Only the Do’s Matter

At a workshop, I was doing for a financial company a few years back I met a young man who was very eager to learn.  I asked him what it was he wanted to do in life.  "I want to be a success." He told me.  "A success at what?" I asked.  "It doesn't matter.  I just want to be successful."  Here is what I pointed out to him and would like for you to understand as well.  Success is not a goal.  Success is the achievement of a worthwhile goal, it is not the goal.  You cannot be successful at being a success.

                This type of thinking comes from a lack of understanding of just what success is.  We talk about it so much and encourage people to pursue it so often that it is easy to think of it as something on its own.  Success, as I said earlier, is the achievement of a worthwhile goal.  You must first know what it is you wish to do in life, and then you can work to be successful at that.  Otherwise it is like trying to walk across America without a road map.  You will do a lot of walking but you will never get to the destination simply because you have no destination to get to.

                There are four key areas that, if you follow them, will lead you to success.  As you discover how each of these areas play a part in your life, you will also discover just want to be successful means to you.  Success is not marked by money, power or possessions.  Those can be rewards of success, but many people are very successful in life without any of those things.

                Remember that it is not what you don’t do, or what you plan to do that makes the difference. It is only what you actually do that matters when it comes to achieving success.

"Don't aim for success if you want it; just do what you love and believe in, and it will come naturally."

- David Frost

(1939-2013) T.V. Host

#1.  Do What You Love

                It is a simple but deeply profound truth that if you do what you love to do you will do it better, work harder and enjoy it more.  I know we all have heard the old saying, "Do what you love and you will never have to work another day in your life."  Where I agree with the spirit of this statement, the fact is, if you do what you love you will work harder than you have ever worked before.  Here is the catch, although you will work harder, you will enjoy it more and willingly do whatever is required in achieving your goal.  I love the words of rapper turned actor, LL Cool J, who said, "Do what you love; you'll be better at it. It sounds pretty simple, but you'd be surprised how many people don't get this one right away."

#2.  Do What You Believe in

                No one will last long if they are required to work long and hard for something they do not believe in.  Success comes not just from knowing what you want to do but why you want to do it.  Here is where many fall short in their journey to achievement.  They think that if they figure out how to succeed at their goals they will then know why they wanted that goal.  The fact is, just the opposite is true.  If you have a strong enough why you will always find the how close by.  If you believe in your goal and that what you are trying to achieve is worthwhile and meaningful, you will discover the how no matter how long it takes.

#3.  Do What You Are Strong At

                One of the best ways to discover what your goals in life are is to look at the areas where we are strong.  I believe that our dreams are hard wired into us at birth.  Therefore, you have all the abilities to achieve what you were in fact created to do.  That means you will be strong in the areas that you need to be strong.  You may not have all the knowledge you need or all the skills and talents, but you will have the potential to learn them.  I know we have often been told to build up your weaknesses to make them strengths.  That is wrong thinking.  Where you are weak you will always be weak.  Build your strengths and manage your weaknesses and you will win every time.

#4.  Do What You Can Give the Most From

                "When you invest your time, you make a goal and a decision of something that you want to accomplish." Said coach Nick Saban, "Whether it's make good grades in school, be a good athlete, be a good person, go down and do some community service and help somebody who's in need, whatever it is you choose to do, you're investing your time in that."  None of us live for ourselves.  Your purpose in life is not just to make you successful.  You are here to make the world better.  I know that seems like a big order, but it is the ultimate purpose of every human on the planet.  If we each do our part to be the best we can be and to serve one another in the process, the world will be better.  Therefore, your success is really a duty you have more than a gift you get.  You have a responsibility to do your best and become all you can be so that others will gain and be blessed by your success.  Remember this, it is not the people who do bad things that make the world bad, it is the people who do nothing at all.

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 you dreams.  

© 2017 John Patrick Hickey. No part of this may be reprinted or published without permission of the author.