5 Universal Life Lessons We Can Learn From Spartans
The Spartan society has always fascinated me. To this day, the famous city-state of Ancient Greece is well-known for their crafting some of the greatest warriors we’ve ever known. The topic has come back to the forefront based on the success of the new video game, Assassins’ Creed: Odyssey, which takes players through an epic journey to become a Spartan Hero. The game, which was released in October, has now been nominated for Game of the Year. To discover what life lessons we can draw from the Spartan society, we visited Greece to catch up with Stephanie-Anne Ruatta, who is the on-staff historian and specialist of Ancient Greece that helped make the game as accurate as possible. Not Into Riches One of the most interesting characteristics of the Spartans is that they weren’t particularly interested in riches. They felt that a rich and flashy lifestyle didn’t necessarily lead to a good life. If the luxury offered some kind of utility, then they would admire and accept it. If not, they often opted for an austere lifestyle. “According to F. Ruzè and J. Christien (Sparte, Géographie, mythes et histoire, p. 76), in the seventh and sixth centuries B. C., various cities in Sparta adopted some laws designed to limit external manifestations of wealth, as well as the temptation to acquire more and more at the expense of others, even at the risk of sometimes endangering the economic bases of the economy family,” says Ruatta. While materialism is on the rise, there isn’t always a correlation of buying things and being happy. In fact, that type of happiness tends to be temporary. One recent study has shown exactly that as being less materialistic was associated with being more content in life. Learn One Thing And Learn It Really Well Spartans teach us to learn one thing and learn it really well. That’s exactly how they became such great warriors. From the age seven, they would hone their craft until they were fine-tuned warriors. That meant spending their days from sun-up to sun-down engaged in rigorous military training in the agoge military schools, being raised to be an army of professional soldiers. We somewhat follow that pattern when taking the path of education. We’ll learn something in high school, hone it in university or college, and fine tune it with a master’s degree. But our patience of that path is wearing thinner by the day as attention spans are growing shorter, according to one study. It becomes harder and harder to concentrate on one task. Instead of our minds being filled with all of the details of one task, we have become collections of bits and pieces with a headline from Facebook, something we quickly picked up on YouTube and a few wise words on Twitter. We can learn from the Spartans here to learn, master and excel at one craft opposed to being jacks of all trades. Live With Honor For a Spartan, shame was one of the worst punishments one could suffer. In the city, reputation was staked on honor. In the battlefield, surrender was the ultimate disgrace. It’s not the first time we’ve seen something like that as Japanese warriors lived by a similar code of honor. It was so engrained in their DNA that we still see ripple effects in their society today. To dishonor your family name is nothing short of humiliation. “Spartans have often been perceived as disciplined citizens who apply rules under the penalty of exclusion and Nikolaos is a good example in the Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey game,” says Ruatta. “This concept is based on several texts of ancient authors (Herodotus, 7, 104, 4 - in particular) which evoke that a citizen of Sparta, control his needs, avoid any abuse, use self-control and moderation in order to properly serve the city and showcase its bravery and honor.” Modern-day society has somewhat stepped away from that. If you dropped your wallet on the street, there’s at least a 50% chance you’ll never see it again. And if you follow along with North American politics, check out the hashtag #NoShame or see some of the things people are doing to “go viral” these days, you’ll notice that living with honor is slowly slipping by the waste side. Spartans Ate Together There’s the famous movie quote from 300: “Spartans, tonight, we dine in hell!” That’s not exactly what we’re going for with this life lesson but one thing we can take away from the Spartans here is that they ate together. In Ancient Greece, there was a tradition known as Syssitia and part of that would emphasize men – both young and old – dining together. The idea was those who trained together, fought together and broke bread together would build the strongest bonds. Nowadays, we’ve become more and more disconnected at the dinner table. Whether it’s a first date or a night out for a family of four, someone is bound to pull out their phone at some point. We bond less and less face-to-face and spend more time plugged into the internet. A new study has shown how a more connected population is suffering from all sorts of mental health issues – especially due to social media. What we can learn here it to disconnect from tech and reconnect with each other when we’re dining. Never Give Up If there was one rule Spartan soldiers knew, it was to never give up. Yielding in battle was equated to cowardice. If a Spartan did surrender or at any point voluntarily gave up in a fight, they’d be shamed in such extremes that they’d contemplate – and often commit – suicide. One gruesome, yet telling story one of a young boy who never relented through the point of his own death: “The boys make such a serious matter of their stealing, that one of them, as the story goes, who was carrying concealed under his cloak a young fox which he had stolen, suffered as the animal to tear out his bowels with its teeth and claws, and died rather than have his theft detected,” says Ruatta. While that’s extreme side, we can learn a lesson here about determination. While many of us set goals, we sometimes get derailed for a variety of reasons. Procrastination is a popular method of delay. Sometimes we get distracted as our attention spans have been tested by technology. And many of us don’t like the pains of failure or rejection, which is one of the most common reason for not seeing things through. What we can learn from the Spartans is to be a little more determined through to the finish line in pursuit of goals.
