So, I stumbled across this Joe Pyfer story kinda by accident. Wasn’t looking for anything specific, just scrolling, you know how it is. And bam, there’s this fighter guy, Joe Pyfer. Watched a bit about him, especially that crazy arm injury he had on that Contender Series show. Looked nasty, the kind of thing that just ends careers right there.
Now, why did this stick with me? Well, around that time, I was going through my own mess. Not a broken arm in a cage fight, nothing that dramatic. But I got laid off. Out of the blue. One day you’re planning projects, next day you’re packing a box. Felt like the floor dropped out from under me. Spent a few weeks just… adrift. Felt pretty useless, honestly. Motivation went straight out the window.
My Own Little “Comeback” Try
Seeing Pyfer talk about his recovery, the rehab, the doubt, and then actually coming back and winning… it wasn’t like a magic switch flipped for me, but it got me thinking. Here’s a guy who physically got broken, career on the line, and he just kept grinding. What was my excuse? Yeah, losing a job sucks bad, really bad. But was I gonna just stay down?
So, I started this little thing, my own sort of “practice.” Wasn’t about fighting, obviously. It was just about getting back up when I felt like staying down. Sounds simple, maybe stupid, but it was hard.
Here’s what I actually did, step-by-step, kinda:
- Forced myself out of bed. No more hitting snooze ten times. Just get up. Even if I had nothing planned.
- Made a tiny list. Like, super small. “Apply for one job.” “Take a walk.” “Make lunch.” Stuff I knew I could do. Checking them off felt… okay. Better than nothing.
- Faced the rejection. Job hunting is brutal. Ghosting, “no thanks” emails, the works. Instead of letting each one knock me flat, I tried to just see it as part of the process. Like Pyfer getting hit but staying in the fight. Didn’t always work, some days were rough.
- Tracked the small wins. Didn’t focus on landing the dream job right away. Focused on getting an interview. Or just getting a reply. Small stuff. Made a note of it.
How It Went Down
It was slow. Really slow. There were days I basically did nothing, felt like crap. Didn’t magically become super motivated overnight. But looking back? That period of just forcing the basics, day after day, it built something. Momentum, maybe? Resilience? I don’t know the fancy word for it.
Eventually, things started to turn. Got some interviews that felt better. Started feeling less like a total failure. Landed a gig finally. Not the perfect job, but solid. A way back in.
It’s funny. I don’t even follow MMA that closely. But that Pyfer story, the way he just refused to quit after that awful injury… it weirdly became my benchmark during that whole shitty period. Not about being a tough guy fighter, but just about the simple act of getting back up after getting knocked down hard. That was my practice. Just keep getting up.
