Firstly, I would like to thank
you again for your support over the past four years. I am pleased to share
the news that I have been selected as one of the 41 recipients of the
Spirit of Enterprise 2006 Award for having founded Gone Fishing café
together with my wife in 2002.
Our lives have not changed a
single bit as a result of the award, but it did draw a deluge of familiar
questions from the media as well as curious individuals such as “Why did
you leave a corporate career to start this café?”, “Is there any regret?”
and “What gave you the courage to make this major change in your life?”
The final question got me thinking a little deeper. It reminded me of the
famous Serenity Prayer:
God, grant us the
serenity
to accept the things
we cannot change,
courage to change
what we can,
and wisdom to
know the difference.
My 'life story' has been made
public many times, be it on air or in print, and its essence remained the
same: the usual drama of a young professional giving up a promising career
to pursue his dreams. But what is often omitted, is the mention of
the true source of courage that brought about the change.
Four years ago, I made a
decision that completely changed my life, one that consequently changed
the lives of my family members as well. I decided to establish a new life
that is truly centered on some of most important things in my life. At the
core, lies my family as well as a passion for personal development. I
realized that while I could not change the life situations that have
resulted from past choices and actions, I could indeed change what I was
doing so as to create the future I have dreamt of. I dreamt of spending
plenty of time daily with my wife and being actively involved in raising
our two children. I dreamt of doing work that I love, work that is
meaningful and fulfilling, work that makes a positive difference to
others’ lives.
Creating the future through our actions in the present is no new major
revelation. To create a new result, we naturally need new actions. While
it sounded perfectly logical and convincing, many continue to fail at
putting it into practice. What is stopping us from taking new actions?
What is really holding us back from doing something different and pursuing
our dreams or passion?
The one factor which separates dreamers from doers is the absence of
COURAGE. As mentioned in the Serenity Prayer, knowing what we could change
is only one part of the equation. As human beings, we are all creatures of
comfort. Be it dreamers or doers, it is natural to experience some degree
of fear on any form of change. However, it is not the unknown that we
fear, but the need to give up the comfort and sense of security that a
change entails. The difference is that doers continue to take actions in
spite of fear, while dreamers continue to be imprisoned by their
attachment to the 'comfort zone.' The former is powered by a desire
to create the future, while the latter is held hostage by an unwillingness
to let go of the security from remaining status quo.
Each of us is driven, motivated and inspired by a different set of
factors. We draw our courage to take actions and effect the changes we
wish to experience in our lives from different sources. In my case, the
courage to leave the comfort of employment and strike out on my own came
from two primary forces. The first is the support I got from my
loving wife to go forth confidently in the direction of my dreams.
The other is a desire to show our children not to be afraid of following
one's heart. With that, I took a leap of faith and never looked back.
I wish that someday, you will
find your own source of courage to make the changes you wish to see in
your life.
Best fishes,
Kenny, the Fisher