The world is full of people who’re afraid of reaching for their dreams in case they’re disappointed.

A lot of parents teach their children to be modest in their expectations. It’s understandable for them not to want their sons and daughters to be hurt, so they teach them to have “reasonable” ambitions — to aim for the things they know are well within their capabilities. That way, they’ll avoid the pain of failure, or the embarrassment of having other people know they’ve failed.

The trouble is, a “reasonable” ambition dooms you to a life of mediocrity.

Just getting by is not abundant living. Doing a job you don’t enjoy, solely because it pays the bills and is considered socially acceptable, is not a definition of success or happiness.

Suppressing your real ambitions, talents, dreams and wishes is a recipe for unendurable frustration — and over time the pain of that frustration will get worse, not better.

Your particular mixture of interests, talents, dreams and inspirations is unique. It’s not appeared before in human history, and it won’t again.

That means that you (however unlikely it might seem right now!) can achieve something no-one else has ever done before you — and if you don’t go for it, no-one else can.

It might be years, or even centuries, before someone takes another route to make the same discoveries, to write the books, to sing the songs or sell the products that it lies within your power to achieve — and till that happens, the whole world must do without them. What’s so very “reasonable” about that?

If this sounds far-fetched, think of Thomas Edison. Born in 1847, this was a man who in all his life had only three months’ formal education, but he planned to make a light-bulb that could offer bright, safe light in people’s houses. Most people laughed at him. After all, it wasn’t “reasonable”.

At first he couldn’t do it, but he wouldn’t give up. He couldn’t, because he had a big, ambitious dream that went a long way further yet.

Once people had electric lighting in their houses, they’d need power — and once they had the power, they could use it, too, for other things, like heating, cooking, cleaning… even entertainment. Once he had his light-bulb, he could change the world.

It’s said he tried 10,000 times to make a light-bulb. When someone asked him how he felt about his many failures he replied, “I haven’t failed. I’ve ruled out ways that don’t work, that’s all. Each try brings me closer to the one that will.”

Eventually, he was rewarded — and with his light-bulb in production, set to work on even more ambitious dreams. Just a couple of his successes led to the beginning of the record industry and cinema.

Edison was granted over 1,000 patents — more than anyone in history. To this day that record’s not been broken. He formed a company to develop his inventions, and became one of the richest men in America.

What’s important’s not just that he achieved the seemingly impossible, or even that he persevered despite 10,000 disappointments. What matters most is how he did it.

He had ambitious dreams that totally inspired him. They energized him. The knowledge of the benefits that he could bring the world, as well as to himself, fuelled his commitment even when the road was hard. He wasn’t “reasonable”.

If you want to reach your goals, it pays to be creatively unreasonable.

Choose a dream that totally inspires you, one you can enjoy however hard the going gets.

Write down exactly what you’re aiming to achieve, and how it can help others (the way to get the things you want’s to make sure other people get what they want, first — that’s the only way they’re going to pay you for your efforts).

Now list the steps you need to take to make that happen. Spend some time working on those tasks each day (you don’t need give your job up till you can afford to!), and watch the magic start to happen.

Above all, keep your outlook absolutely positive. Learn from your mistakes and adjust your plans accordingly, but remember the 10,000 light-bulbs and keep going.

See yourself always as on your way to great success. Thomas Edison succeeded — so can you.

The way to be quite certain that you’ll fail is not to try.
Shoot for the moon — for even if you miss, you’ll reach the stars.

Aislinn O’Connor is a motivational writer and personal development consultant. You can read more of her articles at http://www.Access-Your-Peak-Performance-zone.com.

We’ve all done it before. Sportscenter is on showing the highlights off the latest Expos game and they show a snap shot off the bare bleachers. Of course the jokes follow like “It’s easier to grab a foul ball at an Expos game than at a Little League game.” But hey, who are we to talk?

To underline this point I ask you another question: When was the last time you saw somebody with a “You Gotta Believe” poster at Yankee Stadium? I’m going to go ahead and assume the awnser is not for a while. It is easy to be a Yankees fan. You don’t have to believe. They know every year they will have the talent to contend.

It is not like that in Montreal. Their slow start is something that you just hope won’t get worse and they’ve started bad and I mean real bad. They are the first team to score four runs or less in its first 16 games since the 1968 Chicago White Sox. They may or may not be in Montreal next year depending on what offers the owners of the team, Major League Baseball, recieve.

So how did it get like this? Is Montreal just not the place for a baseball club? The awnser is Montreal is just as good as any other location. Heck, Montreal finished second in the National League in attendence in 1983 and barely missed a chance to go to the World Series by losing game 7 to the Dodgers in 1981.

Then baseball started to move into the modern era where you have two types of teams. Insert team type one, where the owner takes risks to put more money into the team to keep and bring in talent hoping that wins will increase attendence and revenue. Then there is team two where the owner doesn’t keep his talent and puts less money into the team to make a profit.

