Excuses, Excuses

I have a lovely flower garden.  But I didn't always.

Before I decided to get intentional about making my garden look nice, I would just wish that I had one.  I wished I could just close my eyes and *poof* a beautiful garden appear.  But great gardens don't just happen.

In my wishing stage I would see other people's gardens and find myself being jealous.  And then I would make excuses. A list of reasons why I didn't have a nice garden.  I decided that there was something wrong with the soil in my front yard. Every time I planted flowers, they would inevitably shrivel up and die.  So I blamed the full sun exposure of my yard. Excuses, excuses.

Last month, I decided to trash the excuses and get serious about finding out what it would take to have a thriving garden.  That was step one.

STEP ONE: Stop making excuses!

So let's apply this principle to life.

Is there something in your life that you have been dreaming of doing? Do you see someone else pursuing their dream and find yourself being envious that you are not living yours?  Do you have a gift that you could be sharing with the world that you are not using? Do you find yourself making excuses for why you are not stepping out?

If the answer is yes to any of the above, then it's time to stop making excuses.  There is a difference between a reason and an excuse. If you really peel back the so called "reasons" that you can't pursue your dream, you will most likely find that they are actually excuses in disguise.  People that really want to do something will go out of their way and overcome incredible obstacles in order to do it. We read inspiring stories about them all the time. I would like to encourage you to make a list of your "reasons" why you cannot move forward with your idea or your dream and scratch out the ones that are really excuses in disguise.

Every dream, no matter how big, starts with one small step.

What is that one step that you need to take today to start moving in the direction of your dream?

Food for thought:  "Not enough time" and "not enough money" are both excuses.

Tomorrow, I'll share my personal experience with this step. Hope you'll check back.

Have a wonderful day!