What does it take for you to shift from “I can’t” to “I can?”  For me, it take pressure.  “Pressure Can-ing,” if you will.

Through the work I’ve been doing on me with Klemmer, I’ve come to realize a few things in the past couple of years.  Chief among them is that I matter.  What I want – my dreams and desires – they matter.  My life is more than just a day-to-day existence.  There’s a purpose for me being here.  And to me, pursuing that purpose – those dreams and desires – is the ultimate expression of my faith.

The work I’ve been doing on me is in some ways the most difficult work I’ve ever done.  Because it’s challenging the “I can’t’s” in my life.  “I can’t” work on my dream startup full-time, from home, because we don’t have the funding.  “I can’t” go buy an Escalade because we already have three vehicles.  “I can’t” release weight because I really enjoy food. 

You see, each of those three things is standing in the way of me fulfilling my purpose. 

My purpose is to build the wall and light the path.  Build the wall means establishing a place of safety.  In that safe place, people grow, develop and mature.  Light the path means living out a bold life of excellence that lights a pathway from safety to destiny.

In the past year, I’ve applied some pressure and can’d each of those can’t‘s.

In May, I got a call from a friend, “Hey, I’m selling my Escalade.  You want it?”  I bought it…and we donated our van.  Right now, that van is serving a lady who runs orphanages in Africa.  She’s in the U.S. itinerating, raising money to fund her work.  Those orphanages…they’re a wall of safety wherein people grow, develop and mature.  Right in line with my purpose.  And I couldn’t have donated the van without a suitable replacement…like the Escalade. Turns out that pursuing a desire in one area (the Escalade) is in alignment with other areas (building walls of safety).

Last August, I released 50 pounds in six weeks.  While I’m not complete with my weight release objectives, having released those 50 pounds, I now fit in an airplane seat.  I even have a little extra seatbelt strap, rather than needing an extender.  That’s a move that lights a path toward excellence in living out my life.

This past June, I took a bold step and negotiated with my employer to invest my salary into the startup so that I could focus on developing the technology full-time.  The CEO was excited and eager to do it.  From his perspective, it was a win-win.  He gets an ownership in the startup, the startup gets the product faster, and he gets someone he trusts to lead the effort.  For me, it’s an integration of my work and my life.  They’re no longer opposing forces that require balance, and that’s propelling me forward.  Bold.  And, an great example of a life of excellence.

So….

What’s your purpose?  Why are you here?  And how is what you’re doing today helping you get to where you say you want to be tomorrow?

And where will you apply a little pressure to transform those “I can’t’s” into “I can’s!”