WHEN MEN CRY OVER FOOD!

It is said that food is an emotional subject to men. Being a man, I tend to agree. I remember few years back in High School (yes few years back, i am not that old, thank you very much), we used to eat a loaf of bread at least once a week.

There was this old boy in school who had really looked forward to that day-a Wednesday, so much so that he kept staring through the window as our terse Swahili teacher was ranting on. What followed made me laugh so hard I lost my breath. The Swahili teacher, as punishment, had this old boy to trail the truck that had just zoomed in with our loaves. I assure you that was a funny sight, seeing a boy frantically doing a marathon, with a truck full of loaves as a pace-setter.

Food is an emotional subject I tell you. Even in the Bible, food always was. A certain leader came face to face with a group of about one Million men chanting, "We want food", "We want food!", "We want food!", "We want food!" ...and of course when Jesus Christ miraculously fed people, they did a census and counted....wait for it...MEN.

There have been a couple of times in my BB days (Before Beth) where I literally wept over my quickly assembled excuse of a meal on my plate. There was a day some time back when the only food I had was a huge lump of Posho (Ugali) and an egg...and the bad news was that I was the cook.

Not that I could not craft a meal with that combination...its just that as fate would have it, the egg paste spilt over to the ground before I could fry it. That was a perfect crying moment. Whether I cried or not....I am not gonna tell you.

I know at this point in time, Ngina Otiende, a good friend of mine who is reading is now wondering....where in the world is this guy going with this? This blog post is hardly about food to begin with, so let me navigate away from that emotional subject as fast as the old boy run after the truck-load of loaves!

The Ideal. The perfect condition...do we normally have those to work with? In 'My Jog To Success', I had a hitch the other day. I went out on an empty stomach...not by design, but by default. I have never felt so weak, helpless and on the verge of crying as I kept the jog on. If you read the previous post, that was a standing ovation moment for me. Initially, I could do my circuits with so much comfort in just about 31 minutes. This time round, I hassled and trudged on for quite longer-36 minutes, and by the time I was back, I was in a horrible shape.

You would think that I was not any bit pleased with myself, but you will be definitely wrong. I have never been so proud of this old boy. I came out with this lesson: that as much as there is something I ought to do, I must act upon it immediately with only what I have at hand, and keep going. I have learnt over the years that the feelings, emotions and many other things that we always wait for before we get started will most definitely catch up as we go.

That is it. I have learnt that the more I wait for the ideal and perfect condition to do something, the more it is delayed. However, through my jogging experience, I learnt a great lesson. That even as I go out there and jog on 'an empty stomach', it shows that I am still in the game.

The time will come sooner than later when I will be in the best fit to tackle my mountains. Guess what? As I had been going out there with the less than perfect conditions, I have actually been preparing myself for the real deal. When the real deal comes, I will only be increasing or improving my momentum.

So, there are books to be written. There are websites to be launched. There are numerous ideas to be implemented. There is a husband to marry...and there is a wife to marry. There are children to be born, and there are friends to be made. There are jobs to be quat (excuse the broken language), and there are relationships to severe.

Virtually everybody out there today as sure as the sun will go out and come back, has something to do, to start...but guess what? I bet you that as sure as your nose on your face, the Ideal condition for getting started is  not there. What are you going to do? Keep waiting? That is an option. Go for it with limited Ideas and resources...that to me is a better option.

I will tell you this, that going for it with no resources or limited resources is in itself seeking out the 'best fit'. As you go...I assure you that it will not necessarily be easy. It will be tough. However it is worth going for it than waiting for the time of best fit. That time seldom comes, and when it does, things have moved so much so that the perfect or Ideal has to evolve to catch up.

On doing a personal introspection, I have been reflecting... How many times do I sit around waiting for the perfect moment to do something? How many times do I wait for the ideal moment to launch something?

Could there be a difference when I get started with limited or no resources as compared to when I sit down and wait for the perfect moment? What are those things on hold in my life? What are those things that are 'pending' in my endeavors? Wait a minute...For how MANY YEARS have those things been pending in the first place? The answer to this last question when candid will shock many people to action.

