So, today let’s x-ray together what I’ve titled:
*CONQUERING THE “PMY – People, Money, You” BARRIERS TO ACHIEVING GOALS*
Are we ready?
One of the worst barrier that can hinder a person from living and fulfilling his or her passion and dreams is another person; the *“impossible”* mindset people!
It is common for someone to make discouraging input that suggest or make you feel like being mocked. A person may ridicule the idea, view it as silly or an impossible and unrealistic goal or dream. The last thing you need to listen to is an outside opinion if it is negative. If you have a passion, you need to surround yourself with supportive people. Someone who is not supportive is not who you want around because they will only bring you down. That is, if you let them.
Achieving goals is a product of achieved discipline! See, The demands of success is great that’s why only a few get through it.
Ace Leader and Coach, Sam Adeyemi speaks of mutual impoverishment – where indisciplined people visit the consequence of their indiscipline on those who through discipline have built success.
Anybody who is angry with your disciplinary measures should provide for you what they think you are missing out on!
Let me say this very loud!
Don’t try to live on the others' standards of success!
Don’t impress people!
If you feel among, soon you'll not be able to play along!
*MEN HAVE A NATURAL CAPACITY TO GENERALIZE FAILURE*
So you’ll find people who will stand to discourage or oppose simply because they tried and failed.
Let me share with you my personal experience here.
I was very young but had served for 4 years when I started my firm, through service I had gained some exposure, spoke on some fairly big platforms and co – hosted meetings.
Through that, I knew someone, who knew someone that new who was relevant to me and my new firm. Lol! You should understand that naija connect.
Luckily for me, I was in the same room with a music legend who owns fleet of hotels and assets. Men! He is rich!
So we pitched our ideas. Not only did he not fund a project we were doing then, he literally white washed us as jobless, useless and aimless! O! He was wrong!
Because, in less than two years, we were already hosting our events in his hotels and bigger ones fully paid and well attended!
Now, his PA told us that he failed woefully in the knowledge business as a young man and by that detest and discourage anyone heading in that direction!
Everyone here may relate on a personal level with my story or even worst scenario!
One of the ways to eliminate this barrier is to ensure:
1. CLARITY: A strategic understanding of the fabrics of your goal which provides you the capacity to define it's progress and limits!
Clarity grants the goal setter the capacity of the gate keeper - you determine the relevance of an external opinion and by implication, its application to the goal
2. PROPER DOCUMENTATION of goals - *THINK ON PAPER!*
Documenting goals, give some level of guidance and restriction. The freedom to oscillate between multiple opinions is short leeved since it always serves as a reference point
Have your goals lying active at the back of your mind and strategically documented on paper, be ready always to *scrutinize* and*prune* what is alien to the plan!
*PEOPLE ARE ALSO UNCOMFORTABLE WITH EXCELLENCE*
This is very true! Especially those from within our closed circle (friends and family)
These persons think they know you all and tend to quickly build a ceiling around your capabilities. So, when you begin to dare great things, first it challenges their premonitions and the societal norm. That’s why full support from this side is scarce!
Let me share two keys to breaking forth here!
One, *gain mastery in silence and launch!*
Never present an empty slate! Your language should be “I am doing this and that” not “I’m going to do…”
Always begin first!
Results have the capacity to induce believe and support. There is more energy to starting than supporting; those who are shoving you at level one, will be holding you as you ascend!
Two, *develop a character that comprehends your new reputation!*
I’m learning this myself. Don’t be a devil doing a saintly work!
Your reputation can make men believe in your goal but your character ultimately sustains their believe!
Genuine support heads always in the direction of trust! No one invest money, emotions or time into insecurities. Be guided!
*No one gets to the top independently; however man as man’s biggest support is also one of man’s greatest challenges!* But the good news is, man is drawn to a working system!
Are you with me?
Money
Money is one of the biggest barriers that cause people not to move forward with a passion. It is the most common excuse people use for why they cannot live out their dreams. You might be an excellent mechanic and you want to start your own shop but you have never moved forward with the idea because of fund. Let me assure you one thing;
*THE MONEY BARRIER CAN BE OVERCOMED!*
The first principle I’ll want to share is THE PRINCIPLE OF BOOTSTRAPPING.
