At times in my life, in yours too I’d bet, a brighter future sits on the horizon. We look. We imagine ourselves in that future partaking of the what ifs and the could bes. We see the how to happiness, but don’t believe in it.
Then we talk ourselves out of living, using worn words like greener grass and harder they fall. We reign in our egos and close our eyes. Birds and airplanes spend time in clouds. Satellites and comets spend time with stars. We are people. We walk on sidewalks and wood floors.
We say we want. We say we will, and we’re invested. Yet we stop short of determination. We listen when others say, “No, don’t go.” We tell ourselves the reasons we’re wrong to try. While underneath, our fear is that we’ll fail and lose everything, that the brighter future won’t be so bright.
Thinking What we have is better than nothing. is subprime living. Not losing is no where near the same as a win.
Do you talk yourself out of living life?
Be determined. Bet on yourself. Live life. Live the prime of your life.
Be irresistible.
–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz on your business!!
Hi Liz
Every success starts with a dream. And dreams come true, if you dare, take a deep breath and believe in yourself. But there is more to be enjoyed this way (allow me to quote):
I ‘rest my case’
Karin H. (Keep It simple Sweetheart, specially in business)
Hi Karin!
It is the challenge and the belief that pushes us past the fear. It must be. 🙂
Hi Liz
Definitely! And don’t forget the fun/awards of realising the tiniest steps going forward, a little bit closer to your dream/goal.
It sometimes takes your breath away.
Karin H.
Hi, Liz. You’re right. And this is something I was coincidentally thinking about over the weekend. I think sometimes we’re afraid of success, because success means change, and change is scary. Then achieving success requires taking action, and taking action is hard.
-TimK
Hi Liz
I love the tulips!
For me part of the problem is always thinking that the prime time is in the future – the “I’ll be happy then” syndrome – rather than waking up and realizing we can have it right here, right now. That’s what I’d call the prime of our life:-)
Joanna
Hi Joanna!
I used to think that way too, until one day when I was 40, I thought “Just exactly when is one day?”
Karin!
It is quite something to realize that I’m getting closer. Sounds like you feel the same when it happens to you. 🙂
I agree, Tim,
Taking action also means taking on responsibilities. You bet that’s hard, especially if what we’re going for is BIG. 🙂
Liz,
Beautifully written, and so true! In reading the piece I had one minor quibble. I think we’re not reigning in our egos, we’re succumbing to the ego’s fear-based influence. Our heart/soul/higher self is what we’re holding back.
Mike
Brilliant. I’d like to think of myself as a fearless internet entrepreneur-lion, but the fact is, I’m more a kitten than a lion. I guess we all are.
Yeah Yoav,
Maybe part of being fearless is recognizing that we’re not. 🙂
Liz,
This is wonderfully inspiring and certainly timely.
Thanks for giving us a kick to move forward, especially because the biggest obstacle is ourselves.
Shirley
sometimes the proverbial kick in the teeth has a way of opening your eyes around you and has you see either the reality of it all or the beauty, since i had to chunk it down to simple this last year I found that there is more to the living that I have already created already around me that I was letting slip by – i found it again and am feeling ever so grateful for it
i also am in this amazing space for transition and it’s doodling in my mind with all of this possibilty
today for example I thought hey what if i could be without a car ( ala franke james as my example, eh? ) and it felt completely different to me than when i first read her blog http://www.frankejames.com, and when she let go of her SUV, then I thought oh i could never do that
it’s shifting and it’s such a gift opening feeling
Mother Earth aka Karen Hanrahan
http://www.bestwellnessconsulant.com
oops here is the correct url for franke http://www.frankejames.com/debate/?p=22
Karen
Hi Shirley!
Yeah, we really are the biggest walls in our own way, aren’t we?
Hi Mother Earth,
It does seem that, once we get in the mood for a change, we get awash with creativity. Maybe it’s because we move out of the center of the universe and give the universe room to breathe. 🙂
what a great image that would be – the universe or the earth or whatever – breathing
I am definitely experiencing some
“awash”
Hi Mother Earth!
It appears that “awash” is a very good thing!! 🙂
Let me tell you a story about one time that I saw a better future on the horizon. (Pardon the length!)
When 2006 rolled around, I was living in West Virginia. I had a full-time job as a personal banker, a long-term relationship, my own car, and my own apartment. I was planning to return to college for a BS degree when I gathered enough monetary oomph.
I wasn’t happy.
A friend told me about a start-up business in Denver, Colorado. I’d never been west of the Mississippi River before. This new job would pay slightly more than Bank of America, but it’d use entirely different skills (web and graphic design, rather than a head for numbers and great customer service). And it would be risky– no guarantees that this company would survive, let alone thrive.
(Now, pay close attention to the sequence of events following this. You’ll note that I did things downright recklessly.)
I quit my job. I took my dog and drove cross-country a week later, with my resume, to have an interview. I crashed on my friend’s couch, having never met him in person before, and apartment-shopped. I drove back after the interview.
I packed. I ended the long-term relationship I was in (which had been part of the “not happy”). I drove back to Colorado – again, alone. I got an apartment with my friend’s help and signed a six-month lease.
Then, and only then, was I informed that I got the job and started the following Monday.
-That- is the kind of story you get, when you dare to live fully.
(Epilogue: The company lasted for a full year and a half before internal sabotage brought it crashing down. I learned so much – had so many days that were downright horrible, and so many more days that were glorious. I used that company as a springboard to get into the web design field, and now I work for a new company, doing similar things for a lot more money and a lot less stress.)
I haven’t, don’t, and never will regret a single minute of it. =)
So true! I try to live by the mantra, “Never mediocrity, only excellence.”
I do this not only because I want to be fulfilled, but I don’t want my children raised afraid of change or taking risks.
Has this mantra afforded me some successes and failures? Yes, if you consider failure an idea that didn’t go as planned. But I see only success because in each instance I took a chance and I learned something, something invaluable.
Thank you for reminding me of this. I’m getting in the mood to make some more changes…
Hi Towanda!
Welcome and thank you!
Your comment reminds us too that we succeed very time we learn something new. 🙂
You’re not a stranger anymore. 🙂
i love the idea of betting on yourself! what an interesting idea! it feels risky – but then getting out of the house is risky …
Hi Isabella,
If we can’t bet on ourselves and feel secure we’ll come through . . . then maybe we’re not as invested or as qualified as we’re thinking we are. 🙂
If we never risk, we never learn. 🙂