There’s an old expression that goes: “The harder you work, the luckier you get.”
I was reminded of that when I came across a recent article in Fast Company, How to Create Your Luck. When you have a few moments, check it out.
In today’s super-competitive marketplace, everything counts… even so called “luck.”
“Inaction breeds doubts and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear do not sit home and think about it. Get out and get busy.” Dale Carnegie.
From time to time, we all have experienced occasions when we secretly thought about doing something we haven’t done before or of doing something we felt was really the thing to do, only at the last moment to back off, unsure, afraid to try…
There is nothing sure in life. There are no guarantees that you will always be successful when you try something new but when you step back from something you know you are capable of doing you are hiding your true gifts and talents.
Most people prefer things and situations over which they have control and that are predictable. Remember the old adage, “Better the devil you know than the one you don’t?” When you accept that you are buying into the falsehood that you are safer that way.
When you do, though, you are doing yourself a disservice. Worse, you are selling yourself short – accepting less.
The only way to get over your fear of doing something is to do the thing you fear. The only failure is the failure to try.
You owe it to yourself. Never be afraid to try.
“Throw your dreams into space like a kite, and you do not know what it will bring back, a new life, a new friend, a new love, a new country.” Anais Nin.
The world has changed. So have you. Whatever you are planning to do or in which ever direction you are headed, how well you succeed will depend not just on your grudging acknowledgement of change but on your willingness to up throw out your arms and embrace it for all you are worth.
Being willing to risk change and breaking from the past does not necessarily mean giving up the “good life” and all that for which you have worked so hard. Nor does it mean you can’t be consistent with your entrepreneurial, money making instincts and skills.
Contrary to common understanding, though, however you phrase it, following your heart has little to do conventional techniques, established reality and the dictates and rules of the market place and society in general. That’s why it can be so hard.
It is not an easy undertaking. No, no, no… the route to authenticity is much more like a calling. It is a game changer with a whole new set of exciting, challenging guide posts and markers.
Moving from the ‘real world’ to where you would like to be can be stressful. It is going takes hard work, sacrifice and unfailing belief in yourself. And it will take time.
Being an explorer, staring down society’s old dictums by which you have always lived and ditching the assumptions that don’t fit your personality and world view anymore can lead to huge discomfort and anxiety.
Interestingly, no matter how difficult, the more uncomfortable you feel casting off the old rules, the greater the chance of your challenging and pushing aside old habits and beliefs that have been holding you back for so long – and keeping you from being the person you know you are.
Taking your own road, making a dent in the Universe isn’t for the faint of heart but if are willing to expect the unexpected, the courage and capacity to love, to believe in a greater future, you will never look back.
It’s not what you think or plan… it’s what you do that matters. You know what to do.
So go do it.
Every child is an artist. “The problem,” Pablo Picasso once remarked, “is how to remain an artist once he grows up.”
Artistry isn’t just confined to the world of arts and music. There is artistry in business, too.
There’s the art of the deal, putting people and resources together. There’s art in product design, in the creation of a best-selling app or a new service. There’s art in being able to read a market or see a need for a product or service we don’t even know we need yet.
You get the idea. Creativity lies within the person who is willing to take a risk when others wouldn’t: Someone who makes things happen, improves peoples’ lives, changes markets or whole industries. Think Steve Jobs.
You don’t have to paint or develop an iPod or an iPhone to be an artist. There are lots of other ways.
Is there an artist in you… just waiting to get out? If ever there was a time, it’s now!
“What is important is that one use one’s intellect and not be 100 percent sure about one’s convictions.” Shirin Ebadi
There are few needs of the human heart that are greater than the need to be heard, to be understood and respected for whom we are; to have someone actually hear what we are saying.
Often, though, in our state of busyness and the desire to win, many engage in a conversation without actually hearing what the other person saying.
Have you ever found yourself in an encounter when you are already preparing a response to the point the other person is trying to express even before they have finished speaking? I know I have.
You are nodding, smiling, but not really hearing. You are in too much of a hurry, too invested in your own point of view to even hear their’s.
It is only when you actually slow down and the other person realizes that you are listening, sincerely paying attention to what they have to say – that real communication begins.
For more information, rates, or to set up a meeting:
Email drew@drewsimmie.com or call direct 416.450.8867.
