In the first week of its release in 1988, only one person bought a copy from a local bookseller of the now classic The Alchemist by Brazilian writer Paulo Coelho. One more copy was bought from that same person six months later.
After one year, his publisher cancelled Coelho’s contract. He was 41 and desperate.
However, this living legend never lost faith in his dream or his book, in spite of ingrained, childhood beliefs, which created self-doubts that he could succeed.
From the book’s introduction, “We are told from childhood that everything we want to do is impossible. We grow up with this idea, and as the years accumulate, so too do the layers of prejudice, fear, and guilt. There comes a time when our personal calling is so deeply buried in our soul as to be invisible. But it’s still there.”
Flying in the face of his defeats and fears, he went from one publisher to the next, and his book was picked up by U.S. publisher HarperCollins.
After a time, President Bill Clinton was photographed with a copy. Julia Roberts commented about The Alchemist during an interview for Vanity Fair magazine. With acclaims from Rush Limbaugh to Will Smith, The Alchemist became a phenomena. The book hit a milestone by being on The New York Times bestseller list for over 300 weeks and is now an international bestseller translated into more than 80 languages.
Coelho writes: “A man sets out on a journey, dreaming of a beautiful or magical place, in pursuit of an unknown treasure. At the end of his journey, he realizes the treasure was within him the entire time.”
Each year, hundreds of thousands walk the Camino de Santiago in Spain, France and Portugal. I became enchanted with this quest in another of his international bestsellers The Pilgrimage, a novel that blends adventure with self-mastery.
Regardless if you choose to fulfill your heart’s desire to enjoy a better body or health, a loving relationship, a more harmonious family life, financial prosperity, spiritual fulfillment, peace or happiness, may you be inspired to live your dreams!
Enjoy these quotes by Paulo Coelho. Oooo, they are really good! Some ideas have taken me decades to assimilate (so don’t give up), but how my life is enriched because of aspiring to their wisdom!
“It’s the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting.”
(Dear Reader, you do have dreams. Don’t abandon them!)
“And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”
(Stick with a heartfelt idea long enough, and magic happens. Help comes from unimagined places.)
“There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.”
(“Impossible” is an old program of limitation that lies to you. Don’t believe it.)
“Don’t give in to your fears. If you do, you won’t be able to talk to your heart.” (Your choice – converse with fears or your heart. Yes, it is a choice.)
“Remember that wherever your heart is, there you will find your treasure.” (Indeed, your treasure is within you right now!)
“Don’t waste your time with explanations: people only hear what they want to hear.”
(What most people share and want to hear is their opinion, not necessarily the truth.)
“If you want to be successful, you must respect one rule – Never lie to yourself.”
“This above all:
To thine own self be true,
for it must follow as dost the night the day,
that canst not then be false to any man.”
(Coelho’s quote reminded me of this one from “Hamlet” by Shakespeare, who ripped off the idea from, I mean was inspired by, Socrates.)
“When I had nothing to lose, I had everything. When I stopped being who I am, I found myself.”
(There’s freedom to BE when we let go of our preconceived notions of who we think we are or should be.)
“There is one great truth on this planet: whoever you are, or whatever it is that you do, when you really want something, it’s because that desire originated in the soul of the universe. It’s your mission on earth.”
(Believe and allow.)
“One day you will wake up and there won’t be any more time to do the things you’ve always wanted. Do it now.”
Don’t give up on yourself and your dreams, whatever they are! I can help. Contact me at: virginia@soulgoals.com
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I work with people who choose to enhance their lives or share their gifts in a BIGGER way but don’t know how, feel stuck or could use new tools or support.
I help them be richly compensated doing what
they love by connecting with their Soul’s goals.
This has been re-edited from a Soulgoals’ Blog posted on August 20, 2018.
Tags: Bill Clinton, Camino, Dream coming true, Fear of failure, Julia Roberts, Nothing to lose, Paulo Coelho, Quotes, The Alchemist, We are not alone, Will Smith
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