If the single man plant himself indomitably on his instincts, and there abide, the huge world will come round to him. – Emerson
Our instincts are one of the most valuable resources nature gave us. We see this in nature all the time, too, from your family dog to animals trusting their instincts for survival.
Many people, however, ignore or do not trust their instincts. I think this is because our instincts, what is coming from our heart and deep down in our gut, usually wants to take us someplace we’ve never been and the never been can seem scary at first.
We are not going to accomplish anything of substance in our lives staying where we’ve always been, though. There’s no way. The only way anyone makes any progress in anything whatsoever is becoming someone he’s never been and going someplace he’s never gone.
If the single man plant himself indomitably on his instincts…
Everyone who has had any success in life has been in the position of having to trust their instincts and take the first step on an unknown road. So has everyone who has not been a success. The difference is successful people, regardless of the road they embarked on, had the courage to take that first step into the unknown.
After you’ve followed your instincts into the unknown often enough it becomes second nature and you don’t think twice about it, one of life’s great prizes. But the first time can be tough for anyone. To deny that is folly. It’s like birds at the edge of a bird cage: they can see the unknown but when they look back their food and water right there for them. On the one hand, the bird wants to fly away. On the other hand, there’s security in the cage.
We are not going to accomplish anything of substance in our lives if we stay in the cage. If we are listening to our instincts, they are telling us exactly that: that us humans must fly.
