Do you know the most important thing needed to achieve your dreams and live your best life?
It’s not money. It’s not a great idea or a killer business. It’s not finding your soul mate. It’s not even beauty or good looks, nor is it confidence or charisma.
It’s COURAGE.
Turns out, I’ve been wrong about courage pretty much my whole life – and I bet you can relate. I used to think that courage was reserved for soldiers that were heading off to war or for martyrs facing death in support of their cause. I viewed courage as something that only applied in extraordinary situations. I didn’t believe that courage was needed in normal, everyday life. I definitely didn’t think it was the key to achieving my dreams.
But, courage is the most important thing to have (and practice) in order to live out your dreams because it’s the first thing you’ll need to even begin chasing your dreams. No amount of talent, hard work or determination will ever help you succeed if you don’t first have the courage to start.
Ever since we turned our life up-side-down and gave ourselves the permission to pursue a life we love, I’ve been thinking and learning a lot about courage.
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I’ve been reading (ok, re-reading) The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho over the last week and it has challenged me to think differently about courage. Courage is like a muscle, it needs to be exercised in order to be strong. It has reminded me that I must continue to practice courage, for both big and small things. I’d like to encourage you to do the same because practicing and being courageous every day will change your life.
3 quotes from the Alchemist about courage and pursuing your dream that will inspire you to take action
First of all, if you have never read The Alchemist, I highly recommend that you do. The book chronicles the story of Santiago, a young boy in pursuit of his dreams and living his “personal legend”. It’s simple storytelling reveals incredible truths about the human spirit, about God, and the workings of the universe. It’s fantastic. It’s so good that it was on the New York Time’s Best Seller list for 300 weeks straight. Today, it’s regarded as one of the most important books of the 20th century! Click here to get your copy today.
1. “I had to test your courage. Courage is the quality most essential to understanding the Language of the World.”
The Language of the World is how all things are tied together and connected. It reveals your unique path for achieving your dreams. Without tremendous courage to pursue your greatest desire, you simply won’t be able to interpret the signs. There is no achieving your greatest desire or accomplishing your goals without action. And there won’t be any action without the courage to take the first step.
How can you follow your path if you don’t have the courage to even get on it?
2. “When I have been truly searching for my treasure, I have discovered things along the way that I never would have seen had I not had the courage to try things that seemed impossible for a shepherd to achieve.”
I absolutely love this quote! It resonates with me so strongly and mirrors what we believe about the power of life detours.
If you have the courage to follow your detours/dreams, I promise you that you will experience and learn things that you never could have imagined yourself doing. If you are pursuing your goals and dreams, there’s no such thing as failure – there is just chance after chance for growth and improvement. You may never know what opportunities await without the courage to take the first step.
What action do you need to take to start “truly searching for your treasure”? Do you have the courage to do it?
3. “Here I am, between my flock and my treasure, the boy thought. He had to choose between something he had become accustomed to and something he wanted to have.”
This quote is about a problem we all face every day. Each day, you feel inclined (have an instinct) to do something, and you are going to have to decide whether or not to do it. Whether or not you do it will depend on how much courage you have to take a step into the unknown and be uncomfortable.
Every person that achieves their goals, no matter big or small, is willing to get out of their comfort zone before that goal can be reached.
What is it that you’ve been too afraid to “get uncomfortable” to achieve?
Practicing Courage
The Alchemist teaches us a lot about following our hearts and chasing our dreams and how it takes great courage to do so.
But this courage isn’t only for big, life-changing dreams. It takes courage every day to make choices and to take action – even for seemingly small items.
It takes courage to ask that cute girl/guy at the coffee shop to go on a date because you know they are special.
It takes courage to tell your friends you can’t go out for drinks at night because you want to work out in the morning.
It takes courage to give up your Starbucks latte and replace it with a cup of Folgers because you want to save money.
It takes courage to tell your boss that you can’t take on that project because you are overwhelmed and your work is suffering.
Big or small, following your heart and acting on instinct and intuition takes courage. With courage, you can allow yourself to get out of your comfort zone, even for a small second.
And guess what…
Transformation happens in your life when you are out of your comfort zone!
What do you need to practice your courage on? What can you do that will allow you to listen to your heart and allow you to step out of your comfort zone and into transformation? Think about it and tell me in the comments below.
If you haven’t read The Alchemist I can’t recommend it enough. Since it’s written in a story telling format, we’d suggest listening to the audio version of it. You can get 2 free books by clicking here and signing up for a FREE trial with Audible.
Daniel McKenzie