Episode 218: Breaking Through Fears and Getting Into Action with Rob Actis

[INTRODUCTION]

 

Hal: Achieve Your Goals Podcast listeners aka Goal Achievers, what’s up? It’s Hal Elrod. I’ve got a little bit of a cold, so you might hear me clearing my throat or sniffing or whatever but I’m sure you’ll be alright. Anyway, today I’m excited. We have an author interview today and I love author interviews I think partly because I’m an author, so I can appreciate what it takes to write a book and if it’s a really good book what that takes because now that self-publishing is a big factor in the publishing world, anybody can write a book which is both really cool and got of a quality control issue if you will.

 

Well, today this is a treat. This is a special individual that I’m bringing on the podcast in that this is the voice. He is the voice of the Miracle Morning book series and I’m talking about Rob Actis. Rob Actis is the narrator for the Miracle Morning book, the original, and he’s narrated every single book in the series so let’s see. Look at my wall here. The Miracle Morning for Entrepreneurs, The Miracle Morning for Salespeople, the Miracle Morning for Writers, for Parents and Families, for College Students, for Network Marketers and I think there’s a few that are not on my wall yet. But he now published his first book, The Law of Action.

 

And, Rob, I’ll bring you on officially in a sec, but I never told you this but for years and I’m sure I’m not the only one but ever since The Secret came out and Law of Attraction, I’ve always said that they missed the Law of Action. They missed the Law of Action and what’s cool is you wrote the book like you addressed that early on. You wrote the book on that, man. So, yeah, I’m excited to have you on. Before you respond, we engage in this conversation which I’m excited for. I just want to tell our listeners I want to give the official intro so everybody listening you know who Rob Actis is.

 

And he decided at four years old that he wanted to speak to the world and now 54 years later not only has he accomplished being a radio personality and successful commercial voice actor but also, he’s leading a movement that gets people motivated to take action in their lives and Rob’s experiences and triumphs are a testament to that. One example is when traveled to Hawaii to overcome a debilitating fear of heights by taking action and booking a helicopter tour in Hawaii which I did just two weeks ago with the doors off and it was actually terrifying and exciting but read the story in chapter 2. You’ll hear that story when you read chapter 2. And today Rob relishes in facing fears head-on, overcoming them, and inspiring others to do the same.

 

In Rob’s new book that I just mentioned, The Law of Action, shows the incredible results that you can get when you take the time to intentionally decide, plan, and act in your life and it starts out with an emotional roller coaster story about the time that Rob almost lost his daughter in an unusual kind of a freak medical emergency and I was reading that this morning. I was tearing up and before the chapter ends, Rob also shares about his own medical situation that almost took his life because he didn’t take action soon enough. And Rob is passionate about sharing The Law of Action with the world. His intention is to help people see they are not only worthy of greatness but also capable of breaking down any task in manageable steps and taking massive action. So, Rob, what’s up brother? How you doing?

 

[INTERVIEW]

 

Rob: Well, first of all, thanks for that great introduction and I am really excited to be here and it’s amazing to think back when I answered an audition and said, “Hal, I am the right voice for this and I need to voice your book.” And the journey that I’ve gone on with you and how you progressed because you’re like, “Well, I got this book and I’m going to create a movement and I think it’s going to be pretty good. I’ve got a little bit of a following. I got other books,” and what you have created and have transformed the planet with people getting up early and just doing the life SAVERS has been remarkable. It’s humbling to be part of the Miracle Morning family so thank you for allowing me to be part of the Miracle Morning family and then I’m really truly humbled. Thank you for allowing me to share The Law of Action with The Miracle Morning Community.

 

Hal: Absolutely, man, and we’ve discussed this many times over the years that it feels very serendipitous that you answered that ad and I heard your voice and I’m like, “This guy’s voice is freaking magical. So, this is the one.” We had a handful of people audition to do the audiobook and yours was like hands down. Once I heard, “Listen, everybody,” and then yours stood out absolutely. It was cool as you were narrating the book, you kept pinging me, calling me, texting me, you going, “Hal, this is changing my life like I’ve never narrated a book that actually is changing my life while I’m narrating it. I’m doing the Miracle Morning,” and yeah that was such a cool thing. And I’m sure we have people listening right now to you answer that just for you talking that have listened to the audiobook and like, “Whoa, that’s the voice. That’s Rob.”