Ladies and Gentlemen...the Ideal is seldom with us at the start. You know why? It is because at the start we will always never have the exact enough information and resources we need. No, the Ideal is never waited for, but the Ideal is always attracted and pursued with our deliberate efforts to 'go for it' with the limited resources that we have.

Have a foodious day, wont you?

STANDING OVATION

In today's post, we will squeeze in another analogy about Arsenal. I saw a status update on someone's Facebook page that read 'I 8-2 say this but 4-3 weeks, I have been laughing at Arsenal'...but I digress.

I love singing. So much so that I joined church choir some years back. I still remember those days of practice to perfect out voices. One thing is clear though, I had great passion...and just about an average voice. So what does my just about average voice has to do with the topic of the day. Hang on. This is going to be lovely.

So one day, the choir master out of the blue decides to switch us around. I was singing a 'low'. She decided that that day, all the 'lows' will sing the 'highs' and vice-versa. 'Not so good for a Standing Ovation', I thought. So when the main event came on Sunday, there I was faithfully. We had to do some rehearsals before we could hit the podium. Man, I tried to hit the high notes but all in vain. You could see the discouragement in my face. My eyes bulging out, my mouth wide open, replaced with closed eyes and a stretched neck. It must have been a sorry sight to one of the guys who was a natural 'high' (voice-wise), who came over to me and tried to 'help' me. "You just do this...." , he then opens his mouth real wide and hits a high. I look at the guy like he's just gotten off of a bus... he did not help me needless to say. 

And so, few weeks back, I am on Record TV in Kampala.A caller indicated that he had set his goals at the beginning of the year. By end of August, the only accomplishment he had done for those goals were fifty percent. I have to address several things here. The first thing that I need fully addressed is this notion that goal setting should be done at the beginning of the year. Now that is totally incorrect. That is the 'new year resolution' mentality. It is not a must that your goals be linked to calender years. You can be successful at your own terms, and create your own success year.

Wait a minute...what happened to the choir thing. Glad you asked. This is a very powerful concept that I am sure most people are affected by it. My choir mate naturally hit the high notes and could not understand why it was so hard for me to do the same. You see, for him it came basically with no effort...and that is why he was taking it... for granted! There we go.  Have you ever seen a guy so talented fail to explain HOW they pulled something off? It is because they are OBLIVIOUS of it. They take it for granted that everybody else has that ability. If you flip the whole story, you will find that there are thousands upon thousands of accomplishments that we attain that go unnoticed...no, not to the crowd, but to ourselves.

If there were some invisible fans assigned to us to cheer us on when we do something positive, there would be very many standing ovations in just one day. Picture this....you woke up in the morning...Standing Ovation (some people have said their enemies groan when they wake up hehehe), you actually call your mum....standing ovation. You get that job...standing ovation. You make the sales...standing ovation. You start the jogging program...standing ovation...you set some goals...standing ovation. You actually were able to cook a meal...standing ovation. You wrote a blog post, standing ovation. You actually have endured reading this one thus far...standing ovation! There actually is a standing ovation going on though unseen on the things that you accomplish. The problem is that most people focus on the unaccomplished stuff at the expense of the things that they have done...that 'just came naturally.'  You see, to you it is a natural...but not to everyone. That is why Life Signatures has said some time back...never underestimate or take for granted that which you know and are passionate about or have an experience in.

I say it is time to acknowledge that invisible crowd of fans that are always giving you a standing ovation. I say it is time to smile and wave back to them and join the celebration every now and then. At the very worst, you could be dead...so there is a chance for a standing ovation as you go to bed...whether the day has gone well or not...really.

People think that their achievements are little..there are no TV Cameras and journalists to tape your success. No one is taking notice. I suggest that there is a standing ovation going on in the invisible world. Think about it this way. If you had not sat down to set them goals, you would be living a life of mediocrity.  If you had not put action steps and taken them to achieve the 50%, you would probably be feeling disgruntled with life.

