A cause strategy is our way of asking, “What’s the right way for you to give back to the world?” 

Some people react to that feeling as if giving back to the world is a monumental task, and that making the world a better place is outside of their control.  Others look at that question and take a simple, yet appreciated, route of monetary donations to charities in their communities or abroad. 

We believe that every one of us is born with a cause strategy. 

In our careers, we’ve become accustomed to talking about things we’re good at.  In our hobbies, we turn to our passions to decide how to spend our time. 

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One of the biggest reasons why people don’t achieve their goals is that they give up too easily.  They find an easy excuse (or ten) to tell themselves about why it will never work out.  

At first, they run on sheer excitement.  A dream of something better.  And when they take the first step, they get a taste of being closer to that dream coming true.  

And then life throws a curve ball.  The date with the cutie from the online dating site turned out to be an awkward disaster.  The job interview that went well didn’t turn into a job offer after all.  The goal to trek up a mountain suddenly seems impossible after the first few days of hiking.

Confucius summed it by saying, “Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”

And we have the power question to help you rise every time you fall:

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During one of my recent long runs, I opted to go iPod free, and instead just soak up some early morning peace and quiet while the city was waking up.   I’d like to think that many others out for a walk or run had a similar intent.  But I was shocked at what I noticed.

Have you ever passed someone on the street and heard just a snippet of their conversation? 

I often wish I could hear more about those stories that are being told with such vim and vigour.  But not that day.  Almost every snippet I heard was rooted in the negative.

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How often do you let yourself take risks in life?  If you’re like many people, it’s far easier to just roll with the status quo.  There’s comfort in knowing what to expect in your day.  At the office.  In your relationships. 

But what if you haven’t reached your potential? 

What if you could become more?   Would you take the risk?

The photo and inspiration for this post came from a walk around part of Vancouver’s seawall.  Painted on a rock near the Cambie Bridge were the words, “Take a Risk, Sweetheart.” 

And for us here at Free the Goldfish Coaching, that’s a mantra to live by.  In fact, the premise of freeing the goldfish lies in taking risks and becoming all that you can be.  

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Re-realizations.  It’s another one of our favourite terms here at Free the Goldfish Coaching.   Defined as a realization that seems to dawn on you time and time again. 

It’s the moment when you have an a-ha moment, only to remember that you’ve had the same a-ha moment before. 

There’s an old adage that says that life will keep teaching you the same lesson over and over until you learn it.  But like a good teacher, it won’t keep telling you the lesson in the same way, hoping that you’ll eventually get it. 

Nope.  Instead, life has an incredible skill to come up with clever scenarios, each one subtly different than the next, until you finally learn the lesson.   

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