Getting Started
“You don’t have to be great to start, but you do have to start in order to be great… — Zig Ziglar
There are many reasons why people never get started. I am too young. I am too old. I am not ready. I am not capable. I am not prepared. I do not make enough money. I am afraid to try and fail. I (write in that which fits into your excuse)… We are defeated by our own self-image of I don’t have, or I can’t, or I (again whatever your excuse is)… Or we are focused on what others have that we don’t such as they are prettier, smarter, stronger, etc., the outcome is the same. This type of focus will keep us from getting started. It will keep us from becoming more so we can have a greater value to the marketplace. The focus is on others rather than on what we need to do to become what we have a desire to become.
Truth is, there are simply no excuses for not getting started on that which you believe you want to do or on that which you believe will help you get to the next level of achievement and bring some personal satisfaction into your life. You do not have to be great. You do not have to even be good. All you have to do is start. If you will start, you will at least have a chance of getting farther tomorrow than you are today. If you will start, though at first it is a struggle, you will find with each little success, more courage to continue. If you will start and stick with it you can become great at anything you desire.
Often the issue is we compare ourselves to those around us. Usually our comparison is of someone who we view as much better than we are leaving us defeated before we get started. A Bible verse, II Corinthians 10:12, says: “…but they that compare themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves with themselves, are not wise.” When we compare our self to someone else, we are either trying to make our self-feel better about who and what we are or we are putting our self-down as not being as good. Neither will help us to become better for comparing self to someone else is like comparing a one snowflake to another. Snowflakes are all different just as we as humans are all different. We can emulate, we can aspire, we can use them to help us get or remain motivated, but to compare our self to others does not help us to get where we need to be for we are each unique individuals; as unique as a snowflake. We have our own innate gifts, talents, and developable skills, which sets us apart from every other person.
This is why comparing yourself with someone else only brings confusion and depression. You were not meant to be them. You were meant to be YOU. You were not given their individual make up. You do not have what it takes to walk their path, but neither do they have what it takes to walk your path. When we begin comparing our self to those around us the outcome is almost always disastrous. Our thoughts are often: they are prettier; they are smarter; they are wiser; they are stronger; they are more connected; they are more outgoing; they are more charismatic; they are (and once again whatever excuse you place here)…
To change this we must think like a child thinks, which is, “All things are possible. I can do that. I am capable. That isn’t too hard for me.” This type of thinking is what will get you to where you need to be. This type of thinking is that of a child learning to crawl, walk, or run for they are not concerned about what others think. They are simply doing what their minds tell them they can do and need to do. So, they start crawling. They start trying to walk. They start learning to run. They try riding a bike. They are not concerned about others. They see their parents doing these things and try doing them too. They are not comparing themselves with their parents or older siblings, they are simply trying to grow up and become the best they were meant to be.
Get your focus off of others and on the right things for you, and your life will take a turn for the better.
Best of LUCK as you
Labor Under Correct Knowledge…
Respectfully,
Rick Cox