Do you know where the saying “The whole 9 yards” came from? In WWI, fighter pilots would have a machine gunner with a .50 caliber that has yards worth of ammunition. In times of stress, the pilot would tell the gunner how many yards to give. However, when shit really hit the fan, he would yell out “Give them the whole damn nine yards!” These men were in survival mode and had to do everything they possibly could to survive. Give the enemy everything you’ve got. Leave no stone unturned and leave no bullet in the chamber. Give yourself the best chance at life. I am a very visual person, and when I think about my life, I think about giving everything the whole nine yards. Fire.

I recently came across Greg Plitt and his workouts. The thing is, he not only works out, but he is an inspirational man. He pumps you up and talks about life and what it takes to get to where you want to get. It has nothing to do with talent or your body type, it has to do with giving it everything you have and gaining as much knowledge as possible, so you can turn it into skills. I am giving my word to doing Greg’s workouts every single day and keeping to my goals previously stated (which I am following through on).

You are what you repeatedly do every day. So whatever you are doing, is what you become. If excellence is something you are striving for, then its not an accident…its a habit. You never know the limits of your possibilities, until you travel into uncharted waters. Then you can destroy those limits. Today, I destroyed my limits. I am finding new and creative ways to become a better man every single day. It is so easy to be a spectator in your own life. We call this being up in the stands. However, to live a life you love you have to get on the field and play in the game. For me, that means taking the hits and enjoying the daily situations. I still have a long way to go, in fact, I know that this is a never-ending process. I am starting to be able to see the situation for what it is however. I am sitting with my thoughts and being patient. Patience is one of the most important qualities to have out there in my opinion. With patience, you are able to believe in yourself, believe in the goodness of others, and work on your dream every single day. I spend almost every night from 10pm to sometimes 2pm making my project happen. I believe in it so much that the sleep really doesn’t matter that much to me. When you feel alive, you don’t worry about sleep. I feel alive. Every single day I am absolutely pumped up about being here. I never take the day for granted because you never know what might happen. Never have an expectation for tomorrow or what today should have been. Always focus on what you can.

The whole nine yards. I think that really sums it up for me today. Give it your all. Give every situation the whole nine yards and never give up.

Evan Sanders
The Better Man Project