Nomad Challenge

First off, Happy Independence Day to all the readers out there from the USA!

Ahh, Providence… No, not the nice city pictured above that’s situated on Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island, home of the prestigious Ivy League school Brown University as well as a famous big blue bug alongside the highway! Gotta love that critter!

The Big Blue Bug “Nibbles Woodaway” Photo by: Jonathan Baker
Taken from I-95 N-bound in Providence, RI

The sort of Providence I am talking about is illustrated in one of my all-time favorite quotes, which comes from W.H. Murray when he refers to Johann Wolfgang von Goethe in his book The Scottish Himalayan Expedition (1951):

“Until one is committed
There is hesitancy, the chance to draw back,
Always ineffectiveness.
Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation),
There is one elementary truth,
The ignorance of which kills countless ideas
And splendid plans:
That the moment one definitely commits oneself,
Then Providence moves too.
All sorts of things occur to help one
That would never otherwise have occurred.
A whole stream of events issues from the decision
Raising in one’s favor all manner
Of unforeseen incidents and meetings
And material assistance,
Which no man could have dreamt
Would have come his way.
I have learned a deep respect for one of Goethe’s couplets:
‘Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it.
Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it’”

Absolutely Powerful! Perhaps it sounds a bit too wishy-washy for you, I understand. And yet I believe that no matter what your beliefs are about the universe, religion or life in general, that this advice is golden. Experience has shown me, and I am sure every person can relate, that life sometimes has a funny, seemingly magical way making things happen. This is why I think it is important that when you are planning to reach a certain goal, rather than keeping to a strict course of action, it’s best to leave some room for the unknown to happen.

If you have a real big proper goal, and by that I mean something that you really have to reach and grow for, something that is a true challenge that you have not accomplished yet, then you shouldn’t already know what the absolute best course of action is. If you did, you’d probably have already done it, and it probably isn’t going to help you grow that much. That, or you wouldn’t do it at all because it wouldn’t push you enough. Sure, having some idea of what to do is helpful, but just get started already!!! The rest will come to you as you go along, I promise!

In my previous post, I mentioned that just getting started was a huge step for me, one that unfortunately many people never get past. And committing to my goal on such a public forum just magnifies everything many fold. It strengthens the force of Providence, if you will, as well as my motivation. I’ve crossed the line of no return, there is no “chance to draw back.” Heck, if I draw back now, that will make me look bad in front of all of you!

Leo Babauta, who writes an an excellent blog called Zen Habits, referenced committing publicly in a recent post called The Ultimate Guide to Motivation - How to Achieve Any Goal. Leo gave eight beginning motivation suggestions, and number five was:

“Commit publicly. None of us likes to look bad in front of others. We will go the extra mile to do something we’ve said publicly. For example, when I wanted to run my first marathon, I started writing a column about it in my local daily newspaper. The entire island of Guam (pop. 160K) knew about my goal. I couldn’t back down, and even though my motivation came and went, I stuck with it and completed it. Now, you don’t have to commit to your goal in your daily newspaper, but you can do it with friends and family and co-workers, and you can do it on your blog if you have one. And hold yourself accountable — don’t just commit once, but commit to giving progress updates to everyone every week or so.”

Awesome! A great example of what Goethe said, “Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.”

What have you always wanted to accomplish that you have been putting off for a rainy day, or for when you have more time, or out of fear? Leave a comment and let us know. Perhaps by stating publicly, you too will take actions toward that goal which will start the chain of events in your favor.

The unknown is nothing to fear, and the perfect time will never come. Get started now!!! I’ve always wanted to have the freedom to set out and see the world, and I knew if I didn’t start to do something about it now, I may regret it for the rest of my life. Two things, you must be clear about what you want, and you must take action. C’mon already! Now let’s get started!!!