“Success seems to be largely a matter of
hanging on after others have let go.”
~William Feather~
I’ve been having one of those days. Maybe you can relate. It really started yesterday afternoon and went late into the evening, when feeling a bit like a dog with a bone, I made myself quit working and watch a little TV before getting ready for bed. This morning I felt rested and ready to go again.
Having bought some software which is supposed to make quick work of blog creation, I installed it and tried to get it to work. That’s when I stepped into the quagmire. It’s never a good sign when I find myself reading “foreign” language (read “technospeak”) in the instructions. And the references to “code” made my blood run cold.
Whoever said “Code is poetry,” is a delusional in my book. It should say, “Code is the handiwork of the devil.”
Bear in mind that I was an English major where I learned that language is metaphorical and has many shades of meaning. Usually a beautiful thing. And since then I have lived in the world of psychology, which while it has some hard science as a part of it, the practice of which is also metaphorical and has many shades of meaning.
If you are younger than I am (and you probably are) and have been a world citizen in the 21st century, you likely know that computer code is not metaphorical, nor does it have many shades of meaning. It is an exacting, cruel and hard-bitten thing that demands compliance or your technical wish will certainly not be your command.
After more time passed than I care to think about, I gave up trying to guess what in the heck was required, and shut down the computer. As I left to meet a friend for lunch, I got what I thought might be Divine Inspiration…an idea of what I needed to do to get unstuck. Back from lunch, I started again. Turns out the inspiration wasn’t the magic bullet, but it got me closer to the answer.
I did make some progress, and got to another fork in the technical road and decided to stop and do something else on my to do list that I know I can manage. To say that I am challenged is an understatement. I’d better be developing new brain cells, or I’m going to be really annoyed!
So why am I telling you this?
Because I think my experience is representative of the process of reaching goals, and in a larger sense, making the life changes we desire. We often hear about so-and-so being “An Overnight Success!” The reality is almost always the opposite. The world may become aware of so-and-so overnight (electronic media being what it is) but if you care to ask, that successful person has been trudging on, working consistently in the trenches, dealing with frustrations and doubts and even failures, working through obstacles until their intentions begin to take form. As they continue working, they gain momentum until they reach a tipping point. And viola`, an “overnight sensation!”
Although you may think that successful people are smarter or luckier than average, it is much more likely that the successful are tenacious. They persist in imagining and working every day toward the fulfillment of their dreams. When they fall down, they get back up and start over. And when they get lost, they ask for help, buy a compass and map and get back on the road.
Most failure probably isn’t because of laziness or stupidity. It’s likely a matter of giving up. That’s easy to do when you are discouraged or frustrated or overwhelmed. If you find yourself in this camp, it’s never too late to start over. Find inspiration by talking to or reading the work of someone who has succeeded or is farther along than you are.
Hire a coach; often you can cut costs by getting into a coaching group. Join a group of people who are in the field you want to achieve in. Buy a hypnosis DVD that is professionally produced by experienced psychologists to build your resilience and remove the obstacles that frustrate you.
Rather than abandoning your dreams, get some help and get back on track. It’s all a part of your road to success!
