Never fail due to a lack of effort. Go down swinging. If you’re not skilled enough to do something or if you’re not smart enough to grasp it, that’s a capacity issue that can be addressed. With the right coaching, determination, and attitude, you can improve on those things. But effort requires no skill, no intelligence. You either give it your all or you don’t. And if you’re not trying, you deserve to lose.
Tag: win
Courage and bravery
Everyone experiences fear. Many times, we fear what we don’t understand. We make something out to be far worse in our minds than what it will actually be like in reality. But, usually, things aren’t as bad as we make them out to be. Most of the time, the thing we feared turns out to be just a small bump in the road, but once we’ve driven over it and experienced it a few times, we hardly even notice it.
Brave men and women still experience fear. But the difference between them and cowardly men and women is that they are willing to face their fears. They will try to conquer their fears. And they realize that most actions we take in life, even if we fail miserably, will not cause us irreparable harm. If we try something and fail, or if we look dumb, that’s part of the process of getting better. But if you never try anything at all, you’ll always be afraid.
How to get ahead
Do you know how to get ahead? Here are a few tips:
1. Try your best in everything you do. Don’t half-ass anything. If you’re going to take the time to do something, you might as well do the best you can. The time is going to pass anyways, so why would you choose to do anything less than your best?
2. Be interested. The more curious you are, the more you’ll enjoy learning. If you’re interested in something, you can spark someone else’s interest as well and have friends take part in the activity too.
3. Don’t think that you’re above something. If you are asked to do something at your current job, then do it. You’re not entitled to anything. And if you don’t have a job but are offered something that most would consider being beneath you in the eyes of others, really weigh your options before saying no. If you need the money, take the job and keep looking for something better. Don’t rely on unemployment or your parents to take care of you when you’re fully capable of doing so yourself.
4. Have a great attitude. There are a lot of things you can’t control, but one thing you can control is your attitude. Choose to be happy. Choose to see the best in every situation and in everybody. Nobody likes being around a complainer.
5. Look for opportunities. Keep your eyes open. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box. Keep learning, planning, practicing, and taking action. Opportunities are all around us if we just look for them.
On conflict…
Don’t go seeking conflict and confrontation, but don’t be afraid of it either. Both extremes are not good. Have a back bone and stand up for what you believe in, but do it tactfully and respectfully as to keep the negotiation going. If you shut a conversation or idea down, you’re treating it as a win-lose situation. That may be necessary for some things (hostage negotiations, for example), but if you want to have a long, meaningful relationship with that person there needs to be some “give and take.” If you always win (or lose), eventually that other person won’t want to deal with you anymore.
How to lose
Don’t let your competitive side get the best of you. It’s fun to win. It sucks to lose. But keep things in perspective. Unless your livelihood or your family’s livelihood depends on you winning this game/earning the contract (whether in sports or in business), it’s probably not worth losing your cool over.
Don’t flip the monopoly board, throw the controller, or punch a wall because you lost. Everyone loses something in life. That’s just how life works. If you’re not losing in something then you aren’t pushing yourself to play against the proper competition.
When you lose, lose with dignity. You’ll maintain respect. If you lose and act like a child? People will lose respect for you.