“The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough. They’re there to stop the other people.” ~ Randy Pausch, The Last Lecture
You have found it, your dream, your passion and now you are in high gear to pursue it. You are off to the races making strides, moving forward all the way and suddenly….
BAM!
You just hit the WALL, that solid surface that slams you hard and begs the question, “Why are you doing this?” or “Are you sure this is the right thing?” To which you will probably answer with a shrug of the shoulders, scratching your head saying “I truly don’t know.”
Ah, but you do know and this is just your first test to see if the path you are on is the right one.
Welcome to the journey, it’s going to be a great one!
I have a theory about the wall based on the fact that I too have hit it numerous times. There are usually two things that happen when you hit the wall, it is either temporary or it becomes a more permanent fixture that you can’t navigate around.
What does this mean?
In the quote above, Randy says it beautifully, “The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something.” In other words when the wall is temporary it’s asking you “how bad do you really want this?” When your answer finally comes which will take some serious soul searching (and ice cream) then it comes with a resounding “Hell yes, I know I’m on the right path and I’m willing to do the work.” The wall will then disappear.
If there are more questions than answers and you are not getting that “hell yeah” clarity then the wall is there to help you find other directions or different ideas that would not have been brought to light without this intervention. This doesn’t mean not to pursue your dream, it just means that you need to look at all of the options.
Many times this is where people give up, throw their hands up in surrender and walk away. But the ones that keep their eyes focused on the dream, that don’t get discouraged and know that there is a path out there waiting to be taken are the ones that will defy the odds.
Don’t you want to be one of those people who will move past the wall?
Often we have a “pre-packaged” notion of how our dreams or passions should unfold, neat and tidy, ready for us to open and consume. When the wall makes us look beyond that notion and we do the work then the reward is moving to the next level of your dream.
The message to take away here is this; “Don’t let the wall stop you, know that it can be temporary or a detour sign pointing to a better way. Push on and defy the odds.”
You have a purpose to fulfill and a life to live to it fullest. Do the work, stop listening to the naysayers and move Resistance to another state.
I would love to hear from you in the comments section below about how you have handled hitting the wall and how your life has been different since you got past it. Share the love of this post with someone you know that may be trying to get past the wall in pursuit of their dreams!
photo credit: deflam via photopin cc