Opportunities

No matter who you are, or what you’ve experienced in life, we all have to make choices; some difficult, some ugly, and some easy. Then there are those that are made for you. It’s too easy to wonder about what you should have done differently, trying to think of every alternative outcome; should have went left instead of right, chose this job over that one, left this person sooner and met someone else; none of that matters. What matters is that you find an opportunity and you TAKE it. Don’t wait for it to extend it’s hand to pull you in. Grab it and run with it, make it work for you.

Apples to Oranges

We all have those moments, when we wish we were in another person’s shoes. Let’s be real: we become jealous and only see the outcome; the results of their hard work, dedication and persistence.

Much like an iceberg, all we see is the tip piercing through the surface and none of what lies beneath; the hard work accompanied with blood, sweat, tears. We don’t know how many hours upon hours of research was conducted, not to mention, the significant amount of time spent experimenting to figure out what works vs. what doesn’t.

In a world of constant show and tell it’s all too easy to become the victim and compare with one another, regardless of what it might be. Much like the phrase, “You can’t compare an apple to an orange,” you can’t compare your goals with their goals. You simply mustn’t.

Their goals are not the same as yours, maybe similar, but never the same. They might be on step five, and you are on step one. You’ll get there eventually, but only if you focus on your next step, not theirs.

Take care of yourself before taking care of others.

Before you can help others, you must first help yourself. Drowning people can’t save other people who are drowning, right? If you come across an opportunity, don’t wait for it to extend it’s hand out to you. No, you must take that opportunity for yourself and make it into what you want. No successful person has gotten where they are by waiting for an invite. They had a goal, a vision, and took initiative, seizing the opportunity for themselves.

Of course, it takes more than just a vision to turn the potential from that opportunity into reality; time, patience, calculated risks, bravery, courageousness, and much, much more. You have to put in the work to make it work.

Just like a garden, you don’t just walk out to your backyard and magically start harvesting crops without putting in the work first. You have to plan, prepare, practice, fail, regroup, and try again and again.

Keep going until you can harvest your first crop. From there, it’s a matter of revising and identifying what works and what doesn’t.

Simple does not mean easy.

Nearly everything worth doing in life is not going to be easy. The idea of it might be, but the execution will not. But as long as you keep practicing, you’ll become more skilled and knowledgeable. If you never start, you’ll never get better, nor will you accomplish your goals.

It can be the hardest part, but once you do start, it’ll get easier. Develop a routine and stick with it. Progress will be slow, but it’s better than no progress at all. Consistency is key and vital to build more skills.