Keys to the City

Do you suffer from fear of greatness?

 

It’s ok, there’s so many people out there just like you. Terrified of the idea of being great. You think so lowly of yourselves, think that you must fit in with everyone else, become the failures of those who surround you. You allow your limitations to define you, instead of using them to elevate you. 

 

I’m just thinking out loud here… I wonder how the the first lock smith came about. I’d imagine he encountered a locked door, or lost his keys, or maybe even he was up to no good; yet still, that locked door did not stop him from reaping his reward. That’s how it is in life, so many of us see an obstacle, a locked door, and we turn and go home saying “The door was locked, it wasn’t mean to be”. 

 

How bad do you want it is the question????

 

Sometimes the door isn’t even locked, it’s just closed, but you’ll never know until you turn the handle. Sometimes you’ve got the key already on your keyring, but you never know until you try it. Sometimes you can be the locksmith, but you never know until you try it. 

 

Honestly? If it were me… and the only thing stopping me from getting to my legacy were a measly door…. I’m bringing out the key to the city.

 

Is this what comes to mind when you think key to the city?

 

 

That’s what I figured…

 

I’m talking about the militaristic Zero Dark 30 keys… breaching the door down. 

 

Nothing can stop me from being great. If God is for me, who can be against me? A locked door. **scoffs**

 

 

“Charge is checked… CLEAR”

**EXPLOSIONS**

 “How dare you get in my way you puny little door?”

Be persistent, be motivated, be encouraged. Stop making excuses for why you can’t be great. “Oh well the door was locked so it wasn’t meant to be” Replace those excuses for reasons why you can and will be great.

 

See that’s the difference between good and great, mice and men. Mice are going to come up with every reason why it’s not meant to be and why they can’t achieve. Why they’re not destined to be great. Why the situation or the relationship wont work. But men, like the man I wish to be, like the engineer that I am? I’m going to go get the C4 and blow that door of the hinges…. not even going to be polite about it. I’m going to come up with every possible way to make it work.

 

You are your own limitations. Your “can’t do” mindset is 99% of the time the only thing that’s stopping you. 

 

I wan’t to tell a funny story about how I made the varsity basketball team. Because I actually didn’t make the team. Honestly. I went to tryouts, I showed up on time, I’d played JV 3 years prior, my [pro basketball player] dad knew the coach, I worked my ass off, but when it came down to the 12 people that made the cut… I didn’t.

 

But I was damned determined to make the team. So when the list was posted… after the initial disbelief, I grabbed a pen and wrote on the [printed] sheet 

13. Craig Sutters

And surely enough I showed up to practice that day. And the next day. And the next day. The coach laughed at me… the players laughed at me… but yo…. I made that damn team and I got a jersey and I rode the bench, maybe averaged 2 points for the season. It’s not that I was “that bad” but our team was “that good”, ended up making it pretty far through the state finals. Until playing a team who [allegedly] had the ref’s on their side, on their home court… they shot 18 freethrows in a half… to our none. We couldn’t buy a foul. But oh well. Life happens.

 

Never let anyone tell you “no” when they don’t have the power to tell you “yes”

That’s how I live my life, that’s one of my golden rules. Most importantly, never have the self defeating mindset that you cannot achieve. Many times you don’t even know what you’re capable of. That’s why the #basicinstructions say “Walk by faith, not by sight”. There’s so many possibilities in this world that you couldn’t even fathom. Reason: You’re only able to think of things under your own understanding, based on the experiences that you’ve gone through, the knowledge that you currently possess. Dream big, then dream bigger, God will guide you to wherever you wish to go… through that door, over that obstacle. 

 

There’s a line out the door of people who told me I couldn’t do many of the things that I’ve done. I love you all. Your doubt is my inspiration. Someone told me I couldn’t work management at a Fortune 500 company without a degree. I love proving you wrong. Maybe, you’ll see that you can’t doubt me to death. Maybe the naysayers will spend their negative energy and use it as positivity in themselves. I mean negativity is primarily hurting the person that spews it out. 

 

Understand that your lack of faith in yourself is incapable of rubbing off on me. I’m going to always be that guy who will show you that I can set my mind to something and achieve. I’m going to kill you with kindness along the way.

 

Here’s another belief that I’d like to share, there’s negative energy and positive energy. You have so much time, effort, ability that you can exert in a given day. If you give 100% to positive, you’re so much more likely to succeed. All negativity is against you. Replace negativity with positivity. Reduce that drag. Imagine if you were in a car, you’re mashing the gas, but have your foot on the brakes at the same time. That’s what you’re doing when you thing negatively, you’re slowing yourself down, you’re keeping yourself from your full potential. You’re trying to win right? Why wouldn’t you mash the gas and use race fuel and have the spoilers set and windows rolled up to reduce drag and hit every shift perfectly? You’re trying to win right?

 

YOU’RE TRYING TO WIN RIGHT?!

YOU’RE TRYING TO WIN RIGHT?!

YOU’RE TRYING TO WIN RIGHT?!

 

The first step to winning is believing that you can win. The second step is to stop sabotaging yourself by holding back. The third and final step is to give it your all and win. How many people told Barack Obama he couldn’t be president? How many people told Steve Jobs he couldn’t change the world? These are Gods creations too. Believe it or not.

 

This is how I feel about everything in life, most certainly relationships. So when I ask you “Do you want to give it a shot?” don’t tell me “It might not work because….” that defeated thinking has already lost. We already broke up. If you go into it thinking every reason why it can and will work… then we’re already living happily ever after. If and when we do encounter setbacks and obstacles, we’re looking for ways to make it work, ways to win together. I know one… God. I mean God is love right?

 

I mean God is love right?

I mean God is love right?

I mean God is love right?

 

Everytime you say “What if…?” you’d better be saying it in the most positive light possible. “What if we stay together forever?… What if I DO get the job?…. What if I DO make it to the league?”

Damn the don’t.

Dare to be great. Dare to succeed. Dare to do things that have never done before.

 

Ask yourself with complete honesty: Are you more scared to fail or are you just scared to succeed?

 

Love only. Love Always.