You’re Not A Boat. So Stop Acting Like One.

...I think no matter where you live you’ve seen a boat tied up at a dock or harbour.

Depending if it’s by the sea, or just bobbing along on the river, it usually matches the water level it’s sitting in.

It’s either riding high, rolling on the waves. Or it’s left alone, sitting sadly in the sand, waiting for the water to lift it again.

Thing is, most of us are like that. We’d love to be in the open sea, but because we’re tied to the anchor of our past, we never go further than that rope will allow us.

Sure, we’d love to ride those exciting waves, but just within the safety that ten feet of rope give us.

Then we watch sadly as that high tide of opportunity slowly goes away, off to lift another boat in another harbour.

Holding tight to your anchor of the past will never let you know what talents you have, what you’re capable of, or allow you to try anything you’ve never done before.

Why?

Because if you do let go, you’re going into uncharted territory.

And it’s safer knowing that the anchor of your past can reach the bottom. Because what if you threw it out and it had nothing to take hold of?

Thing is, we’ve all had those moments in life when we didn’t have things to anchor us.

Personally, being a father for the first time was the scariest thing that ever happened to me. – I’ll let you in on something, I threw up the moment I got home after Matthew was born.

Why?

Because I was going somewhere, I’d never been before. If I’d looked back to my past to make my decisions, I would have never had kids.

I also wouldn’t have known where that trip would take me. Was I good enough? What if I screwed it up? Oh Jesus, where’s the manual on life?

There is none.

But if you let the past dictate what you’re going to do, or be able to do, you’re never going to go further than the rope you’ve attached yourself to.

You’ll never write that book, looking back to your past.

You’ll never start that blog, looking back to your past.

You’ll never put anything out there that people may criticise, looking back to your past.

Thing is, you’d never drive a boat looking backwards, right? Because you know how that would end. Badly.

And yet, we do it with our lives. Looking back, instead of forward. Holding tight to the past as if it was some treasure that needs to be remember and taken care of.

Most of the limits and crap that’s back there didn’t help you back then, and it certainly won’t help you in the future.

It’s up to you to toss that away and start driving your little boat looking forward and not backward.

Yeah, there will be times when you get sea sick, think you’re going to die, and wonder where land is, but that’s what boats were meant to do.

And you were meant for more than lying around in wet sand. Unless you’re into that kinda thing. :)

Now off you bob!

Oh, and while you’re off on your merry bobbing, there’s nothing better than to listen to something to while away the time.

Me. I’ve always been a fan of podcasts.

It’s a pity, you can’t take me on your journey with you.

Oh wait, you can, because there’s a podcast and it’s here.

Silly, me.

PS – Why does the Norwegian navy have bar codes on the side of their ships?

So that when the ships come back into port they can Scandinavian!