“I kept waiting.
I kept thinking I would do something to change my circumstance.
You know, I never did!”
These sentiments were expressed by the diplomat’s wife in the movie “The Curious Life of Benjamin Button” as she reflected over her situation…and her life.
“I kept waiting. I kept thinking I would do something to change my circumstance.”
As she shared her regrets, it got me thinking that this situation is common for a lot of people. Many of us put our dreams on hold as we allow the obligations of day to day living overtake us. Waiting for when the time is right to make the changes, to live that fulfilling life we had planned for ourselves when we were younger.
In our youth most of us have great expectations for our lives. Thinking we can be more, we can achieve more, and we can experience more! In our youth, we set goals for our lives with the full expectation we will achieve them.
Then what happens? What happens is we come to be just like the diplomat’s wife and we let life’s responsibilities overtake us as we put our dreams on hold?
What happens is we expect less and we accept less. But you know I believe we never, ever really desire less.
Have you allowed the responsibility of life to hold you back from achieving the all experiences you wanted for yourself? Waiting for when the time was right to start to live.
Waiting for the RIGHT time to take that holiday. The trip you always dreamed of. Waiting for the RIGHT time to lose weight and get fit and healthy. The RIGHT time to make contact and patch up family feuds???
How many experiences and opportunities have you missed out on because you it wasn’t the RIGHT time? How many regrets do you have that you haven’t changed your circumstance?
Well in case you didn’t know, there is never a RIGHT time to pursue your dreams. You can start anytime.
The world has changed a lot in the past few years. Gen Y’s have been bought up knowing they achieve anything they want while still engaging in their day to day responsibilities.
And as they leave home; their parents; the Baby Boomers are finally beginning to allow themselves to reach out and chase their repressed dreams?
Rather than considering it selfish to choose to indulge oneself, society is now encouraging, almost demanding that we don’t miss out on acquiring what we desire. There is even a modern term for going about and getting what you want.
How often have you been instructed to produce a Bucket List? It is a list of all the things we want to achieve before we ‘kick the bucket’. This term was made popular in the movie of the same name when two elderly gentlemen met in hospital and encouraged each other write, then experience the items on their bucket lists.
Of course bucket lists aren’t just the creation of disquieted Baby Boomers. People of all ages and all circumstances are writing their goals and putting together their own personal bucket lists.
A written list of goals is a super way to at least start to change your circumstance! I encourage everyone to write their bucket list. And keep updating and changing your list as you tick of your achievements. It must always be evolving. Never let it stagnate. Continue to list your life’s desires as your circumstances change.
But, now here is your challenge. Your challenge is that you to not only pursue the end result – the goal. Your challenge is for you to also relish in the process along the way. And you acknowledge each step towards your goals as an achievement in its own right.
In researcher, Suzanne Segerstroms book, ‘Breaking Murphy’s Law’, she describes how when it comes to comparing goal setting and happiness, that, the journey to get there, is half the fun and all the meaning.
Although a little unorthodox in her testing methods, as she challenged tested participants to solve, unsolvable quizzes. Suzanne discovered that although reaching goals clearly had benefits of its own. That to keep the glow of achieving it was the journey that counted.
So rather than just feeling a sense of accomplishment only when you tick off an item on your list, I want you to follow Suzanne’s advice and count each small step towards your goal as an achievement in its own right. Relish in the joy of achieving each small victory. When you learn to enjoy the participation in the experience your circumstances will change and you can never be left waiting.
Franklin Roosevelt got it right when he declared,
“To reach a port we must sail. Sail. Not tie anchor. Sail. Not Drift”.
Learn to sail. Start by writing your bucket list, your goals, your dreams. Learn to savour and relish in every step towards achieving your goals and don’t wait for the right time. The time is RIGHT now.
What difference would it make in your life to be able to Kick goals and reap the benefits by creating a workable plan of action as you realise your dreams?
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