Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Perserverance

Triumphing Over Obstacles (Part 1 of 2)



Every day, every one of us face obstacles.
Rich, poor, old, young, ugly or beautiful, no one avoids obstacles. It’s how you choose to deal with them that determines your destiny.

Obstacles even as small and simple as: A traffic jam that makes you late, Misplacing your keys (check the refrigerator?), Missing a call from an important client, Stubbing your toe, having a bad hair day, whatever.

In the moment, it can seem as if your world is coming to an end!

That’s one way to experience these obstacles, but not the way of the achiever.

In spending time with thousands of high-performance achievers I’ve noticed a commonality to how they choose to experience and triumph over obstacles—both small and big.

Since obstacles will be constant along your path to greater success, happiness and joy, let me equip you with a strategy to overcome them—simply and with grace.

4-Point Plan to Triumphing Over Obstacles

1. Get a Grip.
Know first off that you are not special (in regard to obstacles).
Achievers know that life will always be filled with travails, inconveniences and big and hairy challenging problems. Deal with it gracefully.

Now that you know you aren’t special, it is important to know how fortunate you really are and gain some perspective.

I’m honored to spend time with some of the most amazing people on the planet, many of whom have been dealt some of the most devastating of obstacles.

Two such gents are Kyle Maynard and Chad Hymas.
Kyle is a congenital amputee who doesn’t have arms below the elbow or legs below the knees. But Kyle types faster than I do - incredible! And bench presses more than I do. And I wouldn’t dare wrestle him.

Chad was injured in a serious accident, paralyzing all four limbs, leaving him with only the use of his wrists and fractional use of his biceps. It takes him over two hours to get dressed in the morning. Yet he travels even more than I do, speaking over 200 times a year in now 38 countries and 7 continents. And Chad wheeled his chair (with his wrists!) over 500 miles through the desert to set a world record. And I whine and moan about running 10 miles!

Been dealt a blow recently? Attending a pity part because of it?
Go visit a local burn unit, homeless shelter or just take a short drive over to the other side of the tracks. Party over.

In Part 2, I will share the next three steps!

~Darren Hardy