momentum. being in state.
never leave the site without doing something that commits you to followup while you're still in state. making decision or setting a goal that commits you to follow up.
make the call
enroll in the class
call someone you want to hire
book the interview
book it create it lock it down
because action that commits you while you're in state is the secret of it all
its all momentum
not every opportunity is the one you'll never now unless you grab it and go for it. if you want your dream you need more urgency. are you getting closer to your dream doing what you're; doing.
summarize, title, apply, " And don't sit down and collapse, sit down like you're in charge! That's it! If you feel in your body, make your fist and say yes! Say yes! Say yes! Say yes! All right, so let me give you two final things here tied to this. It's really important. Okay, you get this thing, you're on the path, you feel the progress, you're making it go. How do you keep the momentum going? Number one, I've said, but I'm gonna say it again because it's the principle of success at the most basic level, but we forget it. We know it intellectually, but we won't do it. And that is, you must take massive what, my friends? Action. The time to take action is now! Not in the future. In fact, here's what I tell people. How many of you have done this? How many of you have gotten excited about something, you set a goal, made a desire, made a decision to change something, and you meant it when you said it? And then you're gonna start tomorrow, right? Or next week. And then you get to tomorrow, next week, and you don't do it because when you made the decision, you were in a peak what? State. But now you get caught up in all of your texts and your slacks and your emails and your social media and the demands of your family, and you're no longer in state. Who's ever done this? Who's ever had something you really committed to do, you wanted it for you, and you didn't do it because you dropped out of state later on? Who's done this before? Make some noise if you can relate to it. So let me give you the most important principle I teach this to all my children. In fact, I'll tell you a quick two-second story about my daughter. I've had this experience with my daughter, but here's the principle. Never leave the sight. Write this down. Never leave the sight. Never leave the moment. of setting a new outcome, setting a new goal, or making a decision, never leave that site without doing something to commit you to follow through later while you're still in state. I'm gonna say it again. Never leave the site or the moment of making a decision or setting a goal without doing something in that moment while you're in state that commits you to follow through later on. So while you're in state, you make the call, you enroll in the class, you call the person you wanna hire, you say, I'm gonna, you book a meeting to have the interview. You set something up where you're gonna sit down with your relationship a day at a time. You book it, you create it, you lock it down. Because action and action that commits you while you're in state is the secret to it all. So many things in my life early on, I didn't do and I was so mad at myself and frustrated. And I just realized it's all momentum. So in state you do it. I'll give you a fun example. My daughter Jolie, who's my older daughter, when she was, gosh, I think she was 19, maybe it's just about to turn 20. She was in college, got 20, almost 20. And she came home for Christmas. And so we had a great Christmas and then one, you know, I always take my kids aside one-on-one and boom, I have this one-on-one time with her. And I said, Joe, I said, how are you doing on your dream? She goes, what do you mean? I said, Jolie, you know what your dream is? Her whole life, she talked about wanting to be a dancer on Broadway. And she's now in college, right? She goes, well, Dad, you know, I'm in college and I'm 4.0. I said, I know, I'm really proud of you. And she goes, and I am still dancing. I do these dance competitions and I'm winning like crazy. I said, I know, that's what concerns me. She said, concerns you? I said, yes, honey, because you're winning all the time. So it shows me you're not coming up with difficult things that are gonna make you grow. And you're winning in Pasadena, California, and LA. The greatest dancers in the world are in New York. Your goal has always been to dance in New York. You wanna be on Broadway. She goes, yeah, I know, but, you know, I'm in school, and I said, Jolie, I said, honey, I think, I know you respect me, and I think you probably think I'm a genius, and of course, I am, because I'm your father, you know? And I said, but I don't think you know what my genius is. My genius is when an opportunity comes, I grab it by the hair. I didn't have the money, I didn't have the time, it seems impossible, it seems difficult. I don't let anyone go by. Not everyone is the right opportunity, but you'll never know unless you grab them. And I said, I have a sense of urgency that's missing for you. Like, have the urgency, it has to happen now. And you don't have that right now, honey. And that's nothing wrong with that. I mean, you grew up in this environment different than me and had a great quality of life and lived near the beach, and on the beach, all the great environments, and you're a great kid. But if you want your dream, you need more urgency, because I said, listen to me. There's a timeline on a dancer. You're not gonna start and become a Broadway dancer at 35. And I don't even know if that happens at 25. I