A few days ago, I was on a video call with Brian Proctor, the son of my late mentor Bob Proctor, whom some of you may know from the documentary “The Secret.” “What are you trading your life for?” Brian Proctor asked the group. Because you are trading your lifetime for all the things you do every day. Are these things worth the most valuable thing you possess?
Brian smiles: “What do you want in your life?” “I would like to have xy, but…” is often the answer. Brian continues: “Everything that comes after the word ‘but’ is a circumstance that usually exists externally. “The politics, the economy, the relationship, the boss…” The challenge is that as long as you let your circumstances hold you back, you will not take a step forward towards your goals, wishes, and dreams.
Napoleon is said to have once said: “Circumstances? I create them!” He didn’t care about what was currently reality externally. He was sure that he created these circumstances through his way of thinking and acting. “Yes, but Norman, what if I don’t make it?” Let me turn the question around. What if everything stays the same? What does it cost you if everything stays as it is now?
Rather ask yourself: What can I do today to get one step closer to my goal? Tell yourself: I will do this now. Not tomorrow. Not next week. Now, today, and here. Make this one task your top priority and repeat this step every day. Focus on something bigger than the circumstances from outside, namely your goals, dreams, and wishes. Your dreams are worth becoming real. Do you even have a clearly defined goal? Only if you can write it down clearly and distinctly, you will be able to share it with others and thus achieve it. You don’t need to know all the steps required to achieve your goal today. Make a clear decision for your goal and then get started. The next step is the only important one. Imagine if you took just one step in your desired direction every day, where would you be after 365 days? And if you simply keep going, would you eventually reach your goal if you take just one step towards it every day? Of course. So, take the first step and do it with great joy. Because at the end of the day, it’s about who you become on this journey, not about quickly achieving the goal.
And one last tip about joy: Comparison is the thief of joy. Start focusing on your individual step instead of comparing every one of your steps to those of other people. Everyone has their own pace and style. The fun on the journey is important, and what others think of it should not matter to you.
In this spirit, I wish you joyful first steps in the new direction.
