Assess self to win the rat race for greener pastures
There are the people who have the mark on them and we all spot them from a mile away because they have a blinding halo of joy, good and abundance around them. PHOTO | FILE
Success in virtually anything isn’t necessarily about smarts and talent, it’s about self-awareness and perseverance.
There are those seemingly more blessed few who are definitely much nicer, more agreeable, happier, healthier and certainly more successful than the rest of us.
They habitually wake up early on Mondays to spend quiet time on their own, to exercise, read that stimulating book that fires up the winner in them, eat healthy and are perfectly ready to productively engage with the world while the rest of us are still rolling in bed.
They are focused serial-achievers of whatever they set their minds to. They give their service without expectation and yet they receive much in return.
They do the same on Tuesday and Wednesday and by the weekend when we think they’re going to slack because that’s what we do over the weekends, they do it twice. Year in, year out, they maintain and improve upon these nearly sacred rituals and ways of being.
We immensely admire them and even envy their ability to wave their “magic wands” and have every piece from every aspect of their lives simply fit snuggly to complete the jigsaw puzzles of their perfect existences.
These are the people who have the mark on them and we all spot them from a mile away because they have a blinding halo of joy, good and abundance around them.
They are calm and self-assured, no matter what situation they find themselves in. Indeed, they know something that the rest of us do not. And if we know it too, it’s not quite enough because we must practice it to experience its benefits.
These chosen few have understood that their best lives lie in living life as a marathon. They do not aimlessly chase around. Any seasoned entrepreneur will tell you that if you’re going to win in any way, you must do the work and stick around for long. Long enough for it to pay off.
It is about enduring passion and perseverance. We all know this, but perhaps our knowledge has become rusty. It’s the rust in our sub-conscious minds that works against us.
We also know where the rust comes from but it is easier, more familiar and comfortable to claim that we do not. We are not born with it.
As we grew older, but not necessarily wiser, the rust started to develop in all our minds - the control tower of our every thought which become our feelings, translating into our actions, which result into our life outcomes.
It unfortunately takes most of us several years, even decades of banging our heads against the wall, thinking, feeling and acting the same thing over and over again while expecting different, improved and more satisfying lives. If that’s not mental illness, please educate me on what is.
Success in virtually anything isn’t necessarily about smarts and talent, it’s about self-awareness and perseverance.
By accepting this simple truth, we can finally stop wasting our valuable time chasing greener pastures and “get-rich-quick” schemes without rewarding us with the overnight success that others seem to have. There are no magical answers out there for Pete’s sake.
It is sad that we spend huge chunks of our lives chasing success. Where does your search take you - your job, family, your church, temple, mosque, alcohol, drugs yet another pyramid scheme? Stop chasing.
Take one look in the mirror. Do you see that being looking blankly back at you?
That being is perfectly capable of creating the success you seek.