If you had not taken time to load airtime, and spend it on calling a TV show to ASK, you probably would not be having the answers that are coming to you. You probably would not have opened yourself up for resources, people, events and connections that would make you achieve the rest of the 50%. I submit to you sir that you need to take time and count your blessings. You need to get the keen ear and listen to the cheers that you are receiving from the world unseen....and you need to join them and toot your own horn, pat your own back, smile and congratulate yourself.

Finally...the Arsenal Story. I just had to talk about Arsenal again. Remember that 8-2 Scoreline away at Man U? I know, I know. Painful, embarrassing, 'un-thought' of! Yet after that drama, I am told that the management at Arsenal decided to repay in full all the fans who travelled to Old Traford and witnessed the humiliation. Reason? These guys cheered on their team even as the scores were reading something akin of a one sided rugby match. What a spirit! What a tenacity. Could we all borrow that leaf? My standing ovation is with those very Arsenal fans. Wow! And hey...what are you applauding about yourself today?
Have a cheerful day...wont you?

Did You Know?

That you are your very own best cheerleader?

THE GREATEST SPEECH EVER-A CALL TO DEFIANCE!

Let me start this post with a disclaimer: If you start your day by checking mail and replying to Facebook Status updates...you are doing yourself a great disservice. I will develop that argument at a later date. Just know that you had better be doing more constructive things that relate to your MAJOR GOALS in life first...then Facebook and Social Media can come up at a designated 'leisure hour'.

That being said, at one of those leisure hours, I was chatting on Facebook with my dear friend (Tattoo) who is in Nairobi. After the punches we normally give each other online, the conversation shifted to more important matters. It went something like this:

Tattoo:What are you writing about what I am doing?

Me: Am writing about 'the Greatest Speech Ever'. Can you guess what it is and who 'speached/speaked' it?

Tattoo: Obama

Me:hehehe Tattoo: what does it have to do with me? Me:Title? Tattoo:Sijui [That is Swahili for 'I do not have the faintest idea!' Me:hehe...so why say Obama? Tattoo:Just thought I should say that hehe Me:hmmm,complete this sentence...'The beautiful ones.... Tattoo: were born long time ago and I am one of them Me:hehehehe...good gal!brilliant!However...traditionally...how does it go? Tattoo:Grrr...are not yet born, dont like it Me:hihi stay tuned,I will tell you what the biggest speech ever is and who delivered it

Tattoo:Sawa,waiting [That is Swahili meaning...its OK...but I want to hear that now!!!]

One question Tattoo asked in our conversation is the pivotal point of this post. She asked: What does the greatest speech ever have to do with me? Friends, the answer to this all important question concerns every reader today. It concerns every person ever born. Closer home, this answer concerns every Visionary and it is extremely important in terms of Designing Legacies. So, I am pretty sure that at this point in time, someone is asking the same thing. What does the greatest speech ever have to do with me? Put on your seat belts, hang on and lets take this ride together.

I am sure that the smart ones reading have already figured out what the greatest speech ever is. I feel that before I reveal what is already known...I need to ask another related question. What do you think is the greatest audience ever? It goes without saying that the greatest speech ever is also influenced by the greatest audience ever. By the way...did you know that we all have our audiences out there? In fact the successful people on their cutting edge of creating legacies have sat out to define their audiences.

When Dr. Martin Luther King Jnr delivered the all time famous speech 'I have a dream', the audience he was addressing were already prepared. The audiences around the world at that moment in time were ready for that kind of a speech. When a great leader stood up one day in the past century to a much pensive and anticipating audience and said those famous words: "Never Ever Give up", that audience needed to hear those words and nothing else. When some American Astronauts perished in their space craft that went up in flames few seconds after take off, the speech given by President Ronald Reagan is what people needed to hear at that time. It was needless to say, an awesome speech. For every major event that has taken place through history, the masses have always looked at their leaders to INSPIRE them using WORDS. Words of reassurance. Words of hope. Words of wisdom. Words of motivation like what Alexander the Great used to inspire his armies after they were visibly spent and discouraged.

