Enroute Your Legend #1: The First Step
After listening to countless motivations and advices from the most successful persons in the world, after reading the stories of how they were able to achieve greatness in their various fields and ventures, I’ve come to realize that when it comes to the first step of your journey, there is really only one thing to know, and that is, ‘Take It’.
Yes, ‘take it’!
These two simple words more often than not make the difference between the great and those who end up mediocre or utterly unsuccessful, and apply to whatever journey you might desire to start, from whatever stage you might be in life. It doesn’t matter where you are, or how old you are. It doesn’t matter if you’re simply taking a trip to the next town crossing a vast river, or going to the moon. Just take the first step!
In our book ‘The Alchemist’ by Pablo Coelho, the King Melchizedek actually gave our simple shepherd Santiago just one thing he needed –the push to take that first step towards his treasure, his personal legend. Oh, he did give him the ‘omen stones’ Urim and Thummim, but never did Santiago during the three years of his journey actually use them.
The error most persons make is believing that knowing exactly how to take that first step is more important than actually taking it. How many times have we, in preparing for a journey or a venture decided that the ‘risks’ were too much, or that we weren’t strong enough or good enough to actually get there? How many times have we done something in utter naïvete only to realize later on that it was the right thing to do?
This isn’t to say that preparation in itself is bad, but usually, life prepares us in its own way to start our journey toward our personal Legend. Delaying the first step only gives room for discouragement to set in, from sometimes the most unexpected sources. Sometimes, like the glass merchant Santiago worked with in Egypt, by delaying we get too used to the way things are and forgo the pursuing of our dreams entirely. Our shepherd knew nothing about the land he was going to, didn’t know a word of Arabic, didn’t know anything about the pyramids his treasure supposedly was even. He knew nothing about crossing deserts or big cities or tribal wars. Yet the king did not bother to enlighten him on these. He knew what the boy needed. The boy needed to begin.
Don’t delay on getting started.
In the words of the great superbrand Nike, ‘Just Do It’.
image source: Google
with stories from Pablo Coelho's 'The Alchemist'