Written by Joseph Sullivan, a Kabuki Strength sponsored athlete and one of the top 220 powerlifters in the world. Along with this piece we have released a "Sully Strong" special edition shirt which can be purchased on our store or via the links below.Death and darkness. The only things we are guaranteed or entitled to out of life. You might view that as cynical, but I view it as empowering! To accept the fact that we are nothing in the grand scheme of things, lends so much power to every one of our decisions and passions in this life because it is our ONLY life. So you may as well stand for something and let a passion consume you because by accepting the fact that we are nothing except a blink in the grand scheme of time, means we must find substance in our existence because that is all we can attach ourselves to.Powerlifting is an ego driven endeavor but by detaching yourself from your ego, and by considering your success and your forward progress as nothing but an INEVITABLY you may move past the fear, the distraught, and the failure of a missed lift. If you know what you are capable of and have shown that in the completion of your training with machine like precision, you know that whatever you call for on a third attempt WILL be there. It's simply an inevitability that you move the weight.I have been competing in powerlifting for 10 years now. I have always expected great things from myself, and held myself to a high standard. I hit my first "elite" total at 1725lbs at 198lbs in 2015. I took NO time off between then and now, but had many setbacks along the way. I will save you a list but no shortage...