What was so inspiring to me about this dog was not only his resiliency, but refusal to limit himself. How many of us, if dealt a similar card, would pity ourselves and stop doing activities we love because we don't think we can. Never mind that's just our brain talking to us. The brain is a powerful organ, but it is also deceptive. You see it in sports all the time: enter talented athlete, put in a bag of nerves and self-doubt, and you come up with a failure at the highest levels (see Vince Young, for example). This is your mind limiting you. Your mind lies to you.
I see it all the time, not just in the gym, but in my professional career. Some young attorney thinks he can't possibly try a case against an older opponent for no comprehensible reason. He just thinks he can't do it, so he doesn't do it. He gets beaten, and is OK with it. The concept of the movie is interesting, but I believe you can harness your potential not by some drug that allows you to access other parts of your brain; you just need to let that limiting factor go and not be afraid of what you might accomplish. Don't believe the lies you tell yourself. Empty your cup, and don't fear success. Whether you train for a marathon or a jury trial, what you really need to train is your mind. That organ can help you immensely, but you must allow it to without letting the lies in. I may not be the most brilliant lawyer to pass the bar, but I refuse to put a limit on myself without jumping in feet first.
JD
John D. Duncan is president of J.D. Duncan, PC, founding partner of Prater, Duncan & Craig, LLC in Newnan, Georgia, and is Esquire by Day. You can find him at www.jdduncanlaw.com, or follow him on twitter and Facebook.
