The Malcolm X Quote That Can Help You Achieve Greatness

Malcolm X is an inspiration of mine.

Like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X was a hero and a civil rights leader. However, they were opposites with the same goal: equality and freedom. While Dr. King was all about nonviolence, Malcolm X was classified as a political renegade known for his “by any means necessary” approach.

While I love them both, I prefer the Malcolm X mentality concerning our goals.

In my research, I found that Malcolm X dropped some serious gems of wisdom. But there’s one quote that shook me to my core. This quote sums up the problem with society, the forgotten, and most who retire to the land of mediocrity.

Is that what you want? Do you want to be mediocre? If so, stop reading this newsletter now.

But if you desire greatness, continue reading.

Here’s the quote that’ll help you achieve greatness.

The Quote

As I mentioned, Malcolm X had some incredible quotes, but this one stands head and shoulders above the rest:

Think about it.

Many of you are living below your potential because you tolerate it.

You tolerate mediocrity because you don’t hate it. If you hated mediocrity with every fiber of your being, you wouldn’t be mediocre. You’d be great.

I often get a lot of pushback from people when I speak of using “The List of Hate” to self-motivate regarding working toward my goals. But look at what Malcolm X–one of the most important figures of the 20th century–said about it.

He didn’t say “dislike.”

He didn’t say “disapprove.”

He said hate.

To become great, you must learn to hate mediocrity in each area of your life.

Let’s break it down further.

Health & Fitness

America is fat.

I won’t sugarcoat this fact because America would probably eat that too.

Roughly two out of three U.S. adults are overweight or obese (69 %), and one out of three are obese (36 %).

That’s baffling to me.

There’s a gym on every corner.

A new diet each week.

The information on getting shredded and building muscle is FREE on the internet. And everyone has access to the web in their own pockets.

So, why is everyone so fat?

Because they don’t hate being that way, they tolerate it.

They say it’s fine. It’s no big deal. They care more about ease, convenience, and their “feelings” than their health.

Don’t believe me? Check out the health risks that come with obesity.

It’s another way mediocrity seeps into the mindset of the masses.

But we don’t want mediocrity. We’re learning to hate it instead of tolerating it.

Do you know why Arnold won so many damn Mr. Olympia titles?

Yes, he loved winning and wanted to be a champion, but he hated losing. He would make “enemies” out of his fellow competitors.

They weren’t “equals” in his eyes. They were the enemy, stopping him from the greatness he sought. And he hated that.

Hence, he became the best bodybuilder of all time.

He didn’t tolerate second–or being fat in his prime–and neither should you.

Money

Most of America is poor.

Most Americans don’t have $1,000 in their savings account—57% to be precise.

Why? You guessed it.

They tolerate poverty.

Because they tolerate poverty, they work their little jobs, go home and watch Netflix, make enough coin for the weekends to drink and get fatter (see the above section), and start the entire cycle again come Monday.

Do you think any change will take place regarding their finances?

Of course not.

They’re on the toleration treadmill.

They need to get on the treadmill of hate.

If they hated poverty, they wouldn’t be out drinking or binge-watching shows. They’d get another job or two. They’d invest their time learning high-paying skills and then apply them to getting a better job or building a business.

They wouldn’t be sitting back at a bar “watching the game.” They’d be busting their ass to one day afford to buy tickets court-side!

So, if you’re reading this and you're one of those guys who are broke, summon your hate for the paycheck-to-paycheck lifestyle.

Focusing that energy will motivate you to get off your ass and get to work, creating a financial ladder for you to climb out of the hole you’re in.

Potential

For eight years, Bronnie Ware was an in-home caregiver who looked after dying people.

Her clients knew they were severely ill, and most were in the last three to 12 weeks of their lives.

However, Ware gradually realized that her most important role was not physical but emotional.

She was there to listen and catalog her intimate reflections in her book, The Top Five Regrets of the Dying.

In their last days, many of her patients shared their regrets with her.

According to Ware, the most common answer was:

“I wish I had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.”

This behavior is what many people do: they live and act according to the expectations of others.

I want you to hate that immediately.

Stop tolerating living your life for other people.

Newsflash: You get one life. It’s yours.

Live it for you. Not for others.

Whatever you want to do, be, or accomplish, go and do it.

If you don’t, if you “tolerate” taking unsolicited advice from others (especially when it’s not what you want to do with your life), you run the risk of kissing your potential goodbye.

As a result, your potential–your greatness–stays on the sidelines of life.

Do you want to live your life for others and potentially die with that regret?

Then, start hating that behavior and stop abiding by it. Stop tolerating it.

The BMM Takeaway

Listen, you do you.

I can’t control you; you have complete freedom to live however you choose.

But if you’re reading this newsletter (and you’ve read this far), I assume you want to achieve your personal greatness.

If that’s the case, then I want you to stop tolerating mediocrity from yourself. 

Kick the habit cold turkey.

Stop tolerating being fat and unhealthy.

Stop tolerating being broke.

Stop tolerating living your life for the opinions of others.

Stop living in an average way.

If you desire greatness, learn to abolish average in all areas of your life.