The One Question Every Man Is Always Asking

Typically, when I tell people that I'm a fighter, they say something like Why would you want to voluntarily let someone else punch you in the face? Well, it certainly doesn't sound like a lot of fun when you say it like that. but it's a fair question.

Photo courtesy of JD Hancock at flickr.com

So here's why I fight.

Five or six years ago, I was reading Wild at Heart, by John Eldredge. Somewhere near the beginning of the book, he talks about a man's need to fight. He says that each man is born with an inherent need for battle for something.

In his small excerpt, he specifically mentions boxing. I remember reading it like it was yesterday. I set my book down and thought to myself Boxing. Could I do boxing? His words has touched on a question that had been burning in my soul my entire life. It wasn't specifically a question about boxing, but about my value. The question is Do I have what it takes? It's a question every man asks himself during nearly every stage of his life.

Do I have what it takes to get a college degree?

Do I have what it takes to overcome addiction?

Do I have what it takes to start my own business?

Do I have what it takes to love my wife and kids?  

Do I have what it takes to win a fight?

It was that question that drove me into boxing. I grew up in a home where I was always taught to avoid fighting at all costs, which I think was good. Avoiding fighting throughout school kept me out of trouble. But it left me with that burning question. When I read Eldredge's words, in Wild at Heart, I felt compelled to find the answer.

Five years later, I've learned a lot about fighting. I discovered that I do have what it takes to win. I was absolutely encouraged when I won my first fight.

But the true benefit of learning to fight was not what I expected.

A couple of years ago, I moved from trainee to trainer at my gym. Since then, I've found infinitely more satisfaction in helping other guys answer their Do I have what it takes questions. I've also begun mentoring a few young guys who have some non-fighting focused Do I have what it takes questions. Walking with other guys through their journeys has been one of the greatest honors of my life.

We all have these questions burning in us. When we begin looking for an answer, we almost never find what we think we were looking for. Typically the answers are significantly better than we could have ever hoped for.

Today's Question (Complete the sentence) Do I have what it takes to...

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