It's Possible

Blood, Sweat, and Pig's Ears is all about doing things other people say can’t be done. 

Growing up, my friends and I loved the Rocky movies. The Italian Stallion often pulled off impossible victories. Other than his devoted wife Adrian, and maybe his coach Mickey, others were convinced the street thug would be unable to hang with Apollo Creed. But he did it! He went the distance. Then in Rocky II he defeated the champ in the rematch. Maybe this iconic character ignoring skeptics influenced me more than I’ve been willing to recognize.

When someone says, “You can’t turn a pig’s ear into a silk purse,” they’re saying you can’t do the impossible. Fine, I get that. But impossible is in the eyes of the evaluator. There are plenty of folks out there ready to pour cold water on the plans and dreams of others, whether you’re excited about renovating an old house, starting a small business, running for public office, or doing just about anything others judge to be beyond them. What I’ve found is that when someone feels compelled to say, “You can’t do it,” what they’re really letting you know is that they believe they can’t or are mystified about how you’re going to achieve your objective. 

Impossible is a powerful word that should be used judiciously. Perhaps that’s why people find ways to work around it. Still, I'll share something now that utilizes that word. It would be impossible for me to name all the times people heard details of my house renovation plans and let me know, with attitudes of authority, that the path I laid out was impossible to travel.

Now to be fair and accurate, I’ve also had lots of support and encouragement from people who have been excited about my projects from the beginning to the end. For example, strangers walking by stop and say things like, “The house is looking great. Keep it up. We can’t wait to see how it turns out,” or “We’ve been waiting a long time for someone to come and fix this place up.” And one of my favorites was a man I’d never met and only saw once. This fella was bursting with enthusiasm as he walked by shouting, “You’re doing it man! You’re really doing it!” That sort of encouragement is fuel. I’d apparently converted this guy into a believer and I sure appreciated him letting me know how he felt. 

But there’s a third category of people that seem to consistently migrate to each of my pig’s ear projects; people who are curious to know how I do what I do and how they can do the same. I love to encourage other people to follow their dreams and although my writing will be exemplified with knowledge and experience from renovating my own houses, in many ways the lessons are applicable to anything other people think are beyond reasonable consideration and effort. In twenty years working in the construction industry and a decade renovating extremely run-down homes, I’ve come to believe that if someone tells you something is impossible, directly or roundabout, and you don’t even try, then they will be right. 

So, if you have a big, outrageous dream, home rehab or otherwise, treat any obstacles as if they’re Clubber Lang/Mr. T in Rocky III. Don't let those challenges bust you up. Embrace the profound wisdom of Sylvester Stallone through his beloved big screen icon Rocky Balboa and “Go for it.”