I’m not a football fan nor even really a sports nut, however last week I couldn’t help here the news that Jarrod Haynes from the Rugby League team of Parramatta was choosing not to sign a $6m + contract and instead, throw in his career here to take a stab at playing American Football. And you know what? I thought good on you. He stated that when he first signed up with Parramatta his goal was to buy his mum a house (what a good lad) and he did that and his childhood dream was always to play American Football.

Jarrod, not that you’ll read this but I salute you, for having the courage to follow a dream, with no way of knowing the outcome. For taking a risk, for being willing to fail for being willing to try – you won’t be on your deathbed wondering if you could have made it or not. It takes guts to throw away what we know to follow a dream, and so many of us always have the thought ‘what if I fail’ but you know what? What if you don’t? What if you take that risk and SUCCEED, how amazing would that be? It doesn’t matter what the dream is, it may just be learning to play a musical instrument, or learning another language or studying, but why put it off? OK, it may not work out as you had hoped but at least you will know and then you can move onto your next dream, you won’t wonder whether or not you could have done it.

Go Jarrod, either way, you’re a winner as far as I’m concerned, because you’re willing to risk it all and be happy for it.