There is always a way.
Personally, I think you should get this motto tattooed on the back of your eyelids, so you’re subliminally pumping the message into your brain every time you blink.
And think about the powerful statement you’d be making about how committed you are to your growth and development. Powerful.
I’ll pay for anyone who wants to get that ink done. Because I care.
But seriously, there is always a way. I’m realising now, that one of the key things that separates me from most people is the belief I have that there is always a way.
This sometimes gets misinterpreted as perseverance or determination or even pig-headedness. These days people say I’m like a dog with a bone. (When I was a teenager people would say I was like a dog with a boner, but I settled down eventually.)
But I’m not sure that it’s any of these things. Well, maybe a little. But when I think about perseverance and determination, they sound like hard work. They make me think of putting your head down and just pumping out the hard yards.
And that is a vital quality to have, for sure. It’s essential.
But if it’s possible I like to avoid hard work. One of the reasons I’m so efficient is that I don’t like working more than I have to.
I’m not sure I like working at all.
But the reason that I don’t let things put me off is not because I’ve developed an iron mind that is never stood-down by any obstacle. Rather it’s that I have a deep faith that there is always a way.
If a certain road is blocked, that’s ok. There’ll be a way somewhere. I’ll shuffle left a little, see if I can get through there. I’ll pivot north a little bit, see if I can get through that way.
I’ll just keep working it. Shuffle the deck a little bit, giving things a nudge.
This is not the way of the elephant or the rhinoceros. I’m not putting my head down and charging through.
It’s the way of… actually, I don’t know what it’s the way of. The laid-back hamster?
Actually, maybe it’s like the way of water.
Here’s where I give you a Bruce Lee quote and pretend like we’re both operating on the same level.
Bruce Lee once said:
You must be shapeless, formless, like water. When you pour water in a cup, it becomes the cup. When you pour water in a bottle, it becomes the bottle. When you pour water in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Water can drip and it can crash. Become like water my friend.
Water finds its way eventually. Rivers wean and wiggle across the landscape but they all find they’re way to the ocean eventually.
Water doesn’t resist or use force. It just does its thing, in the confidence that it will end up where it needs to be.
I’m kinda like that.
But the key ingredient here is a deep faith that there is always a way. This is my framework. My paradigm.
And its an extension of an abundant world view – that there are no shortage of opportunities, and there’s more than enough opportunities to go around.
I’m not going to go into all that again. But the thing I’m dribbling like water my way towards is that the ‘flow’ state is a low-energy way of getting what you want. That is, it’s efficient.
If I get put off by every road block and think, ‘oh no. There’s no way through here. I should just give up and go home’ then I’ll end up de-energised and probably depressed. I’ll be bummed that nothing ever works out and that the world is conspiring to derail all my plans.
But at the same time, if I just keep bashing my head against a wall and trying to smash my way through – the way of the rhino – I’m going to burn through a lot of energy. Possibly I’ll burn out before I ever manage to bash a Jon sized hole in the wall.
But if I stay strong in my belief that there is always a way, then I can just keep pressing at it, massaging the situation, looking for my ‘in’.
Sometimes that means sticking with a strategy for a while. Sometimes it means walking away if I get a sense that there’s an easier path available.
But in either case, I’m light and joyful. I’m enjoying the journey.
And in that light and joyful space, energy is self-creating. Your energy feeds off itself, and you can get a lot done.
I wonder how clear I’m making myself. This isn’t a way I set out to be. It’s just who I am. This is not a case of reporting a strategy that works for me.
Rather, this is me just looking back at my life, looking at others, and wondering what made the difference.
And in that sense, as someone who just ended up with a belief that there is always a way, I got lucky.
But you know, maybe it’s useful. If you don’t believe that there is always a way – if you believe that many roads in life are just dead ends, I think you will have a tough time of it.
So massage it. Work it. Dance with it.
There is always a way.
What's your way?
Steve Christo says
Rather melancholy today Mr Giaan.
I’m reflecting on my life … perhaps my rhino approach isn’t working … I’m in the building industry … I have felt for many years that it was the only way to deal with the ‘hard’ characters in this industry. My life has been a series of ups and downs and I’ve often wondered how is it that some people seem to get through this life like they’re sailing on a cruise ship and I’ve spent the better part of 15 years now working 90+ hours per week and have tremendous experience but not much else to show for it.
I really like the ‘water’ analogy. Perhaps a softer approach might be the way to go.
Need to think this through further.