Five Minutes With: Jay Williams, Inspiring NBA Superstar Who Overcame All Odds
Jay Williams was one of the brightest college basketball stars of a generation, winning the National Championship with Duke in 2001 and being named National Player of the Year in 2002. But his life turned on a dime in 2003. Not long after being drafted in the first round by the Chicago Bulls, the 21 year old suffered a devastating motorcycle accident where he nearly lost his left leg. While the injury derailed Williams’ playing career, it also served as an opportunity for him to pivot. The blessing in disguise has allowed him to find success as an ESPN analyst, a motivational speaker and now a New York Times’ best-selling author. He's also featured in an eight-part YouTube Original documentary series, Best Shot, which is executive produced by LeBron James and Maverick Carter. As he finished up his role in the series, we caught up with Williams to talk about what he learned from his life-changing experience. Goalcast: What was your mindset like right after the injury? Did your life kind of flash before your eyes? Jay Williams: For any 21 one year old, their life would flash before their eyes when they almost kill themselves. I don’t think I had a mindset after my injury. I was lost. RELATED: Why Embracing Your Challenges Will Intensify Your Mental Strength Everything that I had worked my entire life for and that I had finally achieved was suddenly gone and it was because of my doing to myself, not a random accident or somebody else’s mistake. It was my mistake. It was as if I was hovering in space. I had no idea where I was or how to plant my feet because I had no idea who I was anymore. GC: How difficult was it going from being so healthy, strong and athletically gifted to being limited physically? JW: My hand speed is still really fast and my first step is really fast -- in some ways I still feel like that player I was when I was younger. I feel like I can relate to everyone in that our bodies naturally change as we get older. For me, it just happened a lot sooner. When you see something on the court, the 20-year-old body in me would’ve jumped on it. After my injury, I had a 45-year-old body at 21. If I would see something, by the time I jumped on it, they’ve already made two moves. I had to accept my new body and learn how to recalibrate and readjust. It taught me a valuable lesson that everyone needs to learn. You may not be able to do things the same way as you did a year ago, but that doesn't mean you can’t be effective. GC: A lot of people get down following a serious injury. Whether it’s a CrossFitter tweaking a shoulder or a casual soccer player tearing an ACL, it’s hard not to feel like your body has let you down a little bit. What advice do you have for someone who is in that mind state? JW: Life is all about perspective. It’s easy for people to have a limited perspective when you’re going through something like an injury. There’s a tendency to let your mind drift to the negative. If you are forced to have a moment where you have to stop, try to surround yourself with as much positive trajectory as possible. Think about what you’re going to do and how you’re going to do it. Put together a strategy, and yes that strategy will change as you’re going through it. Focus your mind on the solution instead of what happened or why you are stuck. Everyone will have that “why me” moment, but the more you’re stuck to it, the more you’ll start giving excuses. The quicker you can strategize how you to get out of it, the faster you can advance towards your goal. GC: What’s the key to recovering from serious injury from a physical perspective? JW: You have to play the game within the game, within the game. We are metric driven people and like to see outcome. When I came out of my injury, I wanted to gain full flexibility of my knee. My leg was straight for eight months, so I had to do a series of small goals to meet my end goal of full flexibility. You have to create building blocks to reach your main target. GC: And what about mentally? Some people wonder if they’ll ever be normal again whereas you recovered and more. JW: You are the sum of the five people you spend the most time with. Every company has a board that meets regularly to discuss with the CEO where the company was, where it is now and where it’s going in the future. If you’re the CEO, who is on your board? Your board is the different verticals of your life. Is your physical therapist on your board? Surround yourself with uplifting