Newsletter #4 Stop playing a small game

Dear readers,

I thought I’d share something a bit more personal with you this month, as it’s something I’ve found I’ve struggled with lately.

Growing up I was always an incredibly driven, competitive individual. What fuelled my drive is irrelevant to this newsletter, but whenever I put my mind toward something, like a dog with a bone, I would rarely let go.

This drive to better myself, to do more, to explore, meet and experience new things, was never celebrated in the small community I grew up in. Country football and cricket was the only thing it seemed anyone cared about, and I was different. When I joined the Navy, people laughed, and told me sailors were all 'gay and lazy'. When I started boxing, again, it was the most rigged sport, not even real combat. And the list goes on... So instead of trying to stand out, only to be cut down, I learnt that keeping your mouth shut, and humbly going about your business was the safe option. Always downplaying my achievements and feeling uneasy when they were spoken about, expecting to be roasted for excelling. And it’s sad to say, that the people who had these opinions were always the minority, but it’s the tear downs that always seem to stick the most, and always seem to come from the people close to you, am i right?

Even a few years ago, when my world record was recognised, I shared the news in celebration with someone close. The response I received was “It’s no big deal really, I mean, I’m sure there are heaps of other people that have done it, they just didnt carry on about it like you..”

But you know what, when I look back at the people that have torn me down in life, I see their own insecurity, or the envy they have for their own shortfalls. Why should I or anybody ever play small so that others may feel big?

I struggle with self-promotion, certainly around my motorbike achievements, and the plans I have for the future. But if I don’t start stepping into the man I need to be, then how can I serve anyone? What benefit can I offer the universe if I continue to stay small, and not tell the world, who I am, what I’ve done, and where we are going?

The time for small games is over! So please let me introduce myself. My name is Benji Brundin, loyal friend, partner and hard-worker. Born into poverty, squad leader RAN GE243, Victorian Boxing State title holder light heavy weight 2014, Vic Pol. Squad- leader class 6 2015. Current World Record Holder for Fastest Man Across Australia’s Ten Deserts. And still the only person to ever successfully achieve what was considered impossible until 2019.

And now, I’m leading the first expedition to ever cross the ten and I know I can do it because everything in my life has prepared me for it. So, this is who I am, and this is what I’ve done, and this is where I’m going. And playing small serves no one!
So, how are you playing small in your life? How can you stand up and step into the person you believe you can be? Small games will only ever serve small people!

See you in the dunes :)

Cheers, Benji Brundin