"Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far it is possible to go." - T.S. Eliot
Have you ever seen someone else living the life you wanted, then looked at your own and thought, "Why didn't I end up THERE?"
It can lead to the worst paralysis, which just leads you further down the rabbit hole of despair.
So, what IS the gap between where you are and where you want to be?
Most likely, it's your need to play it safe.
If you're going to live an extraordinary life, you have to take extraordinary risks.
In one of our sessions, we worked with a client who has been in the business for a long time. She toured for the first six years of her career, but the she got tired of being on the road and her performance career took a back burner.
She came to us two years ago with the goal of rebuilding her vocal technique and shifting her life back into performance mode. About six months ago, Kevin suggested, "Take a leap of faith and make new opportunities for yourself. It's time to build a show, and market the hell out of it".
Panic came over her face as she slowly sank into her chair. "That seems way too risky and the thought of it is terrifying", she said. "Where would I even begin?"
She proceed to come up with at least a dozen reasons why she couldn't possibly take that step, and we had to stop her. "Look at the repertoire you've built over the past year. Find the pieces that speak to you and put them on a list. Then, look at that list every day and see if it sparks an idea."
She finally decided to take the leap and now we're working to put it all together. Each session we watched her confidence grow and now she's super pumped about this "risky" idea.
Today in session, she confided, "I've been thinking- in the beginning, building my own show almost had me in the fetal position. Now, I'm so glad you've encouraged me to do this. Not only have you held me accountable and focused on a goal, but It made me realize that I'm way too old to be afraid of anything!"
Isn't that the truth? Throughout our lives, we find ourselves overanalyzing every potentially life-changing decision, and letting fear paralyze us.
But if you think about it, we take risks every single day. From little things- like eating food from a sketchy food truck, to saying YES to a fabulous new project- and we come out on the other side with the feeling of satisfaction that we "did the thing!"
It's a cliche, but life is too short. Make the choice to take that risk.
As Jimmy Carter once said, "Go out on a limb. That's where the fruit is."
Let us know about the "risks" you've taken in your career in the comments below.