 

Rob: Well, I was not a morning person so when I read that in a book that I was not a morning person, I was not a morning person. What I used to do was get up and my now ex-wife Nikki used to laugh at me and my daughter too because I would stay up all night, I would get up at like 7:00 in the morning and my daughter would crawl into bed with me and say goodbye or good morning and then I go back to sleep, and I get up at like 11:30 or 12:00.

 

Hal: Yeah. I remember that.

 

Rob: And then I started reading this book and I’m like, “Wow, this is interesting.” I’m like this is really kind of stupid. Why would anybody want to get up early? And so, as I progressed, and I started reading it, I started doing the life SAVERS. I’m like, “Let’s give it a shot and see what happens.” And it has really literally transformed my life and I’m a big preacher of the Miracle Morning. I tell everybody about it and it’s pretty remarkable how it has empowered so many people to start their day off the right way.

 

Hal: Awesome. Well, I appreciate that. Well, let’s get into the book. And before we talk about The Law of Action though, I have to ask you about your daughter, Aiden. The book has a dramatic beginning about Aiden and you both almost dying and you all pulled together, and you overcame enormous odds. Why did you include this emotional story as the first chapter and then how is Aiden doing today?

 

Rob: Well, I have to say that when you started talking about that, it’s still really fresh as I’m sure when you talk about what you went through with the car crash, there’s still an emotional connection and it’s still hard. I mean, my eyes are welling up at the moment and it’s brutal and the reason I included those things at the very beginning of the book because I wanted to get people’s attention and I wanted people to know that life is short and life is precious and at any given moment your life can change in a dime. And I also wanted to share that and as you read, you know being in the hospitals if you don’t take massive immediate action and start driving your chair in a hospital, you will not get the care that you deserve. You have to be an advocate for yourself or in the case of my daughter, Nikki and I have to be an advocate for her because she was in a coma and she was 14 years old.

 

Hal: Yeah. You’re absolutely right. I got the book in the mail yesterday. And so the plan was this morning just to scan the entire book and kind of get a big picture feel for it because obviously, I don’t have time to read it cover to cover and for whatever reason I started the pages or to scan was early on where it was the story of Aiden and I could not put it down and just word for word I read, read, read and then I also looked at the clock and I had in my schedule this morning from 5 AM to 7 AM was writing my next book and all of a sudden I look up and it’s 5:13 and I’m like, “Oh shoot, what am I doing?” So, I mean, yeah, which is a testament to how good the book is and how good your writing is. It pulled me in. Let’s talk about The Law of Action. If I understand correctly, you wrote this book after realizing that this was a method that you had been using for your entire life. When did you figure out that it can help others?

 

Rob: Well, so when I saw The Secret, I said to myself, “You know what, there’s got to be like The Law of Action because people want to think things positive and I do affirmations and I believe in meditation and visualization as we all do. However, a lot of people don’t understand you have to take action that nothing magically happens and it’s funny because in my life I looked back and saw ways that I took action and didn’t take action and that happened when I was laying in bed because of a blood clot and I was trying not to die. So, I was laying in bed with a blood clot that went from the top of my thigh to my ankle which was caused by inaction and the universe played movies in my head for many, many, many days and I saw my life of where I turned left or where I turned right and ultimately taken responsibility for everything and I saw that when I didn’t take action, things happen which is inaction and when I took action, things happen. And what I noticed was people have a fear of taking action but usually, the inaction is a bigger consequence of actually taking action.

 

Hal: Sure. What we fear it holds us back and then we go nowhere and then the consequences of not doing anything are the life of mediocrity and settling and all of those things, right?

 

Rob: Well, you know, and the thing is, is that so The Law of Action is based on three things which I came up with is decide to do something, plan to do something, and then take action. And they’re like, “Oh, that’s simple. Okay. Why do I have to need to read a book?” Well, the issue is that if you look at your life right now and all the things you have on your plate, you have great ideas. You decided to do something, you plan to do something, and you fail to take action. You’re saying, “Oh, that’s procrastination.” No, actually from a deeper level it’s actually a fear and once you find out what that fear is, you can move through that fear and get into action, and it could be a fear of success, a fear of unworthiness, a fear of I’m not enough, a fear of what your family will say. There’s a lot of different fears and when you figure out exactly what that is, you can dissect it and burst through it because what I found that if you don’t take action, things happen and usually it’s not what you want to happen.

