Dreams are wonderful things, aren’t they? They can propel us to greatness and add passion to life. They can give us meaning and purpose. Unfortunately, so many people today have abandoned their dreams. Why? Because they are afraid to try for fear they will fail. Or, perhaps they have believed those around them who feel their dreams are “unrealistic” or “silly.” I love Agel because we not only believe in dreams we make them possible.
This week, I would like you to take some time to ponder a question. What would you attempt if you knew you could not fail? What goals would you go after? What different direction would your life take? Next I ask: what is keeping you from pursuing this course today? Whatever those reasons are, I encourage you to take a moment, write them down and analyze them carefully. As you do, my guess is you will notice some interesting similarities between each of these obstacles.
A wonderful story I heard a few years back tells of a 64-year-old grandmother who decided to go to college and get her degree. She was confronted by a “friend” who told her, “What are you thinking? In four years, you’ll be 68!” She calmly look at him and said, “In four years, I’ll be 68 anyway whether or not I go back to school. I may as well be 68 with a degree.”
Abraham Maslow, the great psychologist declared that the story of the human race is the story of people consistently selling themselves short. He said people have a tendency to settle for far less from life than they are truly capable of. According to Maslow, the highest level of human experience is to be “self actualized” which means (among other things) that “we are above the good opinion of others.” Could it be that a major cause for our selling ourselves short is the fear of what others might think of us? Sadly, it’s true.
We all have our reasons, excuses, fears and doubts. But when these keep us from reaching our highest potential, it’s time to step in and take control. When we understand the process of success, we begin to realize that there really is no such thing as failure. Success comes from wisdom. Wisdom comes from experience and experience will only come as the result of mistakes. Therefore, doing nothing is far worse than doing something and failing. It’s in doing nothing that we “settle for less” than we could have. As George Bernard Shaw put it, “A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.”
I encourage you to take purposeful action this week to become aware of this obstacle in your own pursuit of success. Reflect on how many times you catch yourself thinking, “what will they think of me?” While you work to overcome this “fear of other people’s opinions,” surround yourself with those who believe in you and support your pursuit of grand and lofty dreams. (This is why holding a weekly Private Business Reception and attending one Agel Business Briefing every week is so important…they surround you with purpose-driven people who support you!) As you overcome your dependence on the “good opinion of others,” your road to success will become smoother and your dreams will become your reality.
Always Believing in Your Potential,
Craig Bradley
President
