By Goke Ilesanmi
Paradoxically, there are no secrets of success. This is because success simply means taking the known right steps to achieve one’s goals. To make one’s life really count, one needs to develop a sense of mission or purpose. If you know what you want out of life, opportunities will surely come your way. It is important that you periodically pause and examine your values, your priorities, and the rewards most important to you.
Your potential
Every human creature has been conceived by destiny, packaged with potential and proclaimed by purpose to live a meaningful and fulfilled life. Deep down within you lies a seed of greatness itching for germination and harvest. For you to be able to easily navigate towards your success shore, you have to discover, release and maximise your potential. That is, the conception and practical transformation of good ideas are central to your success.
According to Myles Munroe, a renowned motivational writer and speaker, the entire creation possesses the principle of potential and every human being has the ability to accomplish his or her God-given purpose. But the releasing of one’s potential is up to one not God. Allowing one’s talent or ability to manifest is one’s responsibility.
Lazy and wrong approach
Many people employ a lazy and wrong approach towards achieving success. Tim Lavender, a motivational speaker says many people are looking for the horse that will pull their carts through life. They think once they get that horse going, they will then be able to relax and be whatever they want to be.
Lavender adds that most people he knows consciously or subconsciously put “doing” before “being”. He educates that the greater reality is that one’s potential is more powerfully released when one puts “being” before “doing”. Lavender stresses that if one can learn to operate from the being side of life, then everything he or she desires will come to him or her as a result.
Richest place on earth
One’s potential will not be released until he or she takes his or her thoughts, plans and imaginations and transforms them into action. You must work to mine your hidden potential, your untapped strength, etc. The greater tragedy in life is not death, but life that fails to fulfil its purpose and potential.
In short, it is said that the poorest man on earth is the one without an idea and the most frustrated man is the one that has potential that is not fulfilled. It is not surprising then that the cemetery is said to be the richest place on earth. This is because this is where most people are buried with their latent potential or untapped talents.
Great target
Another thing one needs to do to have easy navigation in the course of sailing towards the success shore is to set demanding goals and have vision. One needs to think big and create a vision for him- or herself for the long-term future because the clearer one’s vision of health, happiness and prosperity, the faster one will move towards it and the faster it moves towards one.
Ken Gaub, an author and great motivational speaker educates that most of us would like to leave this world as people that have made positive impacts on those around us. Dreamers are the people who accomplish the deeds that history remembers. Most successful people are dreamers, ordinary people who are not afraid to think big and dare to be great. Dreamers are not content with being merely mediocre, because no one ever dreams of going halfway, says Gaub.
Goal source
If you want to unlock the potential for greatness that lies within you, you must know your goal source. Robert Anthony, author of “How to Make the Impossible Possible” says your goals do not start in the brain, they start in your heart.
If you set goals from a personal perspective in the six areas of your life, you will find your purpose will be tied into your career and all your daily activities. You can break these goals down into long-term and short-term goals, and priorities can be set by knowing your values and purpose. The six major areas of your life where you can set goals are career, financial, physical, mental, family and spiritual.
Effective time management
Effective time management constitutes another important factor in the quest for success. As you begin each new day of your life, one thing that you have in common with every other living person is the same amount of time. If you want to achieve success in life, you need to understand that time is money, and the actual value of your time is determined by the size of your goals and your commitment to them.
Challenge
Another secret of success that can easily ensure one’s smooth navigation along the ocean of success is to embrace challenge. Challenge is a catalyst for success. In short, success is a challenge. Some people hold challenges as a tragedy to be avoided by all means. This is unnecessary because your challenge also holds a secret to your success. It makes you strong by stretching your creative mental and emotional muscles.
Belief and commitment
Belief and commitment are another factor central to achieving something great in life. When we believe something, what we really believe is that a thing is possible. Impossibility is lack of positive belief. The stronger our belief about our goals, the closer we get to achieving them. We can weaken or even kill a belief by introducing doubt. Our beliefs are your destiny, once we are committed, success will surely come our way.
As Peter Hirsch, author of “Success by Design” puts it, “Until one is committed there is always hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness.” Hirsch says commitment is the secret ingredient in every recipe for success, and once one is committed to something, it happens, no matter how long it takes, no matter what else happens, no matter what.
Last words
On a note of analytical finality, it is better for everyone to decide today to do something positive with his or her life. Disappoint procrastination and be committed to releasing your potential. Stop wishing and start willing; stop proposing and start purposing. Start planning so that you can have hitch-free navigation towards the shore of enduring success. You will succeed in 2011.
GOKE ILESANMI, Editor-in-Chief/CEO of https://www.gokeilesanmi.com.ng and Managing Consultant/CEO of Gokmar Communication Consulting, is a Certified Public Speaker/Emcee, (Business) Communication Specialist, Motivational Speaker, Career Management Coach, Renowned Book Reviewer, Corporate Leadership Expert and Editorial Consultant.
Tel: +234(0)8056030424; +234(0)8187499425
Email: info@gokeilesanmi.com.ng; gokeiles2010@gmail.com