Life Lessons for the New Year

Key Takeaways

• Charting your course for Success
• Tactics for identifying your greatest strength

As we all enter 2022 and hopefully turn the page on 2021, most of us will use this time to reset our compasses, rechart our course and plunge headlong into the New Year. If you are one of these fellow sojourners looking to reorient yourself, I offer some helpful hints that I have learned along the way. May these add to your success, your productivity and most importantly your happiness.

Perseverance: One of the common threads that I have noticed in the lives of people who have found tremendous success, is perseverance. These people put every fiber of their existence into their career, whatever it may be. The real trick here, however, is not just to persevere. The most important step is to first find something worth persevering for.

Step one is to answer this question:  What is it that you are so passionate about that you will willingly throw your heart and soul into every moment of everyday that you possibly can?

Example: I just finished reading “The Storyteller” by Dave Grohl, the front man and founder of the Foo Fighters. He describes in vivid detail how he spent years living in a van with his bandmates, surviving on a per diem of $7.50 a day, living off of corn dogs at gas stations all because it allowed him to chase his dream of sharing his music and his soul with the world. So, what in your life means so much to you that you would be willing to have this type of commitment? Answer that question and everything else becomes immaterial.

Finding the answer:  Just how do you find exactly what that item is? Setting some time aside for personal reflection is what I have found to be most successful. If you will take the time to block out distractions, to just THINK, you will be likely amazed what pops up. When you do this, I suggest that you think about the one or two things that you do better than anyone else. We all have talents, certain things that we are just naturally good at, better at than anyone else. It’s as if we can do certain things in our sleep with little or no effort and our results are better than most others. Whatever “it” is, this is your great talent and your answer.

Putting it to use:  Once you have determined what your greatest strength is, step two is to identify the job or position that will allow you to maximize your great strength. What career, day in and day out will have you spending the vast majority of your time utilizing this strength. Whatever the position is, find a way to make it yours.

Consistency: Another common thread that I have noticed in most really successful (and happy) people is that almost without exception they block out personal time EVERY day to just THINK. You can call it meditation, prayer, or personal time, it doesn’t really matter. The important thing is that every day you should set aside 15 – 30 minutes of quiet time with no distractions to just think. It will be hard at first, but the more you do it the easier it will become, and the rewards are plentiful.

The greatest thing about these steps, is they are yours for the taking. They cost nothing, are completely accessible and available to you right now at this very minute. They ball is in your court. Time to pick it up and play ball! My very best wishes to you on a successful journey!