people. Find those who have gone through a similar recovery to yours and start a text chain. You are the sum of those around you. I continue to surround myself with people who will help better me as a person. GC: Sometimes success isn’t how we envision it. For you, maybe at the time, you figured you’d get back on the court and thrive again but looking at your life now, you’re successful in a completely different realm. Can you share some advice on kind of rolling with the punches a little bit, taking what life gives you but still finding a way to succeed -- even if it isn’t how you originally envisioned? JW: When I was 13 years old playing in the 17 and up league, my basketball team had a chance to play against a team with all these great players. I was 13 and they were all 17 and I was getting my head smashed in. We were down 40 points in the second quarter and my coach called a time out. I was defeated and he told me, “you will never quit. This is a learning opportunity -- this is a learning opportunity for me and most importantly for you. Are you going to quit because you are getting your head smashed in?” It forced me to find a way to get back into this game as if we were tied and really fight for it. This is what life is all about. I don’t measure success the same way others might. Someone said I’m not really a success story because I didn’t come back to the NBA. I said, “why did I need to come back to the NBA to be a success story?” I’m a success story because I found a way through psychologically. I see success stories as going through experiences that help you learn about where you want to be and the person you want to be. GC: Can you talk about your depression and the darkness? How did you get through it? JW: The biggest part of my depression wasn’t about me, it was more so about the people around me that I let down. It was the sensation of looking at the people I cared most about in my life, who sacrificed the most for me to get to where I was. I had to own the feeling that I was the reason we weren’t all able to achieve what I was about to achieve. I watched my mother and father work so hard every day and accomplish so much. I went from being able to provide for my family like never before to being laid down on my back and not having any functionality of my legs. It was a humbling, scary, depressing, emotional roller coaster of feelings. Who really knows who they are when they’re 21 years old? It’s an ongoing process for us all, so at such a young age to be known my entire life for what I did and not really reflect on who I was or what I stood for felt like being lost in space. The most challenging part was the vulnerability with the sense of being lost. You start picking up the pieces by re-diagraming the puzzle. I had to take something negative and turn it into something positive. I was chasing this person who I was before, but that’s not who I am now. This was my opportunity to have a fresh start and realign myself with some pillars that I want to stand for in my life. The subtle change in my mindset was what made a difference for me. GC: If you could go back in time and change things -- prevent the accident, change the course of your life -- would you do that? JW: No, I wouldn’t change a thing. My life has happened exactly the way it’s supposed to happen. I would not be the person I am today, trying to impact change to the degree that I’m doing it if I hadn’t gotten hurt. I don’t know if I would’ve had the mental capacity to be this aware at 36 if I hadn’t gone through the hell I went through to get to today. GC: In general, if you could offer three keys to success, what would they be? JW: Most importantly, you have to understand your why. Your “why” can change throughout different stages of life. You have to know why you want to wake up each day. Second, your board is important. If you understand your why, you need to surround yourself with people who understand your why. They are your board. Finally, while you’re on this course and you understand your why and develop your board, always take time out of each and every day to stop and think about why you’re here. Think about things that have happened throughout the course of your day. It’s easy to get lost in the glitz and glamor or the muck of life. It’s important to take just ten minutes to quietly think about what has happened throughout the your day, the people who have come into your life, or just stop to hear the wind blow the leave. If you don’t take that moment to stop and think, why are you even here?