Thank you Jon.
ron says
yes jon..there is always a way out or through. maybe here in australia…but not in usa..i might warn you of what is happening there. confiscation!! of assets by the irs and police. houses, money, cars and other things..people are losing millions every year..irs took US$433m out of peoples bank accounts this year because some of their deposits were in cash. the police can pull you over and demand cash on the spot for some obscure violation..you .cannot argue as they are militarised and can shoot first and ask questions after. don’t believe? 863 people shot and killed by police this year alone. the land of litigation : one chap in the armed forces bought some houses for rent so to fund his retirement. he rented them to his army mates. nice stuff. but one day a visitor to one of his rented houses fell down the steps and stuffed up her knee. one of the steps had rotted away. she took this man to court ..she won and he had to sell ALL of his houses to pay compensation. wiped him out! and this litigation can traverse our universe jon. you see he didn’t put his investemnt house into llc s for protection as individual stand alone assets. silly man. he is wiser now..but are you? are your houses for rent in llc s?
another thing is obama has many training camps in usa..islamic ones for training terrorists to fight…who are they fighting? why the american public. san bernardino? that one involved the sisters of khawlan a pakistani unit determined to wipe out any thing and everything non islamic. the lady and her husband were the culprits there. both shot dead..and dead men tell no tales if you get my drift. in the training camps the musilm guys are trained to shoot ground to air missiles from a rather cute hand held rifle. last week two of these idiots shot down a helicopter over the compound by ‘accident’ killing two highly trained usa army captains who actually train them, the islamics. in passing the khawlan units from pakistan have connections with 235 mosques in usa with the blessing of pres obama. the mosques are protected from western influence by obama and heavily guarded. nice. and you wanna invest in this country jon? obama knew of the paris attacks of 12th nov. prior to the event and was alerted about san bernadina on 27th november 5 days prior to..but..did nothing. what is this man doing? of course the western press cannot print this stuff. many many americans want obama impeached. our current ha ha, current p.m. is a puppet (once again). tony abbot bucked the system and was replaced ..now he can speak his mind… he didn’t go far enough with his speech. we should demand that any and every islamic presence in this country pledge themselves to honour this country and if a violation occurs..then off to the saltmines or deportation…in our current world environment it is common sense to do this. i don’t want to go shopping or to a crowded sporting event and an islamic man or woman decides to blow him/herself up. it will happen. and our p.m. will be none the wiser..he will declare martial law in all things and have dictatorial control over everything. you don’t think so? well as albert einstein said..it is not the evil doers who will destroy our planet..it is the people who stand by and watch and do nothing. maybe tony abbot can be better than he is given credit for.
eddie says
Thanks Ron. I enjoy reading your insights as they are very valuable to those who are willing to do their independent research. What does “IIc” mean for investment structure/protection? Thanks
Antichrist says
i imagine that is “limited liability company” eddie. A way to chop yourself into distinct economic units to ensure when you make a booboo the rot doesnt spread. Has been a classic structural process of the big boys for years. (particularly in the pharmaceutical industry for example) The ethics are however questionable, as oft these LLCs are but legal skeletons which leave those with legitimate grievances totally uncovered whilst the LLC owner just moves along…still in the example of Rons perhaps useful. One has to wonder however, why the lad in Rons example didnt have good public liability insurance hey..especially in the good ol USA , land of litigation. i think there is, unfortunately, more to the story than Ron refers to. We should not let the complete story or the truth get in the way of a good ol yarn though hey!
Rusty says
Wow Ron
Guess its good to be living here in Oz. Let me get this straight, police can pull me over for obscure violation demand cash, if I don’t pay, I get shot. All of those 863 victims were innocent? You are correct about USA being the land of litigation, guess everyone knows that, therefore makes sense to have adequate insurance when leasing out property. Big time conspiracy theory allegation, the Free Masons must be involved in some way.
Antichrist says
Rusty..Ron may be slowly losing his marbles but he provides us with comic relief and i even sense as he matures his conspiratorial bent is further out there than mine.. Ha ha..Certainly todays wee rant shows the dangers of the fermenting global religico crisis..Everyone’s imaginary gods have got them on their pedestals spruiking half baked solutions to extremely complex and indeed worrying global developments…worrying times indeed. Meanwhile Jon stayed rather quiet on his lurv for the redneck Trump, and instead tried to “demystify” analogies of water like attitudes being the way to meandering success. Perhaps he might suggest this to his american idol. Somehow i think, (hope) that that might be too late.
Owen says
Thanks for the read Jon, I agree there’s always a way but this reassurance comes at a good time for me, if you back yourself then your half way there.
Cheers.
Glyn says
Always interesting reading these articles Jon.
I have been caught up in the North West property bust and is not looking good.
I believe that there is always a way as well and if you cannot find a way yourself you need to communicate and hopefully someone can help you find a way or point you in the right direction. To late to say should have known better so positive feedback would be appreciated. Cheers.