When You Grow Up
Humanity must ever reach out towards a New Eden. Succeeding generations smile at the crude attempts, and forthwith make their own blunders, but each attempt, however seemingly unsuccessful, must of necessity contain a germ of spiritual beauty which will bear fruit.
Bronson Alcott — Fruitlands (1845)
Did anyone ever tell you when you were young that you could be anything you dreamed of being?
Chances are, particularly if you grew up white and male, you believed them for quite some time. But then, one by one you started to realize you had limitations. You were never going to hit a major league curveball, you weren’t particularly interested in the dynamics of rocket propulsion, and why would anyone want to be the president of an entire country?
You can be anything you want is horrible advice. Not because people aren’t capable of remarkable things, because it sends us off chasing things others want for us rather than investing in figuring out what we are meant to do.
Perhaps something like “you can be anything your heart eventually reveals you are meant to be,” is far better advice — now go figure that out and don’t forget to check out the wide path you’ve traveled already as you look for clues.
Accept your limitations, not those imposed by others who want to keep you in your rightful place, but those that just aren’t part of your potential. Many entrepreneurs find who they are meant to be when they get fired from a job. The universe often reveals our potential by teaching us that we’ve been chasing the wrong thing all along.
It’s a bummer that turns into a gift. The word no or one door closing to us are sometimes invitations to yes and an amazing new door opening. Sometimes it’s just that you were working for a jerk, but either way, it’s something learned or something not learned.
Keep searching for your meaning and truth and then you’ll discover you are indeed limitless.
Challenge Question: What did you think you wanted to be when you grew up? What does that reveal about you now?
