At this point, the scariest of the miscreants trapses toward her and, just as you think he's about to assault her, he bursts into song, revealing his lifelong dream of becoming a concert pianist. Soon, everyone in the bar begins chiming in, expressing the dreams they've always had but have never pursued. One man wants to be a mime. Another wants to do interior design. A third longs to find true love. All of these men have big dreams but, up until this point, preferred to waste away their lives in a bar in the middle of the woods, complaining about their misfortunes.
My questions for you is, "Are you stuck in the Snuggly Duckling?" Are you at a point in your life that you are stuck in a dead end job, relationship, belief system, etc? But, instead of doing something to improve your situation and achieve your dreams, you find it easier to wallow in self-pity. You are not alone. The world is full of people with big dreams but little ambition to see them through. Too many people are waiting on a fortune cookie to give them permission to be successful, as if success is something that either happens to them or it doesn't.
Dreams don't come true. They are made true. Rapunzel would never have seen the floating lights that she had dreamed of seeing her whole life if she had never summoned the courage to leave her tower. Her enthusiasm soon spreads to a bar full of low-lifes, bemoaning the futility of their existence. By the end of the movie, everyone in the Snuggly Duckling is doing what they had always dreamed of. Why? Because, just like Rapunzel, they had decided to leave their comfort zones and actively pursue their dreams. They realized their dreams when they decided to leave the Snuggly Duckling.
How about this? Stop making wishes and start making demands. Life is too short to wait for something good to happen to you. Hope is not a strategy. Stop crossing your fingers and, instead, put them to work. Go out and actually pursue what you have been dreaming of your whole life. If you won the lottery today and you could do anything you wanted, what would you do? Go out and do that thing. Life is too short to worry about failing. True failure is dying without ever having tried to accomplish what you were living for in the first place.
What is your biggest dream? Do you want to see it realized? Stop wallowing. Get out of the Snuggly Duckling!
Lover the story and the inspiration, now what would have made this even better...more delicious...would have been some suggestion son how to get out of your snuggly duckling.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment, Michelle! Indeed, this is one of those things about which you can say, "It's easier said than done." In fairy tales, a "how to" isn't necessary. If there is desire, fulfillment is guaranteed. In real life, though, it takes hard work and many setbacks to make your dreams come true. The reality of the struggle isn't quite as appealing as the romance of the idea.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I think there is really but two decisions to make in pursuing whatever it is you are trying to reach. The first is to start and the second is to keep going. "Where there is a will, there is a way," is just as true in real life as it is in the movies. If you know what you want and are willing to fight for it, the "how" will come about organically. You'll develop the resourcefulness needed to make the dream a reality. Great entrepreneurs typically don't start with a well-formulated plan; they start with an idea and the drive to bring it to fruition.
That being said (again), I think a nice "how-to" most might not be a bad idea for the future. Thanks for the comment and inspiration, @prosperitygal