If you’re anything like me – you will have discovered at some point that life can quite easily become an endless line of obstacles.
That might be one of the most negative/pessimistic first sentences ever written, but I think it sums up the way I’ve been feeling over the last few months.
I sometimes catch myself thinking about the days when I was a child. The world was one big playground, and “stress” seemed like an abstract concept. I miss those days, and it stings to think that I never understood how good things were!
All that privilege and zero gratitude!
Privilege is a word often associated with race inequality now days. But I’m not talking about the fact that I was a white boy – living a relatively comfortable life without any persecution. I’m talking about the privilege of being young, and not yet being shaped by the world. The beauty of being free to do whatever I wanted – whenever I wanted. I would play with bugs, climb trees, compete in sports, build dens and make music, and there was absolutely no consideration given to the idea that what I was doing might be looked down upon, or might not work. I definitely wasn’t worried about falling!
Without being aware, I followed Maverick’s advice: “don’t think…just do!”
The first experience I ever had of being “hindered” by external forces, probably came in the form of a bully. I was plagued on a daily basis by a kid named Danny. I won’t use his surname (partly out of politeness, and partly because there’s a bit of me that’s worried he might find me and beat me up!)
Looking back – I think that Danny was probably jealous, and did everything he could to put me in my place because he didn’t know how to express himself. He wasn’t particularly big or scary, but he came from a rough family, and frequently delighted in telling me that his brother owned a gun, and would find me on my way home from school and shoot me. It sounds ridiculous now, but this was a real thing for me. I was petrified!
He would walk over to me in the playground, get in my face and belittle me in front of everyone, not to mention the occasional punch to the face!
I’ve encountered other kids like him in the years that followed, and even now (as a fully grown man) I occasionally meet people who have a similar agenda, but I’m now equipped with the experience and confidence to deal with spiteful people. They are no longer the thing that holds me back….
When you become an adult, the things that control you are far more insidious, and generally come in the form of responsibilities, and the fear associated with failure.
We no longer have the luxury of playing with things (or at least we don’t feel like we do), and playing with things is how we learn and move forward.
I talk to so many people who either claim not to have a dream, or are unlikely to ever take the steps that move them toward their goals, because they are saturated by all the noise that life has thrown at them. It makes me really sad to think of all the lost potential amongst my friends and family.
So how can we rid ourselves of all the noise and obstacles that get in the way of living the lifestyle of our dreams? How do we make shit happen?
The answer is annoyingly simple!
All you have to do is GET STARTED!
Get clear on the thing that you want to achieve, and then take consistent small steps towards it.
That’s it.
There’s no magic bullet. No piece of information that will solve all your problems, and no book you can read that will give you a personalised blueprint to success.
Whether you like it or not – everyone who has ever achieved anything remarkable, has done so by using the above formula. IQ and genetics will play their role , sure…but there is VERY little that in life that those two factors will prohibit anyone from achieving.
I’ve spoken to lots of “highly successful” people, and I can say with absolute certainty that the reason for their success had almost nothing to do with their talent or intelligence levels – it was their ability to move forward that got them there! Small/consistent steps in the right direction, and not being afraid of failure. That’s it! And those are both things that we all did naturally when we were children, without giving it a second thought.
This realisation is part of the reason that I created ‘Lab Sixty Three’. I wanted to build a space where people were celebrated for experimenting – without fear of failure. A place where help and encouragement are given, and where we can move forward towards a life full of passion and fulfilment!
So, next time you’re feeling beaten up by life – remember what life was like as a child. Take stock of what you really care about, and start moving towards towards it…one step at a time.