“How much pain does it take to finally wake you up?”
I am not talking about a stubbed toe or a long day at work.
I am talking about the kind of pain that makes you sit up, stare at your life, and say…
“What am I doing? Why am I still here? Why am I living like this?”
Everyone hits that point at some stage in life.
Everyone hits their pain threshold.
But only a few people actually do something about it.
Those few become entrepreneurs, leaders, builders, and owners.
The others stay stuck on a loop and call it “normal.”
Let’s talk about the moment that changes everything.
The moment pain becomes the spark that forces you into motion.
The moment you either rise or remain average.
Because I promise you this.
Pain will not go away until you listen to it.
My Pain Threshold Hit Me Hard. And It Hit Me Cold.
Let me give you a picture you will not forget.
I was living in a run down college house on Hillsborough Street.
The place was so drafty even the homeless guys who broke in during the day to warm up would complain. One day I walked back into the house and there they were, sitting comfortably, watching my TV, shaking their heads like, “Man, this place is cold.”
Imagine that.
Even the people squatting in your house are telling you the house sucks.
On top of that, it was an icy cold winter.
Our job at the time kept us outside in freezing air for more than a month.
No warm office. No break room. Just cold, wet, dangerous work that barely paid enough to buy groceries.
Back then, five dollars an hour was the norm.
Five dollars.
You want to talk about financial pressure?
Try living on that with rent, gas, food, and the freezing winter slapping your face daily.
Humiliating? Yes.
Frustrating? Absolutely.
A turning point? Without question.
That cold winter broke me open in a different way.
It forced me to take myself seriously.
It forced me to stop thinking small.
It forced me to get angry at my situation and hungry for something better.
Pain will do that to you if you let it.
You can run from pain.
Or you can let pain wake you up.
Pain Is a Hammer. And If It Does Not Wake You Up, It Will Bury You.
Let’s be real here.
Financial pressure is one of the biggest hammers life has.
If financial pain does not wake you up, nothing will.
I felt stuck back then.
Stuck in the cold.
Stuck at the bottom.
Stuck in a paycheck that controlled my future.
Stuck watching other people win while I was barely surviving.
Then I got lucky.
I got a mentor.
A mentor who did not sugarcoat anything.
A mentor who slapped my mindset around.
A mentor who told me the problem was not the weather, or the job, or the paycheck.
It was me.
My attitude.
My belief.
My inability to see my own potential.
Pain woke me up.
A mentor showed me the direction.
And I got to work.
Most people get the pain.
Very few get the wake-up call.
Even fewer take it seriously.
Pain Threshold Part Two: The “I’m Done” Moment
Fast forward.
I am older.
More experienced.
More skilled.
More responsibility.
Making companies money.
Solving their problems.
Training their people.
Carrying teams on my back.
Then one day I hit threshold number two.
And let me tell you, that one came with fury.
I was working as a franchisee for Window Gang, fixing everything, leading teams, carrying the weight, and pouring my heart into someone else’s company.
Everyone believed in me.
My team.
My customers.
My colleagues.
The markets.
Everyone but the leadership I was working under.
They did not see me.
They did not respect the value.
They did not support the dreams.
They were the ceiling.
Not the platform.
And that ceiling became pain.
Big pain.
So I said the words that changed my life.
“I’m taking my skills and my team and building my own empire.”
That was the moment I stepped into my true entrepreneurial spirit.
That was the moment I stopped fixing other people’s problems and started building my own destiny.
That was the moment pain became power.
If you have ever had that moment, you know it.
It hits your stomach like a punch.
It hits your mind like electricity.
It hits your heart like a truth you cannot ignore.
That is your pain threshold snapping.
And that is the moment you rise.
Most People Are Living Right at the Edge of Their Pain Threshold. And They Do Nothing.
Let me tell you something you already know.
Pain is everywhere.
People are:
• Underpaid
• Overworked
• Burned out
• Frustrated
• Stuck
• Tired
• Fed up
• Scared
• Unfulfilled
• Dreaming of more but doing nothing about it
And what shocks me is how few people make a move.
It is the “devil you know is better than the devil you don’t” mentality.
Translation:
“I am miserable here. But at least it is familiar misery.”
“That mindset keeps more people trapped than poverty ever has.”
People complain about not making enough money.
People complain about housing costs.
People complain about gas prices.
People complain about being stuck.
But here is the truth.
Those things are not changing.
Not for you.
Not for the last generation.
Not for the next.
The only thing that changes is you.
If you climb a mountain, you get a better view.
If you stay on the ground, all you see is what is in front of your face.
Most people never climb.
They stay at the bottom.
Talking about pain instead of learning from it.
Pain Is Not the Enemy. Pain Is the Friend That Tells You the Truth.
Pain has been my greatest mentor.
Pain tells you what is broken.
Pain tells you what needs to change.
Pain tells you what you are capable of.
Pain tells you when it is time to move.
Pain clears your vision.
Pain builds your hunger.
Pain forces your hand.
Pain is not the villain.
Pain is the guide.
Everyone wants an easy life.
But an easy life builds weak people.
Pain builds entrepreneurs.
Pain builds leaders.
Pain builds warriors.
Pain builds champions.
If you have pain in your life right now, you do not have a problem.
You have a message.
A message telling you it is time to level up.
Pain Hits Everyone. Winners Respond Differently.
You cannot stop pain.
You cannot avoid it.
You cannot hide from it.
You cannot pretend it is not happening.
But you can choose how you respond.
Here is how I deal with pain.
I handle pain like a friend.
I listen.
I assess.
I make a plan.
And I push forward.
“Pain is like a 2 by 4 that life swings at your face.”
Once you learn how to duck, then block, then swing back, you level up.
Then life throws a bigger 2 by 4.
And you level up again.
That is the game.
Every level has new pain.
Every new pain creates new strength.
If you are not leveling up, you are avoiding something.
What I Tell Anyone Feeling Pain Today
If you are reading this and you are hurting…
If you are frustrated…
If you are tired…
If you are stuck…
If you are pissed off at your job…
If you are working hard and still getting nowhere…
If you are watching other people win while you barely keep your head above water…
Let me tell you the truth.
Pain is not ruining your life.
Pain is trying to save it.
Pain wants you to move.
Pain wants you to grow.
Pain wants you to think bigger.
Pain wants you to change direction.
Pain wants you to become who you are meant to be.
But you have two choices.
You either master pain.
Or pain masters you.
Do you want pain as the friend that pushes you into success?
Or the bully that kicks you in the teeth every morning?
Which one are you walking with?
Final Takeaway
Your pain threshold is the line in the sand.
It is the moment the old you dies and the new you begins.
It is the moment you stop surviving and start building.
It is the moment you stop complaining and start climbing.
It is the moment you stop settling and start leading.
Pain can break you.
Or it can build you.
It depends on whether you face it or fear it.
Rise from it or run from it.
Listen to it or hide from it.
The choice is yours.
Always has been.
Always will be.
Keep Shining.
