Stop Waiting for Permission to Live the Life You Want to Live

“One day your life will shine before your eyes. Make sure it is worth watching. ”~ Unknown

I know you.

She is smart. He is being carried on. He's a "good girl / boy." You have long found that life goes well for people who follow the rules, so read the rule book inside out.

People were expecting things from you and you made it your job to achieve those expectations - and maybe beat yourself up when you fail.

But now that you are stuck, the way anyone who has spent their life makes other people happier than they are is caught.

You wish you could go back to school and learn what you really like, or maybe you want to start your own business, or buy a camp and drive across the country, or go to a big city. Even so, owning one is still beyond the reach of the average person.

And from time to time, when you are not busy putting out a list of things to do or giving your time to people in your life who always seem to need you - when things are really quiet - you feel completely hopeless.

You hear the clock ticking, and it's the only time of life that passes you by.

You see a series of days ahead of you. Get out of bed. We go to work. Look at the clock. Count the hours ‘until the weekend. Rejoice Friday night. Tell on Sunday night. Repeat.

Nothing new. Nothing real. Nothing exciting.

You know, somewhere inside of you, that there has to be more than this.

I know you. I am you.

I recently realized that I had spent my whole life waiting for permission. Because I'm a good girl, you see. Twenty years ago I felt a burning desire in my heart for something more than not going anywhere in the ninth to fifth office and bar on the weekends.

I wanted a job singing. Tourism. Happiness. Fun. Times to set the heart for happiness.

And I wanted someone - anyone - to tell me it was okay, to keep going. I don't mean Oprah or any random person talking to the crowd. I wanted a stranger to give me a green light.

Guess what? It never happened, and it never will. Why? Because no one can give us permission without us.

No one outside of us knows what is going on in our hearts, no matter how we try to explain it.

Have you ever found this to be true? You can try and try, but there is a nuance, the depth of desire, which is impossible to define. It must be heard, and no one else can hear it except the one whose heart is burning.

So let's wait. We are waiting for approval. Many of us died waiting for it.

I don't want to die waiting for you. Is it?

It’s time for us to get out of our shells and accept that we want more. Let us be honest with each other and with ourselves about what we want in life. Let's really support each other and push each other and not make excuses.

And let’s stop taking guff around the world — those who are too scared to leave the status quo behind. If that is what they really want, let's bless them and move on, because life is too short to waste on wondering what someone else thinks of us.

We just have to be the heroes of our lives. I’m determined to dust off my cape and get into that role.

Are you?

Here are some bits of resistance that might be obvious to you once you have decided to regain your hero status (because you were a complete hero of your life as a child; you just forgot. Don't worry; well most of us forget!)

This is very difficult.

No, it's not easy. But which is easier - to live a life of beige for years (but all-too short), or to accept the discomfort right now to live the dream life of the technicolor we long for?

There comes a time when we have to go through hardships in order to get to the point where "What took me so long to get started?" This is growth, and growth is uncomfortable, but always beneficial.

I'm too old to start.

This idea is completely absurd, yet I am willing to bet that no one has ever told themselves this in a while.

Guess what? If school is going to take you four, five, six years, you'll just be a lot older than that, whether you're going to school or not. Would you not be happier and more secure in that situation, or would you simply not be an elder?

What do you think ______?

Listen, there is nothing that a person does or thinks or says to us or that has nothing to do with us. It’s all about their hang-hangs, insecurity, and jealousy.

We all use filters of our own experience in what we see other people doing with their lives, and the chances that our interpretation and even those close to us are far away.

People will not accept me.

I can't even be rude about this because you're probably right. There will be at least one person who can get on the board with your true vision for your life. But you know what? For each person you don't understand, there are fifty people you will ever be - you just haven't met.

This is not the right time.

Fact: There will be no timing. Waiting for the right moment is simply a way to escape from fear. Now is the time to go. You will fix things as you go.

Am I crazy?

No. Keep mentally healthy. It is your version that you believe life was meant to be a boring nonsense.

Is this fair?

Yes. A million times, yes.

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Therefore. Are you ready? Let's do this. Let's get our dreams back and if we do that we will encourage others to do the same.

Because life is too short to spend waiting for a startup.