“And this ain't no place for the weary
kind
This ain't no place to lose your mind
This ain't no place to fall behind
Pick up your crazy heart and give it one more try”
Earlier this week, I had recalled that sometime in 2009, I had watched the
making of the movie 'Crazy at Heart' and I had fallen in love with their
soundtrack. But I wasn’t in possession of a ‘good phone’ then, if you know what
I mean. So early last month after almost 8 years, I finally downloaded the
track. The above lines are the chorus of the track and I must admit, I didn’t
expect it to be so lyrically ‘charged up’. The song was on replay for the first
2 weeks after it was downloaded but just like the others, everything often
comes to an end. And oh, there is the other group that believe they are not yet
ready, that they need to hit the gym for a full year before they can muster a mustard
seed size courage to stare the obstacles between them and their goals in the
face, procrastinating for a living and not actually living.
Everybody wants to be successful but only few are willing to get up every
morning to work towards their dreams. If you ask at random, 100 people you come
across what they want in life, majority of them will you ‘They want to be
successful’. If you probe them further however, majority actually have no plan
on how to get there. Somehow they believe it's spontaneous, not planned. Not a
result of consistent actions, just some stroke of luck or something.
Many people are eager to start up projects but
very few have a ‘why’ for starting the project. Most shiver at the thoughts of
the challenge, while others give up as a result of some imaginary fear their
minds cook up.
Anyway, before I expend all my points in the intro, I'll just list below the
few things one must do, if he or she is to get anywhere near his/her dreams. I
know you've come across several tips like this but add this to your knowledge
box.
SET GOALS
It’s definitive not ambiguous. I want a car, is different from I want a
G-wagon. The former is some random statement, everybody says that. It could be
a Peugeot 504, Volkswagen ‘beetle’ (old model) etc. It could be any car. The
later however, is specific. You must not be scared to declare the kind of
things you want. EVEN THE BIBLE SPEAKS OF THE POWER OF THE TONGUE. Positive
words always attract positive vibes. So don't be scared to say what you really
want. Don't look at your present situation. I had not wanted to make this
religious in anyway but if I didn't, I would be a big fat wolf. Faith is a key.
You must be able to see your tomorrow; you must be able to see beyond your nose
(i.e. look past the challenges of today). I always prefer to see my challenges
as mere mirage or illusion, just serving to distract me from seeing the real
thing. So goals are the most important. It is the first step. You can't set
targets if you don't have them. You need to have goals.
BE BOLD
Enter Action with Boldness: that's one of the laws in the book '48 Laws of
Power'. Truth is, if you're not going to give your all, then don't start it at
all. If you have no intent of winning it, then don’t compete at all. Don't be
afraid. Some of us are too timid and often end up doing less than we actually
desired to. Half-baked effort–in my opinion–is worse than no effort. 'Anything
that is worth doing is worth overdoing'. Don't be fearful as to what the future
holds. Rather be excited by the prospects of your dreams. Remember, you have to
see beyond your nose. See what the world hasn't. Now you know why you need
goals. Without it, it is almost impossible to have any form of focus.
Don't be
fearful of who you'll offend either. Sometimes what you mistake as compassion
or respect, is in reality, fear. Learn to look at the world with dispassionate
eyes. DON'T JUDGE WITH YOUR EMOTIONS, people will play you and exploit you.
Learn to rule your life with your head and not your heart. Don't accept
everything that is given or offered. By that, I mean don't settle for less.
Sometimes you have to be bold enough to say NO. This is especially important
when negotiating business deals. Nobody is a friend at the table of
negotiations, everyone has a vested interest. Don't try to please people at
your own detriment. Don't be scared of what people will think of you.
Regardless of what you do, people will still have an opinion about you, that's
the truth.
BE CONSISTENT
Call me a hypocrite for all I care but I'll still say it: If you lack
consistency, trust me, you'll only produce sporadic feats. Trust me; you need
to be consistent in your pursuit. You need to channel your desires and passion
fiercely into the pursuit of your goals. How bad do you want it? How bad do you
want to win it? Then this is not the time to rest. Keep pushing till you
achieve that goal. There will be time for rest but not just now. As long as you
have not reached that goal, don't be contented with the progress, yes be very
grateful but don't be contented till you have reached the destination–the goal.
Don't sleep. No, don't wait till tomorrow and hell no, you won't do it later.
Do it now, yes, now. Clear off those tasks on your task list and then you can
party for the rest of your life (no actually, just that day). Don't save the
difficult ones for later, start your day with them. Procrastination is the
greatest enemy of consistency. So don't fall a prey to its subtle tricks.
You can have goals, you can be bold but if you're not consistent, it's a damn
waste.
DON'T
PROCRASTINATE:
There should
be a life sentence for those who do this (though I’d be in the prison if there was
one). This is likened to what hawks are to chickens: a dreaded nightmare. I
will do it tomorro....shhhhh, don't even say that, if it can be done today,
then do it today. Tomorrow is pregnant with its activities already.
Don't complain that the day ends too fast, you just don't discipline yourself.
God gave us 24hours for a reason. If it was too short He would have increased
it. If it was too long, He would have reduced it. So don't complain that you
don't have enough time. You need to discipline yourself.
LEARN TO PERSEVERE
This is the last, not the least but the bitter truth. If you think this journey
will be a smooth sail, then you're a joker. It won't be. This will push you to
your limits but don't shiver, because when you're against the wall, that's when
you're most creative. So, don't pray for a smooth ride because there won't be
one. The bible says 'No weapon fashioned against you shall prosper'. It didn't
say no weapon will be fashioned against you. It is through this challenges that
we become better. Trust me, if there was another way, every one would have met
their goals. This trip isn't for everybody, so you can just step aside and be
ordinary–stay in your comfort zone. But if you want to be more, then here is
the truth many people don't know, "Eventually, the storm always comes to
an end. Eventually, the clouds run out of rain". So don't turn away from
this challenge. Run towards it! Oh, I almost forgot: when all seems lost, God
will always meet you the point of your need.
Personally, I'm yet to achieve most of my goals and I'm probably still unknown
so, I may seem not to be the Michael Jordan for the basketball lectures.
However, in my defense, I know I will get there. It's just a matter of when.
So, why should I wait or procrastinate till then? If I do, maybe Dangote or
Elon Musk, will have a similar idea and write a piece as good as this before
me. By the way, that's what happens when you wait 'till you're ready'. Someone else
does it before you and sometimes even better. It is time to stop wishing. It is
time to start acting. So don't wait for your dreams...Go for it!
