PODCAST

Ep.164 | David Aardsma | 3 Keys to Keeping Your Priorities Straight

On a scale from 1 to 10, how straight are your priorities? 

1 = priorities, J.R.? What priorities?

10 = Straight as a laser

It’s a real question – real convicting, that is.

When you’re leading and pushing and striving to be your best, the whole kitchen sink of distractions are coming at you…ALL-THE-TIME.

Then next thing you know what you said was important is not so important anymore, right? 

Nah…it’s still important. You just let the non-important things overtake it, whatever that “it” is.  

On today’s episode of the Coming Up Clutch with J.R.™ show, I sit down with former 10-year MLB veteran, entrepreneur, and radio personality, David Aardsma.

David and I get real about priorities and then some. In this latest episode, we talk about…

  • David’s ultimate clutch moment and what his mentality was pitching against the best players in Major League Baseball
  • The key lessons David learned after experiencing both great success and failure at the highest level of baseball
  • What David did when he realized he didn’t have his priorities straight between his family and career

…and so much more.

If you want a better chance to thrive in all aspects of your life and career, then lock in to today’s episode.

[00:01 – 11:53] Introducing David to the show

  • David’s most embarrassing moment
  • David’s background, story, and professional journey

[11:54 – 21:48] David’s ultimate clutch moment and what his mentality was pitching against the best players in Major League Baseball

  • Key mentality: “How will I know what I have if I don’t face the best?”
  • Went out there with a purpose to find out who he was
  • Why it was so hard for Dave to transition from an active player to retired player: he was working so hard to be who I wanted to be that I lost sight of who I was

[21:49 – 29:00] The key lessons David learned after experiencing both great success and failure at the highest level of baseball

  • Most difficult part of the journey: Success
  • David struggled the most when he forgot what got him the success (for him, a big part of it was mindset)
  • He wished he would’ve kept the same mindset when he was having success
  • He said he was sabotaging his own success to get back to playing at the highest level after several failures
  • Biggest regret: I probably worked too hard – didn’t let his body and mind recover
  • It’s a delicate balance between the grind and when you must shut off

[29:01 – 40:55] What David did when he realized he didn’t have his priorities straight between his family and career

  • Context: talk with GM Ben Cherrington (told David he needed to learn how to say NO) and his wife constantly getting on him (made David realize his marriage was falling apart)
  • Started saying NO more often
  • Took responsibility
    • Starting asking the questions, “Who am I?” What can I do to self-improve?
    • You have choices: solve the problem, walk away from it, or just keep going along with it
    • David’s key question: what matters to you? And what are you actually doing about it? What are YOU doing to fix this?
  • Found an ally
    • It really clicked for David when his therapist and life coach said all of his marital problems were a result of HIS mindset issue.

[40:56 – 45:52] David’s advice for parents with kids in amateur sports

  • When your child is showing interest in a sport, support them, but don’t PUSH them. Show them a path, but make them aware of that path looks like and what type of dedication it will take
  • Make them aware and have THEM make a decision – the key is, show them there are choices

[45:53 – 50:21] Wrapping Up

  • David’s BIG domino
  • How to connect with David

KEY QUOTES

“How do you know what you have if you don’t face the best?” – David Aardsma

“An alpha isn’t just someone who believes in themselves. They’re open, honest, and looks for help.” – David Aardsma

“Know what you do and do it.” – David Aardsma

“No matter how successful you are, don’t forget where you came from and what you set out to achieve.” – David Aardsma

CONNECT WITH DAVID

CONNECT WITH J.R.

RATE & REVIEW this episode on Apple: https://jamesreid.com/review

SHARE this episode with someone who wants to be challenged, pushed, and positioned to come up clutch more often.

SUBSCRIBE so you don’t miss out on any new episodes and Special Guests!

LISTEN to previous episodes on Apple, Spotify, Stitcher, Google or whatever podcast platform you prefer!

SUBSCRIBE NOW

Scroll to Top