1. It’s Possible.
What I’d like for you to do right now is think about your dream. I do not believe that any of us have dreams that were not given to us to accomplish those particular dreams. Most of the people you talk to, are not risk-takers. Most people have done all that they’re ever going to do, they raise a family, earn a living, and then they die. But people who are running toward their dreams, life has a special kind of meaning.
I want to share something with you that has changed my life. I started out, as Jack indicated, from very humble beginnings. I don’t know what your dream is, but I don’t care how far-fetched it might appear to be. I don’t care how disappointing it might have been as you’ve been working toward that dream. But here’s what I know: the dream that you’re holding in your mind is possible. Let’s say that together, please: it’s possible. See, sometimes we can’t say, “I can do that,” but we can say, “It’s possible that I can have my dream.”
You say that every day to yourself, “It’s possible,” because what does that do? See, it begins to change your belief system. See, how we operate is a manifestation of what we believe is possible for us. Whatever you’ve done up to this point, all that it really is is a duplication, a reproduction of what you believe subconsciously that you deserve and what’s possible for your life. Most people operate out of their personal history, out of their memory: things they’ve done, things they’ve experienced, things they’ve seen, things they have observed.
What I’m suggesting is that you operate out of a larger vision of yourself. I want you to see yourself doing what you want to do, experiencing what you want to experience, having what you want to have, and doing what it is that gives your life some meaning and value. Operate out of your imagination, not your memory. Whenever you look at where you want to go, I’m going to warn you, you will have some conversation back here after you go through the data that you’ve experienced in life, saying you can’t do it. And so you want to begin to ignore that inner conversation.
Example: Before April 1954, the common belief, the universal belief, because it had been tried again and again and again, and people had failed, was that man was not physically capable of breaking the four-minute barrier, that he could not run a mile in less than four minutes. That was the belief on the planet. It had never been done. But here’s what happened, Roger Bannister came along, and he broke the four-minute barrier. Now here’s what’s significant about that: Since that time, up to this day, over 20,000 people have done it, including high school kids.
What changed? 20,000 people—what changed?
Here’s what happened: When they got on the track, they knew it had been done. And because they knew it had been done, there was a new belief about this barrier, about this goal that was unreachable. And those 20,000 people got in the race believing, knowing in their heart that someone had done it, that it’s possible that they could do it.
2. You have got to make a declaration with yourself
If you want to begin to move into your own personal greatness, if you want to begin to really enjoy a happy, successful, healthy life, you’ve got to be willing to go against the tide. You’ve got to be willing to harness your will and say,
“In spite of this, I’m in control here. I’m not going to let this get me down. I’m not going to let this destroy me. I’m coming back, and I’ll be stronger and better because of it.”
You have got to make a declaration: this is what you stand for. You’re standing up for your dreams. You’re standing up for peace of mind. You’re standing up for health. You want it, and you’re going to go all out to have it.
It’s not going to be easy. When you want to change, it’s not easy. If it were in fact easy, everybody would do it. But if you’re serious, you’ll go all out. So yes, I’m going to turn this situation around. I’m not going to sit back and moan and cry over what happened, what went wrong, and who did what. I’m going to do something about this situation.
3. It’s not over until you WIN