People love to say, “You can do anything you put your mind to!”

And while that sounds great on a T-shirt or tattooed on your forearm… let’s just be real for a minute:

I will never dunk a basketball.

I will never fly (without a ticket and a neck pillow).

Heck, I will never juggle.  Why?

Because I only have one working arm.

(Unless someone starts tossing me things really, really slowly… and even then, I hope they have good insurance.)

I used to hear that phrase and feel like I’d missed something. Like I was in that annoying  “ER” — the “Everyone’s Remarkable” club — trophies for all! …And then somehow, I ended up in the actual ER.

That whole “you can do ANYTHING you put your mind to” thing? It’s a nice idea, but it’s just not true.  

As a matter of fact there are WAY more things you CAN’T do than that you CAN.  The cool part, though?  That’s OK!  Just be you.

And honestly, it can be kind of discouraging, especially if your reality just doesn’t line up with that dream.

But here’s what IS true:

You can get better.

No, I’ll never be the fastest man in the world.

But I can be fast-ER.

Faster than I was last year.

Stronger, funnier, kinder, even cleaner (laundry-wise and language-wise, depending on the gig).

We get so wrapped up in trying to be the best—the smartest, the fastest, the most talented—that we miss the real goal:

Just be better.

Not better than them.

Better than you.

You see, not every kid in school can be the fastest.

Not every kid in school can be the smartest.

But every kid on the planet can be fast-ER, smart-ER, kind-ER, and more awesomer (okay, that  one might be pushing it grammatically… but you get the point).

It’s not about achieving the impossible. It’s about growing from that impossible place where you started.

For me, that place was a coma, brain surgery, a wheelchair, and a one-sided shutdown.

Doctors told me I’d never walk again. Never talk again. I wasn’t even supposed to live!

Well… I don’t walk great. And my talking is often bad puns, a mic and the Punchliner stage.

But I get better.

Every “ER” matters. It adds up.

Brave-ER decisions.

Bigg-ER dreams (the kind that fit your reality, not deny it).

A deep-ER purpose.

So next time you hear someone say, “You can do anything you put your mind to,” smile politely.

And then remind yourself of the better truth:

You may not be able to do anything,

but you can always do something.

And that something can be better than yesterday’s.

Keep chasing the “ER.”

That’s where the magic lives.

The Emergency Room is where we go when something’s wrong.

But in life, your ER can also be where healing begins.

Not healing into perfection — but into progress.

Not “you can do anything!”

But “you can do something… and you can do it better than you did yesterday.”

Thanks for reading. If you’re on your own “ER” journey—trying to be strongER, funniER, or happiER—stick around. Sign up for future posts, merch discounts, and a laugh or two. Let’s get “ER” together.