“Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” Thomas Alva Edison. My father-in-law had a dream. He talked about this dream a lot. He would go back in his mind remembering when the dream was still alive. He would tell of how close he got to his dream with a slight memory smile on his face. Then, when he got to the part of the story where he decided to give up on his dream, his face and voice took on the sadness of incredible regret. He would justify his decision; of course, telling and retelling why he felt that he had to give up on his dream.
My father-in-law gave up on his dream because the he was too afraid to take a risk. He was afraid to have faith in himself. His dream would have required him to learn new things, take a pay cut for a while and there was no guarantee that he would have been successful. So, he stayed in his comfort zone and gave up on his dream. But, he died with that regret.
You will regret it if you give up on your dream.
The only people who fail are the ones that either give up or don’t learn from their mistakes. Giving up insures that you won’t get to your dream. There may be no guarantee that you will achieve your dream and become successful if you try. But, there is a 100% chance that you won’t get there when you give up. Giving up is choosing failure.
You don’t have to have an ‘all or nothing’ proposition when it comes to your dream. In fact, it’s not wise to throw the old away before you have an established new. My father-in-law could have kept his day job. Then he could have taken some classes, and then apprenticed part time, then worked both jobs, then moved completely over to the new career. You can do that too.
What would it look like for you to begin to incorporate your dream into your life? Imagine yourself for a moment working toward your dream without giving up the present state. How would your day be different? How would it make you feel?
Don’t let your fear keep you from moving toward your dream. You don’t have to give up the baby with the bathwater. What small thing can you do to keep your dream alive?
Patty Sadallah has 29 years experience as an organization development consultant and executive coach. She is a Dream Partner Catalyst and coaches and consults nonprofits and women owned small business owners around issues of focus and planning, moving them toward her dreams. Find out more about her coaching and consulting at http://www.PattySadallah.com/sq.
She is also the President/Founder of the Redwood Sisterhood, an international women's support community that offers personal and professional development learning opportunities, community bartering through time banking and fun networking events. Here, she brings together the talents and the needs of women and allows these connections to strengthen and uplift the membership. Learn more at (http://www.RedwoodSisterhood.com)
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