You Build Success, You Don't Wait for It or Chase It
There’s no magic wand that will summon success into your life. That’s because success doesn’t usually go knocking on doors without an invitation. If you want it, you will have to build it and shape it with your own hands.
But first, you have to define what it is you really want to achieve. In other words, you have to decide which direction you want to go in. Once identified, a good foundation and overflowing hope will attract success. That’s what will give you the strength you need to get over the first hurdles.
But not everything will be all sunshine and roses. Failure will be lurking around every corner. It will try to scare you and make you question whether you should keep moving forward or turn back.
However, this will be an important step on your journey to success. It will just be another step in the learning process. Don’t take it as a wake-up call for you to give up what you started with so much hope. Your efforts will always be rewarded if you do it with patience and intelligence.
“I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed.”
-Michael Jordan-
The first step is the hardest, but also the most important
Taking the first step is always a hard decision. It means creating inertia from a static position. It’s like a writer who finds himself in front a terrifying blank sheet of paper. Nevertheless, once you’ve made it past this first barrier, it will be easier to keep moving forward. Especially if you’re holding hands with your greatest ally: determination.
A lot of times you’re afraid of taking the first step because your mind anticipates suffering or failure. You anticipate failure that may not even come. And this may be because you want immediate results. We all want our path to success to be as short as possible. But this way of thinking will just frustrate you because everything comes in its own time.
The farther away your goal is, the more effort it will take for you to get there. And the harder it will be for you to make the decision to take the first step. Doubts and worries will come up. What if I get stuck along the way? Will I be able to overcome all of the obstacles I will face?
Failures are part of the learning process.
“I can’t” is not an option
Your life is full of “I can’t”. Two words you use way more than you should. As we said at the beginning of this article, magic doesn’t exist. Success will not come looking for you unless you go out and search for it. However, this will not be possible if you limit yourself.
Your words have great power. If you say “I can”, then that is exactly the way it will be. If you say “I can’t”, then you probably won’t be able to. Sometimes the negative things you say come from your surroundings. They come from people around you who don’t believe in you, constantly calling your goals ridiculous. All of this makes you second-guess if you are actually going to get what you want. If you will be able to make it happen.
There is only one solution here. Turn a deaf ear to people’s words that do nothing but hinder you on your path to success. Turn a deaf ear and smile. You know better than anyone what you are capable of doing. Nobody has the right to make you doubt your abilities.
Set goals you can actually meet
The best way to handle the failure you’re so afraid of is to set goals you know you will be able to meet. They don’t have to be very big. The most important thing is that short-term results are feasible. This way you keep your feet on the ground, which is an essential part of success.
Does that mean there are limits on your dreams? No, what it means is that you have to be realistic. Because sometimes your hopes and dreams can play tricks on your mind. Your expectations soar and you lose perspective.
Taking baby steps, without running out of patience or getting ahead of yourself, will prepare you to solve any problem that arises. When you least expect it, you’ll start to see what you had in your mind become reality. It will rarely be exactly as you pictured it, because the journey will change it, but this is usually for the better.
“Maybe I have not reached my goal yet, but I am closer than I was yesterday.”
-Anonymous-
Don’t just stay put, waiting for success to come for you. It’s even worse if you chase it like crazy. For your goals to be met with success, you’ll have to build them every day. With confidence in what you are doing and without losing perspective.
Above all, if it’s worth it, give it everything you have. It’s a challenge to make yourself get going, but it’s an even bigger challenge to stay on track despite the problems and difficulties that will get in the way. Remember that all of this is part of the process. So what are you waiting for? Start building your own success!