We love in others what we lack ourselves, and would be everything but what we are. R.H. Stoddard
If we had a choice to replace some of our strengths with some other strengths, we would happily trade our strengths and attempt to acquire those traits/ abilities/ expertise that some of our favorite icons have. We would barely stop to think if these same strength suit our personality, image or environment. What is the use of having the abilities of Roger Federer or a Sachin Tendulkar if you don’t have it in you the will and determination to work as hard as they do? Or maybe you seek to be a Michael Jackson like singer but hate to dance. Fortunately we are not given that boon or else we would be having extremely skewed personalities and perhaps always lament that we never realized our newly acquired potential.
The tragedy of our life is that instead of really seeing our strengths we are besotted by the apparent positive qualities of others and we enviously wish we were similarly blessed. If we paused to appreciate ourselves then we would have focused on harnessing the qualities/ strengths and abilities that we posses instead of day dreaming and endlessly waiting for a miracle to do what others can easily achieve but areas that are a big struggle for us. If we really look carefully perhaps it is the success that others enjoy that we envy, the recognition and the monetary success that we actually crave for; the means to that end is what we pretend to crave for.
Genetics, nature and fate have conspired to give us what we are. It is for us to accept it gleefully and utilize it gainfully. It is also human nature to long for what we cannot have, do not have or should not have. Imagine having brute strength and a violent temper. Being blessed with intelligence but not the right attitude could be just as devastating. Unfortunately we pine what we do not have little realizing that instead we are blessed abundantly but we need to find it within us. We also need to harness it when we find these wonderful blessings within us and above all use it for the betterment or advantage of the people, cause or environment around us. Wealth creation is useless if we are misers just as being a gifted singer is wasted if we just sing raunchy numbers and / or act too pricy when the opportunity comes.
Look at the small town people who have achieved success. They may have taken inspiration from the successful people they have seen or heard of but they also understood their abilities and honed it by sheer dint of hard work and focused attention. Sometimes it is persistence and self belief that hold the key to success, other times it is guidance and providence but the one common factor that belies success is your ability to discern the reality that you and you alone are responsible for your destiny.
Remember: “Envy is a symptom of lack of appreciation of our own uniqueness and self worth. Each of us has something to give that no one else has.”
Try these:
- Go around asking 10-15 people, possibly 3 friends, 3 office colleagues, 3 family members and a couple of acquaintances or classmates to list out 5 qualities/ strengths/ abilities that they appreciate/ envy in you. You will soon have a readymade list to work on in order to succeed in life.
- Pick out 3-5 qualities / strengths / abilities that you wished you could acquire/ imbibe/ be gifted. Are there substitutes that can be worked upon? Assuming you cannot get any of these, what is your plan B to ensure you succeed without these.
This post is courtesy www.actspot.com
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