All we have is now…and now…and now. No matter your adult age, your past has become familiar to you. It is common to spend hours of your day re-examining, replaying, and rescripting each scene; as if changing the perception will change the outcome. Regrets can often result in attempts to rewrite the past as things might have been. Regrets are inevitable, and, regrets are teaching points. The finite time we have is better spent making course corrections. Failing frequently leads to better results that have already been tested.
Why is it so important to keep learning? As Einstein responded when asked why his exam questions remained the same year after year, “The answers have changed”. The answers have changed from as few as 10-15 years ago. Technology rocks our world on an ever increasing basis.
The good old days are not coming back, nor would you really want them to. We all have the ability to learn new skills and attitudes moving forward. In the academic world, the saying is; publish or perish. In life itself, it’s; grow or stagnate to death.
As a reminder of how important every minute is in my life, I frequently revisit this video by Sam Harris. This reminds me of the things that are really important in life, and to help stay focused in the moment. We can only grow forward from where we are now, not from where we used to be. There are clear, duplicatable steps to follow.
Without question, what you think about, on a focused basis, inevitably comes into reality. Humans have the unique ability to make new decisions, based on new information, and to change their mindset. You have the innate ability to improve your future by simply gaining knowledge. Talent, or lack thereof, has proven to be less critical to being persistent than these three, teachable, action steps.
- Growth Mindset
- Positive Self-Talk
- Follow the Leader
Growth Mindset + Positive Self-Talk + Follow the Leader = Zoomer Persistence
Your brain has the ability to increase mental capacity, In other words, you can increase your IQ. Your own mindset in believing that you can improve is absolutely essential in striving for a new goal.
Angela Duckworth has examined the Grit that it takes to exhibit persistence over adversity. Her studies indicate that the grittier individual has the greater perseverance in achieving their goal.
Action Plan
- Answer the Grit questions and review your score. There are no right answers. Grit Questions
- Give yourself permission to learn whatever it takes to make your goal a reality. Repeat this self-affirmation: I can learn this!
- Begin to see yourself as having completed the goal. “I know I can do this!
- Search for a person, alive or not, who examples the personality you want to be when reaching your goal. Ask for help. If you ever see a turtle sitting on a fencepost, it did not get there by itself.