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Keep Going!
In April this year Phil Mickleson won the US Masters golf tournament in Augusta, Georgia. He finished the final round with this quote:
“I kept saying to myself all day that this would be my day. I kept believing something was going to happen and this would be it. It was just an amazing feeling. Having had so tough a quest to win, it feels even better now that I finally have."
You see what was so special about this victory was that Phil Mickelson had come so close in a number of major golf tournaments before and failed at the last hurdle. The press were labelling him a choker, the best golfer never to win a golfing major. However at Augusta this year he did it, and in doing so he demonstrated some very powerful principles which we can all apply to our lives and goals.
Belief
Phil had great belief. Even when everybody else around him was doubting his ability he still believed that his day would come. That strong self belief is something that you need to develop within you. Whatever your goal is do you believe that you will get there?
Do you have enough evidence from past experiences that you can look upon that will give you the belief that you can have the life you want and achieve the things you want to. You must believe in yourself – without that you don’t really stand a chance.
Resilience
Phil also had a lot of resilience and toughness about him. To go through that many failures in the public spotlight and have the press constantly remind him of his failings didn’t damage his attitude. Why? Because he was tough. True winners and achievers never let setbacks get in the way. They look forward more than they look back.
So a lesson for you is accept that you will have setbacks on your journey towards your goal but instead of getting down about them, treat them as learning points along the way. Accept failure as an event that helps you learn more about you and the path to your goal but don’t dwell on it too much. Learn and then move on and move forward. As Phil himself said it feels even better when you get there if the journey has been a tough one.
Motivation
Phil had huge amounts of motivation. He really was focussed on a goal and he kept going. He knew he would get to his goal one day. Why? Because he had evidence that his goal was achievable. He knew he had the skills, the talent and right attitude to get there and his evidence was that he came so close in the past. This kept him motivated.
When you set your goals think about whether you have enough evidence to prove that you will get there. I spend most of my coaching sessions dealing with motivation. Lack of it is why many people never achieve the life they want. A great way to keep motivated is to think about how it would feel if you didn’t achieve your goal – does it bother you, would you have regrets? When the thought of not achieving your goal is painful then you’re there!
Phil Mickleson’s epic struggle to win his first major tournament and his quote at the end summed up the importance of clear goals supported by a strong self-belief, a tough attitude and high levels of motivation to succeed. When all three come together you will become, just like Phil, a winner.
I’m going to leave you with 5 tips on how you can keep going and become a winner
1. Get focussed, get obsessive
You need to focus on your goal and you must really, really want it. Are you obsessive about a better life, a promotion, to be out of debt for example? Once you get focused keep taking action towards your goal.
2. What if you don’t achieve it
Write down the consequences of not achieving your goal. Would it bother you if in twenty or thirty years time you looked back on your life and thought I didn’t try to achieve my goal? I didn’t take enough action.
3. Keep motivated
As they say keep your chin up. Believe you’ll get there and accept that on the way you will have setbacks. Treat them as opportunities to learn and don’t dwell on them too much. Just keep going. A good way to keep motivated is to get a coach or buddy up with a like minded individual and form a success group where you keep each other motivated.
4. Don’t beat yourself up
Many of us have a tendency to be too hard on ourselves. This creates negative energy which drains you and eats away at your motivation and self belief. Celebrate your achievements however small. Phil Mickleson never looked at all hid second places in prior tournaments as failures (everybody else did) – he saw them as great achievements that would one day turn into a first place. He didn’t beat himself up -he stayed positive. Do the same.
5. Take small steps
Keep looking forward and take small steps to get there. Take action in a lot of small steps instead of looking for that one big leap that will get you from where you are today to where you want to be. You’ll be lucky if that leap will ever materialise but a lot of small steps will build confidence and momentum which turn into motivation and energy.
Good luck and Best wishes!
