Praise for The Leap of Your Life
A must read for anyone who knows there's a larger life out there for them and is ready to create it!
Mark A. Lack, TV Host and Speaker
There's a lot of noise out there telling you what to do, and how to do it. Unfortunately, few people out there are living it. Tommy Baker is, and The Leap of Your Life will give you permission to take ownership of your life and never look back.
Ryan Michler, Founder of Order of Man
If you're ready to make that change, that shift, that decision that you know will change your life, but you don't know where to start, Tommy Baker is your answer. Tommy will guide and direct you through The Leap of Your Life. Stop waiting for your success, grab this opportunity to be guided by one of the best in the business. Leap!
Jay Nixon, Founder, Thrive Fitness
THE
LEAP
OF YOUR LIFE
HOW TO REDEFINE RISK, QUIT
WAITING FOR SOMEDAY, AND
LIVE BOLDLY
TOMMY BAKER
Cover image: technotr/iStockphoto
Cover design: Wiley
Copyright 2019 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.
Published simultaneously in Canada.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978) 646-8600, or on the Web at www.copyright.com. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, (201) 748-6011, fax (201) 748-6008, or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions.
Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Neither the publisher nor author shall be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, or other damages.
For general information on our other products and services or for technical support, please contact our Customer Care Department within the United States at (800) 762-2974, outside the United States at (317) 572-3993 or fax (317) 572-4002.
Wiley publishes in a variety of print and electronic formats and by print-on-demand. Some material included with standard print versions of this book may not be included in e-books or in print-on-demand. If this book refers to media such as a CD or DVD that is not included in the version you purchased, you may download this material at http://booksupport.wiley.com. For more information about Wiley products, visit www.wiley.com.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data has been applied for and is on file with the Library of Congress.
ISBN 9781119552536 (Hardcover)
ISBN 9781119552529 (ePDF)
ISBN 9781119552437 (ePub)
For both of my incredible grandmothers, Marjorie and Pepita. For
giving me the gift of knowledge, and the belief of possibility.
Introduction
What are you waiting for?
Theres a leap in your life youve been putting off, and its killing you. Maybe not literally, but its killing your spirit. Its killing your belief, your enthusiasm, and the thrill of this one experience we call life. Its killing your energy, vitality, and hope for the future. When those are gone, you might as well be the walking dead.
Its draining your life force, and every day you put it off, youre reminded of how it hasnt happened for you yet. And now youre questioning if it ever will.
The consequences of not taking your leap are real, and they stare back at you every morning in the mirror. Theyre reflected in bank statements. Theyre felt in your body language during time with the people you love. Theyre wrapped in not on long exhales as you aim to keep it all together.
But worst of all, theyre reflected in this tireless voice in the back of your head that wont shut up, asking:
Is this it? Is this all thats meant for me?
Now, does this mean Im certain your life isnt working? No, not at all. Our lives can be working, and we can still have a leap we know we must take. Sometimes, this can be the most precarious circumstance of all: we have everything weve been told we should want, yet something is still missing.
And Im here to tell you whats missing is your leap. But before we get into it all, lets define what a leap is.
The Ingredients of the Leap
You may be wondering: What exactly constitutes a leap? You may be thinking its abandoning Western life and moving to an ashram in the Himalayas, quitting your accounting gig, launching the new app or parachuting out of a perfectly good airplane at 15,000 feet.
Although all of those sound like fun to me and could be leaps, they dont have to be yours. Sometimes, the leap we have to take seems inconsequential to others and yet leads to a bold moment of no return: reaching out to a recruiter with the hopes of transitioning out of our job, having the tough conversation with our partner, launching the side hustle or finally clicking record and spreading a message with the world.
What matters, then is not necessarily the magnitude of the leap. Its simply that it matters to you, and includes the following:
- You feel a pull. You cant explain it, but you feel pulled toward your leap. Much like a magnetic charge, you can try to avoid it, but it comes back stronger than ever.
- Theres a decision. Your leap involves a decision youve been putting off and will require you to make a bold choice.
- The stakes are high. Your leap matters. There are real consequences to not making it. There are also endless possibilities by stepping into it.
- Theres an element of risk. Your leap has a degree of risk, and for now youve chosen to play it safe at the expense of your own fulfillment.
- Not doing it will hurt more than doing it. Lastly, even though you havent taken your leap yet, not doing so hurts more than any consequence or perceived failure of taking it.
So, againwhat are you waiting for?
If youre here, I already know youre waiting for something. Every day you put it off, a part of you withers away, knowing your dreams are on hold as you attempt to live someone elses life. (I use the word attempt deliberately, because no matter how hard we try, itll never quite pan out.)
Playing It Safe Means a Lifetime of Regret
As we begin this adventure, I want you to treat it as such. Im going to take a wild guess youve read books with similar themes, but you havent read
Next page