In his book, Failing Forward, John Maxwell tells of a study conducted by Gary Hamel and CK Prahalad on some monkeys. At the outset, four monkeys were put into a room, where in the center of the room was a tall pole with a bunch of bananas suspended from the top. As you can imagine, the monkeys were eager to get to the banana so one by one, they climbed to the top of pole. Just when they got in arm's reach of the bananas, they were hit with a torrent of cold water from an overhead shower. In case you couldn't guess, monkeys are not fond of cold water. Therefore, each monkey would immediately abandon his prize and quickly climb down the pole. After each monkey had been drenched a number of times, they all eventually gave up on the bananas.

Now, that the monkeys had been "properly" conditioned, one of the original four monkeys was replaced with a brand new monkey. Excited about the prospect of bananas, the new monkey started climbing the pole. However, before he could make much progress, he was yanked down the pool by his three companions. In a very short period of time, the new monkey got the message - don't go up the pole. Eventually, each of the original monkeys was replaced with a new monkey. Upon entering the room, each new monkey learned the same lesson when he was literally yanked from the pole by his comrades. At the end of the experiment, there were four monkeys in a room who were afraid to climb the pole although not one of them had ever been sprayed with cold water.

Now, at this point, you may be thinking, "Well, Eric, that's certainly a cute story but what does a bunch of monkeys have to do with my life?" The answer is "everything!" The sad truth is that, in my travels, I meet many people who are just like these monkeys. Their goals and dreams are well within their grasps but they're too afraid to go after them; and the really sad part is that in most cases, they don't even know why.

These are not people who have experienced failure at every turn and finally thrown in the towel. These are people who were defeated because they refused to even get in the game. These are the people who dream of starting a business but never take any action on that dream because someone yanked them off the pole years ago and told them that it was too risky. These are the people who stay up late at night working on a novel or a painting but never send it to a publisher or an art gallery because they've been told that their chances are one in a million.

Our society is literally filled with would-be poets, entrepreneurs, doctors, ministers and philanthropists who never find their place in the sun because their hiding their talents in the shade. They've been taught to fear the bright lights of scrutiny and rejection and as a result, in the famous words of Oliver Wendell Holmes, they will "die with their music still in them."

Sadly, for too many people listen to the critics; the naysayers who are all too eager to offer up all of the reasons why you can't have your dream. If you're like most people, then you've already run into your fair share of these people. I know I have. For example, when I decided to attempt to make a difference in people's lives by sharing the DASH Principles with people, the critics came out of the woodwork. "Eric, you can't do that. Who's going to listen to you - an ex-con?" "Eric, do you know how many motivational speakers and life coaches there are out there? Why don't you stick to what you know - the brokerage business?" And these were some of my more gentle critics.

What do your critics say to you? Do they tell you that you couldn't possibly be a doctor because no one in your family ever went to college? Or do they tell you that only people with connections can make it in business and that you should be happy with your current job? Or do they tell you that starting a non- profit organization is just an invitation for headache after headache?

In any event, regardless of what the critics are saying, you must learn to ignore them. Decide that you are going to succeed or fail on your own merits and that you're unwilling to let another person's failures determine what you do with your dash. In other words, resolve to live your own life; to beat your own drum until there's not a single note left inside you. Go out on limb. Take some chances. Live your life. And whenever you feel tempted to allow someone else's perception to determine your reality, think back upon the words of this Edgar Guest poem.