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Sunday Thought For The Day

Island of Solitude
Creative Commons License photo credit: h.koppdelaney

“When just start­ing out on a new jour­ney it’s only nat­ural to feel vul­ner­a­ble. After all, it may seem that you have much to lose. But may I remind you that never again, at any other point in the same jour­ney, will you have so much to gain.” ~ Mike Dooley

Lance writes sto­ries from his heart, aim­ing to inspire and moti­vate, as you align more fully with YOUR true peak. When he’s not here, you can find him hang­ing out with his fam­ily, rid­ing a bike, or just gen­er­ally act­ing goofy.   Sign up for the Thoughts from the Tree­house newslet­ter and get addi­tional inspi­ra­tion in your email inbox!
Lance Ekum
View all posts by Lance Ekum

Comments

  1. Hi Lance,
    This is such a per­fect way to start my Sun­day. This feel­ing of vul­ner­a­bil­ity was there all the time as i was pack­ing to relo­cate. Won­der­ing what was ahead, is it the right thing to do, what next…but then that was my log­i­cal head talking.As for my heart it was all jumpy and excited at the pos­si­bil­i­ties and the adven­ture.
    But its so so true, that, that almost sur­real feel­ing will never ever come back…cause each moment is unique and so is each feel­ing that comes with it. So cher­ish every moment and every expe­ri­ence, so that you may truly remem­ber that very feel­ing and learn from it…a lit­tle more about your­self.
    Thank you for this almost nos­tal­gic Sun­day thought :)
    .-= Zeenat{Positive Provocations}´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Why Are We Here? {Inspi­ra­tional Quote} =-.

  2. Hilary says:

    Hi Lance .. it looks like your blog is on a time zone .. now it’s my turn — on our day­light sav­ing day. How appro­pri­ate for me at the moment .. Things have changed and now I can move on and as your quote says .. it is up to me. I love the pic­ture with the key and birds lead­ing away, with that brief ‘clutch of coat’ before set­ting out — boldly to achieve­ment: the dawn­ing of the next phase.

    Thanks an excel­lent thought for the day ahead -
    Hilary Melton-Butcher
    Pos­i­tive Let­ters Inspi­ra­tional Sto­ries
    .-= Hilary´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Proven­der Hedgerows with Autumn Colours =-.

  3. Suzie Cheel says:

    Amaz­ing how timely and in sync your Sun­day Thoughts are:) with where I am at in my life– just last week started on a new path which is at the same time both excit­ing and scarry so under­stand that vul­ner­a­ble state
    Namaste
    Suzie
    .-= Suzie Cheel´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..How I Used EFT To Lower My Blood Pres­sure =-.

  4. Dr. Rus says:

    Hey Lance!

    What a great thought for today! Espe­cially since I’m start­ing some­thing new here today. Very timely, and very encouraging.

    Dr. Rus
    .-= Dr. Rus´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Not Sin­ning =-.

  5. Yira says:

    WOW! This is so how I feel these days. Your tim­ing is sim­ply amaz­ing. You know, I’m mov­ing to a secluded mil­i­tary base where the only way in and out is via a mil­i­tary flight that goes to only cer­tain parts of the coun­try. In other words, the idea that I can’t just get in my car and drive to another state or city is a lit­tle con­fin­ing I think? Any­way, I am work­ing hard to embrace what this place has to offer because so many oth­ers before me already live there and tell me how great it is. I think I can find myself really enjoy­ing the lit­tle details and low demands I will live with over the next three years. Def­i­nitely a lot to gain and I am look­ing for­ward to this new adven­ture with my fam­ily. Thanks for the reminder Lance!!

    Terie
    .-= Yira´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..The beauty of the day =-.

  6. Miz says:

    I LOVE THIS and have never ever heard it before.
    The vul­ner­a­ble piece Id thought about—the so much to gain? never entered my mind.

    Thanks Lance.
    .-= Miz´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Every­thing went well yes­ter­day. =-.

  7. Good Morn­ing Lance,

    Right at the point of a new start I sel­dom feel vul­ner­a­ble. But just days or some­times even hours in when my own judg­ment gets in the way the vul­ner­a­bil­ity kicks in as well. I guess it’s always there. But I like the strong side of this quote. It makes me thing of all that won­der­ful fresh start energy just wait­ing to be aligned for good.
    .-= Tom Volkar / Big Link Rally´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..First Be Authen­tic In Three Key Ways =-.

