Real Power Through Success and Failure

CHAPTER ELEVEN THE REAL FULFILLMENT REALIZING YOUR IDEAL Every ideal, whatever it may be, has a magical quality: It is linked to us, and transmits something of its very quintessence. If we have chosen a very high ideal, it will constantly supply us with beneficial particles and currents. Since we have shaped it and kept it in our mind and our heart, it will always be there to improve conditions in our life which our ideal has prepared for us. —Omraam Mikhaël Aïvanhov It is your divine right to dream. One of the greatest gifts you have is the ability to make your dreams come true. You have the privilege and the power to shape your thoughts and change your paradigm in a way that allows you to manifest your desires, achieve your goals and obtain what you truly want from life. But until you are ready to hold the mantle of your ideal, you will seldom bring into the world the magnificence you possess deep within yourself. To realize your ultimate aim or endeavor it ought to be imperative enough to move your own soul, inspire others to act and be erected upon the proper pillars of fulfillment. Imperative iDEALTM Your ideal is the prophecy you will one day unveil. —James Allen The dictionary defines ideal as “an ultimate object or aim of endeavor, especially one of high or noble character.” Your ideal is your conception of the ultimate life and legacy most suitable for you. The life you want to live should complement the legacy you wish to leave. As your eternal creed, they shouldn’t resist but reinforce each other. Your life is guided by your purpose, which is why you exist. How you live that life is your mission. What you will do with your life is your vision, and your worth is your significance. Your ideal, therefore, is the combination of your purpose, mission, vision, and significance. Your ideal needs to be an overarching message that defines your destiny. The fusion of your inspired purpose, compelling mission, powerful vision, and imperative significance creates an imperative ideal. When your purpose stimulates self-expansion and your mission arouses self-confidence, you’re authentic. There are two major parts to your ideal. The first part is the life you want to live, and the second part is your legacy. In 1919, Marcel Tolkowsky, a Belgian diamond cutter, coined the term “ideal cut” and changed how the world looked at diamonds forever. What did he mean by ideal cut? Ideal because he’d discovered the most precise proportions of a diamond’s cut to reveal its utmost brilliance, fire, and sparkle. After nearly one hundred years, we still fantasize about the ideal cut, which is the benchmark for how diamonds are assessed. Why? Simply because the ideal cut, though not perfect, is the best proportioned cut for a diamond to refract and reflect almost all the light that enters it, thus revealing its beauty and value. We exhibit the same qualities as a diamond. Like diamonds, we are not all created equal. Like diamonds, we come in many different colors, shapes, and sizes. Like diamonds, we are all unique and magnificent. Like refining a diamond, it is the process of refinement through the rough patches of hard work, dedication, and failure that chisels away all the unwanted baggage in our life, strengthens our resolve, polishes our character, and brings out our radiance. And like diamonds, it is the realization of our power, the use of our ideas, services, skills, and talents for the welfare of humanity, and our compelling ideal that increase our worth and make some more valuable than others. The more compelling and concise your ideal is, the more inspiring, motivating, and powerful it will be. As you pursue your ideal, it stimulates inward evolution and growth, which ultimately brings fulfillment—because if you’re not evolving and growing, then you are declining and dying. For instance, consider the following: • Having a conception of your ideal man or woman prepares you to attract the partner you want. • Knowing your ideal job stirs something within you that increases your creativity and productivity—even at your current job. When you know where you want to be, you’re most likely to be more resourceful. • Knowing your ideal future helps you design the life of your dreams and not settle for lesser standards. • Knowing your ideal client(s) provides clarity about the customers you serve and services you provide. Your ideal, though not perfect, will guide you to a fulfilling life. When you refine your ideal, then like a diamond, you bring out your brilliance, magnificence, radiance, worth, and fire. Your ideal, congealed in God, is the source of your real power. To live in the presence of great truths and eternal laws, to be led by permanent idealsthat is what keeps a man patient when the world ignores him, and calm and unspoiled when the world praises him. Honore de Balzac