“You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.”#writetip
This Jerry Jenkins post was on my Facebook news feed July 15, 2014. Most people would agree that this makes good sense. That is the problem. Agreeing with a truthful statement is worthless unless you turn it into action.
Just because you start does not mean that you will become great, but it is a beginning. The stories of great people are full of their failures and working against tremendous odds. They had a dream and had the nerve to start working toward the dream. That is where most people fail, and where I have failed so many times in the past. The dream was real, the initial enthusiastic energy was good, but the will to stay with it was not.
Every dream comes with negatives. The negatives I find most daunting are lack of time and lack of self-confidence in my ability to rise above mediocrity.
Time is finite, but blaming lack of time on my lack of achievement is hogwash. I choose how to use and waste my time. With that said, using time well is truly a skill. To balance time spent on work, relaxation, family, God, and pursuing a dream is daunting, but not impossible. Our modern world is full of distractions so learning to say no to the frivolous or the wasteful is essential. I struggle keeping focused on my goal when things get a bit frantic or if I am tired.
The issue of self-confidence is even more difficult to resolve than the time usage. I know my present skill level. To improve will take considerable effort. But then, anything truly worthwhile requires effort.
So what is holding you back from achieving your dream?
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 2 Timothy 4:7