Are you stuck thinking there is only one way to get to where you want to go?

Seeing things in such a manner is very limiting.  It boxes you in.  It closes off your options.  It can be very self-defeating.

Life is rarely this black and white.  Normally, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of possible ways to arrive at your desired destination.

You will significantly increase your chances of success if you relax a little and open your mind to a wider array of possibilities.

The Trouble with Such a Narrow Perspective

Seeing only one way to accomplish a goal, solve a problem or arrive at a mutually acceptable agreement is called tunnel vision.  You get locked up seeing things from a very narrow perspective and fail to recognize that with just a little creative deviation or compromise that you can get 95% or more of what you want.

Tunnel vision blinds you to the possibilities and keeps you banging your head against the wall.  This is usually painful and counterproductive.

Those that are the most successful in life see and are willing to accept many different paths to getting what they want.

They know better than to keep trying over and over the same solution that isn’t working.  Don’t you think it is strange that we do this?  We believe what we are doing should work, but the fact that it isn’t somehow doesn’t deter us from repeating the same behavior again and again.  This is tunnel vision.    This is what happens when you have a very narrow perspective. 

You’ve seen this in others.  You’ve seen whole businesses that fail to recognize a change in the market and keep doing what they’ve always done until they go bankrupt.  You’ve seen married couples that keep acting the same way towards each other until they wind up in divorce court.  You’ve seen individuals that continue behaving in a certain way while wondering the whole time why “bad things” always seem to happen to them.

When you have blinders on, you fail to entertain more promising ways to getting what you want.  This is the trouble with such a narrow perspective.

Opening Your Eyes to Other Ways

Let me say this plainly, if what you are doing is not working, then CHANGE what you are doing.  I’m sure you’ve heard this before, but I think for many of us, me included, it needs to be said more often.  At times, it needs to be yelled from the rooftops. 

STOP doing the things you are doing that aren’t working!

You are wasting your time if you keep repeating the same actions over and over that are failing to produce the results you want.

Instead, make a change, an adjustment or a revision to what you’ve been doing.  Ask someone for a new alternative way of looking at, thinking about or understanding the issue you face.  Get radical.  Take a risk.  Make yourself uncomfortable.  My point is that you need to see that there is more than one way.  You need to do something different to get different results.

“Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

~ Albert Einstein

Intentionally and mindfully embrace the idea that there is more than one way to live, accomplish a goal or solve a pesky problem.  Get serious about looking for new ideas or ways to achieve what you want.

Challenge yourself with alternative points of view.  Ask yourself, “Which is more important to me, being right or getting what I want?”  For successful people, the answer is definitely getting what they want.

They understand that sometimes life is serendipitous.  The path to what you want isn’t always a straight line.  Sometimes you just can’t force things to happen.  You have to follow life where it is going and believe it or not, you might just wind up where you wanted to be anyway.

Getting What You Want

So, where is it in your life that you are not getting the results you most desire?  Is it at work or at home?  Is it in a relationship?  Does it have to do with money?  Whatever “it” is for you, think about your actions in this area of your life. 

Have you been trying the same approach repeatedly and expecting different results?  It takes a mature person to admit this.  If this is you, then I challenge you to embrace the idea that there is more than one way to get what you want.  Expand your thinking in this area, try a new strategy and see if you get a little closer to your desires.

Photo: Copyright PhotoXpress.com

Need some inspiration to carry on toward your goals?

Give it time!  Things do not happen overnight.  We’ve got to learn to practice patience and persistence if we want our efforts to pay off.

Your breakthrough could happen tomorrow, next week or next month.  If you quit now, you’ll never know what might be. 

Stay the course and your efforts will likely result in success.  Give up and you have accepted failure.

Quotes That Will Inspire You to Hang On

So much of being successful is wrapped up in never quitting.  Of course, we all get worn down and think about giving up.  Therefore, it is important that we identify wisdom to keep us motivated when we feel like stopping before we have reached our goal.

I encourage you to print these or bookmark them for handy reference when your enthusiasm wanes.

1.  Exercise Patience to Get What You Want

He that can have Patience, can have what he will.
~ Benjamin Franklin

I suppose if patience were more common that success would be also.  You’ve probably heard before that most “overnight success” took years to realize.  In other words, we often don’t see all the effort another person put into achieving their goals.  We just see the result.  You are only a failure if you get impatient and start to think you should give up.  Be patient because your reward could come tomorrow!

2.  Turn Up Your Effort to Push to the Finish Line

Some give up their designs when they have almost reached the goal; while others, on the contrary, obtain a victory by exerting, at the last moment, more vigorous efforts than ever before.  ~ Herodotus

It often takes just one more burst of energy to propel you over the finish line.  Of course, by this time you are tired and discouraged so it would be easier to just quit.  I understand this temptation, but I beg you to not let it happen!  Dig deep and summon the strength for one last surge.  This is often the very thing it will take for you to be victorious!

