Do you have what it takes for greatness?

It Takes What It Takes: How To Think Neutrally and Gain Control of Your Life

By Trevor Moawad

What does it take to be excellent? According to Trevor Moawad, it takes what it takes. Until his passing in the fall of 2021, Moawad was the mental conditioning coach for NFL quarterback Russell Wilson, and he wrote this manifesto for those desiring real growth and change.

This book is not about positive thinking or full of a guru sensationalist’s words. Moawad guides the reader to embrace neutral thinking, which he describes as accepting the reality of doing whatever is required to achieve a desired outcome. While negative thinking is fixed upon what has or could go wrong, and positive thinking focuses on what could go right, neutral thinking simply focuses on what needs to be done to achieve what you want.

As Moawad writes, neutral thinking is “staying in the moment, giving each moment its own history, and reacting to events as they unfold. It takes away emotion and replaces it with behaviors.” Instead of asking, “how do I feel?” you should ask, “what do I do?”

The book masterfully connects mindset to action. While Moawad does spend significant time discussing the value of visualization and other aspects of creating a neutral mindset, he always ties these concepts to action. One of the book’s key questions asks, “what three behaviors do you need to implement to succeed?” While the book doesn’t drill down into every aspect of habits, it acknowledges the need for you to guide yourself to excellence through your mindset and behaviors.

All humans feel the urge to seek comfort or to drift out of excellence into mediocrity. Many are overwhelmed by what Moawad refers to as “the illusion of choice.” He shares that those who choose to be great have given up many choices. For instance, Olympians may choose to give up fast food, late nights, alcohol, and other vices that keep them from peak performance. To truly be great, a person often decides to forgo doing whatever they want whenever they want. They simply do what is required to be the best. And that doesn’t start tomorrow. It begins now. As Moawad emphatically writes, “it takes what it takes.”