Lead The Field Part 3 of 4: The Road and the Inn
November 3, 2009 by dr. lam
Nightingale’s most famous expression is You Are What You Think. Very similar indeed to the law of attraction and the power of intention that have been investigated elsewhere in my blogs. His idea is that whatever enters our mind is fuel for what we are and what we will become. If we are geared toward failure, we will inevitably achieve that end. If we are focused on success, we will likewise arrive at that destiny. The expression “If you think you can, you’re right. If you think you can’t, you’re right” is a propos here.
Like the idea of setting our intention and our unconscious minds, we should desire to achieve goals in our life that can help steer us toward a meritorious destination. Using a quote from Miguel Cervantes, “The road is more important than the inn”, we can understand that it is not the goal that is so very important but the journey toward that goal. Likewise, I have emphasized in these blogs that we should not be in a hurry to get toward a destination but enjoy the ride.
Life is about setting goals that are worthy for ourselves to want to ride toward but remembering all the while the enjoyment of the “road” rather than fretting about reaching the “inn”. Oftentimes, once we achieve the goal, we desire another one, then another one. We should strive toward lofty ambitions, things that may not otherwise be so apparent that we could achieve and then continue to ratchet ourselves upward toward that ideal. That journey toward a high ambition will elevate our spirits in the process. When we aim toward a very low goal, then replace it with another low goal, then another, we really do not attain any higher ground, we just recycle our present status.
What are my goals? I have quite a few. However, my ultimate goal is to heal the world. You might laugh at such a notion, but I don’t. I feel very compelled through my work, my writing, my speech, and my encounters to work toward a spiritual, mental, and physical healing for my patients, loved ones, and acquaintances. Now, Nightingale warns about a goal that is too vague in nature so that we don’t really have any intention or realizable strategy to achieve that goal. My goal may appear that way to you, but it does not to me. When I have set my intention for that goal, everything else falls into place. I set my intention for writing my blogs, patient consultations, postoperative visits, interactions with my staff, desire for my wellness center, business dealings, interpersonal relationships, friendly encounters, desire to start new projects, etc., all with that in mind. That is but one of my big goals. What are yours?
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3 Responses to “Lead The Field Part 3 of 4: The Road and the Inn”
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Dr. Lam, I really liked your point that we are what we think we are. I also think though that if we are geared for success, the seeming failures that we come across are not road blocks but learning experiences, etc., that will enable us to achieve greater success in the end. I think that it is more of a whole picture concept than just if we think we will succeed, we will, type of thinking. I think that we all meet seeming failures no matter what way we view our destination. And the person that believes s/he will succeed only pushes on further and the person that believes in failure quits. Just my perspective here, so in my viewpoint, our circumstances do not change so much as we do and our perspective of things that either enables us to press on or quit.
Sad to say, I have no such ambitions to change the world, probably because I do not believe I can. My goal is to make a difference only by the people I come across and to learn something from them as well.
I also liked your point about enjoying the journey instead of just viewing the end and the reward. That was a great point!!
Great, Dr. Lam, that you have such high goals!!! And I can see that you are achieving that wonderfully!!!
first, like the new funny gravatar. second, we all have different ambitions. we can all change the world in small ways that are important. thanks for sharing!