Ask anyone who has achieved any measurable level of success and they’ll likely tell you they had to find the courage to follow their convictions and to embrace the resolve to be different.
Being different separates you from most people. And, while that’s neither a good nor a bad thing, it’s still relevant. It’s relevant because most people have a tough time separating themselves from the wrong people—the influencers who don’t add value to the goals and objectives that personally define what success looks like. That takes courage.
Success, by most measures, is typically identified as the slow and steady progress toward a worthy goal. As vague as the definition may at first seem to be, one thing is certain—most of us clearly recognize success when we see it. We rarely see the struggle, but we always see the results.
We admire the results.
We envy the results.
We judge the results.
We do this because we have no idea whatsoever of the sacrifices and…the courage most successful people had to embrace to get where they are in life.
It’s all good though. Because most successful people don’t give a damn about what other people think. It’s what sets them apart. It’s what makes them…different. It’s what makes them courageous.
What about you? Are you in pursuit of success? Are you following your convictions so strictly that you’re demonstrating the courage to be different? If so, you already know you’ve had to have to tap into your own source of courage in order to do whatever it takes to achieve and sustain your version of success.
When you follow your convictions, people notice. When people notice, your path becomes abundantly more evident to others (and certainly to you as well) because your success begins to take shape. When that happens, the seeds of your vision take hold and become firmly rooted in your convictions.
The decision to take the first step in your journey demonstrates your courage and is driven by the belief you have in yourself, your ideas, and your motivations. The results reflect a personal transformation, manifested by the courage to follow through and pursue your dreams.
One of my dreams was to be a published writer. I spent nearly three years writing my first manuscript. In order to accomplish that, I had to have the courage to be different. I had to become personally different if I were to have any hope of finishing my novel. Writing had to become the priority around which the rest of my life revolved. The decision to write was the easy part. The follow-through and consistency would challenge me from time-to-time. But my convictions and beliefs provided the motivation to push past temporary distractions in order to complete my goal of finishing my first novel. My rewards were always there, patiently waiting just beneath the surface of self-discovery. And those rewards were beyond anything I could have ever imagined.
I began to experience personal growth with each writing session. As an artist, I discovered that I had a gift of being able to see things through the eyes of my characters. Details sprang forth as I typed the words onto the page. I began to see storylines unfolding before me in settings I had never before seen nor imagined. Writing became a personally-satisfying, almost spiritual experience for me. I had, in essence, become a writer!
They say if you want to be a writer then you have to write. Sounds simple enough to apply to most anything I can imagine, really. If you want to be an artist, then you should probably pick a paintbrush or pencil and then have the courage to start painting or drawing. Want to be a musician? Pick up an instrument…you get the message. My point here is that, if you have a desire to do something new, refreshing, different, unique…then tap into the courage to acknowledge it and demonstrate the determination it’ll take to drive through the obstacles and distractions that will inevitably find their way into the path of your goal. You can do, be, have, or become anything in life, as long as you’re willing to demonstrate the courage it takes to be different.
To learn more, stop by my website garywestfal.com, where you can connect with me on this, and several other personally-empowering topics.
Here’s to Your Best Life!
