Three legs, c’est la vie

Structure du pont Corneille
Structure du pont Corneille (Photo credit: zigazou76)

Life. It seems so complicated and multiple faceted. How can it ever be simple? There are so many parts. What do you mean there are only three? Huh?

Nature is a good teacher. Trees that grow too tall for their roots are toppled by the wind. The forest provides shelter and food for many animals. Organisms have exactly what the need, nothing more and nothing less. Life that thrives in nature has structure, community and purpose. The three legs of life in nature is true for the human as well.

Develop Structure

The unstructured life is a mess. Any small addition event is seen as a crisis. There is nothing to support all what goes on from day to day. The person without structure has problems finishing tasks on time, has a harder time learning new skills and ideas, will continue to be late and lacks any semblance of balance.

Structure is what one uses to produce a life full of completion. Structure must exist for one to fulfill their potential, give meaning and provide satisfaction. Without structure, one will continuously miss the mark.

Consider the well tuned athlete. Is it simple genetics? No. It is strict routine. Not for a day. Not for a year. For many days; many years. Everyday is planned to ensure all portions of the workout and nutrition are met. Everyday is planned so that every minute is used and nothing is wasted. Structure is what creates the well tune athlete.

Community is support

In 1624, John Donne wrote Devotions upon Emergent Occasions. The following lines are from Meditation XVII (written in modern English):

No man is an island,
Entire of itself.
Each is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less.
As well as if a promontory were.
As well as if a manor of thine own
Or of thine friend’s were.
Each man’s death diminishes me,
For I am involved in mankind.
Therefore, send not to know
For whom the bell tolls,
It tolls for thee.

Here Donne illustrates that each of us are better as part of a whole. We feel for one another. We laugh together. We cry together. As part of a community, we have more resources for learning, for teaching, for growing. Being a part of a community gives each of us far more than we have alone.

Community is a key to growth and understanding. Find the community you need to grow the ways you desire. Listen. Learn. Speak. Teach. Grow.

Live a Purpose

Ever wonder why you are? What your purpose in life is? Tired of wondering around in a haze, not knowing where up and down are? The human was designed to have a purpose. You have one.

Purpose gives one’s life direction and dedication. The athlete who has been shaped to run the marathon will never fulfill that goal without purpose. Purpose is what causes the need for structure to appear and the desire to seek community. It is a sense of purpose that keeps one on course when all else has gone by the way. Purpose creates the drive, the desire, the persistence. When one knows and lives their purpose, no obstacle will be seen as too great to overcome. Have purpose. Find purpose.

Use all three legs of your life. You will be complete.

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Passion to Clarity

A 1914 half-sovereign minted in Sydney
A 1914 half-sovereign minted in Sydney (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Passion. It keeps you on course. It keeps you moving. It brings action and motivation.

When the going gets tough, passion will keep the you going. Where is it that you are going? What is it you want to do? What does done mean?

Enter clarity.

Clarity is how your target is defined. It allows you to know what you seek, what it feels like, how it smells, how it tastes. Clarity defines what you want.

Knowing what you want in life to such a high level is paramount for success, no matter how you choose to define it. Success has to be personally defined. It cannot be defined by someone else. Success is your goals, your dreams, your aspirations. Know what they are. See them. Feel them. Get very, very clear on them.

Clarity cuts through the fog. It leads to understanding. It guides through the rain. Clarity allows action to be well directed. It pushes passion through all obstacles. While passion is the fuel that drives your engine to success, clarity keeps everything running.

Get crystal clear on your goals. See each step. Fully define what you want. Suppose you want a new car. What model? What color? What options? How much work will you need to do to achieve it? How many calls? How many sales? That is clarity. It is more than just the end goal, it is all the steps in between.

Want to sing at the Apollo theater in Harlem? Don’t settle for performing at the local dinner club. See that goal. See the work. Do the work.

That is what clarity does. It pushes aside all the “can’ts” and “wont’s”. Get clear. See your path. Now go.

Stop! Get out of the way!

BURLINGTON, ND - JUNE 26:  Floodwater nearly c...
(Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife)

Ok, stop! Stop what you are doing! Move over! Be quiet! Yeah, you!

It is time to get real with yourself. You are the reason you do not have success. Yes, you. It is not your circumstances. It is not your lack of education. It is you. It is only you.

Look in the mirror. There you will find the person who is holding you back; there is who is inĀ  your way. There is the obstacle to over come. There is why you don’t have what you want. There is why you don’t succeed.

Yes, it is hard to take. Yes, the journey is unfair. Yes, you have a challenge. Yes, yes, yes.

We get in our own way time after time. We justify to ourselves why we do not have time to do something. We invent excuses why things do not happen. We blame others. We point fingers. We do not take responsibility. Everyone of those actions speaks volumes why we don’t have what we want, don’t have the success, don’t have the lifestyle, don’t have the marriage. All of that. We are the problem.

We are also the solution. You hold the keys to your success. Yes, you. Not some guru on television or the Internet. You and only you. You have to do the work. You have to get the experience. You must obtained the skills. A coach can help guide you, show you direction, point out a weakness. A mentor can show you better ways and better avenues. Only you can take the field. Only you can walk down the road. Your success is your business. It does not belong to someone else. It belongs to you.

See how to get started on your path.

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Going the Distance

Reaching success is not a quick trip. It takes dedication and determination. There are pitfalls and problems. There are distractions and detours. The path is not straight. It weaves and forks, zigs and zags. It requires a plan.

From time to time, your determination and dedication will be tested. Obstacles will arise that will seem insurmountable. They will require rethinking and redirection. Having a mentor will greatly help your efforts. The right coaching will teach you need techniques, give you new directions.

Going the distance takes perseverance. Going in the distance in the wrong direction will only result in wasted effort, leading to frustration and emptiness. Get the mentor you need. Get the training you need. Go the distance to Success.

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