“You can be anything you want to be, if you only believe with sufficient conviction and act in accordance with your faith; for whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve.” – Napoleon Hill
I feel a little stupid, because it’s taken me nearly thirty years to realize a simple truth.
I’ll never be a Major League Baseball player, a Premier League footballer, or an Olympic swimmer.
Call me glum, sour, or bitter, but those are the facts.
No matter how much I put my mind to it, no matter how much I conceive and believe, no matter if I had the stubborn will power of a donkey, no matter if I put in my 10,000 hours of deliberate practice, it’s not happening.
To believe otherwise wouldn’t make me a go-getter. It would make me delusional.
Not all seven billion of the earth’s inhabitants can be elected President of the USA. Not all of the world’s hundreds of millions of blogs can be in the Technorati top 100. Not all of the USA’s 315 million citizens will join the ranks of its 424 billionaires (unless the dollar becomes severely devalued).
That’s not doom-saying. It’s simple math.
Bend reality too much, and eventually it’s you that will snap.
Let me get one thing straight. Your life, and every human life, is replete with possibilities. Particularly if you have access to this blog post (and thus you’re rich enough to access a computer or cell phone), the world is open for you to explore, and offers a vast array of opportunities and adventures.
But just because many paths are open to you, that doesn’t mean you can be anything. You can’t be anything.
On the contrary, there’s only one thing you can truly, genuinely be. Yet many people overlook this as they strive to be anything, and in doing so they manage to skate around their biggest and most accessible opportunity.
Even so, no one completely avoids this path. No matter how low our life stoops, no matter how lost we get along the journey, no matter how ragged and bedraggled our souls, this is the path and destination for everyone one of us.
What’s the only thing you can be?
You can only be you.
That takes no conceiving or believing. On the contrary, fantasy and unrealistic dreams are what take me away from being me.
Being who you are maybe takes a little faith, a little grit, a little heart.
But ultimately, all you need to do to get there is let go of the control console. Stop trying to be the director of your life’s movie, and sit back and enjoy the story.
In other words, start living in the moment.
Scary? Yes. And thrilling too.
You can’t be anything. But you can be you.
Who else would you want to be?
Photo by danielfoster437
I so agree, David. Accepting reality – I can’t be anything – is freeing, and it’s taken me 30+ years to get it. So often we want to be someone we’re not – because in this journey other people’s ideas and comments have drowned out ‘me’. As I’ve uncovered ‘me’, I’ve found the most freedom and energy in just being me.
Absolutely, we can’t allow the ideas and comments of others drown out who we are. To often we adopt what others say into our core beliefs which then affect who we are and what we do in life. It is freeing to rewrite the script of our me-movie getting rid of those negative beliefs and thoughts.
Ardena, your comment made me think of the poem “Not waving, but drowning.” So often we pass who we are and give it a nod or a wave… it waves back, while we drown in expectations, ideas and comments of others.
Thanks Carma, that’s exactly it. Peeling away the layers and expectations. Yes, it’s a journey, and it’s not always easy, but it’s a beautiful journey. And just being who you are brings with it a wonderful energy.
I’m not sure I agree. For instance, you could be all of those things you mention at the start – if you made enough money to buy one of those clubs, you could put yourself in the team right? OK, so you’re talking about becoming that on merit. Well, for everything you say you can’t do or be I bet there is a story somewhere of someone with your circumstances that has become that. So what does that mean? I say it means you can do or be anything IF you want it enough. If you are prepared to do whatever it takes.
What I do agree with is living in the now. NOT getting attached to the outcomes in life as that’s where misery lies. Thought provoking post my friend. :)
I think David is tackling more of the issue that wishful thinking is romanticized and that if you want it bad enough, you’ll eventually reach a level of success. The world has over 7 billion people. It is very unfortunate yet it is highly probable that there are many very bright-minded, passion-driven individuals out there who get nowhere. It is not because they lack talent nor is it because they don’t want it bad enough. It’s just probability.
It’s a very depressing thought, but that should not discourage anyone. Hell, it should actually drive you further to want it that much more.
Thanks Vincent, you put it much better than I could.
I disagree that it’s depressing. For me, it’s liberating. It means you can stop being driven and start, as Rumi puts it, to “let yourself be quietly drawn by the stronger call of what you really love.”
We do need to live in the now. We can delete the thoughts and words about what we can’t do and see what we want to do now to make our life more productive and happy, instead of living in the past.
No, no, no, no, no and no!
