Love All Of It

I sat for a while staring at the computer screen. I couldn't write. Not even a sentence. It had been a week since I started to write a new book but I had nothing. Each December I write a new book and it usually flows well, but not this time. This time I was filled with fear.

Fear that I would disappoint the people who enjoyed my other books. Fear that I couldn't live up to the success of The Energy Bus. Fear that people would say my best writing was behind me.

Fear that I would write a piece of junk.

I knew I had to conquer this fear and in that moment I was filled with thoughts that would not only help me overcome my fears but also become a significant lesson in the book I was writing, The Carpenter.

I realized the antidote to fear is love. So instead of the fear of failing I decided to focus on my love of writing, my love for the reader, and my desire to make a difference. From that moment on the book flowed, I wrote it in 2 1/2 weeks and discovered that if you focus on love, you will cast out fear.

Today I want to encourage you to do the same and build your life, work, business, school, project and team with love instead of fear. Remind yourself that if you aren’t building it with love it won’t become all that it can be. Only through love will you create something special, magnificent and compelling. Only through love will you build a masterpiece.

So if you are trying to build a business focus on the love you have of building it rather than the fear of losing it. If you work at a school focus on loving your students instead of fearing all the new testing standards. If you are a young athlete, dancer, musician or artist, focus on your love of playing and performing instead of your fear of failing. Worrying about the outcome and what people think will steal your joy and sabotage your success but loving and appreciating the moment will energize you and enhance your performance.

And if you are a coach or manager building a team, remember that that whatever you try to build with fear will eventually crumble. But that which is built with love will endure. If you build your team with love they will become more and do more than you ever thought possible.

Most of all, as you build with love, know that you will face many challenges and negative forces that can shift your focus back to fear if you let it. When this happens decide to LOVE ALL OF IT. When you love all of it you will fear none of it.

• Love the struggle because it makes you appreciate your accomplishments.
• Love challenges because they make you stronger.
• Love competition because it makes you better
• Love negative people because they make you more positive.
• Love those who have hurt you because they teach you forgiveness.
• Love fear because it makes you courageous.

The secret to life and the greatest success strategy of all is to love all of it and fear none of it.

- Jon