WE ARE WHAT WE DO REPEATEDLY
When a person makes a decision to not do what they know they should do they are only cheating themselves. They are self-eliminating themselves from the race they have set before them. Every one of us has something we want to accomplish or contest that we want to win and if we do not put into place on a daily basis all the things that are required we will lose. To state it another way, “a habit of focused, intense, directed, activity on a daily basis will always yield a winning attitude and a goal accomplished.”
Daily Events Repeated Form a Habit (to Win)
Daily, we exercise our personal agency to do or not do things. In my world it is important to plan and then to execute those things that improve or enhance my life. Mostly, the things I plan for are related to personal goal achievement. Remember that most personal goals are attained out of the sight of others. We set the goals, we plan to accomplish the goal, and then we set about the task of getting to that goal. Usually, nobody else knows a thing about what we are doing. This is a good thing. As Flex Lewis has said, “The trophy is earned during the hours when nobody is watching.”
In any case, we have to develop a standard of excellence that is put into play each and every day. We have to nurture an attitude that demands our very best on a daily basis as we strive to win. This attitude must be so ingrained into our psyche that it is second nature and habitual. The sheer act of doing what is best in the very best way always produces a champion. If we want to win we dare not take our small steps toward the winners circle lightly. Each thing we do repetitively and daily brings us that much closer to our end game.
I learned a long time ago from some friends of mine that escaped from North Korea’s Communist regime that if you want to win or to excel you have to be willing to work while others are playing or sleeping. In other words, I and you have to be willing to do what we do not want to do on a daily basis. We have to do these things well or they are not worth doing. The secret to anything that is done well is attitude and repetition. To perfect something it must be performed to the best of our ability over and over again until it is second nature and as close to perfect as possible.
One of my weak areas in bodybuilding is my personal discipline to pose daily. I have to do it first or it will not get done. So, when I awaken as I prepare for a contest, I put on some tight shorts and head for the mirror to do several rounds of posing, each time trying to make every pose better than the previous pose. As I do this daily it becomes a habit that will bring out the best in me on stage. Thus, I address my achilles heal problem first and completely daily. This is a habit a dare not ignore.
In closing, If we want to be winners then we have to establish daily habits that align themselves with our ultimate goals. It’s important that we select where we are going and then arrange everything in our lives in a manner aimed at getting to our goal. An act is a singular event. When these singular events become daily repetitive events then we have a pattern established to win. So, go about the business of making your goal known to your heart. Repeat daily the disciplines that will enable your goal to materialize.
Until next time I remain, Douglas E. Graham, Lt Col, USAF (ret), MHSM
Six Pack and Senior 