Embrace the Challenges

 This is another article in my quest to discover how to be successful.

I’ve often used the phrase, “One must embrace the challenge.” I believe it, and it’s a catchy line but what it entails is often the missing ingredient. As I’m in the offseason of training for another marathon, preparing my mind for the long haul ahead is critical. Sure, I’ve run one many times before, but that doesn’t mean it will be easy, especially with Father Time never ceasing to gain on me.  At the same time, the attitude I bring into a project is the determining factor to reach the end. Dreading what’s to come leads to losing, and looking forward to the challenge brings a favorable outcome, or at least a better experience.

Here are some mental prompts to “steel” the mind for the challenge ahead. Yes, steel is necessary, as with any mountain one tries to climb - there will be pain, frustration, setback, self-doubt, sleep loss - but embrace one must – the reward of overcoming them is what makes it all worth it.

How to Embrace the Challenges

1. Don’t let the thought of an enormous challenge defeat you.

Many don’t make the first step because of the “thought” of what it will take. I acknowledge it will be challenging, but at the same time, I know enough not to make it as hard as it seems. I do that in two ways. One, I take it one day at a time. It’s a trite statement, but staying in the present is vital because it can be overwhelming to think of the many months of work. Doing what’s necessary today is a thing I control. Two, as a follow-up, I know not to do too much too soon. Believing more now will benefit me later may seem logical, but it leads to burnout.  There is a long road to go, and efficiency trumps over-exertion in the long haul!

2. Avoid overconfidence. When I begin to think, “It’s easy,” things come crashing down soon; that’s the nature of sport and life. Everything is a work in progress, and there is no such thing as perfection. Easing up the intensity is a recipe for failure.

3. Understand the 80% rule. I preach the following to my baseball students – doing it right one time and wrong the next gets you nowhere. One must strive for a goal of eighty percent correct to improve. As mentioned, perfection is close to impossible, but improvement is always available. Daily performance at a high level of correctness, 80 percent correct actions, helps avoid mediocrity - a success killer. Quality trumps quantity until consistency arrives, at which point quantity makes a considerable impact.

4. Be in a constant state of analysis. No matter how good things seem to go, one must adjust as new obstacles arise. Adjustments are critical sources of success, and those come by monitoring every aspect of the process. The better one knows themselves, their strengths and weaknesses, the easier to adjust. The quicker one learns from negative tendencies, the less time one wastes on the path to achievement.

5.     Use concentration to win. The ability to tune out all distractions is never easy but critical for success.  Intense focus is what separates the accomplished from the also-rans. So how does one achieve that level of concentration – fall in love with what one does. Another difficult task and the fall may take time, but it is another controllable.

Finally, a quote from Tony Robbins makes the point - “Don’t limit your challenges; challenge your limits.