Go the Distance!

The #1 Reason People Succeed

As a pastor, I often meet people who are excited to make a change in their lives.  For awhile.  What usually happens is they find out that change doesn’t come easy and they drop out of the race.  Please, hear me out.  I’m not condemning anyone.  I’m all for change and the people who want it.  I just wish more people were successful.  It often saddens me to see people drop out of the race.

go the distance photo

Going the distance is NEVER easy.  Just ask anyone who’s tried.  I found this out personally when I started jogging three months ago.  All kinds of obstacles pop up.   There is the weather, aches and pains, fatigue, rationalizations….the list goes on and on.  In all honesty, some of the excuses are pretty good ones.

What if there’s an easier way.  I wish there was, but I’m sorry to tell you there isn’t!  That may sound harsh, but it’s true.  I have no EASY way to sell you.  If you’re going to achieve any amount of success and take your life to the next level, it’s going to take WORK.  The good news is once you realize this, business begins to pick up.

One thing you can do is anticipate the obstacles and have a game plan.  Don’t just assume the goal will come easy.  Put a plan in place to move through your challenges when they arise.  The best plan is to plan on running your course.  Determine ahead of time that you are going to go the extra mile.  Never forget that good things take time.  It may have taken you years to get into the mess you’re in now, so don’t expect a quick fix over night.  When I suggest spending time, I’m not suggesting a day or a week, or a month, we’re talking years!

We’ve all heard stories about persistence.  Maybe you’ve heard this one.  A man moved to California and bought mining equipment.  After mining for Gold awhile, unsuccessfully, he sold all of his equipment.  You can probably imagine what happened.  The guy who bought the equipment went to the same mine and drilled only a short distance before hitting the motherlode.  This simple story highlights the importance of going the distance.  Success rarely comes easy and when it does it tends to fade away quickly.

The truth is you never know how close you are to reaching your next milestone.  This principle applies to health, fitness, self-improvement, discipleship, leadership, etc.  As Jim Collins says: “It’s hard to get the fly-wheel moving, but once you do, momentum takes over.”

Ironically, the people achieving true success are usually the ones who look like they’re making very little or no progress at all.  They go to the gym on a regular basis, save money a little at a time,  read books and listen to weekly sermons and podcasts.  By all looks and appearances, you’d say these people are going nowhere quickly!

If you’re looking to achieve your dreams and move further faster in your life, don’t expect for a moment that you’ll only need this one post.  I encourage you to commit to an extended subscription, be it six months or a year.  Rome wasn’t built in a day and you can’t expect to fix all our your problems in one week.  If you’re going to progress, it’s going to take endurance.  Go the distance!

 

 

Please note: I reserve the right to delete comments that are offensive or off-topic.

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