50 Miles To Impossible
July 25th, 2007
All great people look the impossible in the eye and make it possible. Why? Because they know there is no such thing as impossible. It is a myth created by the observers of life who are threatened or frightened by the possible. And thus unwilling to scale the barriers they erect to achieve the magnificence of something all the Naysayers insist can’t be achieved.
The fact is, everything is possible. Think of the things that were impossible a century ago, absolutely impossible if you asked the life observers.
The barrier builders:
- Television
- Jet Planes
- Computers
- The Internet
- Antibiotics
- Genetic Engineering
- Cell Phones
If the observers of life ruled, none of these products, none of the companies that make them, would exist today. Nor would the impossibilities that will replace them every single year from now to eternity. The courageous will find a way to turn the impossible into the actual. Into the living, breathing things no one ever expected to see because, well, it was impossible.
In his fine album Back To Bedlam, James Blunt sings a haunting song about the death of bravery in the world. The sad thing is that it’s true. The good thing is that if you are brave, you can do it all. Replace the Internet. Out google Google. Find sweetness and joy and love and success where others see only the impossible. This is where opportunity lies: at the nexus of the Naysayers and the possible. This is where you can build a grand life. This is where you can develop an extraordinary career. This is where you can form a world-beater of a company. This is where you can be true to yourself as opposed to the observers of life. The worshippers of the impossible. They will always tell you that something is in the way of the voyage. To them, the possible is always 50 miles away and that last 50 miles is beyond reach.
What they really mean is that it is 50 miles to the impossible.
Don’t listen. Put in your earplugs and keep moving. You will cross the line from observer to a life truly lived. You will be brave. And you will inherit the earth.
Mark Stevens
CEO
What Barriers Have You Faced & How Did You Overcome Them?
July 25th, 2007 at 7:53 pm
Nicely put! Great to keep it in mind. It’s amazing that some folks let circumstances control them.
July 26th, 2007 at 11:59 am
The trick in life is to escape from all of the “rules” that without you knowing it at times, hold you hostage to mediocrity. And the most cursed form of this is a life not lived.
Mark Stevens
CEO
July 26th, 2007 at 12:15 pm
Mark: I’ve found the biggest barrier to innovative thinking is the assumption. In all aspects of my life, I’ve found them limiting, and therefore I attempt to not assume. It’s difficult, but being aware that assumptions are to be discarded helps. Assumptions and my ego are my worst enemies. Martin
July 26th, 2007 at 2:00 pm
Toss them in the trash can. They are life limiters….other people’s gods.
Mark Stevens
CEO
July 26th, 2007 at 4:45 pm
Assumptions may be your worst enemy, but your ego may be your best friend. Other people may not like it, but it protects you against deception. It’s one of those “use as needed” attitudes that can come in handy at times (with the right audience, of course).
If you have a strong mentality, you will use whatever tool it takes to bypass the limitation!!!
Great forum!!! It really makes you think.
Nicole Anderson
Graphic Designer
July 31st, 2007 at 10:57 am
This post is so absolutely true! To achieve great things, you must take big risks and re-program to a completely different state of mind. Good stuff!