This was said by Jim Rohn, one of the top 50 motivational speakers in personal development and one of the trainers at the top online personal development site, Success University.
Formal education is never easy. When I was at school I wasn't really that bothered about whether I got an A in Maths or History. I was too worried about whether people liked me or not, where I could get the latest Rod Stewart photos or whether my skirt was the trendiest length.
Yet, education seems to happen despite the student. We come out with our varied grades and reports of "Could do better" (in my case), but somehow we get some sort of an education. Unfortunately, going to school is never the choice of the pupil, it is a requirement. In most Western countries it is the common consensus that you must go to school so you can get a job and earn a living.
Perhaps this is why many of us achieve only average results. We are not doing it out of love, but because we have to. It's the law.
However, self-education has far more power because we only come to it through personal choice. Because we have chosen it, we feel it is our responsibility to take it on and achieve the results we want. This gives us self-motivation and we are far more likely to succeed.
I know this is true because after a mediocre set of school grades, in later years I took a degree with the Open University - for no other reason than because I wanted to - and I achieved a First Class Honours Degree in Humanities. I majored in history, which was a subject I wasn't even interested in at school.
Because it was my choice, and a subject I had come to love through my own discovery, I was far more motivated to succeed.
Unfortunately, many people believe that once they have finished their school education, there is nothing more to learn. They get a job, and might earn a comfortable living, but very rarely do they live the life of their dreams.
When we were very young children, before we were old enough to allow ourselves to be limited, our dreams were boundless. We talked about what we are going to be or do when we are grown-up without any doubt that it is possible. Now we really are grown-up, we laugh at these childish statements. We think we know better.
Sadly, the last laugh is on us. We our not only stamping on our own dreams, but those of our children too.
When people reach adulthood, they start to give up their dreams and start to play small. Those huge, passionate dreams are adjusted to the mundanity of every day life, and gradually dwindle to nothing more than a distant memory.
As this happens, our vision becomes smaller; our lives become mediocre and boring. We focus only on earning enough money to keep out of debt and paying the bills. We begin to suffer and wonder why we are not happy or fulfilled.
This is not how life is meant to be.
Inside us is a huge potential: all our big dreams and passions that we have tucked away in a dark little box. But this box is always waiting for us to re-discover and open it again.
Inside this box is all the inspiration, power and joy of life; it's all there inside of you, waiting to get out.
We are aware that it's there. There is that little niggling voice at the back of our minds that we are not living the life we wanted, but we allow ourselves to be influenced by our conditioning: "it's not possible, I can't do it, it's too big". So we stuff it down again and get on with our small lives, excusing ourselves by saying, "Ah, well, it's OK I suppose".
Do you really want to live a "just OK" kind of life?
When you pursue your dreams, you feel energised, full of inspiration and excitement. You also feel authentic. Perhaps, for the first time in your life you are living truthfully. This is an incredibly powerful feeling. And the bigger your dreams, the more intense the feeling.
It may take courage to start with, but once you have made that commitment a new world will open up to you. All you have to do is to start listening to yourself - allow that little voice to tell you what you need. Once you have done this, you will start to develop the mindset that you possess all that you need to live the life of your dreams. Your will power will strengthen, your confidence will grow - and then you will be ready to learn the strategies that will reinvent your life.
Self-education then becomes a powerful resource that you will come to with passion and a will to succeed. This is real learning.
After that, making our dreams come true is only a matter of time.
There are two types of challenges; external challenges and internal challenges. This week we'll discuss external challenges.
External challenges are the outside things that appear to block our progress. Also, external challenges take some type of form. They include:
1. Unexpected blips. These include things like your printer breaking right when you need to print out an important document for a client. Or, you need to return an important call and discover your cell phone battery is dead.
Unexpected blips are the things that drive us crazy for the moment but we eventually and quickly move past them. Stuff happens. The best way to prevent unexpected blips is to take a proactive approach to life. Be sure the machines and electronics in your life are in good working order. Anticipate possible breakdowns before they happen. Do your best and for the things you can't predict just know "this to shall pass".
