One of my favorite inspirations is a funny guy named Mike Dooley. He has Tut.com. You may have heard of “Thoughts become Things” – That’s him. One of the things I’ve heard him say is the more all-encompassing and non-specific our ultimate goal is, the easier for the Universe to bring it to us. That always sounded almost against the grain of what so many other Success Gurus teach. But it really isn’t…we may just want to look at our goal. What do I mean?
We may have a goal of building a prosperous business in real estate.
“Why?”
“To be able to take care of ourselves and our family.”
“Why?”
Stupid question maybe, but ultimately we want to take care of our family and ourselves to continue to be able to live the lifestyle we want to and to be happy.
So our ultimate goal really is to be happy.
Put another way, if you were striving to build a real estate business but was given the opportunity to receive $10,000,000 if you would give up on real estate would you? Most of us would. We could use that money to accomplish our ultimate goal just as well, if not better than staying in real estate, wouldn’t you say?
What I am trying to illustrate is the way things really work.
If we put on our “blinders” and focus solely on a very specific path and do not look to other options that may cross our paths, it is likely going to take a lot longer to become successful and happy.
For example, you may know that I recently entered a writing contest and had big hopes of winning to further my own goals of becoming more widely known so I could help more people become successful – so I could take care of all my peeps – to ultimately be happy… Well, I didn’t make the cut and was disappointed. But what I realized is that I was spending so much time on that competition that it was taking time away from my real “work.” I was writing the book based on developing classes and other resources that I was using to benefit my clients. I was getting so caught up in the writing to suit the competition that I was stealing time and taking too much away from the purpose in the first place. Not advancing in the competition was the best thing to happen as I was able to get back in the saddle and get back to work on our seminars and classes. To further illustrate the point, or maybe just to make me feel better, Anne (my Trusty Assistant and SideKick) pointed out that we hear about these contests but so many times hear nothing about the winner. Hummmmm… The funny thing is that I felt such a weight lift off of me when I read the list of advancers and realized my name wasn’t on the list. A bit of disappointment – sure – I have some pride – but “something” was trying to tell me I had escaped going down the wrong path for me at this time. I could tell it wasn’t relief from not having to face fear or grow because I just wasn’t afraid of any of the possible requirements that the contest might bring up…even standing up in front of huge crowds. Nope. But I did learn a lot and am grateful for that opportunity, but I recognized it is time to jump off that trail and swing onto the right trail.
I know, good for me…and yes, it is. But the point is that so many of us try to hang on to situations or people that are actually toxic for us.
These toxic situations are pulling us away from our true destinations – from our real dreams.
We give up on what we really want by stubbornly plowing ahead on a fruitless track. We may gain some benefit – such as the ability to pay the light bill or to not be alone even for a little while – but in the long run where are we really? It’s like closing the barn door so tightly so as to keep the horses protected and safe, that we kill them from suffocation. At least leave the hayloft window cracked. We have to let in the air.
So, take a really deep breath and think about what you are doing right now.
Are you sure you are on the right path?
If so, FANTASTIC! If maybe not, take some time to explore and discover. It can’t hurt.
See you down the Trail!
