400 trillion to 1. Pretty crazy odds. A few years ago, I shared this stat—and a Gary Vaynerchuk Vaynerchuk video where I first heard it—with one of the residents in our reentry transitional house. He was going through a tough time, and honestly, so was I. I was frustrated, tired, and feeling defeated. I didn’t even want to have the meeting that day. Most of me thought he wouldn’t show up, like the two previous times. But he did. The tension was thick—you could feel it. He had every right to be frustrated, too. It was like we couldn’t break through or see eye to eye. At the last moment, I decided to change my approach. I led with empathy. I listened. I let him get it all out. And then I told him: “You’re right—the hand you were dealt hasn’t been easy, and the road out isn’t easy either. But you’ve got people who love, care about, and support you. We want to see you succeed. We want to be there, cheering with you on the other side, looking at everyone who said you couldn’t, waiting for you to give up. Giving up would mean letting those people win. But you’re special, and it would break my heart to see another good one lose to the system that put you here.” And then I showed him the video. That stat—400 trillion to 1—hit him harder than I expected. From that point on, his entire outlook and mindset were different. He started showing up differently—more focused, more determined. And anytime someone in the house was feeling down, they’d remind each other: “You’re 1 in 400 trillion—act like it.” Sometimes, a small shift in perspective can change everything.
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The odds of you existing at all is practically zero. If you really look at the chances of your parents meeting, getting into a relationship, getting married, having kids, and more specifically having you, scientists say it’s about 400 trillion to 1. You’re literally more likely to win the lottery ten times in your life than to actually have one. If you’re seeing this, you’ve been given a ridiculous gift.