The Devil Owns Prada
The ‘good things’ that come to those who wait are in actual fact the leftovers of those who got there first…
Good things come to those who wait. Right?
Nonsense. That well-known adage is possibly the second biggest lie ever told to mankind (the first being ‘Big Mac’: is that honestly not the smallest burger you have ever seen?). The ‘good things’ that come to those who wait are in actual fact the leftovers of those who got there first. This notion of ‘patience’ is a disguised form of laziness which has spawned generations of passive followers who have the collective ambition of a peanut.
Seriously though, no one dares to be daring. Complacency seeps in through self-made cracks in your vision, and sooner or later, you forget how to dream. The best work is done by people who are inspired; people who push themselves harder to break down boundaries and enter the realm of the unknown.
Bearing that in mind, I challenge you to be daring:
Dare to dream.
There are no limitations to life when you are young and zealous. You can never be too successful. There isn’t really any landmark on this road to success; no mark that you can reach and say ‘I’ve officially made it.’ The idea of jetting across an ocean for breakfast meetings and lavish dinners appeals to nearly all of us. We wear the status that comes with achievement with well-earned pride. After all, who wouldn’t want the lifestyle of a multi-billionaire?
But that is not all you are after, is it? You want the credentials. The authority. The thrill that sets your heart racing every time you wake up and look out over your legacy. You came that far. And you probably scratched your name onto that rock with your bare hands. So set your default dream mode to ‘larger than life’. Nevertheless, always bear in mind that it does not make sense to strive for perfection.
Perfection is unattainable – Bart Starr.
It makes far more sense to strive for excellence, and yes, there is a significant difference between the two goals. One of the most frustrating things in the world must be to set your goals so high that it becomes impossible to have any hope of reaching them.
Dare to be exceptional.
Normal is, quite frankly, boring. To make it in almost anything you do in life, you have to be extraordinary – in your own right. You have to be phenomenal. You have to take everyone’s breath away. Whether you are brimming with potential to take on the world of fashion design, or you’re the next candidate for CEO, give it everything you have, and then some. Talent is wasted when it is not cultivated. Even gold doesn’t come without the rough ore hiding it from the naked eye. You have to possess that unique quality that distinguishes you as, well, gold.
Too often, we are our own biggest obstacles, our own biggest critics, and the reason we can’t see ahead to the finish line is because we are standing in our own way. In the words of Marianne Williamson in her widely acclaimed book A Return to Love; ‘Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure… There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you.’
Dare to be unforgettable
What will you be remembered for? Where are you leaving your mark, and how permanent is it? Maybe the world will never forget you. Or perhaps it will be one individual whose life you will have made an unforgettable impression on. Whatever the answer may be, the one person who should never forget you, is yourself. In everything you do, don’t lose who you are. Don’t lose that drive and ambition; the attributes that define who you are. That is who you will be remembered for. You embody your legacy in everything you do. Find your passion, and thrive on it. Live through it. Now and then, you’re going to have to get creative about how to take the next step in life. This is the time where you must step out of that shoebox (it’s pretty claustrophobic in there anyway).
A friend of mine once said to me; “I don’t climb corporate ladders… I build my own.”
Don’t just wear the Prada, own it.
