Redpoint Fitness

May 12 2010 The Difference Between Hope and Vision

By Paragon
Copyright 2009, RedPointFitness.com

I remember a conversation I had with a very good friend, about 4 years ago, this time. We were talking about things we wanted in life, and we got to talking about motorcycles. Dude wanted a Ducati 996 told me he was going to get it. Now, when he said this, make no mistake there was nothing but clear conviction, certainty, and decisiveness that absolutely permeated the tonality of his words to the core. I swear to youI heard the statement, and kind of took it as he already had oneit just wasn’t in his garage yet. Fast forward 4 years it’s sitting in his garage right now as we speak.

Another friend of mine I used to lift with back when I was a kid, (back when I used to do stupid routines from magazines because that’s what the pros did )used to tell me how he was going to be on the cover of one of those popular lifting magazines one day. Strange thing is was that when he said it, I believed him for some reason. It was that same lucid, convictive, and decisive tone I heard in the aforementioned story. Fast forward VERY young guy, stronger than you wouldn’t believe, 250 pounds of solid muscle all natural as well. Give him about 6 years. If you are here in six years or so, I will post his picture on the cover because I guarantee you he’ll be on the cover of a magazine. His progress and journey are right on track to get him where he wants to be. Mark those words

I have been thinking, reflecting, reminiscing if you will about events that have transpired throughout my life and the lives of those close to me. I can’t tell you how many examples I can give you of stories like the ones above, in all kinds of areas from work, to relationships, lifting, business company start-ups, etc. I chose those two specifically to convey the ‘real worldness’ of it all, because some others I have are more like fairy-tales come true and would be unbelievable to most people if they simply heard it instead of saw it happen. That being said, they are all nonetheless true, but those stories are for another time.

Now I like to surround myself with positive, success oriented people, and these people in their minds success is the only option. That’s why these stories are so numerous in the reality that WE construct and so sparse in the realities that the majority of society constructs, which is one of mediocrity and false hope. When (and if) you listen to most people, when they have goals, aspirations or something they want or something they are working for, when they talk about it you hear or feel an aura of HOPE that ‘halos’ their words. They HOPE they get that new promotion, they HOPE to lose that 25 pounds, they HOPE to hit a PR at the gym. I want you to take a minute and imagine or think back to a time when you HOPED something would happen. Do you feel what that feels like? Now, I want you to imagine a time when you absolutely knew, 100% with every rudiment of your being that something was going to happen, be it a positive outcome in regards to a goal or life event, whatever it was. Do you feel the difference in your body? Maybe its muscle tension, maybe it’s a feeling of serenity versus anxiety, it will be different for different people. The bottom line is that the difference is there and it lies in the fact that when you HOPE something will happen, you lack the clarity and conviction needed to MAKE it happen. In the world in which we live, there is no room for hope if you want to do what you want to do. Success in the gym, on the job, in the home it all starts with a simple VISION. You see where you want to go, what you want to do, who you want to be, and you then decide that it’s going to happen.

When we add that little element of hope in there, it takes us out of our element, out of a reality where success is in our own hands and transports us to one where success is merely a gift bestowed upon us by fate in this life we see as far too fleet. Is that really the reality in which you want to live? For many, indeed it is because we are straying from taking personal responsibility for where we are at in our lives, but that’s a whole entire different topic/rant

So what’s the deal here? How should we wrap this up? Well, simply put hope gives you a way out. Hope takes it out of your hands JUST enough making it seem JUST out of reach. Subconsciously or consciously, this can make all the difference in the world and is often the last barrier people need to overcome in order to achieve their goals instead of just watch their chances dissipate before their own eyes like so many people often do. You see, most people would rather still have a dream than have TRIED (notice the wording) to pursue the dream and not have it manifest in reality. I say to hell with both of those options. I say when you get to the fork in the road, go straight. But if you’re going to do that, you need VISION, then DECISION. See then go. There is no other option apart from success. If you train your mind to think in that way, you will see dramatic changes in the results you are getting not only in the gym, but in life as well. Start with smaller things, and work your way up to bigger things. Remember you are rewiring your thought process so this is not something you will be doing it’s rather what you will become. We are not human being, but rather human becoming. I cannot take credit for that last statement, but I feel it rings true. ENVISION the person you want to become, and then DECIDE to become it. Years ago, a part of me would have liked to HOPE that those of you who took the time to read this would get something out of it, and I’m sure before reading this article you would have HOPED to take something away from it as well. But since you are here at RedPoint, I KNOW that you personally will decide to make the changes you need to make to become that person that you’ve always wanted to be. Decide to evolve today!