“Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.”
The details of my encounter with that quote from American motivational speaker Les Brown have escaped me. Was it on some bookmark from a quaint, provincial bookstore or was it posted as a Friendster testimonial? It’s been years, I’m sure, but its essence has never left me.
Aim high!, the quote suggests, delivered in a sexy collection of words that appealed to a teenager naïve of the realities around him. As I grow older, and as those realities become clearer, I have come to realize that mantra is not only true, but also incomplete.
Being inspired to achieve things beyond your perceived limitations is one thing, but converting that inspiration to results is another.
I’ve come across people who have big dreams—and nothing more. They aim high, but for whatever reason, they refuse to pull the trigger. All talk.
On the flipside, there are workers, or people who grind at all cost to clear what ever they have set out to achieve.
Being in the media industry for a couple of years now, I’ve had the opportunity to cross paths with some interesting individuals—people at the top who rose from the ranks by putting in the work.
Interestingly, all of them share the same trait. All of them have the proverbial fire in their eyes. All of them dared to take on what, perhaps, daunts most people: the first step.
They just go for it. There’s no dilly-dally in them. They know that second thoughts and hesitation only leave crevices for failure. They start as soon as they can. My most recent encounter with such a person was at the press launch of the Philippine School of Interior Design (PSID)’s ongoing exhibit, titled G.O.L.D., at Uptown Mall. It’s a showcase of works by the school’s graduating students. During my visit, Shalimar Obinque, a member of PSID Batch 2017, accompanied me through the tour of 23 booths.
We started from Booth 23, upwards. She briefed me about each display, and the exhibit in general. By Booth 22, I learned she was part of the 66 graduating students this year. By Booth 12, I learned she was a practicing lawyer for 12 years, before pursuing a career in Interior Design. By Booth 11, and beyond, really, she had my full respect.
Obinque said the monotony of the law practice caught up to her. She wanted something new, a breath of fresh air, which is how she found herself at PSID.
Why interior design? She was unhappy with the designer’s work on her condo unit. Like I said, people like her just go for it.
Anyway, there was a palpable sense of relief and achievement throughout her storytelling. The
journey wasn’t easy, she said, and she had to succumb to a few roadblocks. But never did she quit. Obinque willed her way to finish the course, just as she willed her way to start it.
Her story closely mirrors that of my Uber driver’s from a couple of months back. It’s that same resolve that had him go from a janitor out of the province, to learning how to drive and be a delivery truck driver, to becoming an Uber driver who took me home that night.
“Pangarap lang po ang meron ako ’nun, ser,” I remember him saying. “Tinyaga ko lang po talaga.”
Both Oblinque the lawyer/interior designer, and my bright-eyed Uber driver decided that, to set their plans in motions, they had to begin somewhere.
They aimed for the stars—and landed on the stars.