  8. Peggy Nolan says:

    What a GREAT way to start my Sun­day and my “do noth­ing” day…a reminder of the great­ness to come despite my vul­ner­a­bil­ity. This quote is going down in my quote journal…and I do believe I’ll be mak­ing space for it on my fridge as a con­stant reminder that I must step through the vul­ner­a­ble moment to get to the other side ;-)
    .-= Peggy Nolan´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Your Moment of Bliss ~ Glouces­ter, MA =-.

  9. Joanna says:

    I know this is true, I know this is true, I know this is true. ;-)
    .-= Joanna´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Sun­day School =-.

  10. Sooo true Lance. We can def­i­nitely psych our­selves out a bit — if we let our ego recite all the pos­si­ble ways some­thing new can and WILL go wrong. Instead if we are open and excited about the process and all the pos­si­bil­i­ties for growth and learn­ing that lie ahead — what a dif­fer­ent expe­ri­ence we can have. Another gor­geous and inspir­ing quote Lance on this beau­ti­ful Sun­day morn­ing — thank you.
    Love, Jenny
    .-= Jenny Mannion´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Dis­cover how to Heal Pain Nat­u­rally =-.

  11. Ha! The story of my life. Vul­ner­a­ble, always. Gain­ing always. Ide­ally I’d like to give more than I gain, so I’ll keep work­ing on that.

    Happy Sun­day, Lance!
    .-= Jan­nie Funster´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Kids With Bro­ken Arms Are Peo­ple Too =-.

  12. Erin Brooks says:

    So true! I’m on a new jour­ney and do feel vul­ner­a­ble but I have loved ones guid­ing me through!
    .-= Erin Brooks´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..White Choco­late and PB Cheese­cake? =-.

  13. I just lived this when I audi­tioned for that TV show. I didn’t get a call back, which to some may seem like a fail­ure. But heck no! I learned so much (it’s in blog post draft form, up this week!) so true. I learned about vul­ner­a­bil­ity a few years ago — putting your­self out there is scary, leaves room for judgment.…yikes.

    No mat­ter what we have some­thing to gain. When we do some­thing we learn about our­selves, the process and what we can do dif­fer­ently next time!

  14. Jeanne says:

    I love your quotes and pho­tographs and all that you share
    Bless­ings
    Jean­neh
    .-= Jeanne´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Bavar­ian Snow =-.

  15. There is so much fear and other emo­tions wrapped up in start­ing a new project. I know that I always hes­i­tate before doing some­thing that will take a lot of effort. I want to be as sure as I can that what­ever it is I’m work­ing on is worth my time and will give a lot of value. This con­tem­pla­tion is where I learn the most. So many thoughts and ideas.

    I never really thought of my projects in this way until this quote. Thanks open­ing my per­spec­tive this Sun­day morn­ing.
    .-= Karl Staib — Work Happy Now´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..The Hard, The Fun and The Beau­ti­ful – Cock­roach Edi­tion =-.

  16. Lisis says:

    You may, Lance. Please do… remind me from time to time. :)
    .-= Lisis´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Inspi­ra­tion: Helen Keller “Great and Noble Tasks” =-.

  17. What a great thought to start my day with! :) I tend to focus on what there is to lose…need to change the way I think!

    Thanks for the great thought on this won­der­ful Sun­day morn­ing! :)
    .-= Natalia Burleson´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..A Hobby! =-.

  18. Lynn says:

    Some­times it is like a (lit­eral) jump off a cliff, start­ing a new jour­ney. But the adven­ture of it and poten­tial ben­e­fits are so so worth it. When I left my cor­po­rate job to go back to col­lege, I could hardly stand to drive by my old office build­ing for a while — think­ing I might have made a mis­take. But those two years of school were the hap­pi­est years of my life. It was worth the jour­ney and I am still on it.
    .-= Lynn´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..They’re back, con­nec­tion and coast­ers =-.

  19. Great thought, Lance. I feel that way now that I have decided to branch out into the musi­cal unknown. I remind myself to enjoy the jour­ney, and not just hold out for the destination…whatever that could be.

    Have a beau­ti­ful Sunday!

  20. suzen says:

    Fab­u­lous thought to chew on, Lance! And when I do think about this, it dawns on me that those moments of vul­ner­a­bil­ity as I take a step for­ward, or maybe alter my course, are, indeed, the ego’s grip on Mon­key Mind using doubt and fear on me, ques­tion­ing “Why?” “You sure about this?”

