START BEGINNING
There
are really three things that cause someone to stop learning. These
three things are all fatal and will stop you from achieving your dreams. They are ego, fear, and laziness. Let’s see how they affect us and how to
overcome them in our life.
"You
can learn new things at any time in your life if you’re willing to be a beginner. If you actually learn to like being a
beginner, the whole world opens to you."
- Barbara Sher
Author
The Problem of Ego
I
start with this because I believe it is the most common among people who have
talent and skill, yet do not move forward to become their best. Ego is what tells us that we know all that we
need to know. It looks at the talents
and skills we possess and thinks that is all we need in life. The ego
believes it is better than everyone and therefore not subject to the need of learning
that others have to face.
The
way to overcome ego is to first understand that, as Dr. John C. Maxwell so
skillfully pointed out, “Talent is not enough.”
Your talent and skills are really useless if you do not know how to use
them and help them to improve on a daily basis. Success-minded people learn, not because they
have to, (although if they wish to achieve the success
they do have to), but because they desire to be the best they can be. Who you are today is always less than who you
will be tomorrow if you are open to learning.
The Problem of Fear
It
is human nature to fear the unknown. The
things you do not know will sometimes cause you great fear. What if you fail? What if you get hurt, or make a mistake? What if you make a fool of yourself? All these fears are real to the person who
hides rather than set out to learn new things; have new experiences and take
risks.
Success-minded
people have all those same fears. We all
do in some way or another. What
success-minded people do differently is they move past the fear and
deliberately learn what they need to know.
Successful people know that there will be times when they fail, or get
hurt, or make mistakes. They even know
that they will at some point make a fool of themselves. However, they also know, and use, the fact
that with each failure, mistake or foolish act comes a lesson to learn and they
make sure they learn it.
The Problem of Laziness
Success
means work – hard work – and there are no shortcuts. Because of this many people will not venture
off on the journey because it is just too much work. They begin to think that there must be an
easier way, but finding that way is also too much work. It is an
American businessman, Robert Half said, “Laziness
is a secret ingredient that goes into failure. But it's only kept a secret from
the person who fails.”
Success-minded
people are successful mainly because they are not afraid to work. They know that nothing happens in life
without action, so they become people of action. Really, it takes less effort to achieve
success than to live a life of failure and want. Benjamin Franklin said it clearly and very
directly when he said, “A life of leisure and a life of laziness are two
things. There will be sleeping enough in the grave.”
You can learn more about Personal Development from author and speaker,
John Patrick Hickey. To get his books,
training and book him to speak to your church, business or group, visit our
website at www.johnpatrickhickey.com.
Be sure to sign up for the free membership and get even more tools to help you
achieve your dreams.
© 2018 John Patrick
Hickey. No part of this may be reprinted or published without the permission of the author.
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