We often hear the phrase ‘Overnight Success’. Every now and then we read a story such as Susan Boyle’s and we call her a lucky girl. But there is a proverb: Opportunity only comes to the diligent, and after listening to Susan sing, I absolutely agree with it. That kind of voice could only have come from hours of training and believing. And most importantly, the world only heard that voice when Susan became courageous enough to show it. The audience didn’t believe in her, the judges didn’t believe in her, so the only thing that may have made her step up on the stage and smile is her belief in herself.
Nobody becomes famous just by dreaming about success. For one thing before we can actualize our ideal vision we must first know the techniques of putting it out physically. I learned that the hard way when I decided to finally live up to my dream of becoming a writer. Thinking about stories was easy for me, but putting down the words and structuring them into an interesting and visual manner is another thing altogether. I remember when I wrote my first story and got a friend to read the draft, it was so bad, he was embarrassed for me. Now when I look back at the incident, I find it hilarious but at that time it was heartbreaking. Maybe that is why an overnight success gets so much attention in the media because talented people who managed to rise above criticism are so rare. It is no accident that the best speakers are also prolific writers.
So what do you do when people criticize you? Believe in yourself, believe in your destiny. Find your purpose in religion, or a cause if you must, just do it. Once you have a purpose, sit down and make a list of things you have to do to get to where you want to go. When you do that magic happens, because each time you stumble you will look at the list and see how far you have come. In fact when I first decided to use this technique, I drew a goal map and then lined a path from where I was at to where I want to go. Then I wrote out a list of things I have to do by the side of the path, with the first starting at my current position, to the last right under the goal. Each time I completed something on the list, I drew a footstep next to it. I used it as a visual reference of my progress. My advice is, start with smaller goals first to test if the system works for you then you can move on to bigger ones when your confidence level kicks in.
Even if you don’t know everything that you need to do, don’t worry about it. Reaching your goal can sometimes be like a walk in the woods. In some parts of your journey, you cannot see what is ahead of you until you are actually there. The situation is normal because you can’t know everything, but as you walk down that road you will meet people who will advice you about what to do next. Just add the new requirements into your list as you go.
A word of warning: Some of us may have to walk the long and tedious road, with no end in sight. So it is vital that you do what you believe in and will be proud of. This will give you the staying power you need and at some parts of your journey, it may be the only thing that keeps you motivated.
Above all, be generous with your gift, because the more you give, the more you will receive in terms of advice, friendship, recommendations and self-confidence. Success only comes after you have all these under your belt. An artist once told me that I should never share my ideas with people, and that I must never show anyone my work, unless that person is the publisher. Yet, I find that the easiest way for me to stay motivated is to share my ideas, opinions and knowledge with other people. The interesting thing is, the more I share, the more I practice putting down my thoughts in words, and the fact that someone may want to read them reminds me to keep churning out articles. All that ‘work’ has actually helped me find my voice. I learn to communicate and write in a style that is comfortable for me, and I learn to think the way I write thus making it easier to produce free flowing messages. Luckily, we now live in an age where you can earn income by sharing information. Adsense is free to join and has a pay-per-click program. These ads are also tailored specifically to the words you put in your page, so if you write about kite-flying then you will get visitors interested in the topic, and since the ads will be related to your article it is a good system for showing them where to go to next for more information, service or product.
You must believe in what you do. Understand why people would need your product, service or talent then show them what you have. You are not selling vitamins, you are persuading people to be healthy. You are not selling books, you are advising people to invest in knowledge. I am not just selling a website, I am introducing a self-promotion tool to people who need a stronger web presence. So don’t be so hard on yourself, and if you must be critical on yourself make sure that it is a form of criticism that will move you forward and not put you down. Believe in yourself, and one day the world may believe in you too.
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