    Being aware of the source of any hes­i­ta­tion or doubt is half the bat­tle, don’t you think? So it’s duct tape for the Mon­key! I have sub­scribed to the “Walk con­fi­dently in your know­ing” approach. And what about this “know­ing”? Do I know where I am going or what will hap­pen? Ha! Nope! I only “know” I am meant to walk, not stag­nate myself.

    Thanks for ALWAYS glo­ri­ous photo’s and thought­ful chal­lenges.
    .-= suzen´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..No Fear, No Doubt, Just Fly!!!! =-.

  21. Jay Schryer says:

    I had to pon­der this one for a few min­utes, because I don’t think I agree with it. No, wait. I’m sure. I don’t agree with it.

    I believe thestart of any new jour­ney is easy. At that time, you feel immor­tal, invin­ci­ble, unstop­pable. When (to quote Irene Cara and Flash­dance) It’s “Noth­ing but a slow glow­ing dream”, you never fear vul­ner­a­ble, because the excite­ment is too great. It’s only later, when real­ity sets in, and you start think­ing log­i­cally that the fear comes. At this moment, you have the most to lose, because you risk every­thing. And that’s when you feel most vulnerable.

    But it’s in the next moment, when you decide to move for­ward despite the fear, when you trust in your­self, in God, in fate, and in the Uni­verse that it’s all gonna be OK…it’s in that moment when we have the most to gain.
    .-= Jay Schryer´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Mem­o­ries Best Left For­got­ten =-.

  22. lena says:

    This is a per­fect start-to-the-week quote!

  23. Love quote Lance. I really enjoy stop­ping by here every Sun­day for a great thought. Thank you.
    .-= Stephen — Rat Race Trap´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Irra­tional Deci­sions – Anchor­ing and Arbi­trary Coher­ence =-.

  24. Tristan Lee says:

    This is so true! When start­ing a jour­ney, we start with noth­ing. So despite fear, think of every­thing as a gain, plus, or bonus.
    .-= Tris­tan Lee´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Respect: Fol­low Through With Your Words =-.

  25. Hi Lance!
    This is a great quote. It’s a way of embrac­ing vul­ner­a­bil­ity or fear and mak­ing it a friend. That feel­ing of “never hav­ing so much to gain” can be so exhil­a­rat­ing that the scary new­ness of some­thing trans­forms to some­thing utterly excit­ing. Have a won­der­ful week! Jodi
    .-= Jodi at Joy Discovered´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Know­ing vs. Doing =-.

  26. Ooh I love it Lance! What a won­der­ful quote.

    We often think we have so much to lose… but the flip side is so much more fun to look at isn’t it? I just want to imprint this idea into my mind and let it soak there for a bit. I find myself wor­ry­ing so much about the “what could I lose” in terms of respect, friends, time, money, etc. But what can I gain? Oh only chang­ing the world, bet­ter rela­tion­ships, more respect, time, and money. Hmm that sounds much nicer doesn’t it? ;)

    Very refresh­ing this Sun­day morn­ing!
    .-= Nathalie Lussier´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Holis­tic Heal­ing Approach: Heal Your­self With Raw Food =-.

  27. Lance,
    Appar­ently we are rid­ing the same wave…my blog entry today is all about begin­ning a journey…again.

  28. Davina says:

    Hi Lance. At the start of a new jour­ney I feel excited and blast for­ward… then bout halfway through, the vul­ner­a­bil­ity catches up with me. :-) I love the last part of this quote about hav­ing so much to gain in a new jour­ney. How true that is!
    .-= Davina´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Chang­ing Sea­sons in Gen­tle Stride =-.

  29. SpinDiva says:

    Lance, when I read this post this morn­ing I became inspired by it and the changes in my life. then later I received an email from a friend with a quote from Deepak Chopra and it solid­i­fied how I felt and feel about my life and the jour­neys I have yet to take. So I had to share it and your post with every­one I know. Thanks for the reminder, the timely inspi­ra­tion, as always–just in time for me!!
    Spin­Diva
    .-= SpinDiva´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..“This is it.” =-.

  30. Hi Lance,

    Mike Doo­ley is one of my favorites because he has such a great out­look on life. So it was a delight to see another fab­u­lous quote from him.

    Being that I have always been the kind of per­son who just jumped off the cliff with­out any regard for how I would land, I totally agree with what he said. There are no guar­an­tees in life and often you just have to go with your gut. Some­times you may be sure of where you will land and other times you will not but regard­less of the situation.…we will always land on our two feet. We just have to take the jump.
    .-= Nadia — Happy Lotus´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..What Do You Know For Cer­tain? =-.

