Nothing unreal exists

Last week I was honored to speak to a large live audience in Winchester, Virginia, my hometown. Speaking to a live audience is always special for me, but since the turmoil of the past year, having the opportunity to be a part of a large community starved for connection, I will never take that for granted again.

After I got offstage, I was meeting with many of the participants, some were former classmates of mine who had heard me speak for the first time, and one of them asked me, “if there was one thing I could point to that helped me ‘turn my turmoil into triumph,’ what would it be?” She told me that she had been struggling emotionally and financially over the past year.

I felt for her as we both lost a classmate this past year due to the mental challenges last year presented.  I told her something I wrote about last week. I learned to become more compassionate toward the plight of others, and it all started with gratitude.

I told her that all the experiences I have had, including the Miracle on the Hudson, have brought me here to where I stand today. Still, gratitude opened the doors of opportunities for me and the unique experiences that have come my way. I learned about gratitude from my parents. They gave me an incredible foundation that has lasted me all of these years and continues with the mentors that I have been blessed to have throughout my life, Bill, Tony, Don, and others, who changed and transformed my life, income, bank account, and my future. I am also very thankful for the people, the associations, the ideas, and the chance to work and produce results for people. I am grateful for it all.

The “miracle” I was a part of was an affirmation for me, which seemed initially to go backward but really spurred me to go forward. The “miracle” that day represented my freedom from fear. And as I learned from Tony, “ you cannot have fear if you have gratitude.”  Fear is just a perception of what you believe is real.

Nothing unreal exists. I have spoken to many people over the past twelve years told me they were in “awe” of that Miracle, but what I learned is a “miracle” should inspire gratitude, not awe. 

I shared with her how I started to overcome the struggle and turmoil in my life is I always start with gratitude, giving thanks to something bigger than myself. I recommended to her to be grateful for what she already has, and ultimately she will see the “miracle” that comes from this one thing,  gratitude, and any fear she has will depart, but you have to do your part; you need to take action.

During my first Jim Rohn seminar I attended in 1990, I wrote in my journal something Mr. Rohn said, and it is as accurate today as it was when I first heard it. 

“I have found in life that if you want a miracle you first need to do whatever it is you can do—if that is to plant, then plant; if it is to read, then read; if it is to change, then change; if it is to study, then study; if it is to work, then work; whatever you have to do. And then you will be well on your way of doing the labor that works miracles.”

If you want to start to change the turmoil and fear you may be having in your life and turn it into a miracle, you have to do whatever you can do by taking action and not waiting on someone else to make it happen.  Start by having gratitude. 

A miracle is never lost. It may touch many people you have not even met and produce changes in situations you are not even aware of, taking you in a direction that your life was destined to take. 

The last thing I shared with her was that the “miracle” I was a part of brought me to this moment, to be back with her forty-two years later and, through my experience, show her that gratitude is a pathway out of fear.   

A pathway to grow out of the traumatic times we have all faced this past year is to focus on how we can serve others first because in life,

Nothing unreal exists.

My mission is simple; help those who may be going through their own turmoil from the past year with a pathway to victory and triumph and understand that you didn't get this far only to go this far!

Treat the TURMOIL of 2020 as your year of preparation and 2021 as your year to TRIUMPH!

LEAD YOURSELF FIRST and CREATE YOUR FLIGHT PLAN FOR YOUR FUTURE!

 Dave Sanderson is the President of his firm, Dave Sanderson Speaks International, based out of Charlotte, NC. On January 15, 2009, Dave was one of the last passengers off the plane that crashed into the Hudson River, best known as The Miracle on the Hudson, considered the most successful ditching in aviation history. He has built a career as a motivational speaker, mentor, and author. Recently named one of the top 100 Leadership Speakers in Inc.com. Dave averages over 80 speeches a year for major corporations worldwide.