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“If I wasn’t crazy I wouldn’t be great”
The ex-Heavyweight Champion of the World said this, Mr. Tyson Fury.
He is a self-confessed lunatic. He claims to be so unpredictable that he has no idea what he is going to do, leaving his opponents on edge at all press conferences.
He ballooned up to over 30 stone during a very dark spell of depression where he was drinking 20 pints of beer a day, swigging on whiskey and snorting cocaine. This was just AFTER he won the heavyweight title. He has recently lost over 10 stone of weight and is now ready to fight for a title in America on December 1st. If he wins, I’d claim it as one of the best comebacks ever. He will be elevated as one of the very best.
Dark places can show us what we really need in life and igniting our own fire by searching for inspiration in others is one way to get started. When we have no direction or goal in life it’s no wonder we get totally lost.
Tyson claims he now has the blueprint for his mental health. His latest interview with Joe Rogan is an eye opener and one of my personal favourites.
I’ve had two articles published, both written whilst I was feeling like I was a complete failure. I’ve written many since from a much happier place that have been rejected.
My current business works extremely well for me but was created out of utter misery. I was on my knees at the time very close to giving up and moving away from the industry and the area in which I lived. Drive and ambition can come from losing it all. I lost £60k during the point I lost my head and lost my business. These low places, these times of self-doubt and depression can work for you. They can be the crisis points that make you and offer a full suit of armour going into your future battles.
The pain can force action and make the decision-making process an easier one. When you think you have nothing to lose it can be used as your advantage. You no longer fear the loss and you certainly don’t give a shit what people think. Creativity, challenge and action are the only way out of depression. Making the wrong decision is often better than making no decision.
Many of the best writers, producers, and artists create their finest work from the point of pain. I’m learning to embrace it and to use it to my advantage. My brain is working overtime when I am anxious and my thoughts process faster. If I do nothing with them I know I am in trouble. I train harder, I write more and I produce sharper and more ambitious ideas about where I want to direct my focus once I’m in a place to do so. I balance it out with meditation and a good diet and extra sleep.
Adding excess food, alcohol or drugs to your depression is never a good idea. It’s a recipe for disaster. So use it for guidance, use it to make those tough decisions. Use it as a reason not to stay still. All the greats are slightly mad, don’t fight it, use it.
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This post was previously published on www.mansplan.co.uk and is republished here with permission from the author.
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