There are things we want yet we’re not always willing to do what it takes to get them.
That’s why Olympic athletes amaze us. That’s why self made millionaires awe us.
Very successful people consistently do what it takes to get what they want.
Natural talent, circumstances, resources all come into play but they do not predetermine the outcome. There are too many accounts of people who have conquered their fair share of obstacles and made it to the top anyway.
The top is a different place for every one of them but the people who stand there share similar traits: determination, grit, patience, courage… Vision. They are clear about what they want and aware of the cost.
We all pay a price for the choices we make.
The winners pay by sacrificing short term pleasures in pursuit of their long term aspirations.
The losers pay with feeling of shame and regrets.
I’m not talking about being a winner or loser by other people’s standards but by our own. This we know about ourselves: whether we have lived up to our own potential or whether we have let our own self down.
The champions of the world are not necessarily smarter, stronger or better than the rest of us but their actions are congruent with their goals and they do not let anyone nor anything steer them away from the grand prize.
Excellence is not achieved by chance. Luck might add some wind to our sails but we still have to get in the boat. Some of us might even need to build the boat.
Day after day we must continue to steer it towards the horizon of our ideal selves.
There will be sun. There will be rain. There will be storms.
Will we waver?
Will we falter?
Will we long for the comfort and safety of the harbor?
Yes. Yes. Yes.
Will we give up?
Some of us will. The rest of us won’t.
One day at a time, one choice at a time, we each make our destiny. We may not know for sure where we will end up but we can decide who we want to be when we get there.
I for one hope to like the me I find at the end of the journey.
Even if I don’t reach the top, I’ll be happy so long as I’m heading in that direction.
After all, our greatest impact on the world may simply be the difference we make within ourselves.
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GREAT piece. You are a winner!!!