Can one word really wield this much power?
ADVANCE CONFIDENTLY!
“Decide what you want, decide what you are willing to exchange for it. Establish your priorities and go to work.” -H. L. Hunt
During an interview, when asked what his secret to success was, Mr. Hunt answered, “It’s really quite simple: Decide what you want. Decide.”
As human beings, we have a tendency to complicate things. It is very hard for most people to imagine success could be so simple, yet here was this incredibly successful man declaring just how simple his formula for success was.
Mr. Hunt didn’t say think about what you want and think about what you are willing to exchange for it. No, he said “decide.” This one word holds all the power. When we decide, we are, in that moment, also making a commitment to developing a specific course of action forward in the direction of the decision. We are committing. We are creating purpose and intention.
The act of deciding cuts off any possible outcome other than success as long as the decision is backed up with work and persistence. Initial failure is just a signal to begin again in a new direction with the same level of commitment because the action supports the decision. When we decide, we also set into motion our faith and our belief in ourselves and our abilities. Decide! Be intent.
“For an athlete to function properly, he must be intent. There has to be a definite purpose and goal if you are to progress. If you are not intent about what you are doing, you aren’t able to resist the temptation to do something else that might be more fun at the moment.” -John Wooden
Intention and purpose are foundational concepts for any of us to function properly. When we decide on a definite purpose and create a goal equally challenging to that stated purpose, we become driven. To be driven means to move in a specific direction with intent and purpose. When moving in a specific direction, we are much less likely to be derailed from our stated purpose by all of the distractions almost guaranteed to appear while moving in the direction of our stated goal.
Doing what appears to be more fun in the moment might look like an attractive option if our eyes are not steadily fixed upon the horizon of our intended outcome. While training for the PMC, there were many things I had to say no to that sounded like way more fun than a long sweaty training ride, like breakfast with friends at a restaurant, an early morning round of golf, or just about anything you can think of other than what I actually needed to be focused on, which was training.
However, we can easily resist the temptation of the moment when we absolutely believe in and are completely clear about what we really want. We must remember our “why.” We must decide, commit, be intentional, set lofty goals, prepare, practice, achieve, and enthusiastically succeed!
Keep Pedaling, Keep Going, Keep Growing!
Advance Confidently!
