In the coldest winter, he donned his thickest coats, and warmest hat and kissed his wife on the cheek and smiled at his two young children. His journey was to be a long one, but, if it worked out, the rewards would be incredible.

He sought out to climb the mountain that no one had ever climbed before. If he climbed it, and was the first one, he could win the reward for climbing the mountain, and sell a book on how to climb the mountain, and be able to provide for his family better, and be happier, and be able to spend more time at home, and be comfortable. If he succeeded, everything he wanted for his family and his self, he would achieve.

Along the way, he stopped at a tavern to grab a drink. While there, an old man asked him about his journey. He explained to the old man that this was his passion and there was no way he could fail. The old man asked if he had ever done it before, and he admitted that he had not yet, but each time was getting closer. The old man asked him if his plan was to spend the next few months away from his family in order to spend the next few months after that with his family.

The man thought about it. So blinded was he that his big crazy idea would work, his sight so tunnel-visioned, that it didn’t occur to him that while the possible reward was great, the definite cost was greater. His eyebrows furrowed as the realization hit him. He thanked the old man and left.

Standing in the cold outside the tavern, he looked at the mountain in the distance. the mountain he had to concur, even if it be the end of him. He stared at it for another minute, then turned and walked home.

His wife was surprised he had returned home and his children ran to him and hugged his legs. He said to his wife that they’d simply have to figure something else out. That right now, his passion would have to wait.

 And they did.

Ten years later, all four of them stood atop the mountain. They were not the first people to have climbed the mountain, but being first had stopped being important.

The man’s priorities were to be able to spend time with his family and support his family, and the mountain, at one time, was the way he thought he could – but had he, he would have lost what he was trying to keep. so he had to recognize that.

Sometimes we get so focused on how we want to get there, that we overlook what it is, that we really want. Our heart’s in the right place, but our priorities are all out of whack. And that’s ok. That happens to a lot of people at some point. You can’t stay upset at yourself about that. Acknowledge it, learn from it, forgive yourself, and move on. You just got to step back sometimes and look at things and ask yourself – what’s more important: Achieving the specific thing you want to achieve or going down the specific path you want to go in order to get there?

If the goal’s not so important – then make the journey more important. If the goal is the most important, then do what you must do to get there. It’s all priorities. It’s all in being really honest with yourself about you want, and looking at things from a distance sometimes.

You can do it. You can do whatever you want. Just, be honest about what it is that you really want. Because if you’re doing what you dont want in order to get to a place you dont really want to go, then youre going to struggle the whole way.

Argo resident Scott Autrey is an author, performer, and founder of the Birmingham Vaudeville Company.