Dumb Little Man: One Small Chance, 1000 Huge Possibilities

One Small Chance, 1000 Huge Possibilities

Posted: 22 Apr 2013 10:15 AM PDT

"Life is inherently risky. There is only one big risk you should avoid at all costs, and that is the risk of doing nothing." -Denis Waitley

You know, if you went back in time and told me four months ago I'd be where I am today, I would have smiled and shaken my head in disbelief.

Looking back, there was something I always wanted to do.

I wanted to start something where I can write life advice and help others with my words.

Why not?

All my life, I've been told I have an "old soul," and that I was good with words.

Naturally, I should pair the two together and express my life philosophies in words.

This feeling began in December of 2011.

So what took me so long?

Fear.

I was scared and kept making excuses.

I never took the leap because I was afraid I'd be humiliated by sheer silence after pouring my heart out.

I was scared that I'd be wasting my time and end up not enjoying what I was doing. What if I said the wrong things?

It's crazy because I clearly wanted to start. Every day I would picture myself typing away at the keyboard, pouring my life stories, bleeding honesty, and putting it all into one article to transition them into profound advice.

I envisioned the hours I would spend researching how to run a website, grow it, maintain it, and make it great. These were the images running through my head every night as I showered.

It made me smile to imagine people reading my writing. I would be making a difference and I would be creating something of value.

I never did anything about this feeling

Or at least I didn't for the longest time. Over a year went by with me fantasizing about starting.

Then suddenly, I decided to start in early 2013. I took the first step and since then, my life has been changing for the better.

Here's why.

Starting my website forced me to learn TONS of new skills. It just so happens they transitioned well into the real world and it allowed me to build up my résumé. Armed with a résumé that now actually had words, I began to seek internship opportunities. I quickly secured three internships, which I'm still with today because I marketed myself as someone who is willing to learn.

These internships led to connections and tossed me into environments where entrepreneurs and technological wizards were common. Four months ago, I didn't know a single person who knew what WordPress was, but now, I know people who have tons of experience and can work WordPress like it's nothing.

Even more doors are opening for me now

Just recently, a company approached me and they actually want to pay me to write, which is something I already love doing. This all began because I decided to take one small chance.

Taking a chance taught me three things.

1. One step can change your life

Even if you think something will just be a hobby or it'll have little to no effect on your life, it's worth trying. You really have no idea how big of a snowball effect something can have.

Most people in your life probably want you to succeed.

If you keep at something or if you produce 100 small actions a YEAR, there is bound to be something that catches on to create more and more momentum in your life.

2. Inaction is the worst thing

What you need to realize is that fear of failure, rejection, or any other paralyzing attributes are normal. However, that doesn't mean you get to sit around and do nothing about it.

Train yourself to believe that inaction is the worst thing ever. Think of it this way, if you fail, you don't get the desired outcome. Nothing happens, besides maybe a hit to your ego.

Then remind yourself that if you don't take action, the outcome is the same as failing. Nothing happens. So when you don't take action, you automatically default into no results.

Guess what? At least when you take that leap of faith, you have a fighting chance. If you fail then you fail, but when you succeed, you're going to feel amazing and reap the benefits.

3. You can learn so much

Chances are, you don't know everything. I take that back, OF COURSE you don't know everything. Life wouldn't be as fun if you were omniscient.

If something feels like a lot of work or if it's something that you know nothing about, take the effort in learning through others or teaching yourself. You're going to become a smarter, more educated person and you may even be able to leverage your newfound knowledge like I did.

Do you really want to be stagnant and pass on opportunities because it will take a lot of work to learn?

No, of course not.

There is so much to learn, so much to do, so get out and explore the unknown.

Here's something I want to ask you: What is holding you back from taking a chance?

Leave a comment below with your answer.

Written on 4/22/2013 by Vincent Nguyen. Vincent Nguyen is the author of self-improvement blog Self Stairway. Teaching that self-improvement is done through constant self-reflection, Vincent often draws through anecdotal experience to tie into his life lessons. Although he is a full-time college student, he translates his life experiences very well into profound advice for those seeking the tools to live a better, conscious life. Feel free to follow Self Stairway on Twitter and Facebook.

Photo Credit

LESBIAN PIC DOMAIN

WHATSAPP

Tuesday