Yet, Ladies and Gentlemen, the greatest speech ever is not found in the museums of history. The same applies to the greatest audience ever. The greatest speech ever is not what is delivered by the greatest leaders of all time. The greatest speech ever that can literaly change the entire world is not given where thousands of people are attending. Neither is it backed by full multimedia, animation and the whole range of technology. The greatest speech ever is not necessariy prepared by a speech writer and delivered on International Television.

No, the greatest speech ever is when a believing heart, whether in suffering and in disillusionment, prosperity and abundance, wakes up and addresses SELF. The greatest speech ever is delivered by the orator who is in fact the audience. The speech itself is defiant. I dare say that the greatest speech ever is spontaneous. It comes from the depths of a soul that refuses to accept the normal and ordinary feedback that life hands us. A soul rises up and declares to itself: I am greater than this, I am much better than this. A soul rises up like my friend Tattoo and declares all the positives about itself in direct defiance to the current pressing circumstances. When you stand to deliver that Speech and it is full of I, me, mine, ours...they could say that you are full of yourself...yet they are not there to hear it. You are the audience anyway.

Ladies and Gentlemen, this is a call to defiance. This is a call to all and sundry to start giving out the greatest speech ever. Open your mouth. You might not feel like it...but you do not need feelings to start. Open your mouth, and even when hot tears are streaming through your cheecks, declare with an un-shakeable belief all the positives you can muster about your life.

In the end, "I can", is much better than IQ. You will be most motivated by the greatest speech that you will deliver than the greatest speech that you will hear. My question today is this: What are you saying about yourself? What are you saying about how you will turn out? What are you listening to? Most importantly....when is the last time you delivered the greatest speech ever?

DID YOU KNOW?

That Dr. Martin Luther King Jnr in his address "I Have A Dream"...delivered the greatest speech ever?

Have a speechy day...wont you?

WHY I WAS MAD WITH MYSELF

"If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I'd spend six hours sharpening my axe"--Abraham Lincoln

I have come to realize that all and sundry have the opportunity to at one time 'chop down their tree'. I have had those opportunities come my way very many times. I also know for sure that as the sun will come out tomorrow, so will those opportunities keep coming. 

I am an ardent lover of Country Music. Yeah...and I know this is where biases come in. Some have logged off immediately and swiftly moved on to something else entirely...but that is OK and it is allowed. So anyway, before I digress...let me remember where this country music business is coming from...and most importantly, where I am going with it. Oh here we go. Few years back, having not made a collection of my own, the only way I could listen to country music was to wait for a Sunday evening show on a radio station.

So one day, the Show host announces that he will be doing a live competition. The listeners would be required to memorize some passage and recite it online...er...I mean on air. Naturally, I got interested. (I really, really wanted to hear my voice on radio...and that was motivation enough). Unbeknown to me, the show host was actually giving away gifts to excellent performers (reciters), the grand of which was a night for two...at an exclusive guest house in Nairobi. What made me MAD was the way I took to this.In fact the very day of recital I realized how 'assumptive' I had taken on this task. I had one whole week to memorize the data...yet when the very day came...I could only do two thirds of the passage. I had come that close...and I had all that time...but I missed it entirely! 

Yes, my voice was heard on Radio...but It was the voice of someone who forgot his lines! What a pity! Guess what? I PREPARED for something less than the real deal. I counted myself out of the real deal...and that inevitably reflected in my preparations for the competition. And of course this is the meat of this post. I know we have already discussed about 'running to win and not running to finish' in an earlier post. Today, we are focusing on...Before You Can Run.

It is clear that if you want to win a championship, you will have to TRAIN LIKE A CHAMPION. Here is the thing. When I approach several 'trainings' with the average 'in here just to finish' mentality, I cannot expect better results to be reflected in the competition. It has already been said in the previous post that we are all either consciously or unconsciously preparing ourselves for the next level. That next level is always approaching every minute. For some, the next level is well known. For others, the next level is a surprise. Either way, my performance in the next level will most certainly depend on my Preparation NOW.