  31. Carla says:

    I was feel­ing a lot of fear when I was pack­ing up to relo­cate out of state for the first time in my life. It turns out my first month here was the best month I’ve had in a very long time in so many ways. I have gained so much when I worked though my fears of leav­ing my home.

    This quote is such a great reminder for me.
    .-= Carla´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..The Two Dol­lar Bill =-.

  32. Hilda says:

    Hi Lance,

    This is so per­fect :-) I love Mike Doo­ley and this week­end I moved into my new home, in a place where I know no-one! And I do feel a lit­tle vul­ner­a­ble, but I also believe, whole-heartedly, that despite what I’ve left behind there are joy­ous won­ders to be expe­ri­enced here! Thanks for this per­fect quote!
    .-= Hilda´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Be still =-.

  33. Don’t you just love Mike and his wis­dom!?! Lance, I believe those words with all of my heart and once again you have affirmed yet another ques­tion in my head to the Father. Through both you and Mike He answered. Onward I go!

  34. Audra Krell says:

    There is absolutely no time like the present. What a gift is wait­ing for us, but we must make the choice to open it.
    .-= Audra Krell´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..For­tu­nate =-.

  35. Tim says:

    Lance:

    Thank you for shar­ing that quote…I really enjoyed it…seems like a good thing to read, espe­cially dur­ing times of mak­ing a fresh start or new direc­tion. I can iden­tify with this sit­u­a­tion. Have a great week!
    .-= Tim´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Week­end Musi­cal Diver­sion: Andy Tim­mons =-.

  36. Marelisa says:

    Hi Lance: There’s noth­ing like the fear/excitement that you feel when you start some­thing new. It’s like mov­ing to a new city: it’s a bit uncom­fort­able because you don’t know any­one and you don’t know where any­thing is; yet at the same time every­thing is so new and fresh, and full of pos­si­bil­i­ties.
    .-= Marelisa´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..I Give Myself Per­mis­sion To … =-.

  37. I think that’s why I pro­cras­ti­nate on begin­ning some­thing new! Mike Doo­ley is going to be in Phoenix Thurs­day. I was won­der­ing if I should attend. Maybe this is a sign?!?

    Thanks for the encour­age­ment I needed today. Imag­ine the influ­ence you have on your read­ers every Sun­day with just a sim­ple quote and photo. You’re amaz­ing Lance!
    .-= Tess The Bold Life´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Play­ing Our Part With Gusto, Laugh­ter and Joy =-.

  38. Lisa's Chaos says:

    such a nice image to go with the mes­sage! I don’t know how you do it every time!
    .-= Lisa’s Chaos´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Chaotic Macro Mon­day =-.

  39. Steven says:

    Hey Lance

    Thanks for the quote, it really is moti­vat­ing to be read­ing that.

    It is true that you are vul­ner­a­ble when start­ing a new jour­ney, igno­rant and inno­cent of its knowl­edge and defense­less against its setbacks.

    How­ever, as we move on with per­sis­tence and patience we will end up learn­ing how to cope and improve our­selves as well as our jour­ney of our aspect.

    Thank you for pro­vid­ing this mes­sage :)

  40. Lance! This quote rocks my world!
    I love it. It so res­onates with where I am at now.…ahhhh, did you choose it for me? Shucks. You shouldn’t have.
    Ahem, any­way.
    Yes, I love the thrill of the new and allow­ing the path to unfold with all of its won­der, uncer­tainty, and adven­ture. Its mem­ory is what fuels me later on even if the path becomes harder.
    Yes.
    Just another nice Sun­day at The Lance Café.
    .-= Katie West/The Lev­ity Coach´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..The Power of Being One =-.

  41. Hi Lance,

    This quote reminds me of a jour­ney I’m embark­ing on. Excite­ment is in the air, as is a lit­tle bit of appre­hen­sion. But, I am remind­ing myself, to enjoy the ride. Like the quote says, I have a lot to gain.

    Have a great week, Lance and enjoy your jour­ney, too. :)
    .-= Bar­bara Swafford´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Seize The Oppor­tu­nity – A Pro Speaks =-.

  42. Lance says:

    @Zeenat — Mov­ing to a new loca­tion and the unknown that lies ahead in that…definitely can trig­ger those feel­ing of unease and vul­ner­a­bil­ity — espe­cially when lis­ten­ing to our minds. Lis­ten­ing to our hearts…and it all changes to what can be!

