Your adventure starts today. Wait. Not just yet, You have to feed the cat and clean the kitchen counters. Tomorrow’s looking good though. Does this feel like a familiar refrain? You see yourself in a completely different future to the life you are living right now. You just have to get through the next couple of years and then you’ll be… what? Living the life of your dreams in a log cabin near a sparkling stream? Tramping the dusty roads of India? Running your own boutique B&B? Trust me, unless you start today, you’ll still be here in two years, or five, or twenty. Dear reader, you need to know why it is important to take risks – now. Not tomorrow or next year, but right now.
Your Future is Now
You might have big plans for your future, and that’s great, but your life isn’t in your future, it’s happening now. This moment is the only time and place your life can unfold. The future is nowhere. It doesn’t exist. Anything could happen to destroy your future plans, throw you off track, delay the dream. So why wait? Your beautiful life is unfolding in the present moment, can you begin to take risks now in order to live the dream?
Can You Afford Not To Take Risks?
There’s only one currency worth more than gold, more than diamonds, more than all the riches in the world, and that is time. Everything you do is dependent upon time. Can you afford to squander any more of your precious time on unimportant things?
A Quick Life Assessment:
- Do you feel fulfilled by your work?
- Are you happy with your relationships?
- Do you see problems as challenges?
- Are you content with your own company?
- Do you have a passion that is all yours?
If your answer to all five questions is ‘yes’, you’re doing everything right. If you feel discomfort with any of the questions, you might want to delve a little deeper. Perhaps it’s time to make some changes? And, given that your time is currency, can you afford not to take one small risk today to make the first of those changes?
Connect With Your Authentic Self
Do you sometimes feel as though you are selling your soul to make a dime? Or to please someone else? Is there something you feel you want to do but you put your own wishes aside? This is disconnection with who you are. Your soul needs to express your authentic self but you are blocking it. Take a risk to make the first small step and you will begin to connect to the real you. Doesn’t matter what it is – maybe you always wanted to be an artist, so buy a book on drawing and do the exercises. Maybe you were a good singer back in the day – go get a ‘taster’ singing lesson. Perhaps you fancied running your own business making chocolate tarts – start reading about how to start a kitchen table business. How about fronting a rock band? You'll need guitar lessons first…
Taking Risks Gives You Confidence
Once you take that step, you will gain confidence. You took a risk, stepped outside your comfort zone and boy, do you feel good. The next step will be easier than the first. It won’t feel like risk-taking, but a natural progression.
You Learn When Taking Risks
As soon as you take that first risk, your brain begins making those new connections. Putting fear aside, donning your cloak of invincibility and getting into a new situation, gets your mind into creative mode. You learn to think differently. For example, Lucy overcame her reluctance and did something she always wanted to do. Acting. She signed up for a drama class at her local community college. She was terrified even to do a read-through, but she did it anyway. She discovered that stepping into another character, forced her to learn things about herself and how she interacts with people. She also learned that she will always feel fear before performing, but knows that as soon as she is on stage, the fear disappears and she connects with her inner being.
Your Big Adventure – At Home
You don’t have to leave home to go on an adventure. You can begin right where you are. There’s a myth which seems to percolate society that you can only have a great, fulfilling life if you are cycling in the Andes or ballooning over the Alps. Your lifetime adventure can begin at home if you are willing to take a risk.
Do you know many people on your block? In your building? In your street? The way we live today means that most people don’t have a clue about their neighbors. So how about making it your mission to get to know at least five of your neighbors? Does that sound scary?
You have no idea whether you are missing out on the best friendships of your life simply because you didn’t make the effort to introduce yourself. Instead of counting up your FaceBook friends, make some real live human ones right where you live. Of course it means taking a risk. A good place to begin is with an elderly neighbor. Knock on their door before going to the store and ask if they need anything picked up. Or, perhaps you pass the same person every day – begin to say hello. Then one day stop and introduce yourself. Maybe you have to take your dog out and see other familiar dog walkers – engage them in conversation. You might be able to arrange an informal dog-walking event.
Once you start thinking about how to engage with your neighbors you’ll come up with lots of ideas. How about turning a piece of waste ground into a community garden? Imagine if you were the catalyst that brought your neighbors together in a newfound community spirit. What if you were the reason someone looked forward to their day? What if you could pour your creativity into building a neighborhood that cherished and nurtured its inhabitants. Imagine how the old and young could get together. Think of the power a cohesive group would have when it come to important local decisions. You could do this. Take a risk and knock on the first door.
It’s Your Life; Your Time
Life is far too short to live it in a less than fulfilling way. This is about your time. Your precious currency. How will you spend it today? Take risks; you’ll be happy you did.
Images via Pixabay