by John Cane

Many people go through life doing what they think they’re supposed to do, while time to time wondering, “Is this it, this is what life is about?”  Why each of us is here has to do with our innate potential, our possibility to be.  It has nothing to do with money, it has nothing to do with acceptance or praise from others and it has nothing to do with being better than someone else.

Just recently a friend said to me something along the lines of, “When are you going to get a real job?”  Years ago I would have been offended by this, back when I was still trying to be what I was supposed to be and struggling at it at that.  Back then I thought wearing a suit and working for a huge organization was “it” for me.  I remember thinking “I finally made it.”  But somehow I felt I didn’t fit.  I finally quit that “real job”.  It hit me one day that I wanted to do what I needed to do.  I took on a number of odd jobs to create an adequate income: internet sales, limo driver, selling sunglasses at festivals, and finally what I loved to do—influence people to help them live a happier life or some would say, teach!

To make a long story short, I made this move because it was something that needed attention inside of me to do.  I started my own corporate training business and then became a motivational speaker.  Now you may have heard a story like this before, but many stories like this don’t include the hard parts.  Before I took my leap of faith, I had a dream, literally while sleeping.  I dreamt that I was in front of an enormous audience.  I mean like Carnegie Hall size of an audience.  Now understand at the time in waking life this scared me to death.  I was soooo uncomfortable with speaking in front of people I had to keep looking at my notes to keep from looking at all those eyes staring at me.  But the interesting part of the dream was, in the dream I felt it was right somehow and I was meant to be there.  So it came to me that in waking life I had to find a way to get there, and I did.  I put my self out there.

Suddenly I was thrown into a slew of speaking engagements through the chamber of commerce, local organizations, a local college, a career school and high schools.  Yes in the beginning I was nervous many times and very uncomfortable in front of people until one day.  I was asked to speak on a subject to help middle school children.  The organization which employed me to do this wanted me to follow their lesson plan to recruit individuals to their school.  They gave me all the materials to do this.  There was a lot to use, yet inside of me there was a voice that said, “This doesn’t make sense.”  So I decided on the way to the school to listen to that voice inside; I wrote an outline of just headings of what was needed to be said on a piece of paper on the seat.

It was amazing how easily it came to me what these kids really needed and at the same time it fit what the career school was offering, but in a different and better way.  When I got there the nervousness of speaking went away and all the information I needed to help them with came to me effortlessly.  From that point on I knew that if I gave people what they needed rather than think of what they thought of me, everything just flowed freely.  The more I could give, the more our Creator gave me to give.

Life is about connection.  Maybe you have heard that before.  But let’s see if this analogy will help.  The miracle of connection started at the beginning of time.  When there was nothing there had to be something, a spark for life to start.  And after that things grew to work together and adapt to growing change.

Now I know this is a dime-store analogy, however you can’t argue that everything did not come from nothing—because it did.  Where all this came from is another story.  The very real point here is the makings of potential for the Universe to happen are in all of us—quite a miracle, nothing to something.  That initial miracle of connection is in all of us and is ongoing.  Our ongoing experience of life and possibility allows us to feel our potential—the empowerment of it.  Our potential lies in wait for our experience to ignite it and share with others to continue to give life to that miraculous connection born in the beginning.  Our potential is a secret we may keep inside, however the Universe lives in and through us, awake and in dreams—Creation never sleeps.

About the Author

John Cane is a motivational speaker and writer who develops and implements confidence and self-esteem workshops in North Carolina, South Carolina, and New York. With a background in Psychology, John has six certifications in Personal Growth and Development.  His Journal Books, ‘Important Things I Remember from My Parents’ are used in schools and as an aid for adults in gaining strength in self identity in the United States and Europe.

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