10 Stepping Stones to Success

The path that lay before us all has no stepping stones to mark the way. We set them as we go. One step at a time, always moving forward, always toward the goal... toward SUCCESS.



In order to reach your own success, you must:




1 - Find Your PASSION
You have to find what you love. This is different for everyone and it comes from within. It doesn't matter if others think it silly, a waste of time, not good enough... If you feel strong enough about it, then it IS good enough. If you could talk about or do something all day, every day and never tire then you have a passion. You can feel the energy that envelopes you and that same energy will radiate and pull others in. More importantly, if you hold that passion it will take YOU where you want to go.

2 - SET a Goal

Speaking of... where DO you want to go? This may take some time to figure out, but don't get stuck here. You should have at least a vague idea of what you want and to start that's all you need... a direction - something to focus on. You can fine tune it later. This is where your dreams come into play. Sure you will have smaller goals, but set up the big one... the mountain in the distance. This should be something you can see from any distance in your life. It is your becon. If you can't see it, you're going the wrong way.

3 - STOP Making Lists
Lists are fine, but don't be that person who makes a list of lists that you need to do and then collect all the lists together to see what you can consolidate into a new list. There are many ways of making lists. I've learned that writing a literal list isn't the only way. We make mental lists too. Every time we go through all the "reasons" we can or can't do something, those are lists. We need to STOP making the lists and finally ACT. Get up and DO it already. All the lists in the world will not accomplish a single thing.

4 - TAKE That First Step
Taking that first step has been hyped up as something so unsurmountable, something so terrifying. It's not. Why can't we get as excited over every first step as we do when our children learn to walk? They don't fear it. We don't fear it. We encourage it, hope for it, praise it, and share it. Transfer that same response to every first step in our lives. Yes, it's the hardest, but when we take that step, each following step becomes easier.

5 - ...DON'T Stop Moving
You've started! Now keep going. You know where you want to go. You can see it in the distance. You have to keep moving to get there. The mountain really isn't going to come to you (even if your name is Mohammad). We don't have to be going full steam ahead to be moving, but we do need to move. Don't be satisfied with stopping. You have a goal. If you haven't reached it, you're not done. If you have reached it... set another one.

6 - WHEN You Fall, GET UP
Everyone falls sometimes. No one is above making mistakes. The point is not that you fell down, it's that you pick yourself back up and keep going from there. Life will come at you... that's what life does, but you can't allow distractions to keep you down. Don't give up on your goals, your passion, or yourself. Be your own biggest fan and cheerleader. We can't control everything around us, but we can and DO control how we respond to it.

7 - NO MORE Excuses
If you think you have it hard, I'm sure with very little work you can find at least 10 people who have it worse. And you don't have to look very hard. Everyone has their "cross to bear" in life - our own struggles. I don't want to hear any excuses and you shouldn't want to either. Do you really have that passion? Do you really want that goal? If the answer is YES, that's all you need. There is nothing more you need to know. If your answer is NO... then you haven't followed the first two steps! Go back and try again.

8 - CHANGE Your Perspective

If you think it's impossible, too hard, unreachable, too big, too many things in the way, or anything else along these lines then the problem isn't in front of you. The problem is inside of you. You need to change how you look at things. Look at the proverbial glass of water again. Look at another rorschach test or optical illusion. There is a balance of positive and negative around us all the time. Our perspective determines what we see. Will you look for the positive or the negative? We can train ourselves to see one over the other. 

rorschach tests

9 - It's OK to Reset a Stone
Sometimes we take our eyes off the goal when we set our stones. When we look up, either we can't see the goal anymore or it's no longer in front of us. It's okay to back up a little and move your stepping stone if you need to. It's not always clear as we go along. We don't always see the obstacles ahead. Like in a maze, we may need to backtrack and go a different direction. This doesn't mean you have failed unless you stop there and give up. As long as you are moving and working toward your goal - making progress - then you are doing what you need to do. When you get to this point, review the previous steps we've covered.

10 - Don't Let FEAR Rule
Fear is the single biggest obstacle to anything. Everyone has fears. If they disagree then they're lying. The difference is how we react to them. What we individually choose to do about our fears. Will we let the fear rule us or will we take the power away from the fear and use it to move us forward? When we let fear rule, we are giving it our power. Take your power back and you will see how strong you really are. You have the strength to reach your goals. It's in you and has been the whole time. What you have to tell yourself and REALLY hear in your soul is, "You've got this."