Opportunity or Obligation What Is Driving You?
The Road Not Taken
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I–
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference
-Robert Frost
When I was living in California, I used to act out of obligation. It seemed like 80% of the action I took I was obligated to do for others.
I managed to still do things for myself that I felt were driven by opportunity, but for the most part 6 months ago I was being driven by a sense of obligation. This sense of obligation was brought about by my needing to fill an expectation of family and society. This made life feel very out of balance for me.
Ever since I moved out here to Arizona, I’ve been feeling a sense of being driven by opportunity. I don’t necessarily feel the need to force myself to do things I choose not to do. However, with this sense of opportunity I have a lot more responsibility for my own thoughts and actions.
This has led me to the law of attraction. Although, many of you reading this now are very familiar with this universal law. You and I have to be sensitive to the fact that 90% of the population aren’t aware of this universal law.
Furthermore, those that are aware of it are not really applying these laws to their benefit. So, if you are a person that is applying the law of attraction regularly, you are actually in a very small club. You are the leaders of this new era. This club makes up for a very tiny percent of people in the world. Activities like creating your vision board, Saying affirmations daily, and creative visualization are some of the basic tools that you can use with the law of attraction.
The Law of Attraction
What I’ve seen in my personal life and from studying high achievers in life is that in order to be driven with a sense of opportunity, one must apply the law of attraction regularly.
The reason for this is because to be driven with a sense of opportunity, there is a chance you may or not “make it.” There is a chance of either success or failure. But to apply the laws of attraction into this, you have a better shot at making it. It takes a lot of trust in yourself, to really be consciously living the law of attraction.
You see, being driven by obligation puts you at the effect rather the cause of your situation. You become the victim in the circumstance instead of the victor. So to ask somebody who has chosen to be obligated to so many things that aren’t true for his/her life path to begin applying the law of attraction in their life wouldn’t make any sense. It doesn’t make any sense to apply the tools that are associated with the law of attraction because the person that is very obligated to the wants and needs of others, society, or their boss is used to the idea of someone else choosing their dream for them.
Granted, I am sensitive to the fact that there steps involved. You may need to be obligated to do certain things on a regular basis to make ends meet. I am not saying don’t do what you need to get done. My point is just, recognizing and being aware of your own timing. Know that although obligation rules the day, if an opportunity comes around and you get this sudden urge to chase a dream you’ve been thinking about many times, it is up to you to decide whether or not to go forward with that feeling.
Expanding In Your Own Personal Development
I can tell you that from my experience, going with that gut feeling is probably the best thing you can do for yourself. This is because it opens you up to a new world of opportunity and from this new state of mind, you begin to have the opportunity to move forward with your true life’s purpose and experience more fulfillment in your daily life. Going with this hunch, or gut feeling is when you really start to understand what it means to grow in your personal development.
It gets very difficult to expand in your personal development when you are taking most of your actions based on obligation. The reason is because, if most of your time is being spent out of a sense of obligation, there are more chances for you to get stuck in a rut, because let’s be honest there is no fun or enjoyment that comes from doing daily tasks that are not aligned with your life’s purpose.
Obligation delays Your Dream
Being partly driven by obligation may delay your dream. However, being soely driven by a sense of obligation your dream goes down the drain. From my observation of highly successful people, many people who have lost this dream may have lost it because somebody else, a well meaning parent, or perhaps their boss chose their dream for them. The truth is if you aren’t living your dream, you are living someone else’s dream.
You are a part of their vision, instead of you creating your own vision.
You see, the moment you say “yes” to an activity that is not part of your life’s purpose, or doesn’t bring you joy, there is a great chance you are taking action by obligation. On the flip side, if you say “yes” to an activity that is in alignment with your life’s purpose and brings you joy, you are usually taking action out of opportunity.
Many people that I see have a lot of potential to do very great things, aren’t consciously making the decision to be moved by a sense of opportunity.
The reason?
There are several reasons but it really is rooted in fear. The chance that you won’t make it, is a bigger fear than staying safe and conforming to what society tells you to be obligated by.
Therefore it is fear, that keeps people being driven and taking action from a place of opportunity.
Opportunity or obligation, what is driving you?
I’m part of the club too Joe
Most live from the outside-in. Outside conditions drive them.
The novice uses cirmcumstances as their primary motivator; the genius is driven by vision.
I have my moments where I’m driven by obligation but the more clear my vision becomes, the more real it becomes. I act more like the person who is in possession of that which I envision. It’s really kinda neat, how it all works.
Ryan´s last blog ..Attract Wealth By Becoming A Good Pretender
Hey Ryan,
Welcome to the club. I am so glad to see that you continue to take thie inside-out approach ot your success. I really like that quote you used here, “The novice uses circumstances as their primary motivator; the gnius is driven by vision.” Very powerful words. I agree. I am glad you are well on your way. Thank you for your powerful feedback, it is appreciated.
thanks, for this article. I found it through google and i found it very helpful. i will look for more interesting articles at this blog.
thanks! glad you found me on google, that’s the plan. hehe. =) Hope you enjoy the rest of the readings on here! Feel free to contact me if you have any other questions.
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