Find meaning.

I am a firm believer that inspiration should be the guiding focus in our lives.  I also believe that inspiration can be found any and everywhere.  As I have said before, the cup is either half full, or half empty. Your interpretation of life’s everyday messages heavily impacts the direction of your life.  I have always been a fan of Will Smith movies, but “Pursuit of Happyness” particularly had a profound impact on me.  One scene
 in particular:

“You got a dream, you gotta protect it. If people can't do something themselves, they want to tell you that you can't do it.

"You want something? 

Go get it. 

Period.”

This fall I had mono, and I found myself, a ridiculously energetic and inspired individual, stuck inside my room for a month and a half, slowly but surely losing all heart.  I spent every day sleeping, eating, and watching meaningless movies. Every day I saw my dreams of running fade further into the dark abyss that was my lack of motivation.  I have watched “Pursuit of Happyness”  a million times, but one day that scene and it’s meaning truly hit me.  I literally paused the movie, and printed off the words
You want something? 
Go Get it. 
Period.
in enormous letters, and pasted it to the center of my wall. 

To me, that one line, from that one movie, that one day, guides my life.  Looking at it deeper, it is really quite simple.  Whatever it is in your life, whether it be a job, a sport, a date, an ideal body, or an A on a final exam, if you want something bad enough, go get it. Period. 

Obviously there should be steps, a progression, into achieving your dream.  As a kid I fell asleep many nights reading Michael Jordan’s biographies, and he truly embraced the idea of stepping stone success.  He didn’t wake up one day as the best player to ever play his sport, broke things down and took things step by step.  First he had to be the best in high school, then college, then the pros, etc.  The real guiding force in any journey is the inspiration, the motivation.  You have to decide what you want, and then go after it.  If you truly want something as bad as you say you do, you will make every other aspect of your life form in the right direction to guide you to your goal. I know this sounds like it came straight from “The Secret”, so please forgive me if it seems like I am going all philosophical on you.  I don’t believe in the planets magically aligning to help you get that “A” you want in Comm class, but I do firmly believe in complete and utter focus.  I am sure you know people who talk but never follow with action.  They say they want this job, or that girl, or to lose a few pounds but are afraid to try, and unwilling to actually put in the work that is necessary.  If you truly want something bad enough your priorities will shift.

For example, after truly embracing the quote from “Pursuit of Happyness”, I arranged my life in a way that would positively guide me towards my dream of running.  I am much like a “Rudy” on the track team, and I wasn’t gifted with the incredible talent that many of my friends and teammates were given, so I need to do all the little things right, perfect in fact, to see the success I want. I knew I wanted it bad enough, so the pain and hard work were irrelevant. I changed my social life, I still went out to see my friends, but I didn’t drink, and I went to bed at a decent time.  I changed my diet, and focused on what I needed, not what I wanted.  Many of my teammates are on scholarship, since I am not that fortunate I have to work.  I had way too much on my plate, so I quit one of my jobs and focused more on being financially efficient.  I was completely willing to sacrifice minor necessities for the ultimate goal.

The essence of my example is focus.  I do not focus on all the little things that I cannot control, like natural ability and scholarship money.  Instead, I focus on all the little things in my life that I do have control over, like my social life, nutrition, time management, and financial efficiency.  All these little changes executed daily, cumulatively bring me closer to my dream.

This is my dream, and my experience, all of which is rooted from a random movie on a random day.  Think of how many songs, books, articles, shows, and movies you experience daily.

Find meaning.


Keep your head up like your nose is bleedin,
TJF