I KNOW what you are thinking after reading that headline. You’re saying to yourself:
“What the heck does this guy mean by saying ‘Motivation is not enough?’”
Well, let me explain. Motivation is the act of being inspired to do something. You know, your battery is fully charged and you are all pumped up, rearing to go. You want to get off your rump and act immediately on something whether positive or negative. That is motivation.
But is this all that is required to achieve success in life? My personal experience has convinced me that it is not.
After I read Napoleon Hill’s Think And Grow Rich, I was so fired up that I decided to go into business for myself.
Hill, God bless his soul, provided enough information in that book that the fear of getting started disappeared and a can-do spirit swept over me. I mean, reading about all those people with modest backgrounds who rose, as they say, from rags to riches, was all that I needed to inspire me. Their stories were so uplifting that the only thought that was running through my mind as I finished the book was,
“If all these people could make it, why not me?”
Every discouraging obstacle that planted itself on my way was practically demolished by my consummate desire to get started. The fire was burning so much in me that even when it became clear that no one was ready to fund my publishing idea, I decided to go it alone, starting with a capital of N6,500.00, of which N2,500 was borrowed, with the balance coming from the sales of the cameras I had acquired for my new hobby – photography.
Nothing but being super-motivated would have ever made me contemplate taking off with this measly seed money into a capital-intensive business like newspaper and magazine publishing.
But, as I realized years later, it wasn’t enough to be motivated to acquire financial freedom. There are other vital tools that one must equip oneself with before one gets started.
In other words, it’s one thing to be plainly stubborn about one’s goal (which was the case with me) and another to be goal-oriented.
To be stubborn about one’s goal is to keep at it without changing one’s approach even when it is obvious that one isn’t getting the right results.
On the other hand, you’re goal-oriented when you have a variety of game plans that you use interchangeably as you drive toward your goal. My lack of adequate understanding of this important principle caused me so much agony in the early days of my business life.
One costly mistake after the other and I was piling up debts that would take me to the brink of bankruptcy.
All the time this was happening, my motivation did not wane.
My huge desire to succeed, despite the mounting odds against me, simply kept me going.
I repeated the slogan often and often:
”Winners don’t quit; quitters don’t win.”
And, yes, indeed, they don’t.
But something was wrong. Something just wasn’t right. What was it?
When I held a meeting with one of my bankers, where the decision was taken, for the first time, to wind up my business after a certain date if I didn’t engage the reverse gear and start moving away from the crimson red my bank account was wallowing in, I was jolted into looking for other solutions apart from reading motivational books.
This was how I stumbled on business books, which proffer solutions to different business problems; and how-to books that beam their searchlight on the topics they are treating without anything held back.
And then a surge of fresh, life-saving air swept over my business. Things began to change positively as I learned more and more about the intricacies of doing business. And I went from one victory to another. And, never since then have I looked back.
You can see immediately from my story that being motivated is just not enough. The fact that you set a goal to climb Mount Everest, and get all the motivation to achieve the goal, will not be enough to see you to the top of Everest. You must assemble the right tools for climbing a mountain to succeed.
So, what are the other powerful tools you need to acquire as you drive toward success in your endeavors?
I will sum it up in two words:
GAIN KNOWLEDGE. Gain knowledge by reading the right books; gain knowledge by attending seminars and workshops that are relevant to your life goals; gain knowledge by listening to instructional tapes and watching instructional videos; gain knowledge by associating with the people in your industry, and so on and so forth.
And when you gain knowledge, make sure you apply it.
Applied knowledge is the key to success. Just as motivation is not enough for all-round success, knowledge not applied is a waste of time and money. Knowledge, indeed, is power. But that is only when you apply it.
Quote:
“Just as motivation is not enough for all-round success, knowledge not applied is a waste of time and money. Knowledge, indeed, is power. But that is only when you apply it”
Also Read: Success Requires Down Payment
