Why You Must Prepare For Success
Everyone wants to be successful. Everyone wants
to have more, be more, do more, and enjoy more of what life has to offer. We
are driven continually forward toward the accomplishment of the things that are
most important to us. The entire human race is a made up of people striving
toward the realization of their potential in every area. Because of this, there
is tremendous competition for the good of things in life. Everybody wants them,
and no one is ever fully satisfied. The satisfaction of a want or desire leads
automatically to a want or desire for something else. And it never ends.
What, then, is the difference between those who
accomplish a lot and those who accomplish a little? It is that some people have
the will to be successful and others don’t. Everyone wants to be successful.
But very few people want to engage in the rigorous hard work, hour after hour,
month after month, and year after year, that is required to prepare themselves for success.
You too, want to be successful. You want to be a
big success in life. You want to develop your potential to the maximum. You
want to be everything you’re capable of becoming. You want to make all the
money you possible can and enjoy the finest standards of living that you can
achieve. You want to earn the esteem and appreciation of all those people
around you whose opinions you care about. The way to be successful has never
changed. Success requires preparation.
Earl Nightingale said that if a person does not
prepare for his success, when the opportunity comes, it will only make him look
foolish. You’ve probably heard it said repeatedly that luck is what happens
when preparedness meets opportunity. It is only, when you’ve paid the price to
be ready for your success that you will be in a position to take advantage of
your opportunities, when they arise.
The most remarkable thing about preparing for
success is this: The very act of preparation attracts to you, like iron
fillings to a magnet, opportunities to use that preparation to advance your
life. You’ll seldom learn anything of value, or prepare yourself in any area,
without soon having a chance to use your new knowledge and your new skills to
move ahead more rapidly.
There are a series of things that you can do to
become ready for success. All of these activities require self-discipline and a
great deal of faith. They require self-discipline because the most normal and
natural thing for people to do its to try to get by
without preparation. Instead of taking the time and making the effort to be
ready for their chance when it comes, they fool around, listen to the radio,
watch television, and then they try to wing it. Since, we’re all transparent,
and just about everyone can see through just about everyone else, the person
who is unprepared simply looks incompetent and foolish.
Preparation also requires a lot of faith because
you have no guarantee that your preparation will pay off. You simply have to
believe, deep within yourself, that everything you do of a constructive nature
will come back to you in some way. You have to know that a good effort is never
wasted. You have to be willing to sow for a long time before you reap, knowing
that if you do sow in quality and quantity, the reaping will come about
inevitably with force of a law of nature.
In preparing for success, one of the very best
questions that you can ask yourself, continually, is: “What can I do, that if
done well, will make a difference in my career?” You ability to honestly
appraise yourself and to identify the particular skill area that may be holding
you back is critical for your future success.
Remember, preparation requires self-discipline
and faith. It requires self-discipline because your natural tendency is to do
more and more of those things that come most easily to you, and to avoid those
areas that you don’t enjoy because you’re not particularly good at them. It
requires faith and character for you to admit your weaknesses in a particular
area and then resolve to go to work to develop yourself so those weaknesses don’t
hold you back.
One of the greatest changes that has ever taken
place in our society happened in 1989 when the world changed from the
Industrial Age to the Information Age. We are now living in an
information-based society. Because of the Internet and other technological
advances more than 60 percent of the working population is in the business of
processing information in some way.
This means that we now are living in a
knowledge-based society and you have to be a person of knowledge if you’re
going to succeed. To succeed you must be able to work with your mind, your
mental talents and abilities. Gone are the days of laboring in the factories
and the mills. Today you can succeed only by thinking and the more effectively
you think and the better prepared you are mentally, the more productive and
positive you’ll be.
One of the most important things you can do to
prepare yourself for success is to set aside one to two hours each day to read
something uplifting. Read material that is educational, motivational, or
inspirational. If you spend at least one hour each day investing in your mind,
taking in “mental protein” reading good books, business magazines, trade
journals, and newsletters, every day will begin to flow more smoothly. You’ll
be more positive and confident and relaxed. You’ll have a greater sense of
control and well-being by the very act of reading healthy material for an hour
every day.
The time you spend driving in your car can add
hours to your success preparation every week. Driving time should always be
learning time. If you want to prepare for success you should never listen to
the radio. Instead you should always be listening to educational, business, and
motivational audio programs.
Another important thing that highly successful
people do is that they plan and prepare for their entire day. They get up a
little earlier each day and review all of their tasks and responsibilities for
the day. They carefully make a list of all their activities, and they set clear
priorities on their activities. They decide which things are most important to
do, which are secondary in importance, and which things should not be done at
all unless all the other things are finished. Then, they discipline themselves
to start working on their most important tasks and stay with them during the
day until they’re complete.
Another way to prepare for success is to eat
right. Health and energy are essential to your success, and they’re possible
only when you’re sharp and alert. These are foods that are highly nutritious and
that give you energy and vitality all through the day. You should eat more
fruits, vegetables, and foods containing more whole grain. Stay away from foods
that contain substantial amounts of fat and sugar.
In everything you do, preparation is the key. If
you want to be ready for success, you have to plant the seeds well in advance
of the harvest that you expect. Do what other successful people do: “Think on
paper.” Memorize the winner’s creed: “Everything counts.” Everything you do is
either moving you toward your goals or moving you away. Everything is either
helping you or hurting you. Nothing is neutral. Everything counts.
Remember, we live in a knowledge-based society,
and knowledge in every field is doubling approximately every two to three
years. This means that you must double your knowledge in your field every two
to three years just to stay even. You’re most likely already “maxed out” at
your current level of knowledge and skill. You’ve reached the ceiling in your
career with your current talents and abilities. If you want to go faster and
farther, you must get back to work and begin to prepare yourself for greater
heights. You must turn off the radio, the television, and politely excuse
yourself from aimless socializing and get back to working on yourself.
There is a quotation by Abraham Lincoln that had
a great influence on my life as I prepared myself for success. It was a
statement he made when he was a young lawyer in
If you study and prepare yourself, your chance
will come as well. There is nothing you cannot accomplish if you’ll invest the
effort to get yourself ready for the success that you desire. And there is
nothing that can stop you but your own lack of preparation.
Your possibilities are endless, your potential
is unlimited, and your future will open up for you when you prepare yourself
for the success that must inevitably be yours.
Copyright©2004 by Joe Love and JLM & Associates, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide.
Joe Love draws on his 25 years of experience helping both individuals and companies build their businesses, increase profits, and achieve total success. He is the founder and CEO of JLM & Associates, a consulting and training organization, specializing in personal and business development. Through his seminars and lectures, Joe Love addresses thousands of men and women each year, including the executives and staffs of many businesses around the world on the subjects of leadership, achievement, goals, strategic business planning, and marketing. Joe is the author of three books, Starting Your Own Business, Finding Your Purpose In Life, and The Guerrilla Marketing Workbook.
Reach Joe at: joe@jlmandassociates.com
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