Never Finished: Unshackle Your Mind and Win the War Within

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Your enemy rejoices in his exile because he thrives in barren isolation; that is the only way he has learned how to cope and survive. I hope that one day you can find the courage to say a few words to him. Perhaps you might even lift your gaze upwards to look him in the eye. Maybe even grow to understand him. Then finally — I pray you embrace and love him as your own, for veritably he is you: your inner abused child. I’d learned long ago that no matter what type of event or challenge I engage in, the only competition that ever matters is me against me.” If you want to achieve success, Goggins says, you have to challenge yourself, and prove your own greatness to yourself through those challenges. Even if you don't succeed. What matters is that you are constantly in the pursuit of bettering yourself.

Remember, the struggle is the whole journey. That’s why you’re out there. It’s why you signed up for this race or that class, or took the damn job. There is great beauty when you are involved in something that is so hard most people want it to end.” (Pg. 101) But David, I do get the sense that you’ve not yet conquered your final enemy. You cast him in the shadows and believe that he can be banished for good with more physical pain, with another 100-miler. But his isn’t the language of lactic acid torture or intense dehydration. It’s the memory of emotional trauma, ingrained in you through no fault of your own, from critical childhood years that should have been spent under the tender lovingness and psychological safety provided by a parental figure. I don't do this for recognition" except I wrote 2 books, have made more money than anyone ever on speaking engagements I highly recommend getting both the physical and Audible version of the book because as David Goggins did with his first book, the Audible comes with podcast bites at the end of each chapter and those are golden. David Goggins had his mother feature in the recordings where there was a conversation at the end of one of the chapters and that was one of the most heartbreaking yet enlightening and inspiring conversations I’ve ever heard whilst listening to an Audible book. I hope it’s released on YouTube one day so it can reach a large audience as that conversation alone could help millions of people heal. Exercise and running in particular is an under-utilised tool for steel plating your mind. I'm a marathon runner myself and until you cover that distance you will never understand the kind of mental beast you need to become to do that. There's pulled muscles, sore joints, a burning chest and an overwhelming desire to quit but you just keep going until you finish the mission. That experience evolves you into a mental savage that can overcome anything in life.Don't give up when it's hard. Give up when it's easy. In other words, it may be valid for you to give up on something, but wait and sleep on it. This is not a self-help book"....except that's exactly what it's billed as and how people read it and HE KNEW THAT. It's also a bit of a pity party disguised as self-help. I mean...err..."a wake up call".

I’ve needed this book for awhile now. His first book was and has been significant to me. This one has reaffirmed and recharged me. Grateful for it. And, feels apt that this is my 150th book for 2022, a number that never even crossed my mind. I laughed off 125 when someone suggested it in January. Pretty much in alignment with everything he says here—that we have so much more potential than we know, that we limit ourselves in so many ways, but when we get out our our way, we can do things we never even thought possible. I will forever respect this man and take in all content he is willing to put out. He has an energy that is palpable just from words on paper and even deeper in an audiobook format.

Still, a paragraph at the very end of the book totally changed the way I saw this book, for the better. I LOVED this book. David is a former Navy SEAL and Ultramarathon runner. He's also been described as "the toughest man alive" by the US military. Even the hype around is riddled with contradictions. The fact that he "has overcome so many obstacles" yet HE MADE THOSE OBSTACLES (other than the ones from childhood, which he needs to deal with) It might be a good read for someone with a big goal, such as running their first marathon, to get you psyched up. But, it was so over-the-top that I couldn't take it seriously. In fact, I started to enjoy it more when I read it as a satire, which I know is not its intention.

It will always be up to you to find the lesson in every shitty situation and use it to become stronger, wiser, and better. No matter what comes down on your head, you must find a glimmer of light, remain positive, and never treat yourself as a victim. Especially if you intend to thrive in a harsh world where you have to work for everything that matters. I'm not talking about material things. I'm talking about self-respect, self-love, and self-mastery.” (pg 144) That’s how it works when you’re trying to change. The call to remain complacent will only from louder until you silence it with a pattern of behaviour that leaves no doubt about your mission.” (Pg. 142) Every minute you spend feeling sorry for yourself is another minute not getting better, another morning you miss at the gym, another evening wasted without studying. Another day burned when you didn’t make any progress toward your dreams, ambitions, and deepest desires. The ones you’ve had in your head and heart your entire life.” Recommend For: Instead of this book, I would recommend ‘Can’t Hurt Me’ which is the first book written by the same author. ‘CHM’ explores how each of us have untapped potential which we haven’t explored; while I found Never Finished more aggressive and negative as a whole.Never Finished is a deep dive into David's mindset. He discusses resilience, self-doubt and the importance of making progress toward your goals. But he also explains all of those traits by putting them in the context of being a Navy SEAL.

Aside from this book being a never ending bible of quotable one liners strong enough to give a fish the courage to climb a tree, it was a beautiful story. David Goggins continues to push the upper limit of what was before seemingly impossible and use his experience to inspire. Can’t Hurt Me, David Goggins’ smash hit memoir, demonstrated how much untapped ability we all have but was merely an introduction to the power of the mind. In Never Finished, Goggins takes you inside his Mental Lab, where he developed the philosophy, psychology, and strategies that enabled him to learn that what he thought was his limit was only his beginning and that the quest for greatness is unending.

I instantly know this is a book I will read again, and again—and that is a truly rare thing to find. Thank you David Goggins for being willing and able to share your life and put so much effort into its final format. #NeverFinished