The Land of Missed Opportunities

Sometimes, it seems people really do "luck into" their destinies. Great opportunities just seem to fall into their laps. Part of that is true. But the other part is that they don't just watch the opportunity drop. They grab onto it. They take advantage of it. How exactly?

Brian Tracy, author of some great self-development books, says, "Decide what you want, and then act on it like you cannot fail." And that's a great place to begin, right? 

How do we even know an experience is really an opportunity until it passes us by? How do we know that person we just introduced ourselves to at that party will become the person who introduces us to our spouse in two years? How do we know that company on the penny stocks profile we just invested in will become huge and give us back 3000% in profit within two months? 

What about the meeting at work you are about to blow off? How do you know if following through will determine where you are going to live, where your kids will go to school, or what vehicle you will drive?

And what about our goals and plans? Our dreams? Which opportunities do we take advantage of so that these things happen for us? We really don't have to have tunnel vision, but rather, we need to shift our focus.

I didn't know when I took this photo of the tunnel on I-40 near Knoxville, Tennessee some years ago, that I'd use it while discussing the pursuit of dreams and goals.

Since you never know when opportunities will present themselves, being prepared for them is indeed the next step you should take. In a post about making room a few days ago, one of the things I thought about was how many times I said I was ready for something to happen, but I really wasn't. Maybe mentally, I was, but I left little room for some of the things I needed for my dreams to become realities. 

For instance, do you see your dream job taking you to international destinations? Well, do you have a passport? If you have one, has it been renewed? Are your affairs in order to receive a work visa from whichever countries you desire to visit for work? Do you know the language(s)and customs of the people who will be living and working around you? Do you have an international plan on your mobile phone account?

Is your dream to hobnob with celebrities? If you live in Butte, Montana, you probably won't see any of your future high-profile friends at the local Starbucks.  

Want to open a mobile pet grooming parlor? If it exceeds 26,000 lbs in the U.S., you will need a Commercial Driver's License (CDL) and a health certificate added to your license, or an employee in mind who already possesses these qualifications.

In order to accomplish these things we dream of doing, we have to actually want them enough to take the next steps. Sometimes our desires are louder than our motivation. Maybe we don't have the money to do any of the things on our bucket list, so instead of searching for funding opportunities (you have access to the internet, apparently), you just sit back and watch time go by and your dreams fading into the mediocrity of life.

Do dreams have expiration dates? If you miss an opportunity for something great that would help get your dream onto its footing, will another chance come along?

Sometimes timing is everything. More on this soon.