The Death of Struggle

A man said I want to buy my employer’s company by the end of the year.

Another man couldn’t say what he wanted by the end of the year. However his whole demeanor said: “why dreaming if my reality is set? I got this awfully stressful job and that’s that. My dream to set a consulting firm is just a dream. It will happen one day!”

Those were the radically different positions of two of my MBA students during a one year personal development journey. You can already guess what happened. The first one struggled with his fears head on, woke up early, prepared complex meetings to convince stakeholders of his plan and more. The second one struggled with stress, overwhelm and with the contradictory demands on his time.

What happened at the end of the year?

The first one figured out how to execute the management buyout he so dreamt of. What happened with the second one? Nothing! He kept running from meeting to meeting, from business trip to business trip. He lived for what “they” asked from him. “One day” still hasn’t come for him.

Which life do you want to have? Which regret do you want to have? Which struggle do you want to have?

Life is not painless. Life is not easy. To expect otherwise is madness. The magic of life is in growth. The struggle could bring you growth, expansion, and learning. Daring to grow is daring to be alive. Without growth, one goes through life like a dead man walking.

Which struggle do you want to have?

Do you want the struggle of survival, of pleasing “them”, of hibernation?

Choosing this road will take you first to ease. However, there you will also meet monotony, boredom and death. Millions chose for this route empty of pleasure and excitement.

Do you want the struggle of innovation, of daring, of disruption, or of contribution?

Now I got a brand new group of students. One of them said I want not only to finish my thesis, but to write a book about it and a scientific paper. I see it happening. He will. He will become the expert in his field. He has chosen to struggle for growth. He will be one of the few change makers.

Which struggle do you want to have?

Dare to struggle for a mighty dream. Dare to struggle for the stars. Dare to struggle for greatness. You don’t need to anything to allow yourself to dream. On the contrary, you need to let go of a lot.

• Let go of the past: Imagine! What if your past disappeared? What could you do?

• Let go of plan B: Concentrate in how to manage the next time you will succeed.

• Let go of the worry of how: Yes, you don’t know how to do it. Enjoy it. Learn. Ask. Read. Learn.

• Let go of “I can do it tomorrow”. There is no tomorrow there is only now.

• Let go of “who do I think I am”. Being you is enough title for you to take on this challenge.

• Let go of many things to do. Concentrate. Many of the things that are in your agenda are not essential.

So, what do you want? What struggle do you choose?

Choose life. Choose growth. Embrace your own dream. What mighty current project would give you the sense of progress towards embodying your very best self?

You will forge the best version of yourself by choosing stretching projects. Mighty project by mighty project your life will become a master piece.

Commit to your next mighty project. Choose something challenging and exciting. Embrace it and run with it. Choose life. Choose growth. Choose the best struggle there is. Then struggle will be the biggest pleasure you have ever experienced.