Hold fast to dreams, for, if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird, that cannot fly – Langston Hughes
A lot of us have dreamed of doing something big in some field that we are good at. But just because you have the talent or qualities to succeed does not mean that you will be successful. It just means that if you want to succeed in that area you already have an edge, an advantage over those who don’t have the talent. But you have to take action towards developing that area where you have an edge. Otherwise, someone else with less talent or qualification than you is working day and night in developing the required skills. Sooner or later they will have more edge over you.
Use it or lose it. Its the law of nature for many things, talent, brain, money, muscle and so on.
If we don’t take action towards realising our dreams, they will die a natural death. You have to put in the effort that will take you closer to achieving success in the field. Just focus on that area and if you continue to ponder, similar thoughts will spring to mind. And if you talk about it more, your mind will get creative and will try to find solutions, places to go, people to meet, books to read, videos to watch (related to your thoughts). These steps will generate a positive energy field that will then create momentum and this momentum will bring you “luck”. We need to take action to fan that flame.
During my tenure in Delhi, I used to travel by Delhi Metro (subway) to go anywhere within Delhi and adjacent cities. At the time, I was secretly aspiring to be an actor. But deep down I know that I don’t have the looks nor height to be considered for a major role. And inside these Metro Trains, you can see many men with handsome faces and great built just living life as a student or an employee in some Multi-National Companies. At least by the dress and body language, one could guess that they are not involved in the film industries, nor do they desire to be.
This used to baffle me. I mean, those who obviously have an advantage over me aren’t using that advantage. They were in the right location (National Capital), with the right looks! Maybe because of ignorance, unawareness of opportunities. Or most likely because of the fear of taking a risk or simply not bothered. But as time goes by, it became clear to me that we don’t see the world as it is but as we are. Because I aspired to be an actor, I thought everyone should try to be an actor or be in the entertainment industry. How naive I was! Each one of us has different gifts and talents. And it is our job to find out our strengths, and develop them to the best of our ability.
The world is full of distractions already, and if we allow, everything is trying to get our attention. Friends and relatives need you and want your company. To a certain degree its fine to interact, because we are social beings. As members of society, we need other people and they need us for belonging, protection and cooperation. But we also have to remember that our talents and gifts are no one else’s. When we become old and can hardly do anything, we will have no one to blame but ourselves.
Self-care and self-protection is your supreme priority, and that includes self-actualization. We all know deep inside us what our talents are. Sometimes we need some tragic incident to happen to help us realize our life is short. Sometimes we need a caring friend or mentor to help us see our gifts. If you still feel stuck, remember to keep trying new things, in doing so you’ll come to realise your strengths and happiness. You cannot sit and wait forever, you’ll never feel like it. Perfection is a myth, and I’ll write another article on perfection. You have to start fuelling your dreams and never stop till you start feeling the progress. Then try improving during the progress.
Whilst he sits on the cushion of advantages, he goes to sleep. – Ralph Waldo Emerson