“Real success is finding your lifework in the work that you love.” David McCullough
If you don’t have a vision, then make it your vision to get one. What good is an eagle in a cage or a Maserati in a garage? Think what our world would be if Thomas Edison had decided to be a grocer or the Wright Brothers had farmed instead of flown. What if you have a spark of genius in you that can only be fanned into flame by the following of your passion? Is your life a blaze or a smolder?
If you have been feeling listless, tired, confused and bored, it may well be that you don’t have vision. Visions empower every cell, waking them up and saying "Hey, there’s a game afoot here- let’s get going!” The first step in getting old, at any age, happens when we stop dreaming about what we can be, do or have. A vision to which you are committed will make every day a challenge and every evening a celebration of winning. Even though those following their visions with passion tell me how difficult it often is, they also tell me they would never live any other way because they feel themselves being constantly and completely alive.
Elena Kagan is a 50 year old attorney whose vision of being a Supreme Court Justice has inspired and guided her lifework since she was a child. How clear was her vision? Her high school yearbook shows Elena at 17, dressed in judicial robes with a gavel and a quote from Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter. She discovered her vision, became committed, stuck with that commitment and is now President Obama’s choice for Supreme Court Justice. Thirty three years of commitment may seem a long time to wait for a dream to come true, but there is this: every day of that time she was doing her life’s work, filled with purpose and feeling progress being steadily made. She was on her mission.
I could write a book about all the people who became committed to their visions and who went on to accomplish them while others were saying it was impossible. Let us remember the words of W. H. Murray:
“Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation) there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. I have learned a deep respect for one of Goethe's couplets:
‘Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.’"
I see the human race as a six billion piece jigsaw puzzle; each of us a piece sizzling with unique creative possibilities. Until we trust our passions to pull us into the unknown, we will never discover who we are, how we fit in or who will be beside us, nor will we experience the true joy of personal fulfillment. Please join me today in being determined not to be a hole in the puzzle.
Checklists make things easy, here’s one for us that will guarantee success. Simply answer each question in turn and then apply them to life. It’s really that simple.
What is your vision? -What you want, not what you should want.
What is your mission? -The steps to your vision.
Who is on your support team? -Those aligned with your vision.
What is your next step? -Dare to risk and grow.
Need help? I’m available for personal coaching at 425-868-8448 or bob@arasfoundation.org
Gratitude:
My appreciation to Rev. Sharron Stroud of http://facebook.com/innerfaithspiritualcenter
in Palm Springs, California for making my book, Romancing The Soul her theme for May.
Thank you Rose of Sharron!
A Bit of Humor for You:
A man and his wife walked into a dentist's office.
The man said to the dentist, "Doc, I'm in a real hurry- I have two buddies sitting out in my car waiting to play golf; we have a 10:00 AM tee time on the best course in town and it's 9:30 now. So forget the anesthetic, I don’t just don’t have time; pull the tooth and let’s be done with it!"
The dentist thought to himself, "Goodness, here is a brave man asking to have his tooth pulled without anything to kill the pain."
“Well sir,” the dentist asked him. "Which tooth is it?"
The man turned to his wife, "Open your mouth honey and show him."
Our Hero This Week:W. H. Murray was an author and world class mountain climber who spent three years in a German prisoner of war camp during which time he secretly wrote a book entitled Mountaineering In Scotland. He completed the first draft on the only paper available to him - rough toilet paper. When the manuscript was found and destroyed by the Gestapo, to the
disbelief of his fellow prisoners, despite the risk of its loss again and with his physical condition near starvation Murray quietly started over. His rewritten work was finally published in 1947. This is the kind of commitment and follow through to which we all aspire; to do a great thing from a humble place. Today around the world people are still quoting this insightful man who had the courage to stay by his visions even when their fulfillment seemed impossible. We are honored to salute you Mr. Murray as our hero.
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