Are you measuring your success by who goes on a nicer vacation? Are you measuring your success based on who is a better parent?
“When you get caught up in that game and you get caught up in that cycle of keeping up with the Joneses, it’s hard to break out of it.”
We discover newfound freedom when we realize that we’re not competing against anybody else in our journey and that everybody’s journey is different.
“I came in last place today. I came in last place every day, but I am not competing against anybody. I am competing against being my healthiest. Competing against being a better person today than I was yesterday,” he said.
According to Yalden, sometimes we stress ourselves out by trying to be who we may never be – or by trying to be somebody that we are not.
Listen – sometimes we stress ourselves out – with trying to be who we may never be. Sometimes we stress ourselves out with trying to be somebody that we are not. No matter what age we are, it’s really important to get to know who you are and to become comfortable with who you are not.
“I am not one of the top fitness competitors in my gym,” he said. “That’s OK. I don’t need to be. My goal is to show up every day, be consistent, do the best I can – and to cheer, support and encourage other people in their workouts.”
Because he pushed a bit harder in today’s workout, Yalden said he got an epic feeling of fulfillment and joy – and plenty of energy to tackle his day. Coming in last on a graph made absolutely no difference.
He cited good friend and fellow author Richie Contartesi and his theory about the three percent.
“You grind every day. You give it your best – you get up early – you really push towards those goals – you are part of that three percent. Anybody can be part of that three percent. You make less excuses and you get the job done. That’s kind of like the BOOM.”
As Yalden wrote about in his Amazon bestseller, BOOM! One Word to Instantly Inspire Action, Deliver Rewards, and Positively Affect Your Life Every Day, the BOOM is a factor and an effect.
The BOOM factor would be getting up in the morning and going to work out even if you don’t feel like it – and the BOOM effect would be the rewarding feeling of having done it and given it your best.
“BOOM! One word changes everything,” he said.
How do you measure success every day? Are you measuring it by comparing yourself to others or are you measuring your success based on the plan you are exercising every day?
“Set a plan. Make sure the plan is clear. Take action. Let’s not complicate the big picture. Let’s simplify it – and I think you will be greatly successful.”
To find out more about Jeff Yalden, go HERE.
Subscribe to The BOOM Podcast HERE.
LISTEN to this episode of The BOOM Podcast.
GRAB your copy of BOOM!
JOIN the BOOM Nation Facebook group and share your BOOM moments.BOOM Podcast Episode 10: How Do You Measure Your Success?
Youth motivational speaker and Amazon bestselling author Jeff Yalden is a big believer in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy [CBT] because he can attest to its positive results in his own life.
Yalden has long been transparent about his own struggles with mental illness and dealing with major depression, bipolar II disorder and PTSD. He has been through major spinal cord fusion and recently became free of diabetes as a result of a lifestyle change following gastric sleeve surgery.
“I’m down 85 pounds and I’m feeling great,” he said, adding that he still goes through the peaks and valleys in life, just like everybody else.
In this episode of The BOOM Podcast, Yalden drills down on the topic of success – and specifically the question of how to measure success.
One of the takeaways from his counseling was that he was really dependent on being a numbers guy – calculating his success based on a spreadsheet: Was he losing a pound a week or two pounds a week or saving ten percent of his income – issues that everybody struggles with at times.
“If I would fail or not come close in one category, then it was like I just let go of everything else,” he said.
His therapist went to work with him on lessening his dependence on playing the numbers game with his progress.
The proving ground for the elimination of numbers-based tracking is at his fitness boot camp at iSi Elite Training in Garden City, South Carolina – not far from his home in Murrells Inlet. He simplified his approach by taking a much less rigid view of his progress there.
“My goal is to work out – to show up, to just be committed to doing my best – and to be consistent. That specifically was by goal back in January,” he said.
Many people in the gym wear a heart rate monitor, including Jeff. After every workout, he receives an email with his ranking for the day.
To be blunt, Yalden works his ass off at iSi – sometimes burning up to 1000 calories per hour class and easily twice as much as anybody else – but he noticed that he is always in last place.
