Jesse Iwuji is a man with a vision. From opening multiple businesses to climbing the ranks of NASCAR drivers, his belief in the power of his goals have always empowered him to accomplish big things through every difficulty.
“When you have that vision, that’s a God-given vision. So you have it now and all that vision is is just telling you that the deal is done. In the future, at some point, you don’t know what point that is, the deal is done. You’ve already accomplished it,” he says. “So why would we quit at any point along the journey? Why would you quit when you literally just got guaranteed that it’s coming true?”
Jesse uses this mindset to keep grinding in pursuit of his dreams. He knows he will encounter challenges and hard times, but he also knows that they are preparing him for the realization of his vision.
“To get to that destination, to get to that final point, it’s going to be dark, you’re going to go through dark times. You’re going to have a lot of setbacks. Well, these setbacks are set-ups for big comebacks,” he says. “So stay through it, stay the course.”
Jesse also relies on his circle of friends and influences during these tough times. Having the right people around you is key to getting to the place you want to be.
“Having good circles around you is very very important,” he says. “I’m talking about a circle of people who are like-minded, who are trying to elevate their lives too, or have elevated their lives.”
Spending time with a group of people who have the same mindset, no matter their industry or type of accomplishments, gives Jesse access to experience and knowledge that can help him succeed.
“I try to surround myself with people who are doing amazing things. I can learn so much from them,” he says. “They’ve elevated their life to another level and so they understand the concepts that it takes to get there. When you can learn those concepts, learn those skill sets from people, you can apply it to anything else in life.”
A few times in his journey, he struggled to find others who were working as hard to reach their goals. Rather than give up, he chose to find inspiration from a variety of motivational speakers.
“And if I just have their knowledge seeping into my head on a daily basis, that’s what’s going to allow me to take my life to the next level. I did that for years,” he says. “I just let their knowledge, let their skill sets, let their experiences seep into me and mold me so I could become more powerful and go out there and crush it.”
If you really want to have circles that push you to be your best, Jesse says, you should always seek to be the lowest on the totem pole of the group you choose.
“Whatever group you’re in, you should be at the bottom of that group,” he says. “You should be the dumbest or not the most wealthy. Whatever it is, you can from there learn from everybody. The moment you’re on top of your group, it’s time to move on to the next.”
While you don’t have to cut off the people you’ve outgrown, it is important to limit the amount of time you spend together. People are like sponges. The more time you spend with someone who isn’t motivated, the greater the chances of losing your momentum will be.
“You’re going to start becoming like them. And if you don’t have enough people in your circle who are trying to elevate, you’re going to eventually average out to everyone in that group,” Jesse says. “So you’ve got to start removing the folks in that group who are not trying to do something. And it’s tough.”
These people are often family or good friends, so you don’t want to destroy the relationship. Instead, start small. Don’t call, text, or hang out with them every day. Make room instead for the people who are where you want to be.
“At the end of the day, it’s your life and you don’t want to look back on it at the end and say, ‘Man, I wish I would’ve accomplished this,’” he says. “You don’t want that shoulda, coulda. You don’t want any regrets.”
Catch the full story here, where we discuss how challenges prepare you for success, what it means to be First, Only Different, and why you should always be a problem solver above all else.
You can connect with Jesse on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
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