Recipe for Success

The taste of success is sweet. Whether you lost 50 pounds and regained your good health, raised a child to be a contributing member in society, or you just sent a hard boulder problem that you've been projecting for years, accomplishing a long term goal is one of the greatest feelings that one can experience in life.

It is very soul satisfying to reap the benefits of your hard work. To me, success is the ultimate pursuit, maybe what I could consider to be the meaning of life. I'm not talking about the pursuit of monetary success (getting rich), but having the freedom, ability, determination and courage, to follow your passion and live out your purpose despite all controversy and potential risk of failure.

In order to fully live to your potential you must let go of your expectations of the outcome. Accept that you can not control the future, only influence it, and make a conscious effort to always live passionately in the present moment of the lifelong process of growth and change... progression.

‘Without expectation,
One will always perceive the subtlety;
And, with expectation,
One will always perceive the boundary.’
-Tao Te Ching


Ingredients for Success:

Heart: If your heart is not in it the following ingredients will be hard to come by. Live with passion! Pursuing what you're most passionate about will keep you motivated because regardless of success or failure you will still fully enjoy the pursuit.


Courage: It is not acceptable to be afraid to fail. You must pursue success bravely with no concern or attachment to the end result, focus only on the enjoyment of the process. Nelson Mandela said it the best in his Inaugural Speech in 1994 (written by Marianne Williamson):

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. Is our light, not our darkness, that most frightnes us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be. You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we're liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."


Dedication: If you want to accomplish a goal you must be willing to put in the proper amount of time. The pyramids were not built in a day and the grand canyon was not carved in a month. Change takes time, if you are truly dedicated you can influence the rate and slightly speed the process, but you must be willing to invest the necessary time. Remember: A journey of a thousands miles begins with one step.

"We are told that talent creates its own opportunities. Yet, it sometimes seems that intense desire creates not only its own opportunities, but its own talents as well." ~Bruce Lee

Discipline: I associate discipline with the level of effort you invest towards a task. You must be willing to sacrifice your current comfortable routine for the pain and reward cycle of accepting a constant challenge. Trying 100% does not lead to improvement, you are only trying as hard as you are capable. If you try at a level that is higher than 100% you are bound to meet failure, but only by enduring this failure beyond your ability will you be able to surpass your limits and improve.


Focus: To stay dedicated and disciplined you must remain focused on your desire and each individual step that makes the journey. Distraction leads to procrastination and procrastination leads to incompletion. Focus on the task at hand and execute your plan on a daily habitual basis.

"It is early morning and work begins. The mind has been closed to the outside world in sleep; now its connections with the world begin again. The traces of one's impressions run crisscross. Activity and haste prevail. It is important then to preserve inner composure and not to allow oneself to be swept along by the bustle of life. If one is serious and composed, he can acquire the clarity of mind needed for coming to terms with the innumerable impressions that pour in. It is precisely at the beginning that serious concentration is important, because the beginning holds the seed of all that is to follow." ~I Ching