Endurance: Having the Courage to Go After the Life You Want

As I was having a conversation with someone the other day, they spoke about how quickly the year is moving. If you follow my work, you know that I have spoken at length about maximizing the moments of your life and having quarterly goals to keep you focused. Honestly, from experience I can tell you that if you do not own the moments of your life those moments will own you. Then you will be left with feelings of frustration and failure because you never accomplished any of the things that you wanted to accomplish. I want to share some insights with you about endurance and how to courageously go after the life of your dreams. I hope you will be empowered to pursue new possibilities for your life!

1. You cannot tolerate passivity in your life. If I had to say one thing that will paralyze your potential I would say it is passivity. For some reason, we live with this notion that we have all the time in the world and that we do not have to live with a sense of urgency. This may sound good in theory but it is not rooted in reality. If you keep sitting and waiting for something to happen, this will only result in life passing you by. What we continue to postpone is simply inhibiting our progress. When you feel passivity creeping up in your life, I want you to acknowledge it and address it quickly. Do not make excuses for mediocrity. Stop putting off for tomorrow what you have the power to accomplish today. Most of all, stop making your dreams optional when you should be making them a priority. I’ve discovered that when we are passive it demonstrates that we are not truly devoted to living the life of our dreams. Passivity is a sign that your dream or goal has not yet captivated you.
2. You need to have a plan. While I am not telling you that should know the exact path, I am telling you that you need to take the time to formulate a plan. I talk to so many people that have no plan for their lives yet they expect to step into this extraordinary future. As you have heard me say before, the absence of vision will result in the absence of meaning in your life. You are a liar when you say that you take your dreams seriously and you have no vision or plan for your life. Anything that you do not take the time to outline you will never take ownership of. So get out a sheet of paper or grab your journal and write out your plans. Write grand plans and detail your massive vision.From my own journey, I have discovered that when you have a plan the path will reveal itself. In other words, when you have a vision the vehicles needed to facilitate that vision will start to be attracted into your life. On the other hand, it is impossible to draw into your life what you have not first taken the time to define. Your plans shape the possibilities of your life.
3. You need to prepare for your future. While some people will tell you to just go for it, as someone that trains, develops, advises and consults leaders around the world, I will just plainly tell you that this is horrible advice. As a highly respected thought leader that has impacted people all around the world, I know that my life today is the product of my preparation. Notice that I did not say that my life is the product of my network, my ambition or even my drive. My success has been the product of my preparation. You do not prepare for success in a day. You prepare for success through your daily habits and actions. In other words, you prepare for success by developing disciplines. You can have all the potential in the world but it is meaningless without preparation. Just as an athlete prepares to compete at the highest level, you must train your spirit, soul and body for success. Success is a mental game. The greatest preparation will be the result of having a paradigm shift. Why is that? No new season will ever be accessed in your life without shifting your paradigm. Often we think that preparation means simply getting information. Unfortunately, I want you to know that information is not enough. Preparation means building capacity so you can reach your greatest potential. Preparation is making growth and development important pillars in your life.
4. You must possess endurance to embrace the next level. What goes into creating a life of success? I could name a myriad of different factors. However, one of the most overlooked contributors to success is endurance. Some people confuse endurance with grit or a strong will. These are both important characteristics but they are not more impotant than endurance. Why is endurance so important? Well, before I answer that let me first give you a working definition of endurance. I would define endurance as having the strength and stamina to remain committed to a process, goal or result without giving up. Many people look at my life today and make a lot of assumptions. Some people think that I got here overnight. Others think that my life has been easy and that I have never had any challenges. Honestly, few people know the difficulties that I have faced in order to embrace prophetic destiny. The one thing that has kept me going in the darkest moments and seasons of my life has been endurance. Through endurance, I have developed the resolve to stay the course until I experienced breakthrough. One of the hardest things to do is to trust the process when you are being threatened by pressure. It is challenging to stay focused when you are surrounded by the fiery trials of adversity. More importantly, it is almost impossible to concentrate when you are contending for your promise. In those moments, I have learned to persevere, remain patient and relentlessly pursue the life of my dreams. Endurance is what separates the elite from the average. If you truly want to elevate and live at the next level, then you need to master the art of endurance.