Success in life requires us. That may seem obvious to say, however, often we look to others or for gaining certainty through shortcuts.
The ‘us’ that does not give up when things are challenging.
I remember Seth Godin talking about the fact that 95% of the people who register and pay for his freelancer course on Udemy, which is there to help them be more successful, give up and do not finish it.
It’s not because it is a shit course, in fact, the very opposite. He puts it down to when it gets to the tough bit, when the person has to put in the work themselves and not expect him to provide everything, it’s challenging and they give in.
Perhaps they thought they could pay someone else to do the hard work.
Successful people, that’s not measured in money in the bank, the size of your car, or what it says on their business card, success is after all personal, are the ones who do the sometimes repetitive, mundane tasks, they do the commitment to things, and most importantly, they carry on when things get challenging. They do it when it’s easier, short-term, to follow the path of least resistance and hide in instant gratification.
They are no more talented than anyone else, they are not born successful, we all are born with the same potential for greatness, however we choose to define greatness.
The good news is it’s just a habit and therefore any of us can develop the habit of doing the challenging over hiding in the easy.
Success needs many things but it will not come without ourselves being willing to accept the challenge and do the hard work when it becomes tough and being prepared to repeat.
Philip Dodson 