Killing cows for success and freedom

(Photo by: skittzitilby)

Have you killed a cow lately?

I don’t care how you did it, I just want to know if you killed a cow. If you did, I salute you. I personally have had several chances to do this in recent times, and even a couple in the last 24 hours. The sense of relief you feel afterwards is truly amazing, and you are able to look at the world with a new clarity. Let me explain what I am talking about.

Yes, the cow is a metaphor, but a freakin good one!

Yesterday I took my two young boys to Barnes and Noble book store. As I usually do, I grabbed a couple of random books that looked interesting, and then took the kids over to the children’s area. One of the books was “Once Upon a Cow” by Dr. Camilo Cruz.

I don’t want to spoil the story for you, but the cow turns out to be a metaphor for things in your life that hold you back. Don’t stop reading yet, there is a little more to it than you think. Most of you will instantly realize that an excuse not to succeed would be referred to as a cow. Like saying “I’m too busy with work to properly diet and lose weight.” You get the idea. The brilliant part of this story that made it worth sharing (in my opinion) is that being comfortable can also be a cow. In the story, a very very poor family in a poor town owned a very nice cow. They focused all of their efforts on the cow, and even their neighbors and others in the town that were better off financially were quite envious of the cow. Well, one day the cow passed away (you have to read the book to get the details, but let’s just say “passed away” is a mild way to put it). As it turns out, even though the cow was they best thing they owned, once it was gone they had to spend their time and effort on something else. In a short period of time their lives became much more successful and full.

Now think about your own life. Are you in a job that is just OK? It pays the bills, and you get a couple weeks of vacation, but you are far from your dream lifestyle. You are comfortable enough not to put in the effort to change, but will never be completely happy. Maybe you have told yourself it is good enough, or just be happy with what you have. That is a cow. What would happen if that was eliminated and you had to move on???

I suggest reading this story. If you don’t want to buy it, go to the library, or just go sit at the bookstore and read it. I had many more excuses myself than I ever would have even realized, and in one day have made some major changes that will impact my life in a huge way. Stay tuned to find out.