#Trust30: Dare To Be Bold

“Our arts, our occupations, our marriages, our religion, we have not chosen, but society has chosen for us. We are parlour soldiers. We shun the rugged battle of fate, where strength is born.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Prompt: “Next to Resistance, rational thought is the artist or entrepreneurs worst enemy. Bad things happen when we employ rational thought, because rational thought comes from the ego. Instead, we want to work from the Self, that is, from instinct and intuition, from the unconscious.

A child has no trouble believing the unbelievable, nor does the genius or the madman. Its only you and I, with our big brains and our tiny hearts, who doubt and overthink and hesitate.” - Steven Pressfield, Do the Work

The idea of “being realistic” holds all of us back. From starting a business or quitting a job to dating someone who may not be our type or moving to a new place – getting “real” often means putting your dreams on hold.

Today, let’s take a step away from rational thought and dare to be bold. What’s one thing you’ve always wanted to accomplish but have been afraid to pursue? Write it down. Also write down the obstacles in your way of reaching your goal. Finally, write down a tangible plan to overcome each obstacle.

The only thing left is to, you know, actually go make it happen. What are you waiting for?

My answer: For most of my life I waited for the moment when I’d be granted the permission to decide what I wanted to do with my life. Then I decided my desires were all the permission I needed. Now I face opposition when I want to veer off the sidewalk and leave the “real world”. I mean, what is the real world? Who gets to decide that anyway?

There’s so much I want to do with my time, talents, and life, I don’t even know where to begin in telling you. Life’s way too short, too valuable, too exciting to settle for the ordinary just because it’s “realistic”. We were given life to live it, and to live it with boldness, energy, imagination and curiosity. Who are we to restrict anyone from living such a life and define for them what is real?

Most of you already know that I have plans of starting a bakery/café, becoming a pediatrician, and that my official bucket list is ridiculously long. I also have hopes of seeing up close and personal every single one of my blogging and entrepreneur idols. (My dreams are coming true! This month I get to meet marketing guru and inspirational blogger, Brandon Yanofsky!) Not many fully support my ambitions.

Let’s take meeting people I randomly found out about online as an example. When I mentioned the idea to my aunt she was very resistant to the idea. “You don’t know them.” “You probably shouldn’t go by yourself.” “That’s how people get abducted and raped.”

I’m not going to deny that the above are legitimate concerns and that those things have happened. But anything can happen with anyone anywhere. Beyond our schools, churches, towns, and cities is a world full of amazing people. Thanks to technology we have the means of transportation and communication bridging the gap made by distance, making the ability to connect with beautiful people a possibility. I figure why should I let fear take that experience away from me? I believe that good people exist in real life, not just online or in my imagination. And I want to share my life with them.

Catch up on the challenge.