In 2000, I wrote a little story, a fable of sorts. It came in at about 95 pages. I didn’t think much of it at the time. Why do we not trust our own efforts, especially the artistic ones? Painters, poets, sculptors, writers, and musicians seem to struggle with doubts and fears. Shakespeare wrote, “Our doubts are traitors that make us lose the good we oft might win by fearing the attempt.” It’s ironic the title of my story was Freedom from Fear because it sold over 100,000 copies worldwide!

 

When I sent the story to my mentor and friend, Charlie “Tremendous” Jones, he called me two weeks later and said, “That little story you wrote is tremendous. If you can write another story like that, you won’t need to speak anymore!” What? Wow! His words changed my beliefs about my abilities. You see, I had only a year of junior college and I had flunked high school English. My doubts were traitors.

 

Words trigger pictures and bring about emotion. They can be positive or negative. If they come from a source we trust and believe, they can predict and perpetuate the future. Do you remember watching the movie The Wizard of Oz based on the novel by Frank Baum? The book was published in 1900 by the George M. Hill Company in Chicago when Frank was 44 years old. It changed his life. Up to that point he struggled to make ends meet. The story and its component parts were compiled from events in his life spanning over 30 years. Like a jigsaw puzzle, the pieces finally came together to form an extraordinary tale and motion picture.

 

The protagonist is a young girl who, together with her dog, Toto, simply wants to find a way to get home. Hers is a charming and heart-warming goal. Along the way, she assembles a team of like-minded misanthropes who also doubt whether they have what it takes to achieve their objective: a Scarecrow, a Tin-Man, and a Lion. These characters doubt their abilities, but somehow believe in the mission. If they followed the Yellow Brick Road, they could solicit the help of an all-powerful being who would have the answers they sought. Along the way, they face adversity led by a Wicked Witch who is the personification of evil and her army of Flying Monkeys.

 

When they finally reach the Wizard, they discover he is a faker, a charlatan. It is all smoke and mirrors. He does, however, give them a great gift, the gift of BELIEF. You see, every new belief has the word LIE right in the middle! Knowing this, he provides a symbol of the new belief. The Scarecrow receives a diploma to prove he is smart. The Tin-Man receives a ticking, heart-shaped clock to symbolize that he has heart. The Lion receives a Medal that proves he is brave. Once received, they ACT in those ways and Dorothy finally gets home. The irony in this fable is, “They had what they needed all along!”

 

Each of us has the power within us to “Get Home”! We need only trust and belief to be our own Wizard. What if you engaged in the following actions?

 

1. What is YOUR Goal? How badly do you want it? We must first make a heartfelt and sincere DECISION to achieve something near and dear to our heart. The objective must be emotionalized and strong.
2. Write out exactly what you want. Make it a single goal, written down as if it were already true. Be sure it is Personal, Positive, Powerful, and Present Tense. Focus on it to the exclusion of everything else. BeLIEve you have the courage and ability to achieve it!
3. Assemble your team of people who believe in your goal. Make certain they possess the strengths and skills that you lack. Treat them well. Trust them to provide you with the necessary support needed to achieve your number one goal.
4. Be willing to bounce back from adversity. Setbacks, challenges, and roadblocks will happen. Constancy of purpose is what is needed. Knocked down seven times, stand up eight! Stay the course. Be persistent and learn from your mistakes.
5. Understand the WHY of your WHAT! You must have highly emotionalized reasons to get you through. The objective must have meaning and purpose. Sometimes we only need one good reason to keep the flame of purpose lit.
6. Find mentors (your Good Witch) who can provide the tools and inspiration you need to stay the course. Your mentors have done what you want to do and have been where you want to go. You will need their support more than once as you travel your Yellow Brick Road.
7. Celebrate your progress along the way. Capture the good things that happen. Whatever gets rewarded gets repeated. Share the credit and honor and respect those committed teammates. They will see you through to the end of your road.

 

I miss Charlie Jones. He would be proud of my newest book, Freedom from FAT (coming this fall). You see, I believed his words. They changed my life. I have worked hard on my writing gifts, and like Frank Baum, my children have provided the inspiration to stay on my own Yellow Brick Road. I have become my own Wizard and you can, too. It turns out, each of us already possesses the necessary tools needed to get home. After all, “There is no place like home!” Now what did I do with those slippers?