Bryan Parady's Blog, page 47

Asking the Question

I heard someone make a pretty awesome statement this week.  He said, “If you are continually asking the question you are probably the one who needs to answer it.”

We often ask why something is happening, or “why doesn’t someone do something about this?”

In reality if something is bothering us that much then there is something within us that needs to address it.

We live in a culture that tends to think someone else will take care of it if there is a problem.  But if we see a problem we are meant to take care of it, not someone else.

Anything we are passionate about seeing differently we need to jump in and tackle the problem with both hands.  Problems are meant to be fixed, and we are meant to fix them.  In fact we are not fully alive until we begin to solve problems.

So what do you see that needs to be fixed?  Get after it.

 

New Things

You may have heard me mention that I am about to start something new in the next couple months that for me is pretty drastic.  While I’m still not at liberty to talk about what it is, I will say that the process is very crazy for me.

I am a very routine person.  I like routine.  A lot.  Sometimes so much that it brings me down.  It keeps me from just starting things and going and doing because I am too worried about breaking out of my routine.

Now don’t get me wrong I am really good at following routine.  But anything in excess can drag you down.

So for me as I start this new process, it’s definitely going to be breaking me out of routine, it’s not something I can completely plan for and I don’t know fully what to expect out of it.  Sure I can find out a lot, but it won’t be the same as once it starts.

While it can be very scary, it is also exciting.  And I can’t wait to share  my news with you in the coming months.

In the meantime, try new things.  I can definitely vouch it’s scary, but it’s exciting too.

Go for it!

Never Stop Exploring

 

Travel is not only an adventure it is an experience. It opens up your eyes to see that there is so much more than your own backyard.

My wife and I are travel fanatics, and while we don’t get to travel as much as we would like, we’ve managed to visit five countries in 3 years.

There is nothing like exploring another culture.  Seeing how other people live, getting a glimpse at different parts of the world, finding out what their country is like, what their climate is like, and what the people are like.

Nothing helps open up your eyes to realize that we are but a small portion of the world than traveling to a distant country where you don’t  know the language, and have no idea of what the customs are day to day life looks like.

If you get the chance, travel to other countries.  It is by far so worth it.

Throw Yourself Into Life

Have you ever really gotten caught up in the in and out responsibilities of life?  You get up, drop your kids off, go to work, go to college, snag some quick meals, get home, spend a few minutes talking to your significant other or roommate and then hit the pillow, only to do it all over the  next day?

Life has a way of getting us caught up in the flow of it.  While we do have responsibilities we need to meet on a daily basis, life isn’t just about those either.  Often we throw ourselves so much in what we have to do that we completely lose sight of what we want to do.

While I can’t just go quit my job and go workout all day, there are things I can do when I do have off time to chase after my interests.  And we all do.  We have time for what we want to have time for.

If we have time to watch Dr. Who every Saturday night, then we also have time to delve into a project we really want to do, or read about something that really interests us.

Life is meant to be lived to its fullest.  Your dreams and passions are not inside of you just so that you can let other people tell you your dumb or crazy, or just for you to ignore.  Pursue them, go after them, don’t let people or time stand in your way.

You Are Unique

You are unique.  You are your own individual.  You don’t have to explain yourself, don’t have to hide yourself.

Your passions, your dreams, your goals are awesome.

You don’t have to follow the norm, you don’t have to get the degree that’s expected, but get the one you want.

You don’t have to stay stuck in the job you hate.  Get your resume together and go after that dream job.

You don’t have to fit the mold others expect of you.

That’s hard I know, especially in our one size fits all society.  Remember you are an individual, and who you are and what you are matters immensely. Don’t doubt that just because some can’t see that.

Be your unique self.

You’ll Never Know Unless…

 

Have you ever wondered how many things there are out there that we miss out on because we simply don’t take the step, or don’t act?

I know it’s really easy to get caught up in taking that first step.  We want everything to be really perfect before we start, we plan, we come up with a game plan, fill out the cons and pros, and then never do it.

We let our own selves talk us out of it.

Sometimes you have to take that step.  Life is messy, life is imperfect, there is no way you can plan for everything when you start something new.  There will be things you did not expect, diversions, and road blocks.  We may come out the other side at a totally different place than we thought.

But all that means is that we explored, we conquered and we learned.  Even if we don’t gain from it what we had hoped, or thought, we will come out of it with something new, something different.  We come out changed, stronger, more fearless, and more ready to tackle the next adventurous challenge.

Take that first step, be bold, and know that things won’t work out exactly as you think, but that’s okay too.

 

 

Fear Cripples

Fear is a crazy thing.  It is so incredibly easy to get completely enveloped by it.  We are scared to act why?  We fear rejection?  We fear losing?  We fear looking different?

American society has built up fear to be this omnipresence that wraps around everything and everyone….but fear is just a cloak that keeps us from seeing the bigger picture.

How often do you not chase after your dream because you are afraid?  How often do you not go up and talk to that person you really want to because you are afraid?  Not change jobs because you are afraid?

All fear does is keep us in this state of paranoia where we don’t do anything.

Most of what you fear will never happen, so go for that new job, that new relationship, that new dream.  Whatever it is face your fear, and walk right through it.

Why Not?

Why not?  Why not do what seems crazy?  Why not be what you want to be?

In life we are so quick to come up with reasons why not.  Christians are especially good at this, rather than using the excuse of whether or not something is rational, Christians say, “I don’t know you might want to pray about that.”

It’s shocking and it’s sad.  Christians should be bold about living out crazy and passionate dreams, instead we are the worst about making excuses.  It’s like there’s this pie in the sky mentality that all the problems in the world will someday magically disappear because “God will take care of it.”

Well actually God puts desires in people for a reason, and it’s not sit there and do nothing. He wants us to take crazy life altering risks.

It’s so easy to say well what if this goes wrong, or what if I fail…..so what?  What if you do?

You’ll grow, you’ll learn, you’ll be a stronger and wiser person.  Take risks and be bold!

Living A Lie

Sometimes there are points in our lives when we come to a discovery of ourselves.  We find ourselves seemingly for the first time.  Sure we’ve always known who we were, but  not really.  We’ve seen it through jaded eyes, through the lens of others expectations.

We have this tendency in life to think that if someone else doesn’t pursue the career choice that we deem best, then they are going about it wrong.

Or if they are raising their kids different than us then they are in the wrong.

Or if they are pursuing a relationship that we disagree with they are headed for trouble.

All this is just us being insecure and feeling we need to validate the way we live by invalidating other people.

Each of us as individuals is unique, none of us have the same exact personalities, dreams, or passions, and we shouldn’t.

Encourage others to go after things that are way different than how you would do it.  We need more creative people, more diverse actions.

Don’t live a lie because someone else thinks you should do plan A or B. And don’t make people feel that they have to live a lie because you think differently.

We are meant to build each other up.  Let’s start today.

Reconnect

 

Hope everyone is having a great labor day and maybe taking some time to reconnect with yourself.  Take some time to refocus on what you love, on your dreams, on your goals.  Where were you this time last year?  Where do you want to be next year.

Dream big, live loud, and chase your adventures, no matter how crazy.