The most difficult thing is thedecision to act,
the rest ismerely tenacity.
The fears are paper tigers.
You can do anything you decideto do.
You can act to changeand control your life;
and the procedure,
the process is its own reward.

–Amelia Earhart

Have you ever reached a crossroad where you had two choices in front of you? First option: follow society’s idle chatter, the propaganda that surrounds you on a daily basis, a route that would no doubt be less fraught with obstacles and frustrations because “everyone” would agree with your decision; or the second option, take the road that your heart is pulling you towards. You most likely hear the whisperings from your gut, your intuition, your passion every day saying, “It won’t be easy, but this is what will make your heart sing.” Have you had this opportunity?  Which did you choose? Your life’s dream, or somebody else’s box for you to squeeze into?

Making the decision, the simple act of making the decision is amazingly enough the hardest step to take.  This is not to say that once you decide to pursue your passion that everything will fall into your lap – absolutely not.  But by making the decision, making it so you can’t turn back, is freeing.

Think of it this way.  In order to get a slinky started, it must be placed in the right position at the top of the stairs and given a nudge.  Once it gains its forward momentum, it takes on a life of its own, gradually speeding up as it goes until it reaches the intended destination.

Give yourself the nudge.  Believe that your heart, your instincts which you’ve been fine tuning since birth, may just understand the direction you need to go a bit better than your culturally bombarded mind. Take a step back, examine exactly what the pros and cons are, and then take that step.  Simply by those around you observing your decision to proceed in a particular direction helps to propel you away from what you don’t want and toward your desired goal.  Once people realize you’re not turning back, they will stop wasting their energy to pull back something that will never return.

Fall forward confidently into your dreams and enjoy the sigh of relief that comes from the freedom of knowing that you are going to live your life because you only have one.