Who Said It Would Be Easy?
Ever get jealous of the movie star or successful business person who has it “all” – money, fame, and glory? Ever wish that you could have the easy, carefree, silver spoon life they do?
Nothing is ever as it seems.
I would like to share stories about two people who seem to have it all. And they do. They are content in their lives and are enjoying every minute of it. But that does not mean it was easy to get there or stay there. And it does not mean that the “good life” they enjoy is solely about fast cars and expensive clothes.
The first person was adopted by a working class, high school graduate couple. His birth mother wanted him to go to college, but after the first six months he realized that he was spending all of his adopted parent’s earnings and dropped out. He stayed around campus another eighteen months unofficially auditing classes he wanted to take. He took classes that pulled at his heart but did not have relevance in finding work or a career. But later on these classes led to the creation of a wonderful company with a friend of his. But as in all our lives that was not the end of the story. He was also fired from his own company. He could have thought all his effort was wasted, but he began to see that this downturn was the impetus for the next big thing.
The second person learned to follow her heart and her truth through loss. Losing the first love of her life led to a conversation with God and the first vision of being a performer, a famous performer. But this person also lived in fear. Fear of being found out. Fear of losing it all if she lived her truth. So she led a life trying to please everyone and hid from the world her true essence. Once she spoke her truth, she did loose everything. Actually she lost all of the material things and the fame that was part of her position, but what she gained was the joy of empowering others and a purpose to help change other people’s lives with her truth. She also learned that the most devastating events in our lives will also teach us the most.
What can we learn from Steve Jobs and Ellen DeGeneres and all others who survived and thrived against all odds?
Truth: Be truthful. Be true to others and most importantly be true to yourself. Have the strength to express your truth even if you fear loss or persecution. Although it may not be easy at first, the pure joy and beauty of life will shine when following your own truth.
Love: Once you know your truth, discover your love and your passion. Are you doing what you would want to be doing if this was the last day of your life? Or are you spending your days doing “shoulds” and “have to’s”? Live your own truth and your own life. Uncover what you love and just do it! Life is too short not to be living the life of your dreams.
Trust: Hindsight is 50/50. But the “why” is hard to see when you are in the midst of a hard time or devastating news. Look back through your life at those bad times. What was the result of those unfortunate incidents? Was there eventually a silver lining from the experience? What did the hardship lead to? By learning those lessons you can begin to trust the future. As can be seen through these two individuals, failure can bring success and joy. Trust in your future and follow your own journey wherever it may lead and trust that it is leading you there, even if it is a winding, bumpy path.
So next time you are down because things are not easy, remember to follow your own path by knowing and speaking your own truth and having the determination and persistence to continue down your own path even if things look scary and hard.
We have all experienced obstacles that seemed devastating at the time but ended up bringing a positive life change. There have been times when we stuck to our truth and eventually we came out on top. Share your stories here to inspire others to keep strong and follow their heart.
