[The Habit of] It’s Easy Not To
It’s easy to go to the next level; why don’t most? It’s easier not to.
“Every life form seems to strive to its maximum except human beings” – Jim Rohn (motivational speaker)
A leader is a person who steps up and expects more. The opposite of that is what we call “normal.” A normal person tends to step back, step out of the way, and expect less. A normal person expects less and expects a decrease, not more. A normal person expects it not to turn out well. In contrast, leaders believe in positive possibilities and expect to achieve more.
Leaders Expect More
A leader expects it to turn out well, expects more, expects to achieve more, and expects the economy to get better. A person who is a leader expects something to come forth that has never come before, has never been done before. That’s what you are. You’ve got to learn how to change your mind from the person who steps back to the person who steps up and from the person who expects less to the person who expects more, more out of life, more out of your friendship, more out of your relationship, more out of your marriage, more out of your job, more out of your career, more out of your education. Expect more. It’s time you expected more.
Let’s discuss how we take people to the next level. Think of yourself as an athlete. That means you need to train, improve, and put yourself in situations where you can evaluate your progress through wins or losses. Are you winning in your life? Where are you winning? Where are you losing? Identifying where you are helps determine what to work on next. If you’re a writer, set aside time to write and measure how many words you can produce in an hour. How many words can you write within an hour? Evaluate your progress and try again. Athletes are skilled at evaluating their performance and adjusting their goals accordingly. An athlete enters the gym and performs a series of repetitions. If he is unable to complete the targeted number of reps, his goal for the next set is to get a bit closer to that target. How are you training? How do you assess your progress? Think of yourself as an athlete.
It’s Easier Than You Think
I’ll have you know that it’s easy to take the next step towards improvement. You’re always making a step. The question is, in which direction are you stepping? The same amount of energy it takes to make a step to the right is the same energy it takes to make a step to the left. The same energy that it takes not to go to the next level is the same energy it takes to go to the next level. What are you doing? How are you doing with your steps? How about going to the next level? Don’t let it fool you that it’s not easy.
Keep in mind that growth requires effort. “Anything worthwhile is uphill.” – John Maxwell. It will require some effort to change your attitude, mindset, and direction. However, the energy that it takes is roughly the same as the energy it requires not to. Why then don’t most people do it? The reason most people don’t is because it’s easy not to. It’s easy not to do more. It’s easy not to expect more. It’s easy not to step up. It’s easy not to, and it’s common. Common simply means you’re pre-programmed, as your default, not to do it. Therefore, again I say, it’s easy not to do it.
“All life forms strive to their maximum potential except for human beings.” Every creature, every plant, is striving to grow as tall and as far as it can, except for human beings, because human beings have a choice not to. We can choose, which is a gift. However, if that gift is misused, we may fail to achieve even what plants can accomplish. Therefore, you have to choose to grow. You can choose to outgrow. In fact, you can choose to get around the things that keep you from growing unlike plants. You have the ability to do more, yet it’s easy not to.
That’s your problem. It’s easy not to.
