What’s in between you and your achievements?

There are a million different jobs, thousands of diets, hundreds of competitions, and so many opportunities in this life.  So what separates those who succeed in these various pursuits, and who does not?  It is the biggest factor of all; effort.  Yes, effort can be the determining factor in whether you get that promotion, whether you win that race, or if you are able to stick to a beneficial diet and exercise routine.

Effort is defined in the Merriam Webster Dictionary as, “conscious exertion of power: hard work or something produced by exertion or trying.”  A conscious effort means that this is not just a physical attempt or use of effort.  This is going to include the mind and the body’s power teaming together in hard work!

The effort required for success takes self-discipline.  This is not something we were all just born with, but it is something that is learned, practiced and applied.  It can be difficult because it is required in the daily thoughts and decisions we make, so it surely takes persistence.  The desire for something is not enough, we all desire many things and yet we do not acquire or achieve it all.

There is an innate intelligence that we all possess that tells us what is right and what is wrong.  We know when we are doing what we should be and when we are slacking off and allowing ourselves to become distracted by unhelpful thoughts or useless actions.  It is important to always be the conductor of your life and keep your train on its tracks!

Waking up each day is a start; of course, we all wake up and get the same 24 hours, but it is what you do with yours that is going to get you to where you want to be.  That self-discipline is going to depict how you devote that time and what you devote it to.   The idea is to consider what your goals are, and then look at how you are spending most of your time.  The thoughts and activities within your day should in some way include your goals and be proactive in making your progress towards reaching them.

I often like to over exert myself to getting priorities and more difficult tasks done first.  This always helps to give me a sense of accomplishment which fuels my brain to generate thoughts and ideas on my next move.  This also makes leisure time more enjoyable because I feel that sense of reward, which our brains work well with.  The world is not going to always reward you for everything you do, if much of anything at all.  It is important that you satisfy that need for reward because if you do not, life is going to seem like all work, and you will lose sight of the purpose of it all if you don’t.  So, rest and downtime are surely important, but it is when we overindulge that we can feel that sense of laziness or underachievement.  We want to be careful of falling into that rut because it can take even more effort and self-discipline to get out of, than it would to keep yourself ‘on track.’

So, push yourself, you are strong you can handle it.  Remember, all good things are going to require effort.  Nothing great comes easy, so don’t give up on the things you know are good for you because it is difficult.  We tend to give up right about when it gets ‘too hard’ and then settle for something easier or give ourselves excuses as to why we don’t need or want it anymore.  Although difficult at first, they will be worth the effort you put in, in the end.  Persevere!