    @Hilary — Hi Hilary. Mov­ing on, yes. That can feel vul­ner­a­ble some­times, espe­cially on jour­neys into unknown waters for us. It’s so easy to focus on what may not work out, instead of look­ing at what is pos­si­ble. And think­ing in that way, about what can be…that is energizing.

    @Suzie — I find this so inter­est­ing hear­ing sto­ries like this…how a quote seems to come at just the right time. And it makes me very much believe there is some Higher Spirit here, that we are not alone on our life trav­els. Suzie, thank you for shar­ing this…

    @Dr. Rus — Hi Dr. Rus! Hey, that’s exciting…new begin­nings! I know as well, though that some­times these moments can seem scary and daunt­ing too. That’s when the last part of this quote really hits home — this idea of how much there is to gain. Best to you on your new endeavors!

    @Yira — Hi Terie. Yes, I know your mov­ing, and it will put you in a place that is much more secluded and with­out the local sup­port sys­tem of friends you’ve had. That all can be very unnerv­ing. Yet, I really see your atti­tude as one of embrac­ing what can be. And that’s awe­some! It will be an adven­ture, Terie. And it will be good. I look for­ward to see­ing this unfold for you!

    @Miz — The “so much to gain” piece is what really pulled me in on this one, too. It’s just such a dif­fer­ent way of really think­ing about the new journey’s we are on in our life. And it’s so refreshing!

    @Tom Volkar — Hi Tom. Ahh, great point! At the very start, with a lot of energy and belief — we can be pretty fired up for what we’re doing. So, if we take this quote to read “just start­ing out” as being more of the begin­ning phase — and not just the very first moment — then this takes on even stronger mean­ing. Because I think you’re right, we can go into some­thing — at the very start — pretty excited. And then, in the doing process — as we start out — it can be overwhelming…leading to ques­tion­ing by our­selves. And that’s when it’s really so good to think about all that can be gained!

  43. Lance says:

    @Peggy Nolan — A “do noth­ing” day sounds pretty spec­tac­u­lar! Great­ness is there, for all of us, if we can over­come the feel­ings of vul­ner­a­bil­ity, and forge for­ward. That’s a great reminder…as we go forth, and really lis­ten to our hearts.…

    @Joanna — Oh, that’s it, Joanna…it’s some­times about just remind­ing our­selves of this, when that voice in our head tried to tell us some­thing dif­fer­ent, some­thing more restric­tive. See­ing it here is one thing…living it can be a dif­fer­ent chal­lenge altogether.

    @Jenny Man­nion — Hi Jenny. Physching our­selves out — that’s it! Our minds have a way of say­ing things that can be self-limiting. And when we limit our­selves, our true poten­tial can’t shine through. If we can get beyond that, to where we don’t lis­ten to the lim­it­ing beliefs and instead look at the pos­si­bil­i­ties, life is filled with amaz­ing and lim­it­less oppor­tu­ni­ties! Jenny, thank you so much for being here. and much love right back to you!

    @Jannie — Happy Mon­day Jan­nie! When we’re putting our­selves “out there”, I don’t know if we ever fully get rid of that feel­ing of vul­ner­a­bil­ity. When we look at what can be, even in the face of this vul­ner­a­bil­ity, though — so much pos­si­bil­ity is there! So much to gain! I kind of think you really shine at this Jannie!

    @Erin Brooks — Hi Erin. Hav­ing loved ones along on that jour­ney can make all the difference…whether that’s fam­ily or friends. When there are peo­ple who are there to sup­port us, what a great feel­ing that is! As you know, I’m excited for you on the jour­ney I know that lies in front of you. So exciting!

    @Stacey Ship­man — What I love about this, Stacey, is how you’ve been so will­ing to put this all out there, even before you knew the out­come of the audi­tion. I remem­ber see­ing this, and being really excited for you! At the same time, though, I have to think there was some vul­ner­a­bil­ity being felt — with putting your­self “out there”. The thing is — and this is from my view­point — I see this, what you’ve done — and am so impressed. You are going after those big dreams! You are chal­leng­ing your­self! You are liv­ing life on your terms! And there’s a whole lot of gain in all of that. So, so awe­some — what you did, and where you’re direct­ing your life toward…

    @Jeanne — Thanks so much, Jeanne, for being here.