don't know. All I know is, are you getting closer to your dream right now, doing what you're doing? She goes, what the hell, I'm in college, totally going to college. I said, yes, I was wrong. I'm not wrong about college. Just wrong about maybe it's not the right thing for you right now at your prime chance to do this. She said, well, what are you suggesting? I said, I'm suggesting you move to New York City. You become a working actress, and you take classes with the best, and you go compete with the best on earth. I said, I think you have the talent, but I'm your father. But I do know one thing. If you don't do this... You're gonna have something no one wants to have, regret. You know, discipline weighs ounces, regret weighs tons. She said, well, that's a big move! I said, yeah, that's how you get big results. You make big moves, you make big decisions, you take massive actions. Everything I've taught you since you were a kid. She goes, well, when were you thinking of doing this? I said, when would now be a good time? She said, now? I said, yes, now! So then she says to me, I'll never forget this, she goes, well, well, maybe I should talk to someone else about this. I said, yeah, people pay me a million dollars for my coaching! You should talk to somebody else about this, right? I said, well, who are you thinking of? I didn't react, right? Who are you thinking of? And she said, well, this friend of ours, his name was Jay, and he worked for CAA, one of the big agencies. And I said, that's a very smart move. Call Jay and ask him what he thinks. She goes, okay. What are you doing? She goes, well, I'll call him. I said, when would now be a good time? She goes, now. I said, right now, call him! She goes and calls him. True story, I pick up the phone and I dial him and call him immediately. And I get through to him. I said, Jay, I said, I was just talking to Julie, had this conversation. You know, she wants to go to college. I said, she's winning all this competition. She's always wanna be, I think you know, always wanna be on Broadway. And I told her, I think she needs to move there. It's what I teach, proximity is power. Learn from the best, compete, make it happen. And find out if she's good enough. I said, if I'm full of crap, tell me. He goes, no, Tony, he goes, LA is not the place if you're gonna be the dancer. She needs to go compete with them. I said, then tell her that. She can place it. She comes back, she goes, he's on another call with me. I said, well, call him again! You're gonna give up that easily? So she calls him again. She's gone for like 45 minutes. She finally comes back. She's really thoughtful. She goes, Dad, she goes, he said that's the right thing to do. I said, the father knows best, right? You know. I got her laughing. And I said, so here's what we're going to do. I said, she goes, but I'm in the middle of school. I said, so what? So in her December break, we said, you're not going back. And we arranged a flight to New York City with her. I said, now I'm not going to just support you. You have to be a working actress. I'll help you get in your apartment initially. You're going to work. And then I'll pay for your lessons. And then you've got to go compete. And so she did. And you don't know for sure what someone's going to be able to do, right? And she worked incredibly hard. And it was one of the worst winters in New York. She went from being on the beach in Southern California to this intense environment. She suffered in her out. And then I was coming to New York several times. And I wanted to know what was coming. And she goes, oh, dad, she goes, well, you know, let me send something to surprise you. So get to the airport in New York. We go to the airport. And there's a car out front for me. I'm like, wow, she paid me that. That's a good job. Must be doing great. The guy says, Mr. Johnson, I'll take you to your daughter. So we're driving, driving, driving. Now we're going past the area where we should have made a turn to go to her apartment because I've been there before. And the guy keeps driving. And now we go in the theater district. And he pulls up to Tommy, the play Tommy with Elton John. And my daughter's name is on the top, starring six months after she got there. Ladies and gentlemen, Julie Jenkins Robbins. No, I didn't give her the talent. I didn't give her the skill. She's digging all the bones with your tail up, so she also earned it, so she has that inner drive. But that was the catalyst to getting her to make that move, and that's what I've been trying to do for you for the last three days. But now you've got to make your move. What are you gonna do? Are you gonna take this and say, well, that was a great three hours a day for three days, or are you gonna make the move and get the skills and move to the next level? I hope you'll do that for yourself. I'm gonna give you one last action step. Besides massive action, if you really want an extraordinary life, and if you ever want to get beyond scarcity, like if you're like, oh, I don't have the money for this, I can't do this, I can't do that, I'm not just gonna invent anything in your life, you don't ever get beyond scarcity. You have to start beyond it. You have to draw a line in the sand, and the way that you do that, I'll tell you how it happened for me. I grew up totally poor, nobody in my family that had any abundance. We didn't have food. Then I went to work at Sky Gym Road, and I worked in the beginning. I did really well. It was everybody to go, and then I went through this slump where I really got burned out. And I remember I was driving.