 

And if you do take action, the empowerment of your life which has to do with my helicopter experience was your life will be transformed because once you decide and plan and act and actually get through that, you’re like, “Wow, I did that,” and then you can do it again and again and again and I found that the most successful people including you, you decide to do something, you plan to do something, and you act. You decide, you plan, you act. And so, the most successful people do that faster and do it at a forward momentum and the more you decide to plan and act, the more you get done and what happens is the universe goes, “Oh, you’re playing at a bigger level.” So, what happens is opportunity just starts coming your way because you’re ready for it.

 

Hal: Yeah. Or you’re not ready for it but you’re taking action. It’s putting you in a position to where it shows up and then you get ready. You’re, “Oh wait, this is an opportunity that I wasn’t even maybe expecting it,” but it shows up because you are taking action.

 

Rob: Exactly. So, like you do coaching, correct?

 

Hal: Not so much anymore but, yeah, I did for a lot of years.

 

Rob: Okay. So, let’s just take an example. There’s a lot of people that do coaching and you can hire a coach, and coaches or even just being one of your masterminds, it’s expensive to work with Hal Elrod, correct? It’s a lot of money.

 

Hal: Sure. Yeah.

 

Rob: Okay. So, however, when you do that, and you take action and you put forth the energy of that action into being a part of a mastermind or a high-level coaching program, you are playing at a different level and what happens is everything around you shifts. Would you not agree by that?

 

Hal: Absolutely.

 

Rob: So, that’s the importance of taking action and that when you do that, everything around you changes, because you now are a different person. You’re now an action taker and the universe and people around you are seeing you different and they’re responding different to you which is a total beautiful thing.

 

Hal: So, let’s get into some tactical or practical tips from the book that we could pull some wisdom out of the book and share with the listeners. For somebody listening, they’re like, “Yeah, this all makes sense. I know that I should take more action or I know there are some things, some fears that I’m letting hold me back,” whether it’s fear of failure as you said or fear of what others will think. There are so many different fears and often we use different words of fear to describe them. So, if somebody is procrastinating on taking action toward their goals, toward their dreams, what are some tips for them to get out of the thinking about it phase or the planning phase or the wanting phase and actually moving into the deciding and the acting phase?

 

Rob: Well, first of all, I want you all to really stop for a moment and just really get that you are worthy. In addition to that, why not you? I talk about in a book how I was sitting with my ex-wife Nikki and she was like, “Well, you’re sitting here looking at the TV saying why can’t you be on those national TV commercials?” and I’m like, “I’m just a guy living in Gilbert Arizona and, yeah, I’m good and I’m doing top-level stuff but I’m not doing national commercials.” And she’s like, “Why not you?” And then I thought to myself, “You know someone’s going to get the job. Why not me?” And so, a lot of people go through life they’re like, “I could never be a person who brings transformational change by teaching people how to wake up early and starting their day fresh.” Why not you?

 

And so that’s really one of the ways to overcome and get into action is once you realize that why not you? And that’s really important because you are worthy to do this and by doing the Miracle Morning and doing your life SAVERS in the morning, you will become the person you need to be to have the life that you desire and that’s really important. So, your personal development is key to this because ultimately that’s your foundation. So, you want to look at the things that are holding you back and really dissect them but know from your core that you are worthy and also the imposter syndrome shows up a lot. It affected me as you read at the beginning of the book. I was 98% of the book done and I almost didn’t finish it.

 

Hal: Yeah. A, I’ve been there before with the whole imposter syndrome of who am I to write the book that’s going to get people to wake up early and that is one of my most important affirmations or self-doubt in our lack of worth who am I to be special or the person that does this thing. I’m just me. I’m just the plain old me. And so, the most important affirmation or one of the most important fundamental affirmations that I’ve read for years states I am just as worthy, deserving and capable of achieving everything I want in my life as any other person on earth and today I’m committed to proving that through my actions.

