Two pirates are standing by a cannon inside a pirate ship. One of them is peering out of a porthole while the other loads the cannon.
The pirate peering out shouts, “Look lively, ‘ere she comes! Bri’ish Navy scum! We’ll give ‘em what fer!”
“Ready to fire, matey! On yer mark!” shouts the other pirate, pushing the cannon into position and holding the smoldering match cord ready.
The first pirate pauses and strokes his chin. “I’m just not sure if it’s the right time though – economically ya know? What’s the cost of cannonballs these days? Iron prices are up… it can’t be cheap… and what if we run out of cannonballs and then the perfect shot lines up? That would be a shame, wouldn’t it?”
The second pirate is crouched, the match cord smoldering away, gritting his teeth.
The first pirate continues, turning away from the porthole, “And what if everyone sees me as the reckless cannon guy after this? I would be the laughing stock of the crew. Old trigger happy Jim who ran out of cannonballs, and not a single one hit the other ship. No, I don’t think I would ever live that down.”
The second pirate’s hand is starting to tremble. His eyes are wide. Explosions ring out in the distance. There is a commotion up above on the top deck and voices cry out.
“Ya know, you can never un-fire a cannon. Before we get carried away, let me ask the Captain what he thinks–”
KABOOOOM!
A direct hit. And that is the end of the two pirates.
…
Fire it.
Launch it.
Light the fuse.
Make an irreversible decision.
Quit your job.
Take the trip.
Get the tattoo.
Do it now.
It’s 2025 – do you see the state of the world?
Elon Musk might delete all of our retirement accounts tomorrow.
What are you waiting for?
Time – will you have more tomorrow? Next week? Next year?
Energy – when you finally find the perfect morning routine, the perfect workout, the perfect green juice and probiotic and vitamin stack?
Money – and when you finally have enough, whenever that is, then what?
I remember one Christmas I was given some fancy chocolate. I think it was some kind of special dark chocolate bar with mint filling.
I decided to save it for a special occasion.
I waited and waited.
After a hard day at school? Not special enough.
Friday movie night? Not special enough.
Months passed, until one day I finally decided it was time.
I opened the foil… and the chocolate was all melted and had white crust on it from sitting too long.
A few years later, sitting with my first girlfriend on the couch, watching a movie. Wanting to kiss her so bad but frozen with fear.
I had already asked her on AOL Instant Messenger, “What would you do if I kissed you?” but I was still paralyzed by the unknown, the fear of failure, the potential rejection.
Sitting through the whole movie, waiting until her mom was literally ringing the doorbell to pick her up to launch into action.
Spoiler alert: she kissed me back.
And years later the karmic lesson was back again.
This time I was agonizing over quitting my corporate job to start my coaching business.
What if I run out of money?
What if my business fails and everyone either laughs at me or shakes their head in disappointment?
What if I end up hating my business the same way I hate this job?
Spoiler alert: I haven’t run out of money yet, I am working with more awesome clients than ever, and I love my work – I look back and laugh at how much my fear was trying to talk me out of what I felt was right so strongly in my gut.
You can’t see the other side of the mountain until you climb it.
You will never really know what’s waiting for you out there until you try.
Lots of people will want to tell you about what they found on the other side.
They will sell you guides and maps and training programs of how to climb the mountain.
But you are the one who has to walk the path.
Sure, training for the journey and having a map doesn’t hurt.
But don’t fool yourself – you can probably do it right now.
Listen to your gut.
Take a long look at the mountain. Are you ready?
Let your intuition answer.
Not your fear, not your excuses, not your resistance to change.
Your intuition.
Can you climb the mountain, as you are now?
Yes?
That’s what I thought.
Take the first step today.
Not tomorrow.
Today.
Now.