Achieving Your Dreams

I myself have had my fair share of breakdowns especially as a child being part of the only Asian family growing up in a small town with a population of 8,500 people. I've been the subject of many Asian jokes including laundromat owners, railroad workers, Bruce Lee's twin, Jet Li's twin, etc. The fact that my parents actually owned a Chinese Restaurant in this small town didn't help either. These past events have had an impact on my cognition and I became a negative person all through my Junior High and well into my High School years. I was not a pleasant person to be around and I was in constant battle with my own thoughts. I wasn't confident enough in myself to say how I truly felt on any matter.

That all changed when I began to stop thinking inward and I started looking at the big picture. It wasn't all about me and what I wished I looked like or what I wanted to have to increase my status in the social world. Tai Chi and The Internal Arts of Kung Fu had a large part of this self-realization. It wasn't about what I didn't have or what I didn't look like. It was all about what I already had.

Now I'm not trying to fill everyone's day with a cliche here and there, but I just hope to let everyone know that we are all able to make our dreams a reality and it is up to us as individuals to be able to put in the work, to be willing to make it happen. It is all in our attitude and our willingness to succeed. We need to stop looking at what we want and don't have, but instead, attain happiness by enjoying things we do have. That way, the journey to heaven will not be paved in hell. We can have a great ride along the path to greatness. Set small goals, enjoy life, enjoy those around you, and everything will fall into place as it is supposed to.

Words to Live By

I heard a few quotes and proverbs that have helped me get through that period in my life, many of which I continue to live by on this day. One which really stands out is the fact that we as humans are all willing and able to do anything and everything. All tangible items began as an idea, an experiment in our minds. But what makes those dreams a reality? What does it take? It takes the willingness to stop at nothing to make it come true. The light bulb, the airplane, this very keyboard that I am typing on, all began as ideas and the inventors stopped at nothing to make those ideas come into being. Take a look at this article on what it takes to be great. It outlines the lives of many successful people and what they did to get to where they are at at this point in their lives. We are all able to do things, each and every one of us, but are we willing?

A few of the things that I carry with me each and every day of my life is the constant thought of looking to others and noticing their achievements. Confucius once said "A good person does not care if others notice his merits, instead, his only concern is that he will not notice theirs." By doing this I have found that you may take steps to becoming a better person. A simple compliment will make anyone's day, and isn't it a good feeling to know that you made someone's day a bit easier to get through? This makes you yourself more enjoyable to be around. For myself personally, this thought also kick-starts the notion of not looking for what you don't have, but instead, looking at what you do have and being extremely thankful for that. It can always be worse.