The only way of finding the limits of the possible is by going beyond them into the impossible
Arthur C. Clarke

If you want to do something very simple and easy you will find plenty of people who will support you all the way. If your desire is to repeat what everyone else has done before and to live a very ordinary life then no one will question what you are trying to do.

However if you want to do the extra-ordinary. If you want to push back the boundaries of whatever anyone else in your family has ever done before. If you are not satisfied with ordinary and want more, then you will find plenty of people only too willing to tell you how stupid you are.

You should never want to do just what everyone else is doing. You should always want more.

Just because it might seem impossible does not mean it is and just as Arthur C. Clarke said if you want to see what is possible you have to do the impossible. If yo want to go beyond the ordinary and make a real difference in your life then when you see a boundary push past it.

Is this being silly? Maybe. Is it unrealistic? No.

At some point someone has taken what seemed impossible and made it possible.

This does not mean ignoring the science or ignoring the obvious but it does mean not being afraid of failure. The only way to push back the boundaries is to risk failure. Failure is not a reason to give in. Failure is just not being able to push back the boundaries of what is possible.

Don’t give in. Keep going.

Take calculated risks. That is quite different from being rash.
George S. Patton

It takes a brave person to take risks

Taking a risk means that you accept that what you are going to do might fail. Not everyone has the courage to do this. Some people like to know that the whole of life is planned out in detail so that there are no surprises and no risks. This may be fine for some but if you are going to be successful in life then you have to take some risks.

Calculate the costs before taking the risk

However no risk should be undertaken without knowing full well what you are doing. It’s possible to greatly reduce the risks by knowing what the problems might be in the first place. You should always ensure that you have considered the costs and risks involved in taking a risk. Leave as little to chance as possible.

Even calculated risks are risks

Of course every risk is a risk – which means that the outcome might be different to the one you desired. If it was not so then we would call it a certainty and not a risk. Before you take a risk always consider if you are prepared to accept the consequences of things going differently than you expected. If the cost is too great for you then don’t take the risk.

Without taking a risk nothing can be gained

The very people who have gained the most are those who were willing to take calculated risks. Risk is part of gain.

If you are worried about a risk you are about to take and are willing to take the consequences then you must be brave and take the risk. Without taking that risk you cannot succeed.

Quote

‘It was a high counsel that I once heard given to a young person, “Always do what you are afraid to do.” ‘
Ralph Waldo Emerson

My thought

Fear can be crippling. If we let fear dominate every thing we do then we will never really succeed at what we want to do. I think the advice being given here is never to allow your fear to stop you from doing something. If the only reason you are not doing something is fear then you should do it anyway.

My wife is a fan of the film “Strictly Ballroom” and in that film one of the characters says, “a life lived in fear is a life half lived”. It’s a good sentiment because if we live our lives in fear of failure (or even of success) then we never truly reach our full potential.

I don’t know what you are feeling right now about your life. May be you have looked at this web site because you are not sure of what to do or perhaps you fear something in your life. I can’t make the decisions for you but I know that you will regret things if you let fear decide for you.

How can you get through the fear? Well there are many techniques but ultimately it will come down to you facing the fear and then getting on with it anyway. There is nothing wrong in being afraid of something but there is something wrong in letting that fear stop you from doing something in your life.