In the movie "Pursuit of Happyness" (2006), Will Smith's character (Chris Gardner) says to his son, "Don't ever let somebody tell you you can't do something - not even me." He continues, "You got a dream...You gotta protect it. People can't do somethin' themselves, they wanna tell you you can't do it. If you want somethin', go get it. Period." The quote may sound extra cute and sugary to some of you, but within the context of the movie, it was a really powerful statement. I am a big proponent of the quote, primarily due to the fact that I have always believed it and applied it to my life. The quote also packs plenty of "punch" for those who need some inspiration to re-fuel their ambition right now. I believe every person has the right to determine his or her destiny, and that no other person should be given the right to limit another person's dreams or happiness. If you work hard and are determined to achieve a particular goal, you have every right to keep on pushing forward without letting other people interfere with your ambition. You also have the right to keep pushing on in the middle of a setback. Think about a successful person you know, and/or any successful person you see in the media (think Bill Gates, Oprah, and the list goes on). Many successful people dealt with people or situations that either tried to directly limit or abort their success, and/or tried to indirectly halt or abort their dream goals. However, when all is said and done, you have the ability and right to push on forward toward your dream, despite the existence of naysayers that may be surrounding you. Absolutely no one can take that right away from you.
Achieving success usually means overcoming some sort of obstacle along the way - so don't cancel out your dreams even though it feels like you're facing a wall. For every achievement in my life, I always made a conscious choice to push forward if and when an obstacle crossed my path. An obstacle may look and feel defeating at first, but it is so important to realize that it will only be a permanent brick wall if you allow it to be a brick wall. Even if you don't have anyone around you to encourage you on a regular basis, I really hope that you will continue on and push forward toward your dream, and push all the critics to the side as you step into your next achievement in life. :)
