You are Responsible for Getting Your Life Under Control

Life Gives You the License, You Have to Earn the Right

You just turned sixteen. Dad’s car is shinier than it’s ever been. You’re ready to rip into the pavement for one heck of an adventure. You’ve been able to drive for a while now – Dad’s given you lessons since you were nine. You just don’t have the State license, yet.

A person from the Department of Public Safety comes to your door to deliver your license. No test needed, no proof, no nothing – you’re good to go. Dad hand’s you the keys, $517 in cash, his credit cards, and a hearty smile. He wishes you well and suggests you come home whenever you want.

That’s just how it all happened for you, right? Well, not exactly.

Yes, you are born with the ‘license’ to drive. Nothing, except maybe your height and ability to reach the pedals, actually stops you from trying to drive. You could do it if you really wanted to. But, you haven’t earned the ‘right.’ You haven’t gone through the motions and training to do it safely, according to the State.

You were born with the license to be all that you want to be. The rest of your life is spent to earn the right. What you put into your journey will be what you get out of it.

If you want to drive your future right, then you have to learn and earn the right.

Only You Want it the Most

But this brings up another important point. Dad won’t teach you unless you really want it. The DPS won’t give you a license unless you fill out the forms and pass the test. You won’t just be handed everything you need to start your driving. Want to know why?

You are the only one who can do it, and who cares most about your journey. Sure, you can get help along the way, but no one is as interested in the results as you are. You know other people have their own lives to live. The last thing they usually expect is to take on other people’s life journeys.

And if you don’t want the good outcomes that are due for good efforts, why would others care? Can you push a string? Can you drag a horse’s head under the lake and force water inside? Does water stay in the shape of the cup when poured out?

Know, believe, and act like you are the biggest fuel for your success in all that you do – this side of Heaven.

Tired of Looking for a Way Out?

Did you know you could get a monkey stuck for a very long time, by his own choice? Simply find a tree with a hole in it, roughly monkey-fist-sized, and put a few cubes of sugar inside. The monkey will reach in, grab the sugar, find that his hand no longer fits, and will just sit there.

There he is, stuck and too stubborn to let the sugar go or find another way out. To him, this is an impossible situation and the world is crashing down. To an observant you, it’s a simple matter of opening the monkey’s hand and dropping the sugar. So simple!

Too often, we become the monkey. We latch on to things we think we need, or want, and step on our own toes in the process. Grabbing on to the prize before our eyes and ignoring the rest of our surroundings.

Do you sometimes feel stuck? Feeling like nothing good can come in your current situation? Or maybe you keep telling yourself that you’re locked in a box and can’t get out? Is it possible that you’re just too close to the door to see the doorknob? Or maybe that there’s another door around the corner?

You’re more in control of what you get out of life than you think. Every problem has more than one solution. Sometimes, just knowing that you have choices is all it takes to get unstuck. If you ever think you you’ve done all you can to solve a problem, then I have a suggestion.

Step back, look at the picture with a new set of eyes, and do something you wouldn’t normally do. Stick to your morals, but do something different. Go in expecting the best. You’ll have some real good feedback no matter what happens. What you choose to do with the feedback determines your outcome.

But whatever you do – don’t be the monkey.