 

And I think for all of us to affirm that every day that I am just as worthy, deserving, and capable of creating, he didn’t get specific. You don’t have to say achieving anything you want in life. You can get real specific and go of becoming a millionaire or having an amazing spouse who loves me or losing my weight or whatever it is, whatever that result as you get specific, but I think that is so foundational, Rob. You make a great point that it does start with that worth, that feeling worthy of success because only when you feel worthy of success are we going to then create the plan and decide that we’re going to work towards it and commit and follow through and take the action. If we don’t feel that we’re worthy or deserving or capable, eh, I’m not really going to take action because I don’t really believe that I deserve it. So, I think that’s just a great place to start.

 

Rob: Absolutely. It’s really important for people to understand and this is a barometer you can to is that all of us have self-doubts. I have self-doubts and I was very vulnerable in this book and I shared some strong self-doubts and I was very transparent and it didn’t make me look good in the eyes of some people. They’re like, “Why would you admit that you fail?” Well, because I did, and most people don’t. That’s one thing about you, Hal, is that you admit when you fail, and you admit your weaknesses and I think that’s one of the things that sets us apart from a lot of other motivational or inspirational people is that they present their lives as absolutely positively perfect and it’s not true. We have great lives and we also have challenges and so when people that are not as successful as other people that they look up to and they realized that they are not as successful, and they do have challenges and they do have trials and tribulations that, “Oh, well you know what, I guess this is reachable. I guess this is attainable.”

 

Hal: Yeah. And you’re absolutely right. I know for me that’s when I connect with somebody when they’re vulnerable and they’re human and they share their faults and fears. They go, “Oh, okay. It’s okay for me to not be perfect,” and then I look at their level of success and I go, “Wow, I can be imperfect because you’re sharing that you’re imperfect but look at what you’ve achieved. That means that I can do it too.” I think that is such an important thing is to really be open and vulnerable in that way. What it’s been like to create the book? What’s it been like going through that process of being someone that you’ve read a lot of books, narrated I should say a lot of books. What’s it been like to write your own?

 

Rob: It is a whole lot more work than I thought and it’s funny because when I say, “Oh, you wrote a book. Well, no, I wrote a book and I have a whole team behind me. There is a cover designer. There is a content editor. There is an editor. There are layout designers. There’s the back-cover copy person.” I mean it’s a team to self-publish a book and to do it in the right way. And it’s amazing because it’s like birthing a baby. Not to discount for the ladies that I’m birthing a baby. I don’t want to get…

 

Hal: Yeah. There are some women listening right now. I would argue that.

 

Rob: I know. Well, I’m just saying from my experience of what I’ve seen because I’ve been there in the delivery room. I’ve seen a baby being birthed, my daughter Aiden, it’s not easy and I give women credit for what they go through for birthing a baby but I’m just giving the fact that it’s really difficult and it’s also a roller coaster. And it’s funny because I wrote the book I needed to read because now that I have the book, I refer to this book every single day and I go to different chapters I’m like, “I totally needed to read that,” and it’s amazing that way how to create something from nothing and to be so vulnerable and to declare you’re going to do something and then actually do it. So, I decided to do something, I plan to do it and then, oh my, did I ever have to take action because I’m writing a book on action. So, everything throughout this process has been, “Oh, well you’re the action guy so you actually have to accomplish this because you’re talking about action.” So, it was a very interesting thing. It’s very humbling to see some of the emails that I’ve received from people and this was right after the book came out of like, “Wow. I did this, this, and this and my life is better because of what you wrote in your book.” And that could be very emotional to look at an email like that and like, “Wow, I did something and actually made a difference in someone’s life that I don’t even know. That’s a good life.”

 

Hal: Yeah. It’s very fulfilling. So, I know you’re looking even bigger than the book. You’ve created The Law of Action Community. I know you’re really viewing this is a movement. What do you see for the future of The Law of Action Community and for the movement?

 

Rob: Well, I just imagine what a world would be like where people are unstuck and they’re not in a planning stage. Imagine all the things that aren’t yet invented or the courses that aren’t yet here or the books that aren’t written or the stories that aren’t told or the meals that aren’t prepared or the cars that aren’t built based on people that are stuck in a planning stage. So, my desire is for people to break through their fears and get into action because if we have a life filled with action and those surrounding us, we’re going to have a lot more fun, a lot more opportunity, a lot more excitement and a lot more new things to experience, and a lot happier people that are going to have a happier ever after because people don’t all realize but you deserve to have a happily ever after. And I want The Law of Action to be a catalyst for people to have a happily ever after which I believe everyone deserves.