Let me say this. Very many times we operate in the presumptive and assuming mode. For the most part, our sights are ahead. The tragedy is that sometimes, subtly, our thoughts are in the 'after'. After I get married...after I close that deal...after she agrees to go with me...and so on. This effectively transfers the power of the now into a future...and like we have seen, this transference is always and always will be a mirage. You never really get to that future.

Listen, Championships are not a daily thing. Championships are Seasonal events of whom participants have spent grinding hours in obscurity preparing. When it comes to life, Championships are not for selected few. They are for all and sundry. Therefore, the most important part is the preparation phase. This phase is in the here and now, day by day, moment by moment. Unfortunately, most people want to train/prepare for their championships when they see the crowds gathering. That is pretty late.

Success in life is basically a cycle of training, taking action, getting results, adjusting focus and getting better results. Someone has already written a book called "Ready, Fire, Aim". You might think it should be, ready, aim, fire...but that is wrong. The concept is to go for it, get feedback then go for it again with better information than you started. Wow! There is no better place to Ready Fire and Aim like in the Training Ground.

The biggest question here to ask is this. Given that I am always preparing either consciously or unconsciously, HOW am I preparing myself daily? Am I preparing for my voice to be heard on radio...or to win the competition? The results I will obtain at the competition will most certainly reflect at the finish line. Think of it this way...you were born some years back..therefore, at the place you are standing right now...you have some feedback. What are your results? Are you happy? Are you in the correct career? What feedback do you have now? What is your CV reading? How about your back account? Savings account? Assets? How many connections do you have? What are you proud of accomplishing? All these things will most certainly be a stark reflection of how well I have been preparing.

You wanna be a champion? Go ahead and prepare like one.

Have a prepared week, wont you?

_____________

Did You Know?

That It takes more than two years of preparation to be an Olympian?

WHEN THE MOUSE EATS LIKE AN ELEPHANT

Long time ago, when Dinosaurs roamed the earth, the mouse and the elephant had formed a formidable friendship. In their daily strolls, one day the came across a long rickety bridge that they had to cross. The valley down that bridge was filled with rocks and a thick forest. As usual, the mouse climbed on the elephant's back and off they set off to cross. As they did, the bridge shook and shoved, swayed and quacked, basically threatening to give way. All along both parties were silent...their hearts in their mouths. Eventually, they made it across the bridge...and that is when the dear old mouse spoke, "Boy WE sure shook that bridge didn't we?"

Ok, today I am delving into creative writing. I am just writing as I go, so hopefully, by the time the post is complete there will be a message to take home. If you are the kind who is busy and not willing to persevere my writing excapades, you are excused from this moment on. Actually, the elephant and mouse story has no direct relation to the topic I desired to share today...and am thinking that as I go, an entirely new message will develop...hehehe, not so encouraging is it. Reminds me of a concerned mum who took her son to see a doctor...but I digress. That's for another day.

My readers will by now understand that I have been focussing of late on lessons from 'My Jog To Success', a personal initiative that has transformed and is transforming my life. There are pertinent lessons I learn every single morning I go out to jog. I got a major nugget today that I intend to deliver with this post. However, I already threw my hat in the ring with this creative writing business...so If I take a completely different angle today...I will basically come back in a later post and share my power nugget. That's why you all ought to be authors...you got freedom to do what you want and nobody can sue you. Did I see someone logging off?

Anyway, a few days back,I read a concept called 'ACT AS IF'. Basically, if you want to be a manager, act as if you are one. Dress like one, sit like one, talk like one, walk like one. Soon enough you will be one. I know that works, I have done it. I was sitting in an obscure office, churning out work and making my manager and assistant manager shine. However, deep inside of me, I knew that as much as they kept saying 'We sure did shake that bridge didn't we?', they were more or less celebrating my efforts. Point of Correction...they were gloating over my efforts as if they were the ones who pulled it off! Needless to say, I always projected myself as if I was a manager. I dressed day in and day out like one...no not like my manager was dressing...but like A MANAGER would dress. I was not surprised when this guy got scared of me later on. Now, let's make one thing clear. He also knew my potential and celebrated it. He championed it and brought it to the fore. 

