“BRICK BY BRICK”
By Jane Dovidio-Gagliardo
How did the Three Little Pigs get away from the big bad Wolf? How do you build your life? How do you build yourself up so you are able to experience a successful life? If your answer is “Brick by Brick,” you are right! If you build a rock-solid foundation for living the life you desire, what you are building will stand the test of time. Our careers and our lives are not any different.
Have you ever engaged in something and had a strange feeling that it was not right for you and then find yourself not knowing how to walk away from it or how to get out of the commitment? For me, it always seemed that if I allowed myself to get caught in this type of situation, it either fell apart or I developed the balls to speak up and walk away. I ask these questions to help you understand that if you build your life “Brick by Brick” moving methodically step-by-step rather than trying to rush the process, you can depend on your house never crumbling.
There are studies and I reference a book entitled Ultra-learning, by Scott H. Young, who provides a formula for building a solid foundation for life, career and everyday challenges. I highly recommend it if you’re interested in how becoming more structured might help you. For me, his theory on Getting Organized, Daily Routines and Physical Health was helpful. These three headings helped me to develop structure for rebuilding “Brick by Brick.” You might be wondering what is so hard about building “Brick by Brick?” Have you ever observed someone you love and care about build on a bed of straw… all the while bitching and complaining? When things finally fall apart, watching them is both painful and exhausting.
How do we teach or help someone to use Bricks to build on? We teach by example. Let people see how solid you are because you took the hard road. You planned and built “Brick by Brick.” And believe me when I tell you this does not happen overnight. It happens overtime by learning and nurturing each step as you endeavor to achieve your goal(s). Also prepare yourself… there will be times your bricks will fall and you have to rebuild certain parts of your foundation. But that’s a part of life lessons and lessons learned. This analogy of bricks is easy to picture in your mind because the wall will be strong and there will be tons of knowledge you will acquire as you lay each brick. Even if it fell at some point, the lesson is powerful. So, consider this. You are in charge of both your present and your future. Your successes and your failures will happen. But it will make you smarter, more caring and a whole lot stronger.
As you ponder the wisdom provided in this week’s blog, I leave you with this quote; “Success Is Not Final, Failure Is Not Fatal. It Is the Courage to Continue That Counts.” (Winston Churchill)
Stay Safe Stay Strong Stay Fearless
