Take Your Shot
It's cliché, but true; you only live once. What if we actually took this fact seriously and acted upon it? What if we did take that shot? What could we do? Where could we go?
Go for the Green
In life, as in traffic, there is a green for go, a red for stopping and a yellow for slowing down. If we are not "going" forward, then we are either stopped or preparing to stop. We may even be going in reverse. Opportunities don't happen as often as we think they do – They are like pearls in an oyster – quite rare, actually. We need to seize them and run with them.
Don't Hold Back
Sadly, we do hold back. We are so intimidated, afraid of failure, worried about what other people will think and unsure of ourselves. Opportunities come our way for this very reason- to give us a chance to shine, to do something significant and impactful. They are a gift, a way to use the talents we have and the experience we have acquired to contribute something of importance to the world. Time and life will pass us by and there really is a too late, but, until then, let's live!
It May Seem Crazy
Often we don't see the opportunities for what they are. Sometimes they come dressed as challenges requiring us to step out of our comfort zone and do something completely different or crazy. Or they are dressed in overalls and hard hats and don't always look that exciting at first. And, more often than not, they will require us to develop new skills that we may not be comfortable learning. Those around us may think we have lost our marbles. But crazy can be a good thing. Elon Musk is an excellent example of someone who chases his dreams. He dreamed of rockets and travelling to and inhabiting Mars! Now that's an“off the wall”dream!! But, you know what? I think he can do it.
Be Courageous and Dream Big
Grabbing opportunities and running with them is an act of courage. Daring to dream and act on our dream is not a common pursuit. Having a big dream will give us strength to bounce back from failures and keep the spark in our eyes. Failures and setbacks are just little glitches in the learning process.
Without dreams, what do we have? Without something to work toward, why do we get up each day? Dreams are why we have cell phones, cars and airplanes and why we can travel the world. The world needs more dreamers who choose to act on their dreams.
Listen to the Right Voice
The voice we listen to is either propelling us towards success or towards failure. Where focus goes, energy grows. The right voice is usually the quieter voice and it is easily drowned out by the loud noise of the wrong voices. It takes courage to listen to this quiet voice of success. In the Magic of Thinking Big, author David J. Schwartz refers to Mr. Triumph and Mr. Defeat, two voices competing for our attention. We are in charge and we can choose who we listen to.
Tell Yourself the Right Story
An event in a life may only happen one time, but sometimes we let that one event be the back – drop for our life and determine how our life will go. We play out the story, play our role and justify to ourselves why we should live a normal, comfortable life. But, why play it safe in life? None of us is making it out alive! Let's tell ourselves a new story and not let someone else write our story for us. We can't change the past, so we don't need to keep replaying the videos of the past. We can't undo our experiences good or bad, but we can choose how to learn from them. We actually have more control over our future than we think we do. It all starts by choosing the story we want to hear to succeed. So, go ahead! Write your new chapter!
Confront the Demons
You know the demons I am talking about – the relationship issues that need to be confronted, the workplace problems that need clarity, the addictions that need to be addressed and our excuses (yes, our excuses need a head on collision!) that we need to admit to. We cannot sweep these things under the carpet and expect them to disappear. If we do this, they will fester and bubble up into a much worse situation.
Maybe there are people we need to take aside and have a "crucial conversation " with them. Maybe we have to "fess up" to our own personal issues before we can move on. Perhaps we need to forgive people who have hurt us. In all cases, we will need to untie the knots and sweep the deck before we can start to work.
Character Counts
Our character is the foundation of everything we do. It is action. It is not only knowing what is wrong (integrity), but also righting what is wrong,. acting upon our core beliefs. It means doing what we said we were going to do and finishing the story. This is the ultimate thing that will push us through. We have to keep the commitments we made to ourselves (and to others) take action on our beliefs, and push forward. Ultimately, having character means being who we say we are.
Why Not Take a Chance?
Taking that shot is a big step. Opportunities come up to help us grow in our thinking, in our actions, and in our relationships with ourselves, and others. The challenges they present help us to know ourselves better and believe in ourselves. Opportunities come (sometimes quickly and unexpectedly) and go (often before we have had the chance to seize them). But, for those who seize opportunities and run, so much is possible. We only live once, why not take a chance?
Has this post inspired you or helped you? Let me know in a comment.
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