Are you willing to push your limitations?  If not, why not?  What is holding you back?  One of my favorite quotes is from Henry David Thoreau, “Most men lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them.” 

I refuse to die with the music still in me.   Life is way too short not to live with passion and fire.   My dream since I was twenty three years old was to have my own fitness business.   After thirty years that dream has finally come true. 

I took that leap of faith about two years ago when I decided to leave the comfort and security of a six figure sales job that was stealing my soul.   I lived in quiet desperation every day feeling like a square peg trying to fit into a round hole.  It just wouldn’t fit. 

How did I go from living in quiet desperation to living my purpose? 

BELIEVE…COMMIT…COURAGE

The first step was I had to believe that God had more in store for me.   That He wanted to use my passion for health and fitness to help people get stronger, healthier and more physically fit.  God called me to help people build their physical strength as a way to build their spiritual strength.  So many people I work with have lost sight that they are created in God’s image and they stop seeing themselves the way God sees them.   

Once I started to see myself the way God sees me is when I had the courage to take a chance and start my own fitness ministry.   I decided the risk of failing was worth the chance of getting out of quiet desperation and back to feeling fully alive. 

The second step I took was I made a commitment to leave my job and start my own business.  I circled a date on my calendar of when I was going to quit and I made it happen.  I worked my tail off to pad my savings account as much as possible so I had a year’s cushion as I knew it would take time to get up and running.  That savings account has been greatly depleted, but I am happy to report that I am making a profit after one year of being full time in my fitness business. 

The third step to pushing my limitations was courage.  I was afraid of leaving the comfort and security of a high paying job, company car and health insurance.  Those are all great things, but not worth losing my soul over.  The definition of courage is being afraid and doing it anyways. 

I remember telling people that I was leaving the pharmaceutical industry and the response I usually got was “Wow, that is amazing.  That takes a lot of courage.  I wish I could do that.”

Well you know what, if you are living in quiet desperation and don’t feel fully alive in your life because you aren’t living with passion and fire, you can push your limitations too.   We need more people who are fully alive. 

Don’t be the person who goes to your grave with the music still in you.  Take a chance.  Believe in yourself.  Start to see yourself the way God sees you.  Make the commitment to make a radical change in your life.  And most importantly, have the courage to take action. 

Troy Ismir, MS

Spiritual Warrior