 The
Principles of Success
Motivation
to find success in business and life
with Craig Lock
What
is success?
I
am not going to try to define success. I think a precise
definition is impossible. Is it winning a Gold Medal at the
Olympic Games or winning Wimbledon, or being awarded a Nobel
prize? What else? I believe personal success could be anything
at all - it does not have to involve public recognition. Who is
more successful? A millionaire who is unhappy, or an unnoticed
person who has led a simple, happy life? The simplest definition
of success I think is 'to set out to do something and to succeed
in doing it'. It really doesn't matter what, or how humble the
undertaking is...
Believe
you can succeed and you will. Achieving success in whatever
endeavour you choose may be the goal of life. Because it gives
you freedom from worry. Could that be?
Success
means different things to every one of us. Some people
believe it is measured in financial terms, ie.. having wealth;
others believe it is helping others rather than helping
themselves. A bit of both perhaps! Or it could be simply
achieving for achievement's sake. Success is such a personal
thing. To many people it is the very root of their being - the
reason for existing is to achieve something worthwhile in our
lives. To the vast majority of the population it doesn't matter
much whether they want to be successful or not; that's OK by me,
as long as that is what you really want and you are happy with
life. However, most people want and are motivated to a great
extent by public recognition and a relentless pursuit of
achievement. How many people too are really happy? How many
people are really doing what they want to with their lives? (
Incidentally, the ability to imagine, makes us different from
animals).
No
matter what motivates you personally...whatever you choose to
do with your life, don't expect instant success. The years
of struggle, commitment and learning in excelling at whatever
endeavour or trade you choose, is no easy task. I would
wholeheartedly agree with that statement. It takes a lot of
courage, character and discipline to achieve success in any
field. Nearly all successful people have doubted themselves at
some point and wanted to give up. Yet they carried on. So many
people give up within an inch or two away from the gold in the
seam down the mine - a “whisker” away from success. One
thing is for sure: success breeds SUCCESS, as it gathers
a momentum of its own and you get on a “winning streak”,
when everything seems to fit into place.. * * *
I like all
of the following quotations. They all stand for what success
means to me personally. So I'll share them with you...
"Success
is the continuous journey towards the achievement of
predetermined worthwhile goals." - Tom Hopkins, American
motivator
"To
live your life in your own way To reach the goals you've set for
yourself To be the person you want to be - that is
success." - author anon.
and
another one on a similar theme... "There is one only one
success: to be able to spend your life in your own way" -
Christopher Morley
Most of
all, I believe success is a matter of personal growth. If every
day you are developing or growing just a millimetre (or
acquiring a "teeny weeny" bit of knowledge for
improving yourself that you didn't have before), I believe one
is successful. So dwarfs can be very successful people too.
Just
being a slightly better person each day for me is success.
I've got a very long way to go then!
HOW
TO ACHIEVE SUCCESS
I
believe the first step towards achieving success is to define
what it represents to you. A key factor is understanding
yourself and what "makes you tick". What is your
DEFINITE PURPOSE in life? If you know where you want to head,
it'll be far easier to set in place a plan to get you there.
What motivates you?. I think the most important step on the road
to SUCCESS is first ACKNOWLEDGING yourself for what you are:
your faults, strengths, "warts and all". Your HOPES
and DREAMS for your life are vitally important.
The key
ingredients in the formula to success, I believe, are as
follows:
1. A
PLAN
2. FOCUS
3. DETERMINATION and most importantly,
4. A POSITIVE ATTITUDE
Some
others which you can throw into the recipe are:
* DRIVE
* ENERGY
* ENTHUSIASM
and a SINGLED-MINDED PURSUIT of your objective.
So
what else helps?
A
strong belief in yourself and what you are doing (or trying to
achieve)
Your
ultimate goals and dreams should conform to your values. So if
you're an honest sort of bloke (nice Kiwi/Aussie word for a
solid down-to-earth type of person), who wants to make a lot of
money, don't think of robbing a bank. The riches won't bring you
happiness...and you're not likely to be too successful as a
bank-robber if you are a regular church-goer!
NB:
Whatever you are, I believe the key ingredient to achieving
success is PERSISTENCE.
The
following words mean a lot to me personally ...
"Just
because you failed doesn't mean you are a failure."
"I'm
not a failure if I don't make it...I'm a success because I tried
" - anon
YOU
TOO ARE NOT A FAILURE IF YOU DON'T MAKE IT
YOU'RE
A SUCCESS BECAUSE YOU TRY.
All
of the above character traits give us our strength in the face
of adversity. EMPOWERMENT: this is the ability to take control
over your life and learn from your experiences. We can all learn
so much from the roller coaster that is life each and every day.
Or is it swings and roundabouts?
What
can you do about your life...other than breathe and stay alive?
Don't
just stand there - do something.
"JUST
HAVE A GO" at life.
ACTION
AND A COMMITMENT IN SEEING IT THROUGH IS THE KEY TO YOUR SUCCESS
(IN WORK AND IN LIFE).
|