However, he crossed a line that eternally made me sort of lose respect for him. He basically abdicated most of his responsibilities to me in the name of...guess what? Delegation. Hopefully by now you know that the boss is not an elephant...but he actually is the mouse.The most paining thing in that set up was when I did some mistakes (like I always do and will always do, no excuses here), he literally would dump me like a hot potato. He would leave me to fend for myself. On flipping the story, whenever there were matters to celebrate and applaud, he would be caught smack in the middle savoring all the glory and splendor as if he was the one who pulled off the stunt in the first place! 

Of course the biggest difference between me and him was the pay check. Here I am 'elephanting' the company to success while this guy is busy mousing his way to mediocrity...then when it comes to eating....the mouse eats the elephant's share. Ladies and Gentlemen, this state of affairs repeats itself times and times again and again the world over. Let me tell you why: People UNDER-ESTIMATE THEIR WORTH, and THEIR POTENTIAL. Its called working like an elephant and eating like an ant!

I remember there was a day that my young brother Tom needed some medication due to his Dialysis at that time. I had to get permission from work and go sort him out. You would not believe this. As I was in the streets of Nairobi hustling to find medication for my kid bro, I got a text from my boss. It read, 'I know you have gone for an interview...and we wish you well'.

I have never been so 'mad' at a human being...however, the good news is that the boss knew I was too good to stick around the 'obscure' office I mentioned earlier. That of course was a self fulfilling prophesy, in that few months down the line, I who was dressing like a Manager got an opportunity not only to be a Manager, but an expatriate Manager at that. And no, I was  not the next in line for that position. I was to be honest six scales down the pecking order. However, I had positioned myself for success as appropriately as I did. 

The most amazing thing is that I did not do this consciously. I just wanted to dress up and look smart. One day the CEO asked me if I was attending interviews. I told her that I dress up to look nice because in turn, it makes me feel good, and motivates me.

The Moral of the story is the crux of this post. This by the way reminds me of my dear friend Ngina Otiende who is posting amazing stuff at her blog. She talked about Preparation in one of her latest posts. There we go. The key operative word here is Preparation. I have come to understand that whether it is done consciously or unconciously, we are always in a cycle in which one phase is preparation. I kid you not. My actions today are inevitably preparations for my tomorrow, whether success or failure. 

As usual, I have my questions to pose. First, are you Preparing yourself Consciously? If not, then you are bound to be clueless when the next level demands that you step up to prove that you are worthy of it. Secondly, what are you 'acting as if' on today? Acting like a fool? You will be one. Acting like you will always be beneath and not above? That will happen. Here is the thing...do not wait until you are there to start acting like it. Your acting like it now...will most assuredly land you there...and when you get there...you will already have done enough practice to comfortably ride the storms of that level.

                                 

DID YOU KNOW?

'It is not true that elephants are scared of mice!'

Have an acting week won't you? 

PS. I totally did a different message from what I intended to deliver...so tune in next time for the real deal...forget about this 'creative' writing thing of mine. lol^500

FEEL THE FEAR AND DIE ANYWAY!!!

“Feel the fear and do it anyway”-Quote

The first time I heard that statement was when I was experiencing some disillusionment in my life. I had sought advice from my mentor Coach Phil of Intelligent Performance. He listened to me keenly like he always does. He however was very blunt. “Lawrence, you just have to feel the fear and do it anyway”. I had gone for solace. I had gone for understanding. I was afraid. I was terribly scared. Scared of what will become of me. Scared because the life that I had known up to about then was threatened with…guess what? Change!

