I cannot recall ever feeling jealous of anyone. I think that it was just that whenever I met someone like this, I would feel inferior to them and perhaps a little overawed by them. I would say things to myself like, "I wish I could be like that", or "They are so lucky". I saw a person who had been presented with opportunities that I could never have. They appeared to enjoy the luck of life, while I enjoyed the misfortune. My own achievements paled into insignificance when compared to theirs. I had literally done nothing to speak of, nothing worth telling, at least in my own opinion. I could never do what they had done. I wouldn't have known where to start. Just thinking about it created a feeling of fear within me. I felt that I did not possess the strength of character, the resolve, nor the courage. I felt naive and ignorant of the world outside of my immediate social sphere. My own life seemed ordinary and remarkably dull by comparison.
Yet, there was something that happened whenever I came into contact with a person like this. I would hear their stories and I would feel a yearning to do something more with my own life. I wanted to be like these people and have my own adventures. I wanted to travel to new places, to seek out and experience amazing things in life, and I wanted to be as confident as I perceived them to be. I would feel a yearning for a life that was less ordinary. It created a stirring in my soul. I could feel that there was something deep inside of me that craved release, that wanted to be free. It was my heart calling out to me. Screaming that yes Andy, you can do this too, if only you would believe in yourself. But I chose to ignore this voice time and time again. My heart called to me but my ears were closed to its pleas.
Why? Why could I not be like the people that I saw? Why didn't I receive any good fortune or lucky breaks in life? Why didn't opportunities come my way? Why didn't I have the courage or the strength to do what they did? Why couldn't I have the life that I wanted? Why didn't I have stories to tell? There was only one answer to all of these questions.
Because I was scared.
I was scared of life and I was scared of myself. I really didn't know how to go about changing my life. It just seemed too huge a task. When I watched a documentary and saw amazing scenes of nature, of mountains, or lakes, rivers and oceans, or the incredible acts of wildlife, I felt a compulsion to do something different, to go and see these things for myself. Yet I did nothing. I was afraid that if I tried, I would turn my back on everything that I had and I would lose it all. I couldn't see my future down that road. If I stayed in my job, then I was able to see prospects for promotion, I could see jobs that I would like to do if the opportunity came my way. The other road was too unknown and too dark. Yet slowly and surely my life did begin to change.
I have said many times that I have been extremely fortunate in my life to have been at the right place, at the right time. However, I have come to the realisation that luck is hardly ever just random. It occurs because of something that we subconsciously do. In my case, although I wouldn't have admitted, I am ambitious and driven. My ambition and drive created opportunities and when I was able to recognise those opportunities, I seized them with both hands and never let go. Those opportunities presented me with the chance to travel overseas on business, to see new places, to meet new people, to begin to broaden my horizons. Eventually, I would have the opportunity to live abroad in Hungary, and that is when and where everything really changed for me. It is the same for everyone. Good fortune and luck come to those who dare to take the opportunities that are presented to them. There is an expression, fortune favours the brave, and it is quite true. My own version of this expression is this:-
"Fortune favours those of us who dare to follow our hearts."
For many years, I was never conscious of what was happening to me as I progressed though my life, I was just doing what felt right at the time. What I have come to realise now, is that throughout all of those years, I had been subconsciously soaking up snippets of information and storing them away. All of these pieces of random information began to arrange themselves into something coherent, something that would form the basis for my own plan for life. I was storing things away that would create opportunities for me in later life.
As an example, I returned from an overseas business trip one Friday evening and had flown into Heathrow, London. I had a taxi driver booked to pick me up and drive me the 65 miles back home. As I came through from the baggage claim, I spied my driver holding up a small board with my name. I walked towards my driver, and as I approached, I was sure I recognised him. "It's Gary isn't it?", I asked. "Oh my god. Andy?" Gary and I had worked on the same factory production line many years before and had not seen each other for the intervening fourteen years. He was now a taxi driver for a local firm and I was a manager in a global IT services company, returning from an overseas business trip. How different our lives had become in those years since I had last seen him. During the journey, we caught up on those years and Gary explained to me that he drove the taxi only during the monsoon season in Thailand, where he was a scuba diving instructor. The moment he said that to me, it occurred to me that Gary's life appealed more to me than my own. In the taxi that evening, on the road from London down to the south coast of England, I must have subconsciously stored that information away.
Through my business trips, I got used to travelling overseas alone. I had to attend meetings and I had to give presentations on a regular basis, sometimes to fairly large audiences and to senior levels of management. Through this, I gained a confidence in myself that had never existed previously. When I was working in Hungary, I was asked the general manager of the company to give a speech at an all employee meeting. I found myself standing up on stage, speaking to an audience of some 800 people. If you read any of my old school reports they will all say pretty much the same thing: Andrew is quiet and shy and he doesn't like to participate in class discussions. I was scared and I was nervous, but I still did it. I overcame my fears and I found my inner strength and courage.
Every single one of us possesses the power to change our lives. No matter what you think of yourself, no matter how weak you think you are, or how lacking in confidence, or how scared of the unknown you think you are, I can tell you that this is not true. You are no different to the person that I used to be, you are no different from the person that I am now. And you are no different to any one else. The only thing that sets us apart is that I, like many others, sought to change my life and to follow my heart. I decided to no longer let my fears of the unknown stop me, I decided that I didn't wish to be scared of life any longer. I figured out that if I wanted the life of which I dreamed, it was up to me to make it happen. I discovered an inner strength that I never knew I possessed. And when I discovered that strength, I found an unlimited supply. By following your heart, you are tapping into the power of the universe, and the power of the universe is infinite.
I am no different to any one else. I am extremely humble about my life and about the opportunities that came to me. I always give thanks for everything that has happened to me, because I am truly grateful for my path. You too can do this. Your life is your life and it is no one else's. Never think that you cannot do it. Never think that you are different to other people. You are not. Every single person that has gone in search of their dreams has been scared and has faced the unknown. We persevere because we know the rewards that await us, because our hearts urge us to carry on. The inner strength that you see in others is only a reflection of the inner strength that resides in you.
You possess the inner strength to change your life. You possess the inner strength to seek out and to grab the opportunities that come your way. You possess the inner strength to free yourself of the chains that bind you to a life that does not work for you. You possess the inner strength to spread your wings and fly free. You possess the inner strength to be all that you dream. You possess the inner strength to become the real you. Your inner strength is unlimited. There is nothing that can hold you back or stop you. Unleash it. Don't take my word for it. Believe it. Go and make your dreams happen. Find your one true path.
One of the greatest secrets of our time is this: You are stronger than you can possibly imagine. Unlock that secret inside of you and see just how high you can soar.
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