We DO need another hero … and it’s you!

What motivates you? For some people it’s money. For some it’s to be important, to hold a position of respect. For some it’s to be like their favourite superhero. Whatever motivates you to succeed is valid. Even if it’s just to prove all the doubters wrong!

Become rich and wealthy, if that’s your goal. There’s nothing wrong in that desire. Become a trusted, respected and valued member of society, by any standards you choose, if that’s your motivation. Be the next hero, super or otherwise, if that’s what lights your fire! It can be done. And by doing it, by becoming something special, someone valued and respected, or by becoming virtually superhuman, you can add something of value to the world. Being the best you can be is the best way (maybe the only effective way) you can change things for the better in this world.

What motivates you?

Take a few moments and think carefully what it is that motivates you. It’s important to try to define it. If you don’t have a clearly defined goal you’re going to have a hard time reaching it. You’ll be like a sailor who gets in his boat and just starts drifting, with no clearly defined destination, no compass, no radio, no lifejacket, nothing. Your chances of reaching your vague, misty, undefined goal will be about as likely as his of reaching any port he had in mind, no matter how vaguely. So sit and think. Make notes. Play with ideas. Imagine what it would be like to be rich … to be famous … to be exceptional in some field … to be outstandingly fit and strong … to be whatever your dreams urge you to be. And then make a decision to go for it!

What’s the worst that could happen? You don’t quite make it to your imagined finishing line. It could happen, but if it does, life goes on. You’ll get over it. And you’ll have learned by the experience. So make a commitment to go after your dream, and to give it all you’ve got. If you don’t, the time will come (and trust me, it always does!) when you’ll be looking back and regretting your decision. Or your indecision.

Life is for living (yeah, obviously!). What I mean though is you’ve got an opportunity, every single day, to do things that will move you steadily towards your goal, or to just go on with the drudgery of a nine-to-five you absolutely hate with a passion (or maybe just sit watching daytime television). Your choice. You can’t blame anyone else for where you end up five years from now. It will depend on what you do TODAY!

What will you do with today?

Each and every day we are presented with another unique and sparkling gift, a brand new and carefully wrapped time package of 24 empty hours, each of which is just waiting to be filled to the brim. What will you fill it with? Will you take steps to move forward, even ever so slowly, towards your goal? That’s taking positive action! Or will you just keep treading water in your soul-sucking job? Or Maybe you’ll fill those pristine hours with wasted minutes, seeing them stack up, one after the other, watching television dross and lounging about, doing nothing? Remember, the choice is yours, nobody else’s. And it is a choice. Make no mistake, if you’re just doing nothing of any value, you’ve already made your choice!

I’m not saying, by the way, you have to be taking action every moment of the day. There needs to be balance in everything. For example, I spend quite some time working on this blog. But the moment I feel the need for a break, that’s it. I get up and go and do something else, or just go and have a cup of tea, or do a bit of exercise. I might even watch a bit of television dross! But I don’t get drawn in to watching it endlessly. Once I’ve taken a break, it’s back to work. That’s how things get done, not just by wishing and hoping. The key is to keep taking action!

An amazing bridge like this doesn’t happen without careful planning!

You can get inspiration from all around. An example is public works. You see new buildings being erected, or pipes being laid, or roads and bridges being built, or communications being extended, or whatever, and you see it’s all done to a timetable and a schedule. Nothing’s left to chance. It’s the result of careful planning and time management. Even television (even with all its dross!) is run with an almost military precision. If a programme is due to start at a specific time you know very well that it will. You can bank on it! A lot of careful planning goes into making sure things run smoothly in a television studio.

Borrow something from what you see. Work to your own timetable, your own schedule. But make it realistic, that way you make it possible to stick to it. Work to your schedule, and be answerable to yourself if you veer off the straight and narrow. Instead of just having vague ideas of how much time you’ll spend on something, have it written down as a specific goal. And keep it in mind as you work, so that you are constantly motivated.

You can have whatever you want … if you’re prepared to pay the price

You can be rich, if that’s what you want. You can be famous, or celebrated in some field, if that’s what motivates you. You can be almost superhumanly fit and strong, if that’s your dream. There’s practically nothing stopping you, if you’re prepared to put the work in. But it will only happen if you take it from being a dream and turn it into a goal, and only then if you work towards your goal steadily and stick rigidly to your schedule.

Dream big! Decide on something your really want, passionately. Make plans. Forge specific goals. And then get to work reaching those goals, step by step. Keep records of what you do, and be answerable to yourself. There’s no rush, no panic, just a need to keep moving forward. If you do that, no matter how slowly you progress, your success is virtually guaranteed.