In arguably the turning point
of the inspirational Facing the Giants movie
(see the video clip at www.youtube.com/watch?v=-vB59PkB0eQ),
the coach asks the captain of his football team, Brock, to do
the death crawl on the field. Brock had resigned himself to
losing the next football match, so the coach wanted to show
him that he can actually triumph in "facing the
giants" if he only kept going and doing his best.
He made Brock crawl blindfolded
across the field with a teammate on his back. There are times
when Brock wanted to rest or stop, but the coach kept up a stream
of positive talk and encouragement until Brock reached the end.
When Brock realized he had actually
crossed the entire field, his self-concept and his belief about
his team changed forever. He had faced his giants
and defeated them; he's now ready to win over the next.
Like Brock, you may have found
yourself pitted against giants that stand in the way between
you and your dream. Surprisingly, these are giants you have
either created yourself or allowed others to create for you.
There are basically three giants you have to defeat to achieve
your dreams.
1) Facing the Giants of
Perceived Limitations.
In doing the death crawl, Brock
felt he could only do 20 yards. The coach blindfolded him so
that he would not stop when he believed he had gone far enough.
Finally, when he had the chance to look, he realized he had
actually crawled 100 yards across the entire field! He would
have never done it had he allowed himself to stop based on his
perceived limits.
Also, being used to defeat, Brock
felt his team would lose the next match. Even before the opponent
team played with his, they had already defeated Brock's team
in his mind. In being programmed for defeat, Brock is setting
his team up for it. But after doing the death crawl, he was
to change his whole attitude.
Have you set limits for yourself
that you don't even try to reach for your dreams because of
these? At some point in your life, have you told yourself any
of the following?
"I can't do it."
"I'm not really good at <insert skill here>."
"I am too young / old to do this."
"It's no use trying. I won't get it anyway."
"I'll never get that <insert the thing you desire here>."
"It has always been like this."
Sound familiar? You are not alone
in this thinking.
But do you know what successful
people do? They do not set limits for themselves. At some point,
they may have thought any of the things mentioned above, but
they are quick to replace it with a positive thought. In setting
no limits and expecting only the best, they reach their dreams
- sometimes, something even better!
So here's the secret - you have
no limits. Whatever you want, you can get. Facing the
giants of life can be easy if you have the right mindset
and attitude.
2) Facing the Giants of
Disbelief.
This is related to your perceived
limitations. But this is more along the lines of thinking "it's
too good to come true" or "it's too ideal to happen."
In the movie, Brock couldn't
believe that his team could actually win. But when he and his
teammates got rid of this thinking, they were ready for great
things to happen.