Are we Willing to Sacrifice / Change for What We Want?

“I made the decision, it was my choice, so it falls on me to follow through.”  This single sentence can apply to any endeavor any of us might undertake.  I do not care if this is a newfangled diet, a new enrollment at the gym, a new skill, or even, a new attitude.  Years ago, I read the “Shannara Chronicles”, written by Terry Brooks; and am now enjoying watching the TV rendition.  In the story, the Druid Allanon, makes the point that “magic comes with a cost.”  So too does change, and in some cases, so does the inability to change.  I cannot hope to snap my fingers and transform myself in some way, shape or form.  Granted, it would be fantastic to wiggle my nose and have that buff, beach ready body (no graphics on this will be provided).  There is a cost obtaining that.

For a period in my life, I was engaged in Network Marketing.  With the right company, this is a great way to engage in becoming an entrepreneur.  The process is simple (but not easy) – you have to (1) be all in on the company and product line, (2) be 100% committed, (3) be will to be fully accountable for your actions and (4) follow without question your mentor.  One of the people I worked with did these things and put his business ahead of personal social events (i.e., he missed family weddings).  The “proof is in the pudding,” within the past year, he attained a higher level in the company, saw the benefits of his hard work and is financially successful.  I did points (1) and (3), but found out that I could not be 100% committed and did not want to listen to my mentors.  I tried, but this was something that I was not willing to make the sacrifice for.

We can take those same four points, with slight modifications, and apply them to any area in our lives.  I make no bones about me picking up the banjo.  I am all in on the product (I bought a banjo), committed to learning (while in Australia, my friend noted that my downtime was watching banjo lessons), fully accountable and listening to my video mentors (set aside time to practice).  Being able to introduce the banjo to the band was a sign of commitment, furthering my experiences and of course, the band members not laughing at me, but coming up with potential songs to utilize the banjo sound.  My sacrifice was using my spare time to practice.  Anything that we deem worthwhile, that we feel we can have an impact on, or believe in strong enough, we can make those personal adjustments to attain.

As we get older, many people downsize and with a move towards a fixed income.  Consequently, this leads toward living a simpler lifestyle.  I have seen this with family and the parents of friends.  Truth is, as I get older, these thoughts are starting to make themselves known in the back of my mind.  There are two realistic options, either sacrifice / plan now for our tomorrows, or, be willing to sacrifice the comforts of our household and lifestyle to survive while we continue to roam the earth.