Begin Again

My Journey

Just Like You, My Life Has Had It's Highs and Lows

Let me start with a confession: My life did not wind up the way I thought it would. From my early teens, I was busy climbing the racing 'ladder', fully convinced that one day I would be racing in the Indy 500. That dream never happened.

Despite winning races and championships, I ran out of talent and sponsor dollars at roughly the same time, leaving me on the outside looking in.

I reinvented myself, focusing on business, and over the next couple of decades, I had a couple of businesses become modest successes but several were spectacular failures, so much so that I wound up declaring bankruptcy 3 times.

To say I was down on myself would be an understatement. But, things slowly began to turn for me as I began attending a very healthy church in the Dallas area, got plugged into a group of very strong businessmen who supported and encouraged me, and I began reinventing myself.

And then, I read a speech that President Teddy Roosevelt had delivered over one hundred years ago, and it changed my perspective of me and my life's journey...

Challenges Grow Us

The words of Teddy Roosevelt's "Man In The Area" helped me to understand the value of getting knocked down and then standing back up again...

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best in the end knows the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory or defeat."

Life Is A Participant Sport

I had gotten to the point in my life where I had become afraid of trying anything new for fear of failing. I had gotten safe and comfortable on the couch of life...

...the problem is that none of us are meant to be spectators! All of us have been blessed with a unique blend of talents, interests and gifts, but it is up to each of us to share those blessings with the people around us to enrich their lives and, by the way, your life will be enriched as well.

If you have never failed, you probably have never tried!

My Journey Is Unique-So Is Yours!

Run Your Race & Stop Comparing Yourself to Others!

Have you ever watched a track meet, where all the runners are staying in their lanes, running their own race, and then towards the end of the race, one of the runners starts looking over their shoulder to see where everyone else is? Next thing you know, that runner drifts into a competitor's lane, their feet tangle, and down both runners go...that is a perfect picture of what comparison can and will do to you if you let it. I have literally seen comparison freeze people into inaction.

Here's my point for all of this: Somewhere inside of you are dreams and ambitions that may have been dormant for years or even decades; maybe they're something that you now think is crazy or impossible...no matter where you are in life, you can still do these things in some form or fashion.

For me, it's auto racing. Many would say-and have said-that I am crazy for attempting this again at "my age". Well, I AM doing it, and I'm having a blast! Your thing doesn't have to be auto racing, it could be writing that book that is inside you, hiking the Grand Canyon or learning to fly an airplane, but regardless, I invite you to join me on my "Begin Again" journey in the hope that you will be inspired and encouraged to Just Go and start your own Begin Again journey...I'd love to hear about it!

"It's time to get off the bench and get into the game. I challenge you to be brave enough to fail at something new."

Richard Siler