15: It Starts With You – Randy Nantz
The Real Reason Most People Don’t Reach Their Goals
Sergeant First Class Randy Nantz (Retired) is a former Green Beret, combat-wounded veteran, and adaptive athlete. After losing his leg in Iraq, Randy didn’t give up—he got stronger. Through his work at the Adaptive Training Foundation and the Green Beret Foundation, he’s trained warriors, mentored hundreds of families, and become a fierce advocate for accountability, resilience, and rebuilding from the inside out.
When I asked Randy what everyday civilians could do to build more grit and resilience, his answer was clear: it starts with mindset—and it starts with you.
Seek Out the Stories That Show You It’s Possible
“You should seek out people that are doing it already. Maybe not personally go reach out to them. But there are stories out there. Go research some other people that have done that. And see what they're doing.” (Randy Nantz)
Randy’s first step to getting stronger? Don’t isolate. Don’t assume you’re the only one trying. Look around. There are people out there who’ve done the thing you want to do. Study them. Learn how they did it. See what’s possible. Then go after it.
Accountability Over Everything
“The other part of it, it comes down to mindset one and accountability. You have to be able to hold yourself accountable. You're going to set a goal that you want to do this in this amount of time. Then you do that and you hold yourself accountable all the way through that. And if you miss or you don't do it, then you have to reset that and start again. You can never quit. You can never give up.” (Randy Nantz)
According to Randy, the real difference between those who win and those who quit is whether they hold themselves accountable when no one’s watching.
Set the goal. Own the process. And if you fall short, don’t make excuses. Reset. Recalibrate. Go again.
Hard Training Reveals the Truth
“We teach in the gym, physically training is hard. It's hard physically, but it's more hard mentally. Why? Because you're going to find out where you're willing to quit or where you start doubting yourself. You learn a lot of things about yourself in that hard training, mentally wise and that mental wise even crosses over to civilians.” (Randy Nantz)
For Randy, physical training is more than just a workout. It’s a mirror.
It shows you where you doubt yourself. Where you want to give up. Where you make excuses. But it also shows you something else—what you're capable of when you decide to push through.
Belief is Everything
“You have to be able to hold yourself accountable to that goal. And if there's something you want to do well, there's steps to get there. So identify what those steps are and then hold yourself accountable to go through each step until you attain that goal.
When you first teach your kids to something and they do it the first time, you see that light go on. Wow, that really works. Yes, it does, because it all starts right here and right here—in the heart and in your head.” (Randy Nantz)
Randy explains that accountability isn’t just about discipline. It’s about belief.
Believe in the goal. Believe in the process. Believe in yourself.
“What I see in most people that don't do—they don't hold themselves accountable, and they don't have any problem not holding their self accountable.
‘Oh, well, that wasn't for me.’ Or they'll come up with some other excuse.
That's not true. It's because you decided it was too hard for you.
That's fine.
And if you decide it's not too hard—guess what? You're right.
Either way, as we know:
‘I can't’ or ‘I can’—you're right either way.
Because you believe it.
You have to believe it.” (Randy Nantz)
Lessons Learned
Randy Nantz has lived through hell—and rebuilt himself from the ground up. His message is simple, powerful, and honest:
Find people who’ve done what you want to do. Their stories will guide you.
Hold yourself accountable. No shortcuts. No blaming. No quitting.
Expect to fail. Then go again. Adjust the method. Never the mission.
Train your mind through your body. Hard things reveal who you are.
Belief is the beginning. If you don’t believe you can do it, you never will.
Takeaway for You:
If you want to get stronger—mentally, emotionally, physically—start here:
Pick a goal. Something that matters to you.
Break it into steps. Figure out the path.
Hold yourself accountable. Every day. Even when no one’s watching.
Train through the discomfort. That’s where the growth is.
Believe you can. That belief is the foundation of everything else.
You don’t need to be perfect.
You just need to be relentless.
Because when it comes to growth—
“I can” or “I can’t”?
You’re right either way.