I recently read a quote that said if you want something you’ve never had, you have to do something you’ve never done.
I think this is a fantastic piece of advice. When there’s something that you really want you have to be courageous and take a leap of faith. Anything worth having won’t come easy; you have to think outside of the box, leave your comfort zone, and work hard.
It almost makes me think of the Hero’s Journey, an archetypal structure that shows up in famous stories throughout history from Homer’s Odyssey to Lord of the Rings. When the hero accepts his calling he realizes he needs to leave the comfort of his own home, set out on his epic quest, and confront challenges and take risks that that average people wouldn’t.
I know it sounds like hyperbole, but when you’re setting out to accomplish something difficult like get in shape, get a promotion, or start a new business you need to treat it like your own Hero’s Journey. Take it seriously.
The only problem with this idea is that if you’ve never done something before, how are you supposed to know it’s an option, that it even exists?! How do you learn how to accomplish it?
Here are some of my favorite methods:
Study what other people have done.
Whatever you’re trying to accomplish in your life, I guarantee someone has done it before. And someone has overcome even bigger obstacles to do so.
Want to climb one of the world’s tallest peaks? Kyle Maynard summited Kilimanjaro with no arms and no legs.
Want to break into a difficult career, like an actor or musician? Sylvester Stallone was turned down literally thousands of times before he became Rocky. (Listen to the story here, it’s amazing.)
Need guts to break through a difficult roadblock? Antonio Nogueira was run over by a truck when he was ten, spent four days in a coma and was hospitalized for eleven months, lost a rib and part of his liver, then went on to become one of the greatest martial artists the world has ever known.
Just head down to your bookstore and start browsing; there are motivational stories and how-to books on just about anything you can imagine.
Make a gameplan.
In today’s world we’re incredibly busy and distracted. We’re always being bombarded with text messages and emails. The TV is always blaring at us. At any given time several things are competing for our attention. It makes it hard to calm down and concentrate.
If you’re trying to accomplish something important but don’t know how, try this: just sit down with a pad of paper and a pen. If you had to make a gameplan of how to get from A to B, what would the steps look like? Ask yourself “What is one step I could take right now to bring myself one step closer?”
If you just shut out the distractions- turn off the TV and silence your cell phone- you’ll be shocked at how much you actually have inside of you. Give your brain the opportunity to think and reflect and you’ll be surprised at what it will tell you.
Have someone else teach you.
This is the simplest thing yet incredibly powerful. Surprisingly very few people do it. If you’re setting out on your own quest you realize how hard it can be. Like we said before if it was easy everyone would do it. That means that those that have come before you know how tough it is too, and believe me they’ll love passing on their knowledge and sharing the lessons they’ve learned.
Simply by approaching someone and saying “I look up to you and I want to follow in your footsteps. Teach me how you did it!” you’ll be surprised how many people will be willing to pass on their knowledge.
If you’re reading this and you want to become a DJ, a great example is DJ Courses Online. The instructors were just regular guys who started out knowing nothing, learning from scratch how to make a living as DJs. Now they offer all of the lessons they’ve learned online. From your laptop you can tap into all of that knowledge and they’ll help you reach similar heights.
So if you’re own quest involves learning how to DJ, try something new. Check out our DJ programs and being your journey.