When you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible!

“When you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible!” – Harry Burns (from “When Harry Met Sally”)

Perhaps one of the greatest movie lines ever spoken in Hollywood.  Written by Nora Ephron, who was a journalist, blogger, essayist, novelist, playwright, and nominated for Oscars as a screenwriter and movie director.

I was fortunate enough to see this great movie (probably in my Top 10 favorites) at age 20 in 1990 while in college.  It was a time of great fear for me, actually.  Would I actually find a good job?  (I never even fathomed having an online business … in 1990 the internet didn’t even exist!  LOL)  I wondered if I’d ever meet the right woman for me.  (Funny, I’d meet my ideal woman “online” in 1997!)  And have a family.  (Yep, got that accomplished somehow, too!)  Could I be successful?  (I think so!)  What is success anyway?

Here’s the clip that you’re probably familiar with.  It still brings a lump to my throat, because I can vividly recall all the insecurities I had back when I was barely 20.   Isn’t it amazing how a movie can do that?

Have you ever had a thought — that was so powerful — that you HAD to act on it RIGHT AWAY?  In a “moment of clarity” did the doubt, fear, worry, etc. disappear?

That’s EXACTLY what happened to our friend Harry Burns (Billy Crystal) in the clip.  He starts running.  Faster.  The music is playing.  Does it get any more romantic than classic Frank Sinatra?  :)

So check out Harry Burns …  taking IMMEDIATE action on a thought!  This is, of course, why he gets the attention of Sally Albright (Meg Ryan).  He’s CLEAR on his goal and will not STOP until he gets the desired OUTCOME.

This is the same tenacity that is required in your life right now with whatever goal you’re looking to accomplish.  There will be obstacles, so you better be prepared with a clear VISION of your OUTCOME in mind.  Without this vision, the obstacle will stop you.

Now, back to the movie.  Notice that Harry gets immediate resistance from Sally.  He has to keep focused on his “why.”  So he goes back in again, speaking from his heart exactly WHY he wants to have the relationship.  He paints the picture in her language.  He “sees” it because it’s so CLEARLY drawn out in his mind.

So how can this relate to you and your goals right now?

1) Figure out what YOU want to do with the rest of your life … starting right now.
2) Take IMMEDIATE action toward that goal … whether or not you’re ready.
3) Keep moving each day toward the goal until you hit it … on the target date.
4) Duh!  Kiss The Girl!  (I mean, celebrate your WIN!)

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6 Responses

  1. Val Haderlie says:

    Terrific analogy, Melissa. What a fun post! “Clear vision of an outcome” is imperative, isn’t it?

  2. Kati Stage says:

    “Have you ever had a thought — that was so powerful — that you HAD to act on it RIGHT AWAY? In a “moment of clarity” did the doubt, fear, worry, etc. disappear?”

    YES! I’ve been trying for the past 2 years and it finally came to me this morning. Something came over me and I couldn’t stop crying! I’m sure you know that this means not even me can stop me now.

    Thanks for the great post! Love and appreciate what you and Melissa do <3

    • Melissa Barnes Knecht says:

      That’s called a paradigm shift Kati! It’s a beautiful thing. 🙂

  3. Kevin Knecht says:

    Editor’s Note. Darn it. There were so many great comments here in the past. However, we made some updates to the formatting and erased them by mistake.

  1. February 23, 2015

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