Most people live life wondering what could have been. They wonder how their life would have turned out differently if they took a leap of faith without knowing exactly how things would turn out.
As someone who chose a path far different from my peers, I am overall satisfied with the way my life is turning out.
I was one of six in my graduating class of 200 individuals who decided to join the U.S. Army out of high school and take a gap year to travel before attending basic training.
To be honest, I felt alone.
Straying from the crowd tends to work out better.
Everyone else was headed off to college to pursue their degrees and I was traveling and taking a chance on the Army without knowing how it would turn out.
Thanks to the Army, I opened my perspective up to the world. I found my passion in writing and investing.
When I came back home, I had landed a marketing/social media job that I had always been striving for and found a way to monetize my creativity through writing.
Without experimenting with my creativity with YouTube, writing, and Instagram, I would have never fully opened myself up to the many available opportunities.
When I went to school for marketing, I earned money working at a movie theater and doing dog walks. I was attending college and making more than $600 every week without putting in a ridiculous amount of hours.
Opportunities are everywhere if you experiment and look a little.
Living in America, coming from a good family, having a supportive girlfriend, friends, and army buddies have all given me tremendous opportunities.
I’m so grateful that I took a chance on myself and hopped on a path I am proud of. It hasn’t all been sunshine and rainbows. There have been times where my investments took a deep nosedive.
There have been times where I got rejected from a great opportunity. There was a time where I failed a college class. There was a time when I felt so damn alone.
Now, I’m very close to moving out with my girlfriend, working multiple jobs that can pay the bills and still allow us to live a comfortable lifestyle, and I couldn’t be happier.
Life is too short to hold back.
One film that motivated me to say yes to more opportunities was Yes Man. Before watching the movie, I was so fearful about everything.
Now, I welcome challenges, extra responsibilities, and seek discomfort.
Without this mindset, I would be 23 years old and extremely upset with my life. Straying from the crowd, taking a chance on myself, and trying new things worked out in my favor.
It doesn’t always work in everyone’s favor — not right away at least.
Finding yourself is going to take some time, and it took me five years after high school to finally have a decent grasp of what my future was going to look like.
Takeaway
If there’s something you want to take a chance on, and you’re lucky enough to be young, take the leap of faith.
Struggle, scratch, claw, do whatever it takes to make it happen.
Personally, Gary Vee helped me overcome a lot of my challenges, and he is a great resource to start with. Identify what it is that you want to achieve, do the research, grind, fail, and finally, succeed.
The older we get, the less time, motivation, and dedication we’ll have for our goals. So now is the time to act. Not later.
Later may never come.