(Forgive my blunt honesty, but I hope you’ll bear with me).
Taking your points one at a time:
1. Being an Olympian is only on merit, so in all likelihood you couldn’t buy that.
2. Sure, a small number of people in the world can and will make enough money to buy sports clubs, and if they were crazy enough to do so, they could put themselves into the team (if the rules of the sport in question allowed it). But, it’s massively disingenuous and verging on dishonest to say anyone can do that. Simple maths says only a few people can.
3. Yes, there’s the story of Eddie the Eagle. It’s a great story. Not exactly my circumstances, but there’s a story of someone beating the odds to compete in the Olympics. I’ll agree with that. Because there’s a story of one person doing it, anyone can do it? Anyone can give it a try, and if that’s what life calls them to, then they’ll enjoy the journey. But not everyone will get there.
4. Wanting it enough isn’t enough to get you there. I’m sure the millions of trafficked humans in the world want to be set free. Telling them to want it enough is offensive.
5. “Doing what it takes” often involves treading on other people’s toes. I have to ask myself, is that the kind of person I want to be?
Actually, all of the above (both your questions, and my “answers”, if they deserve to be called that) completely misses the point. Life’s an adventure. Enjoy it :)
I have some mixed feelings about this,
Correct me if I misunderstood you, but the whole article has a tone of fatalism – as if we were born for a particular predetermined path/reason. And well, beyond wishful thinking, there’s no reason to believe this.
It’s true that we have particular genetic predispositions but that’s just a drop in the ocean compared to the impact of deliberate work, habits and external influences (when talking about extended periods of time).
“Stop trying to be the director of your life’s movie, and sit back and enjoy the story.”
Now that’s something I would call ‘malicious advice’. There’s value in understanding and accepting what’s out of our control, but it’s our responsibility to guide our life’s in the direction we want it to go.
For example, writing this guest post, was it ‘sitting back and enjoying the story’ or was it ‘taking control and trying to increase your website’s traffic’?
Personally, in my life all the greatest adventures, the greatest changes happened when I pushed for something that was ‘not me’ (something waaay out of my comfort zone). And you know what? After a certain period of friction, it became “me”.
Now for the main topic “You can’t be anything”.
I’m on the fence here: yes, that would seem kind of logical, intuitive and still, I am yet to meet a person who would put his whole heart and soul into a particular field and not excel in it (given enough time).
This seems more of ‘which comes first, the chicken or the egg’ debate as in “Do you excel in a field because it was your passion” or “Is it your passion because you’re great at something”.
Anyway, there is a theme I really appreciate in this article and it’s understanding what You want. That is peeling the layers of societal “shoulds” and “musts” to uncover our own values and preferences.
Hope I wasn’t too hard on the author :) Appreciate the good work, even though it’s not an approach I would take or recommend.
Cheers,
Darius
You asked me to correct you if you’re wrong. I’m correcting you.
I can see how you could read my words as fatalism. But I feel like you missed two vital points:
“Your life, and every human life, is replete with possibilities. Particularly if you have access to this blog post (and thus you’re rich enough to access a computer or cell phone), the world is open for you to explore, and offers a vast array of opportunities and adventures.”
“Being who you are maybe takes a little faith, a little grit, a little heart.”
I actually think pretending we have control over things way beyond our control is the dangerous approach.
Also, the call to “stop being the director of your life’s movie and sit back and enjoy the story” isn’t a call to being passive. Rather, it’s the idea that you should enter into the story. And that entering into the story isn’t a tricky thing. It’s a simple, easy thing. You just ease into it, like sitting back.
Take responsibility, by all means, but only take responsibility for the things you have responsibility for. Take responsibility for being who you are.
Amen to all that you have said, David! I first hit this “radical” idea after reading and taking the “Strengths Finder 2.0”. Tom Rath goes into some detail about how our culture’s focus is on fixing deficits as opposed to investing into areas of great potential. Alas, I was one of those parents: “I see 4 A’s and 1 B. Let’s focus on getting that B to an A.” Ugh. :-(
I love this quote from the book: You cannot be anything you want to be—but you can be a lot more of who you already are.
Max Lucado wrote a wonderfully helpful book on this theme: Cure for the Common Life, Living in Your Sweet Spot. This is one of my favorite quotes as he addresses how we raise our children: Study your kids while you can. The greatest gift you can give your children is not your riches, but revealing to them their own.
We must dig for those diamonds in our own backyard so we may shine in our own beautifully unique way!
