What You Hate Is Holding You Back

I was sitting outside on a sunny afternoon, eating a turkey sandwich, scrolling through Bluesky, when I saw one of those posts that’s meant to stir people up.

It compared CEO pay at Target and Costco—Target's CEO made 719 times what their average worker made. Costco? 262 times. And then came the storm of comments.

Most of them weren’t thoughtful. They weren’t curious. They were angry. Outrage, entitlement, and moral superiority dripped from every keyboard warrior.

People who had never led a team of five—let alone 50,000—were certain they knew what a CEO "should" earn.

It reminded me of the jobsite back when I was a union electrician.

Every few years, contract negotiations would come up, and guys would start talking. Not about our work or how to grow. Just griping. Contractors made too much. Workers got screwed. On and on.

These were the same guys who couldn’t manage a checking account.

Who needed overtime just to stay afloat because they blew money faster than they earned it.

But they had strong opinions on how other people should run multi-million dollar operations.

One thing that shifted my thinking?

A Harv Eker seminar I went to.

He said,

That hit me. Hard.

Now, I’ve never been a CEO. But I know enough to respect the weight of leadership.

It’s real. It’s brutal. And if you spend your energy hating those who carry it, you’re building walls instead of building a future.

So let’s talk about this.

Because what you hate is holding you back...

Let's Break Hate Down

1. Hate Is a Mirror, Not a Weapon

Let’s start with something simple: Hate is rarely about the thing you say you hate.

When you hate rich people, it usually says more about how you feel about money.

When you hate confident people, it’s often because you feel small or unseen.

When you hate people in power, it might be because you feel powerless.

Hate isn’t a righteous stand—it’s often a reflection of your inner struggle.

It’s easier to judge than to look in the mirror.

But that mirror is the only way you grow.

2. You Can't Grow Toward What You Resent

If you resent wealth, power, influence, or excellence—you’ll never pursue them with clean and clear energy.

Your subconscious won’t allow you to become what you loathe.

That’s why people stay stuck.

They say they want more, but they secretly believe having more makes you "one of them" — selfish, greedy, heartless.

So they sabotage. Delay. Blame.

Until you reframe your relationship with the very things you desire, you will unconsciously reject them.

You can’t attract what you condemn.

3. The Myth of Fairness

We want the world to be fair.

But it’s not.

You could work 10x harder than someone else and still get less.

Someone else could make one decision that impacts thousands, while your decisions impact no one but yourself.

That’s not injustice. That’s leverage. That’s life.

CEOs are paid to carry the weight.

If they mess up, thousands of jobs, families, and investments could collapse.

That pressure is real.

And they signed up for it.

What are you signing up for?

4. Leaders Live in a Different World

Real leadership isn't glamorous.

It’s lonely. It’s heavy. It takes courage, not comfort.

If you're a young man in your 20s or 30s and you want to lead, then you need to stop sneering at people who already do.

Learn from them instead.

• Read books.
• Study decisions.
• Watch interviews.

Think like an owner, not a worker.

Think like someone who builds something, not someone who just shows up.

5. Entitlement vs Empowerment

Hate is often born from entitlement.

"I deserve more. I should have that. That should be mine."

But empowerment sounds different.

"How can I learn that skill? How can I offer more value? How can I take ownership?"

One mindset keeps you stuck. The other moves you forward.

If you want to lead your life, you have to kill the part of you that feels owed anything.

Because the world owes you nothing.

But it will respond to your actions.

Putting It On the Mat

Back when I was on the jobsite, early in my career, I had this one foreman named Reggie. Big dude. Tattoos. Quiet. Always had a book in his lunchbox. One day, I asked what he was reading.

"Leadership stuff," he said. "I want to run my own shop someday."

He didn’t complain. He didn’t whine about what others had. He was learning. Planning. Investing in himself. While most guys cracked open an energy drink and ranted about the union, Reggie was reading The E-Myth.

Two years later? He left.

Started his own small electrical business. Hired three guys for his crew. Paid them better. Treated them right. Ran a tighter ship. Became the guy he would read about—and now he was respected and trying things his way.

Why?

Because he didn’t hate what he wanted to become.

You have a choice.

You can keep pointing fingers at people with power and success, telling yourself they don’t deserve it.

Or you can get to work, learn what they know, do what they did, and earn your place among them.

You can scroll and stew. Or you can study and serve.

You can hate. Or you can rise.

Your future is waiting. But it won’t come to the version of you who complains, blames, and sneers.

It will only come to the version of you who shows up, shuts up, and levels up.

Let go of what you hate. So you can grab onto what you're meant to build.

Now go put it on the mat.

Are you sicked and tired of being surrounded by losers, lemmings and Luddites who just sit around and complain?

Then join the Leader's Dojo, where you not only discover how badass you are but you're surrounded by other badass warriors and leaders who will help you to be even better.

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