We Spoke to Pro Climber Sasha DiGiulian About Overcoming Mental Obstacles
Climbing a mountain is often used as an analogy of taking steps toward success. For professional climber Sasha DiGiulian, it’s both a metaphor and a reality as she scales some of the biggest faces in the world.While climbing may seem like it’s mostly a physical exercise, as DiGiulian tells us, you have to be impeccably strong mentally to make it to the top.After a scenic drive from Denver to Vail, we caught up with her at the GoPro Mountain Games in Vail Colorado, an event sponsored by GMC. Here is some of the wisdom she shared with us:Goalcast: What attracts you to climbing?Sasha DiGiulian: There are so many reasons that I love climbing. For one, it’s an input-output formula: what you put into it is what you get out. It’s a mental and physical experience.You are not only working your body but also your mind, to solve these puzzle pieces of what enables you to get to the top. It’s also an amazing gateway to experience the outdoors.GC: It’s easy to see a lot of the physical challenge you face but what are some of the mental ones?SDG: Not knowing if you’re capable of doing something. When you’re trying to climb, initially it can feel impossible.And the mountain is going to be standing there whether or not you succeed, so you’re constantly fighting with yourself. You’re not competing with anyone else except these natural elements and yourself.GC: How do you mentally prepare yourself when you get ready to climb?SDG:I’m on the Red Bull team and we recently had a Performance under Pressure camp, which was all about training the mental side for sports performance.What’s helped a lot is ice baths and breathing exercises, learning to control my heart rate and learning to be in control of my mind.It’s practicing recreating tense situations – like interacting with a grizzly bear or machine gun drills that we did, for example – and using the skills that we learned, so when I’m out there climbing, I have the skills to be mentally strong.GC: Your job requires a lot of your mind and body, so you constantly have to be ‘on’ and engaged. How do you like to turn it off and recharge? SDG: I definitely recharge by having moments of solitude. I see my job as being this externally focused, engaged personality whether it’s climbing or the public relations part of the job.When I’m home, I like to meditate on my own. I use Headspace, which is a cool app. I also like yoga.GC: Do you ever have the fear of failure and how do you deal with it?SDG: For sure. The fear of failure exists in all of us. It’s just about how we deal with it. There are days where I feel weighed down, like I don’t even know what I’m doing. Thoughts roll around like “what’s the point of climbing?” or “what’s the significance to me?”How I recommend to get through it is to bring it back to what are you passionate about doing? And what you believe in. Then I remember that where I feel most at home and where I feel most confident about myself is just climbing and not thinking about those negative “why” questions, which aren’t helpful.GC: A lot of people are scared to step outside of their boundaries because they might fail or fall short of their goal. What advice do you have for people who are thinking like that?SDG:If you’re afraid of stepping beyond your boundaries because you’re afraid to fail, the truth is you’ll never know until you try. You can stay in a state of stagnancy and not really change anything or you can expose yourself to failure and then expose yourself to success.GC: I’ve been in a GMC Sierra Denali for the weekend and I’ve been immersed in the culture for a few days now, taking in the epic scenery, listening to some rock climbing podcasts on the Apple Car Play and watching you work in The Rockies. Although you have a cool line of work that many people would trade their desk job for, everyone has stresses that aren’t always visible. What are some of the things that stress you out? SDG:What stresses me out is when I have bad days and I feel like I’m not where I want to be physically or where I need to be mentally. That ranges from my personal life to my professional life. I think we all have our ups and downs, and that’s normal. What I’ve learned is to be kind to yourself and accept the process to life. That’s the key.
