How Are You Today Son,
I hope that all is well with you and hope that you are having a great day!
Today, let’s pick up where we left off with our discussion of the following quote:
“The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary”
We used a farmer and the work he put in planting seeds in anticipation of a great harvest. We also discussed the fact that sometimes, despite our best efforts and hard work, that things don’t go as planned.
It is those times when we have worked hard and things don’t go as planned that can work to erode our confidence in our efforts. When this happens, it may take a bit more effort to “give it your all” the next time you want to accomplish a goal.
If our confidence in our efforts starts to erode, we may slack off and not try as hard. Some will give up and not try at all.
What happens if we don’t try at all? I like the way the former hockey player Wayne Gretsky put it, “You always miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”
How does Mr. Grestsky’s quote apply to the farmer in our previous discussion? If the farmer has met with some misfortune, such as a crop-destroying hurricane, he might decide that it’s a waste of time to plant any seeds at all. The result of this is that there will be no harvest to reap. If, on the other hand, the farmer decides to do a half-hearted job of planting seeds, he will reap a half-hearted harvest. If the farmer decides to do a great job of planting seeds, he will reap a great harvest.
We don’t want to be like the farmer who put off planting or doesn’t plant at all. It’s understandable that the farmer is nervous about another hurricane. That produces fear of failure in the farmer, and everyone at some point in life has experienced that.
Whatever the task is, we want to perform that task with excellence. We don’t want to allow our fear of failure to coerce us into performing a task at a level less than we are capable of. Does it really make sense for any of us to sentence ourselves to a life of lackluster performance in everything that we do? The quality of the work we do and the effort we put forth is a direct reflection of who we are.
Well, that’s all for now!
Have an amazing day and know that you are in my thoughts and prayers!
Love,
Dad