Do you ever lay in bed and wonder where the time has gone?
Wonder where all your hopes and dreams have gone?
How they all got left behind?
There was a time that you were so excited to do something more with your life: go back to school to do something you’re excited to wake up for every day; start a side-hustle you were passionate about; start helping people live their best life as you’ve always wanted.
Yet, as excited as you were, things got in the way:
- You didn’t have the time.
- The worry that you wouldn’t succeed overwhelmed you.
- You didn’t think you were ready “quite yet”.
- You worried what those closest to you would think.
And there are a million other reasons that you didn’t do it.
Just so you know, you’re not alone. In fact, you’re far from it. The next time you are walking in a busy shopping center, or walking through a crowded restaurant, take a look at everyone around you and know this:
90% of the people around you also had aspirations that fell by the wayside for the same reason.
It Manifests Itself in Many Ways
You’ve heard all the excuses.
In fact, you’ve probably used many of them yourself (I sure have.)
Look back at all those things you wanted to do yet never did — those regrets you have because you didn’t pursue something (or even someone) harder, the chances you didn’t take, or those missed opportunities you see as you reflect — and think of the reasons you told yourself you couldn’t, wouldn’t, or shouldn’t.
And know that at the end of the day, most of these reasons were created through fear.
- Fear of the unknown.
- Fear of what others would think.
- Fear of failure.
Fear manifests itself mostly through your belief system. You don’t think you’re good enough, imposter syndrome rears its ugly head, you can’t help but obsess over what-ifs. Usually tied to what will happen if I fail.
And the sad truth is, even if you did go for broke and try the thing you wanted so badly, the odds are you failed.
Because you couldn’t stop focusing on the negative when you should be focusing on the positive.
The truth is this:
Where the focus goes, the energy flows.
Your brain can’t tell the difference between reality and vividly imagined reality.
So when you constantly focus on the negative — what will happen if I fail — you’re already massively decreasing your odds of success.
The sad part is, the negative focus is part of our natural state — our brains are trying to protect us from failure of any magnitude.
But our brains are wired for survival and procreation, what they’re not wired for, though, is more telling:
Our brains aren’t wired for happiness and success, they only care that you survive.
I write more about positive visualization — why and how — here:
This Epic 15-Minute Habit Could Change Your Life
But today, I just want you to commit to one thing.
And that’s the first step you have to take.
Time for You To Reflect
Today, take a little time to reflect.
Reflect on your regrets — those missed opportunities and aspirations that were tossed aside — and reflect on why they were tossed aside.
What seems like a good reason at the time often isn’t upon further reflection.
After you reflect on everything, look deep inside and connect with what you really want to do again — whatever that is.
And make a bold decision that you’re going to go all in and get what you want. That you’re going to create greatness in your life and live it passionately and with purpose.
Sure it will take planning and hard work and time. But nothing worth having is easy.
But know this, as soon as you make a bold decision, that fear will start creeping in again, and it will come up with the same old excuses.
The difference is that now, even though it will still affect you greatly, you’ll know it’s fear talking.
You should also know that as you go down this path, it’ll only get worse.
Because after you make a bold decision to start living the life you want to live, you’re going to take action.
But the most successful people in life have all dealt with the same things — the reason they’re successful is that they powered through and kept going forward, no matter what their fear was telling them.
And once they do, they realize that:
- Failure is part of the journey.
- Failure isn’t that bad.
- Fear has been the one factor that has held them back for so long.
There’s a reason that successful people just seem to become more and more successful — they have the cheat code.
They know they’re capable of so much more than they ever thought possible. They know that the only thing holding them back from everything they’ve desired is themselves.
And the same is true of you.
So do me a favor and make a bold decision today.
And continue to make that decision every day until you get to where you want to go.
If you’d like, leave a comment on what your bold decision is, and let's go down this path together.
Hi, I’m Jay Gross. Mango-obsessed entrepreneur, mindset coach. Writer and creator focused on personal growth and business. Helping others to live their best life one day at a time. Find me at www.lifenextlevel.com or email me at jay@lifenextlevel.com.
