Will Smith has had a life of incredible success.  He has pursued a dream that many have but few achieve.  His long string of roles in movies has defined box office success.   In a Hollywood world of craziness and shattered lives Will has maintained a long term marriage and solid family.  He found his dream and kept the things that make life worthwhile.  There is much to admire and model in this man’s life.  This is a series of clips from interviews where Will talks about the ideas that got him here.  This is advice that anyone who follows a dream can use.  Listen and learn.

Lost Goals

You’ve read the books and gotten fired up. You are going to hit those goals hard this year. You write out your top ten list of goals and put them where you can see them daily. But you look at that list and realize that these are the same goals you had last year and the year before that. They look good but they don’t seem any closer to being done this year than the last. Why is this? The reason is that these are not your passions. They are what you think you need to do for some reason you are not really sure of. They seem good but they don’t make you wake up at night with great ideas to meet them. On a deep level they don’t inspire you and they sure don’t fire you up. You need goals that ignite a hunger in your soul and a deep need in your heart.

Now wouldn’t you think that a desire with that kind of passion would be kicking you in the back of the head every day of your life? Well, it might or it might not. Minds can be quirky. Desires get hidden by any number of things. Fears and limiting beliefs can keep you from finding your true passions. Your beliefs can put up walls you never see. The scary thing about that is not that you think of those passions and decide not to pursue them. The scary thing is that you don’t think of them at all. You never get the opportunity to even consider them. Your subconscious just puts them out of your thoughts.

So, you may think of yourself as just having no idea what you really want to do. What’s really happening is that all the great things you could be doing are being hidden from your conscious mind. You secretly believe that you couldn’t be more than you are now and rather than even consider the possibility you just don’t think of other ideas. Your life becomes the same as it always was. What could you do if  you tried? Greatness could be yours.

This is the greatest argument ever for pursuing a life long program of self development. Find those limits and look at them with a critical eye. Could you be the next great artist or athlete? Could you be a famous actor or director? No one knows but you. Work on those limits. See if they are real or just some belief that your fourth grade teacher told you. Where are your dreams leading you? Follow your muse a little. Even hidden passions and talents leave clues. Ask ‘why not’ rather than say ‘no way’. You may not want to go that path and that’s OK too. But you won’t know unless you look. So dream a little and follow that quest.

Quest On…