Acres of diamonds. Thanks for bringing all this rich wisdom to the conversation, Kim.
Yes! I LOVE brutal honesty. You put this out there very gently and with a great tone of voice. It is true, not all of us can be POTUS or the next amazing leader that the world wants to receive. I’m sure everyone “puts their mind to it,” but how many actual success stories do we have? MAYBE it’s in the millions?
Thanks Vincent, I love how you explained it.
I agree to a point, yet, you can rewrite the script of your movie for a happier, more productive life. We all have to face reality. When I was in my twenties I wanted to play in a rock band, but I was a classically trained pianist. I didn’t have the rhythm or the chops to play rock ‘n roll. If I had doggedly pursued that trail I may have had the satisfaction of giving it my best shot, but at some point I would have had to be self-aware and assess my talent and the circumstances. I received a lot of opposition from family, so instead of pursuing I quit. I didn’t play again for years. I was left with the ‘what ifs’. What if I would have pursued a career in music? Would I have been good enough? I’ll never know because I didn’t try. Instead I succumbed to the words of others – you don’t want to do that, you aren’t good enough, you’ll never make it. I took the negative words as truth and adopted them into the core beliefs about myself. Those core beliefs about what I could and couldn’t do grew with time encompassing other areas until I had many negative core beliefs and negative automatic thoughts to overcome.
Yes, we do need to be realistic. We can’t live in a fantasy land. At my age I’m not going to be a rock star. Perhaps you’ll never be a professional ball player. At the same time, we can’t allow the unfulfilled dreams to make us quit, to dictate what we can and can’t do. We can rewrite the script of our movies to eliminate the negative allowing us to pursue areas that would be more productive and satisfying.
Also, dreams and goals change along the way. I may have pursued the goal of a rock ‘n roll musician, but change the goal to be satisfied and fulfilled as a music teacher, who knows. The goals and dreams are basically a motivator to get us moving. We always change directions to a certain extent. But we can’t do anything as long as we sit still. We have to be moving.
I like what you said, and I love your analogy of life being a journey, where dreams and goals and destinations change along the way.
I’m not sure we have to be moving. Movement can be beautiful (as in a ballet), it can be purposeful (as in an Olympic runner), but it can also be frantic and harried. For me, there’s a deep reality in stillness, solitude and silence.
Thanks for writing this post. As a teenager I’ve spent a lot of time wishing I was somebody else. Now I’m in my early twenties and although some things are not the way I want them to be, I am happy to be me and doing all the things that I want to do.
You’re welcome Christmas Carol! Keep faithful to your beautiful outlook on life.
Dear David, I do not totally agree. It is true that you cannot achieve whatever you want simply wishing it. At the same time, if you really want something, with hard work you will be able to get closer to it than you may have imagined.
The big problem of mankind are too many “small dreams”, and too little “big dreams”. Better to fail trying than to give up without even trying.
We went on the moon because someone believed it. We do need big dreams. We do need to believe in peace and to work for a world without wars; we do need to believe in the best part of our being humans. So, maybe we can’t be anything we put our mind to, but we can come closer than we thought and we would have done the best we could have done in our life. Take care. Mario
Hi Marjo. I like your respnse to David. If we try hard we could get closer than we thought. It so manythings we could do if we just try little bit and see what change it brings and put imagination how it could have made big change if we put it more effert into it.
Great response.
Hamid G.
Another way of looking at it (and this might be my approach, I’m not sure, I’m just playing with it) is that there are too many dreams and fantasies of all shapes and sizes. What we actually need is a little more reality, a little more being, a little more sitting with and accepting who we are.
Maybe, I’m saying maybe…totally retraining the brain, but yet you would have to physically, emotionally and totally live, breath, and eat what
ever your life desires are. MAYBE, possibly it could happen….give it a try
Based on my experience, I don’t think I agree with the article. While I respect what David say’s
I honestly think who we are is a result of our environment and of a series of unconscious behaviors done as a result of our environment.
In recent years, i’ve had serious problems with my dating and social life and it wasn’t until I took responsibility that I realized that the only way I could change my situation is to ‘change’ myself some way or to improve something about myself so that I become more sociable and attractive.
So I studied, practiced and did new habits, until those new behaviors became ingrained in ‘new’ identity.
For anyone to say we can’t change who we are or be and do anything we want is a cop out.
We’re all made of the same genetic blueprint and can do anything given the correct fundamentals and training.
