What are you waiting for?
Photo by Hamed Saber
Saturday’s the day I try to catch the CBS Early Show mainly because of Chef on a Shoestring, a favorite with my husband. One of the other segments is the Second Cup Cafe featuring musicians.
Last Saturday they featured 13 year old Greyson Chance Incredible talent for a very young man and incredible maturity as we listened to the interview with the Saturday Early Show hosts.
“Waiting Outside the Lines”
His choice of song, “Waiting Outside the Lines” got me thinking. Part of the lyrics say:
You’ll never enjoy your life
Living inside the box
You’re so afraid of taking chances,
How you gonna reach the top?
How true is that? So many people are waiting for retirement so they can start the life they wanted for the past 40 years. Whether you really want to reach the top as the song says or simply want to reach happiness, if you spend your life waiting for the right moment to get there, most likely you never will.
In my What’s Holding You Back series last March, I wrote individual posts about things that could hold you back like alcohol or worry or even being a workaholic.
In the “What’s Holding You Back – Worry” post, I wrote:
It blocks your creativity because you will be unable to unlock your potential because of your fears.
Career Change Paralysis
While thinking before you jump into things is a good thing, being unable to move forward because you are over-thinking the potential risks will paralyze you and stop you from any forward progress. I made a lot of changes in the last year of my life, mainly because I was tired of putting my own goals aside.
As I speak to groups, like the Competitive Edge business networking group I talked to on Tuesday in Green Bay, I often mention that I launched Design Resumes as a solo business, dropping the supporting non-profit contract line of business, in the worst economy in 80 years. It was a scary move and I know some people thought I was crazy. But I survived. In 2011, I have even more plans to move forward.
The way I see it, you have two choices. You can continue on waiting for that perfect opportunity or you can move forward and take your chances. While you think about that, listen to Greyson Chance sing the song, Waiting Outside the Lines!
11 Comments
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Julie Walraven
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It always amuses me that giving something your all can make you seem crazy in the eyes of others! Playing the waiting game, waiting for the perfect scenario to present itself where you get to where you’re going almost effortlessly … well, it’ll be a long wait and a disappointing journey! You’re an inspiration to us all, Julie. Good luck with your plans for whatever you have in mind for this year.
Thanks, Gee. Your inspiration is always there for me to go find and I love that! Hope Jasper is having a great day! 🙂
You’re welcome, Jasmine and thank you for stopping by. You will find that I am much of a cheerleader for positive steps!
What’s amazing Julie is this very moment is being wasted by million of people dreaming about a future that never comes.
It’s much better to start living the perfect life you envision today.
Congratulations for breaking out of the imaginary box and embracing the excitement of life 🙂
True enough, Mark. It is pretty exciting right now! Hope yours is too!
As usual, you inspire, Julie! I know an artist who works with grade school children. We talked about childhood dreams. She said that when she asks kindergartners, “Who here is an artist?” they all raise their hands. In the fifth grade classroom, only a few do to the same question. Self-doubt and public reinforcement of that doubt too often hamper many from moving forward. How appropriate that this young man named “Chance” sings this message of “YES, WE CAN!” Thanks so much for this post!
It’s the only way I know to move forward, Barb! It is far too easy to sit on your hands or do things the easy way.
Very true, Julie! It may be something that we need to remind ourselves of more than once, but it’s so important to remember to start moving toward what we truly want to do, and to do it today rather than putting it off.
Thanks for continuing to share your own journey with us, and inspiring career colleagues and career seekers in the process!
Thanks, Shahrzad. Most of the time, I am reminding me in the process. I’ll never forget you sharing your dream in Baltimore. 🙂
For a brief time, I considered becoming a financial advisor. I realized after a week or two that wasn’t for me–but something very important that experience taught me was that risk = reward. I think there’s a tendency to overemphasize the downside and minimize the upside in many people.
I’ll admit, I still struggle with this from time to time–but it’s a process, not a destination.
I’m still working on not waiting for me but insights like this really help.
Thanks for visiting, Ed. I agree that risk taking can be scary but you never know unless you try.