Just the other week, I came across a challenge that seemed to feel like a brick wall had been build right in front of me with no way around it. I was shocked and disappointed at this new obstacle that appeared in my path and wasn’t quite sure how I was going to be able to overcome it. How frustrating to have my efforts halted by a nasty surprise. After sulking for a bit and wallowing in my frustration, I remembered the exercise I participated in at a seminar years ago.

I have always been a Tony Robbins Geek. I think I have listened to every talk he has ever put out, watched almost every You Tube video, and I have attended his famous Date with Destiny 4 day conference earlier in my career. As many of you know, once a year, Tony gives a special conference where he invites the audience to get into a state of mind where they willingly and eagerly walk on fire. Yes, these are barefooted strangers attending his seminar that choose to take off their shoes, roll up their pant legs and slowly walk across a bed of hot coals heated to 2,000 degrees and smile all the way through it.

I had been one of those willing and eager participants and the experience was exhilarating. What is the point you ask?

Well, if I told you to walk across fire with no protection other than your mind right now, you would probably shout a few expletives at me and tell me to get my head checked. True, yet, every year thousands of people do this and thousands of people realize that the only thing standing in their way of their own progress lies within themselves. They just didn’t know it. The whole point of the exercise for me was to be willing to open up my mind, take off the old barriers of fear and negative speak and choose success over failure. “I CAN over I CAN’T. “

So, with that demonstration of overcoming the impossible fresh in my mind, I began to work on my new barrier, the brick wall standing in front of me. I eventually found a way around it and am back on track to achieving my goal. Don’t give up when walls appear, just get focused.