Monday, May 7, 2012

Your Biggest Regret


Some time ago I was reminded of the following story which is a great metaphor for reaching our goals.  Upon first read it may seem like a bit of a downer but I promise there are positive sentiments weaved throughout the rest of the article.  Here's the story:
After a long life a man went to heaven and was graciously welcomed by the Angelic Welcoming Committee.  As is customary after the registration process the angels gave a tour of the grounds which culminated with a tour of the library.  Inside of the library the man saw an open book with his name engraved in golden letters.  As he started to take a closer look an angel quickly closed the book and said, "No, you can't see this."  Well, an argument ensued and eventually the angel said, "Fine, you can look inside the book."  Anxiously the man started flipping through the book and saw himself in pictures with a beautiful wife, a large family, a house on an amazing estate and family vacations from around the world.  "Wait a minute," the man said, "that's not me, I wish it was me but that's not my wife and those are not my children and I never owned an estate, I've lived a solitary life."  That angel replied, "That could have been your life and you could have had those things if you would have just asked for them." 
As I mentioned earlier the above story may come across as a bit depressing or discouraging but after processing it I think you may change your perspective so let's discuss and consider it.  The most powerful sentence from the above story is the last sentence stating, "that could have been your life and you could have had those things, if you would have just asked for them."  You see just about anything we want out of life is within our grasp and really the only thing  we have to do is ask for it.  I'm not suggesting that you just ask the universe to will your every desire and hope it happens, quite the contrary, I am suggesting that there are a few different ways to ask for things and some require a great deal of responsibility and discipline.  Let me explain. 
If you're completing your last year of college and want to go to graduate school you'll have to ask to get in by completing and submitting an application.  If you want to work for our city, county or possibly a local engineering firm you'll have to ask to work there by applying and interviewing.  Would you like to start a relationship with the person of your dreams?  Ask him or her out!  You see if you want something you just have to ask...but there's a loophole.  What if you ask and the answer is no?  Are you going to take only one "no?"  You may have to ask and ask and answer with persistence.  The next person you need to ask is yourself.  Are you willing to outwork everyone else and do a better job than anyone else?  Are you willing to train harder, run further or study more?  Are you willing to fully commit to what it is you want to accomplish?  If you ask and you're presented with the thing or opportunity you have to be prepared to answer with actions. 
Over the years I've never heard anyone say "I wish I didn't work so hard," or "I wish I wouldn't have studied so much," or "I wish I didn't exercise so consistently."  Rather you hear the opposite and when it comes down to it success is happens to those who ask for it, ask other people, ask again and again and ask of themselves.  Remember, you don't regret what you do, you regret what you don't do.   

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