Don't Quit, Achieve Your Dreams

Don’t Quit, Achieve Your Dreams
Live Your Abundant Life by Aya Fubara Eneli

Have you ever been so overwhelmed or discouraged that you decided to throw in the towel and give up on a dream? In my interactions, I often talk with people who have expressed regret over plans and dreams they have abandoned. They typically share their rationale for quitting on their dreams, but no matter the reason they give for their decision, there is no masking the sense of loss of what could have been.

Have you quit on a dream or goal you once had? Perhaps, you had always planned to get a college degree in a specific field, but when the baby came, you got a job and abandoned your original goal. Maybe your goal was to trim down to a healthy weight, but after you hurt your knee exercising you decided your goal is impossible and abandoned it. Did you once dream of being happily married, of travelling to distant lands, of a house on the beach, of writing a book, or raising God-fearing and productive children? What dreams have you buried?

To quit is to settle. To quit is to relinquish, resign, let go, abandon, discontinue, it is to depart from. Quitting connotes more than just a change of mind or direction. It is more than realizing you were on the wrong track and making the necessary changes. Usually, when people quit on their dreams there is a modicum of regret and pain. The decision to quit is often in response to people or things that we consider out of our control. A loved one died, resources had to be directed elsewhere, someone said you were inept, your original plans did not succeed as you had hoped, someone hurt you, and the list goes on. The decision to quit on a dream is quite often accompanied by thoughts and feelings that we have no option but to let go of our dream permanently, but how often is that really the case?

It is a fact that whenever you make a decision to achieve at a higher level, you will be faced with challenges and some setbacks. Think of it like passing from one grade to another. Each grade will require more of you and should cause you to have to acquire more skills in order to excel and be promoted. The idea that we should all be able to sail through to our dreams is a fallacy. Excellence requires effort. Success requires effort. Winners must persist. You can be talented, but if you can’t persist through the storms and setbacks of life then you will always find yourself quitting and settling for less than you can be.

So, if you have or had a dream or goal, don’t quit on it. Get to work and remember the following five points as you work towards your victory:
Let your biggest challenges and obstacles become your stepping stones to success. Today, people marvel at best-selling author and speaker, Joyce Meyer, but her success did not come easy. Sexually abused by her father, she married and divorced at a young age and suffered from low self-esteem. But she knew God had more for her and she began to teach women through a Bible Study she led in her home. Now, she is at the helm of a multi-million worldwide organization that ministers to millions across the globe.
Her life demonstrates that one can overcome great odds and achieve happiness and success and this inspires many to do the same.

Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. Steve Jobs, founder and CEO of Apple Computer and Pixar Animation gave a commencement speech by the above title to Stanford University graduates that continues to inspire me years later. His advice seemed basic: find your passion and pursue it. Dream big and keep on dreaming even when those do not understand your dreams or passions.

When Bill Gates started Microsoft most had never heard of computers. It was inconceivable to the majority that computers would ever become a staple in businesses and homes. Many ridiculed him, but who is laughing now? Your dreams may seem foolish to many, but that is there problem; not yours. Stay hungry to make your dreams reality. Stay foolish and continue to think outside of the box and chart new territories.

Steve Jobs certainly takes his own advice. He started his company, Apple, in his garage. After he was ousted from Apple due to a difference in opinion, he created a new company called NeXT. Apple came back and offered to buy NeXT, and the technology he developed is now largely responsible for Apple’s current renaissance.

Choose Faith over Fear and Place that Faith in God. So many times we quit even before we really get going because we are so afraid of what looms ahead. It seems safer just to settle for whatever everyone around us is doing. It is faith in an all powerful God that will keep you dreaming, hoping and acting on your beliefs when all the signs around you point to certain doom. Faith in God transforms ordinary mortals into men and women who accomplish extraordinary feats.

Faith in God enabled Moses to lead the nation of Israel out of captivity and through the Red Sea as the Egyptian army bared down on them. Faith in God fueled Harriet Tubman’s courage to repeatedly risk her life to help blacks escape from slavery and lead them North to freedom even with a bounty on her head. Faith emboldened Ida B. Wells-Barnett to speak up against the lynching of black men when few had the guts to take on the establishment and the ire of white supremacists.

Faith propelled Mother Teresa to commit her entire life to serving the most wretched and downcast of the earth even when fame and fortune beckoned. Place your faith not in yourself or any other human; we are far too unreliable. Place your faith not in riches and things, they can all pass away in the eye of a hurricane. Place your faith in a mighty, omnipotent, unshakeable God, and know that if you persist in your passion, you will eventually reap success.
Make Everyday Count. Pay attention to the little things each day. Make sure that you are always taking steps towards your goals and dreams. It is the little things we do consistently that determine the direction and quality of our lives. Though it might be tempting and even expedient to put off till tomorrow what you can do today, that is a habit that will ensure you never succeed at the level of your potential.

No matter what the day brings, make sure you never lose sight of your ultimate goal. Some days you are going to be super productive. On other days, it may feel like you have taken three colossal steps backwards. No matter how discouraging a circumstance may be, don’t give up on any day because as your days go, so go your weeks, then your months, your years and finally your life. As you fight to make each day count, you win the war to have lived a fulfilled and worthwhile life.

Create or Tap into Power Networks. Find some people who have either done what you are trying to do or are on the same path as you and are serious about their success and get linked up. Success leaves clues. Any honest person who has achieved great success will tell you that they had at least one person who believed in them and spurred them on.
A recent USA Today poll indicated that more than 90 percent of workers reported that mentoring has played a significant role in their success. Find or create a community of people who are committed to helping you make the most of your life. You may have different communities that you tap into to meet various purposes.

For instance, you can have mentors and colleagues in your line of work, be part of an investment club for your finances, and also have a Bible Study group that sharpens you spiritually. While you pursue your dreams, be sure to cultivate and nurture healthy relationships with your spouse, children and family. Their support, or lack of it, will greatly impact you for success or failure.

The Bible assures us that into each life some rain will fall. In other words, we will all face challenges and obstacles. No one is exempt. Do not let your challenges derail your success. Don’t quit, press on to achieve your goals. Who knows, you may be on your way to the Achiever’s Hall of Fame.