Jocko Willink has recently become one of my favorite people. I discovered him a year or two ago on a Joe Rogan podcast talking about jiu jitsu, which I loved at the time because I had just started my own jiu jitsu journey. The former U.S. Navy Seal liutenant commander is incredibly well-rounded and even more impressively successful. He runs a podcast, a business management consultation service, and publishing house. In addition, he is a blackbelt jiu jitsu instructor, #1 New York Times Best Selling Author, and manufacturer of all things related to fitness.

In his book Extreme Ownership, he puts forth arguably the most empowering philosophy that exists: taking full responsibility for everything that impacts your mission and/or your team’s mission. By taking lessons he learned while serving abroad in the military and applying them to business in the homeland, Jocko explains how anybody and everybody can succeed in their field. The concept is simple: no excuses, no blaming, just ownership. If somebody misunderstood your instruction, you didn't explain it clearly enough or you didn't verify that they understood what you meant. If your team loses a game, you didn't prepare them well enough or hold them to a high enough standard for victory. Athletes, coaches, and support staff alike can all apply the lessons from this book to their life. Think of something that went wrong recently. Think of a time when everything was chaotic and there wasn't great structure. Maybe you thought your boss or your coach should have done things differently. But flip the ownership switch in your mind. What could YOU have done differently that would have helped your boss or your coach? How could YOU have solved those problems?

As a low-ranking member on a team, maybe you think there isn't much responsibility for you to own. Leaders, after all, bear much more responsibility. Wrong. Own everything you can to the fullest extent. Even if your sole responsibility is holding the door open for your team, do it to perfection. Be in the front of the line so that nobody has to wait for you to open the door. Look your teammates in the eye with a smile on your face so they appreciate your service. Maybe give a fist bump as they walk by to create comradery. A small task like holding the door open can still be done well; and that means you can own it.

Why is this important? Approaching life and sport with an internal locus of control gives you the power to take control of your life. It disallows the whiny excuses that are often made when failure occurs. This mentality of conflict-avoidance and finger-pointing will not only prevent you from improving. It will also affect your mental well-being. Deep down to the neurochemistry in your brain, your body knows if you are proud of yourself and your actions or not. By avoiding ownership and not taking responsibility, you will begin to stand with a timid posture. You will begin to speak with shame in your voice. You will struggle to look your peers in their eyes because you are lacking confidence. But if you take ownership – EXTREME ownership – of your life, you will be proud of yourself. That proudness will manifest itself through your mind, through your body, and through your actions. It is a compounding effect that will transpire into greatness, no matter where you are starting the journey from.

Think of what you want to achieve, where you want to be, how you want to be seen by others. Whoever that person is that you want to be, imagine how your ownership now will take you to that point. Contrast this thought with how cowardly decisions will take you farther away from that point. Remind yourself of these thoughts when things get hard and chaotic and remind yourself which path you want to go down.