You have absolutely nothing to be ashamed about. The world wants to see you just as you are. No one is interested in the poser. We want the real deal. So throw away all of your costumes and take off that horrid makeup. Reveal your true self and seize control of your future. Let the world know you as you are, not as you think you should be.
DAY
361
“A journey is best measured in friends rather than miles.”
— Tim Cahill
You are now nearing the end of your year-long journey to achieve your dreams. How do you feel? Have you experienced any significant changes in your life over the past year?
During these final few days you will have a chance to explore your journey thus far, starting with ways in which journeys can be measured. Read the quote above and write in your journal about your personal reaction to that sentence.
There are so many methods you can use to measure a journey. One significant way is through the friends you have made along the way. A journey is always a success if you have had a chance to meet new friends and develop lasting relationships with people who inspire you and help you to thrive. Measure your journey in friends over this past year. Have you made any new friendships? Have you deepened the friendships you already have?
It is never too late to start measuring your journey in friends. Solid relationships with others are so important in helping you to live an abundant and happy life. The road to success is not a solitary one. Relationships also give you a chance to reach out and lend a hand to someone in need—a critical ingredient for success.
If you haven’t spent a lot of time cultivating friendships this year, don’t beat yourself up about it. Change your pattern of behavior right now. Build your friendships one step at a time. Learn more about others. Find out how wonderful your friends are, and your life will become richer in the process.
DAY
362
“Too often we are so preoccupied with the destination, we forget the journey.”
— Anonymous
Julia was from Finland, but she had many relatives who lived in the United States. Her mother promised her when she was a little girl that she could go and visit them when she turned sixteen. Julia could hardly wait. As her sixteenth birthday approached, there was only one thing on her mind—Disney World! Julia was a Disney freak, and it was a lifelong dream of hers to visit the Magic Kingdom.
The exciting day finally arrived, and Julia boarded a plane for New York City. Her relatives picked her up and drove her to their home in Connecticut. Then, after she had a chance to rest up and meet many members of her extended family for the first time, they embarked on a road trip to Florida. Julia was so filled with anticipation to see Disney World that she remembered almost nothing about the journey. Numerous interesting sights flowed by her window on the long trip, but she was preoccupied with dreams of Cinderella and Mickey Mouse. It was unfortunate that she missed rich aspects of the journey because she was preoccupied with the destination.
Have you been a little like Julia this year? You most likely picked up this book because you want to achieve your dreams. Have you missed some of the journey because you were preoccupied with the destination? Have you not stopped to enjoy your minor successes because you were focused on achieving the ultimate success of realizing your dreams? Don’t forget the journey as you travel on. The destination is only a brief moment. The journey is a lifetime of interesting experiences.
DAY
363
“Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is often more important than the outcome.”
— Arthur Ashe
Yesterday you were reminded to not miss the beauty of your journey while you strive for ultimate success in life. Today you will take that one step further: success is the journey, not the destination.
You are actively achieving—not waiting for—your dreams right now. You are a success at this very moment, because you are doing things that move you forward in life. You are grabbing fruit from the tree of your dreams and tasting it. You’re not just looking at the tree.
Whenever you cultivate a friendship, learn a new skill, offer a smile to a stranger, practice taking a leadership role in a situation, or actively follow any of the steps and examples we have discussed in this book, you are a success. Success is the journey. It is motion, not completion. It is full of life and change and excitement.
Your dreams have probably changed a little over this year, and that serves to clarify the point that success is a journey. It is a fluid thing. Your life is evolving all the time, and if you go with the flow and are willing to learn and grow constantly, you will achieve your dreams every single day of your life. Stand in your success today. The destination is not important. The doing is the key.
DAY
364
“The secret to a rich life is to have more beginnings than endings.”
— David Weinbaum
You were probably hoping to find the secret to success somewhere in this book. Well, here it is (drum roll please): start more than you can finish.
As David Weinbaum suggests, the secret to a rich life is to have more beginnings than endings. It’s interesting that the secret is not necessarily to complete more tasks than everyone else. It’s to leave plenty of loose ends in life, so that you are always open to new inspiration and fresh opportunities. Life is not neat. You do not work on a single item, complete it, put it away, and then bring out the next thing. If you operated that way, you would miss all of the cool things that show up unexpectedly.
If you were studying a new technique at work and someone offered you a chance to go on a hot air balloon ride over the weekend, would you ignore them because you had not finished your project? Of course not! Unless you are afraid of heights, you would take advantage of the experience over the weekend and then go back to work on Monday refreshed and exhilarated.
Celebrate the beginnings in your life. Endings are not that exciting. Beginnings have an element of the unknown that is thrilling. You will have new opportunities every day if you look for them. Rejoice in the new beginnings you find today.
DAY
365
“I wish you a very good journey to an unknown you’ve never seen.”
— Pieter V. Admiraal
Here you are at Day 356. Congratulations! What an incredible journey this year has been. Do something special to commemorate this day. You have spent a year discovering and nurturing your unique talents. You have developed ways to celebrate your successes every single day and enjoy the journey as it unfolds. Give yourself a party today!