What If?

What would you do if you could suddenly do anything?  What if you wake up tomorrow morning with the knowledge that the world is truly your oyster?  What if you spontaneously, and inexorably realize that nothing is outside of your reach?  What if you’re absolutely convinced of it?  What would you do?  It’s an interesting question once you get past the super powers and manipulation of free will.  After you muck around in fantasyland for while, you might come to a very basic understanding of what truly moves you.  You might discover motivation that you didn’t know existed.

Because it seems far-fetched, human beings tend to reserve the “what would you do” scenario for our imaginations.  But think about it, what would you do?  I’m not asking because I think you can do anything, or because I think that you’ll wake up tomorrow morning with that realization/ability.  I understand limitations as real and impactful factors on this journey.  I’m asking because it’s an interesting question through the lens of someone thinking about learning pathways and intended outcomes, which are the kinds of things I think about all the time.  I’m thinking about both right now.

Why not start with the ideal?  Why not imagine your greatest potential and the greatest potential of those you serve?  Why not consider the possibility of extreme achievement?  Are you seeking to be average or extraordinary?  People say things like, “You only live once,” and, “Life is too short to wait any longer,” and, “You’d better get moving before it’s too late!”  Frankly, I don’t know how many times you live, how short any given life is going to be, or when it would be too late, but I think that people say those things to emphasize that there’s no time like the present to get moving on your far-out plans.  Why not?

Do you realize that some people think of ideas, then translate those ideas into mind-blowing innovations?  They actually bring their visions to life.  Others devote unthinkable amounts of time developing skills that eventually land them in professions where they can do just what they love, like compete in sports, or play music, or design cars, or build houses, or write novels, or heal people, or educate children, or any number of other things.  Some people fly rocket ships to the moon.  Some people run companies, and still others run countries.  These are people I’m talking about.  Just like you and me, these are human beings.  We are human beings.  If they can do the things that they project in their wildest dreams, can’t we?

So, what if you could suddenly do anything you want?  Or, what if you removed the “suddenly” and added a “believed that you” in between the first “you” and the “could?”  Then, what if you tacked on an “and no matter how long it took you, or how many failed attempts you perpetrated, you kept pressing forward,” and a “plus, you were really good at learning from each attempt,” then capped it off with an, “and comfortable adapting along the way, while maintaining the original belief?”

You’d be left with the following:

What if you believed that you could do anything you wanted to do, and no matter how long it took you, or how many failed attempts you perpetrated, you kept pressing forward…plus, you were really good at learning from each attempt and comfortable adapting along the way, while maintaining the original belief?

I like it.  It might need a bit of work…but I like it!

 

Dream Big.  Work Hard.  Be Well.