“I gave it that 10 percent – I pushed a little bit harder today. I was sweating like crazy, my heart rate was up and I felt great. I still came in last place.”
But when he got home and saw the results, the realization hit him: Who cares?
“I am not competing and I think this is one of the messages that I want to share with you: Are you measuring your success in life in comparison to somebody else? Are you measuring your success by who lives in a bigger home – who drives a nicer car – who makes more money – who’s got a bigger boat?”
Are you measuring your success by who goes on a nicer vacation? Are you measuring your success based on who is a better parent?
“When you get caught up in that game and you get caught up in that cycle of keeping up with the Joneses, it’s hard to break out of it.”
We discover newfound freedom when we realize that we’re not competing against anybody else in our journey and that everybody’s journey is different.
“I came in last place today. I came in last place every day, but I am not competing against anybody. I am competing against being my healthiest. Competing against being a better person today than I was yesterday,” he said.
According to Yalden, sometimes we stress ourselves out by trying to be who we may never be – or by trying to be somebody that we are not.
Listen – sometimes we stress ourselves out – with trying to be who we may never be. Sometimes we stress ourselves out with trying to be somebody that we are not. No matter what age we are, it’s really important to get to know who you are and to become comfortable with who you are not.
“I am not one of the top fitness competitors in my gym,” he said. “That’s OK. I don’t need to be. My goal is to show up every day, be consistent, do the best I can – and to cheer, support and encourage other people in their workouts.”
Because he pushed a bit harder in today’s workout, Yalden said he got an epic feeling of fulfillment and joy – and plenty of energy to tackle his day. Coming in last on a graph made absolutely no difference.
He cited good friend and fellow author Richie Contartesi and his theory about the three percent.
“You grind every day. You give it your best – you get up early – you really push towards those goals – you are part of that three percent. Anybody can be part of that three percent. You make less excuses and you get the job done. That’s kind of like the BOOM.”
As Yalden wrote about in his Amazon bestseller, BOOM! One Word to Instantly Inspire Action, Deliver Rewards, and Positively Affect Your Life Every Day, the BOOM is a factor and an effect.
The BOOM factor would be getting up in the morning and going to work out even if you don’t feel like it – and the BOOM effect would be the rewarding feeling of having done it and given it your best.
“BOOM! One word changes everything,” he said.
How do you measure success every day? Are you measuring it by comparing yourself to others or are you measuring your success based on the plan you are exercising every day?
“Set a plan. Make sure the plan is clear. Take action. Let’s not complicate the big picture. Let’s simplify it – and I think you will be greatly successful.”
To find out more about Jeff Yalden, go HERE.
Subscribe to The BOOM Podcast HERE.
LISTEN to this episode of The BOOM Podcast.
GRAB your copy of BOOM!
JOIN the BOOM Nation Facebook group and share your BOOM moments.
Are you measuring your success by who goes on a nicer vacation? Are you measuring your success based on who is a better parent?
“When you get caught up in that game and you get caught up in that cycle of keeping up with the Joneses, it’s hard to break out of it.”
We discover newfound freedom when we realize that we’re not competing against anybody else in our journey and that everybody’s journey is different.
“I came in last place today. I came in last place every day, but I am not competing against anybody. I am competing against being my healthiest. Competing against being a better person today than I was yesterday,” he said.
According to Yalden, sometimes we stress ourselves out by trying to be who we may never be – or by trying to be somebody that we are not.
Listen – sometimes we stress ourselves out – with trying to be who we may never be. Sometimes we stress ourselves out with trying to be somebody that we are not. No matter what age we are, it’s really important to get to know who you are and to become comfortable with who you are not.
“I am not one of the top fitness competitors in my gym,” he said. “That’s OK. I don’t need to be. My goal is to show up every day, be consistent, do the best I can – and to cheer, support and encourage other people in their workouts.”
Because he pushed a bit harder in today’s workout, Yalden said he got an epic feeling of fulfillment and joy – and plenty of energy to tackle his day. Coming in last on a graph made absolutely no difference.
