29 Oct The Climb
Up until now, there have been plenty of instances in my life where I had the attitude of “I have to” do one thing or another. I don’t know about you, however, I never felt good about the prospect of having to do any particular activity. AND, I don’t remember ever saying that about something that I wanted to do.
Rcently, I was speaking to a friend of mine, and I told him that I “had to go out of town for some training this weekend”. Only when he asked me “Why do you have to do that?” did I realize what I had said, and then I thought about why. The truth was that I loved my job, and the training was necessary for me to achieve my outcomes. My focus in that brief moment was not on what I wanted. I was only focused on the perceived obstacles.
I keep thinking that anything worth having is worth the effort and hard work. What separates the people who do what they love from the people who have to go to a job they dislike or despise? It’s not luck. The focus of the dream, or the feeling of doing what I really love to do, is the only difference.
There is a reason for everything I do. When I focus on what I want instead of what I have to do to get what I want, the positive focus blocks out all obstacles. Everything in between becomes foggy and insignificant. Another amazing thing happens when the focus shifts – the feeling of control is back. My life truly begins to happen because of me instead of to me.
When I think about my life journey to get to my goals, I envision climbing a mountain with the goals being at the peak. Although I’ve never been a mountain climber, when I hear stories from other mountain climbers, the hike back down from the peak has never been the focus. The accomplishment of the view from the peak is almost always anchored in the process of the climb. Without the climb, the feeling of achievement doesn’t exist. The climber will always talk about the climb. I have a choice to climb with my head down and concentrate on the rough trail ahead, OR I can climb the mountain while looking up at the peak.
If you haven’t set your goals lately, set them today and focus on your peak. ~Dominic Oaxaca