Envision, Create and Believe

27th March 2021

Amber, a three-year-old red Cocker Spaniel, was leaping around and above the ground, chasing Admiral butterflies. Not long after, she was sniffing the fresh green grass, scanning for an interesting scent. Just minutes later, she was in the stream, paddling and barking in excitement. She was clearly enjoying herself.

Ruby, her older brother by a few minutes, was walking stoically beside their guardian, always glancing back every few moments to make sure he was still by her side. She was like his shadow, not venturing more than half a metre from him. She seemed to be enjoying herself in her own way too.

Isn’t it interesting how both dogs going on the same walk can display such differing behaviours? Have you wondered what could be going through their minds? For Amber, it could be feeling she can fly and wanted to fly off with the butterflies, thinking she was a sleuth on a case, searching for clues on the ground or even being an otter, swimming in her natural element. For Ruby, she may have considered herself as her guardian’s bodyguard, protecting him every single step of the way. It sounds silly and the point being is that both dogs would have created some form of narrative in their minds to what they are doing and who could say that they are wrong?

How do you live your life? Do you live life proactively or reactively? Do you choose who you become or are you what happened to you? Have you ever crafted something from nothing? Perhaps it was a science project, a painting in art class or an idea you brought to fruition? Maybe it was your personality, your character or your physical body the world see you as? What about a child? Have you imagined yourself having a child and being a parent that you made it happen?

In your life, somewhere, somehow at some point in time, you would have created something from nothing. Some could call it a miracle. It started with a thought, a snatch of imagination, nothing more than a glimpse of a vision. Then you took action, you started creating it. You may not have gotten it right the first time but you did not give up. You modified your approach and learn from the mistakes that were made. You may have had doubts but it was only momentarily. You believed in your vision and creation. Finally, it came alive for you and the world to see.

You see, in life, you can live reactively or proactively. If you do not have a plan for anything, like your relationship, your finance, the way you live or any other aspect of this wondrous gift we have called life, you can be sure that someone else has a plan for you and you may or may not like it! On the flip side, if you have an idea of how you want to live, what is important to you and what is not, what you want in life and what you do not, you can mould your life to your wishes. It may not be easy but anything valuable and worthwhile in life rarely is.

Have you got a vision of what your life would look like? Or more specifically, what you would like your life to look like? Some have a vision of creating a business that serves the local community, meeting the needs of the people living there. Others want to create an empire that brings value to the world. Some may choose to create the greatest relationship with their partner. Others may want to become the strongest supporting pillar for their children. Certainly, there are many who wants all of the above. None is better or worse than the other. They may appear to be different but they are the same as they all represent the vision and goal that someone is working towards.

Because these people have an idea, a vision and a perception of reality they believe they can create, they have a direction to head towards. Thus, they have a higher chance of succeeding and getting what they desire than those who have no idea what they want. You can possess the best skills in the world but without something to work towards, it is like being the fastest speedboat in the ocean with no destination to head towards.

However, if you have in your mind a vision of the world you would like to live in, that is, YOUR world, you can start to reverse engineer a plan to get there. You need to believe with the utmost confidence and faith that you will succeed. You will be able to create your life starting within yourself. When you begin to change, only then the environment will change around you. Gandhi said, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” It can be paraphrased a bit to ‘Be the change you wish to see in YOUR world.’

The journey may be hard. Be sure not to lose hope. Keep your focus. If you hit a dead-end, change your approach without losing your direction. Imagine you are like an aeroplane flying from London to New York. Did you know that from the moment the plane takes off, it makes about 30,000 adjustments to stay on track to its destination? The path that is seemingly straight is not straight at all. It takes constant tweaking and reiterations to reach where it is meant to go. Life is as such. The journey is not clear, simple and straightforward. Keep on track to your goal and you have a higher chance of getting there. Do not forget to enjoy the view along the way!

Create your own path. You may choose to model from others who have done it already to obtain a few shortcuts but remember that it will not exactly the same for you are different and unique.

Always keep the faith. Replace your fear with faith.

Amber and Ruby have their perception of realities. What is the reality of your world like?

‘Envision, create, and believe in your universe, and your universe will form around you.’ – Tony Hsieh, Delivering Happiness

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