He cited good friend and fellow author Richie Contartesi and his theory about the three percent.
“You grind every day. You give it your best – you get up early – you really push towards those goals – you are part of that three percent. Anybody can be part of that three percent. You make less excuses and you get the job done. That’s kind of like the BOOM.”
As Yalden wrote about in his Amazon bestseller, BOOM! One Word to Instantly Inspire Action, Deliver Rewards, and Positively Affect Your Life Every Day, the BOOM is a factor and an effect.
The BOOM factor would be getting up in the morning and going to work out even if you don’t feel like it – and the BOOM effect would be the rewarding feeling of having done it and given it your best.
“BOOM! One word changes everything,” he said.
How do you measure success every day? Are you measuring it by comparing yourself to others or are you measuring your success based on the plan you are exercising every day?
“Set a plan. Make sure the plan is clear. Take action. Let’s not complicate the big picture. Let’s simplify it – and I think you will be greatly successful.”
To find out more about Jeff Yalden, go HERE.
Subscribe to The BOOM Podcast HERE.
LISTEN to this episode of The BOOM Podcast.
GRAB your copy of BOOM!
JOIN the BOOM Nation Facebook group and share your BOOM moments.
Minard is president and CEO of 
“I wanted to reach out to a friend I have great respect for,” said Yalden.
The Story of You is all about helping people transform adversity into adventure, and this is because he did that in his own life.
When he woke up in a jail cell at 17, his face was smashed in because of a beating he took as a result of an incident in a fast food drive-through where he rear-ended another vehicle. He said he was not only going down the wrong path, but he and his roommates were doing and selling every type of drug. Both of those roommates are now dead.
“I didn’t even know how I had gotten there,” he said. “I found out that my blood alcohol was so high that – normally when they read that on a report, they would just assume someone was dead from beyond alcohol poisoning.”
He had also been drugging, and the guy who beat the living daylights out of him had priors for assault.
Minard said that at the time he was still in a victim mindset, but this was rock-bottom. He was so scared that he really wanted to change his life. Slowly but surely, Minard started associating with positive people.
“I realized that I was going to end up dead – or I was going to end up killing somebody else from the way I was living my life.”
Jeff often says to his audiences that you don’t do drugs. Drugs do you.
In this fast-paced BOOM Podcast, Minard tells the story of his rise, Phoenix-like, from the ashes of failure and into the bright light of service, success and hope – from graduating from high school by the skin of his teeth to successfully completing college – to starting Dreamshine (with sister Amy) – and the eventual publication of his book, his speaking career and the launch of his podcast.
Some people think Minard just arrived on the scene as if out of thin air. Nothing could be further from the truth.
“The thing about my speaking and the book launch is that a lot of people don’t know that I had ten years before that of building a company from the ground up and starting Dreamshine. They thought I just came out of nowhere,” he said.
Minard said he is thankful for the adversity he has encountered in his life precisely because he was able to transform it into what took him on his adventure – and gave him the desire to help change the lives of others.
And Yalden notes that nothing changes if nothing changes.
“That’s part of the BOOM. It’s like something’s got to go off and you’ve got to suddenly take responsibility. You are not the victim. You are the victor.”
Minard said his college experience was not easy because, unlike many people, he did not have a photographic memory and learned differently.
But he came away with some awesome revelations.
“I learned that the true factors for success were perseverance, determination and grit,” Minard said.
Yalden asked Minard why some people call him “the man that never gives up.”
“I’m going to go after it harder than anyone else and longer. It’s the long game.”
Minard is a big believer in believing in something bigger than ourselves.
“That’s really what it’s all about, and so I get fired up my not giving up. I live by actions – and I think your actions speak for you. Your fruits speak for you much louder than words,” he said.
There is so much in this podcast: The value of family [Minard is married with 5 kids]. Celebrating small victories. Taking action. The power of purpose. It’s all here, including the story of how Mark met and eventually interviewed serial entrepreneur and four-time New York Times bestselling author, Gary Vaynerchuk.
Yalden was also a guest on Minard’s podcast last year.
