Welcome back to part 2 of Creating 2017. In Part 1 we discussed how feelings are not an accurate test for reality because how you feel yesterday is not the same as how you feel today, and how you feel today is not the same as how you’ll feel in the future.
Feelings account for circumstances and we can’t control circumstances, we can’t control what life throws at us. But when do you say to yourself, “I’m going to do this anyway because I said so.
When does commitment supercede our feelings? When do we do it anyway.
Commitment means you do it anyway. It doesn’t matter what is happening in the world at large, in your family, in your finances, with your co workers, etc… You put on clothes regardless of what it is that happened good, bad or indifferent.
You do it because the consequence to “not wearing any clothes” is so drastic that you find a way to do even if tragedy hit. You wouldn’t go a day naked on the streets because it’s socially not acceptable. It would be difficult for you to explain to people that you didn’t wear clothes because you had a bad day.
Social Constructs Motivation
Society plays a powerful role in your daily actions. You do certain things because society tells you to, you don’t do things because society frowns upon certain things. And a lot of times the upsets and heartbreaks we experience from society can motivate us to do and create things as well.
Your ability to do things is influenced by the world you live in. Those commitments you’re clear on. You abide by them. You show discipline and constraint. You show consistency. You demonstrate tact and diplomacy with others and yourself in those moment.
Ironically these are the same characteristics you need in the dreams you have.
If you want to be a world class swimmer you have to swim. You have to eat at a certain time. You have to get a certain amount of sleep. You have to take supplements and drink a certain amount of water for high performance. You might need a swimming coach or some type of mentor down the line. I understand these things without ever having any desire or experience in trying to be a competitive swimmer.
So why then is knowledge not enough? Why is common sense not enough? Why can’t we all have 6 pack abs if we all know how to do a sit up, eat vegetables and water and avoid sweets?
Motivation From Fear Vs Motivation From Dreams
Unfortunately the discovery here is that we are more motivated by what we fear than what we love. We are more motivated by our fear of shame and laughter if we don’t wear clothes outside than we are of the childhood dream of become a best selling author.
We will expend energy to put on the clothes and “fit in” but when it’s time to start the outline for the book we say we can do it later. But we can’t brush our teeth later but we can afford to wait to write chapter 1 of that best seller that’s going to benefit the lives of not just yourself but others that read it.
If our dreams could put the same charge in us that our fears do we would be living in a world with cures and remedies for all sicknesses, a world where no one died of starvation, a world with millionaires on every corner giving back to the charities they envisioned helping when their business took off.
Why don’t we feel the pressure of society or ourselves to do extraordinary things that require us to expand ourselves, require us to get uncomfortable and bust through our fears so that our dreams can one day happen?
Barking Up The Wrong Tree
Where do you look for inspiration for your dreams to happen? Do you look at all for inspiration? Some people don’t take the time to study or expose ourselves on a consistent basis to sources that inspire creativity and real action our dreams occur. Some people don’t take the actions necessary for our dreams to manifest.
What we typically do is observe what everyone else is doing and measure our lives against theirs. “My life is unfulfilled but at least I don’t have Mike’s bad luck.”
We compare where we are compared to our friends and contemporaries. When we see someone highly successful we say “Well he we just lucky or his talent is incredible that’s why he made it.”.
Some people are just trying to keep up with The Jones instead of going for after their dreams. We are barking up the wrong tree looking for how we can be ‘appropriate and fill everyone else’s expectations’ of ourselves. We spend more energy asking ourselves “How will people think of me if I try to do that?”
Creation
This blog series is about Creating 2017. It implies that you are more than just a cog on the wheel, more than just a person that plays it safe so that you can get along with everyone.
You were brought here to do extraordinary things …and deep down inside you know this to be true.
Even if circumstances have told you differently, even if failure has “normalized” into an ordinary person, you know you are here to do the unthinkable.
We say you are a creator.
You have a canvas called life with a paint brush to draw with. The only question is what will you draw? You’re already drawing. But some of life is being drawn for you. The circumstances will never stop but you must embrace and repurpose the parts of the painting that don’t serve you and continue to draw the rest.
The irony is that those parts that are not serving you are also happening for a divine reason that is probably asking you to recreate yourself in a beautiful way that adds character to your painting.
Draw the 10 year vision for your life. Literally draw it. Write it.
Paint it as if no outside factors can permanently draw over it.
Paint it as if everything is erasable except for what matters to you.
Paint it as if the final drawing at death represents what you want to be remembered for.
The Painting represents your message to the world.
The secret sauce is inevitably one thing… ACTION.
Action Over Analysis
Sometimes when are painting something we want to stay within the lines. We want to stay with society in mediocrity so that no one is able to laugh at us, think we’re weird, or say that we are stupid for leaving the lines.
But true artist risk and don’t follow the lines because they know it will be those very lines that have them only survive but never truly live. I will take someone who is willing to risk and be wrong in their pursuit over someone who is afraid to draw outside the lines.
Extraordinary results will only come from going outside the lines.
You must be willing to get uncomfortable. There is no way to become great without personal growth. Stop analyzing and do something. Even if it’s wrong later. The action itself will have you moving and energy in motion is exactly what you need to start creating the momentum your dreams are asking for.
You will go back and adjust but there is no wrong worst than not trying. Analysis becomes paralysis when we can’t take action because we want to get it perfect.
Excellence Not Perfection
You’ll never get anything perfect. Something about you will always be wrong to someone and may never be ‘good enough’ for you who’s spent so much time trying to get it right. Don’t try to make everyone happy. Make yourself happy by risking in the name of your dream.
Strive for excellence, going out there and being the risk taker that fights for what they believe in. And new action versus perfection is exactly what will start moving forward those big bright ideas.
What new actions will you take?
Action, action, action …
Take 1 action today that is in alignment with making the 10 year goals happen. Make it a crazy risky one. The evidence you give yourself that you’re willing to fight for what matters, the more confident you will get. Create a culture of dream work. That you will always do something for your dreams and long term goals no matter what society thinks or says… no matter what our inner voices says.. No matter what our feelings feel today.
The world is waiting for you to come alive through what matters most to you.
The greatest days of your life lay ahead …. we’ll see you at the top.