Yep. Life ain’t about that, so don’t spend too much time dwelling on it. I heard a story that Carlos Castaneda used to take the money he made from his books and cashing the checks. Then he would fill the paper grocery bags full of bills and leave them in a phone booth in New York City. Whoever stumbled upon the money would find a surprise. I’m not sure if this story is true or not, but the point being, Carlos didn’t have much of an ego.

It’s even hard for me to digest that statement, but I believe it to be true. Once you begin to get caught up in the trophies, awards and victories, something shifts within you and now your motivation is different.

I would agree. As hard as it is to say, I’ve learned much more while I focus on the process as well as when I haven’t come out on top then the other way around. I’m okay with that and over the years have began to embrace the rough spots. I know by now that when I come out on the other side I will be better because of it.

Sure it’s nice to hoist that state, that medal – there is nothing wrong with that and I still compete today, but don’t make it the end all. Because there’s a whole lot of opportunities along the way to learn, grow and evolve.

No matter how hard I try, I can still find myself allowing my ego to get the best of me. It’s crazy what it can dupe you into believing: winning is everything, you are the most important thing in the world, you deserve everything, no one else matters, etc. It goes on and on and on.

Whenever I need to shake myself clear of that maniacal but necessary self-important “I”, I do my best to shift my focus to other people. Someone else. Anyone else who may need a little Love. And possibly ask myself “How may I serve?” That’s always a good place to start

This brings me to a place where my progress, status or well-being comes second to someone else in need. When I let go, I can gain the proper perspective of where I fit in this huge world, but more importantly where my ego fits. Generally, it fits in the back seat. After all, when I need him, I know exactly where to find him.

I believe it’s directly tied to faith. Because when we have faith we are able to see past the present moment – no matter what it looks like. And it can look pretty ugly at times. It gives us more resilience to push through.

This can be a challenge to say the least. After all, we are betting on something working out and there may be no signs of it coming close as we gaze out upon the landscape in front of us.

We must let go to the physical world and tap into the unseen. The invisible. Something NOT in front of us and hitch our trailer to this. This is faith.

I’ve heard it said that many POW’s survived their captivity because they had a belief that they needed to make it through their experience in order to tell their story to others. Unfortunately, others who believed they would be liberated by a certain date, didn’t survive as the reality of their release didn’t line up with their time table.

We all want guarantees prior to starting an ambitious endeavor. Unfortunately, there are none. But, there is faith.

Merely begin.

Often times, that’s a derogatory question we throw out when we feel we don’t have adequate knowledge of a certain subject matter. I tend to say it more than most. And I use it in that context. After this post, I don’t think I will. I don’t want to. Promise.

However, maybe this is exactly the question we should be asking. What you know is . . . . you. You know who you are. You know what’s important to you. You know what moves you. What inspires you. What makes you happy and brings you joy. You know how it feels to treat others with Love and respect and you know how it feels when others don’t treat you that way.

That’s not bad. You could really cover some ground with that knowledge. However, we don’t tend to ask those questions as a way to learn, grow and evolve. We ask them more as a narcissistic series of questions in order to shortcut our evolvement and reap the benefits for ourselves as we belittle others and stoke the fire of our own ego.

I’m not interested in that. That’s easy. That’s the status quo. I’m interested in taking the path less traveled. Paddling upstream. Looking in the opposite direction than everyone else. I tend to believe that’s where the gems lie. Not in the average. Not in the mediocre. But, in the pioneers. The madmen/women. The ones who realize we’re all connected in this life-giving tree, so to hurt others is only to hurt ourselves. As a Native American Proverb says: “No tree has branches so foolish to fight amongst themselves . . . ”

So, What do I know? I know that.

A little bounce in your step can make all the difference. Or enough.

Sometimes it can be rough getting out of bed in the morning. Why not review a short list of what you’re grateful for before your feet touch the floor and hit the ground running.

Maybe today – just today the glass is half full. I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a bit of synchronicity throughout your day. Maybe it’s subtle. A smile from a stranger. Someone let’s you in on your commute to work. You find a door being held open for you as you go about your day. Or you get a phone call from a friend you were just thinking about. Maybe.

After all, what’s the alternative?