3.  Hanging in There Separates the Winners From the Losers

Persistence is to the character of man as carbon is to steel.  ~ Napoleon Hill

Do you have the character to be a winner?  Stiffen yourself against the resistance and press on through to claim your prize!  Try and try again until you win.  People that are as strong as steel are the ones that set themselves apart from the crowd.  They know that persistence is the difference maker that will take them to the checkered flag.

4.  Back Up and Give It a Go From Another Angle

Success is almost totally dependent upon drive and persistence. The extra energy required to make another effort or try another approach is the secret of winning.
~ Denis Waitley

If your approach isn’t getting you the results you desire, then try something else.  Keep trying until you find your recipe for success.  We often fail because we don’t try enough different angles.  New and innovative techniques are discussed every day all over the Internet and in various other publications.  You may just need to take a run at your goal from a different angle to succeed.

5.  You Are Closer Than You Think

Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.  ~ Thomas Edison

Would you be willing to wait one more day before you give up?  Isn’t your goal worth that?  Take things one day at a time.  Don’t let this be the day that you quit.  Tough it out and see what tomorrow brings even if you think it is hopeless.  You can lose a lot of battles and still win the war!

Give It Time and You Will Find Unbelievable Success

Don’t ignore the advice of these successful people.  They know what they are talking about!  If they didn’t, would we be quoting them?  Of course not!  Stick to your guns and you are sure to realize a lot more success in your life.

Photo by joiseyshowaa

Most meaningful endeavors in life come with challenges.  Marriages, businesses, getting an education, raising children and self-improvement are all things that are important, but aren’t always easy.

Giving up is an option.  I know I’ve considered quitting just about everything I’ve ever started at one point or another.  Surrendering to the challenges sure seems tempting sometimes.

Of course, successful people will tell you that persistence is the key to winning.  Giving up is the only sure way to failure.

5 persistence quotes to encourage you in your time of need

Persistence is defined as the ability to continue firmly in your purpose despite the opposition you are feeling.  It takes courage and backbone to be persistent.

When I feel like giving up, I find that reading some encouraging and inspirational words from those that have gone before me helps build my resolve to be persistent.

I have gathered these five persistence quotes that I find particularly motivating.  I hope they help you as well.

1.  Breakthroughs happen everyday

When you get into a tight place and everything goes against you, till it seems as though you could not hang on a minute longer, never give up then, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn.
~ Harriet Beecher Stowe

It does seem to me that breakthroughs occur just after the darkest period in any endeavor.  Of course, giving up is certain failure.  Stick it out one more day.  Don’t look out too far toward the horizon, but instead ask yourself, “What will it take to make it through today?”  Who knows what tomorrow might bring?

2.  Surge to the finish line

Nothing could be worse than the fear that one had given up too soon, and left one unexpended effort that might have saved the world.
~ Jane Addams

I think those that succeed have the uncanny ability to summon their second wind when things seem their bleakest.  Maybe it is the eternal optimism they hold inside.  Maybe it is undying confidence.  Maybe it is a fear of failure.  Whatever the case, dig deep for another push toward your goal and you might just win big!

3.  The moment is yours

If you have made mistakes, there is always another chance for you. You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing we call “failure” is not the falling down, but the staying down.
~ Mary Pickford

Face every day as if it is a new day.  It is another chance to go out and make happen what you want to happen.  I know this is true because I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my life.  If there was no such thing as a second chance, then I’d be homeless, lonely and destitute!  Embrace your opportunity to start fresh this moment.

4.  Adopt a survivor mentality

Sometimes your greatest asset is simply your ability to stay with it longer than anyone else.
~ Brian Tracy

Make the other guy give up!  You aren’t going to be the one to give in first are you?  Usually the person that sticks to their guns the longest will be the ultimate victor.  Remember the motto from the television show Survivor?  It is time for you to “Outwit, Outlast and Outplay” your opposition!

5.  Never forget the tortoise

It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop.
~ Confucius

Remember the tortoise from The Tortoise and the Hare?  He was painfully slow, but he never quit and he ended up winning.  Sometimes we can get discouraged because things aren’t moving as fast as we want.  In this case, our expectations become self-defeating.  Don’t worry about how slow things are going, just be sure they keep moving!

Use these quotes to stay persistent and never give up!

Feel encouraged?  If so, then print this article and tack it up where you can refer to it often!  These words of wisdom help me to maintain my persistence so that I never give up.  I hope you find them as helpful as I do.  Remember, winners never quit and quitters never win!

What is your favorite persistence quote?

Photo by mikebaird

Never giving up is one of the determinants of success.  It is easy to get discouraged and to want to quit.  However, the payoff for our effort is usually just around the next corner.  If you stop today, you may give up everything you have been working for.  We often need just the tiniest shred of hope to hang onto when these times come.  Today, I am offering this hope in the form of five fantastic quotes on perseverance and persistence from some people that knew what they were talking about.

1.  Effort only fully releases its reward after a person refuses to quit.
~Napoleon Hill

Our hard work pays off when we persist and refuse to give up.  Why stop now when you haven’t reaped the full benefit of your effort?