Some may be more natural at certain things and some won’t. But I’ve often believed the reason why this is the case is because some of us have acquired the physical attributes to conform well with the activity, which made learning easier.
Others may have to spend time building it.
My argument is, we’re all the same and are all capable of achieving great things. All it takes is the willingness to take responsibility.
I’ll take we’re all capable of achieving great things, if you’ll take that much of what’s understood as “great” in this world is precisely the opposite.
Who you are is something much deeper than your genetic blueprint, your environment and your unconscious. If there were words for it, I’m not sure I’d dare to use them.
Hi David,
Simply taking aim at being the best possible You is your target. Explore every possibility that will help you grow and be satisfied with that. Sitting back and just wondering, will not cut it.
Be good to yourself
David
Life Coach. Listener. Solution Finder.
What won’t it cut?
I’m not seeing anyone that has commented who “got” what David was even saying……the only thing you can be is “you”. There are so many people out there who have no clue as to who they are….really. I’m talking heart and soul. Not your job, what you do for a living,
If you’re nice, a loner or an asshole. Or how successful you are, or aren’t. Blah, blah, blah. Many people have been defined by what others have told them they should or should not be. And usually, ever since they were a child. I’m talking real identity here. Those who truly know who they are KNOW what they are passionate about because that passion is PART of them. Part of their heart and soul. And it’s that passion that makes them strive for what they themselves WANT. When you know your true self, you’re happy with your life. You’re content. You’re at peace. And when you have that, my friends, you CAN move mountains! And one more thing…..a person only needs to be successful in their own mind, by their own meaning of the word…..which most of the time isn’t gauged in the same way the rest of the world gauges “success”. A poor man can, by all means, be “richer” than most millionaires. It’s all about YOU knowing who YOU truly are.
Everyone have a fantastically happy life!
–Michelle
I think you rewrite what the outer are tying to present in this article. There are so many of us thinking we can be somebody else without realizing what we’re upto and what our talent is. At some point or at sometime, we all wish to be something we like or our friends likes it. To me it’s like wish can’t ride the horse saying. It’s good for us to step back and evaluate what we are good at and see if what we’ve been doing leading us to the point where we gonna be. Eventhough I don’t agree with some statement I do agree with the idea of “you can’t be anthings.”
Thanks you guys.
Hamid.
Thanks Hamid! You’re exactly right, many of us want to be something we’re not, and that’s painful.
I think you rewrite what the outer are tying to present in this article. There are so many of us thinking we can be somebody else without realizing what we’re upto and what our talent is. At some point or at sometime, we all wish to be something we like or our friends likes it. To me it’s like wish can’t ride the horse saying. It’s good for us to step back and evaluate what we are good at and see if what we’ve been doing leading us to the point where we gonna be. Eventhough I don’t agree with some statement I do agree with the idea of “you can’t be anthings.”
Thanks you guys.
Hamid.
I think you rewrite what the outer are tying to present in this article. There are so many of us thinking we can be somebody else without realizing what we’re upto and what our talent is. At some point or at sometime, we all wish to be something we like or our friends likes it. To me it’s like wish can’t ride the horse saying. It’s good for us to step back and evaluate what we are good at and see if what we’ve been doing leading us to the point where we gonna be. Eventhough I don’t agree with some statement I do agree with the idea of “you can’t be anthings.”
Thanks you guys.
Hamid.
Thanks Michelle, I’m delighted my words connected with you. May you continue to dwell in life’s richness :)
best reply so far – great insight – you should all read this people
The article and responses thereon have given mixed thoughts in me. The author is right to the extent that one should be oneself as we deceive our self if we try to be some one else whom we adore or admire.It is just not possible or desirable to imitate someone fully as every person is unique in terms of his physical, mental and spiritual strength. After having realized one’s talent and potentialities,one can not sit back and ruminate. Every talent has to be honed and expressed in keeping with the realities and expectations. Trying and getting even moderate success is better than not trying at all to achieve what one dreams about. Chances of success are, however, better if one follows one’s talent and disposition though it may take some time and may have to face considerable obstacles that are inevitable in a competitive world.
I wish I’d thought to use the word unique in the article. That’s exactly what I was grappling after.
I agree with Darius. I have personally created great success through striving ahead of what was currently ‘me’.
The author has stated be ‘you’, quite subjectively. It seems like the author is meaning that ‘you’, is a person who has dreams, but is better left to not aiming for them and enjoying the present instead.
What about the ‘you’ who believes in his capabilities, and is willing to expand their comfort zone to achieve a level of success that they desire?
