Don’t Get Discouraged When The Going Gets Tough
“Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.”– Dale Carnegie
I’m certain you’ve been there before. No matter how hard you tried, your efforts seemed to work against you. Roadblocks, setbacks and dead ends stop you from achieving the success you deserve. Don’t despair, for some of life’s greatest victories have come to those who persisted despite external conditions. There is no finite, linear progression toward the realisation of one’s goals. Success is achieved through a series of obstacles, challenges and smaller victories. It is the journey, not the goal itself that determines the person we become. Leaders advise us that the journey is the basis to one’s fulfilment and happiness. Do you believe this to be true? For example, have you achieved a big goal and found you weren’t as happy as you thought you’d be? You might recall Thomas Edison overcame repeated setbacks and failures to discover the light bulb. It took him no less than 1,000 attempts to invent what is regarded today as one of history’s greatest invention.
Now you might say: “I don’t have the wherewithal to persist through 1,000 failures to realise success or a goal. But what if his invention required 1,000 attempts before success was imminent? You see, sometimes the process dictates the path to success. If your goal is manageable in scale, your failure may not be as prominent as Thomas Edison’s. On the other hand if your goal is to impact humanity on a global scale, the process of pursuing the goal will almost certainly meet with unexpected detours and setbacks. The scale of the goal will determine the course one takes and subsequently the actions required to fulfil the goal. Consider this: what if your endeavour required time and patience and you knew this in advance; would you still persist? Oftentimes, we are discouraged from pursuing a goal and give up due to the fear of the unknown, rather than embrace it as a challenge. It is the fear of the road ahead which debilitates us, since the uncertainty may indicate success is unattainable.
Success Is Closer Than You Think
“Never give up on something that you can’t go a day without thinking about.” ―Winston Churchill
The advice for overcoming the fear of failure is embraced by the willingness to let go of mastering time and enjoy the process instead. If you love what you do and do what you love, then it stands to reason that the process becomes your focus. You’ve no doubt heard the adage: ‘think with the end in mind.’ By orientating yourself to the fulfilment of the goal, it affords you the opportunity to engineer the steps required in reverse. In his wildly acclaimed book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, the late author Dr. Stephen R. Covey proposes that when we think about our goal with the end in mind, as eluded to earlier. Many people give up on their goal for a variety of reasons. Perhaps their goal is not imbued with the passion and purpose they hope for. Therefore, we must foster an indestructible passion and conviction toward the realisation of our goal and not contemplate failure as an option. Ponder this for a moment: which is greater, the joy of success or the misery of defeat? Are you motivated to succeed or are you motivated to avoid pain? Psychologists call this the pain-pleasure principle. The avoidance of pain may be likened to mice administered electric shock treatment within a lab environment. They are discouraged from attaining the reward since the pain overwhelms the pleasure of the reward.
In order to realise a goal, an attitude of consistent persistence must be accompanied by an undeniable belief to succeed. Consistent dedication is paramount, given our daily habits lead toward success or failure. Consistency matched with passion, enthusiasm and desire ultimately lead toward the path of success. Before we consider giving up, we ought to rest or take a mini break if we must. Sometimes we need a break from the pursuit of our goal in order to gain clarity and perspective. It was Albert Einstein who once said: “You can’t solve a problem with the same level of thinking that created it in the first instance.” Therefore, if we consider our goal with a new mind, it allows us to see possible opportunities that may not have been apparent previously. One can never predict how long it takes to achieve success or achieve their goal. If we pursue our goal with an undeniable belief and conviction, then success will assuredly greet us in due course. The process becomes far more enjoyable than the victory itself.
Call To Action
Do you want to lead a remarkable life? Are you committed to taking action despite your fears and doubts? Have you had enough of not achieving the success you seek? If so, download your FREE copy of my eBook NAVIGATE LIFE right now, and start your amazing journey of greatness today!
Originally published at Medium