  44. Lance says:

    @Karl — What’s so great about this thought really is that last part, this idea of all we have to gain. Some­thing I know that I don’t always focus on. In think­ing through the new projects we take on, it can be easy to slip toward that feel­ing of vul­ner­a­bil­ity. And we lose focus of all that is pos­si­ble. This quote really reminds me that I should shift my focus toward the possibilities…

    @Lisis — Okay, that’s a deal Lisis…I will remind you from time to time. Here’s the other half of that deal though (is there always a catch?) — I’ll ask you to please remind me, too, from time to time.…

    @Natalia — It’s like we’re wired that way some­times, isn’t it — to see the neg­a­tives of what could be instead of the pos­i­tives. That’s why I really love this quote, in how it shifts per­spec­tive toward the pos­i­tive possibilities!

    @Lynn — What a won­der­ful story, Lynn! Really, these feel­ings of regret — and ques­tion­ing whether we’ve made the right choices — they hap­pen for all of us. When we can keep going, though, and move beyond that — look at what’s pos­si­ble! Look at what it did for you! So awesome!

    @Jewel — I love how you’ve chal­lenged your­self in the music field, it’s so excit­ing to see! And I’m sure for you, it was also chal­leng­ing at moments — not sure if you’d made the right choice. And if we’re lis­ten­ing to our hearts…that is the right choice, no mat­ter what our mind tries to tell us. Enjoy the jour­ney you’re on, Jewel! It’s so good to see!

    @Suzen — Suzen, this is a won­der­ful thought! We don’t know where our journey’s will take us, not for sure any­way. And yes, we are meant to walk, to climb, to move. Our minds can try to limit us, to keep us at the sta­tus quo. When we lis­ten to our hearts, though, so much good can hap­pen! Great, great thoughts today!

    @Jay — Well, that’s a great point Jay. At the very start, we can have a lot of energy and belief in what can be. And it’s when we get to that point where we’re liv­ing the jour­ney — that real­ity can set in. Per­haps it’s the word­ing used here — as I very much take this quote to be encom­pass­ing of “start” in pretty wide terms. And in that thought, I think we’re exactly on the same page — that when we’re out there liv­ing it, that’s when we really can have those thoughts. And yes, it is in tak­ing those next steps — when we keep going even in spite of these fears — that grand things can happen!

  45. Lance says:

    @Lena — As we head out into a new week, yes, this is a mes­sage that is good to hear! Thanks for being here today.

    @Stephen — Thanks much, Stephen, and it’s great, as always, hav­ing you here!

    @Tristan — Yes, when we start new — it’s like we’re start­ing with a fresh slate. And think­ing that way, there really is so much to gain!

    @Jodi — Hi Jodi. Fear and vul­ner­a­bil­ity don’t always feel so much like friends, do they. And yet, when we can har­ness the energy and repack­age it to see what can be gained — wow! Jodi, thank you! And you too…have a won­der­ful week!

    @Nathalie — Hi Nathalie. I know! Imprint­ing this thought on my mind, that would be so good. So, that when those moments arise on jour­neys anew — I won’t be lim­ited to the ways my mind holds me back. Yes, it just sounds so much nicer when we really focus on all that can be gained, all that is pos­si­ble! And that is so, so refreshing!

    @Laura Heg­field — Laura, it’s good to have you here. And yes, we are on that same wave, my friend…I’m there with you…

    @Davina — Hi Davina. It can hit at dif­fer­ent spots for us — this sink­ing feel­ing of “what have I got­ten myself into”. Our minds are good that way, at lead­ing down these paths. Yet, if we can focus on all that is pos­si­ble, so much lies in front of us to be gained! And that’s exciting!!

  46. Lance says:

    @SpinDiva — Hi Terie! It’s great to see you again!! And what you shared on your site was such a pow­er­ful quote by Deepak Chopra. We are all weav­ing our own tapes­try of life… Know that I deeply appre­ci­ate all that you’ve shared today…

    @Nadia — Hi Nadia. Mike Doo­ley cer­tainly does have a great out­look on life — it’s hard not to be uplifted from read­ing his words! Jump­ing off that cliff, per se — you’ve done that so well Nadia. Some­times it can feel a bit uneasy…the not know­ing. Like you say, though, if we believe in our­selves, we’ll land on our two feet. It may not always be the place we were aim­ing for — and that’s alright. It’s all part of the journey…

    @Carla — What a great exam­ple you’ve shared, Carla! Mov­ing to a new place can be very much a time on unease. Espe­cially when it’s to an area we’re not famil­iar with. And just look how it’s turned out — so awesome!

