When you envision a badass, who or what comes to mind?
Your green-haired grandma, who won't take crap from anyone? Perhaps your friend who always finds a way to accomplish what he wants, no matter what obstacles he faces? What about your favorite leader, who seems to captivate the crowd with her confidence, while at the same time, inspiring you to become a much better version of yourself?
There's a big difference between a badass, and an ass. A badass can move mountains, and moves people to become better versions of themselves. An ass just walks over them.
Vanessa and I are always looking for badasses, and running from asses.
Are You A Badass?
We all have a badass inside. It's that deeply passionate, confident, driven version of ourselves.
You might live in your badassery most of the day. Or, it might have been decades since you revealed that part of you.
I've thought a lot about the people I've known over the years, whom I would consider badasses. They have six common characteristics, which make them stand out, and often, stand on top.
As I reflected on these characteristics, it became obvious that anyone can become more of a badass, including you!
Are You a Badass? B – Bold
A badass doesn't waste time thinking about what to do, and doesn't talk herself out of doing it. She comes up with a thought or idea, and goes after it. Yet, she speaks and acts in a way that also adds value. She sincerely cares about others.
Someone who speaks or acts on whatever she thinks, without caring how it might affect others, will just be seen as a bi†©h (or an a$$hole). But a badass speaks and acts aggressively, with the intention to improve the lives of others. She's a good person.
A badass won't let her friends complain about their spouses to her, because she knows it doesn't serve them, or herself. For that matter, she doesn't have time or patience for gossip of any kind.
She doesn't tell her friend “it's okay” that she ate junk food for the fifth night in a row, just to make her feel better. Instead, she tells her to stop eating crap before she ends up with diabetes.
Being bold can feel a little scary at first, but once you realize how much more of an impact you can have, you'll gain confidence in your boldness. After all, it's hard to imagine a timid badass, isn't it?
Are You a Badass? A – Authentic
When you're bold, and you're authentic, you speak and act in alignment with your values. Others listen and say, “Dang! The truth hurts, but you're right!”
Vanessa and I lived together before we got married, and I remember my friend Deb Carr calling me out on it. She felt strongly that we shouldn't be living together.
It hurt at the time. I felt defensive, but she was right! She was badass (Deb, if you ever read this, I just wanted to say “thank you” for being true to yourself and your values).
Of course, to be authentic, you have to hold yourself to the same standards you expect in others. If you want to be a credible influencer in health and fitness, you have to eat well, exercise, and live a healthy lifestyle.
If you tell other guys to love and respect their wives, and then yell at yours, and expect her to be your servant, you won't have much respect from other guys for very long. Instead of being seen as a badass, you'll just be seen as a hypocrite.
A badass network marketing professional, doesn't tell others to teach classes or host parties, while she sits at home, waiting for her team to do the work. She steps up and does what she expects others to do.
Being a badass comes from an overwhelming conviction in your beliefs.
That conviction supercharges your confidence, inspiring others with the heart you wear on your sleeve, and the example you set for them.
Are You a Badass? D – Decisive
He isn't always right with his decisions, but he believes it's better to decide and move on, than waste time and energy being in limbo.
A badass isn't afraid to admit he was wrong. He knows that's how he learns, and he has too much confidence to be shaken by making mistakes.
When he realizes he's wrong, he quickly admits it, and decides on a new strategy.
A badass gets more done because he makes more decisions in a day than most people make in a month. With each decision, he moves closer to his goals.
Are You a Badass? A – Action-Oriented
A badass takes action. She doesn't wait around. She works hard, plays hard, vacations hard. Whatever she does, she does with purposeful action.
The non-badass excuses away success. She comes up with reasons why the badass is lucky, or more talented.
The non-badass searches for excuses while the badass searches for solutions.
A badass marches toward her goals everyday, and gets what she wants from her business, her body, and her relationships. She doesn't wait to start her diet until Monday. She starts now.
She doesn't wait until the time is just right, until she feels like taking action, or until some sign from above hits her between the eyes like bird poop landing on her head.
She acts, and with action she finds inspiration.
Are You a Badass? S – Strong
Strength comes from pain, setbacks, and failures. A badass isn't born strong. He gets strong by taking action and screwing up. He gains strength from making bad decisions, and learning from them, as well as from good decisions and achieving success.
Because a badass takes massive action, and makes big decisions, he's more likely to encounter huge failures. Yet, he sees those failures as learning experiences along the path to success. And with each major setback, he gains strength for the future.
Strength also comes from taking consistent, productive, daily action toward his goals. He surrounds himself with other successful people, and keeps the success-sucking, toxic naysayers at arms length.
His strength grows every week because of how he feeds his body, feeds his mind, and who he surrounds himself with.
Are You a Badass? S – Successful
Of course, when you put it all together, a badass achieves enormous success. She marches through each stage of the journey toward her goals with unwavering commitment. Though the road is rarely easy, she never stops. If it wasn't difficult, she'd probably die of boredom.
She may have moments when she's tempted to give up, but she doesn't. And because a badass is never totally satisfied, once she achieves her goal, she sets her sights on the next one.
Of course, before moving onto the next big goal, she celebrates her achievement with badassery as well.
Get on with your B-A-D-A-S-S Self
A badass often achieves more success in a year than most people do in a decade. You can be a badass.
You can be a badass in your career, in your relationships, in your network marketing business, and of course, you can build a badass body. A great place to start is by reading one of our favorite books, You Are A Badass by Jen Sincero.
Share this post with a badass friend, and tell him or her, “You are a BADASS!”