I’m not saying this person has to be president, but even if they had that dream, and moved even a single step closer to it, wouldn’t it be worth it?
I’m sure it beats looking back from being over the hill with nothing but regret..
I am happy as ‘me’, but I see me not only as who am I now, but as the ‘me’ I was 12 months ago, and the ‘me’ I will be 12 months later. They are one of the same.
Michael,
Thanks for your comment. The title of my article was admittedly provocative, but I feel like you misread it as “You can’t be anything at all”, and let that shape how you read the article.
Some of the other comments are helpful. Take a look at what Michelle, Kim and Christmas Carol said, and see if that helps you get to grips with what I was saying in the article. Also, read through the comment I left in reply to Darius.
Your final sentence is profound. The real you is something always the same yet always changing, something beautiful, a precious gem, a mystery you enter into as you grow through life.
I don’t agree with this article. I believe i can be what i want to be if i put my mind on it. I ALSO KNOW that if i don’t put my mind on it or to it, i would freaking be a very very lazy girl that would do nothing. Hence to motivate me, i must put my mind of something worthwhile and work hard to achieve it.
How about an experiment? Just try, for a day, not putting your mind to anything, and see what grows out of it. You might be surprised!
I tend to view things as either possibility or probability. While everything is within reach – including me winning a nobel prize or becoming the queen of england, the probability of that happening is in the most miniscule of chances. It’s definitely something for me to hold on to, and I prefer to go to the things which are most likely – you know, wake up in the morning, do some work, push the ball along. :)
Thank you for this post. I enjoy the realism.
You’re welcome, Emily. Sometimes it’s fun to kick back and play ball, too.
Are you telling me I’ll never be a rock and roll star? Come on? There are lot’s of 50-year old rock and roll stars. But seriously, you are right on. I won’t be a ninja or a mad scientist either, and that’s okay. You’re final thought: “live in the moment” is the key to having a peaceful, happy, and successful life. I’m working as a teacher and a writer and I do both in the present.
Rock and roll, man, rock and roll.
As Bruce Lee said “Actualize yourself, not an image of yourself” – Unhealthy ambition kills the joy. And what’s the fun in exactly trying to move your life in a certain direction. The joy is usually in the surprises. But then, how do you distinguish between aspiration and ambition? It is unacceptable to just sit back and slack off too…and there’s no fun to just put your neck down and plough through stuff you don’t like. You need to be in touch with yourself to know yourself. You should be astute enough to know when you are unhappy versus just impatient.
Everyone has their own beliefs in life and if this is how one chooses to think than that is fine. But, I believe you can be anything you want to be and that if you really truly act on it and are persistent anything is possible.
This has always been the truth for me, maybe I’m just lucky? but I believe this to be a truth which applies to everyone as well :)
All I have to say is that most of us need to stop DOING and just start BEING. Yes David it is liberating. Great post man.
Spot on, Michelle :)
You are mixing up two different things, one is achieving something truly remarkable normal people assume to be too difficult and the other one is finding your true self. Those things aren’t mutually exclusive either.
For instance I have become a traceur, that is a parkour practitioner despite being too old, too weak, too hesitating etc. While practicing it I’ve noticed that it was what I longed for for years or even decades long before I knew what parkour is or even before the term was coined.
So you can find your true self while achieving something truly remarkable, maybe even becoming an olympic swimmer.
David Masters, a concise approach. However, I want to believe Napoleon Hill was not being unrealistic in his submission or let’s say, he was quoted out of context.
Lifting a part of the whole book to be dissected is akin to using a single verse to interpret all of the Bible.
While this is not to advocate unrealistic daydreaming (yes, we cannot all be Larry Ellison) Hill also stated ‘if you can’t do great things, then do small things in a great way’.
What that implies is that his philosophy is a broad one and you can always select what works best for your goal or purpose.
For a 19-year-old who wants to be an astronaut, his quote is apt. But the same will be unreasonable for an eighty-year-old. I say, it all depends on the context and situation.
https://possibilitychange.com/you-cant-be-anything/
I agree that you cannot be anything you want. I for one cannot be a female. I could get an operation but, in the end I would still be a male with a sex change. So, let us be realistic.
What I can be is me – but, this is where it gets tricky because how do you know who you truly are? If you take the time to learn about what the true nature of self is then you may have a better idea about what you really want in life. Instead of wanting to be someone you where programmed into wanting to be.