    @Hilda — Hi Hilda. Daunt­ing, for sure — this move to a place where you’re all alone. And yet, I know this is a move you very much wanted to make — and that’s you lis­ten­ing to your heart. That makes this such a won­der­ful deci­sion, and so great to see you going beyond the vul­ner­a­ble and going toward all that is pos­si­ble! I’m so excited for you!

    @Tabitha — Yes, Mike Doo­ley is filled with so much deeply good wis­dom! Tabitha, it’s always so good to have you and your won­der­ful pos­i­tiv­ity here! Onward you def­i­nitely go!!

    @Audra — The present, this moment — it’s what we have. And when we open up the pos­si­bil­i­ties of what can be, and we choose to embrace those pos­si­bil­i­ties — amaz­ing and beau­ti­ful things began to hap­pen. Audra, it’s so good havig you here, a gift indeed for me!

    @Tim — When we’re out there mak­ing a new start — that can some­times see pretty scary and unknown. And in that, we may feel some vul­ner­a­bil­ity, as we put our­selves out there in some new endeavor. When we embrace it all, though, all that can be — there really is so much to gain! And that’s a fresh per­spec­tive so worth hold­ing onto!

  47. Lance says:

    @Marelisa — Hi Mare. That’s it, and so well described! You know, what I draw from what your say­ing is that there’s this mix of the uncom­fort­able and the pos­si­bil­ity. The ques­tion then is, what are we choos­ing to focus on? When we look at the pos­si­bil­i­ties, wow!

    @Tess — Maybe this is a sign! Wow, how awe­some if you do decide to attend! Tess, you are always so uplift­ing — I really think you’ve got this one down — where you really do focus on the pos­si­bil­i­ties! And thank YOU, my friend…your words are won­der­fully kind.

    @Lisa’s Chaos — Hi Lisa. You know, some­times it takes as long to find a pic­ture as it does a quote. I really do try to find a photo that I think speaks deeply to what the quote is say­ing. So your words are very much appreciated.

    @Steven — Hi Steven. It can be scary to feel vul­ner­a­ble, and we might want to slink back away from the chal­lenges and oppor­tu­ni­ties in front of us. Yet, all of what can be, all of what is pos­si­ble — is there in mov­ing for­ward on our jour­ney. And that’s pretty sweet…

    @Katie — Ha!! Well, how about this…I didn’t choose it specif­i­cally for you (shock, gasp!), but when I was get­ting it all set to go this week — I most cer­tainly did think of you, and what you are doing. So there you go…because when I think about going after those big auda­cious dreams, I think of YOU! I do, because I love how you think, how you see the world, and how much pos­si­bil­ity you envi­sion. So, when those moments come when you’re ques­tion­ing if this is all right and good, know that there is so much to gain in front of you — and on this jour­ney you are on! Let the adven­ture con­tinue in amaz­ing and awe­some ways!

    @Barbara — Hi Bar­bara. Know that I wish you only the best as you go down this new jour­ney. Enjoy and savor the excite­ment. And always remem­ber what can be, what is pos­si­ble… So awe­some, Barbara!!

  48. Angelia Sims says:

    Noth­ing sig­nif­i­cant in my life has ever hap­pened on my own. I have always had sup­port and encour­age­ment. The gain, indeed, is great tri­umph. Sorry I’m a day late, I left my lap­top at work this week­end. Happy Mon­day Lance!
    .-= Angelia Sims´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Sunday’s Healthy Reflec­tion =-.

  49. It’s Mike Doo­ley! My favorite guy! I spend much of my “free” time lis­ten­ing to his audio series, Infi­nite Pos­si­bil­i­ties. :-)

    A won­der­ful quote, thank you for shar­ing it with your readers.

    Always remem­ber … every step braved is a step toward the life of your dreams.
    .-= Gayle (Gazehound’s Ani­mal Communication)´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Lit­tle Actions — Finan­cial Heal­ing =-.

  50. Evita says:

    I can so relate to this Lance — and how true is that!

    When we begin any­thing, this is indeed the time when we have the most to gain and the least to lose. What amaz­ing words of wisdom!

    Thank you! — By the way I love the photo — I was see­ing beau­ti­ful tree reflec­tions against a sky of those col­ors for about an hour on our way home yes­ter­day — it was heav­enly!
    .-= Evita´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Choice Point 2012 =-.

  51. Hi Lance — thanks for this — it strikes me as a help­ful reminder to see what we can enjoy about the moment-to-moment process of get­ting where we want to go, instead of just dream­ing about the destination.

