Look in the mirror when you finish reading this.

The person looking back is the only person on the planet who can get you into those jeans and reppin’ this summer’s hottest looks.

The opposite holds true, too. That mirror image is the only person with the uncanny ability to make you loaf more when you probably should be lifting.

We are often our worst enemies when self-improvement is the goal. We are scared to do different. We are living by a “don’t make me do what I’m not good at” mantra.

Everybody wants to stay in a comfort zone because the fear of the unknown is so terrifying that it cripples the ability to grow.

Here are five ways I’ve used to have great success with clients throughout the years.

– Simplify. Looking at the entirety of needing to lose 100 pounds or running 26.2 miles or fitting in that outfit can be daunting. You need to break it into digestible pieces. Think about losing 1 pound and jogging 100 meters. Those are simple and often ungrudgingly attainable.

– Embrace failures and setbacks. Your attitude about failure being a bad thing needs to change. People rarely gain much knowledge off successes. You must understand failure is going to happen. Make plans to deal with it when it does. And understand that failure is a part of the learning process.

Think as Thomas Edison thought, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that it won’t work.” We have found numerous ways not to reach our goals. Learn from each. Not trying will always be worse than failing.

– Cozy up to the terror. Become friends with the monster that you call fear.

Fear is not under the bed or in the closet. Fear is largely between your ears. Understand that you are programmed to respond to fear.

But guess what? You control that programming. From breathing techniques to meditation, there should be protocols or tools that help you battle fear when it arises.

– Today is it – live in the now. Do not worry about the past and never mind the future.

What do you have to get accomplished today? Today’s goal is 105 ounces of water, a multivitamin and two probiotics. Get that done instead of stocking the refrigerator with four bunches of kale that will spoil before you get around to eating them.

– Google it. Start enjoying everything about what has you wanting to train.

Type “summer’s hottest looks” or “sexy jeans” or “hiking” into the search engine and feast on what comes up. Immersing yourself in your passion allows you to live the way you were meant to live.

Passion doesn’t allow failure or fear to hamper your effort. Passion keeps you moving forward. It keeps you looking in the mirror and smiling at the person looking back.

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Bryant is an author and lecturer who holds several national training

certifications. Email him at

movingthefuture@gmail.com.

In this Friday, April 17, 2015 photo, attorney Dan Garfield poses for a photo in the offices of the law firm that he toils for in Denver. Marijuana divisions are popping up at law firms, especially across the West, to advise pot shops on where they can locate, what their websites can say and how to vet new clients. The legal issues that come up also often have little or no precedent, said Garfield. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

David Zalubowski