when we’re in those hardest places in our lives? Sometimes, it’s hard to even remember to practice these things.
Do you have any touchdowns that you can help plant seeds so we can remember these later on?
Dan Clark
Yes, yes, Kamala. I think first, it starts with a phrase, a belief, a personal statement. It could be something as simple as “I believe for every setback, there’s a chance to comeback and rise.” That was my mantra as I came back from the hospital for me to keep moving forward in life.
I remember based upon that belief how each day it pushed me to extend my reach beyond my grasp.
Having A Mantra Helps You On Moving Forward In Life
Dan Clark
The way that looks in action is when I got home from the hospital the first day, they said, “Don’t lift anything heavy. Don’t take out the trash. Be careful of walking downstairs.” That first day at home from the hospital, I made a goal for that day. My goal for the whole day was to walk down 22 stairs from my bedroom to my refrigerator and touch it and not die.
The second day, I extended my reach. I said “Okay, I’m going to walk down my stairs and I’m going to go touch my mailbox.” The third day was to touch my neighbor’s door.
Moving Forward In Life – Have A Small Goal Each Day
Dan Clark
When you’re making a comeback, when you’re trying to find a way to gather the strength to do something, give yourself a small goal each day, and each day, build upon that goal. Does that make sense?
Luis Congdon
It makes complete sense and makes a lot of sense that regardless of wherever you’re at, we can set goals and then, keep moving forward in life and building on those goals.
One of the things I’m curious from you, how does somebody make those small goals and not feel down about themselves?
Because you’re somebody who has accomplished a lot physically, and then to go from being somebody who’s in great shape, has done a lot, to your goal is go down a flight of stairs and touch your fridge. How do you create a mindset that makes you feel okay about that?
Moving Forward In Life – Avoid The “I’ll Be Happy When” Syndrome
Dan Clark
Well, I think the biggest problem people fall into and I was guilty of this, is I fell into the “I’ll be happy when” syndrome. This is a pre-heart attack.
“I’ll be happy when I booked a big deal. I’ll be happy when I get a bigger house. I’ll e happy when I get the promotion. I’ll be happy when I find the perfect mate.”
We put off our happiness and tie it to these big achievements but what I’ve learned is what creates happiness and gives us the strength to go on is the ability to find gratitude and happiness in the small moments and in achieving the little things.
Gratitude Helps on Moving Forward In Life
Dan Clark
I mean a scientific research tells us that it’s not the magnitude of experiences that creates happiness so much but it’s the frequency.
So I have a little tool and it’s very scientific that I learned because, after the heart attack, I realized I was given the second chance. The goal was not to only come back but to come back a better human being.
Moving Forward In Life – Put Money In Your Happiness Bank
Dan Clark
So I created this tool based on years of research and looking at all the latest scientific studies on what makes people happy and what creates a meaningful life. This tool I came up with has to do with the word “ka-ching.”
Now, before you guys go think I’m talking about Confucius and some ancient Chinese philosophy, I want you to start thinking “ka-ching” as putting money in the bank. But instead of putting money into a regular bank, what I do every day is I put money into my happiness bank. That’s how I was able to keep moving forward in life.
Find Simple Things That Gives You Joy To Keep Moving Forward In Life
Dan Clark
What we focus on in life grows.
So what I’ve done each day is I find three simple things, moments of human connection, beauty, and joy. It could be something as simples as “Oh, the sun’s out. It feels good on my face,” or “I love to see my child’s smile or laugh.” or I get in the car and my favorite song happens to be playing on the radio.
Moving Forward In Life – Make Happiness Be The Path To Your Door
Dan Clark
When I come across one of these moments, I use that “ka-ching” sound like I’m putting money in the bank. Like I said, I put it into my happiness bank so I’ll say “Oh man, thank you for the sun. Thank you for that breeze it gives my face.”
I’ll vocalize it, go “ka-ching”, put it into my happiness bank, and I found doing these little things every day caused happiness to be the path to my door. That gave me strength every day to be able to keep moving forward in life, and it kept me very present and focused.
Kamala Chambers
Yeah.
Rewiring Your Brain To Be A Happier Person While Moving Forward In Life
Kamala Chambers
It’s so beautiful that we can rewire our brains to be happier people and this exercise is such a beautiful display of that on how you can rewire who you are to experience more gratitude and more happiness on a daily basis. Then, that becomes constant.
I can see how in times of trauma, and I’ve experienced this too that it’s easier to draw from that bank when you are recovering because it’s already full, right?
Dan Clark
Exactly.
Just give yourself little things that you could accomplish every day, then the next day, add two or three things more. Find happiness in the simple moments of life.
Moving Forward In Life – Practice Gratitude
Dan Clark
Before in the past, I used to chase gratification instead of practice gratitude, but I’ve learned that once you start practicing gratitude, happiness beats a path to your door.
Dan Clark
I also found when you become what you want to see in the world, the world around you changes in amazing ways.
If you want love, wealth, or happiness, first have those inside and project those outwards.
Manifest What You Want To Keep Moving Forward In Life
Dan Clark
I believe in the power of manifestation and visualization. Once you start to do this, the world changes around you in amazing ways.
I know it sounds kind of hokey for a business podcast, but you got to remember, I’m the guy who wore spandex on TV.
Luis Congdon
No, I think it’s all great input and we’ve had a lot of people come on our show in varying different niches and insights, and degrees.
How Powerful Our Mindset Is On Moving Forward In Life
Luis Congdon
It reminds of our interview with Dr. Bruce Lipton, Kamala, where he talked about where our mindset influences our genetics.
Dan Clark
I believe 100%. That’s absolutely true.
I could say one other thing about this. It’s also changing I think your output from “What can I get?” to “What can I give?”
Luis Congdon
That’s awesome.
As we wrap up here, Dan, are there any last thoughts you want to leave the community of Thriving Launch with any kind of thing that you want to close the show out with, that you want them to think about or things that you’re kind of thinking about for the end of the show here?
Dan Clark
Yeah.
I think a lot of people think that one person doesn’t have a lot of power, that they can’t affect change in the world.
Moving Forward In Life And Creating Upstream Reciprocity
Dan Clark
Well, I fully believe that each person can change the world one human interaction at a time. The scientific term for that is upstream reciprocity.
The Dalai Lama said, “In each human interaction, we have a choice to make a person happier or not.” If you think about that, how many human interactions you have each day from going to the store, from going to work. If you took that time and lifted someone up and made them happier, it creates a ripple effect of happiness or what the scientific community calls upstream reciprocity.
So I want everyone to think of the personal power and the profound effect they can have on people, especially those people in the inner circle. If they can lift them up, if they can make them happier, they, in turn, will go out and lift other people up and make them happier.
Moving Forward In Life And Living In A World Filled With Happiness
Dan Clark
When we do this, we live in a world I think that’s filled with happiness, meaning, and generosity. That’s definitely a world I’m committed to being a part of and want to live in.
Luis Congdon
That’s a fantastic place to close out.
Thriving Launchers, hope you got something from today’s episode. It’s been amazing to have Dan Clark here on the show talking about moving forward in life
Impact Of Being Grateful On Moving Forward In Life
Luis Congdon
I was reminded of how important it is to stop trying to chase gratification, and find ways to be grateful on a daily basis, moment by moment, and how that can make a big impact in what I’m doing, and how I do it, and how I make an impact in other people’s lives.
I hope you got something, and Thriving Launchers, take it with you and go out, and keep thriving.