Why would you want to be an Olympic swimmer at your age? It is not a burning desire is it? When we strip back all we think we are we will find our own passion. In honesty it is found in what you are interested in – where is your passion? Problem is until you can remove what is not true you may never know and just wander around hoping to fulfil some ideal yo have in your head about what is success.
We are not the things we do, the things we say, nor are you a body or even a feeling. You are much greater than all these temporary things. You are diviine intelligence.
Everything you have done in your life is for a reason and if you have not achieved your goals maybe you are trying to achieve the wrong ones. We do not all need to be brain surgeons or millionaires but, we do need to be who we truly are meant to be. Accepting your position does not mean you do not try. As trying has always taught me something.
I have tried many times to create a life based on my dreams. getting a degree and government job, house, wife, car etc. I sabotaged it all. Why? It was not what I truly wanted – none of it. It was what I was told to get to be happy.
What makes me happy now is knowing that there are times when you will not be happy. It has to be this way. There will be times I fall back on my old patterns of self doubt. But, it is places like this and my desire to create the chnage I see as unfolding that keeps me sane and reassures me I am on the right track. I feel I am meant to help people deal with abusive pasts as this is what I have had to do and where my interests lay.
Getting to the poiint where you know who you really are takes effort. It is not just an intellectual task. Imagine trying to fix a car without knowledge of what it really is or how it works. This is the task – discover the illusion of who you think you are.
Nice work by all.
David, yes you can be you, but you can also reach to be more. Be more you and be a better you. I often see people settling for the person that they believe themselves to be. They do not have the vision or drive to see more.
We may not all become president, or an astronaut, but we can all be more than we are in this moment. That doesn’t mean we need to go learn how to parasail, or to take a chance and jump from a plane. What we all need to do is to commit to trying to be a little more us and a slightly better us, every day.
Malcolm Forbes says, “Failure is success if you learn from it.” Go and push you limits. If you succeed then you now know that you can do more. If you fail then you have a new awareness of what your true boundaries are.
I’m another one that disagrees with this article, although it is thought provoking. Everything I’ve ever wanted to accomplish started with a thought in my mind. I had not put my mind to it to begin with it probably wouldn’t have happened. For example, if I HADN’T thought “I really want that job” and then went and applied for it, I would never have it.
Of course I may never have it anyway, but I definitely wouldn’t have it if it was never on my mind (or radar). And the worst part is I would live with the “what if’s” of regretting never having tried.
Of course everything in reason. Within reason you wouldn’t ask to be a unicorn and then really expect it to happen right? Or maybe you could put your mind to becoming a unicorn and then you end up dreaming you’re a unicorn or being a unicorn for Halloween, lol.
I agree with all we can be is who we are, but who we are is made up of thoughts created in our mind. When the mind goes, then the rest of the body isn’t too far behind. Take a paraplegic who has set his mind to competing in the Olympics one day. A reasonable person would say that no matter how much you put your mind to it, you will never be able to compete in the Olympics. You are just fine the way you are. Yet we know that there are many paraplegics who have competed in the Olympics.
No one gets to define what the limits of someone else is. That is just another person trying to put you in a box even if they’re saying “don’t let others put you in a box”. Even if the person fails at whatever they want to do, that is part of them being them and that is part of their work on this earth. Sometimes the process is more important than the end result.
Who say’s everyone on the planet wants to be the President of the U.S? Who says everyone with a blog wants to be in the Technorati top 100? Some people just put their mind to starting a blog that helps people, period. Some people put their minds to just being a citizen of the U.S.
Dear Shantel,
I agree with your post!
Mario
Thanks for a breath of fresh air David. In the midst of so much hype about anything being possible a little realism is a good thing.
Not everything is possible for everyone. To think otherwise is naive. We can move beyond fear and doubt and accomplish many things we might not have thought possible. With determination, focus, and hard work, the miraculous can happen.
We came into this physical existence and to our shared reality by choice. There are rules here, limitations, we can achieve the most if we push up against them, but, we can never br other than what we are, what we have chosen to be this time around.
To honour, embrace and do the most we possibly can with that choice is what it means to be a truly contributing human being. It will fulfill us beyond our widest dreams.
It is so true that being the unique human we were born to be is the whole point of the journey.
Are you telling me that a woman with down syndrome will not become the next Peyton Manning no matter how much she wants it? Fuck!
Thanks for this post. It is true. There are a lot of things discipline and hard work can get you, but it can get you everything. I think you should work your hardest and just take things as they come. It is about the journey not the goal.