Thursday, May 31, 2012

Have you ever QUIT on Yourself?


I recently read an article about Quitting. It was 180° opposite my normal reading that is about Success. It got me thinking about “do we really give it our best effort”? The story as I recall mentioned Undergraduate study and the top 10% of the graduating class. Overall grades in each subject are so important to the overall GPA and class ranking to gain acceptance into Graduate School. It is due to this pressure that some students take “the easy way” out and apply for easier classes rather than Advanced Level courses in order to keep their GPA and class ranking at the top
Do you “buckle” to pressure or “buckle up” and drive?  It is something that can be taught but once "someone takes the easy way out" is often difficult to change.  Consider the student who is taking tough courses and although ALL other classes, “A’s” are earned…In this particular situation where a B- or a C is about to happen, the student drops or waives the course so that their record stays unblemished.  This is the type of learning that fosters a “quitting” environment.  To avoid “quitting” we need to adopt a “Yes we Can” attitude.

  • Practice, Practice and Practice again - "old" research indicates it takes about 10,000 hours of practice to become an expert.  If you were to practice 1 hour each day, that would equate to 365 hours a year.  Multiplied out, that would [if done every day]  require 31 years of practice!  Considering the fact that our world is constantly changing with new ideas and methods...a conservative estimate would be that to become expert in anything is impossible today.

  • The MAJOR difference between Good and GREAT is effort.  How much time do you practice each day, week or month?

  • Consider the pro athlete and the years of practice that they put into their skills ~ If it was easy, everyone would be a pro!  I have heard much negativity towards sports stars and perhaps I have voiced my opinion on occasion about the huge salaries that they command ~ The bottom line is that the skills of these athletes that have made them extraordinary did not come from natural talent alone,  It came from a lot of hard work.

  • Headlines this past week showed that “average” CEO earnings were over 9 Million a year ~ On first glance, I was shocked but then again, these are not jobs for just anyone.  Much experience and practice came into being before one becomes CEO.


Own up to development and continue to practice every day.  Always be learning and dare to adopt difficult situations. Take pride in what you have accomplished and accept challenges.  As we stretch ourselves, we grow!  

No comments:

Post a Comment