Four Days with Tony Robbins

He’s a polarizing figure who elicits widely different responses from people.

A few years ago, I did a four-day Tony Robbins seminar (UPW in San Jose, CA) that was so powerful, enlightening and downright outrageous, I wanted to share the experience with you. Now if you’re like the guy in a recent training I did who said, “He’s the most repulsive human being I’ve ever seen,” feel free to wait for the next blog post. Or watch the documentary “I Am Not Your Guru” and you might just change your mind.

Here are some interesting facts about Tony Robbins:

He grew 10 inches in one year due to a brain tumor. He used to be “short and overweight” and is now a 6’7” monster.
He rants and runs around the stage for 15 hours straight, often with no breaks, food or water.
Bill Clinton called him for advice the night before he was impeached. Tony responded, “I wish you had called me earlier.”
Tony’s companies grossed over $5 billion in 2016.
He bounces on a mini-trampoline before going on stage and cryogenically freezes his body on a regular basis.

So let’s answer the most burning question right off the bat:

Yes, I did walk on hot coals and no, I didn’t get burned. It was a pretty unforgettable experience that I and about 10,000 others had that night. The exercise was a metaphor for facing our fears and that if we set our mind to anything, we can do it, even if it’s scary. I know it sounds cliché. But when you’re about to walk barefoot over 12 feet of red hot coals, it does something to your nervous system that stays with you. (I’m still not sure how it works).

The next question people usually ask me is, “What did you learn?”

The main thing that I’ve taken away is more of a feeling than a cognitive lesson. I find that I’m more open to people; I hold eye contact longer and walk with more confidence. I know this is all stuff you would expect from a speaker trainer, but I’ve noticed a shift in all of these areas.

Aside from that, my top 3 take-aways would have to be:

Conquering limiting beliefs
Managing my physical and mental states
The importance of growing

Let’s unpack each of these.

1. Limiting beliefs

I won’t bore you with how we did this, but we did an exercise on Day 3 that has not only helped me rid myself of sabotaging stories, it reinforced the power our stories have on us and the importance of standing guard in our minds. “Wherever you focus, that’s where you’ll go” rang so true. We learned how to destroy our limiting beliefs (“I’m not qualified,” “I don’t have enough resources,” “I don’t belong in that group …”) and replace them with ones that serve us better.

2. Physical and mental states

A core practice in all of Tony’s work is that our physical state drives our emotional state. Or as he says, “Change your body, change your emotions.” Throughout the four days, we continually threw our workbooks down, jumped up and danced, yes danced, and screamed like maniacs to get into “peak state.” I know it sounds absurd, and it was, but it took us out of our minds and into our bodies. I haven’t danced that much since, well, ever! And did I mention that the rapper Pitbull (a lifetime fan of Tony’s) did a mini concert the first night?!?

But the lesson was so powerful: Our state drives our moods, our decisions, our internal dialogue and our actions. Most of us go through life led by our states. If we wake up feeling excited and full of energy, our day goes well. If we don’t, well, you know what happens. Through the repeated exercises we did, we were training our nervous systems and learning to get “into state” at will.

3. Growth = Happiness

One of my biggest take-aways was how great it is to be learning and growing again. It’s so easy, especially when life gets busy, to stop learning. Being back in a powerful learning environment with one of the world’s masters reminded me that growth really does lead to happiness.

Tony’s programs definitely aren’t for everyone. It’s kind of like fitness. Some people like CrossFit. Some like yoga. Some like spin classes. The key is finding a teacher or system or program that works for you and doing it.

So when you find yourself having a pity party or in a foul mood, jump up out of your chair, turn Fireball up loud and dance and shout and like a mad person.

Thanks for reading, and good luck speaking.