3.5 Ideas from Michael O’Brian — The Last Bad Day
“Everything is neutral until you label it. You’re labeling yourself as a victim and no one’s going to disagree with you. You have some space to see this thing in a completely different way.” — Michael O’Brian
Michael O’Brian is an executive coach, speaker, and meditation teacher who transformed a near-fatal cycling accident into a catalyst for personal growth and mindfulness advocacy.
After being hit head-on by an SUV traveling 40 mph in 2001, he developed the “Pause, Breathe, Reflect” methodology that he teaches worldwide.
Twenty-one years after his accident, Michael rode his bike across America in 41 days on a total knee replacement, demonstrating that life is about how you respond to challenges, not what happens to you.
3.5 Ideas from Michael O’Brian:
1) The Value of Forgiveness and Growth
- “I didn’t fully forgive the driver until 2012 when we went to Auschwitz and we got a private tour. She [Eva Kaur] is well known for forgiving the Nazis for what they did.
- “I was like, ‘If she can forgive them, why can’t I forgive the driver?”
2) Making Mindfulness Accessible in Everyday Life
- “If you don’t have 10 minutes in the morning, I bet you have five times throughout the day where you have two minutes, so give me 10 minutes in short, little micro mindfulness moments.”
- “I think in our current day, we all need to slow it down a bit, not stop. There’s a lot to do.”
3) The Balance of Work and Recovery
- “This whole notion that we’re just going to rise and grind our way through this to success is a lie. It’s not true.”
- “We need to work hard and then, then we need to slow it down, like work hard, recover harder. That’s how you get better.”
- “You got to go through some pain and discomfort to come out the other side and grow from situations. If everything is cozy, then you’re probably not getting a lot of growth.”
3.5) What’s ONE LESSON Everyone Should Take Away?
- “Take a minute each day to connect with your breath, pause, breathe, reflect.”
- “I believe if I can get eight billion people on this planet to spend one minute a day PBRing, we’d have a much more peaceful world.”
Michael O’Brian is an executive coach, speaker, and meditation teacher who transformed a near-fatal cycling accident into a catalyst for personal growth and mindfulness advocacy.
After being hit head-on by an SUV traveling 40 mph in 2001, he developed the “Pause, Breathe, Reflect” methodology that he teaches worldwide.
Twenty-one years after his accident, Michael rode his bike across America in 41 days on a total knee replacement, demonstrating that life is about how you respond to challenges, not what happens to you.
Connect with Michael O’Brian:
- Website: pausebreathereflect.com
- App: Pause, Breathe, Reflect (available on App Store and Google Play)
- LinkedIn: Michael O’Brian
