Daily Blog #333
The grass is always greener on the other side, isn’t it? The other side of our minds that are telling us that it’s time to move onto the next dream of ours. The other side of our minds that are telling us that we aren’t cut out to achieve whatever it is that we tried. We tried, we failed, so now it’s just time to throw in the towel and give up. I mean, isn’t this what most people do?
I feel as if the vast majority of us have a tendency to think that failing means that we should move on in life, when in all reality, having this mindset won’t solve a thing. Failing really means that we should keep trying harder.
As much as I love the life that I am living, and as much as I believe in all that I am worth and capable of achieving, I also know what it feels like to give up. We all do! And I know that we can all agree on one common thing: that feeling of giving up on yourself hurts more than taking a dagger to the heart.
It took me years to realize this, but all of the times that I told myself that it’s time to move onto the next endeavor in my life, I was wrong. There, I admit it, I was wrong about something. In fact, I am probably wrong more often than I am right, but that’s a story for a different day.
The world around us adores and admires the life of the rich and famous. It gets us caught in this trap of playing the game of “fake it until you make it.” You know, when we act like somebody we despise simply because we want to achieve their social status. Or when we spend our entire paychecks in one night to make it look like our lives are far more interesting than they actually are.
What’s wrong with all of this is that when we fail (and don’t worry, we will fail), we learn to run from our fears instead of embracing the challenges and struggles that come with our fears. We determine that one bout of failure means that we don’t have the “strength” or the “talent” to achieve what we set out for. And in order to keep up in the game of faking it until making it, we move onto the next thought that passes through our minds hoping that is will provide a different resolution.
Again, sorry to break the bad news, but this just isn’t the case.
Now, as much as I am saying “you” in this, please know that I am also talking to myself as well. If we simply decide that it’s time to move onto the next dream, want, or desire in life after experiencing one ounce of struggle or failure, then we will never accomplish anything meaningful in life.
Every single person on the face of this earth has experienced failure throughout the course of their life. The individuals that you admire the most in life (the ones that achieve their wants and desires) are the ones who have probably experienced more pain and struggle than you and I can imagine. Those who don’t achieve their wants and desires in life are the ones who that it’s time to move onto the next thing when the going gets tough. That is what separates success from failure – our willingness to never give up.
Nobody is any better than you and I. We are all falling short in our lives, but those who achieve their wants and desires are the ones who embrace their failures, who get knocked down time and time again, and who get right back up no matter how many times it takes to achieve their goals.
You don’t get to where you want to be in life by running from your fears. Trust me, I have tried this for many years, and it will never work. You get to where you want to be by understanding that this is your life, and by taking responsibility for your life and for your own happiness.
This is the one and only life that you and I are ever going to get. Are you really about to waste it trying to search for that perfect answer? Or are you going to work towards everything that you ever envisioned for yourself and pave your own way no matter how challenging it might be?
Just know that only one of these answers will ever lead you towards a life of meaning, and a life of fulfillment.
Michael Bonnell
3/29/2019
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