 

Hal: Yeah. For every one person that creates, follows through and take action and invent something or just even start a business or create some idea, there’s always 1,000 people at home watching on TV or whatever and they’re going, “I thought of that. I thought of that. They took my idea.” It’s like, yeah, they took your idea. It’s their idea too but they actually took action and then ran with it and now they’re reaping the rewards and so was everybody that they’ve shared the idea with. So, I think it’s such an important book because, for anybody listening, if you want to create results in your life, what’s more important than learning how to get yourself to consistently take action, the necessary actions that will move you in the direction of your goals, your dreams and, Rob, you just said your happily ever after. I’d say everybody listening should probably start by getting a copy of The Law of Action book. Where is the best place to get a copy of the book?

 

Rob: Amazon.com.

 

Hal: Amazon.com. There you go. Okay.

 

Rob: Yeah. You can also get two free chapters at TheLawofActionBook/TMM. Special hello to all The Miracle Morning listeners but it’s available on Amazon.com. You can get it as a Kindle. You can get it as an actual book.

 

Hal: So, there’s two free chapters at TheLawofActionBook.com/TMM?

 

Rob: Yes.

 

Hal: Got it. TheLawofActionBook.com/TMM or go straight to Amazon. If you don’t need the two free chapters and you’re convinced, you’re ready to go. I started reading this morning. I got pulled in. So, the book is The Law of Action: Gain Perfect Clarity, Boost Your Confidence and Get More Results NOW by the one and only the voice of The Miracle Morning, Rob Actis. Rob, I appreciate you, brother. Thank you for being on the show today, man.

 

Rob: Yeah. Thanks for having me. I’m excited because actually, I get to go shortly because I got to go jump back in the booth because I’m doing another Miracle Morning book in a series so there you go.

 

Hal: Which one you’re working on this today?

 

Rob: Today is the Miracle Morning for Millionaires which I am totally, totally loving it.

 

Hal: Awesome.

 

Rob: Like, I’m so excited about this book.

 

Hal: Now, that’s great. Miracle Morning Millionaires and then the other is the Miracle Morning for Addiction Recovery which I know those are the two that you’re working on in the short term.

 

Rob: Yeah. They’re both amazing books. A lot of people are really having a challenge with addiction and recovery and I love how this all came together, and I love the way it was all put together and it makes so much sense. I’ve shared with a few of my friends that are in recovery and talk about some of the content in the book and they’re like, “Oh yeah, that’s great,” because it’s so difficult and The Miracle Morning to start your day especially in recovery is just such a beautiful thing.

 

Hal: Yeah. That’s how that came about is the Miracle Morning accidentally got placed in the addiction or recovery category on Amazon. I literally do not know how it got in there and it became the number one best-selling book in that category and a bunch of like clinics, recovery centers started buying bulk copies for the people that were going to their program. So anyway, that was totally like an accident, but we saw the need. So, well hey, anybody listening, you’re not allowed to get The Miracle Morning for Addiction and Recovery or Miracle Morning Millionaires until you’ve read The Law of Action. Actually, you do whatever you want. It’s not up to me or Rob. But hey, Rob, you’re the man, dude. I appreciate it. I’ll see you this Saturday at the Miracle Morning movie screening. You’re coming to Austin?

 

Rob: Absolutely. I am making a special trip to Austin to see the movie and I’m excited. I’ve already worked with Nick and so there’s a special surprise of me in the movie which I’m super excited about being a part of.

 

Hal: Yeah. You did some voice work in there, man. You are the voice of the Miracle Morning for sure. Well, I appreciate you, man. I can’t wait to see you this Saturday and if you’re listening to the podcast, you are a goal achiever. I love you, I appreciate you, and go out and read The Law of Action, get the two free chapters but most importantly, take action on your goals and your dreams because you deserve nothing less than whatever it is that you truly want and are committed to achieving in your life. I love you, I appreciate you, and I will talk to you next week, everybody. Take care.

[END]