Day: September 9, 2025

A few weeks ago, I was rolling Jiu-Jitsu and pulled my hamstring mid-round.

Not bad enough to stop. But bad enough that I couldn’t play my normal game from the top.

I had to fight from the bottom.

Now here’s the thing – I hate the bottom. Always have. I’m built like a silverback gorilla from decades in the gym, and I prefer using that strength to dominate from the top position.

On top, I can use my weight, my power, my years of lifting heavy shit to control the fight.

But the bottom? The bottom requires technique. Patience. Finesse.

All the things that don’t come naturally to a guy who’s used to strong-arming his way through problems.

And if you know anything about Jiu-Jitsu, the bottom is where nobody wants to be. You’re pinned down.

You feel vulnerable.

You feel like you’re losing even when you’re not.

But there I was, stuck in the worst position possible – the one place where all my natural advantages meant nothing.

Now I’m a firm believer that sometimes God gives you chicken sh!t so you can learn to make chicken salad.

For me, that chicken sh!t was a pulled hamstring forcing me to work on the one part of my game I suck at.

So I stayed. Changed my strategy completely. Started working submissions from the bottom instead of trying to muscle my way back on top.

And I ended up having one of my best rounds in months.

I share this with you because life works exactly the same way.

Most men get handed chicken sh!t and immediately start complaining about the smell.

But the winners? They start looking for the recipe.

You’re not always going to get dealt the perfect hand. Plans fall apart.

Markets crash.

People let you down.

Your body breaks down.

What separates the men who thrive from the men who fold isn’t avoiding the chicken sh!t.

It’s learning how to make chicken salad.

Here’s the recipe:

STEP 1: STOP COMPLAINING ABOUT THE INGREDIENTS

The moment you accept that this is what you’ve got to work with, you can start working with it. Complaining about your circumstances is like complaining about the weather – it’s a waste of energy.

STEP 2: FIND THE OPPORTUNITY IN THE MESS

Every setback has something useful buried in it. Maybe it’s teaching you patience. Maybe it’s forcing you to get creative. Maybe it’s showing you what you’re really made of.

STEP 3: GET TO WORK WITH WHAT YOU HAVE

You don’t need perfect conditions to win. You need to be resourceful with the conditions you’ve got. The best entrepreneurs I know built empires out of problems everyone else was running from.

STEP 4: STAY CALM UNDER PRESSURE

Panic makes terrible chicken salad. When everything’s falling apart, that’s when your composure matters most. Take a breath. Think clearly. Then act.

Make no mistake…

Life will hand you chicken sh!t.

But your ability to turn chicken sh!t into chicken salad is the difference between being a victim of your circumstances and being the master of them.

And the faster you learn this recipe, the faster you’ll realize that some of your biggest wins started with your worst days.

Talk soon,

Bedros Keuilian

P.S. The Squire Program teaches fathers and sons this exact skill together. How to adapt, overcome, and turn setbacks into comebacks.

Because when life tests your son, you want to know you’ve prepared him. And when life tests you, you want him to see how a man handles it.

Find a class near you here.

A few years ago, I took my family on a trip to Hawaii. Perfect vacation – sun, beaches, the kids having a blast. My wife and I finally getting some time to breathe from building businesses.

But on the flight home, everything changed.

Mid-air, about 30,000 feet up, a passenger completely lost it. Started screaming at the flight attendants, getting physical, threatening people around him.

You know that moment when everyone looks around, hoping someone else will handle the situation?

Well, there was no someone else.

It was me and him.

That was my first real test with another man.

His intent to hurt people against my need to protect my family.

I took him down. Put him in a rear naked choke. Held him there until he went to sleep and the crew could restrain him properly.

I share this with you because most men don’t know what it feels like to be up against another man and never felt another man’s true strength.

To tell you the truth, if I hadn’t completed my 90-day Jiu-Jitsu challenge leading up to that trip, I don’t know how that story ends.

Maybe the guy hurts a flight attendant. Maybe he gets to the cockpit. Maybe my wife and kids watch their husband and father get destroyed by someone who wanted to cause chaos.

My hope is that this situation never happens to you…

But one day you might just have to be with another man.

Not in some controlled environment where there’s a referee and rules.

In real life. Where the stakes are everything that matters to you…

• A parking lot outside a restaurant with your family.
• Your driveway at 2 AM when someone’s trying to break in.
• Defending your daughter from some predator who thinks she’s an easy target.

When you train against another man – when you feel his weight, his strength, his determination to dominate you – you strip away every illusion about what you’re capable of.

You find out if you panic when the pressure comes, or if you stay calm.

You discover if you collapse under stress, or if you find another gear.

You learn if you’re a liability to your family, or their protector.

That’s why every man should learn a combative training – whether it’s Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, or wrestling.

And if you want a taste of what that looks like, join me at the next Project Brotherhood meetup.

Because all the money, success, and status in the world means nothing if you can’t protect what matters most.

Talk soon,

Bedros Keuilian

P.S. At Project Brotherhood, you’ll learn combatives, business tactics, and build a network of men serious about protecting and providing. 

I filmed a video for you explaining all about it here.