Seven Enduring Characteristics of Champions

Positive Action Will Always Beat Positive Thinking

For decades "˜the power of thinking positively' has been lauded as a near-infallible technique for changing your life.

But taken too far, fantasizing about achievements before they are made doesn't help. Don't set up your camp on the peak before you reach it.

Here's seven traits to emulate:

1. Determine To Win

If you know why you want to win, and that reason burns inside you, you'll find a way. Some people  who had   nothing except their desire   were able to achieve extraordinary things. You will too.  You don't need to know, at first. If your goal is important enough, you'll find a way.

It takes courage to begin something many others won't try.

Anything new can involve scary steps. But champions  don't accept excuses from themselves. Anyone aiming to achieve excellence in business needs a no-excuses mindset.

Actively look for new things to achieve. The more you  stretch your comfort zone, the bigger it gets!

2. Donate To Others

Life is more meaningful when we're sharing what we have with others. This sharing doesn't have to be "˜stuff', or money. It can be companionship, example, or a helping hand.

The give and take of relationships is much like the ebb and flow of an ocean tide. The more you share on an outgoing "˜tide', the more will return when the "˜tide' comes back in. This is the much maligned "˜law of reciprocity'.

For all its bad press, I  don't think it ever fails.

Those who give from a place of integrity, wanting only the best result for those they help, receive back far more than they give out, over time. It's no secret that the biggest names in commerce over the centuries have also been the most generous.

Critics will suggest that it's easy to give away wealth once you make it, but many champions were generous a long time before they became successful.

3. Discipline Yourself

Mastery over yourself is the greatest accomplishment. It is the most difficult assignment, with the largest reward.

Disciplined individuals can climb to the highest places.  Those who are not cannot climb anywhere.

Complete these actions each day to help attract the results you want:

Record your foundational activities.

Foundational activities are the tasks that need doing in order for your dream to progress. Keep on your own tail. When you measure what's being done, you can manage your direction.

What are the key activities you have to do in order to make progress? If say, your goal is "˜being known as a premier house painter', one key activity could be publishing information on how to keep a house in top condition, which brands you as one who should be consulted about such things.

You'll have to decide what these foundational activities are for you. And then track your performance.

Connect with Emotionally-Important People and you'll achieve more

Emotionally Important People are the ones you care about, whether professionally or personally. And affected   EIPs are anyone whose lives will be affected by your progress towards the goals you've set.

Do you have a weight loss goal? Your spouse is likely to be affected by your progress.

Are you soon to make a critical business presentation affecting your company's viability? Many people are like to be affected.

4. Defy Obstacles

Persistence describes successful farming in a nutshell.

A farmer who knows a lot about seeds, yet plants very few of them, or only plants his seed when the moon is full or the wind in the East, will reap little.

You may have  learned every planting strategy and technique. But if you do nothing,  waiting for someone else, you will go hungry.

The way to achieve a full barn is to go each day to the field and do a piece of the work. If you play your game with persistence, you will almost inevitably bring home the win.

I've realised that almost anything is doable, taken step by step. But if I allow obstacles to defeat me, nothing is.

What about you? Will you stop when your feet get tired, or when the river rises? Will you keep making presentations in the face of refusal after refusal? How would you complete this sentence? "When the going gets tough . . . "

5. Define Your Values

Demonstrating your beliefs through your actions is the single most powerful action you can take if your goal is to build a group of like minded people.

Values, principles and beliefs are all words sometimes used more or less interchangeably to mean "˜the things you stand for'. Your values are the things that matter. They mark lines you won't cross.

Think about what you want, (your goals) in terms of your values. Ensure they don't clash.

Values affect everything we do; even in business, all decision-making involves value judgments.

In our personal lives, generally speaking, the most productive and satisfying relationships will be those between people with similar value sets. If your goals (personal or business), and values align, all is well.

If they don't, your life will not be happy, and you won't get the results you pretended you wanted.

Aspiring champions need to have their lines visible; it's perhaps more important now than ever before. Why? It's because our online social interconnectedness has increased pressure to conform and do as our peers do. I know I've often been asked to "˜like' something I hadn't even heard of prior to seeing a post about it.

Maybe you have too.

6. Dismiss Conflicting Interests

The way to fulfilling your dream can be like a road through a park in spring, full of enticing sights to left and right. Some of life's distractions are almost irresistible, like a puppy that needs a pat, or a small white pebble that lies in your path and dares you to pitch it into the neighbouring  pond. But if you stop for every puppy and pebble, you'll never reach the fulfillment you set out to achieve.

I know that if I have too many goals competing for my time and energy, my progress slows down or stops altogether.

Maybe you have conflicting agendas too.

As you'll realise, for every goal seeker and achiever who succeeds, there are many who won't make it because they won't try. But even as you are in the middle of "˜trying', there will be some who will tell you to chase a different rabbit. Because it's "˜whiter', "˜better', or "˜easier' to catch.

It's human nature to join a new chase; almost everyone has the urge to "˜join in'.

But today there are more groups and "˜causes' to join than ever before. And many of them are promoting their ideas and mantra in our face. It's all too easy to react favorably to the pitch and follow along.

This pattern of behavior will  draw you away from your principles, if you let it. Do you watch what champions do and copy it,   rather than the antics of the crowd?

Do yourself a big favor: keep focused on the reasons why you've chosen the path you have, and stay on it.

7. Dare To Begin, To Commit; To Leap

There are a lot of people on the sidelines, watching the outcome of life's interactions. And watchers won't feel the pain of losing something they tried to win. But they won't have the thrill of overcoming odds, either, or the exultation that is victory. And victory is only won by risking loss.

It's just the way it is.

Without a start there is no result. Naturally, it's vital to watch conditions, and to plan as much as possible. But nothing risked; nothing won. And planning only goes so far; over-planning becomes procrastination.

Daring is the place where talking, scribbling, dreaming, and debate is finally brought to a stop, with a decision to implement the plan of action you've developed. So dare to do it!

I have struggled with this a long time. It's often easier to watch. But watchers don't win!

What have you dared to begin? What do you dare to begin today?