Unless you’ve been living under a rock somewhere in Outer Mongolia, you know that there’s a new celestial object in our sky. This week, Elon Musk took a GIANT leap forward with his Falcon Heavy rocket and boosted his personal Tesla Roadster into space along with an unforgettable passenger: Starman. That’s right. There’s a Tesla automobile cruising through space right now. With a cool looking dummy driver named Starman chilling behind the wheel. And oh, wait, did I forget to mention it’s headed for Mars?
Whatever you may think of Elon Musk or his companies, you cannot deny that this guy knows how to innovate and make a mark. First, he mass produces cool looking, cutting edge electric cars, thus founding Tesla Motors. Then he makes them affordable. Then he makes an electric Tesla semi truck. And have you heard about his Powerwall, a battery pack to store solar energy and power your home? Along the way he founded SpaceX, which just left his competitors behind in terms of payload deliverability and wow factor. His boosters even land themselves back on earth to be used again. Now, his Falcon Heavy is the largest spacecraft in the world. (And just a reminder, he’s the only billionaire with his own car in space!)
It reminded me of something Tony Robbins preaches constantly. And that is of the need to take massive action of you want to make change in your life. He said, “The path to success is to take massive, determined action.” There is no room for half-stepping here. Either you want to succeed or you don’t. If you want to succeed, you will find a way to make it happen. If you really don’t, you will find an excuse, or two, or three, to justify why you can’t or won’t make your life better.
But one of the biggest things that keeps people from taking massive action is fear. Fear of failure and ridicule. To that point I refer you again to Elon Musk. In the press conference following his historic rocket launch, he admitted that he calculated there would be a 50/50 chance that this thing would even work. He jokingly said one of his recurring nightmares was a big explosion, a tire bouncing down the road, a logo crashing down here, etc. Had that happened, for sure there would’ve been no lack of ridiculers. Yes, it could have literally blown up in his face. But this dude DID NOT CARE!
For him, the rewards of success overrode his fear of failure, so he went for it. Now of course I’m not saying he just rolled the dice and took a foolish risk. You can be sure his geeks crunched the numbers and ran simulations ad infinitum until they were sure they had done everything they could do to ensure success. But they knew they couldn’t think of everything or fail-safe every eventuality. So, at the end of the day, once the work was done, they went for it.
And that’s what rich and successful people do. They face down their fears and take calculated risks. They accept that failure is part of the game. When they lose, they learn and move on. But, when they win, they win big. And that is the mindset you have to create within yourself if you want to succeed. How can you do that? Consider these 3 tips:
- First, acknowledge your fears but take action despite them. Fear is a natural thing. But the definition of true courage is taking action in spite of your fears. That, my friend, is where heroes are made. So, if you have a fear of something, do it! Make a point of conquering that fear. Go for that big job. Start that business. Learn that new skill or language. Take up dancing. Whatever it is, if it is your dream, go for it. Laugh at yourself and learn to take others laughing at you as well, because as sure as the sun rises each day, they will. You will need a healthy sense of humor and a bit of humility if you are going to overcome the fears that are holding you back.
- Second, accept that failure is part of any learning endeavor. You ever watch kids learn to walk? They stand on those little, wobbly legs and take a step or two, then fall. They may cry, they may giggle, but what do they do right after? They get right up and try again and again and again until they are finally walking. They are not worrying about who is watching. They just in their innocence, take the first step and the next and the next until they get it right. They are focused on one goal: walking!
- Third, commit to massive action. I recently read a quote by Henry David Thoreau that says, “The price of anything is the amount of life you exchange for it.” In other words, you get out of it what you put into it. Think back on your life. When you didn’t put much effort into something, did it turn out well for you? I’m guessing not. But when you put your whole heart into it, when you went for broke, were you not equally rewarded? Fellas, when you wanted that girl, did you put on your wrinkled duds or did you put on your best outfit? Ladies, when you wanted that guy, did you show up looking a hot mess or did you put on your best to catch his eye? If you want the prize, you have to put in the work!
Ask yourself, what is your personal Falcon Heavy rocket? What massive action will you take to take a massive step toward living the life of your dreams? Maybe it’s filing for that DBA. Or calling that first prospect. Or 50! Or maybe it’s conquering a long-held fear that’s holding you back. Whatever it is, only you can answer that one. Because, as in anything, if you want it, no one else is going to do it for you. If you want to carve out your dream life from this crazy world we live in, you need to bring it. You need to go big or go home. Show up every day with your best face on, with a plan, with determination and the passion to follow through with massive action. If you do, then success is bound to be yours. And never forget, learn to laugh at yourself and learn from your mistakes. That’s a winning combination any day of the week.
If you found this article helpful, please know that you can find more like it by following my blog at www.Org4LifeSolutions.com. There you will find all kinds of hacks, tips and useful info you can use to cultivate the good habits that will lead to better focus, organization and success in life so you can create your very own Falcon Heavy rocket. Until next time, remember: Own it. Be it. Achieve it!