There is an ancient story of two men who were walking along when they came across an old woman stopped at a stream. When the men asked why the woman was just standing on the bank of the stream, she explained that she was afraid to walk across because, in her frail condition, she could slip and be swept away in the currents. Sympathetic to her plight, the two men lifted the woman, carried her across the stream and continued on their way.

A little while later, one of the men said, "I can't believe we agreed to carry that woman across the stream. Now, my back is killing me!" His companion walked along in silence.

However, it wasn't long before the first man began complaining again. "Why did we do such a foolish thing? I'm going to be sore for days!" Once again, his companion walked on in silence. Noticing that the other man was walking without pain, the first man stopped and asked his friend, "Why doesn't your back hurt?" Without breaking stride, the man answered, "Because I put the old woman down several miles ago."

Therefore, my question to you is: Are you still caring around something that you should have dropped long ago?

Perhaps, you've been hurt by a harsh comment from a supposed friend or loved one and you're still carrying around the pain of rejection, ridicule or betrayal. Or perhaps, you experienced failure in a business venture or a relationship and you're still carrying around the feelings of inadequacy, disappointment or shame. In any event, don't you think now would be a good time to unburden yourself of that load?

Take a Load Off (Part II)

As you dash towards your goals in this New Year, now would be a good time to shed some of that excess baggage. After all, do you really need it? Do you need to constantly relive stinging words of criticism? Do you really need to relive a betrayal of trust? I don't think so.

Amazingly, many people carry around resentment and anger under the false impression that it will fuel their drive towards success. They think to themselves, "I'm going to show them!" Well, if this is your attitude, I have some pretty bad news for you: "No, you won't!" Your former tormentors don't care. In all likelihood, they never cared, but they certainly aren't sitting around 5, 10 or even 50 years later thinking, "Hey, I wonder how Joe is doing. I hope he doesn't ultimately succeed. That would ruin my day."

Therefore, if you think that your success is going to somehow "even the score," you're going to be disappointed. For example, the guidance counselor who voted me "Most Likely Not to Succeed" isn't crying in her Cheerios each morning because I managed to defy her prediction for my future. Therefore, if I had made the sole purpose of my success to "show her," I would have fulfilled her prophesy because I am unlikely to ever succeed in changing her attitude about me.

Besides, as the old saying goes, "What she thinks of me is none of my business." In the same way, what your former boss, former lover or ex-friend thinks of you is none of your business. What really matters is what you think about you. And while you can choose to focus on getting even but I'd rather get ahead. Therefore, instead of spending your time and energy on changing the perception of someone who may be blind to your true value, just dump that emotional baggage and run your race. The results will speak for themselves.