This year, the graduates from Notre Dame High School chose the slogan, “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.”
Growing up I saw this phrase on numerous laminated posters hung in numerous classrooms. And while it doesn’t take an astronomer to say that perhaps we should be shooting for the stars and maybe we will land on the moon – the message resonates the same.
You shoot where you aim, and if you set your sights on bigger and better things you are far more likely to achieve the dreams you dared to have.
I truly believe this well-worn expression applies to nearly everything. Your mindset impacts your everyday experiences and what you do every day paves the path to the future.
You can’t be a rural veterinarian if first you didn’t complete high school, then an undergraduate degree and then your graduate degree in veterinary medicine.
Big things often take a lot of preparation.
If the Little Engine thought, “I think I can’t, I think I can’t, I think I can’t,” there would have been no way he could. Simply because he didn’t believe in himself.
But the Little Engine thought he could, he repeated it to himself, and he did it.
We are all writing out our own destinies every day, no matter who we are, what we are doing, or what we want to achieve. So, what kind of story will we be the author of?
If we think we can’t, we won’t – but if we think we could, we might.
Hope only exists because people are hopeful. Growth only takes place because of people's resiliency and desire to grow and improve.
The little sliver of self-determination that everyone is born with – and how we use it – is what changes the world around us. Even though we are subject to the events and actions of others that take shape beyond ourselves, it doesn’t change the power we each embody.
So, dream big, work hard and help others achieve their goals when you can.
To quote another popular motivational phrase, “You miss 100 per cent of the shots you don’t take.”
Take the shot – take many shots – and remember, failure is only the first step to success. It is also a step that sometimes requires repeating a couple of times, unfortunately.
