I don’t know about you, but I am not an antagonistic competitor. I don’t perform well trying to beat the opponent in front of me. I find myself focusing too much on trying to out-do the person, trying to out-talk the person, or intimidate them. My focus is no longer on the task at hand, and I get lost in some personal vendetta that does not help me in accomplishing what I set out to do.
I find that I do my absolute best when I try to defeat myself. When I go to battle with the part of myself that does not believe I can achieve my dream, that’s when I do my best. Go to war with the lazy part of you that does not want to get up early in the morning to start working out. Defeat the part of you that does not want to pick up where you left off with your dream because that part of you believes it will not happen so it does not want to even try. Beat you, every part of you that wants to limit what you are capable of. Destroy the part of you that gave up on the love of your life, the marriage of your dreams, the kids you’ve always wanted, the career you really want, the home you put on your dream board, the trips you have always wanted to take, etc.
Just because it didn’t happen the way you thought it would, when you thought you were ready, does not mean that it’s too late. Study anyone who has accomplished any great feat and you will find that they persevered through what should have been considered a failure or made them quit. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school varsity basketball team in his sophomore year. Kobe Bryant air-balled three times in the final minutes of a playoff game against the Utah Jazz, and lost to the Boston Celtics in embarrassing fashion in 2008. Muhammad Ali was banned from boxing after refusing to submit to the draft because of religious and political beliefs. Walt Disney was turned down by 300 banks trying to secure a loan for his crazy “amusement park” idea.
The greatest enemy we face is not external, rather internal because we are always fighting the thoughts that we are not qualified for what we desire most. Defeat you daily, hourly, and every minute. Be a little better than you were yesterday. Conquer every thought that tries to linger in your mind that you just cannot do whatever you are trying to do. They do nothing but slow you down. Life comes with obstacles, but those obstacles do not have to come with doubt and fear. Yes, those are natural, but natural does not mean they have to stay around longer than necessary. I’ve never seen someone climb to the top of a tall mountain with four bags of luggage. If it is not helping you get there, it is slowing you down. That includes you.