This is the means of advancing oneself or accomplishing something without aid!
Let me ask you these questions:
Beside your time, what else have you given up for your goals?
Are your pursuing your vision at someone else’s expense?
What are you personally doing to fund your goals?
See, There are many ways to source money to start your own business or live out a passion that might be expensive. The best thing you can do is begin cutting costs in your life where you don’t need them. Prioritize your needs!
Many of the ways you can cut costs in your life include not eating out every day for lunch at work. Pack a lunch. Consider taking bus and not driving in your vehicle everyday so you can save costs for PMS. Think about many of the additional sundries in your life—those frivolous items you pick up at the grocery store that you scarcely need but that it is your habit to shop for every other weekend or so. Cut down your liabilities! You must discipline your spending in order to save for the obvious; your passion, your goals, your dreams.
Every time you save money you would have normally spent on something else like a lunch at work, you need to put the money away.
One thing to remember is that by being creative with your life you will most likely find other ways you can make additional money to put aside for your endeavor. You also may find a way to start your dream without any startup costs. There are many ways to start your own business if it means you begin in your home first. If you love to make clothing accessories and you have always dreamed of owning your own shop then you can start a business online first.
You may even find out that your online business is more successful than a brick and mortar store would ever be. Thanks to online shopping stores like Shopify, Amazon etc everything is now sharp sharp!
I have been a firm believer and taught my audience in the last four years that there are many progressive stuff that can be done towards a goal, independent of money
Let’s take an example of setting up a business. The “What? Why? Where? Who? When? How?” questions that form the business structure and documents require just a pen and a paper to be answered. They are articles to write, people to engage.
Your WhatsApp status and IG story is powerful enough to create a market for you. Even free mode on Facebook can be used to pitch your idea via DM.
Build track records first; Earn capacity and credibility by using what you’ve!
“Until you maximize what you have, you can’t ask for more money"
The biblical Joseph made impact without money – he interpreted dreams and inspired two inmates – that act made him vice president!
Let me also debunk something.
I agree with coaches who say real wealth is when money works for you. But everyone who money works for now, worked for money until there was a big flip.
Take this from me!
*Work for money!*
Generate revolving funds for the side hustle! Empower the side hustle, and soon it will become the main hustle!
Let me outline my counsel on this:
*Break down your big plans (chew-in-bits principle)*:
*Start a business within your means*
*Start around a service!*
*Don’t start with a lot of expenses*
*Talk to people!* - Money is in MEN not trees!
*Trade your time for money!*
*Hang around your goal!*
Someone said, "if you hang around a barbers shop, soon enough, you'll get a haircut".
*Spend less than you earn* – other than that, you cannot build wealth!
*Call your appetite to order!* - Don't be a CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER who is also a CHIEF EXPENDING OFFICER! Both are CEOs but one will soon cease to be!
Extravagance is a sign of indiscipline and success is a result of discipline!
*Leverage on already trusted people within your cycle!*
*Maximize grant/scholarship opportunities!*
Impact Investors are angels to start ups; keep shooting your shots!
*Steve Harris said, “Money has not gone out of circulation, it has only changed location”*
For scholarships and grants, check Here
YOU
Success would be something easy to achieve, if it weren’t for success barriers. The trouble is that, in reality, there are habitually walls in front of YOU that prevent YOU from reaching what YOU want. And in order to reach it, you need to find a way to go over, around, under, or through these walls.
Fortunately, most of these walls can be surmounted. It’s not always easy, but it’s almost always possible. I’d like to show the most important strategies I know, drawing from my experience as a coach, to overcome success barriers from the *YOU* perspective!
1. Decide What Success Means For You
Everybody wants success. But success means different things for different people. For some, success means making a lot of money, for others it means having great relationships with great people, and for others it means enjoying a life of freedom.
If you’re not clear on what success means for you, you’re going to chase a vague, undefined version of success, which constitutes a major barrier in achieving it. It’s like chasing a ghost. You’re never going to catch it.
This is why; first and foremost, you want to seriously think what success signifies for you. Decide what your personal definition of success is. Only once you’ve decided this can you start seeking your version of success.
