“It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare, it is because we do not dare that they are difficult.”
– Seneca
A mountain seems colossal until you start climbing. A marathon feels grueling until you take the first stride. Both are daunting, yet not unattainable. They are not challenging because of their intrinsic nature; they become so when we hesitate at the foot of the mountain, when we stall at the starting line of the race.
The horizon of possibility is a mirage until you dare to step into the unknown. What stops us is not the complexity of the task, but the audacity needed to engage with it. It is our reticence that renders the achievable intimidating. It is our hesitations that forge the mundane into an impenetrable fortress.
By its very nature, risk nudges us out of comfort zones, poking us into uncharted territories. Yet it is precisely this unpredictability that morphs an unassuming task into an uphill climb. It’s not the steepness of the hill, but our reluctance to challenge our balance, test our endurance, that makes the journey appear arduous.
Turn it around. Flip the script. Step into the unknown. Embrace the challenge. The moment we dare, the task ceases to be an insurmountable obstacle and becomes an adventure. The moment we step forward, the mountain shrinks, and the marathon shortens. It’s not that the task gets easier; rather, we rise to meet it.
Dare to engage, dare to risk, dare to push your limits. When you do, you’ll find that what seemed like a fortress of difficulty crumbles into stepping stones of growth. It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare; it is because we do not dare that they are difficult.