Needless to say, there was not so much that Coach Phil could do. It was incumbent upon me to take the necessary steps, face my fear squarely and ADJUST. I didn’t. And that is why I am writing this post today.

Let me change the story here a little bit. Most Christians in East Africa and in London would most probably know a guy called Dr. Cecil Stewart O.B.E. He is an evangelist. The reason as to why I bring him here is that for the life of me, I always thought that O.B.E. was an acronym for Out Of Body Experience, I kid you not! Anyway, a couple of years ago, I was attending a church service that was extremely emotional.  A testimony was being given by a church member who had fallen sick, admitted, went in shock (medical term for loss of lots blood), and basically had an OBE. 

To be able to understand the medical implications of the OBE, a medical doctor was brought the podium. Of course he did a good job explaining what ‘Shock’ means. However, he went a step ahead to tell us that he sees people die day in and day out. What he said forms the basis of this post today. He said that there are two types of people at the death bed. First there are those who are totally at peace and at ease, sometimes even with a smile on their faces. Then, there are those who are frantic, fighting death like a man fighting bees. They are blinking in terror. They are eternally scared, horrified, terrified. You can see it in their eyes. Regret. Knowledge that ‘this is it’…and yes, you can most vividly see FEAR.

It is always good to transport ourselves there to that death bed. When our OBE moment comes, is it going to take us away from this world for good, or is going to give us a second chance like it did to Joel Chola? Of course we have no control over that question. The most important question we need to ask is this. What camp do I belong to? Statistics show that one out of one will one day die. So, at the moment of death, can I say like someone said centuries back, “I have run the race, I have finished the fight…therefore awaits me a crown”? Or am I as scared as hell? (Excuse the language). I am peaceful, cool, calm, and collected or am I scared to death?

Facing this fear RIGHT NOW is extremely critical. Like I said earlier, when Coach Phil told me to feel it and do it anyway, I didn’t. This is the crux of this post. We feel our fears yet we do not do what we need to do. We pamper ourselves. We ‘mirage’. We postpone. We retreat into the comfort zone. We assume that somehow, miraculously, the fear will disappear. We do a thorough job to explain it away. Here is the thing: we do not now the turn of events for sure, whether we stepped out in fear to do what we ought to do or whether we sat back in the all familiar surrounding whose very existence is being threatened. Way to go? Step out despite of the fear.

Listen. You either face that fear RIGHT NOW…and deal with it. Feel it and do what you are supposed to do anyway. At the end of the day, when you are facing your OBE, this fear will already have been dealt with. You will be peaceful, smiling, and confident that you are going EMPTY. You knew what you were meant to do, you led and lived a beautiful life and you have no regrets. You have no Fear.

My challenge today is for romance. It is time we accepted first off that there is no straight line in life. Nothing is perfect. It is time we made a life-long romance with all our fears. It is time to fall in love with all the challenges, fears and obstacles that seek to overwhelm us, for in my opinion, they are the shortcuts we need to live, love and matter. Feel the fear and DIE NOW. Not tomorrow. Not next month. Not when am through with high school. Not when I have just gotten me a wife. Not when the kids are out of school. Not when I get a pay raise. Not when I get the Degree. Not when my wife stops giving birth. Not when my wife starts giving birth. Not when I get a job. Not when I get a better job. Feel the fear RIGHT NOW and DO IT ANYWAY!

However, if you postpone and ‘mirage’, eventually you cannot cheat on the OBE test. You will have to face the fear…however, the only doing it anyway at this point in time is to face eternity. Full of regret, sorrow. Terrified and scared to death (pun intended).

I beg to end with this small poem from Ron White:

Once I get out of high school I am going to see the world and travel…

Once I finish college I am going to see the world and travel…

Once I get married I am going to travel with my spouse…

After our kids are older we are going to see the world and travel…

When our kids get out of high school we are going to see the world and travel…

As soon as we retire we are going to see the world and travel…

Now, I am out of school, the kids are gone and I am retired; if I was younger and my health was better I would see the world and travel…

Don’t wait…