Obviously today in our profit motivated economy we are going to have most managers picking the latter half of the two types and that is what happened to the Expos. They saw their talent getting moved throughout the 80′s. Gary Carter and Andre Dawson went to larger markets and ranked 1st and 15th in salary in 1988. This is the time when the MLBPA gained power by striking in 1981, a two day strike in 1985, a strike in spring training of 1990, and the strike of 1994. Players knew they could get more money and wouldn’t let the owners do anything about it.

MLB had essentially already lost the struggle with the players association. The effect was that GM’s were forced to start putting in money and change with the times. If one didn’t the effect was losing the star players who brought the fans to the stadium.

After having over 2 million in attendence in 1983, the Expos would never reach that again. Their attendence woes were highlighted in the end of 1991 when a giant beam collapsed in Olympic Stadium. This forced the remaining games of Expo’s schedule to be played away from Montreal. Interest in the Expos was at significantly low levels despite still being a decent team.

Plus, they were still losing plenty of good young talent. Among the names were Pedro, Larry Walker, and Moises Alou. Tim Raines said,”I feel for the fans more than anything. I think the fans got fed up with having good teams and then losing all their good players. Montreal fans were so used to winning, with the Canadiens there. Then there was this whole series of things that just kind of turned fans away.” However in 1994 the Expos looked to be a top notch team with a record of 74-40, the best in majors. Of course we all know that 1994 ended up to a bad year for every team in baseball. The next year the Expos would of have lost Larry Walker and screwballer Ken Hill, who had won 16 games in the previously shortened season and the team finished with just 68 wins in 95.

The attendence continued to drop as it was clear the Expos were just going through the season playing meaningless games. In 1998 they dropped under 1 million in attendence for the season, the lowest in the league. It continued to get worse and went below 650,000 in 2001 amid the contraction talks.

Major League Baseball then took over the Montreal Expos saying that baseball could never succeed there. Despite this the Expos kept on playing there games although there was obviously conflict of interest. This conflict of interest was really brought out when Major League Baseball had them play part of their home games in San Juan. Despite now playing in three different cultures French, English, and Spanish and having a low salary Montreal pressed for the wild card in 2003 but ultimately fell short.

The longer Major League Baseball keeps owning the Expos the more they are killing the value and perception of it. Of course any good young player is going to leave a team where the future of where they are playing is uncertain. That is the situation right now with Jose Vidro and Orlando Cabrera and sure to be issues in the future if something isn’t done soon.

It seems symbolic that the first home game for the Montreal Expos in 2004 was in San Juan. However 16 games into the season it is finally the “home opener” for the Expos in Montreal. They fail to sellout for the game but the hardcore fans say it is because of a Montreal Canadiens game, hopeful that if the Expos make the playoffs some local businessman will come forth and keep the team in Montreal.

Second year stud Marlon Byrd starts the game off with a hit for Philadelphia. Then 2B Placido Polanco follows it up with another single. The slow start brings the Montreal fans into their traditional cheering method where they bang there bodies against the plastic seats and also in many cases the empty ones next to them. The noise is so loud you forget your not at a domed version of Fenway park. The pitch from Claudio Vargas is then crushed into the seats for a three run blast by Bobby Abreu, leaving the stadium to all of a sudden get death quiet. Amidst the stands you can see a proud fan instantly stand up with a large sign that reads, “You Gotta Believe!”

About The Author

David Ferraro is a writer for http://www.sportznow.com.

david@sportznow.com

I am a long time WWE Fan, but more importantly I am a diehard Shawn Michaels fan. Shawn Michaels has always been my favorite wrestler. When he made his return to the ring at the 2002 summerslam event I was astounded with elation.

About 3 and a half years ago I read on the internet how Shawn became a born again christian, and that wrestling no longer ultimately established who he was as a person. When I read that wrestling no longer consumed him the way it once had, I have to admit I was disappointed. I was disappointed because I felt that I would never again see the HBK that was on top of the wrestling world from 96′ to 98′. I felt this way simply because wrestling was no longer his number 1 passion, or should I say obsession, in his life anymore. I waited so long for him to be the WWE Heavyweight Champion. It was awesome seeing him as the IC champ in the early to mid 90′s as he was one of the greatest intercontinental champions of all time, in my opinion, of course. When he first captured the WWE title in the first ever 60 minute Iron Man Match against Bret Hart at Wrestlemania 12.. I wanted to see his title reign last forever. This is from the standpoint of an extreme Shawn Michaels fan.

From a personal standpoint I found it interesting because I, myself, was really trying to find myself spiritually around the time of reading this. Back in 1999, when I was 16, I had a girlfriend who was a born again christian. I didn’t know what it was all about, but I wanted to become a born again christian as well to feel closer to her. She lead me into prayer in which I repeated the words she would say, but I repeated these words without really listening to what I was saying. I didn’t go to church, or ever read the bible. I had no clue what born again christianity was all about, but supposedly I was saved at the age of 16. However, after a horrifying experience that lead to the demise of our relationship, I fell into a deep depression and became very bitter. At this point I had absolutely no faith in God.

In the summer of 2002, a woman mistakenly rang my doorbell thinking she was ringing the doorbell of my neighbor. My neighbor had apparently visited the church that this woman attended. I told her that she had rung the wrong doorbell. She casually started talking about how God had changed her life, and I was really touched by her words and her emotions as she spoke. She asked me if I ever had surrendered my life to the lord. I never considered what I did back in 1999 as surrendering my life to the lord.. simply because I just repeated some words without actually meaning them. So I told the lady that I had never done so. When the lady asked me if I wanted to surrender my life to the lord.. I don’t know what it was exactly.. Maybe it was because the woman was so nice and I felt I would let her down if I didn’t.. or the feeling of vulnerability with a need to find meaning in my life.. I’m not sure exactly, but once again I surrendered my life to the lord.

Again, however, I did this with no real knowledge or a real belief in Jesus Christ. My dad’s side of the family is catholic, and some members of the family would always say grace at dinner. So I just took it as a given that Jesus Christ existed and died for all of our sins. I never really formed an informative opinion about it before. The lady who rung my doorbell wanted me to go to church, and I did not want to at all. I just thought of church as a real bore, but she ended up talking me into it. I kept fighting back and forth with myself with whether or not I should get involved with religion.

I prayed on it but felt such a wave of energy running through me like I had never felt before. I started getting chills, and my heart would beat so fast whenever I would think of God and Jesus Christ. I kept repeating in my head that Jesus Christ is my lord and savior, and had died for all of my sins. The more I thought of this the more I started to feel greater spurts of energy and chills running throughout my body. I noticed that I was being distracted with so many random feelings. Feelings of lust, hunger, fatigue, and other similar feelings arose the more I consumed my mind with thoughts of Jesus. It was like something was triggering these feelings to take my mind off of these spiritual thoughts. It was very strange and surreal. I would tell you everything thing else that I experienced, but you would probably think I was insane or hallucinating.

Nonetheless I started going to church, and started to get attached to the feeling of being part of something really important very fast. I read a book titled “Winning The War Within”, and I read in there how Satan works really hard on distracting christians with things of the flesh and the world. When I read that, it really made me feel that all of the things that happened that one night was Satan’s attempt to distract me.. yea I know it sounds insane! I read that with born again christianity the more spiritual you are the more Satan tries to bring you down. I also read that as a strong believing christian, you are a big threat to Satan. I was learning more and more about born again christianity.

I started taking certain things that would happen throughout the day, and would convince myself that a higher spiritual power caused these things to happen. It became quite ridiculous to be perfectly honest. I took things in that I read and analyzed the content so much to the point where I kind of became a spiritual fanatic. Everytime I went to church it was so intense for me. I wanted to be everything the pastor preached about Jesus, and when I felt I couldn’t, I would mentally punish myself for it. My life became so wrapped around this new faith that I wanted to keep so badly. I felt so opposed to anyone close to me who didn’t share this faith, which happened to be everyone. My girlfriend at the time didn’t want anything to do with me, and my best friend was telling me how I was becoming brainwashed. My other friend and my dad would try to talk to me about something different, but I was just so uptight about a lot of topics that were controversial with my new-found christian beliefs.

It got to a point where I could barely talk to anyone outside of the church without getting really upset. While in church, I would break down and cry because I just couldn’t handle it anymore. I eventually just gave up on it because I was trying way too hard to be a brand new person so fast, and I was way too hard on myself. Plus I jumped the gun, and was willing to believe that everything the pastor would say was the absolute and only truth. I went into this whole new stage of my life being so naive that I’d believe anything, and everything I heard in church.

When it came down to it.. I didn’t want to risk losing my girlfriend, my friends, and even my dad. I would get into such big arguments with him over things that started with a talk about my day at church on sundays. He implied that ever since I got involved with religion, I’ve become obsessed and different. I also got the same vibe from my friends, and especially my girlfriend at the time. I looked at the situation, and asked myself do I really wanna go on like this? I was never baptized, nor did I ever practice an organized religion before this. I realized that it was too sudden and that I wasn’t ready for such a radical change in my life. It just wasn’t for me.

I guess the reason I’m saying all of this is because I respect anyone who can be a certain way for so long, and then have the ability to totally reshape themselves for the better. It takes a great deal of human will, devotion, and inner strength to dedicate your whole life to a cause. Deep down I feel that dedicating your life to something that is bigger than yourself is the most unselfish, and amazing thing you can do with your life.. even though at this stage in my life, I am not ready to make such a commitment. For this I respect Shawn Michaels tremendously not only as professional athlete, and what he has brought to the business of professional wrestling.. but as an admirable and an amazing human being.

Want pics of the lovely Divas of ECW and WWE? If so than be sure to surf on over to WWE Divas.