“I’ve always found that anything worth achieving will always have obstacles in the way, and you’ve got to have that drive and determination to overcome those obstacles en route to whatever it is that you want to accomplish.”
Chuck Norris
Is it worth achieving if you don’t have obstacles? If it is easy, anyone will do it. Anyone could do it. So perhaps the real question is this. Are you pushing hard enough to find the obstacles? If not, push harder…
“I’ve always found that anything worth achieving will always have obstacles in the way and you’ve got to have that drive and determination to overcome those obstacles on route to whatever it is that you want to accomplish.”
Chuck Norris
If it is easy to achieve is it worthy of your efforts? Doing what is “easy” doesn’t strengthen and build a platform for long-term success. I have learned far more in life from the obstacles and challenges along the way than I have from any “accomplishments.” Well, that’s not entirely true. I have learned a great deal from accomplishments that occurred AFTER I had to overcome a challenge along the way. Those were the ones that reformed who I am as a person and have helped me grow and learn. While I might have wished to avoid the obstacle if given a choice I can’t think of a single one where I don’t appreciate the lesson it taught me.
Having drive and determination to overcome challenges is critical. Equally important is taking the time to reflect on what it is you were supposed to learn from the challenge so you can improve and grow.
What is the lesson you are supposed to be learning from the challenge before you right now?
“A lot of times people look at the negative side of what they feel they can’t do. I always look on the positive side of what I can do.”
Chuck Norris
What is your natural bias? Do you often find yourself on the negative side of the continuum or on the positive side? Depending on the situation it is completely normal to find yourself on both sides at times but what is your natural tendency?
I almost always default to a perspective that is action oriented and focused on change. I want to understand what I can do to impact a situation. In the absence of action and change, my default mode is to look for something I can do. This isn’t always positive, sometimes I can spend a lot of energy on things that I should be ignoring, but with time I am getting better at choosing when to “do” and when to ignore. How about you?
“Men are like steel. When they lose their temper, they lose their worth.”
Chuck Norris
I studied Jiu Jitsu for 10 years when I was young and one of the first things that our sensei taught us when we started sparring was that the “person who loses their temper loses the match. When you lose your temper you are surrendering control of the match to the other person.” This was a great lesson to learn at a young age and one that has stayed with me throughout my life.
I believe this is a lesson that truly applies to all areas of life. I can’t think of a single time when I have lost my temper where it created a positive outcome. Stay focused on what you can control and don’t let your temper be the reason you lose the match…