Chuck and I talked through the idea for his book, and sensing that Chuck wasn’t very confident in his talent and ability to write the book, I suggested that Chuck start writing a blog. I explained how writing the blog would capitalize on his sense of urgency, help him build his confidence, and that he’d get better at writing and expressing his point of view with each blog article he published.
Reluctantly, Chuck agreed to start that night. He committed to writing his first blog article and publishing it, and to prove it, he’d send me a text as soon as it was done.
The next morning, sure enough, Chuck had sent me a photo of his laptop screen showing a completed blog article that was beautifully written and ready to go. He hadn’t posted it yet.
There was one person Chuck wanted to show his article to before he made it public — his girlfriend. When he saw her that day, he nervously explained his idea to her. As she sat there, blank staring him, he opened his laptop and handed it to her. She quietly read his masterpiece, the first step toward him living his best life, the thing he had dreamed of doing for years but hadn’t had the courage to do until now.
And after a long two minutes of reading, she closed his laptop, handed it back to him, and nonchalantly said, “This is stupid.” She told him that she didn’t understand why he wanted to write a blog and that his book idea was a topic that no one would care about.
So four days later, Chuck told me that he never published his blog article. He said that he was crushed after his girlfriend had been so harsh, and he felt that if he couldn’t take her criticism, he wasn’t cut out for entrepreneurship.
Now Chuck wanted to know my opinion of his situation. I’m going to share this for Chuck and for anyone else who might be similarly dejected by a lack of support from someone they’re dating.
My take is, life is short. You get one shot at today and tomorrow, it’s gone. There’s no reason why we can’t all pursue the things that are greater than us that we feel compelled to pursue and actually accomplish them.
If someone has a problem with you pursuing your dream, there’s something wrong with them, not you. You have to decide whether spending your time with someone who doesn’t support the most important part of you — your hopes and dreams, what’s in your heart — is worth never exploring the what ifs.
What if you actually accomplish your dream? What if you become wildly successful? What if following your dream allows you to help 10 million people? What if following your dream allows you to help 100 million people?What if you teach your kids that they can do anything by being that example for them?
If you have children, I’m not playing fair here. What lesson would you want to teach your children, as they watch you fold up your dream and hide it like a stained bed sheet?
Your significant other should be your biggest cheerleader. When no one else shows up, your significant other should be in the front row cheering you on, in the rafters cheering you on, and in the middle of the stadium cheering you on —all at the same damn time. He or she should be proud of you and supportive of you. They should care enough about you to want to see you ascend to the greatest heights.
So decide what’s more important to you. Spending your time with someone who doesn’t support the most important part of you or exploring the what ifs.