As a long-time grappler myself, I can’t help but admire NCAA wrestling champion Anthony Robles. 

He and I spoke a few years back during my days at UFC and his notorious achievement — defying the odds and winning a national championship minus one leg — has crescendoed into a Nike sponsorship, a book about his life, motivational speeches and a pending movie about his life.

I came across a story recently published in “Experience L!FE” magazine (published by the LifeTime Fitness gym company) about Robles and two powerful quotes he gave to writer Heidi Wachter stood out:

1. “Mindset is key to my success,” Robles said. “Being born without a leg put a chip on my shoulder, which I used to prove to myself and others that I could fit in.” 

       2. “My mindset now is to be happy but never satisfied.” 

I hear many psychologists and others talk about ideal mindsets, how it’s better to be cooperative than competitive, how positivity is better than negativity, how it’s better to be motivated by doing your best and not comparing yourself to others, how you shouldn’t have a chip on your shoulder because that’s coming from a place of anger, or vengeance, or hostility toward others.

But there is no THE WAY to do things. “A chip on your shoulder” usually means channeling some dark energy, some anger, some hostility born from the hurt of being doubted and denied by others. Some people are motivated by love, others motivated by hurt. Sometimes one thing drives us during one season of our life — and something altogether different guides and ignites us in a later chapter.

There are many ways to be successful, many mindsets. And the mindset that fuels you to success in one endeavor may need to be changed and altered in another season of life as you pursue new challenges.

The “chip on your shoulder” has proven a very effective motivational tool for people like myself, Tom Brady, Anthony Robles, Floyd Mayweather and many others.

Unstoppable: Anthony Robles

Here is a story I wrote years back for UFC.com, an interview with former Arizona State University wrestler Aaron Simpson where he talks about Robles’ incredible accomplishment. http://www.ufc.com/news/vegetarian-Simpson-Hungry-to-Halt-Losing-Skid?id=

Said Simpson of Robles: “I love that kid. He’s one in a billion,” Simpson said. “I actually saw him today, he came to the gym and we had a good conversation. Just knowing that kid will change your life. I actually coached him his freshman year, his redshirt year. He runs with the team, goes up and down the mountains running on crutches – it’s like a mile up.

“When he was in high school I wrestled with him. He’s unbelievable. He’s a freak. He’s got amazing strength. The guy in the finals (Iowa’s second-seeded Matt McDonough) had never wrestled him. The first time, it just shocks a lot of people. It’s a very different feel.”