“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.”- Thomas Edison
In a world where everything is instantaneous, we tend to get wrapped up in thinking that everything we want will manifest itself within the next few seconds or minutes. We forget that what we truly want will take time, planning and a lot of work to build from the ground up.
Take for instance design work, most people who want a design thinks it only takes a few minutes to create something brilliant because they are impatient and ignorant to the fact that art takes time, careful planning and skillful execution.
If you want good quality, you have to wait.
The designer who creates amazing work for that client sometimes doesn’t even get paid because there is no respect for their creation but with determination and discipline that designer keeps creating.
To succeed in life you have to be willing to try anything, a closed mind is a terrible thing to have, it will cripple your ultimate potential.
We all have a purpose in life, some of us know what that is specifically but there are some who are still searching. To those who are still searching I advise you to have a sense of adventure, how are you going to find what you were made to do if you are not willing to try?
Durability comes from trial and error
Once you have found that purpose, do not lose focus! Here are a few tips I personally use:
- Do What You Want.
No other living being in this world can do the same thing that you’re doing just like you, we are all uniquely different so embrace those differences because it’s what makes us stand out.
- Don’t Listen to Excessive Chatter.
Social Media has a lot of people screaming how we should be doing things and how far we should be in our lives by a certain age shut them all out. You are in no competition with anyone on this planet.
- Do Your Research.
Most of the fields that we are interested in have been around for ages, read about all the great people who have gone before us, study what they did to succeed and what mistakes they made, it’s substantial to our growth that we know the history of our interests so we can spot a problem from a mile out and adjust accordingly.
- Believe in Yourself.
No one has your brain and no one thinks like you. Be as weird as you want, be fearless even when you are beyond scared.
- Ask for Help.
There is no shame in asking for help, we excel in certain areas but we don’t have all the skills to be great at everything, we’d be superhuman if that was the case. We need knowledgeable people around us, where we falter, they excel.
- Know Your Craft.
Read what you have to, try everything to see what works, go to school and learn from the experts; Never Stop Learning. The more you know about your field, the less likely you’ll stray from your path. You’ll become an expert in filtering out the people who will try to sell you empty dreams.
- Work Hard.
Nothing we truly want will come to us easily, work hard, work smart and never give up. We will be tested at every turn on our journey but we have to be strong mentally to withstand the tests.
When you feel like giving up, take a break if you must and go frolic in the sun but stay focused! It only gets harder when we are close to achieving our ultimate goals. Don’t lose sight of what it is you truly want, never ever ever ever give up!