“I’ve been trained for this” …is the narrative that consumed my mind as I laid in the emergency room and Jeff, and I were warned that this may be cancer. For years I had studied and been consumed about understanding and applying the power of mindset. Many of you know that in late 2018 my life was forever impacted when I was introduced to Tim Kight (TK). It started with listening to a podcast that ignited a fire and hunger. It quickly became a journey that grew my passion, changed my career and forever influenced my everyday life. Over the next 6 years, TK became a friend and the greatest mentor I will ever find. I can’t tell you how many countless hours I have spent watching, listening to and studying his wisdom. I have had the opportunity to be trained by him, and I have the privilege in my career to teach others what he has taught me.
Foundational to the mindset and leadership principles of TK is E+R=O. I could explain what this simple equation means, but I’ll let TK do that, watch below…
Two years after meeting TK he found out he had stage 4 cancer. For the next 4 years I watched him live out E+R=O as he fought daily for his life until his passing on May 3, 2024.
Over the years of knowing TK I would often reflect on how much I learned from him. It was only a month after he lost his battle that I began my battle and realized the true gift of not only knowing TK but watching him face cancer and walk through the toughest days with a focus and a discipline on his response.
I knew the moment of my diagnosis that 1) I have the Lord and 2) I have been trained for this. Neither of these statements mean that this is easy and that this journey is free of fear, pain and sadness. But it does mean that I stand on a foundation of strength, of peace and of joy. It means that I walk through this cancer journey knowing that I control my response, and that my response has impact and influence. “Your R is most important when your E is most difficult…yes I get that.”
E+R=O isn’t something you only apply in your toughest battles, it’s a daily mindset. The funny thing is, if you don’t have this mindset in the daily events then you will surely struggle when the challenging ones come.
On my wrist I have two wristbands that I have been wearing since long before my diagnosis. One says E+R=O and the other says DO THE WORK. They are my constant reminders to put in the work (mental work) to approach each day, each conversation, each moment with the right (disciplined) mindset. Says easy, does hard…but it’s the daily challenge.
BUT GOD 
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