Listen to the BOOM Podcast 
A leading youth motivational and mental health speaker for more than two decades, Yalden has addressed more than 4000 teen audiences in all 50 states, every province in Canada and 49 countries including Singapore and Vietnam.
His message has always been hard-hitting, bringing a world of actionable principles to the table and inspiring his audiences to take personal responsibility in all areas of their lives.
And now he has taken these principles and given them life in his book and in his podcast.
In this inaugural episode, Jeff explains with astonishing honesty and self-reflection where the BOOM comes from, what it means to him and why he decided to write the book.
“It’s pretty simple,” he said. “In this first episode, I want to come clean and give you guys a sense of where I have come from to where I am now, and how the BOOM really impacts everything I do.”
As he talked about in the book, coming to his 
About four years ago, Jeff went through a divorce which ended a 14-year marriage. Instead of placing the blame on anybody else, he went straight to the mirror and asked himself tough questions, coming to the realization that his mental health issues were much more severe than he thought them to be at the time.
Jeff was pre-diabetic and putting on weight. He said he knew what to do and what to eat, but was basically ignoring the warning signs.
“All of a sudden I was a full-fledged diabetic, but I still didn’t pay attention,” he said.
He vividly recalls the time he went to his parents’ house, physically exhausted and mentally drained and with his diabetes flaring up.
“I told them I felt like I was going to die and I didn’t want to die alone. They gave me some orange juice and something to eat, and I went home a few hours later.”
But his parents intervened that night. Jeff’s dad came to his house, woke him up, and called an ambulance for him. Jeff was a mess. His triglycerides were a jaw-dropping 2784, his blood sugar over 500 and his A1C level was 15.5.
“My endocrinologist said to me that at any moment something catastrophic was going to happen,” he said, adding that even despite these serious warning signs, he still didn’t make the necessary changes, citing his grueling speaking and travel schedule as a deterrent to a healthy lifestyle.
And that’s not all by any means. He endured a spinal cord fusion because of a CrossFit injury and was immobilized for six weeks.
“I couldn’t speak for almost four months and I ended up having a mental breakdown. My diabetes was flaring up and my depression got worse. I wanted to give up, and I did,” he said.
He quit speaking and got a 9-to-5 job, thinking at the time that he just wanted to have what he calls a normal job.
He packed up his office – his life – into cardboard boxes: Computer, fax machine, mementos, awards – even his varsity letters and photos – essentially getting rid of everything near and dear.
But something awesome began to happen when he started going back to counseling once a week.
“When I walked in there, I was emotionally broken. I was not the Jeff Yalden that many of you know. We started at the beginning and built a toolbox, and I began rewarding myself for small victories.”
As a result of building this toolbox, Jeff eventually made the decision to go home and restore his office and get back to doing what he loves.
This was his first 
Part of Yalden’s excitement is that BOOM! is already an Amazon bestseller, reaching number one in several categories – thanks to its preorder numbers. Another reason he is excited is the fact the he knows BOOM! will change your life if you apply the principles contained between its covers.
BOOM is a quick read – and there is an awesome reason for this.
“The average person only reads less than ten percent of a book – so I wrote a book 18000 words long. That’s it. I wanted it that way. I wanted you to read it – and then pass it on to a friend. That was my intention as I wrote this book,” Yalden said.
Jeff has been working on BOOM! since he went through a spinal cord fusion last year while also battling type 2 diabetes, losing 80 pounds along the way. He briefly retired from professional speaking, but has since come back stronger than ever, reestablishing his place among the best of the best.
“I am excited to get this book out there,” he said. “It is a book that is about celebrating little victories every single day.”
But what is the BOOM?
BOOM! is a revolutionary mindset that is about to bring awesome back into your life.
BOOM! is a factor and an effect.
The BOOM! is the jet fuel you need to be able to turn challenges into new opportunities and to reward yourself after every accomplishment and every plan successfully executed.
And in this book – Jeff will help you discover your BOOM!
By reading this book you will learn how to take control now and implement the BOOM! to make many positive changes in your life:
