The Power of Small

Routinely, I rise out of bed before the birds, and watch"There are some people who live in a dream world,
the sunlightflood my office every morning. See, I loveand there aresome who face reality; and then there
this time of day! But whatare those who turn one intothe other."
I don't love is being rudely rousted out of a deep sleepDouglas Everett
before mynormal rise and shine time, and every dayYou've heard many of the stories about the above
for the past few months Ihave been.'icons' and peoplelike Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Edison
I sleep with the windows open, and at around 4:00and Gandhi. Their journeyswere filled with great
each and everymorning, rain or shine, there has beenadversity, devastating setbacks and yes,heartbreaking
this very obnoxious birdfailures. But still, because of the sheer level of beliefin
"somewhere" close by screeching his mating call atthemselves and what they set out to achieve, they
what seemslike 130 decibels! Many times I've wearilywere able toleave a legacy that today affects every
peered out to be able towitness first hand whatone of us, every hour ofevery day.
sounded like a pterodactyl-size creature onsome kindThere are millions everyday people who will never
of steroids. But never would this clever 'lil creaturebecomehousehold names who have made
revealhimself!magnificent differences in theirlives and the lives of
I appreciate nature as much as the next person, butthose around them.
this largesound at this wee hour of the morning is notTake for instance, the single mother who was
music to my ears! Inone agitated state myreluctantly forcedonto the welfare rolls due to a
fine-feathered foe put me in, I thought aboutlocating adeadbeat dad, and pounds thepavement until she lands
'sportsman' in the neighborhood to take him out, buta job, determined to excel, and works herway up the
thatwas only wishful fantasizing. Besides, I don't believeladder until she ends up with a wonderful career to
in 'the sport ofhunting.'thebenefit of herself and her family.
By now though, I've gotten pretty used to my treeOr, the foreign medical student whose family sacrificed
dwelling alarmand looking on the positive side of thistheir entirelives in order to send their child to a 'free
situation, could even thankhim for the extra hour ofcountry' to get aneducation, who, through sheer
work I am able to put in every day.determination graduates at the top ofhis class but
One day last week, I was pounding away on mydecides not to chase the almighty big bucks thatawait
laptop on the frontporch swing, when lo and behold -him in the 'land of promise' and instead returns to
THAT PIERCING SOUNDhishomeland so that he may help alleviate the dire
AGAIN! And it was NEAR! Imagine my surprise whensuffering of thepeople in his native land.
after peekingout from under the canopy, perched onOr, how about the countless entrepreneurs who have
the telephone line abovewas this teeny weenie finch,taken a singleidea and no matter what obstacles they
smaller than my prized canary,warbling away whatfaced, and the manysacrifices they had to make,
was really a beautiful anthem, at least heard atthiscreated successful businesses withproducts that
normal hour of the day.impacted thousands or even millions of people?
Oh my, the power of small!I am privileged to know so many individuals who have
Now, may I ask: How many times in your life have youaccomplishedgreat things only because of the great
thought thatyou were "too small" to make abelief they had in themselvesand their ideas. As such, I
difference? How many times hasthis thought actuallyfirmly believe that every human being, nomatter where
stopped you from doing something you knewin yourthey believe they are at on this roller coaster ride
heart was worthwhile? Perhaps something likewecall life, CAN accomplish great things.
changingcareers, starting a new business, creating yourAs strange as this may seem at this time, I can tell you
own product or evenbuying that dream home. Like me,with all thesincerity I possess, that this great universe
I bet plenty of times!of ours awaits yoursimple and sincere decision, so that
Think about this. Every great achievement in this worldit can begin to fill you with allthe power you need to
had its rootsas a single thought in the mind of a singlemake your dream a reality. It's a matter oftruly making
human being. There's noexception - the greatestthat decision and then opening yourself up to
inventions, the biggest corporations andthe tallestreceivingthat invisible assistance.
skyscrapers were all borne of the single idea of"The Creator has not given you a longing to do that
oneindividual!which you haveno ability to do."
The difference between most of us and the HenryOrison Swett Marden
Ford's and BillNow back to my miniscule, winged friend. On cue, and
Gates of this world is the total self-belief andstill prior todaylight, he shakes me out of my peaceful
conviction in theirideas to just "build it!" No matter theslumber. He knowsnothing else. No other way. He just
size, no matter the scope, nomatter the naysayerscranks it up at enormousvolume at nature's call,
around them. And, knowing full well that theroad tooblivious to the fact he is impacting me on amajor
achieving their goal was going to be paved withscale by doing the only thing he was designed to do.
majorsetbacks and failures.How weall should be, don't you agree?
Here's one of my favorite quotes about achievers:The Power of Small!