Don’t Waste The Pain - Learn From It. 

It’s been a wonderful holiday for me and I hope it has for you too. But for a moment, can we get serious and introspective?

Imagine being a survivor of a concentration camp during world war II. You are held captive in horrible conditions, starved, and in danger of being murdered daily, and yet somehow you find meaning and purpose in your suffering.

That’s exactly what Victor Frankl in his book “Man’s Search For Meaning,” describes as he tells his personal experience in unbelievable hardship.

Most likely some of what you experienced this last year wasn't fun, but instead incredibly painful. Hopefully you had other moments of peace and joy that you can look back on as well.  

Regardless, I believe there is some meaning and lesson to be found in every experience of life, and my advice to you is to not waste it. 

• Don’t waste the pain - learn from it. 

• Don’t waste the failures and mistakes - learn from them.

• Don’t waste the triumphs and accomplishments - learn from them.

I am a huge fan of looking back introspectively at my life and experiences over the last year. Thankfully none of my hard times in 2023 amounted to that experienced by Frankl, quite the contrary 2023 was a good year.

My encouragement to all of us is simply to not shy away from looking back at all of it, the good and hard, and learning how we can move forward humbler, healthier, wealthier, & wiser in 2024.

If you are starting 2024 in great spirits, that’s amazing! But if 2023 has left scars that still haven’t healed, I want to encourage you to press on, there are still lessons to be learned and mountains to be climbed!

See you next Thursday and Happy New Year!

Geno Schmelzer,

P.S. Check out my brand new podcast “Can I Ask You A Question?

World class people are multifaceted. In each conversation we’ll dive into more than just their most public accomplishments, and into the everyday habits and values that we can all learn from to live a life truly marked by health, wealth, and wisdom.