How many of us can honestly say we always have determination?  Or do we get distracted?  Or fearful?  Or embarrassed that we may be judged?  So we back away from our original plan and settle on something less.

But what good does that do anyone?  No good.  The first line in the book "The Road Less Traveled" says "Life is hard..."  And it's true!  But does that mean we should walk around being sad and lonely because it's hard?  Does that mean we can justify only giving a portion of our Self during our stay here on Earth? 

No - it means that we can stand up for who we are, what we believe and our dreams in life.  It means that again, we are a spiritual being struggling to be human, not the other way around.

Maybe saying things like, "Just do the best you can" only gives us room to underestimate ourselves.  What is the "best you can" anyway?  How is that defined?  Have you every underestimated yourself and your abilities?  I bet you have.  If you have ever complained about anything in your life, you have.

We all have the ability to be beyond what we can imagine.  And I'm not talking material either.  I'm talking about a blissful experience here on Earth without going to Hell first.  I'm talking about instead of complaining about what you don't have in life, going after what you want with determination.  The first step in being determined though is knowing, beyond a doubt, what it is you want.  Visualizing your dreams.

Ask yourself: have you ever been turned down for a job, rejected by a lover, not accepted by your peers? How did you react?  If you wrote a book proposal or sent out resumes, how many did you send out?  How many rejections did you get?  What did you do? If you again, find yourself alone, without a mate or significant other, where is your determination to make things different?

I do want to add, the balance to determination is to know when enough is enough.  To know when to let go and let God.  Of course this varies with each person and each circumstance.  However, if we can be steadfast in our intention, committed to our goal and determined beyond all rejection or perceived set back, we will end up ahead, awake and fully alive in this Universe.