We’ve all had dreams of accomplishment, influence, finding our purpose and making a difference. We hear about a new venture and get excited about an advanced degree, job promotion, special program or activity for our kids. Or we eagerly start out on a financial, travel or small business journey and goal.
We’re pumped and eager to get going!
However, most of us have seen our enthusiasm vanish, our motivation drained, coated in a sense of failure for not having made it to the finish line of our aspiration.
If you’re a faith person, you might аlso feel you have some direction from God as to where you’re headed next. Good for you. But wrong thinking and unhelpful habits can get in the way and steal your passion to even serve God in the way you’d hoped.
So let me suggest a couple of perspectives and responses to avoid as you launch into a new personal vision or goal.
First, anticipate the rough waters that might be ahead. Rough water can take various forms depending upon your goal, but whatever the case, first admit you’ll probably encounter it. Your biggest challenge may be the commitment involved as you find your goal requires more time and effort than you’d planned.
Or you’re going to face training and education that you’ve not encountered before or ever. Your choice can be costly, emotionally devastating, embarrassing and journey ending if you’re not prepared for the challenge.
Your goal may require you to move, take a pay cut, add huge expenses to your lifestyle or cause cutbacks in family or relaxing time. So talk to some people who’ve done what you want to do and learn what some of those rough spots might look like. Their response doesn’t need to be yours. But they can help you be better prepared.
Second, don’t compare your success and overall journey to others. I guarantee that within the first couple weeks you’ll hear stories of people who making way more progress than you are. They’ve aced all the tests, they’ve contacted more people, they’ve gotten speaking opportunities, raises or other wonderful opportunities and responses that you haven’t seen once.
You immediately feel like a failure. You’re ready to quit.
However, no two people climb a mountain the same way. The same is true with personal goals, projects and dreams. Someone else’s dream can’t be your dream and vice versa. Comparisons are a killer.
Yes, we can learn about a creative idea or practical plan to move forward. But we can never do things exactly the same way they do, nor should we. Trying will usually water down our dream anyway.
Don’t minimize your unique gifts, talents and resources. Let’s say someone you know is a fantastic verbal communicator. They can get on the phone and in five minutes have an appointment, commitment, new friend or contact that will remain a big help and encouragement.
However, when you get on a call or visit an office to talk to someone you don’t know, you want to throw up. That alone would tend to limit your success. So, you could try to improve your communication skills. That tends to help in any situation. But re-visit your talents, what you do well and then think about how you could use that skill to enhance your efforts and progress.
In the end, the problem is pretty simple. We think we need to look, be and act like someone else if we’re going to be successful. The good news is that we don’t. If we’re Christians then there’s only one person in the audience who matters. Jesus. And He wants us to be who we are and who God made us to be.
God won’t likely say for example, “Gary, why aren’t you more like so and so?” But He might say, “Why aren’t you more like Gary?”
So start there. Be who you are and who you can be. Anticipate the rough waters. Don’t compare yourself to others. And focus on who you are, what you can do and how to use that to reach your summit.
Check out Ephesians 2:10, “We are God’s masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
That’s why I still say, “Never quit climbing. The view from the top is worth it.”
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