Far too often, people think they are special because they come from a special situation like a royal family, or have an exceptional talent that makes them different and better. It’s not what you say or where you come from that makes you special.
The truth is this:
You are not special because of who you are but what you do.
You become special through your actions. By what you do. Every day, day in and day out. Your actions define who you are and the person you will become.
“Go without and see what you really need.” This is a stoic philosophy of “voluntary hardship” nicely summarized. Too often we get used to living a certain way and develop a dependence on things in our lives. Many of the things in your life you may not actually need. After all, what do you really need to live a good life? Not much if you pair it all down to the basics – safety, shelter, food, health, and family. What else is there?
You can simplify your life and understand your true needs by going without something to see if you really need it. This especially applies to material things, but it can also be routines or people in your life. If after a brief experiment you find that you don’t need something then you can eliminate it from your life.
A woman approached Picasso in a restaurant and asked him to scribble something on a napkin for her. She said she would be happy to pay whatever he felt it was worth. Picasso quickly sketched a beautiful piece that wowed the people watching.
Then he said, “That will be $10,000.”
“But you did that in thirty seconds,” the astonished woman replied. “No,” Picasso said. “It took me forty years to be able to do that.”
The best students are those who never quite believe their professors.
-Jim Collins
Courage: being terrified but still going ahead and doing what needs to be done.
“The one who feels no fear is a fool. And the one who let’s fear rule him is a coward.” –Piers Anthony
“Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the assessment that something else is more important than fear.” –Franklin D. Roosevelt
I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain. -Dune
One of my all-time favorite quotes:
“Destiny is not a matter of chance; it is a matter of choice. It is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved.”
-William Jennings Bryan
You will only have a handful of mega opportunities in your life, and they won’t hang around for long. That million dollar idea you had yesterday may be gone tomorrow. That job offer that is the dream job but requires you to move across the country expires in a week. That real estate deal might be off the market in six hours. These opportunities will come your way maybe once a decade. Which means that the vast majority of your time will be spent preparing for opportunity. The more you work and the harder you prepare, the more equipped you will be to capitalize on these opportunities. Will you be ready? Will you be able to identify the opportunity let alone seize the day? Will your preparation be enough?
