Anticipate Your Apprehension

"There are two ways to face the future. One way is with apprehension; the other is with anticipation."
- Jim Rohn

With a baby on the way, this quote couldn't be any more true! There's no end to the unsolicited advice and limitless warnings of "you just wait until you have a baby." Every once in a while there will be what seems to be an accidental comment about the joys of being a parent, but with the constant cautions of what's to come, it can easily become overwhelming to think about the responsibility that lies ahead. Whether or not you buy into the fears that are being thrown your way, anticipation is the key to making it through. After all, being apprehensive would likely keep you from ever achieving the true rewards that can come from being a parent.

Throughout the years of owning a business, we have been fortunate enough to have many successes. Most of this success comes from anticipating opportunities and challenges that lie ahead. It's natural to get apprehensive about big "game-changing" decisions, but you can't let that fear keep you from pushing forward. It's impossible to anticipate every possible scenario, but by changing your focus to anticipation, rather than apprehension, it may just mean the difference between success and failure.

Outside of the office, the stakes may seem even higher, after all, the things you're apprehensive about might turn out to be something you have to live with your entire life! None of us can predict the outcome of every situation (unless you happen to be a psychic), so being apprehensive may be counterproductive to the success you're trying to achieve. Such things as buying a house, getting married and having children are all big decisions to make in life, and being apprehensive about them may just stop you from ever achieving them at all. Naturally with the housing market the way it is today, current divorce rates and the doom and gloom of the world, it may have you thinking twice about buying a house, getting married and bringing a child into this world, but how do you know for sure the future is going to be any better than now? If you want it, go after it and get it, just be sure to anticipate the possible outcomes along the way and you'll be in a much better position to handle what life throws at you!

There's no magic formula that helps everyone make it through the tough decisions, but if you can anticipate your own apprehension, you just may find a key to unlock your own potential in achieving the true rewards in life. For me, that's a family and a home, but for you it may be something else. Regardless, apprehension won't help you face the future.