There are heaps of tools in the market these days providing deeper insights to our personalities, psyche, skills and strengths and how we interact and engage to best effect. Self awareness and self understanding is crucial to making the right decisions in life and getting the success we desire, from life partner to career choice and who we decide to surround ourselves with. Sometimes, though profound wisdom and learning is captured in a story and The Hare and The Tortoise by Aesop's Fable's is one of those. It captures beautifully the philosophies and secrets of success, personal growth and development.
Let's take the Hare.
Can you relate to the hare, always in a hurry to move forward to the next level, competitive and up for the challenge. We can even be in a hurry to grow up these days but success worth having takes time and effort to acquire. It is good to be up for a challenge and to have goals and aspirations to look forward to in life. There is nothing quite like winning or achieving something that is personal to you. But hare like behaviors have severe limitations. Always wanting to be ahead of the pack can be exhausting and, in looking forward, we fail to appreciate the importance of the present moment where the best opportunities and solutions appear and we lose sight of the 'why' behind our actions.
Overly competitive tendencies can alienate people when we might need support.
It is natural human nature to want to strive for more so achieving goals and enjoying the accolades and riches that come with that experience end up being only temporary as we look for the next bigger goal. It is easy to fall into the workaholic category in pursuit of our goals.
In the end it gets you because you burnout.
There are plenty of hares everywhere you look hoping to short cut and leap frog to change their life in 3 weeks, lose weight fast, eliminate debt, create a business and achieve overnight success. They want results in all areas of their life and they want it straight away. They think that if they look better they'll enjoy a better life or when they get their success they can be happy and start really living.
It doesn't always quite work like that does it?
Whilst external appearance can do wonders for our self confidence if we haven't got that belief in us deep inside of us then it's not going to truly alter how we feel and we won't feel fulfilled or satisfied for very long. It is in our nature to want to strive for more but what if we could learn to evolve in a different way and to appreciate the change that small steps bring?
There is a place for radical transformational change programmes, after all, sometimes; shock tactics can be good for kick starting our systems. But the issue is always around continuity. If you're surviving on watercress soup all week then the will power is going to fail you eventually even if you are the most disciplined person on the planet.
The same is true for growing your business, very rarely do you achieve break through success without putting in the right foundations. You plant the seed then it has to be lovingly nurtured, watered and weeded frequently to bring it to life. If you're lucky one day you'll be able to harvest it but, meanwhile, you've had a ball growing it.
As the age old saying goes success is not about doing something 100% better it's about doing everything 1% better. Constant small steps of improvement every day by eating in the right way, for example. You've got to the take the action and you've got to be persistent. That goes for perfecting the art of being what you want to become not waiting until you have something in the false belief that you'll then be seen to be that type of person.
The actions and behaviors of the tortoise have much to offer us.
He teaches us about the value of the journey as much as the destination point. His actions are more centered and less ego driven.
Sure the tortoise moves more slowly but with more purposeful action, one step at a time, moving consistently towards the end result. The tortoise knows why he's moving forward and the value of the tortoise is not about being the best you can be, though there's merit in that. The tortoise teaches us the wisdom of accepting who we really are and where we are in life because the tortoise realized he's more than good enough.
The tortoise stayed the course and got to the finish line ahead of the hare. The tortoise is peaceful and full of serenity less concerned with comparisons, and that's an inner power like nothing else.
This fable is a lesson in momentum. If you want lasting results in all areas of your life then steady wins the race every time.
Kath Roberts is a life and business coach who helps individuals looking for career change transition from employee to self employment by identifying natural born talents, purpose and passions then converting those into profit utilising online marketing strategies to integrate work with lifestyle goals. So if you're looking for a better way of life or have a burning desire to start an online business but don't have a clue where to start, then get in touch.
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