What is the most important ingredient to achieve any goal?
As we begin a new year all of us have goals, whether that is to build a business, to lose weight, to be, do or have anything in our life; I believe that the most important ingredient to achieve any goal is COMMITMENT.
On my office wall I have a mantra that I believe to be true: “When you are interested you do what is convenient. When you are committed you do whatever it takes.”
A high level of commitment is really what is required to achieve major goals in your life, and that brings us to the Commitment Scale.
There are Four Levels of Commitment. If you understand this scale then you can consider your level of commitment and begin to understand may not be achieving at the level you want.
The First Level of commitment is distraction. Most people live their lives with what I call the shiny object syndrome. They are going in one direction and all of a sudden something else pops up somewhere else and they change their focus. Then they see something out of the corner of their eye and they focus over there, and on and on it goes. Soon everything in their life is a distraction. I want you to keep this in mind, Every distraction is equal. All distractions are equal. If it takes you away from your goal, it doesn’t even matter if it is a worthy cause…it’s a distraction in your life.
When you move up to Level Two on the Commitment Scale you have a decision to make. When you make decisions, when you cut off all other options and focus your attention, you’re applying a level of commitment towards that goal. But that is really not good enough. That is not enough commitment to follow through to achieve it.
Level Three of the Commitment Scale is discipline. Discipline is the requirement to make those necessary daily activities. You need to do the small goals, which by achieving those small goals you will achieve your long-term vision. When you do this, true discipline takes you to a higher level of commitment.
Level Four Commitment, the type of commitment that really changes lives, the type of commitment when you are willing to do whatever it takes – Level Four commitment is devotion. Luciano Pavarotti, the famous tenor said, “Most people think I am disciplined, I’m not. I’m devoted and you see there is a huge difference.” You need to sit back and ask yourself, how devoted are you to your goal? That devotion will drive you. It will cause you to do whatever it takes. It will get you through those tough times and devotion is that Level Four Commitment that really will change your life. I think Johann Wolfgang von Goethe said it best in one of my favorite poems, he said,
“Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now.”
How Committed Are You?