Little Words That Hold You Back

Do you ever hear yourself or your friends say, I wish I could do that! I wish I could travel! I wish I could lose weight! I wish I could start my own company! I wish _____, you fill in the blank. The truth of the matter is that far too many people waste their time in Wishland.  Yes, you read that right, Wishland. The place where dreams of living a different life go because it is easier to wish, than to take action. I read a stat recently and I can’t locate the source, but I’m going to share it anyway. The article I read said that only 16% of people say that they have a BIG dream and of that 16%, only 1% actually follow through! Let’s go back to the number 16%, which I believe is very small. I believe that almost everyone has a dream, but they are too afraid to voice that dream. Why would someone be too afraid? Maybe they are afraid of change? Other people’s reactions? Accountability to the dream? Maybe they are comfortable now and think that perhaps “someday” they will act on it. By the way, Someday is right next to Wishland on the map! Many years ago, I thought, “This isn’t the life that I thought I would be living at this stage of my life.” My life wasn’t bad, it was average, but that was the problem, you see average is just average! It’s like getting a C on a report card evaluating your life.   Seriously a “C”!  On report cards, a “C” means that you are average. Some are struggling more than you, but others are exceeding you. All too often a “C” means you are comfortable and comfortable means you are not growing. I had to reflect on this one for a while as I wasn’t comfortable with this grade. How had I ended up average? As I reflected on my life, all of these thoughts came into my head; I really ought to…, I should be doing…, I wish I could…., Someday I’m going to… Yikes! I discovered my problem, and the problem was with my words. If I wanted to live differently, then I had to change my words. If was striving for an above average life, an “A+”, then I was going to have to change my words. I was going to have to throw out this language that was filling me full of average and even fuller of excuses. It was time to say goodbye to; I wish, I should, I ought to, and lastly someday. These words were holding me back and I can only blame myself. Now instead of “I wish”, I say “I will” if it is something I really am willing to do. I should and someday now come with a date and time for completing the task.  No more excuses, no more filling my head with average words. We are a society afraid to commit, afraid to say a definitive yes or no. We leave ourselves open for other possibilities, while the perfect opportunity slips by us because we can’t commit. Today, make the conscious decision to throw out these vague words that are creating your average life and make a commitment to excel in whatever you are going after. What are the words that are holding YOU back?