In this life, we have a choice; taking the safe route, that is more clearly defined and has fewer obstacles, or taking a chance and taking the road that is less traveled. This road is not paved. It has grooves and ruts and debris. Sometimes it gets very thin and its hard to tell how to continue. Sometimes it gets rained out and you can’t see the road at all and have to move forward on instinct.
“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by. And it has made all the difference.”
Robert Frost was speaking to the great reward that comes from taking chances, from taking the opportunity to build something great for yourself, even though it may be more challenging. The road Frost speaks of is less traveled for exactly this reason, it is challenging. Not everyone can successfully navigate this road, but if success and living your dream was easy, we would all be rich and living in a Utopian society.
Taking a chance is a hard thing to do. There always seems to be something standing in your way, most often, fear. But taking chances, and committing to kicking aside the dust and debris, wading through the tepid waters, and following your gut when the decision is not a clear one, often leads to great outcomes. Taking chances provides you with something that taking the straight and narrow path never will; it provides you with an unrivaled sense of confidence. Even if you try and fail, you learn that you are capable of taking the chance, you learn from the experience as a whole, and you are better for it. This feeling will likely motivate you to try again, and with your increased knowledge, you have an even better chance of success.
Taking a chance provides the opportunity for great reward. Few have made their way down the craggy path to find what lies at the end of the road less traveled, so the prize has not been depleted. Putting your all into something and struggling through the ups and the downs makes succeeding that much more meaningful. Even small victories are momentous when you have decided to take a chance and find your own success.
So start taking chances, put on your hiking boots and follow the road less traveled, witness firsthand the difference it can make in your life and your happiness.
1 comment
Sometimes we work hard and put a lot of thought and effort on something that we wanted but did not turn out so well.
To keep myself motivated when things don’t go my way or what I had planned, I let myself remain angry for a little while and within a couple of days I feel like my normal self.
After having those negative feelings, I try to think about the situation differently. For example, the first job position I wanted was taken by someone else. If I had said to myself “I suck! I really blew it, I guess I wasn’t good enough for that position,” I would have been moping around for a while. But instead I said to myself, “I really thought they were going to hire me. I wonder what I could have done differently so that they would have chosen me instead.”
If you can understand what happened in a disappointing situation, you can see what you could have done differently, what you could have controlled, and how you can change what had happened to increase your chances of becoming a successful man/woman.
Successful people do not give up on their dreams because of one thing that did not go their way. More importantly they learn from their mistakes and make sure that they don’t do it again.
Lastly, having people that support you, and have your back is very helpful. An honest, supportive, friend or colleague can help motivate you even more by giving advice or their thoughts and feelings about your situation.