There are no quick fixes when it comes to success.
-Ralph JP
A couple weeks ago Ralph Jean-Paul contacted me wanting to be a guest on my blog. It's my belief that he's the guy to watch in the blogging world in 2010.
To give you just a glimpse his amazing life I took the following from his about page:
"I am 29 years old and live in FL. My life has had some hardships but I’m thankful to have had a great family which included my older sister who is like my twin, a strong supportive mother, and a wise, strong minded, encouraging father.I currently work for one of the four largest Banks in America and I'm also the owner of a few small businesses that I have recently started. I am a personal development speaker and have been speaking for about 4 years.
It takes understanding, information, motivation, and work to achieve the great things in life. That may be the reason so many people fall short of what they want to achieve and what their purpose in life is.
Here I will present you with a wealth of solid, meaningful, and practical information that will help you stay motivated, eliminate the obstacles, and develop the habits that will make a difference in your life."
What are your dreams and desires in life? Do you want to want to be financially free? Do you desire to become physically fit and in great shape? We all want our dreams to become reality. But our dreams will mostly likely remain just dreams if we are not able to work for what we want to accomplish.
I was ecstatic when I opened Tess’s email suggesting “work ethic” as the subject of this guest post. I was considering writing a post about work ethic on my blog so when I read the email, I thought it was perfect timing.
I’ve always admired people who were willing to put time and effort into perfecting their craft. A few weeks ago a friend invited me to go to a symphony. I haven’t been to a symphony since a third grade field trip so I thought it would be a nice experience. While I was listening to the music, I couldn’t help wondering how many hours of practice were put in to enable all of these different instruments to come together to create one beautiful sound.
It is easy for us to think that extraordinary performers are born that way. That they somehow were gifted and that was enough to propel them to success. Nothing could be further from the truth. Talent will only take you so far; and it may fail you if you are not skilled at what you do.
Having a winning work ethic means having the diligence and commitment to do a job well. If there is a silver bullet that can eliminate procrastination and idleness, a good work ethic is it. I once heard an interview with Will Smith where he was asked why he was able to succeed while many people fail in Hollywood. He answered the question by saying, “The only difference-that I can see- is that I will not be outworked, period.”
I was a little bit taken back when I heard that. I thought, “If Will Smith who is extremely likeable, good looking and talented has to work hard to succeed, how much harder does an average Joe like me have to work?”
"Opportunity is missed by most because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work." -Thomas Alva Edison
The Power of Positive Doing
I believe that our thoughts control our actions. So, thinking positively is a step towards living a better life. However, it is not the only step. Many times we forget to take those positive actions.
In my life I have learned that “doing” is the best way to get the results I want. I realized that out of the 7 billion people in the world, none of them woke up this morning and said, “Today, I’m going to make Ralph Jean-Paul a success!” I know that in order to live the extraordinary life that I want to live, it is going to take decisive action and effort.
I was born in the poorest country in the western hemisphere. My family moved to America when I was 5 years old with the intention of creating a better life for us all. My work ethic was instilled in my sister and myself at an early age.
When I was about 11, my father started his own retail business. I can remember my dad waking me up on Saturdays at 5am and we would go to wholesalers to pick up merchandise. I hated it! As I sat in the passenger seat wondering which episode of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles I was missing, my dad would talk about how important it is to work hard for what you want.
Now that I am older, I am convinced that having a winning work ethic is the key to great accomplishment.
There is power behind taking action towards your goals. I call it the power of positive doing. It helps me to remember to reinforce my positive mental attitude with meaningful, decisive action.
Building a Winning Work Ethic
Prepare with a Purpose-Preparation is the key to winning. Practicing your skill for long periods of time is a great way to perfect it. But the way you prepare is just as important as how long you prepare. When you prepare for success, have a specific outcome in mind. For example, if you are preparing for a presentation, practice it as if there were a group of people in front of you hanging on your every word. Speak as loud as you would and use the same gestures that you would if you were actually performing in front of an audience. Practicing this way will make it easier for you to perform effectively in the real situation.
Avoid what is Easy-Begin doing the things that other people are not willing to do and you will begin to reach heights that others cannot reach. I recently began waking up at 3 am. I first tried this out because I wanted to work on projects without interruptions. It started as an experiment, but now it is a lifestyle. Doing this has helped me successfully complete many new projects. It wasn’t easy, but it has made a major difference in my life.
Get Motivated-We are all motivated by different things. Some of us are motivated by accomplishment, love, or obtaining a certain lifestyle. Lock on to what motivates you and focus on it regularly.
Challenge Yourself and Others-Learn to look for new challenges in everything that you do. Do not be satisfied with what you have accomplished if you are capable of accomplishing more. Push yourself to be the best you can possibly be. Once you are able to take yourself to your limit, challenge the people around you to do the same.
“The secret of joy in work is contained in one word – excellence. To know how to do something well is to enjoy it.”-Pearl S. Buck
Commit to Excellence
Having a commitment to excellence is promising yourself to do your best and to strive to do better. The person who commits to excellence in their personal or professional life will never lack for passion or drive. It also means that you commit to finishing what you start. We all have goals that we wanted to accomplish but somehow were unable to finish. Committing to excellence means seeing the job through to the end.
Work Harder on Yourself
Author Jim Rohn once said, “Work harder on yourself than you do on your job”. The idea is that when you work to develop your skills and abilities, the fruit of your labor will show itself in all parts of your life. For example, when you work to develop your people skills, it will make you a better employee, friend, spouse etc. Take the time to improve yourself in the area of life where you struggle.
Each and every one of us has the opportunity to become winners in business, life and love. But it may take some effort for us to get there. How has your work ethic paid off in your life?
Ralph is not only committed to his own personal development, but he is also committed to the personal development of everyone he comes in contact with. He is the main writer for his blog Potential 2 Success, a site that focuses on result driven personal development. Ralph is currently offering a free download of his ebook “The Quick Confidence Guide” to all of his subscribers.
Be sure to follow Ralph on Twitter, Facebook and sign up for his RSS feed…you won't want to miss this mover and shaker live his dreams!
Please tell us about your work ethic below!
HI Ralph,
So nice to read this post today…mostly cause only recently even i started waking up at 4 a.m. which for me is very very very very early. I have never been a morning person..but had decided to change that this Year :)I know how awesome it feels to work, pray, meditate uninterrupted for sometime…and i wouldnt trade it for a thing. (I have a 3 year old running around all day) Yes its hard cause i am not used to it…but i am enjoying it..and am goign to make it a habit … The easy way out has been tried far too many times..and wheres the challenge there??I like pushing myself a bit…it makes the success of a project that much more enriching…
Tess, Thank you for introducing me to this wonderful writer/blogger…I loved this post …..
Much Love to you Both,
Z~