3 Steps to Improving Your Determination

Determination is your ability to align your energy and attention into a sharp focus. Want to deepen your resolve? Try these three steps:

Choose practice over luck. Malcolm Gladwell wrote about the need for devoting 10,000 hours to performing a task to master it. How many of us have heard how it takes 15 years to become an overnight sensation? Sure, there is an element of luck, but I’ve always believed luck is opportunity meeting preparation. Your dedicated practice will properly prepare you for your opportunity.

Be aware of distraction and obstacles. These are the weeds that can choke out determination. Complete determination requires a monomaniacal focus on the success you want to achieve. Olympic athletes are a terrific example of determination and being monomaniacal. They devote their entire existence to achieving the pinnacle of their abilities. I know entrepreneurs who are the same in their focus. Now, think of the great athletes who fell at their peak because of the distractions they let get in their way. Fame and fortune can be very distracting. For the rest of us, social media, your phone and TV are all weeds we need to prevent from derailing our success.

Feed your intention. Good habits feed the proper preparation for determination. Make sure healthy choices for your body, mind and soul are your routine. They may not be the most popular choices, but they are the best choices.

As the quote says, “I like hard. Hard is where other people give up. The more difficult things I complete, the less competition I have.”  Make the right choices and improve your determination.