In an odd twist of time management, I caught the TV show, “America’s Got Talent” last night. I didn’t necessarily intend to tune in. Just happened to be in the right place at the right time, for lack of a better expression (what I mean is that I was on the couch at 9pm EST with the TV on, mindlessly flipping channels).
The show was currently in the final stage of choosing the top 48 contestants to go on to Hollywood. I was actually really impressed with some of the talent, but what really caught my attention is the passion and drive that many of the contestants have. More often than not, their emotions seemed to be on overdrive, like they were literally putting their lives on the line.
One act, in particular, really drew me in. Jeremy does mountain bike tricks – hops and stalls and stuff. His first audition of small bike hops over people lying on the ground impressed the judges enough to send him on to Vegas for audition number 2. But doing the same routine again in the second audition probably wouldn’t have been enough to propel him to the top of his category. He knew he needed to up his game. So Jeremy decides to jump two feet in. He quits his job and goes broke building a better obstacle course for the stage. He gives up everything to focus on training for his next audition, in an attempt to make it to the top of a talent show with what is little more than a novelty act!!
Jeremy has a determination that I will possibly never know.
What he does that many of us fail to do is to not only dream, not only set a goal, but to actually put things on the line to reach that goal, and take action, full bore, in a big way. He knows that if he fails, he has no money or job to go back to. Despite everything that he pours into his act, he knows that he’s up against big competition and there’s a good chance that he won’t be put through to the finals. He knows this but there’s no questioning him – he is dead serious – he is going for it.
It made me realize that some of the things I want in life I probably will not achieve, or succeed as well as I could if I were only willing to put the necessary things on the line – take the risks; realize that some of the things that I would otherwise see as a means to an end are also possibly obstacles in the way of me attaining some of my dreams.
