Friday, July 15, 2011

Impossible is Nothing

At one point or another in life we come across a situation where we're told completing a certain task is impossible or it's never been done so one should not attempt it. The people who give out this advice tend to think it's for your well being however if you take this advice on board it will be to your detriment. People often measure feats according to their own ruler and therefore set limitations to what is possible according to their own abilities. Thank the heavens for individuals with self belief who continually challenge the status quo and debunk the myths that certain things are impossible so, because of them there is hope.

*'Impossible' when broken up reads 'Im Possible' which is exactly what a task should be screaming at you when you attempt it:

Three (3) points on how to prepare yourself for an 'impossible' task:

Before you even begin you must first : VISUALIZE the positive outcome

1. Work longer hours. 
If attempting an extremely difficult task the only way to ensure a respectable positive outcome is to practice  and put in more effort than expected. Gladwell in 'Outliers' states that it takes 10 000 hours to master any craft which is about 10 years of continuous hard work and effort. In the case where it is a short term task such as passing a topic or preparing for a sports match you must push yourself to do more than you've ever done before. Self belief is important but it must be backed with experience in the form of long hours of continuous training.




2. David v Goliath Complex
When faced with an extremely difficult task or opponent ensure that you use your strengths when undertaking the task. In the story of David and Goliath we learn that David was said to have no chance against the giant. In fact had David fought Goliath by sword he would have faced a more challenging battle. What he did was take into account his weaknesses (his size in this case) and used non-conventional methods to defeat his opponent.  Impossible is nothing but one should not use methods that have little chance of success, instead be different, think different and fight to your strengths.



3. Down : Up Ratio
This is perhaps the most important point out of the three. ALWAYS get up more times than you get knocked out. If it means having to recuperate and better prepare yourself for a rematch so be it. So you didn't get the job? Find out what you did wrong, dust yourself down, go home adopt a DIFFERENT method and make another attempt in a week or month etc. So you failed your driver's license test 6 times in a row? Find out what you did wrong, work on the mistakes, make another attempt in a week. The winners are the ones who do not lose heart even after 1000 temporary defeats because they know in their minds that Impossible is nothing. Thomas Edison failed 10 000 times before succeeding, to some it would have been reason enough to quit but for Edison as he stated ' I have not failed I have merely found 10 000 ways that will not work'



You might lose a fight but do not lose a war - IMPOSSIBLE IS NOTHING

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