2. Look at the Barrier as an Outsider
This is a great way to see your problem in a fresh way and find good solutions for solving it. Imagine that the goal you want to reach is not yours — it’s someone else’s. And the obstacle that prevents reaching it is theirs as well.
You’re just an outsider looking at another person’s issue. And as an outsider, you have a penchant for problem solving, so you analyze this person’s issue and try to see what would be, from your perspective, some good solutions for it.
Give this strategy a try in dealing with obstacles you face. It’s like seeing your situation with new eyes, and often you’ll be amazed at the resolutions you’ll see with these new eyes.
3. Inform Yourself
The people who are best at overcoming success obstacles are very well informed. They have a good comprehension of the situation and the obstacle, so it’s easy for them to see appropriate ways to surpass it.
For example, if a marketer runs into problems in promoting a product, provided that he has a lot of practical marketing knowledge, he’ll quickly realize why the product promotion is not going well and what he can do to fix this.
A marketer with little knowledge in this area, on the other hand, will have no clue why things don’t go the way he wants them to go or what to do about it.
Don’t be this second person. Be the first one. How? By constantly learning, especially in the areas where you want to achieve performance, and keeping yourself very well informed. Knowledge truly is power, as long as it’s practical knowledge.
Stretch to learn; it has its way of also stretching the length of your advantage!
4. Keep Trying
*The surest sign that you are not going to be successful is quitting!* Take that from me!
You'll never be successful by your ills but your DEEDS. True! But we'll also not become successful by starting - races are won at the finish line!
Persistence is not flashy or glamorous, but it’s an extremely valuable attitude. I find that many people don’t overcome obstacles because they only try one or two ways to overcome it, and if these don’t work, they give up.
Unfortunately, especially when dealing with new problems, it’s quite possible that the first solution you’ll try will not work very well. In order to overcome the obstacle, you’ll need to try several solutions, and move from one to another based on the results you get.
You’ll eventually find the optimal solution and you’ll also have learned a lot from the labor of getting to it. But you have to be persistent. You have to keep trying instead of giving up.
If a solution doesn’t solve your problem, look at the problem again, try to understand why that solution did not work, and find another one.
Persistence is key to success.
Persistent is stubbornness with a purpose! Be persistent!
It’s worth saying again that whatever barriers stand in front of you achieving success, it’s almost certain that you can overcome them. The trick is to apply a few smart and effective strategies. With clarity, detachment, learning, and persistence, you can go a very long way in a very short time.
CAN I MAKE A PASSIONATE PLEA HERE?
*Dethrone the entitlement mentality!* - Success is only bias to those who speak its language. No one is more entitled to success than another; not even the guy shouting the loudest amen!
You can only become a principal success, if you apply the principles of success! Period!
As I conclude now!
The hardest part of building a new venture is breaking the grounds. Break the rock bit by bit and you are sure of winning its space in no distant time. What are you currently building that requires ground breaking?
Training without application is just a mere motivation. Motivation reinforces our enthusiasm to do but the actions we take get the entire job done. The measure of knowledge is in action. If you build anything around motivation only; it takes you nowhere other than that spot. Anything you build around motivation only is short lived. Learn to TAKE immediate actions.
Nothing takes us so further or backwards than the constant actions we take. Check the kind of steps you constantly put forward; ask if those steps are actually leading you on or taking you backwards...this should be your daily evaluation.
Take up daily execution. Avoid measuring your growth by public appraisal.
Act now, Build now.
In all, be impact driven; a successful life is ultimately not measured in the currency of the SOCIETY but in the currency of LEGACY!
You’ve a sound mind, a healthy body, a writing pen, a talking mouth, a working brain and above all, a prayer answering God. *SEE YOU AT THE TOP!!!*
Thanks for your time!
Jonathan Isah is a Poet, Speaker and He is also an AUTHOR.
He currently has a book to his name.
Titled - "The Uncommon You"
Click here to know more about him
The book will help you shatter any uncertainty about yourself and help you unleash your Originality
It goes for just #500 for an E-Copy.
Please send me a message now Click here to get a copy for you.
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