“Every person on the planet has a disability – not just those we can see.
And we all choose whether we allow our lives to be defined by them or not. Know your limits, but never stop trying to break them.” - Kyle Maynard

Kyle Maynard is one exceptional human being. I will borrow TNQ’s The Wizard’s introduction to describe just a fraction of what he has achieved in his life: “Kyle Maynard is a high school wrestler with a pro MMA fight under his belt, crossfit certified instructor and gym owner, record setting weight lifter and mountaineer. He climbed Mount Kilamanjaro (19340ft) and raised money for wounded veterans and other charitable organizations, for which he won an Espy. In 2016 he reached the summit of Argentina’s Mount Aconcagua (22,837ft, highest peak in southern hemisphere). He is a speaker, travels almost 200 days a year, sharing his no excuses philosophy. He works with various organizations and is a board member on the K2 Adventure Foundation and an ambassador for No Barriers USA. He works with the USO, Wounded warrior project, Travis Manion foundation, the US Special Forces Honor Foundation amongst others. He has been on good morning America CBS, Oprah Winfrey, Larry King Live, and ABC’s 2020. He is a New York Times best seller for his autobiography, “No Excuses”. And we forgot to mention one more thing, he has no arms and no legs.

Simply put, Kyle leads by example and makes people realize it doesn’t matter what disability you have, what kind of setback you may have, what kind of ailment or sickness you have, nothing should stand in your way to work with the tools you have in order to become the best possible version of yourself. Just the sight of him bearcrawling (!) his way up two of the largest mountain peaks in the world should leave any excuses you may have to push yourself into growing and becoming better behind.

I will use one of the excerpts from Kyle’s webpage that describes him perfectly: “He has lived his life striving to do more, learn more, push harder, go further—and to inspire others to do the same by sharing his story and living by example. Though he tailors his speeches to his audience, his messages are centered on building a life driven by purpose and meaning, the importance of the undying pursuit of dreams, and the belief that no obstacle is too great and nothing in their lives can keep them from accomplishing their goals.”

In 2016, Kyle competed in a Mixed Martial Arts contest against an able-bodied fighter, a lofty goal and a challenge 99% of able-bodied people walking this planet would likely shy away from. Yet it was all the turmoil leading up to the fight that seemed to be harder to overcome than the fight itself. SnagFilms produced a great piece documenting Kyle’s road to his first MMA contest. Definitely worth a viewing if you are looking for a good dose of motivation.

One of Kyle’s main missions in life is to motivate and inspire others to reach heights they themselves doubt they can reach. He has appeared on many TV interviews, radio shows, and podcasts. I have linked a few of the podcasts below. All of them are a must listen to put some of that value added perspective in your life. As usual, the Team Never Quit crew did an awesome interview with Kyle, and some of the excerpts are below:

Kyle Maynard – Born with Congenital Amputation – No arms and No Legs – Mountain Climber – Inspiration to millions – Soul Searcher

On bearcrawling up a mountain: “The summit day ended up just being a brutally tough day. I just had to put out, psychologically it was tough. There was an American climber in a group 24 hours ahead of us that had collapse over and died. He fell over, hit his head, and had a stroke. My body was just in shutdown mode. I felt I was not too far behind him. I could only drink half a protein shake, about the most calories I had. Half a protein bar, dropped other half in the dirt. I am bear crawling down on all fours. What gets me through moments like that is perspective. I would imagine Marcus (Luttrell), being surrounded by Taliban. Is he going to stop, is he going to quit and give up? No, he is going to freaking fight as long as he has air in his lungs.”.

When the going really gets though, just look to move another three feet: “The first thought that pops in your head, you can’t control. Yet, if I spend a single calorie on a thought, I am not going to make it. None of those thoughts matter. When i am down on all fours, that’s my view, just three feet ahead of me. Anytime my thoughts would wonder off I would say no, focus on the three feet in front of you. Then there is another three feet. And then another. I have never been so tired I cant go another three feet.”

Marcus, who dragged himself forward for almost 7 miles in the Hindu Kush mountains, chimes in: “When you have to reach out and draw a line, and I am going to crawl to that until things get better. And if it doesn’t get better I’ll just draw another line and keep crawling. It eliminates the concept of distance. If the endgame is right in front of you, it lets you see the outcome a bit clearer, and it will motivate you to keep moving.”

Keep looking for the next challenge: “If you are willing to go and look, it can lead you to something bigger. And it changes over time.”

Everyone has a some kind of disability: “Every person on this planet has a disability, something slowing them down. Just 99.9% of the time you can’t see it. When people look at me, they can see it. I am no different. Maybe the only difference is that a lot of folks learn how to hide their own personal disability. I can not hide mine. This makes me stronger.”

Everything starts with “I don’t know”, then you figure it out: “Embrace the not knowing. Realize that all big discoveries, all big experiences, start with, “I don’t know”. And then start and figure it out. I had to figure out how to do a single leg take down, how to mountain climb. All those things started with I don’t know, but lets figure it out.”

Perspective, perspective, perspective: “This show can make a difference in someone’s life. Recognize the obstacles that are placed in front of us are typically placed there by ourselves, and we create In our own minds. Kyle Maynard is an example of the power of someone seeing the frame of reference change.”

I have linked some other podcasts below that are definitely worth a listen.