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- Aug 9, 2015
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Waking up this morning, I looked outside. It was dark. It was cold. As I stepped outside it got worse. It was not just cold, it was frosty and the air was heavy and damp. It really was the kind of day that made you want to just stay inside all day long, turn up the heat, forget about the outside world and snuggle down to watch movies and read your favourite book.
Obviously, that wasn't going to happen with this soul. There were things to be done... but enough of me. I'm not the subject of this story.
No, the star of this tale is the lone kid of about 7 or 8 in the park. Shivering in his football kit, (that no doubt was on its second or third owner), he lined up his football on the old tarmac pitch and aimed for the goal. Fail. It shot off miles in the other direction. Without a sigh or a shrug or a downcast look, he head off, picked it up and tried again. Same thing happened. Again he went off and got the ball. Watching him for 5 or so minutes the same thing kept happening, except each time it went wildly off, it was slightly better than the time before. Not wanting to look like a strange soul I left him to his practice.
An hour or so later I passed by again. There he was. Still the lone kid in the park, but something had changed. The ball was going in the goal. Not once. Not twice, but every time... but unlike many of us who do something right and get caught up in the glory seeking, the "look at what I've done", he was still as committed as ever to his cause. Getting that ball in the goal was all that mattered and what was, even more, impressive was having ensured he knew how to do it from the left, he was starting again from the right. I'm pretty sure if I stayed there long enough I'd have seen this kid figure out how to get that ball in the goal from every angle imaginable.
So what does this kid in the playground have to do with anything? He has to do with me achieving what I want with my business and my life and you with yours. Saturdays for many kids are for watching TV or playing on your Xbox One or Playstation 3. For adults, it's hanging out with friends, going to the cinema, heading out for drinks or watching a lot of crap television that we'll all complain about on Monday. If you truly love what you do with your life then there's nothing wrong with this. You deserve it so make sure you damn well enjoy it. However, if you're someone who complains about not being where you want to be, moaning that life isn't treating you the way it should and you aren't being that kid and spending every spare moment focusing on how to get where you want to be then you need to know a few truths.
You are the one who is holding yourself back. You are the one who is continuing to allow life to not be how you want to be. You are not being nice to yourself by giving yourself time off from your "horrible" life so you can cope with it when it comes back round again. If you are not out there on that football pitch of life and kicking that ball wildly off target for hours so you finally do figure out how to make it go exactly where you want, then you are not being kind. You are being cruel. You are not making your life better by giving yourself a cuddle and telling yourself it will be okay and telling us all that success comes from luck and not hard work, you are hurting yourself.
Become aware that every time you play the victim and take pity on yourself you are setting yourself back another day. You. Not the person you work for, not your parents, your partner or anyone else in your life you think is being tough on you. You. You are doing this to yourself.
Every day you've given in and gone for the easy and the comfortable make sure you note those days down. Why? Because they are another day you can add on to how far away you are from having that amazing life that is so apparently important to you. Every bad TV show, you watch, each task you busy yourself with that you know doesn't need to really be done so you don't have to do the hard, the uncomfortable, well make sure you add them on to those days because you need to start realising something.
No-one else is going to do this for you. Show commitment and you'll have an army of helpers. Play the victim and expect others to do it for you and they'll soon get bored when they find while trying to help you reach the stars you're busying yourself digging yourself deeper into a hole.
Be the kid who is brave enough up to stand up and tell his parents and friends he won't be taking it easy this Saturday morning as he's going to be out on the football pitch. Be the kid who knows people won't like him being so focused and determined because it makes them feel uncomfortable that they aren't doing the same, but does it anyway.
That 8 year old is already a whole day ahead of you in achieving his dream. Don't let another 24 hours in yours slip away.
Obviously, that wasn't going to happen with this soul. There were things to be done... but enough of me. I'm not the subject of this story.
No, the star of this tale is the lone kid of about 7 or 8 in the park. Shivering in his football kit, (that no doubt was on its second or third owner), he lined up his football on the old tarmac pitch and aimed for the goal. Fail. It shot off miles in the other direction. Without a sigh or a shrug or a downcast look, he head off, picked it up and tried again. Same thing happened. Again he went off and got the ball. Watching him for 5 or so minutes the same thing kept happening, except each time it went wildly off, it was slightly better than the time before. Not wanting to look like a strange soul I left him to his practice.
An hour or so later I passed by again. There he was. Still the lone kid in the park, but something had changed. The ball was going in the goal. Not once. Not twice, but every time... but unlike many of us who do something right and get caught up in the glory seeking, the "look at what I've done", he was still as committed as ever to his cause. Getting that ball in the goal was all that mattered and what was, even more, impressive was having ensured he knew how to do it from the left, he was starting again from the right. I'm pretty sure if I stayed there long enough I'd have seen this kid figure out how to get that ball in the goal from every angle imaginable.
So what does this kid in the playground have to do with anything? He has to do with me achieving what I want with my business and my life and you with yours. Saturdays for many kids are for watching TV or playing on your Xbox One or Playstation 3. For adults, it's hanging out with friends, going to the cinema, heading out for drinks or watching a lot of crap television that we'll all complain about on Monday. If you truly love what you do with your life then there's nothing wrong with this. You deserve it so make sure you damn well enjoy it. However, if you're someone who complains about not being where you want to be, moaning that life isn't treating you the way it should and you aren't being that kid and spending every spare moment focusing on how to get where you want to be then you need to know a few truths.
You are the one who is holding yourself back. You are the one who is continuing to allow life to not be how you want to be. You are not being nice to yourself by giving yourself time off from your "horrible" life so you can cope with it when it comes back round again. If you are not out there on that football pitch of life and kicking that ball wildly off target for hours so you finally do figure out how to make it go exactly where you want, then you are not being kind. You are being cruel. You are not making your life better by giving yourself a cuddle and telling yourself it will be okay and telling us all that success comes from luck and not hard work, you are hurting yourself.
Become aware that every time you play the victim and take pity on yourself you are setting yourself back another day. You. Not the person you work for, not your parents, your partner or anyone else in your life you think is being tough on you. You. You are doing this to yourself.
Every day you've given in and gone for the easy and the comfortable make sure you note those days down. Why? Because they are another day you can add on to how far away you are from having that amazing life that is so apparently important to you. Every bad TV show, you watch, each task you busy yourself with that you know doesn't need to really be done so you don't have to do the hard, the uncomfortable, well make sure you add them on to those days because you need to start realising something.
No-one else is going to do this for you. Show commitment and you'll have an army of helpers. Play the victim and expect others to do it for you and they'll soon get bored when they find while trying to help you reach the stars you're busying yourself digging yourself deeper into a hole.
Be the kid who is brave enough up to stand up and tell his parents and friends he won't be taking it easy this Saturday morning as he's going to be out on the football pitch. Be the kid who knows people won't like him being so focused and determined because it makes them feel uncomfortable that they aren't doing the same, but does it anyway.
That 8 year old is already a whole day ahead of you in achieving his dream. Don't let another 24 hours in yours slip away.
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