This Man's Inspiring Journey Will Encourage You to Turn Adversity Into a Powerful Life Advantage
For many people, the thought of paralysis – losing function of any limbs – is petrifying. For Aron Anderson, it became a reality at just nine years of age. As daunting as it was, he’s managed to turn this adversity into an advantage. It’s never limited him as he scales mountains (like Kilmanjaro), swims the seas (Sea of Aland) and adventures to places very few people go – in a wheelchair or not. His latest achievement was winning his second consecutive Red Bull Wings For Life global championship. We caught up with him after his big win to chat about his story and hear some words of inspiration. Goalcast: You lost the ability to walk when you were nine years old. What was your mind state at the point? Aron Anderson: After having surgery for cancer at nine years old, I was forced to use a wheelchair to move around. At first, it was really hard on me, but the thing that brought my life energy back was sports. There, I found my place and something that I really loved doing and was pretty good at. The first sport I started was athletics, which later led me to compete at the 2008 Paralympics in Beijing. You’ve turned a tough situation into such a positive. At what point did you change and decide that you’re no longer going to be “trapped” or confined by the wheelchair? Pretty early on, I decided that the wheelchair was something positive. The wheelchair gave me a second shot at life. If it wouldn't have been for the surgery, I would be dead today so I chose to let the wheelchair give me perspective on life and see it as something positive that made it possible for me to do sports. What advice do you have for someone who is facing a tough situation – whether it’s at work, with their health or elsewhere – and can’t quite reframe it? What advice can you share with them to help them see the positive light? Perspective! Life is not about what happens to you but how you choose to react to it. I know it is such a cliché but at the same time it’s true. And I think getting perspective on your situation is a big key to that. They say that progress in life equals happiness when you're in a tough spot. Setting micro-goals is something that has really helped me to see progress in my life when I have been down. Did you ever use anything like meditation or listen to motivational speakers? Yes! I think meditation is a great tool. The last few months I've been experimenting with HRV-meditation using the Innerbalance app. That really helps me to relax when I'm all stressed out. As a motivational speaker myself, I listen to many of my colleagues to give myself a boost in the right direction and to improve my own speaking. When you went on your first adventure, was it frustrating because you were physically limited or was it liberating that you were trying? My first adventure was to become the first person in a wheelchair to climb Mount Kebnekaise (the highest mountain of Sweden). On the way up, it was sometimes really frustrating seeing people who were event close to my fitness level walking past me without any problem at all. But the feeling to reach the summit after many, many hours or really hard work made it feel even more rewarding. I think our achievement means so much more to us when we really have to work for them! You often speak about doing “whatever it takes.” How do you push yourself to that point? Many people shy away from hitting that boundary. I have a mantra with three things that I repeat to myself whenever I'm close to giving up. They are: Micro goals. Is the something like a light post or marker that I could use as my goal right now instead of the real goal that feels too far away. Why? Why am I really doing this? I remind myself of my reason to push myself even harder. I do many of my races to raise money for kids with cancer and that is always a very compelling why when I'm having a hard time. Thankfulness. I try to find something to be thankful about when I'm having a tough time. When I skied to the South Pole last winter, I brought a picture of me and my friend Saga. In that picture, she doesn't have any hair on her head since she’s going through a similar kind of cancer that I had as a kid. She's still the most awesome and happy girl ever and that really gave me perspective to keep going even though I was really feeling sorry for myself. Thinking of Saga made me thankful! What was the most challenging thing you’ve ever done – either physically or mentally? Making it through cancer. Sometimes I refer to my time with the cancer as three years of mental training. That period in life made me who I am today and forced me to learn mental strategies to get through whatever life throws at me. There are many people out there in the world who are dealing with forms of paralysis. What advice do you have to share with them about being mentally strong and overcoming this physical challenge? Accept your situation. I think that’s always the first step. To accept what abilities you have and then to choose to make the most out of them. Being in a wheelchair is not the end of life. You can do a lot of things and find avenues where you can really excel. What do you say to the people who are fully healthy and maybe take something as basic as movement for granted? Be thankful! It's so easy to forget how fortunate you are to have a fully functional body until the day that you don't. I have very limited function in my legs but I still remind myself every night before going to bed how thankful I am about the ability that I have in my body. Do that too and you will be happier!
