Comfort

Quote
"Concentrate your energies, your thoughts and your capital. The wise man puts all his eggs in one basket and watches the basket."
-Andrew Carnegie

My Thoughts
Many people haven't heard this advice. It sounds risky, doesn't it? Most people dread the thought of taking risks or of getting uncomfortable. Here's the thing, if you want serious change in your life you have to take risks and you have to get uncomfortable.

How uncomfortable do you have to get? I suppose it has to do with how much change you want.
I also mentioned a few weeks ago about sacrifice.
I would like to share what is going on in my life at the moment. Why am I sharing this now? In hopes that if this inspires just one person then this message has done it's job. You know we have all heard Steve Jobs, Oprah, Donald Trump, etc... tell us to follow our passion. I know what some people think:
"Well that is easy for them to say. Look at them, they have succeeded in their fields. What about me? I can't do that."
To some people it's almost as if Jobs, Oprah, and Trump have reached the top of a mountain and are yelling down at all of us "Just keep climbing, you'll get here eventually".

I am in the process of climbing my own mountain. So I want to share this with all of you. All of us have our own struggles to overcome. It helps knowing that someone else has been through the same thing, or even endured more.

I walked away from a job that paid me $10,000 a month after taxes. I left behind a stable job, great benefits, and excellent vacation time to pursue a dream. That was just the beginning.
This is what has happened over the course of the last year or so:
I moved out of a nice apartment
I sold my car
I sold all my stock
I sold my 401k
I've used up most of my available credit
I recently started counting all the coins I have

Sacrifice. I have been here before, just not this far down.
In 2003, I had 500 won left in my bank account and I owed about $2500 on my credit card.
Five years later I had managed to pull myself up, and I had saved $100,000.
I owed nothing on credit cards.
Now I find myself back in 2003, except in a far more challenging situation.

You may be wondering why on earth did this guy do this to himself? It has all been to pursue a dream.
The interesting thing is I've had three job offers over the past year. All of them would put me back into being comfortable. They all pay between $8,000-$10,000 a month. I have turned them all down.
Why? For a dream.

How much are you willing to give up for your dream? How uncomfortable are you willing to get?

I firmly believe that you have the ability to change your life if you truly would like to. As I have said many times before, we all have our lessons to learn from life. This is just one of my lessons. It's not bad, it's not good. It just is.

Right now, I am in a stare down with failure. One of us will blink first. It won't be me.
I will get to the top of my mountain. When? I can't say for sure.
But know this, I will be here, climbing.
One day I will reach what appears to be the top.
I will look back on what I have accomplished, on what I have learned.
I will realize how much I have grown.
I will then look up, and notice the mountain has also grown.
There is still more to go. I'll have so much more to learn because it's impossible to know everything.

I'll have learned all of this through experience. It's not what I read in a book, or what I learned from my coaching certification, or what Steve Jobs, Oprah, Trump, Carnegie etc... told me, it's what I have experienced.
Why? Because I climbed the mountain.
I put all my eggs in one basket.
I risked everything....All for a dream.

Until next time...

Risk

Quote
"Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure... than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat."
-Theodore Roosevelt

My Thoughts
What Roosevelt is talking about here is risk. When was the last time you stepped out of your comfort zone and took a risk? For most people it has been way too long. It's interesting that when we were young we took a lot of risks. Examples include: learning to walk, learning to ride a bike, asking someone out on a date, etc... However, as we get older we tend not to take as many risks. Two major reasons for this include the fear of failure, and the fear of criticism. We have been conditioned to believe that risk is negative or that we should avoid it at all times.

In order to grow you have to learn to take risks. In doing so you will live a much more fulfilling life. Also, you won't be one of the vast majority of people that look back on their life and wonder "what if...?". Remember you will encounter obstacles outside the safety of your comfort zone. This is where perception comes to your aid. I recommend using your perception and look at these obstacles as opportunities for growth.

I encourage all of you to take risks. Step outside of your comfort zone and grow.

How can you do this?
Here are some examples:

Need help with public speaking?
1. Join Toastmasters.
2. Consider attending the Bill Gove Speech Workshop (or other acclaimed speech workshops in your area).

Are you passionate about something and would love to turn it into your full time career?
1. Start researching (find any info you can regarding your passion, read books/magazines, etc..)
2. Get in contact with people that can assist you:
a. Certified Life Coaches (like myself).
b. Mentors
c. Business Consultants

I would like to remind you, usually, the greater the risk you take the greater the reward.

Until next time....