I think back to a time when everything was comfortable. I think back to a time in my life when I was playing it safe. The funny thing about these times in my life is that I’m so glad I left them behind and accepted the challenges that presented themselves to me. If I had not made the hard decisions to take the less traveled routes in life, I would not be who I am today or where I am today.

Ever since I was a young boy I’ve known that I was special; I’ve always had an inner sense of knowing that has kept me connected to that fact. As a result I have always excelled faster than my peers in many areas and am generally a leader within my circle of influence. While that’s all-great and feels good to think about, the real question has always been: How will I manifest that greatness? How will I prove that to the world, to myself so that it’s not just something that my mother told me and I chose to believe as a child? How can I serve humanity in a way that can make an impact that can be seen for generations to come?

I call this the “contract of my destiny.” What is the contract of your destiny?

I believe that we all die two deaths. We die once when the last breath of air in our longings exits our bodies, and we die again when  our name is said for the last time on this planet. Through this perspective it is possible for those of us who can make an impact on humanity to live forever.

So the question still stands, how can it be done, how can you and I live forever? We know that every person is special ,but how can someone leverage their personal, “special” in a way that really makes a lasting difference in the world?

The answer lies in two very simple principles that are extremely difficult to carry out. But, just like all disciplines the execution of these principles becomes easier and easier through the means of consistency.

“ Nothing will bring you closer to destruction than comfort”

Principle #1: Stop following the crowd
As you create your world you must learn to avoid the comfort of the crowd because when you are inside of the crowd and following the status quo your personal spark and gift of individuality can becomes lost within the influences of the masses. It has been proven and is a scientific fact that the collective intelligence of groups is actually much lower then the intelligence of one person who has decided to think for his or himself.  

When people are in groups they have a tendency to adopt what we call a “pack mentality” and, thus, are more easily influenced to do horrible things, make bad decisions, hold each other back. History has proven this many times through stories of mass suicides and people being stabbed and raped openly in the streets with many individuals present but no one coming to help.

Crowds are not always friendly places for Autonomists and people who will to be masters of their own destinies. Because you will need to maintain a high level of motivation, focus and drive on your journey while swimming upstream. it is important that you separate yourself so that you can nurture and cultivate your own personal spark of talent, interest or individual power.

There is safety in the crowd but the small print in the contract of being just a number may eventually cost you your hopes, dreams and eventually your destiny.

 Principle #2: What is your root system comprised of?

Do you create your world and your life from a place of faith or fear?

 You may be telling yourself that you’re playing it safe and that may be what you’re intending to do but have you read the small print? What is playing it safe going to cost you in the end?

What if you played it safe when you went to the gym?
What if Gandhi played it safe?
What if Martin Luther King played it safe?

What if Steve Jobs, Bill Gates and Albert Einstein all decided early in their lives that they were going to play it safe? Were all just men and women who don’t realize that greatness lives on the inside of us.

We don’t grow or move forward by playing it safe in most areas in life. Yes there is a time for everything under the sun but I want you to realize that there is also a battle going on every day in your life between two opposing forces. One force is faith, and it is through the supernatural power of faith that humans accomplish greatness during their time on this planet.  Nothing  that we read about in history worthy of true greatness was done without either faith or love.

 The 2nd contender in this battle is fear. It would seem that fear is the more powerful of the 2two because he has so affectively controlled so many; but if the truth were told fear has a tendency to be all bark and no bite.

Once you have walked through the door and faced fear very often you find that things on the other side are not a fraction as bad as they looked or as bad as you imagined them to be. Fear is still worthy of being taken very seriously, however , because it has caused more human beings to go down to the grave suffering from mediocrity and underachievement than any other single force on our planet.

When fear writes you a contract it looks safe and it looks like a sure thing but the only thing it is sure to do is to stop you from growing as an individual and keep you from doing anything significant for humanity, which will ultimately result in a kind of slow death for your love of life and sense of purpose in this world.

When you sign a contract with faith ,on the other hand, fear will most definitely be present but as you walk in faith, achieving your goals through persistence and consistency it will not be long before fear has been muzzled and can render no effect to you until your next battle in life.

We must have faith if we are going to be great. We must have faith in each other, faith in ourselves and faith that God will show us the way to our own personal greatness. Through our lives the world can be a better place, and we can all live forever because of the faith, hope and love that we expressed to the world by delivering our own gift of individuality and message.

Next time you’re about to make a decision in life or feel that life has gotten tasteless and mundane, be sure to read the small print written on the contract that you’re living your life according to.

If you see that you’re playing it safe and living under the control of fear then you know the outcome and you need to make a conscious decision about what you want for your life. However, if you’re living by faith, you will never be bored, you will be experiencing a state of fulfillment, gratitude and progress in your everyday life. There is no reason, then, to check the contract because through an overwhelming sense of purpose and destiny, you know exactly where you’re headed.