| How about that for a provocative question! | | | | 2. Sold on romance: The thought of being a |
| I'm sure your immediate answer is "Of | | | | pilot with the prestige and respect that |
| course!" But many people who answer in this | | | | comes with it and of course, the good salary |
| way simply aren't really serious about | | | | seemed very appealing. But it requires |
| achieving success. Let me explain. | | | | endless hours of hard work and continual |
| | | | development and this reality is far less |
| Recently, I had dinner with my best friend. I | | | | appealing. |
| hadn't seen him for a while as he is | | | | |
| currently training to be a commercial pilot. | | | | 3. The man's father is paying for the course. |
| During dinner, we discussed the importance of | | | | He knows he can take as much time as he wants |
| having complete focus on achieving success. | | | | because his father will pay for the extra |
| | | | study and the retaking of exams. As he isn't |
| In my own case, I wanted to run an Internet | | | | paying for his own studies - and for his own |
| business and this meant giving up my full | | | | mistakes - he doesn't have the focus and |
| time job so I could focus on learning the | | | | urgency that comes when you spend your own |
| necessary skills and have the time to develop | | | | money. In other words, failing isn't painful |
| and run my business. The process has required | | | | enough for him. |
| me to invest lots of time, lots of hard work | | | | |
| and sacrificing a lot of other activities in | | | | 4. Easily distracted. Instead of doing extra |
| my life to concentrate fully on developing my | | | | study after classes, the young man surfs the |
| websites. | | | | Internet. He's a keen sports fan and spends |
| | | | hours on the web looking at sports sites. |
| For my friend, his determination to become a | | | | They are wasted hours, hours that won't take |
| pilot has required an investment of around | | | | him any nearer to becoming a pilot. This |
| $100,000 to date. He too gave up his job to | | | | distracts him from the task at hand, as does: |
| pursue his dream and he also gave up his | | | | |
| girlfriend. He has studied in 3 countries and | | | | 5. Inviting his girlfriend over every |
| has studied very hard, day and night, to | | | | weekend. Instead of working, studying or |
| attain the necessary skills and | | | | flying at the weekends, he spends it instead |
| qualifications. | | | | with his girlfriend. They go shopping |
| | | | together, they watch movies together, they |
| Conversely, we discussed how many people say | | | | dine out and you can guess the rest! My |
| they want success but aren't really serious | | | | friend tried to point out to him that he was |
| about it. A case in point is a young man my | | | | wasting weekends he could use to get more |
| friend encountered on a course in Oklahoma. | | | | hours in. He was met with the reply "Yes, but |
| He too was studying to become a pilot but was | | | | my girlfriend wouldn't be happy about that, |
| struggling to reach the required standard. | | | | we have to see each other" Despite my friend |
| Despite having the ability, the young man | | | | saying they could spend lots of time together |
| failed his tests twice and my friend | | | | AFTER he'd qualified, the young man still |
| highlighted the following reasons. As you | | | | invites his girlfriend for weekends - and has |
| read, see if any apply to you: | | | | recently failed a third test. |
| | | | |
| 1. Heart isn't in it. He left university and | | | | If you are to achieve the success you really |
| didn't have a clear idea of what he wanted to | | | | want, it requires total focus. You must be |
| do. His father had found a pilot's course | | | | prepared to give it your full attention and |
| whilst surfing the Internet and mentioned it | | | | be 100% committed to your projects. It must |
| to his son. Thinking that becoming a pilot | | | | become the number one priority in your life. |
| would make his family proud, he signed up. He | | | | |
| isn't doing it for himself. | | | | So, are you REALLY serious about YOUR |
| | | | success?Until next time. |