  52. Kaushik says:

    This is great. Often dur­ing awak­en­ing, fear comes up. What’s up ahead? Can I han­dle it? Courage shows up when­ever needed.

    Thanks for the inspir­ing quo­ta­tion.
    .-= Kaushik´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Heal­ing… =-.

  53. Mindful Mimi says:

    Lance,
    I so agree to that. At the begin­ning there is noth­ing but this big idea, this big hope. And the excite­ment of what will hap­pen. That moment indeed never returns. And it feels scary at times but oh so great. and when you con­tinue along that path, a lot of things, good and bad, hap­pen. And it’s all nec­es­sary to get you to your point. And even if you’re loos­ing, you’re gain­ing: expe­ri­ence, friends, knowl­edge, insight, wis­dom, help, aware­ness, won­der, aha-moment. It’s the essence of our life: expe­ri­ences. It’s the real liv­ing.
    Thanks for shar­ing.
    Miranda
    .-= Mind­ful Mimi´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Art is a mould in which to imprison for a moment the shin­ing elu­sive ele­ment which is life itself — Willa Sib­ert Cather =-.

  54. Lance says:

    @Angelia — Angelia, that’s such a great point. Hav­ing the sup­port of oth­ers can make all the dif­fer­ence in the world! And…it’s great hav­ing you here when­ever that works out! Happy Tuesday!!

    @Gayle — Mike Doo­ley is a pretty uplift­ing guy, isn’t he! And now, I’m really curi­ous about this audio series…I’ll have to check it out. Brave steps can feel scary at times, although those are the steps that take us closer toward those dreams of ours. Here’s to tak­ing those brave steps…for all of us!

    @Evita — Hi Evita, and wel­come back home! It’s so easy to focus on what we have to lose…I know it sure is for me. And the oppo­site of that is how very much we have to gain because we’re tak­ing this new jour­ney! And that’s so excit­ing to really think about. And your trip home, Evita, sounds like it was a lovely drive…

    @Chris Edgar — That destination…the place we’re dream­ing of get­ting to — that’s some­thing that gives us fuel for our fire. Still, though, it’s in our moments, the small suc­cesses — that build up toward that des­ti­na­tion. And really, it’s the jour­ney that makes it all so worth it anyway…making those moments ever so impor­tant. Great point, Chris!

    @Kaushik — Yes, that “F” word…“fear”. It can become our focus some­times, and we lose sight of all that is pos­si­ble. Courage to move beyond that fear, and into what can be…what a great place to be!

    @Mimi — Hi Mimi. I love that line about the essence of our life being expe­ri­ences. We have them everyday…experiences. It’s just, are they the expe­ri­ences we deeply want to be hav­ing, or are we hold­ing our­selves back because of fear? So good Mimi — thank you!!

  55. Daphne says:

    This post of yours got me turned around yes­ter­day, out of a despair­ing men­tal­ity into a happy and light­hearted one. Thank you.
    .-= Daphne´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Accep­tance Ver­sus Need For Change =-.

  56. Laurie says:

    I feel like I have lived this the last cou­ple of years. Tak­ing a chance to be more vul­ner­a­ble in my mar­riage. To be real, to be present, to be authen­tic. It has made all the dif­fer­ence.
    I also put myself out there by start­ing my own busi­ness. I put myself in a place to really be eval­u­ated by others.…a huge thing for me. It is pay­ing off and I am very happy.

  57. Liara Covert says:

    Every moment is another stage of a jour­ney that is per­pet­ual.
    .-= Liara Covert´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..What if God is mind? =-.

  58. Lance says:

    @Daphne — Daphne, this is so, so good to read! And know that you’ve bright­ened my day, shar­ing that with me.

    @Laurie — Being real and authen­tic can make us feel vul­ner­a­ble. Really though, when we are — while it could still be vul­ner­a­ble — more likely the case is that it’s quite the oppo­site. When we’re ring­ing true to our heart, great and amaz­ing thing happen!

    @Liara — And the jour­ney continues…it’s just — is this the right jour­ney for us? Good ques­tion to think about…

  59. Yes, yes, yes…so much to gain, so much to gain. I’m hear­ing you loud and clear today!
    .-= Stacey / Cre­ate a Bal­ance for Moms´s Last Fab­u­lous Post ..Bal­anc­ing Moth­er­hood and Your Authen­tic Self =-.

  60. Lance says:

    Stacey,
    You are there! The journey…what lies ahead for you is some­thing awe­some! It is!!! And you are ready!!

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