Okay, maybe insanity isn't the best word to use for this example, but in essence, it goes well with my idea of what I think it takes in order to be successful in whatever you do on a micro and macro level. 

I'm not simply talking about everyday tasks, like waking up and breathing, ordering food, and driving from point A to B. No, I'm more so referring to the attainment of a lofty goal. One that requires more legwork than your average aspirations. When it comes to goals like this, often times a lot of time, hard work and dedication is required to see any kind of results. And often times, it's not uncommon to put in more than your fair share of time, hard work, and dedication yet see no results over the horizon. It is times like this when that little bit of insanity needs to kick in - that crazy dose of faith that tells you DON'T QUIT when all other signs point to a dead end. 

When it comes to achieving goals that few others set forth to accomplish, you can almost guarantee that the road to achievement is a much rougher path than the one most commonly used by the majority of your peers. As the saying goes, "If it were easy, everyone would do it." 

The very first thing you must remember when you begin to embark on a challenging goal is - it's not easy, but it is doable. The tricky thing with certain goals and aspirations that fly outside of normalcy is that often times, there is no easy projection of how things might turn out or when things might develop. For example, you may be deciding that you're ready to tackle the necessary requirements in order to become a lawyer. As a pre-requisite, you must first do well on the LSAT's to get into a good Law School and secondly, you must pass the BAR before you can legal practice law. 

The large majority of society might say "That's a lot of work", "I don't know if I can do well on the tests/exams", "That's a lot of time wasted to prepare", and so on. Truth is, a lot of these concerns are valid, but what if you take each of them on and dedicate everything you've got towards overcoming them? Chances are you will and at the end of that tough fight there's gratification that is exponentially greater than any gratification that the majority of people get out of doing mediocre activities. That's a fact! But before you can properly reach your goals, there are a few rules that you must keep in mind ever step of the way that will test your determination and will hopefully bring out the "insanity" within you.

RULE #1: Mentally Prepare for Battle

Before you embark on any mission to achieve a certain goal, you should first fully outline what it will take to achieve such goal and mentally confirm with yourself that you are ready for the challenge. It all comes down to the question - How bad do you really want it? After you've fully analyze the required energy and resources it's going to take to achieve your goal and you're still more than willing to jump out and pursue it, start picturing your ideal outcome IMMEDIATELY and visualize yourself forging ahead, completing each necessary step to achieve your goal. 

RULE #2: Devise a Plan & Write Down Your Goals

I'm a firm believer that a goal is nothing more than a dream until you write it down! Take this simple visual for example - imagine having a goal to travel from California to New York on the road. While it may be easy to picture the trip going smoothly and reaching your end destination, if you've never driven to New York from California before, do you think you will be able to successfully complete such a trip without proper guidance? It's highly doubtful. 

Devising a plan and writing down your goals is the very best way to keep track of every step needed to be successful and also keep track of your progression. Write our your plans and goals and read them daily. Seeing them on paper, coupled with your mental vision are great complements and offers tangible guidance, opposed to driving blindly. 

RULE #3: Work the Plan

After you've written down your plans and goals, it is now time to execute them. Just like with baking a cake, you have all of the ingredients and directions written down, but there will be no cake to eat until you follow the instructions to make it. The same applies to your goals. Don't just stare at them every day hoping to see one of them transpire. You must work at them each and every day. Every little actionable step you take towards your goals brings them one step closer. So don't just look at your plans and goals on paper, work on each plan and goal religiously. In due time, they will all begin to take shape and turn into reality. 

The most important rule of them all...

RULE #4: Don't Give Up

This is by far, the most important rule. As we stated at the introduction of this article, any goal that challenges the norm will require a higher level of determination and hard work. In most cases, it will not come easy and may even be very new to you. As such, properly prepare yourself for battle and refuse all urges to quit. This is where the highest level of "Insanity", will power and faith will come into play. 

Unless you're psychic, you will never fully know what the outcome of your efforts will be. As such, it takes a special part of you to look at the bigger picture, see what drives you to move forward, and what you'll be giving up if you decide to quit. Quitting is easy. Perseverance is hard. Those that choose to persevere in the eye of adversity and the unknown will experience relief, gratification, satisfaction and blessings like no other! You're willingness to hold onto your faith and believe that everything will work it is what will carry you towards your goal when a clear vision of success isn't in sight. 

I leave you with my favorite quote - "Do for 3 to 5 years what most people won't do, and for the rest of your life what most people can't do." 

-Cultivating Tomorrow's Leaders

The image above illustrates something that very few of us understand. Like my last blog post mentioned, success rarely forms a straight line. The sooner we understand this concept, the more success we stand to achieve.

In most cases, success will always be an uphill battle. The key to making it to the top is persistence – one step at a time. How many times have you turned back around when the climb seemed too steep? Quitting is easy. Persistence calls for more discipline and determination. So before you give up on something, ask yourself have you exhausted every option and every move beforehand. Often time, the answer to that question is no, so the next big question is, how bad do  you really want it?

When something means a lot to you it’s a lot easier to fight for what you want. Just remember, the amount of effort you put into something is reciprocal to what you get out of it. If you fail to give 100% to something and then decide to quit because you didn’t immediately get the results you were seeking, don’t think for a second that things will be different with the next project or goal. You can plan for days, months, and years and expect all of your plans to take shape in reflection to those plans but rarely does that happen. Be prepared for a few bumps in the road regardless of whatever else comes in your way, stay focused on your end goal and remember that success is not a straight line, but through all of the zig zags and winding turns, success will be waiting at the end for those who have shown determination.  

See you at the top!

Cultivating Tomorrows Leaders 

This past Sunday I took a very important exam – the second half of the required exams needed to pass in order to apply for a Mortgage License with the NMLS. Between work, continuously building Cultivating Tomorrows Leaders and GMAT studying, I was also preparing for this test. Three day prior to the actual exam date I studied for hours upon hours with just 3 to 4 hours of sleep in between and felt pretty confident about the results. I've been told that this particular test component was the hardest one and that a lot of people fail it on their first attempt, but I was extremely confident that that would not be me.

I’m a self-proclaimed late-bloomer. Growing up in an area of Los Angeles, California where innovation, inspiration and success were far from common place.  I sailed through high school in embarrassing fashion, with grades that would make even the worst students shake their heads in shame of me. Without a clear understanding of the  impact an education can have on your future, both positively and negatively, I never put much though into it, nor my future for that matter.