2. People standing in your way. A little more serious than unexpected blips, people standing in your way are the people in your life you have to "sell" your next move to. These could include your parents, partner and even kids and friends.
You know there's a person standing in your way when you think to yourself, "What will my mother think!" Now, your mother can't literally stop you from moving forward but in your MIND she can. The best and fastest way to get around the people standing in your way is to be upfront and honest about your plans. No sugar coating. Own your decisions and the people in your life will come around in their own time.
Whatever you do, don't let the fear of what someone else might say or think stop you from living the life you most want. You'll wind up resenting them and feeling like a victim.
3. Major life changes. Major life changes are the events we have absolutely no control over. A loved one dying. A terrible accident or act of Mother Nature. When the big stuff in life happens you can't prevent it but you can manage how you react to it. At first this may seem impossible but the truth is the only thing you can ever control is your response to what has happened to you.
Major life changes may slow or stop our progress for a short or long time. Eventually it will be time to get back on track. Until then, be patient and do what you need to do to get through the tough times. In time, you'll be able to focus on moving forward again.
Next week we'll discuss the internal challenges that keep us from getting what we want. You don't want to miss this one! Unlike external challenges, internal challenges are with us 24/7 and if you don't understand them can STOP you faster than dead cell phone batteries, mom, and natural disasters - combined!
5 Challenges that Could Kill Your Chances of Making Your Dreams Come True - Part 2
Last week we started talking about the different types of external challenges we experience and how they hold us back. This week we're going to keep talking about the challenges and obstacles that slow our progress and delve into the world of our internal challenges.
Unlike external challenges, internal challenges are with us 24/7 and if you don't understand them can STOP you faster than dead cell phone batteries, mom, and natural disasters - combined!
Internal challenges are our thoughts, beliefs and emotions that block our progress. They include:
4. The LENS through which you view the world. Are you someone who sees the glass half full or half empty? Do you tend to see possibilities first, or obstacles?
We're all naturally wired to see life through a particular lens that's made up of our personality, upbringing and past experiences. For example, if you grew up in a family with self-employed parents it's not too far of stretch to imagine yourself self-employed. On the other hand, if you grew up with parents that worked for someone else, it might be hard to imagine yourself doing anything different.
How you view the world is how you view your possibilities. Sometimes the lens you look through is empowering and other times it may limit your possibilities.
To know whether or not the lens you're looking through is serving your highest good ask yourself, "Is this what I really want?"
5. FEAR. What are you afraid of? We're all afraid of something. Failure. Loneliness. Not being liked or accepted for who we really are. Loss. Betrayal. Illness. This list goes on...
I doubt there is anyone that is free of fear. Some just learn how to put it on the back burner and move forward in spite of their fear. For others, fear stops them dead in their tracks where they remain stuck.
Fear manifests itself in many ways; lack of self-confidence, procrastination, lack of focus, loneliness, overwhelm, feeling needy. Fear can also show up as anger, sadness, jealousy, etc.
Fear is necessary in our life because it will keep us safe. But sometimes fear will keep us too safe, not allowing us to do the very things we need to do to create the life we most want.
Often times fear is the shadow side of our gifts. For example, if one of your core passions is leadership, before you can live your life as a leader you may need to overcome self-esteem issues.
Just on the flip side of your gifts - the gifts that will help you make your dreams come true - live your challenges.
The first thing you can do not to let your internal challenges get the best of you is to become aware of what they are. The Passion Portal Assessment Tool will help you do that by putting into words your top five core passions and the gifts and challenges associated with each core passion.
Self-knowledge is empowering. Becoming aware of and putting into words your challenges will empower you to make good choices for your life in spite of your external and internal challenges.
In the long run your challenges, once you overcome them, will give you strength. You'll gain courage and confidence every time you do something you are afraid to do. With every challenge you overcome you will strengthen your sense of self. You'll begin identifying yourself as someone who acts in spite of the challenges and obstacles in their way. You will live a life you'll be proud of.
Both Rosamunde Bott & Cari Vollmer are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Rosamunde Bott has sinced written about articles on various topics from Web Development, Personal Finance and Work From Home. Ros runs her own online business and is also a successful writer and life coach.Find information about Success University at