“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.”  ~ George Bernard Shaw

The lack of creativity in our culture never ceases to amaze me. As adults, we have a long list of “can’t,” “shouldn’t,” and “I could never.” We blindly accept the old saying, “You can’t have your cake and eat it too.” I couldn’t disagree more! It’s seldom the lack of opportunity which gets in our way of accomplishing goals. Rather, it’s a broken mindset that closes the door on creativity. Too many people spend their energy focusing on the excuses of why a goal cannot be reached rather than focusing on one simple question. “If I absolutely, positively had to, how could I accomplish this goal?” For example, the goal is to quit smoking. If you knew with absolute certainty that your spouse and children would die the instant you smoked, your excuse list would go out the window. You’d find a way and that horrible bad habit would end. This is because you would unleash your creativity to solve the problem, set your mind to it and beat the challenge.. 

I wrestle with this like everyone else, but I’ve made significant strides and are much better at focusing on the solutions. As I’ve done that, my life has improved immensely. I’m suggesting the next time you make an excuse, stop yourself and really invest your energy and creativity in finding a solution. Start small, build confidence, and keep going for bigger and bigger challenges. What used to seem impossible will become increasingly manageable. Give it a shot and start today.

“When you start using senses you’ve neglected, your reward is to see the world with completely fresh eyes.”  ~ Barbara Sher