My military career enables me to travel to many destinations just during the weekend to Chicago to Milwaukee to Salt Lake City and even to California, because my unit where I serve has other units throughout the Midwest that I must visit. However, one thing that I notice that occurs routinely in my travels are delays. Delays are a way of life, but many times we become prone to instant everything from traveling, preparing meals, even becoming educated. Such delays only hinders our progress, is what we tend to think.
Mario Andretti who is an Italian-born American race car driver, and one of the most successful Americans in the history of the sport makes this quote: "Circumstances may cause delays, but never lose sight of your goal. Prepare yourself in every way you can by increasing your knowledge and adding to your experience, so that you can make the most of opportunity when it occurs.”
When circumstances present delays, we assume it is “failure” that is occurring. We think delays are another way of saying stop because you are headed in the wrong direction. Yet, we failed to realize that delays have a tendency to develop resilience. Resilience is the ability to recover or to adjust to change. So to exercise resilience you must have experiences. The more experiences, the more preparedness you will develop and the more preparedness will lead to opportunities.
I purpose this question for you to ponder. How can you capture opportunities like a superstar - let’s say like LeBron James or Steph Curry?
If one seeks the meaning of "opportunity”, they will see the following: "A set of circumstances that makes it possible to do something." So I ask you think about a time when something you wish failed to happen. Was it a delay or failure? Did it allow you to develop resilience? Did it make you to prepare harder? Did you get another opportunity? So the next opportunity were you prepared and did it produce a different outcome? So what did it feel like? Did you feel bubbles bursting on the inside? Now, think how that feeling boosted your confidence while making you realize the impossible is possible. From the book, “The Alchemist” is this quote, “Treasure is uncovered by the force of flowing water, and it is buried by the same currents.”
I created my life story in a timeline via visual board comparing my experiences and crucibles with an impact and lessons learned. From that setting I decided that MY FUTURE will consist of living a life that will continue a legacy of shaping lives like my predecessor.
So I challenge you to view unfavorable circumstances as only delays that will develop your resilience, leading to more experiences for more opportunities. Please realize that everyday counts because every action or non-action leaves an imprint on your journey through life to build your legacy.