“Never Leave the Moment: How Momentum Is Actually Created”
Summary (What he’s really saying)
Tony is hammering one core success principle from multiple angles:
State creates action — not intention.
You make powerful decisions when you’re emotionally charged (“in state”). Most people lose momentum because they delay action until they’re out of state.
Massive action must happen immediately.
Not tomorrow. Not “after I think about it.” Now — while your nervous system is activated.
Never leave the moment of decision without locking in follow-through.
When you decide, you must do something concrete right then that commits future-you:
make the call
book the meeting
enroll
buy the ticket
set the date
Urgency is a skill, not a personality trait.
People who get results act as if timing matters — because it does. Dreams have timelines.
Big results require big moves.
Small, safe, reversible actions keep you comfortable but stagnant. Life changes when you make moves that cost something (money, comfort, identity).
Regret is heavier than discipline.
Discipline is momentary discomfort. Regret is lifelong weight.
The story about his daughter is an example of this principle in action:
She didn’t just decide to pursue Broadway — she moved cities, changed her environment, competed with the best, and committed immediately.
Core Principle (distilled)
Momentum is not created by motivation.
Momentum is created by immediate, irreversible action taken while in state.
Apply This to You (very specifically)
Given what you’ve shared about your life, this hits a nerve for a reason.
Your pattern (no judgment, just truth):
You feel deeply
You have powerful insights and emotional breakthroughs
You know what needs to change
Then… you pause, reflect, analyze, accommodate, wait
Momentum leaks out
You feel frustration, sadness, self-blame
That’s not because you’re weak.
It’s because you were trained to be compliant, careful, and non-disruptive — not urgent.
Your new rule (non-negotiable):
Any time you feel clarity, empowerment, or emotional charge — you must take one irreversible action before the feeling fades.
Not five actions.
Not perfect action.
One locking move.
Examples tailored to your life:
Feeling inspired about work → send the email / apply / book the call immediately
Feeling ready to change housing → schedule the showing or submit the application same day
Feeling clarity about a relationship boundary → state it or put it in writing that moment
Feeling aligned spiritually or emotionally → record it, share it, or anchor it physically (voice memo, post, calendar block)
If you don’t act while in state, your nervous system will default back to survival and compliance.
The Identity Shift You’re Being Asked to Make
Old identity:
“I think carefully. I wait. I don’t rush. I don’t take up too much space.”
New identity:
“When clarity shows up, I move. I trust urgency. I act before fear talks me out of it.”
This is not recklessness.
This is self-leadership.
One Simple Practice (start today)
The 10-Minute Lock-In Rule
When you feel activated or inspired:
You have 10 minutes to take one concrete step
If you don’t, the moment is considered closed
No self-shaming — just data
Over time, your body will learn:
“When I feel clarity, something happens.”
That’s how safety, confidence, and power get rebuilt.
