Have you ever been in life when you were so sure about what you wanted? And achieved it? What were the top most qualities which helped you to do that? All of you may have different answers to this, I know. But a few factors will remain the same for all of us. I believe, out of all those, three are the most important. Let us see in today’s post the three qualities you need to achieve your goals, whatever that may be.
When I thought of starting this blog, I had this list of apprehensions and self-doubts. The biggest enemy of any good thing – fear of failure – slowly crept in. Then, a lesson that my son taught me came to my mind. It helped me to keep all those fears away and give my dream a try. The lesson he taught me has reminded me of those qualities which is needed to achieve my goal. As I have mentioned here, kids are always the best teachers!
The lesson I learned!
When he was hardly around 8 or 9 months (just at the age when he could sit without support), we were both sitting on our cot and playing. There was a small gap between the cot and the wall. It was his favorite place to dump everything that he could get his hands on. Suddenly, while playing, a t-shirt caught his attention. He took that and tried to put it within that gap. Since it was a clean one, I took it from him and kept it by my side. He took it from me again and tried to throw it in that gap. I took that away one more time.
This game continued for some time. Initially, I was thinking only about stopping my son. But after 4 to 5 times of trying, I was curious to see how many times he would try and start counting. I counted up to 25!!!
Finally, I gave in and allowed him to do what he wished.
He was so happy!!!!
You had to see the glow of happiness in his eyes! Even though he was not able to tell me anything through words his eyes and smile conveyed all that he wanted to tell me about the success.
Including the ones I counted and the ones I missed, he tried almost 30 times to get that mission accomplished!! 30 times!!!!
During all that time, I tried to distract him with other toys, told him to stop, and tried not to give him the shirt. But he was so determined with his eyes only on that T-shirt and that small gap where he had to put that!
I was amazed by the power of his determination. At that moment, I felt ashamed thinking about how many times I had stopped my plans even before starting by giving so many excuses.
Qualities you need to achieve your goals!
That day he taught me what I should have within me to get anything in life! The three qualities anyone need to achieve goals.
- Laser-like focus
- The consistency
- Never give up attitude
Laser-like focus
I know many of you are familiar with the story of Arjuna and his teacher. Once his teacher Dhronachariya asked all his students to participate in a test. He kept a wooden bird on the branch of a tree. The task was to strike the eye of the wooden bird.
Before shooting their arrow, he asked everyone a question – what do you see there? Each one gave different answers like tree, bird, leaves, branches, the mountain, etc. The teacher asked them to keep their bow and arrow down and didn’t allow them to shoot.
Finally, Arjuna’s turn came. Drona asked the same question. He answered, “the eye of the wooden bird.” Drona asked him to shoot, and Arjuna got the bird in its eye.
Yes, this is called laser-like focus!!
Remember how my kiddo’s eyes were only on the shirt and the gap? That is how we should keep our whole hearts and mind on the task at hand.
Any distractions mean a waste of energy and time. Having more distractions leads us to more confusion. When confused, we tend to take wrong steps that may move us away from our goals. To convert this confusion into clarity, it is always a good practice to write down what you want. Writing down on paper gives you so much more clarity than you imagine. This one is my favourite way to stay focused. If you have better ideas, please comment below.
The Consistency
The most praised quality in getting what you want, but the least followed one.
You know how hard rock is and how soft the water running in a stream is. But the consistent flow of water can even break the mountain and create a new path for the stream. I don’t think we need any other example to show the power of consistency.
The success of all those people we envy is the outcome of years of consistent work on what they decide to achieve.
It is never the big things once in a while that can make changes in our life. It is always the small things day in and day out which bring life-changing improvements. You might have heard about the concept of 1 % change, right? This concept is one thing that many self-development gurus swear by for having positive life changes.
James Clear, the author of Atomic Habits, says that a 1% change every day for one year means you will end up 37% better than you started. Give it a try! 37% better physical or mental health, improvements in skills or relationships, anything for that matter!
Let me know what you decide to work on and later tell me the results!
Never Give up Attitude
I don’t have to explain anything here. We all know the theory here, but practicals are always the tough ones!
The irony is we tend to give up often, even before we start! We will have a goal/dream then someone will say the difficulties in achieving the same, that is it. The plan goes to the dustbin! No one has ever achieved anything with that attitude! If you have a dream – you need to fight for it. You have to protect that and work for it. As the saying goes, it is not about not falling. It is always about how many times you get back on your feet. So never give up because we never know how close we are to winning what we want.
I hope this message will at least make you think of what you want in life and start the baby steps towards achieving that. Never bother about slow progress or failures. Be focused! Be consistent! And Never give up! Just like how I finally gave in before the determination of my boy and allowed him to do what he wanted, the Universe will also definitely give in affectionately when you are adamant and determined!!
See you soon in my next post. Until then, stay safe and happy!