2.  Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.
~Dale Carnegie

There are so many examples of people that accomplished great things only after they failed numerous times.  Names like Abraham Lincoln and Thomas Edison come to mind.  Both of these men failed, but never gave up.  As a result, they are heroes of history.  If they had given up, they would have been nobodies.

3.  Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.
~John Quincy Adams, 6th President of the USA

If we persist and refuse to give up, then we can overcome just about anything.  This reminds me of the old saying, “Quitters never win and winners never quit”.  I know this one is old and a little tired, but it contains so much truth.

4.  Most people give up just when they’re about to achieve success. They quit on the one-yard line. They give up in the last minute of the game, one foot from a winning touchdown.
~H. Ross Perot

We are probably much closer to our goal than we can imagine.  What if you persisted just one more day?  Would that be the day that you realize all you dreamed for?  We have all experienced these days in one way or another.  Think about it.  Every great thing that has happened in our lives happened in one day.  There was the day that we met our spouse, had our children, started our business, got our job, and there will be the day that we accomplish our present goal if we keep on working toward it.

5.  It’s always too soon to quit!
~Norman Vincent Peale

It is not time to give up!  It is time to press on.  It is time to dig deep and find one more ounce of determination.  It is time to make the final push to our goal.  Seek inspiration.  Read these quotes again.  Call that person that always encourages you.  Get some rest.  Take a break, but do not give up!  We will make it.  Our dreams will become reality if we just persist.

Whatever it is that you want to accomplish, I hope it is a big, hairy audacious goal and I hope that you persevere until you achieve it!

Photo by rappensuncle

It is rare that we experience a dramatic, huge leap forward.  Do you ever feel like you must be missing something because you read all these books about the secrets of self-improvement yet fail to experience the super results they claim are possible? 

Did you know that if you perform a search on Amazon for “secrets to success” in the title that you will find over 17,000 books?  The results cover the entire spectrum of life from romance to leadership to happiness to investing.  We are obsessed with the idea that there is a magical formula that will catapult us to a better life.

Real self-improvement takes hard work, persistence, and patience.

Cathy takes it even farther at Ripples to Improvement.  She says that, “These books will tell you that self improvement is difficult, it’s challenging, it’s hard. Well, let me tell you the truth that no one wants to admit: self improvement sucks!“ 

What does she mean?  Is she trying to discourage us from trying to improve ourselves?  Is it hopeless?  No.  I think the point that Cathy is trying to make is that these things don’t happen overnight.  They aren’t magical or secret.  They aren’t even easy, but they are worth it. 

I know that it is often hard to avoid getting discouraged when we read a book or article about a way to improve our lives and the concept is simple, but implementing it in the real world is difficult.  I know that things don’t happen as quickly as we want.  I know that we get frustrated. 

At least, I do.  I expect too much, too soon.  However, I also know that I am better today than I was last year and I’m way better than I was 10 years ago.  The things I have learned and the ways that I have changed have helped me to be more effective at accomplishing my goals and living more harmoniously with those around me.

Learn from the Japanese and use kaizen.

The Japanese have a system of improvement that they call kaizen.  It is most often thought of as a quality improvement system used in manufacturing.  It has been successfully used by Toyota Motor Company to build some of the highest quality, best-selling cars in history.  In fact, the Toyota Corolla is the best selling vehicle ever built. 

What is kaizen?  Toyota defines it as, “A system of continuous improvement in which instances of Muda (waste) are eliminated one-by-one at minimal cost.”  Wikipedia says, “Kaizen is a daily activity whose purpose goes beyond simple productivity improvement.” 

We could learn something here.  Notice that kaizen is a daily activity of continuous improvement.  It is gradual and it never stops.  Toyota continues improving the Corolla.  That is why they have been so successful with it.  Every day Toyota strives to improve the excellence of the Corolla.  Even though the Corolla sells like hotcakes they don’t stop and say, “That’s good enough.”  Of course, they also don’t hold back selling the Corolla because it isn’t 100% perfect.

We need to understand that self-improvement is a process that takes time.  It is about really changing our lives for the better.  It is not about reading books and blogs just for the sake of reading.  It is about making a real difference in what we experience on a daily basis. 

There is no quick fix.  We need to approach our lives like Toyota deals with the Corolla.  We should seek everyday to build a slightly better day than the one we built before.  We need to embrace who we are today without giving up on creating a better self tomorrow.  We need to be patient and look for opportunities to improve even though who we are today is pretty dang good.

The right attitude toward self-improvement is crucial.

Yes, self-improvement can suck at times, but it is usually because we aren’t thinking about it correctly.  We get the wrong attitude because we get swept into believing that we aren’t changing rapidly enough. 

Be patient with yourself.  Give it time.  This is a lifelong process.  Just like the Corolla, we will never be absolutely perfect.  There will always be room for improvement.  Just don’t give up. 

When you feel discouraged, realize that you are being too hard on yourself.  Learn to appreciate just how far you have come.  Ahh, yet another opportunity to examine ourselves and improve!

Photos by dieselbug2007 and [auro]