There are many people who start with huge dreams and set out to conquer the world. Whether it’s building a successful business, starting a killer band, or setting up a non-profit to help the world around you, it is very important to dream big. You can only go as far as your imagination can see. I’m one of those go big or go home guys myself, and progress cannot come fast enough for me. My wife is often picking at me because I’m always planning some crazy idea that often never gets past my laptop. I love to plan BIG. There is always a certain amount of excitement with starting something new but over time I am learning more and more that there is nothing more fulfilling than when we finish something.
A lot of times, we start something that we are super excited about, but burn ourselves out by trying to do too much. If you are anything like me, and progress isn’t coming fast enough, you are ready to move on. In this microwave society that we live in, if we don’t see immediate results or if we encounter any kind of resistance, we are often very quick to abandon it. Who can blame you? Right? There is way too much to do in life then to wait on something to work. WE NEED RESULTS NOW!
The problem with this line of thinking is 30 years down the line you may find that you’ve started a whole lot of things but haven’t really “done” anything. I read a book recently from Blake MyCoskie called “Start Something That Matters.” It is a great book and actually one of things that inspired me to start my social media marketing company, “Socially Present.” The Tom’s story started so simple. Blake just wanted to make a difference and had a simple goal of putting shoes on kid’s feet. What a great idea! One pair of shoes for a child in need, for every pair of shoes someone buys…simple but effective. They started with a goal of 10,000 shoes and they have now given over 1 million pairs of shoes away to date.
So what separates this relatively simple idea from all of the great ideas people have every day? What separates this business from the thousands that fail every year? Is it a killer business plan or sheer luck? I think it has a whole lot to do with commitment. Great ideas are a dime a dozen but seeing one through to the end is very rare. Tom’s shoes hasn’t just started something that is making a difference, they are finishing what they started.
Anyone can START something that matters but few people FINISH something that matters. Your dreams, passion, business plan, or mission is worth more than only giving it a half-hearted attempt. You owe it to yourself and the world to give it your all. Our God given talents, dreams, and ideas are there for a reason, and they are worth fighting through the negativity and opposition to give them a chance to succeed. There are always good days and bad with any path we take, but for those who know that their Creator is for them, they benefit from them both. Don’t give up and don’t stop believing (Yes, I stole that from Journey). Start something that you can finish, and finish something that matters.
Jonas