Took a chance. Looked at the main possibilities, weighed the consequences.
Then he weighed anchor. The rest, as they say, is history.
We’re on the sixth of thirteen things strong-minded people avoid doing. A-a-and today’s winner is–
#6: Resilient Rememberers don’t shy away from taking thoughtful risks. Gandhi once said, “You may never know what results came from your action. But if you do nothing, there will be no result.”
I hate failure, though. You know?
Sure. Let’s refine what we define. You aren’t a failure, you haven’t failed until you quit. Refuse to get up and try again. Roll over and reach up just high enough to pull down your flag and surrender. Yep. You’re right. I’m a Class-Z flop. Can’t get the job done, useless to keep trying. Never amount to half a head of wilted, moldy cabbage.
Okay, just stop. Cutting to the chase: if you’re breathing and somewhere in the neighborhood of 98.6 and 120/80, there’s still Time to follow your dream, to work toward the goals that will get you there.
“But I—–” Nope. You can’t ‘but’ your way into a totally risk-free life. There’s no such thing. No, I’m not wasting Time trying to list all possible risks to be removed before you’re willing to timidly venture out of your RISK-FREE cocoon.
Everything in this life involves risk. That’s what makes it exciting and fresh every day! The ticket is to practice the habit of evaluating each risk and deciding which ones are acceptable. We’ll touch on habits later. Suffice it to say you got ’em just as I do.
Yeah. Make a choice. Then DO something. Weak thinkers sit and ‘What-If’ themselves into a tizzy. A whole box of ’em! You did note that word, ‘sit’, there–right?
Never confuse activity with progress. But you said sitting there was—— Correct. But getting hacked off at me for pointing it out and jumping up to, well. . . do SOMETHING is even worse. Ever notice how breathtakingly rotten most things fueled by anger turn out?
Sitting at your dining room table sorting and identifying every possible risk for 8 hours may seem like activity but it’s not progress. It actually drags you backwards, creating fear and trepidation where there was none. The fantasy of “Risk-Free” creates a negative discharge in your soul. It drains your dream- and goals-battery. And no matter how much they may want to help, no one around you can jump your dream- and goals-battery once it’s dead. They’ll try. They’ll give it their best shot, knowing all the time there’s a risk you won’t respond, and may even get mad at them for trying again.
You ought to be grateful they still see in you a worthwhile risk, even if you don’t.
No. Not good. So stop it. Well, unless you like having a weak, unimpressive, undisciplined mind.
Strong-minded people take a moment to assess likely risks, discard the obvious poor ones while choosing the top few acceptable ones and get after making something positive happen. Getting stuff done is the best way I know to predict the future.
Either way, it’s a habit. Habits can be altered or replaced. But habits are strangely compelling; either you have them or they have you. As with anything of value in this life, which that turns out to be is up to you.
Happiness is a choice, not a result. Nothing will make you happy until you choose to be happy. No person will make you happy until you decide to be happy. Happiness will not come to you. It can only come from you.
What you choose may work out or it may not. That’s life. You can always choose something else.
Making the effort toward excellence, though, is always worth the risk.
© D. Dean Boone, January 2014