How this yellow and red braided string helped me reach my goal

Have you ever had a dream or goal that feels so unattainable because life and day to day tasks seem to keep getting in the way? Do you come up with reasons AKA excuses for deferring your actions? Do you create a series of obstacles disguised as steps that need to take place before you pull the trigger on something you really, really want? Yea…this was me earlier this year.I knew what I wanted, I knew what had to happen to get myself to the point I wanted to be and I still wasn't finding the time to put in the extra work to do what I needed to do. I needed some reinforcement.Over the summer, I found myself venting my frustrations to my long time and oldest best friend when she shared her “mannat” with me.Mannat in Hindi means wish. She explained the meaning of the red and yellow braided string in Hinduism and invited me to try it along with her. She told me she would mail me a piece of string with instructions. I graciously awaited its arrival and found her letter in my mailbox three days later.The mannat, also known as kalava, is used as a symbol or a blessing. We agreed to use it as a reminder of the goals we each had in mind that we wanted to accomplish and as a token that we have each other’s support through our mannat. I recently accomplished my mannat and I’m grateful for the experience that I wouldn’t have known anything about had she not shared it with me.The red string provided me with the power of encouragement. It held me accountable, gave me the extra strength I needed when I felt exhausted to put in even just a little effort towards my personal goal. The fact that I knew my friend had my back was the added boost of confidence. I found power behind the fact that although miles apart, she too wore her string and put in the effort to reach her goal too.I cut my red string off this afternoon because I accomplished my original mannat and now I have a new mannat. I considered waiting for the New Year before I tied on the new piece of string, but then I thought, why wait? No excuses, no buts, no series of events that need to occur before I move forward is needed. The time is now.The red string mannat, kalava, and also referred to as kabbalah, are all symbols of Godly oversight that signify different things to different people. At the end of the day it is a support of some kind.What encourages you to reach for what you really want in life that will make you happy? Do you have allies that support you too?